Disclaimer: I do not own the Originals!
Hayley sat on the couch as she played with a dagger while glaring at Agnes, the witch that had encouraged Sophie to kill her when Klaus and Elijah hadn't agreed to help them within the allotted time.
"I feel fine." Hayley glared. "And if I didn't, I would ask Rebekah or Klaus to make an appointment with a regular doctor."
"You are overdue for a checkup." Agnes insisted.
"What am I going to do, huh? Pop into the Quarter for a quick ultrasound?" Hayley asked sarcastically. "A pregnant werewolf escorted by a witch? Nothing to see here!"
"A lot of women would kill to have a child." Rebekah huffed but Hayley could hear the slight jealousy in her voice. "It strikes me as odd that you're not taking better care of yours."
Suddenly the knife Hayley had been playing with was imbedded in the wall a few millimeters from Rebekah's head. "If you ever insinuate that I don't care about my child again, the next time I'll aim for your eye!"
"Calm down, this is not good for the baby." Agnes spoke up, trying to sound calm but Hayley could hear the tremble in her voice.
"I'm sorry Rebekah." Hayley mutter so only Rebekah would hear. "I just don't trust her, okay. Last time I saw her she was encouraging Sophie to kill me and my baby."
A look of comprehension appeared on Rebekah's face and she nodded subtly, smiling slightly.
"I know a doctor out in the Bayou, off the beaten path." Agnes continued, completely oblivious to the conversation between Hayley and Rebekah. "Now, I took the liberty of making an appointment for you."
"You did what?" Hayley asked with a low growl.
"Tonight, after hours, just us." Agnes hastened to reassure the pissed off werewolf. "Vampires will never get word of it."
"Fine." Hayley snarled. "Bayou-baby-doctor it is. But if you betray me, I will ask Klaus or Rebekah to turn you and then I will torture you until I get bored."
"I'll pick you up in an hour." Agnes hurried away.
"I do not trust her." Hayley kept glaring after Agnes.
"So text me when you get to the doctor and I'll come after you." Rebekah said as she pulled out a computer.
Hayley was about to leave to get ready for her appointment when Klaus walked in. He laughed as he saw Rebekah sitting by a computer and looking at satellite pictures.
"Please, sister, tell me you're not still at it with the internet search. How does one begin, anyway?" Klaus poured himself some scotch. "Just type in 'anonymous attic'?"
Hayley chuckled and kissed him on the cheek before she walked out of the room and up the stairs to take a shower, not seeing the soft smile take over Klaus face for a second before it was gone.
After her shower Hayley got dressed in black skinny jeans, white top, light beige pullover and black boots and then she made her way out of the house to meet up with Agnes, all they while telling herself that killing Agnes while she was driving while she herself was pregnant and in the car, wasn't the best idea.
The whole drive to the Bayou, Hayley refused to talk to Agnes. The pit of uneasiness in her stomach growing larger and larger the closer they got to the clinic. She pulled out her phone and texted Rebekah, "I have a real bad feeling about this. Get me out of her, quickly!"
"Who are you texting?" Agnes asked, trying to sound nonchalant.
"I just texted to ask Klaus if he could pick up some fresh honey." Hayley lied as she put her phone away. "I've read that it's a good, natural, source of energy for pregnant women or something along those lines."
"We're here." Agnes stopped the car outside a ramshackle of a house in the middle of the Bayou.
"This is the doctor's office?" Hayley asked skeptically.
"Dr, Paige is only this far out Marcel's men kept terrorizing her patients." Agnes smiled and nodded towards the 'house'. "Go! She won't bite!"
"No, but I might." Hayley muttered as she got out of the car and made her way towards the clinic.
Hayley slowly made her way into the clinic while all her instincts where screaming at her to get out and run. She muttered silently to herself, "Rebekah, please hurry."
"Hello." A woman greeted her as she walked through the door. "How can I help you?"
"My name's Hayley, I have an appointment." Hayley said confidently, hiding her fear behind a wall.
"Right this way. I'm Dr. Paige." Dr. Paige directed her to a room. "If you could lie down and lift your shirt."
Hayley hesitantly made her way the 'bed' in the middle of the room and laid down. She regretted not taking her knife with her and she was cursing her own stupidity.
"This might feel a bit cold." Dr. Paige warned as she put the ultrasound goo on Hayley's stomach.
Dr. Paige places the ultrasound against her and moves it around and suddenly they could hear the fetal heartbeat.
"Your baby's heart rate is perfect." Dr. Paige smiled at her.
"Of course it is." Hayley smiled back. "With me as her mom and Klaus as a father, she couldn't be anything else then a little badass."
Dr. Paige chuckled and handed her a tissue to clean up the goo on her abdomen. After cleaning up, Hayley sat up and didn't notice when her pullover slipped down her shoulder to show of her crescent-moon shaped birthmark.
"That's a unique birthmark." Dr. Paige said tightly.
"We're pretty much done here, right?" Hayley stood up and rightened her cardigan, feeling her uneasiness sky-rocket.
"Your blood pressure is a bit high." Dr. Paige muttered. "I've got something for it."
Hayley watched as Dr. Paige walked away and pulled out her phone to send another text to Rebekah. "If these people kill me, I'll come back to haunt you Rebekah!"
Suddenly a wolf started to howl loudly, startling Hayley. She felt like the howl was a warning and she needed to get out of there, quickly. The urge to run became more prominent as she looked out the window and saw a car's headlights approaching.
