Previously on ATCL: 'Katherine did not have a heartbeat.'
One minute.
One minute thirty seconds.
Two minutes.
Three.
Four.
Five minutes went by, with Katherine Pierce still lying on the table, still with no heartbeat. With the light in the room low, as most of the candles burned out when Davina stopped the spell, it was indiscernible as to whether or not there was any change to her physiological appearance.
By the ten minute mark, the entire room was holding their breaths. Thoughts that she may really have died crept into their minds, and the niggling feeling of doubt started to take root.
After fifteen minutes of nothing, people started getting antsy, fidgeting around and waiting for something to happen.
Rebekah broke the unspoken vow of silence when it hit twenty minutes of no movement. "Shouldn't there be something by now?" She asked.
"I don't know, okay?" Davina snapped. She was fearing she had failed.
It was slightly after the clock struck thirty minutes since Davina ceased the spell that Katherine woke up. The woman took in a deep breath as she raised herself into a sitting position, scaring everyone senseless. All at once, chatter erupted, everyone throwing questions at her. Stress and relief and a weird sense of apprehension rolled over Katherine in waves, overwhelming her. As her breathing picked up and her heart began racing, a sense of dizziness overcame her as the brunette attempted to calm herself through the really weird rush of emotions; she was failing desperately. Vaguely she heard Elijah quiet everyone, but his presence was especially made known to her when he took her hand gently, his voice murmuring in Bulgarian. As Katherine returned to normal once more, breathing deeply, she spoke. "Since you all seem to have a ridiculous amount of questions, let's do one person at a time." She completely glossed over the fact that she had a panic attack, wishing to ignore it if she could. It was probably just a side-effect of the spell. "Bon-Bon, how about you first?"
Bonnie rolled her eyes at the nickname, but smiled. It was better than Bunny at any rate. "How are you feeling? Do you feel…different?"
Katherine raised an eyebrow, still holding Elijah's hand as if it were a lifeline to sanity. "Well I don't feel like I'm dying anymore, so that's a perk. But I'm not a vampire, I can tell you that."
"So you're human, then?" Caroline could not resist jumping in.
The formerly near-dead woman closed her eyes and appeared to internalize for a moment. "No. But I really would like some blood. Like… Now. I'm starving." She gasped the last word, pupils dilating as she looked around at everyone. Confusion flowed in her mind, as if it were coming from all around her, but Katherine brushed it off.
Bonnie and Kol exchanged worried looks. "Davina," Kol said "do you remember how to do the diagnostic spell?" His eyes flickered between Davina and Katherine. "I think we are going to need it."
The witch darted to her bed, grabbed a folder which was wedged under the mattress, and came back to the table Katherine was on. "I've got it somewhere in here… Got it!" She pulled out a short, one page, spell, and a second page attacked with some sort of runic combination on it. "Katherine, I need you use this and drop a couple drops of blood on here." Davina handed her the knife she had used in the spell, waiting expectantly.
"And what on earth are you going to be doing to me?" Katherine asked skeptically.
"It's a spell which reads your being. It'll determine what's going on with you. Don't worry… I've practiced this one on Bonnie before. It'll work."
"And you almost singed my hair off last time." Bonnie snickered, shooting her protégé a wink, causing Davina to pout.
"Whatever." She retorted. "Now, your blood?" Katherine sighed and sliced her palm, letting the required amount of blood drip onto the parchment.
Katherine smiled when her cut closed up, raising her hand to show her lack of a wound off. "Well, whatever's going on with me, I heal quickly."
"That's fantastic!" Caroline said as Davina chanted. "Now you're going to be back to your old self again!"
"Oh, yes I will." The brunette smirked, feelings of happiness invading her from all around. Then again… What was that tinge of worry she felt? Because she had no reason to be worried… Whatever. Maybe she had gone crazy or something. It was not that far off of an idea. "Does anyone have any blood? Because seriously, I've got a major craving and I want it n—"
"Shit." Kol cut Katherine off, effectively drawing the attention of everyone in the room. His fingers were tracing the markings on the second page Davina had chanted over, tracing the runic combinations which appeared because of the spell
"Kol… What does this mean?" Bonnie looked at him worriedly before glancing back down at the page. "I've never seen this combination before, and my Grams had a whole grimoire full of possibilities."
