Summary: An incident in Rosseau brings back a daunting past of Freya. Will Keelin be able to handle the situation?
A/N: What started off as a series of one shot has evolved into a chapter/arc-based fanfic and it took me a few weeks to finalize the plot with the help of my better half. I would like to thank all of you out there for your many kind messages and suggestions, and I've to some extent incorporated some of your "wishlists" here and there into the remaining chapters. I do hope that you'll enjoy this fanfic while it lasts, and happy weekendsss!
"I always knew you fancied the ladies," Kol blurted suddenly.
"What? This again?" she smiled cheekily. "All because I never fell for your charms a hundred years ago?"
There was a slight pause before their lips crest into a smile. Taking another sip from their wine glasses, Kol looked around, over his shoulders, as though checking whether anyone been eavesdropping on their conversation before edging closer to Freya.
"So, how is marriage life?" he continued to edge closer till he was almost at her ears.
"How is …sex life in marriage?"
It was a murmur so low that it was only for her ears.
"Kol!" Freya managed to grab the collar of his shirt before he pulled away. "Alright, I'll stop," Kol raised both his palms in front of his chest while he battled to contain his laughter.
Freya released her grip of his collar before slapping him hard on the shoulder.
"But I'm serious sister, a werewolf bite is deadly for vampires. You'll need to be more cautious when you and Keelin are going at it now that Nik is -,"
He paused.
"What happened to Niklaus?" Freya asked. The question just came out naturally.
"Well, nothing. You of all should know well enough. Nothing bad will befall our ruthless brother. You should've asked what notorious deeds he has been up to instead but I'm sure that it's not his wrong doings that you're interested in."
"Did I miss out anything?" Keelin joined them at the bar.
"Definitely not," Kol shook his head naturally while trying to hide his smirks. Freya shot him a warning glare as Keelin took the seat beside her.
"We were just speaking of you, that you and my sister will be visiting San Francisco very soon. Am I right, sister?"
"Oh and Davina would love your company Keelin," he added.
They had a few glasses and spent the time updating each other on the mundane stuff of their lives till they were interrupted by a voice from behind.
"Erm, may I have a word with all of you privately please?"
Three heads turned to face a familiar figure; tall, cleanly shaven and with greasy styled black hair. They followed him into a private room and closed the door behind them before speaking.
"So, I'm not sure why you're here in New Orleans but please tell me that you're not here to create trouble," he forced a smile just as he finished his sentence.
Keelin wasn't sure how to react to the man's "warm welcome". She looked to Freya for directions while Freya stared blankly at Josh, not registering his words.
Kol's smile disappeared. "Now Josh, is this how you treat your customers or your best friend's husband?" Kol closed the distance and gripped both Josh's shoulders tightly, a little too tight for Josh's liking as the pressure was almost bone breaking.
"Wooooo hold, hold on, wait a moment," Josh panicky said.
The door swung open. "Let him go Kol Mikaelson, there are rules to follow now that you're in New Orleans."
"Please," the voice repeated.
Kol released his grip.
"You're just in time Vincent," Rubbing both his shoulders, Josh went over to join him.
"I was expecting all of you to be gone from New Orleans once the ordeal is over but we welcome allies as long as you abide by the rules. Josh here has been managing the underground and ensuring order amongst the vampires."
"The credits go to Vincent, I'm only assisting," Josh managed to cut in before fading back into the corners.
"Besides, you're well aware of the situation you've gotten yourself into," he glared at Freya. Another woman entered the room just behind Vincent. At his motion, she took off her wind breaker and that was when they realized that her neck and left wrist were wrapped in bandages.
They looked at Vincent perplexed, expecting some sort of explanation for bringing an injured woman to them.
"Freya, you almost killed Serene!" Vincent became slightly agitated.
"Who?" Freya raised a brow.
"You smashed her into a wall!" Vincent pointed at the woman as he raised his voice, "Remember?"
"Oh, her," she crossed her arms on recalling. "She attacked Keelin."
The woman bumped into Vincent and stop just inches away from Freya's face. "There was blood around her mouth and you're a family of vampires. How am I supposed to know that she's a werewolf?"
"I saved you! I was trying to help you!" she shouted agitatedly.
The remaining watched intently as Vincent's mouth twitched while Freya's intent was difficult to read as she remained expressionless. A variety of outcomes, mostly involving the death of the woman murdered by Freya in different gruesome ways flashed through Keelin's head. Worried, she closed the gap between Freya and herself so that she would have a chance to interfere should the situation go wrong.
"I never asked for help," Freya replied coldly to the woman before turning away.
She heaved a sigh of relief at her wife's calm composition towards the situation but the woman didn't back down. The woman bit her own lips and clenching her fist, she shook in anger. She stepped forward towards Freya and before anyone could react, the lights in the room flickered out.
When the lights came back on the woman was hanging in mid-air, Freya's arm around her throat. A dagger trickled with blood was on the ground. The cut and the wounds across Freya's right arm healed almost instantaneously as it was a small slash. Freya however, continued to hang the woman in the air, choking her by the seconds.