"Ahh, you know, I'm… I'm actually not that good with pills." Hayley muttered as Dr. Paige came back with her medication. "Don't you know some natural remedies that I could get from the store or something?"
"Heh, truth be told, neither am I." Dr. Paige shifted nervously as she walked over to a counter and started preparing something.
Hayley looked around nervously and saw a group of intimidating looking men walk into the clinic and have a whispered conversation with Agnes. She turned around to see what Dr. Paige were doing and saw her about to lounge at her with a syringe filled with… something.
Quick as a fox…eh… wolf, Hayley grabbed her arm and headbutted her. When Dr. Paige was disoriented, she injected her with whatever was in the syringe, causing the Dr to lose consciousness quite quickly.
When the men in the lobby saw what happened they ran towards the door, but Hayley managed to shut and lock the door before they could enter. As the men rattled the doorknob, Hayley struggled to open the widow and jumped out so she could run away from the clinic.
She noticed several men run after her into the woods and smirked, if she played this right then she could kill them and be on her way before they knew what hit them. Hayley hid behind a tree and waited for the men to pass her before she ran up to them from behind and broke the neck of the first man.
As the second man tried to attack her, she dodged and hit his adams apple, making him unable to breath and then she broke that one's neck too. A third man tried to attack her with a knife but she quickly disarmed him and stabbed said knife through the top of his head, efficiently killing him but leaves her only weapon stuck in his brain.
Hayley saw a fourth man lounge at her and she ran towards him, jumped up when she got close enough and rapped her thighs around his neck, then she twisted her whole body in a way that broke his neck too.
As she crouched into a defensive position on the ground and looked around for more treats, her eyes glowed werewolf-gold. A large, burly man walked towards her but before she could deal with him too, he fell to the ground with his neck snapped, curtesy of Rebekah who stood behind him.
"Have to say, I'm very impressed." Rebekah looked around at the dead people around them.
"You're late." Hayley chuckled.
"I got a bit held up." Rebekah shrugged. "Who are they?"
"Witches. Warlocks. Whatever." Hayley told her with a head tilt.
"There's more of them." Rebekah said as she saw more men with flashing lights. "Run!"
"I can't just leave you!" Hayley denied.
"I'm an Original." Rebekah declared. "They can't kill me. Now go!"
Hayley reluctantly heeded her order and started to run as she heard Rebekah mutter. "If I had a dollar for every mess my family has got me into…"
Rebekah stopped abruptly as two arrows pierced her heart, which temporarily neutralized her and she fell to the ground.
"Rebekah!" Hayley called out.
Suddenly someone grabbed Hayley from behind and pinned her arms to her sides. She refused to go down with out a fight, though, and leaned her head back to sink her teeth into the neck of the person holding her and then she wrenched her head away with all the force she could muster, ripping the man's throat out.
She prepared to run when an arrow hit her shoulder. Hayley ripped it out with a glare and got ready to fight when she started to feel woozy and then everything went black.
OGOGOGO
Klaus walked into St. Anne's Catholic Church with a smirk as he interrupted Davina and Tim's conversation.
"You two are absolutely adorable! Warms my heart, it really does. But I need a word with the young lady. So, Tim…" Klaus grabbed Tim's shoulder and compelled him. "Go sit down. Count to one-hundred-thousand."
Tim walked towards the back of the church mechanically.
"Quietly, now, there's a good boy. I assume you know who I am?" Klaus asked as he turned to Davina. "Then, let's get right to it, shall we? Your current dilemma strikes me as a case of poor alliances. You're loyal to Marcel and yet he keeps you tucked away in an attic. Surely you prefer just a little more freedom? And yet, Marcel keeps you prisoner."
"Marcel doesn't keep me prisoner, he keeps me safe." Davina denied. "He's my friend."
"Well, I've no doubt that he is. For a girl caught in a war between witches and vampires, I might be a better friend. I would keep you safe. And, I'd allow you your freedom." Klaus began to pace up and down the aisle. "If Marcel could do that, why hasn't he done it already? And it does beg the question; If Marcel can't protect you, then what about those you care about?"
Klaus looked over at Tim who was sitting in the last pew, silently counting to himself.
"If anyone tries to hurt anyone I care about, I'll kill them." Davina glared.
"Well, then. Sounds like you don't need Marcel at all. Perhaps you've suspected it all along." Klaus said thoughtfully, hiding his devious smirk. "Your dear friend Marcel tricks you into doing his bidding and all the while, you rot in an attic, alone, while young Timothy moves on with his life."
Davina stared at Klaus with intent, very clearly angry, "You feel that? That's your blood starting to boil."
Klaus groaned as he feels his blood start to increase in temperature. Sweat started to drip from his forehead but he composed himself from this unexpected turn of events as a picture of a smiling Hayley passed through his mind. He vamp-sped over to Tim and put him in a headlock.
"Such a shame to lose him, just as you found him again." Klaus turned to Tim. "And I really did admire your skill with a violin."
"Don't you dare hurt him!" Davina called out, both scared and angry.
"Oh, I hope I won't have to." Klaus admitted. "But, you see, there is a woman that I would do anything to keep safe, up to and including, killing the whole of New Orleans."
"Let him go now!" Davina demanded.
"You should know, I don't deal well with demands." Klaus looked at her.
Davina trusted her open hand out and twisted it, using her magic to break the bones in Klaus' leg. Unfortunately for her, it only took a moment for Klaus to reset the bones in his leg and heal.