The ancient former-warlock-and-current-ghost sighed. "That's because this is a sign I have not seen in nearly a thousand years."
"Well that makes me feel all fucking cheery, now doesn't it?" Katherine looked at the three magic-nuts, quite pissed. "Great. Now I'm apparently some freakish supernatural entity. Like being a fucking doppelganger wasn't enough."
"Katerina, you should calm down." Elijah cautioned.
"Don't you 'Katerina' me, Elijah Mikaelson!" She snapped. "I'm the one who's apparently a fucking magnet to everything weird and supernatural, not you!" Katherine rotated on the table, facing Kol. "Spill, Ghostly Original."
Kol smirked. "You, Kitty Kat, are going to be fun to have around."
"Oh, I'm always fun." She winked, causing Kol to throw his head back in laughter. "Now, stop deflecting and tell me what the hell's going on."
"Fine, Kitty." Bonnie raised an eyebrow at his nickname for Katherine, but she could tell it was all harmless fun. "You want the truth? You're an immortal being now. Not quite vampire, but definitely not human."
"Oh dear god please tell me she's not the next bloody Silas." Rebekah interjected. "Because seriously, I do not need Katherine Pierce of all people running around with psychic powers."
"Thanks Beks. Tell me how you really feel." Katherine shot over her shoulder.
"I must not tell lies!" The Original retorted.
"You know Harry Potter?" Caroline turned to Rebekah, shocked. "Weren't you locked in a coffin during that time period?"
Rebekah scoffed. "It was listed as the top pop-culture icon of the past couple of decades. Kol and I binge-watched all eight movies in a weekend."
"And then she went around the house wearing these obscene vegetable earrings, going on and on about Nargles for a week! She nearly drove Nik mad!" The aforementioned Original brother laughed.
"You're the one who set all his ringtones to Voldemort's voice saying 'Avada Kedavra' in multiple languages!"
"At least I'm not the one who force-fed all of us that horrendous butterbeer concoction laced with blood!" Kol nearly gagged at the thought as everyone else looked on both amused and disturbed. "It was going to be good, she said! It was going to taste even better, she said!" He shook his head, deadly serious. "It was the worst thing I have ever consumed on this earth."
"Are you sure these two are related to you?" Katherine asked, not-so-quietly. "Because Klaus is seeming normal right now, and that's not a compliment."
"At times, Katerina, I very much consider the possibility." Elijah looked upon his siblings, though he was amused. Kol and Rebekah had been partners in crime even as children, and it was a nice thing to see that some things did not change, no matter how many years it had been. "As enlightening as this conversation has been, however, I must ask you brother, to further expatriate upon what exactly is happening to Katerina."
"Elijah, always the peacekeeper." The youngest brother smiled sarcastically. "Fear not, Kitty here is perfectly fine. She'll need blood to survive again, but that's nothing new. Oh, and she's going to be prone to mood swings and panic attacks from now on. Nothing serious."
"Way to charm the ladies." Bonnie snorted, elbowing him in the side; though, not very much force was put behind it, considering she and Kol were holding hands by this point. Really, it was just the easiest form of contact. That's all. "No, but really, what's going on?"
"Darling, I thought it was obvious." Kol smirked and turned to the literal immortal in the room. "You're an empath, Katherine."
-0-0-0-0-0-
By the early hours of the morning, everyone had left Davina's apartment. Thanks had been given to the young witch, who just asked they visit her every so often in return, for it could get extremely boring all by her lonesome. Klaus had been told he could stop distracting Marcel and go back home, where they all collapsed into their various separate beds, Nadia taking up one of the remaining guest rooms in the manor.
Around noon, after everyone managed to get a bit of sleep, the manor came to life again. Nadia stated shortly after brunch that she was leaving to visit some old Traveller friends of hers.
"I was serious about emailing me, you know." Katherine said as she and Elijah stood on the porch, wishing her daughter farewell. Everyone else had made their goodbyes known inside.
"I will keep in touch." Nadia smiled, leaning in for a quick hug.