Keelin immediately grabbed Freya's arm, trying to force her arm back down but Freya was not bulging.
"Freya, put her down," Keelin urged.
The woman struggled to catch her breath as she kicked frantically into the air, into Freya and even tried to kick Keelin. She was struggling and gasping for breaths.
"Put her down," she urged again.
"You don't have to do this honey, put her down," it came out more like a plea the third time, in the tone that got to her the most, and that was the tone that got to her previously.
It was already midnight when she reached home and the first thing she noticed was the slightly ajar main door and the broken locks. It was dark inside the house, the electricity was out, and she tip toed around. Nothing seemed to be missing or exceptionally out of place except for the broken locks.
The sound of what resembled like gunshots echoed from the second floor where most of the rooms were. Gunshots? Keelin was sure that they didn't have guns, why would they need them for?
She crept cautiously to the second floor. The darkness was only momentarily as she adjusted and when she could see clearly again, she scanned the room and spotted the tall slender figure of Freya in the middle of the room, with back towards the door. Her senses tingled as she moved closer, Freya seems a little off and liquid dripped from the tip of her fingers. 'Pat Pat Pat' the droplets hit the floorboards. Blood. The taste of blood was in the air when the gush of wind through the open window hit her.
She was at the doorway, her stomach clinched, "Freya, put him down." She stepped into a pile of blood and some empty shells as she entered the room. A man lay on his belly by the side of the door, his mask soaked with blood and the emptied gun on the ground.
Keelin approached slowly. "It's alright now, put him down." There was no reaction, Freya's back still faced her. She spotted another masked man motionless in a pool of blood by the window, an arm on the sill while the other hand was on a crowbar soaked with blood.
"Freya?" she called out again and stepped on more empty shells as she moved closer.
She spotted a third in the corner of the room, also motionless in the corner as blood flowed profusely from his neck.
Keelin made it to the side of Freya and then she was hit with a rising sense of fear, and she struggled to bring it under control.
Freya's sclera was blood red, her fangs were out and her face an ugly distortion. There was dry blood on Freya's chin and forehead. Holes, a number of them, punctured Freya's torso and her blouse was soaked with blood; whether it was Freya's or the burglars, Keelin couldn't differentiate. Freya held onto the man by his hair and he hung lifelessly. What was her other hand holding on to? She froze. Freya's palm was clenching tightly to a heart and blood trickled from her fingers to the floor.
Keelin looked away and swallowed, as if to control her fear.
"Freya, he's dead already, let him go," her voice shook lightly.
"Freya, honey," she cleared her throat and continued, "Freya?"
"Come back to me honey," she urged again.
She blinked and dropped her to the ground.
"Let's get her away from here first," Josh wrapped his arms around the woman and carried her out of the room, Vincent trailing behind.
Freya felt like speeding after Joshua to rip the woman apart but what kept her rooted to the spot was a pair of warm palms that engulfed her tightly fisted palm. She glanced to the side and Keelin was gently stroking the knuckles of her right palm with her thumbs. Freya looked away from Keelin and swallowed, as if to control herself. Kol watched the whole incident unfold in amusement before his eyes.
"If there's nothing else, we should be on our way," Keelin broke the silence.
"Yea, let's," Freya managed to utter.
The trio left Rosseau and headed towards the carpark.
"Sister you were so un-gentlemanly earlier. Doing harm to a lovely woman who saved your life from what I heard."
"Kol, shut up, please just shut up," Freya replied.
"In her defence, she didn't know that Keelin was a werewolf. Nobody would," Kol ignored her and continued.
"Well, that's understandable as vampires haven't had a friendly history with wolves except for Nik. After his affair, then came Hayley and Hope and now, we have a new addition to our family. My big sister's better half, Keelin."
"Better half? Aww, I'm starting to like your brother, Freya," Keelin jokingly said.
Freya laughed before she slipped behind the wheel, and Keelin got in beside her.
Kol was chatty that night and thanks to him the mood for the remaining night actually lightened. It was like as though nothing happened earlier as the frowns on Freya's forehead disappeared. Kol was a natural and Keelin took the opportunity to drop a few more topics while they headed to the carpark.
"You're always welcome to Austin," Keelin said from the car, "Davina too. Always good to have family over."
Kol nodded and smiled, "Until then I'll leave my big sis in your hands, sister-in-law."
The car windows wind back up and Freya drove off.
In a rundown abandoned house located in the woods, a group of black cloaks gathered. Hidden under their hoods, they chanted the same spell over and over again, their voices echoing into the forest.
A cloaked figure caught the attention of the others and waved a dagger in the air.
"Behold the final item!"
The chants continued, even more vigorously after they caught sight of the dagger. The cloaked figure stirred the dagger in the bowl of blood mixed with human fleshes. As the chants filled the air, he stirred till the bowl of blood and the fleshes disappeared.
"The Hollow shall be reunited and will return to us, stronger than ever," he raised the bowl into the air.
"The Hollow cannot be stopped."
"Inform the groups to proceed as planned."
Four figures exited the hut and disappeared into the woods, moving in different directions.