"Impressive." Klaus nodded at her. "But you don't want to fight me, love, innocent people have a way of ending up dead."
"Please, let me go." Tim pleaded with a quiet whisper.
"Your choice, little witch." Klaus hummed as he looked at Davina. "Swear allegiance to me alone and the boy lives. Stand against me…"
The candles behind Davina flared up as she got angrier. Suddenly she trusted both her hands in front of her with a shriek and unleashed a shockwave of magic against him. The wave caused the Bibles in the pews to be blown up and a strong gust of wind blew the pages around the room as all the windows in the church shattered.
The telekinetic force from the magic threw Klaus and Tim violently towards the entrance, even as Davina herself is knocked backwards by the power and thrown to the ground.
Klaus looked on from the balcony above as Davina ran out the door while he talked to Rebekah about the text he had gotten from Hayley. "If these people kill me, I'll come back to haunt you Rebekah!" The words he had read played over and over in his mind as the worry in his stomach grew.
"What do you mean, 'She's missing'?" Klaus growled lowly into his phone.
"What do you think I mean?" Rebekah snapped back. "There's blood and bodies everywhere, someone's ripped this lot to shreds and there's no smart-aleck pregnant girl anywhere close by."
"Keep looking." Klaus ordered. "I'm on my way."
"Please, don't hurt me." Tim begged him as he was pulled to his feet after Klaus had hung up the phone.
"It wasn't my intent to but you see, someone important to me is in danger so we've run out of time to play nice." Klaus explained to him before he threw Tim over the balcony, Tim's violin swiftly joining him.
"Tim!" Davina ran up to Tim, who was breathing shallowly and was severely injured, and pulled his head into her lap. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."
"One of the tragic consequences of war. Innocent bystanders." Klaus entered and walked towards them. "What terrible quilt you'll have to live with young Timothy's blood on your hands."
"Get away from him!" Davina snarled through her tears.
"No, no, let's not be hasty." Klaus raised his hands in surrender. "After all, I can heal him. All you have to do is ask."
Klaus crouched down to her level as Davina looked down at Tim and after a few moments she nodded her head.
"Please." Davina begged desperately.
"For you Davina? With pleasure." Klaus bit into his wrist and fed his blood to Tim.
"You will forget everything that happened after the concert, including the fact that you saw Davina." Klaus compelled Tim after he had healed.
"What? No!" Davina protested loudly.
"If he remembers seeing you, he might come looking. If the witches learn of him, if they know you have a weakness, then poor Tim might end up as leverage in an awful scheme to control you. Again." Klaus explained, trying not to let his impatient show, the only thing he really wanted right now was to find Hayley to make sure she was okay and kill anyone who had harmed her.
"Take your violin case with you. You'll remember losing the instrument backstage after the performance. You really should be more careful." Klaus compelled Tim and sent him on his way as he turned back to Davina. "All fixed! And now, you owe me a favor."
Klaus used all of his considerable hybrid enhanced speed to make it to the Bayou as quickly as possible. He arrived in the clinic to find Rebekah standing over a passed-out doctor.
"Wow! You abandoned your quest for power to help out your family!" Rebekah looked up at him in mock shock. "Having an off day?"
"Who took her, Rebekah?" Klaus asked very calmly.
"I don't know." Rebekah admitted.
"What do you mean, you don't know?" Klaus looked at her seriously. "And who killed her attackers?"
"I don't know!" Rebekah repeated strongly. "I had an arrow in my heart. I know Hayley killed a lot of them, but if she didn't kill all off them, then…"
Rebekah was cut off by a wolf howling in the distance. Klaus looked at his sister and raised an eyebrow as Rebekah huffed. "Lovely, maybe her cousins will know where she is."
Klaus and Rebekah made their way outside and as they exited the building, they saw Hayley stumbling towards them, her clothes tattered, ripped and dirty. Hayley looked dazed and exhausted and the Mikaelson siblings ran towards her.
"Hayley! What happened?" Klaus ran froward and pulled the werewolf into his arms, careful not to hurt her.
"I can't remember." Hayley murmured groggily.
"You're completely healed." Klaus muttered as he anxiously examined her for any injuries. "There's not a scratch on you."
"One of the perks of being a werewolf, remember?" Hayley gave a tired but teasing smile.
"No, not that fast." Klaus muttered before he pulled her close again, burring his face in her neck so he could breathe in her scent, not seeing the small smile on Rebekah's face at his actions.
"It's the baby." Rebekah gasped in shock when she figured it out.
"What are you talking about?" Klaus pulled back to look at his sister.
"The vampire blood – Klaus's vampire blood – in your system. It can heal any wound." Rebekah told Hayley even as Klaus looked at her incredulously. "Your own child healed you."
"She's a fighter, just like her parents." Hayley smiled and placed a hand on her stomach.
"How did you escape?" Rebekah asked softly. "You were outnumbered, unarmed? Those men were ripped to shreds!"
"First of; anything and everything can be used as a weapon." Hayley smirked. "And after you were shot, I might have ripped the throat out of a guy with my teeth."
"Nice." Klaus chuckled, that would explain the blood on the lover half of her face and neck.
"And second; I think it was the wolf." Hayley murmured. "I think it's trying to protect me."
"The witches were supposed to protect you!" Klaus snarled as he glared at nothing. "When I get my hands on Sophie Devereaux…"
"It wasn't Sophie. It was Agnes." Hayley told him, then she gave a dark smile. "And get in line."