"Good. Because, you know, you may be way older than me physically, but I'm still your mother. Therefore if you like…get your heart broken or whatever you thirty-somethings are doing these days, then I need to know whose heart to rip out, alright?" Katherine babbled, feeling more emotional than perhaps she should have. Stupid empath thingy. She could feel her daughter's emotions, and it was affecting her now, damn it.
"Take care of my mother, Elijah." Nadia smiled sadly.
He nodded. "I feel we will be seeing one another in the future."
Katherine sniffled as her daughter got into the waiting car which was to take her to the airport, a sense of safety and love overcoming her and Elijah wrapped his arm around her waist. There was also something else in his emotions… She turned and faced Elijah, scrutinizing him for a moment. Apparently satisfied with whatever her new empath-thingy senses picked up, she grabbed his hand and hurried them both through the house, flying past a waddling Hayley, who shouted in protest, but was ignored. Katherine stopped at Elijah's designated office, dragging him inside and locking the door.
"Did you mean it?" She snapped, crossing her arms. He just stood there smirking. Damn it, why did he have to enjoy their games so much.
"Whatever do you mean, Katerina?" He raised an eyebrow in that damning way he so enjoyed.
Katherine rolled her eyes. "Don't play the idiot, Elijah. It's not an attractive look."
"Did you mean it?" Elijah shot the same words back at her.
"Of course I meant it! Just because I didn't say it the day before last doesn't mean I didn't mean it!" The brunette snarled, stepping closer.
"And just because I said it when you were dying does not mean I did not mean it." He said, keeping his usual calm demeanor as he stepped to her.
"Good!" Katherine could feel the lust radiating off of both of them in waves, and it was nearly overwhelming her.
"I always did enjoy you when you were angry." Elijah traced his fingers over her collarbone and down her arm with a feather-light touch.
"Too bad I'm not angry, then." She whispered, fingering his tie.
"Pity."
"No, not at all." Katherine leaned into his touch as he caressed her cheek.
"I promised to catch you, Katerina, and I do not break promises lightly. There will be no going back, after this." Elijah warned, but all she felt was happiness and satisfaction. And a shit ton of lust.
"You also promised me an eternity together. This is me holding you to it." Katherine breathed as she wrapped her hand around his tie, yanking Elijah down to meet her in a bruising kiss.
Elijah flashed them over to the desk, hoisting Katherine up onto it as they continued kissing. His hands raked up her sides and around, before he ripped her blouse straight down the middle, buttons flying every which way, the flimsy dark red material crumpling on the floor like a pool of blood. There was a squeal of protest from Katherine, but he shut her up with a scorching kiss. "You planned this." Elijah realized, remembering the lingerie she was wearing.
"Did I specifically change into the matching set you bought me before I dragged you in here… Yes. There were a few variables involved, but that's a moot point. Now stop talking." Katherine breathed in his ear before kissing her way down to his collarbone. "This," she tugged on his suit jacket before moving to shove it down his shoulders "needs to disappear."
"You're very eager today, Katerina." Elijah wrapped a hand through her curls, yanking the immortal's head back as he ravished her throat with kisses. He could feel the veins rippling under his eyes as he took in the scent of her intoxicating lifeblood; bloodsharing had always been their thing, after all.
"Elijah." Katherine gasped. "Bite me." She could feel him smirk against her neck, ignoring her request, though she could feel his desire for her-both physically and with what had been labeled her 'empath abilities'. She gritted her teeth against his stubborn proclivity to draw out her satisfaction for as long as inhumanly possible, but the exasperation turned into pleasure as he finally bit down. It was only with him that she liked to be bitten.
She only felt truly alive with him.
Downstairs, everyone was gathered in the parlor. Even Hayley was sitting somewhat peacefully among the rest of the manor residents, for once. Their silence was interrupted, however, by banging noises and various moans and screams radiating from upstairs. Everyone looked up the ceiling, wondering what on earth was going on, but a few seconds later, it dawned on the vampires in the room.