"Sophie, Agnes, it's all the same to me!" Klaus growled and pulled Hayley protectively against him. "I'll slaughter the lot of them!"
"Not if Elijah gets there first." Rebekah chuckled with a smirk.
"Elijah?" Hayley asked a little confused. "You found him?"
"He's been in touch and he has a plan." Rebekah told them. "All he asks is that we take care of you."
"Shouldn't he worry about himself?" Hayley looked at Klaus and Rebekah. "I mean, he was the one kidnapped, not me."
"Elijah, the damsel in distress." Klaus snorted and Hayley giggled.
"Can we go home now?" Hayley asked softly and Klaus felt warmth fill him as she called the mansion 'home'. "I'd like to sleep for about a week."
Klaus watched as Hayley tried to walk but her knees buckled as she stumbled and started to fall. He quickly sped over to catch her before she could hit the ground and scooped her up into his arms.
"I've got you, love." Klaus murmured into her hair as she curled closer to him with a content sigh. "I've got you."
Two hours later, after Klaus had placed Hayley in her bed and just sat with her for a while to reassure himself that she was okay, he made his way to Cami's apartment.
"Klaus!" Cami called out shocked as she saw him standing in the doorway behind her. "What are you doing here?"
"I've had quite a night. I recall you mentioning something about nightmares and insomnia. I believe I can help." Klaus looked her in the eyes and compelled her. "Can I come in?"
"This is super weird." Cami muttered. "Come in."
Klaus walked in and approached her slowly.
"Wait, that's right, I told you what happened. I never tell anybody but I told you." Cami muttered as tears filled her eyes. "What if what happened to my brother were demons? What if a vampire compelled him?"
"And if so, would you devote yourself to finding the guilty party?" Klaus asked her calmly. "Would you sacrifice everything to find out the truth? To what end?"
"To what end?" Cami asked incredulously. "This is the entire reason why I'm in New Orleans!"
"Did you know I almost lost the woman I just started to have feelings for today?" Klaus asked slowly. "And as I made my way to her the only thing I could think about was killing every single person responsible for her getting hurt."
"What does that have to do with anything?" Cami asked, annoyed.
"I don't want you to become consumed by the need to find the ones responsible for what happened to your brother." Klaus murmured. "You are my friend and I want you to find peace."
"No!" Cami protested and backed away from him. "You can't compel me to forget this!"
"If I allow you to remember, the knowledge will eat away at you." Klaus told her softly. "Your quest for truth will only put you in danger."
"You don't care about me!" Cami accused and Klaus only shook his head in disappointment. "You only want me to forget this so I can focus on Marcel! So I'll be a good little spy, for you!"
"I need your loyalty, yes, and though it may appear selfish to you, the scope of my plan goes far beyond myself!" Klaus told her. "Power aside, I am trying to protect the woman I have feelings for and to honor my brother!"
"What about my brother? My twin brother. We were bonded our whole lives and I know, I know he didn't just snap." Cami glared at him. "And I need to know who did this and I need to make it right!"
"How old are you, Cami?" Klaus asked softly.
"What has that got to do with anything?!" Cami huffed.
"How old are you?" Klaus repeated his question.
"22." Cami told him.
"You were bonded with your brother for 22 years." Klaus hummed as he looked at her. "I've been bonded to mine for over a thousand years."
"You're over…" Cami gasped with wide eyes.
"So I know what you're feeling." Klaus continued. "But if your brother was anything like you, he would want you to move on and be happy."
"NO!" Cami screamed at him as she backed away. "Don't take this away from me!"
Klaus grabbed her and looked her in the eyes to compel her. "You will do nothing. Your brother was ill. He killed those people and himself and it's a tragedy. All you can do is move on."
He let her go and tears fell from her eyes as she sat down on the couch. Klaus took her hand and continued his compulsion. "Know that your brother is at peace and that you needn't worry. I will find out what happened and when I do, I will make sure whoever harmed your brother will suffer. As for you… Tonight, you will sleep and you will dream of a world that is far better than this one… a world where there is no evil, no demons and all people desire only to be good."
OGOGOGO
Elijah stood in the attic room as Davina stared at him and he at her. While she studied him, Elijah let his thoughts wander. How was Hayley, the fierce she-wolf he was so drawn to? And why was he so drawn to her in the first place?
He had loved a couple of women and a few men over his long life but no one had pulled him to them as Hayley did, like a moth to a flame. She was the light in a dark world and Elijah wanted her.
"You're the one they call honorable." Davina spoke up, knocking Elijah out of his thoughts.
"Yes, that's what they call me." Elijah smiled at her, skin still gray and mottled from not feeding during his daggering. "And yet, I followed my brother here to New Orleans to engage in a war. So, I ask you; Does that sound honorable to you?"
"You don't look well." Davina pointed out with concern.
"Well, only this morning, I had a mystical dagger embedded in my chest, so I'd say I'm holding myself together quite well." Elijah looked over at Davina. "Davina, I believe that you and I have the power to end a war between witches and vampires before it truly begins. I, by keeping my brother in line and you, by behaving like your true self, not some tool for Marcel or the witches."
"And why should I trust you?" Davina asked suspiciously.
"Well, for one thing, in spite of a ravenous hunger, I have not tried to take your blood." Elijah pointed out softly.
"Why not?" Davina shrugged. "I'm the only one here."
"Even in my present condition, I would not feed from a child." Elijah informed her.
Davina looked at him as she took a hat pin and pricked her finger with it. A drop of blood clings to the tip of it and she placed the drop on Elijah's lip. He licked the drop off of his lower lip slowly and after a moment his skin returned to its normal complexion, making Davina smile, pleased.
A while later Elijah walked around and took in his surroundings as Davina stood by her canvas, drawing. As he saw Tim's broken violin, he picked it up from the table to examine it.
"Do you play?" Elijah asked as he looked at the violin.
"That's… not mine." Davina replied sadly.
Elijah sat down on a chair and started to tinker with the violin for a moment, until he sat up as he heard Marcel's footsteps come towards the door and when he entered the attic room, Elijah was nowhere to be found.
Elijah watched and listen as Marcel told Davina to pack and how Davina lied about a spell as Marcel tried to look into his coffin. Davina was a good actress, he had to admit, playing at being excited to leave, but she couldn't fool Elijah who had over a thousand years to learn how to read people.
"You didn't reveal that I was awake." Elijah stated slowly.
"We're not done talking yet!" Davina smiled shyly at him.
Elijah picked up the violin again and sat down before returning to his task of fixing it. "You and Marcel seem very close."
"Marcel's my family." Davina admitted softly.
"And yet Marcel is someone who delights in harming the witches." Elijah looked up at her. "Those people, I would think, you would consider family. This does not trouble you?"
"No." Davina stated strongly. "They deserve it."
"Why would you say that?" Elijah asked with a confused frown.
"'Cause they're liars." Davina told him darkly. "All of them."
At Elijah's quizzical look, Davina started to explain why she believed that they deserved it.
"They made me and my friends do this Harvest ritual. They said our participation would bring our family strength, health… that we'd forever be celebrated as saviors of the community. But all they really wanted was more power. So, I left before they could get it." Davina informed him slowly. "Now, they're running out of time, because after the Harvest, comes the Reaping. And if they don't complete the Harvest, there won't be a Reaping. Soon, all the witches in the Quarter will start to lose their power. Eventually, they will cease to be witches altogether."
"So, what does it take to complete this ritual?" Elijah looked curious.
"I have to die." Davina sighed.
Elijah felt shocked and disgusted by this revelation. They killed children just to have more power? Even when Niklaus was at his worst he had never killed children out of spite or anger, never. The youngest Niklaus had ever killed out of anger or spite was 18. That of course, both Elijah and his siblings had killed children but those were mercy killings.
One child in particular came to mind; Aiden had been 8 years old when Elijah killed him. It was the 1500s in England where Elijah and Niklaus had been on his way back to their home from a meeting with a couple of witches when they heard pained whimpers coming from an ally.
Together they had made their way to the injured party and found an 8-year-old boy laying in a pool of his own blood, clothes ripped and mostly gone, with hand shaped bruises around his throat and hips. It had been easy with their enhanced sense of smell to figure out what had happened.
"Are you angels?" The boy asked softly as he looked at Elijah and Niklaus. "Here to take me away?"
"Why do you think that?" Elijah asked the young boy as he crouched down beside him, contemplating giving him his blood to heal him but the possibility of the child dying anyway and then transitioning was too high. Turning children was not a good idea.
"Mama used to tell me that angels were the most beautiful creatures in existence." The boy told them.
"My name is Niklaus and this is my older brother Elijah." Niklaus murmured softy as he crouched down beside his brother. "What's your name?"
"Aiden…" Aiden trailed of into body shaking coughs that made him moan in pain.
"Do you want me to make the pain go away, Aiden?" Elijah asked gently as he stroked his hand through Aiden's hair.
"Will I see mama again?" Aiden looked at them hopefully.
"Where is your mama?" Niklaus wanted to know.
"She's in heaven." Aiden mumbled. "She got sick and then she went to join God."
"Yes, if I take your pain you'll see your mama again." Elijah felt tears in his eyes.
"Okay, angel." Aiden smiled peacefully. "Take my pain and let me see mama again."
Elijah swiftly broke the young boys neck and Aiden died with a smile on his face…
Elijah refocused on the teenage witch who was packing her suitcase. "So, enlighten me. What did you mean when you said you had to die?"
"That's what the Harvest was. They said they'd put us four girls in a state of, like, peaceful limbo as part of the offering. And then later, at the Reaping, we'd awaken and be reborn." Davina said as she placed a shirt in her suitcase. "I never got as far as the limbo part, which means that the Harvest isn't complete. That's why the witches are so freaked out. The Reaping is just around the corner and if they don't finish before then, it's over. All I haveto do is wait it out."
"And then what?" Elijah looked at her.
"They're punished and I'm free." Davina shrugged.
"From Marcel?" Elijah asked slowly.
"Of magic. All our power will drain away and I'll be normal." Davina smiled in happiness at the thought.
"Is that what you want?" Elijah hummed. "To be normal?"
"I just don't wanna be what I am. I can't control it sometimes. Magic." Davina started to cry. "I… hurt people. Even when I don't mean to."
"Why don't you tell me about your friends?" Elijah asked patiently. "You must miss them."
"There's Tim." Davina smiled through her tears. "He doesn't know about any of this witch stuff, he's normal. My best friend, Monique, she was a part of the Harvest too. She's lucky. No one ever fought for me, but someone fought for her. The only one who ever spoke out against the Harvest was Monique's aunt."
"And who is that?" Elijah wanted to know.
"Sophie Devereaux." Davina sighed as Elijah raised his eyebrow at her in slight shock.
XOXOXOX
Hayley played with the hem of Klaus' shirt she and Rebekah waited for Klaus to come back with Sophie Devereaux.