"I suggest everyone leave fairly swiftly." Kol smirked. "Those two will literally go at it for hours, and the banging is just going to get worse." He laughed as everyone gave him disgusted looks. "There will probably be a furniture truck here within the next day or two." The Original winked, enjoying Hayley's miserable facial expression. Oh, looks like the little wolf would not be sinking her talons into his brother anytime soon! Not that he would ever allow such a ghastly thing to happen.
"Ohmygod." Rebekah stood up as a particularly loud scrape sounded from above. "I'm leaving. I can't take this anymore."
"Take me with you!" Hayley whined, causing Rebekah to appear as if she smelt something nasty.
"Fine." The Original Sister heaved a sigh, just wanting to get the hell out of there. She flashed upstairs and grabbed her purse and keys, before coming down, looking slightly queasy. "Let's just go before I have to withstand more of their obscene screams of pleasure." She shot a wink to Kol covertly, laughing as Hayley turned red with rage. He and Bonnie followed on their heels, slipping out the door with only a quick goodbye.
Caroline laughed and grabbed Klaus's arm. "Since I'm sure you don't want to go with those two, you're coming with me." He rolled his eyes and stood.
"And what might we be doing, love?"
"We," She smiled "are going to do something relatively normal and time-consuming, and see a movie. And don't worry, I won't pick a chick-flick!"
"Really, Caroline?" Klaus huffed as she dragged him out of his chair.
"It's that or listen to Kalijah have sex. Or you could always carry my bags at the mall." Caroline smirked devilishly.
The Hybrid grabbed his keys off the hook by the front door as they walked out. "No romance movies. And I am only doing this under duress."
"Please." The lady scoffed. "You're doing this because you're bored. Besides, how could you pass up my marvelous company?"
"One would have to be a fool to pass up the pleasure of your company, Caroline."
-0-0-0-0-0-
"How on earth are you supposed to be doing this again?" Kol leaned up against a gnarled tree as Bonnie stood in the sunlight, breathing in her surroundings.
It was two days after everyone fled the manor in the wake of his brother and Kitty's torrid sex, and honestly, the pair had been nearly unbearable since. They were in what Caroline had labeled 'the honeymoon stage', but all he saw was a shit ton of getting their freak on—which was apparently some hip lingo the youth of this era used as a euphemism for sex, and, well, Kol refused to be anything but the epitome of hip—in random hallways or rooms. Or around the rest of them. Honestly, the amount of times he noticed hands wandering was just foul, even for his perverted mind. But either way, Katherine and Elijah's inability to stay off of each other certainly made for an interesting dynamic, because the Wolf-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named seemed to enjoy waddling into their encounters and interrupting them. Kol was not quite sure if she was into voyeurism, or if she just enjoyed the art of cockblocking. It was probably the former.
Either way, he and Bonnie had finally found time to get away, escaping to an abandoned clearing outside of the city. It was a perfect place for her to exercise her anchor powers, and, well, he just enjoyed watching her.
"Kol. If I knew what I was supposed to be doing, don't you think I would have done it by now?" Bonnie heaved a sigh, exasperated.
"Just asking, doll. You look a bit lost."
"You're so supportive!" She threw her hands up before crossing her arms.
"Have you tried your grandmother?" Kol asked, brainstorming. "After all, did she not give you this information in the first place?"
"Been there, done that." Bonnie stomped over to where he stood, sliding down the tree trunk until she was sitting on the ground. She leaned her head back against the wood. "I want this. I miss my magic; I miss the power and the feeling that came with it. It felt like…"
"It felt like coming home." He interjected. Bonnie realized he had joined her on the ground, mimicking her position. "And now that you don't have it, there's an overwhelming sense of grief and loss inside your gut, eating away at your every thought and hope, because your entire life had revolved around the fact that you had magic. Now that it's gone, you don't know what to do with yourself." Neither said anything for a moment, for Kol had put her thoughts directly into words. Instead, Bonnie reached over and took his hand. They simply sat there for a while, both grieving the loss of what had been parts of their soul; Kol had lived without his for over a thousand years, Bonnie for not even a year, and still the absence of magic in their lives was emotionally devastating.
Suddenly, Kol stood and drew Bonnie up with him, for they were still holding hands, and brought her out into the clearing. "What are we doing?" She asked, curious at what exercise her favorite magical expert had conjured up now.