"Why are you wearing Nik's shirt again?" Rebekah looked at her with a frown.
"It's comfortable and he startled me this morning so I spilled milk on mine." Hayley shrugged.
"But how did that end with you wearing his shirt?" Rebekah asked.
"As I was trying to dry the milk from my shirt Klaus just gave me the closets shirt he could reach, I guess." Hayley hummed softly.
Suddenly Sophie was sitting on the couch in front of them, looking around in confusion.
"We had a deal!" Klaus snarled angerly at the witch. "You protect my unborn child and her mother, I dismantle Marcel's army. And while I've been busy fulfilling my part of the bargain, you allowed Hayley to be attacked and almost killed by a gaggle of lunatic witches!"
"I had nothing to do with it, I swear." Sophie protested frantically. "Hayley and I are linked, remember? She dies, I die."
"Then who were they?" Rebekah asked confused.
"They are a faction of extremists." Sophie sighed. "Sabine stupidly told them about some vision she had about the baby."
"What kind of vision?" Klaus asked even if Hayley had told both him and Rebekah what had happened with Sabine.
"She has them all the time. They are totally open to interpretation." Sophie sounded slightly annoyed. "I'm guessing she's wrong on this one."
"Well, how, may I ask, was this particular vision interpreted?" Klaus had a small growl in his voice.
"Pretty much that your baby would bring death to all witches." Sophie shrugged.
"Ah, well, I grow fonder of this child by the second." Klaus smirked happily.
"Yeah, daddy's little princess in going to kill all the evil witches, yes she is." Hayley cooed as she stroked her abdomen, then as she looked up at the others and saw the way they looked at her she asked, "What?"
"Daddy's little princess?" Klaus asked with a soft smile.
"Do you prefer papa?" Hayley asked with her head tilted to the side.
"No, daddy's little princess works just fine." Klaus chuckled and Hayley beamed at him.
"Sophie, look… I promised Elijah that I would protect the Mikaelson miracle-baby whilst he tries to win your witch Davina's loyalty." Rebekah looked at Sophie seriously. "Why don't you tell me just how extreme this faction is?"
"Elijah is talking to Davina?" Sophie sat up straighter in shock.
"Yeah." Rebekah nodded. "As we speak, I imagine."
"I'm guessing she'll have plenty to say about that crowd." Sophie murmured.
"Do tell." Klaus prompted with intrigue.
"I… wasn't always an advocate for the witches." Sophie admitted and started to tell them about how she was eight months ago and started to tell them about the Harvest when Rebekah interrupted.
"What the bloody hell is a Harvest?" Rebekah asked.
"It's a ritual our coven does every three centuries so that the bond to our ancestral magic is restored." Sophie explained. "We appease our ancestors; they keep our ancestral power flowing."
"And why haven't I heard of this?" Klaus wanted to know.
"Because the Harvest always seemed like a myth. A story, passed on through generations like Noah's Ark or the Buddha walking on water." Sophie shrugged. "The kind some people take literally and some people don't."
Sophie continued to tell them about the Harvest and how she tried to stop it, "They had the girls in our community preparing for months. Four would be chosen for the Harvest. They said it was an honor, that they were special. I thought it was a myth."
"Was it?" Rebekah looked at her.
Sophie looked guilty but before she could say anything, Klaus's phone started to ring. When Klaus saw that it was Marcel, he decided to answer it.
"Marcel." Klaus greeted 'happily', making Hayley stifle a laugh. "Bit early in the day for you, isn't it?"
"I know, I make this look easy, but I still have an empire to run." Marcel chuckled.
"Rather you than me." Klaus gave a fake smile all the while sneering inside; Of course Marcel had an empire to run, he had stolen it from Klaus and his family in the first place. "All that responsibility seems like such a bore."
"Well, this might spice things up; I just heard about a bunch of dead witches out in the Bayou." Marcel told him. "The kinda damage a werewolf might do, only there was no full moon. From what I've heard, one of the witches even had his throat ripped out by human teeth."
"Human teeth you say?" Klaus made sure to sound intrigued even as he looked at a preening Hayley with a proud smirk.
"Yeah, human teeth." Marcel repeated, like he couldn't believe it. "I have an informant out there I need to meet and I would love for you to go with me."
"Dead witches in the Bayou, one who possibly had his throat ripped out by human teeth?" Klaus hummed. "Sounds like less of a problem and more like a cause for celebration."
"Well, something killed them and may still be out there." Marcel pointed out. "And with your blood the only cure for a werewolf bite, I would love for you to accompany me."
"You only want me for my blood and my powers." Klaus pretended to be sad. "Haven't been in the Bayou in ages. I'm on my way."
"Peace out, brother." Marcel hung up.
"You can't go out there now." Sophie protested with concern. "I need to gather the witches' remains and consecrate them. I don't get to them before sundown, we'll lose the link to their magic."
"Selfish bitch." Hayley muttered lowly so only Klaus and Rebekah could hear her.
"Those witches tried to kill Hayley." Klaus glared darkly at the witch. "I'd prefer for Marcel's informant not to find anything that would lead him back to us, to her."
"But…" Sophie tried to protest again.
"Stay put." Klaus pointed a finger at Sophie. "And save the rest of your story 'til I return."
Sophie left a few minutes after Klaus and Hayley just knew she was going to the Bayou anyway and decided to follow her. As she followed after Sophie, Hayley let her thought wander.
The absolute happiness in Klaus' eyes when she had called their unborn daughter 'Daddy's little princess' was etched into her mind. She had never seen someone be so happy by a simple sentence before. What had happened to Klaus that made him so guarded and paranoid? Hayley decided that she would help him if she could, after all, he was the father of her child.
Hayley entered the mausoleum to see Sophie packing various bottles of what she assumed was magical ingredients into a back pack.
"Hey, what the hell?" Sophie gasped as she saw Hayley.
"I figured out as soon as you left the house that you were going out to the Bayou anyway." Hayley smirked. "I'm going with you."
"No, thank. Already got assaulted by Klaus this morning." Sophie scoffed. "Don't need a repeat."
"And if whatever is responsible for those dead witches decides to add one more witch to the tally, what then?" Hayley huffed with a small glare. "You can't use magic and I you also look like someone who can't really defend themselves."
"I can so defend myself!" Sophie protested, looking insulted.
"With magic? Yeah, that doesn't surprise me." Hayley looked at her. "But without magic? You are as helpless as a child. And if you die, so do I and I really don't have any plans on dying."
Sophie tried to leave but Hayley stepped in her way with a dark look.
"Listen, the only reason I came to this town in the first place was to learn more about my family." Hayley explained slowly, happy that she had some of the original Hayley's memories, plus she had promised the original Hayley to find her family. "Your sister's the one that told me Marcel ran the werewolves out of the Quarter into the Bayou. And last night, I'm pretty sure that some guardian-wolf saved my life. So, I'm coming with you."
"Could you two be more idiotic?" Rebekah asked as she walked in.
"Yes." Hayley deadpanned.
"Two can play the follow-game, you know." Rebekah said, ignoring Hayley. "You heard Klaus, he and Marcel are headed right where you're going."
"So distract them." Hayley threw her hands up. "Because unless you want to lock a hormonal, pregnant werewolf in a tomb, I'm coming with you. And wouldn't Klaus and Elijah be mad if they hear that the baby and I died of asphyxiation?"
"Why can't you distract them?" Rebekah groaned.
"I could but I don't think anyone would be happy with me building a small bomb and detonating it in the Bayou or in the city, so…" Hayley shrugged. She smiled as she remembered Caden, the EOD specialist on her team in her last life. He had been so enthusiastic about teaching her how to make small portable explosives 'Just in case'.
"You can build bombs?!" Rebekah exclaimed slightly horrified.
"Only small ones!" Hayley sounded disappointed in herself at that.
Sophie rolled her eyes to hide the fear and uneasiness at Hayley's tone and sighed as she resigned herself to having Hayley and Rebekah tag along.
Half an hour later a witch, an Original vampiress and a pregnant werewolf were walking through the Bayou and said pregnant werewolf was very happy that she had chosen to wear sneakers today.
As they walked Rebekah's phone rang and when she saw that who it was, she cursed. "What do you want?"
"What's the matter Rebekah?" Klaus had a smirk in his voice. "You cross that I'm out with your ex?"
"What is all that dreadful hillbilly ruckus in the background?" Rebekah asked annoyed.
"According to the dreadful signage, it's Big Auggie's Bayou Bar." Klaus said as he read the sign.
"Well, order up a few rounds of moonshine and steer clear of the dead witches for a few." Rebekah told him. "The witch is on a burial mission, your baby mama is on a spirit quest and I'm keeping Elijah's promise to keep her safe. So, stall, please?"
"He's gonna be pissed, huh?" Hayley asked brightly as Rebekah hung up the phone.
"You seem way to happy at that prospect." Rebekah huffed and turned to look at Sophie who were walking in front of them. "So, this Harvest thingy… tell me more."
"Klaus said to wait." Sophie pointed out.
"Yes, he also said to stay out of the Bayou and yet, here we are, amongst the crawly, buzzy creatures." Rebekah looked around in disgust.
"We're here." Sophie said as they reached the place where the witches had been killed.
Their bodies were all bloody and ripped apart and a dismembered head lies near the bodies. Sophie looked sick as she knelt down to dig around in her bag for the ingredients she needed to consecrate her fellow witches.
"Whoa." Hayley looked at a huge paw-print in the mud and then as she saw three bloody scratches in the bark of a nearby tree.
"Is that a wolf track?" Sophie asked in shock.
Before Hayley could say anything, they all heard the crunching of footsteps coming closer.
"Who's there?" Rebekah called out.
A male vampire appeared and walked towards them, then when he saw them, he freaked out, "What the hell? An Original?"
He looked scared and immediately vamp-sped away, leaving the women standing and gaping at the place he had been in shock.
Rebekah quickly pulled out her phone to call her brother and quickly explained to him what was going on.
"Let me get this straight," Klaus growled on the other end of the call. "Against all logic, you and Hayley went to the Bayou, where you ran into a man you think may be Marcel's informant and then you lost him?"
"Yes, and now that we've established that I am a failure as a sister and a friend and an Original, you should probably know he's on his way to Marcel right now to rat me out." Rebekah rolled her eyes. "Skinny guy in a hurry, looks like he saw a ghost."
"You'd make a very pretty ghost tho." Hayley piped up making Rebekah glare and Klaus chuckle.
"I'll handle it, but I'll need a distraction." Klaus had a smile in his voice.
"No explosives!" Rebekah pointed a finger at Hayley who looked disappointed, then she addressed her brother again. "I'm on my may."
"Have fun and remember to use protection." Hayley wiggled her eyebrows at Rebekah as she hung up the phone.