"You mentioned it is your bloodline's power which is accessible to you, correct? And you can use it through your position at the Anchor, which essentially makes you the gateway between all supernatural things, living and dead."
"That's right." She nodded.
"Okay." He smiled—a real smile, and not just one of his smirks for once—and the sight of that smile made Bonnie's inside twist and turn in a way they had never before. "I think I know of a way you can do this." As she let out a soft laugh and gestured for an explanation, Kol continued. "We need to find something dead or dying… Like a plant or a bug or something. Hell, even an animal will work. I think—through your abilities as anchor—that you should be able to channel bits and pieces of your ancestor's power and bring small things back to health without the use of a blood ritual, therefore preparing you for a larger-scale event."
"Like The Harvest." Bonnie grinned, her nose beginning to crinkle as she did so. "Kol, you're a genius."
"Darling, you're the one with a wealth of untapped potential here. I may be a genius, but you have all the ability." He smirked, causing her to roll her eyes, though the tinge of red on her cheeks did not go unnoticed with his keen eye.
"Whatever. Anyways, I think I need to get to work on this whole…channeling thing. After all, I don't want to accidentally bring back a clan of witches or whatever instead of you, Davina, and the other three girls." Bonnie crossed her arms. She looked on the ground around her, before picking what looked like a weed to step on. She ground her foot into the thing a few times, before stepping back. "Is that nearly-dead enough to practice on, or do I need to stomp on it some more?" She raised her eyebrows at Kol's laughter.
"That's plenty dead, Bunny."
"Oh, stop being such a pretentious ass." Bonnie rolled her eyes. When he opened his mouth to speak again, she held up a finger. "Shh. I'm channeling."
Kol simply shook his head, amused, and watched. Bonnie had knelt next to the—by now—very dead weed, and cupped her hands over it. Her eyes were closed, and she had her focusing-face on. To him, she was exquisite. It took a few minutes of her channeling and his watching, but when Bonnie relaxed back onto her heels, a satisfied smile on her face, he knew it had worked. The formerly dead weed was now looking healthier than ever. "Looks very…alive, darling." He nodded towards it, holding a hand down to help her up. "Any side effects?" Kol never received an answer, however, as a ghost appeared in the clearing with them. Knowing her preferred routine for times such as this, Kol simply stood slightly to the side as the ghost passed through Bonnie, and then comforted her through the pain afterwards.
"Before that, I was fine. Thanks." The Anchor gasped, regaining her breath as he rubbed her back soothingly. She took a step away, though Kol still continued to worry. "Anyways, let's find something else for me to maim and then fix. I need to get this right."
-0-0-0-0-0-
"You want to do what to me?" Davina shrieked, shooting off of her bed. "I thought you were my friend! I thought you didn't want me dead! But now I find out you're just using me to get your boyfriend back? That feels really great Bonnie. Thanks."
"Davina, calm down." Kol warned. "You are overreacting."
"Overreacting? Really?" The witch turned to him. "You would say that. You're the one getting brought back to life."
Bonnie closed her eyes tightly for a moment, collecting herself, before she walked over to her protégé and friend. "Davina. I will bring you back to life. I promise. Nothing bad is going to happen to you."
"Yeah, and how are you going to do that? You're not a witch anymore, Bonnie."
"I know." She snapped. "But I am the Anchor and I've been practicing this. I can bring you and the three other girls back to life; I know it. I am as sure in this as I was that you could be properly be taught magic."
"I don't want to die, Bonnie!" Davina whimpered. "You were supposed to help me not do that."
Bonnie placed her hands on the young witch's shoulders, forcing eye contact. "Davina. Do you trust me?" The brunette sighed and closed her eyes briefly before nodding. "Okay then. Right now, I'm just asking you to trust that I will bring you back to life. I'm not a power-hungry Elder from your coven, okay? I'm your friend, and if there is one thing that title earns you, it is that I will do everything in and beyond my power to keep you alive, understand?"
"I thought you said you didn't believe in The Harvest." Davina sighed, taking a step back.
"I don't." She agreed. "But Kol and I will be editing the spells so that I can hijack the power from it, and with the combination of the Bennett magic, we will re-route it into bringing him, you, and the other three girls back to life. I still think the whole Harvest ritual is a load of bullshit, but from a magical perspective, the site of four blood sacrifices is extremely powerful. We're taking a myth and turning it in our favor, okay?" Bonnie smiled reassuringly, comforted by Kol's hand on her waist, grounding her.
Davina looked at the ground and then back up to Bonnie and Kol. "You legitimately believe this will work?"
"I do." Bonnie said, Kol echoing her statement.
"Okay. Then I'm trusting you two. But don't screw this up."
"I wouldn't dream of it." Bonnie squeezed her protégé's hand. "Now, I need to try and get Monique's aunt to do the spell without her realizing that we're bringing Kol back as well, so I really have to go. I'll stop by tomorrow so we can hang out, okay?"
"Yeah. Sure." Davina nodded, a bit unsure about this whole thing. But then again, it was Bonnie here. She trusted her.
-0-0-0-0-0-
Klaus and Caroline were taking one of their routine walks around the back gardens, wandering and chatting aimlessly. Over the time Caroline had been in New Orleans, their friendship had grown even deeper from the level it had been at back in Mystic Falls, and they were aware of the mutual attraction between them. Yet currently, their relationship was on the backburner. Needless to say, things rated higher on the priority scale in the midst of all which was going on.
They were interrupted from their talk, however, by one of Klaus's compelled spies within Marcel's ranks, who came speeding up to them. "Klaus, Klaus!" He was clearly a newborn vampire, as the young man still felt the human urge to continue breathing, though it was an unnecessary habit after one turned.
"Whatever do you need, Cyrus?" Klaus asked, unhappy at being interrupted during one of the only quiet moments he received with Caroline during the day.
"It's Marcel and Tyler." The words sputtered out of the spy's mouth. "I hadn't thought anything of it because you don't question Marcel, you know, and now that Tyler's the second-in-command basically since Thierry is in the Garden, you don't question him either, but today I figured out that something was really, really, wrong."
"What is going on?" Caroline asked, and Klaus could tell she was confused but curious.
"There is a plan in place to take down your entire family and everyone associated with you." Cyrus said nervously, clearly hoping he was not about to die. "Marcel's going to start preparing for it within the next few days." He went on, giving them a few more details, but the basic summary was simply what had been first stated. There was a plan to take down the family, and in Klaus's book, this was unacceptable.
Klaus turned to Caroline, waving his minion off. "Love, I hope you were serious about wishing to go to war, because this is it."
"They made the first move." She smirked deviously, an expression he liked very much on her angelic face. "They have taken the steps to start this, therefore anything we do serves as defense of your family. It's time for us to counter, and take back what is rightfully yours."
Klaus broke into a devilish grin, matching the one on Caroline's face as he extended his arm for her to take on their journey back to the manor. "Sweetheart, let us go make war."
AN: So... How did you all like this chapter? The ending wasn't my absolute favorite but I had it planned out already and life has been crazy so I literally wrote the ending last night at like midnight, and just yeah. I had to use it. If this chapter seems a little odd... It's because it is. I combined my original plans for chapter twenty and twenty-one into one big chapter, which is why they seem a little separated.
Anyways... How did I do on the sex scene? Now that you all have had wonderful amounts of time to freak out over the fact that Kalijah worked their shit out, give me your happiness and your opinions! I'd love to hear what you think!
Also, on the topic of Katherine... She is an immortal being-and for those of you who are unsure about what that means-she is basically like Silas, needing human blood to not desiccate, but she cannot die by anything. Instead of having psychic powers, though, she is an empath, which basically means Katherine is now more attuned to the feelings of others, and can sense how other people feel. I'm going to expand upon this more in the future works of this world, just so you all know.
And how did you all like how I handled the Bonnie thing, as well as the Kennett and Bonvina? I'm really enjoying giving Bonnie an actual storyline since the TVD writers can't manage to do that, so yeah. It was fun to write her Anchor powers.
Big things go down next chapter, and we're ramping up to the final climax!
Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing!
-Abi