XOXOXOX
Elijah finished repairing the violin and proudly held it out towards Davina with a smile. "You may return this to it's rightful owner. It's fully restored."
"I don't even know if I'll see him again." Davina murmured sadly, her emotions overwhelming her and the room started to shake, as if they were in an earthquake.
Elijah and Davina looked around worriedly as the whole attic shook and the window shutters burst open before the shaking finally stopped.
"Davina, this power that you contain, drawn from your fallen friends, it's to much for you. You need control, which requires study and practice." Elijah looked at her with a kind smile. "Now, my mother was a very powerful witch. She left behind her grimoires; a legacy of books filled with spells."
Davina looked up at him with fragile hope.
"These books contain all of the tools that you might need to control your magic. If you free me from here, I can share them with you." Elijah looked at her seriously. "However, if you leave now with Marcel, we'll never see each other again and I cannot find you and I can't help you."
"The witches manipulated me." Davina glared slightly at Elijah. "You know how that ended."
"This is not manipulation. This is one thing in exchange for another." Elijah patently explained. "I'm offering you a deal."
"What is it that you are so desperate to get back to?" Davina asked quietly.
Elijah looked shocked that she had figured out some part of his need to leave, "How…?"
"There's this look in your eyes every time you talk about leaving, like you want to be, need to be somewhere else." Davina hummed softly, then she got an exited look in her eyes. "Is it a girl?"
Before Elijah could say anything to that he heard Marcel make his way towards the attic and after quickly warning Davina, he hid in his coffin.
"Okay, now's our shot." Marcel said as he burst into the attic room. "You ready to blow this joint?"
"Can't wait." Davina smiled brightly.
"We'll leave Elijah behind as a parting gift." Marcel grabbed Davina's suitcase. "Might buy me a little forgiveness for pulling one over his siblings. Let's go."
As Marcel and Davina left Elijah got out of his coffin and listen to Davina's Oscar worthy performance and smiled. He had hidden himself by the time Marcel brought Davina back into the room and tucked her in under the blankets on the bed.
After Marcel left the room, Davina waited a few minutes before she sat up and smiled, "Elijah?"
"I'm pleased you stayed." Elijah smiled at her as he came out of his hiding spot.
"You'll keep your promise about your mother's spell book?" Davina asked softly.
"I will." Elijah promised. "You know, difficulties aside, I value my family above everything. I'm sorry that yours failed you."
"Your brother Klaus handed you to Marcel in a box, yet you still don't give up on him?" Davina looked curious.
"Well, I've given up on giving up." Elijah chuckled slightly. "It's an affliction. I will fight for my family until my last breath."
"And I'll fight the witches until mine." Davina declared fiercely.
An hour later Elijah walked with his younger brother towards the mansion their family were staying in and as he heard Hayley's voice he started to smile.
"…it keeps me going." Hayley was saying.
"Oh, right. Well, if you ask me, family is a pain the behind." Rebekah huffed. "And as for being alone, how dare you? I don't ruin a perfectly fabulous pair of boots traipsing through the Bayou for just anyone."
"Yeah, they were a nice pair of boots." Hayley laughed softly.
"Nik, finally! What…" Rebekah trailed off as Elijah walked through the door after his brother.
Elijah caught Rebekah as she ran at him to hug him in relief. He saw Hayley over Rebekah's shoulder and shared a smile with her before Hayley walked out of the room.
"Elijah! You're safe!" Rebekah sounded happy. "Now that you're home, is your first plan to kill Niklaus?"
"Excuse me just a moment." Elijah smiled at his little sister before he followed after Hayley. He found her standing on the patio, looking beautiful in the starlight.
"You're back." Hayley smiled at him.
"I'm back." Elijah smiled back.
They looked at each other for a while before Hayley kissed him on the cheek. Then she pulled back and punched him across the face. "That was for worrying me. Welcome home."
Elijah touched his face where she had kissed him and then punched him, and smiled at Hayley's retreating back. That was one hell of a woman, though.
Thirty minutes later the Mikaelson siblings and Hayley were gathered in the study with Elijah standing behind the desk as he explained everything he had learned from Davina.
"Everything that brought us here to New Orleans was a lie." Elijah said gravely, he hated being lied to. "This story that Sophie Devereaux fabricated, this struggle for control of the French Quarter, this war between vampires and witches, wasn't over territory at all, it was over Davina."
"They want to kill a child?!" Hayley hissed as she wrapped her arms protectively around her abdomen.
"Eight months ago, Sophie Devereaux and her sister Jane-Anne lost everything. Now, four months after that, a young pregnant girl wanders into their restaurant. Suddenly, all hope is renewed. Jane-Anne actually sacrificed her life so that her sister can use you to find Davina." Elijah looked at Niklaus who looked pissed. "We thought we'd come here to wage a war for power. This is about family. In order to return her niece to life, Sophie Devereaux will fight to death. That makes her more dangerous than anyone."
"No, it doesn't." Hayley spoke up. "There is nothing in this world I wouldn't do to protect my child and my family and it just so happens that you three are the closest I have to a real family. So, if I have to kill every single witch and vampire in this town to protect you three and my child? The streets will be drowned in blood."
With those final words Hayley walked out of the room, leaving three stunned and impressed Original vampires in her wake.
A/N: I hope you liked it.
As it looks like now this story will be a Klaus/Hayley/Elijah story but nothing is set in stone yet.
Thanks for reading 3