Respecting Elijah's request, Riley spent her entire summer in Mystic Falls. She assumed that he did not want her to abruptly leave her friends and family behind for a new city. Though she appreciated their time together, she also felt that being with them all summer had some downsides. Barely a day after putting the veil up and losing Bonnie, something only Jeremy and Riley knew, her friends interrupted breakfast with her parents. Caroline, being terrible with secrets, had blabbed about Riley's plans for college. Hearing that she would be moving to New Orleans by the end of August was an enormous shock to her parents. It was not her choosing to attend a different college that was a problem for them. If she wanted to take college courses in Europe, they would have respected her decision. The fact that her college of choice, Loyola University, was a mere fifteen minutes away from Elijah's new home in the French Quarter. Like Caroline, her mother assumed that Elijah was the reason for her surprising decision and implored her not to base her life around a relationship. When Riley pointed out that her parents went to Whitmore together, after just dating three months, it was considered a completely different situation. It took all of the restraint within her to not mention Klaus's miracle baby as a partial reason for moving to New Orleans. Not helping matter was that instead of living in a dorm, she would be staying at the plantation house.
For five straight hours, she needed to hear lectures from her parents and her friends, mostly Caroline and Elena. Both girls wanted her with them for the college experience. Caroline tried to make her feel guilty by bringing up their promise from second grade. Back then, she, Caroline, Elena, and Bonnie swore to go through college together and to never let a boyfriend get in the way of their friendship. She thought it was silly to uphold a promise made by four second graders tapping candy rings in a circle. Her father, who already was wary of her closeness with Elijah, had skipped from rational thinking to conspiracy theories. One of his theories was that the Originals figured out a loophole to compel witches and Elijah used this new method to get Riley to join him in New Orleans. Riley expected Damon to throw in a few snide remarks but surprisingly, like Matt and Jayden, he was not against her leaving the town. She sensed that he knew there was more to her decision to move than just staying with a beloved boyfriend. With all the different arguments against moving to a new city, their main concern of both her parents and friends happened to be the same, the witch community. With the witches believing Riley to be dead, her father thought it would be foolish to stay in disguise at all times or risk her safety. Riley countered that she could not live in a little bubble of protection for the rest of her life out of fear of being discovered by the witches and there was just as much chance of a witch being a student at Whitmore.
Though they seemingly accepted her decision, she endured them saying little comments throughout the summer. Elena would purposely bring up all the fun activities at Whitmore and being within a few hours distance of the recently returned Jeremy. Her parents, during meals, mentioned how Whitmore had an amazing art program, appealing to her love of drawing and painting. Her only source of relief was her calls with Elijah. He continued to sound, at times, strange and distant. She could not figure out the cause of the unusual behavior. All she did know was that it was Klaus's doing and she intended on getting the truth from him by any means. When she did not have to hear about the wonderful Whitmore College, she had to keep pretending that Bonnie never died the night before graduation. The cover story was that she went traveling with her mother for the summer. Riley and Jeremy were given the task of writing emails and texts to their friends, under the guise of Bonnie. Caroline and Elena expected Bonnie to join them at Whitmore, clueless about the truth. Bonnie brushed away Riley's concerns of what she would do when it was time for their first day of college, wanting their friends to have some uninterrupted happiness.
Bonnie's death was not the only surprise during those last two days of school. The night after the graduation ceremony, while Riley and Bonnie cast the spell to put the veil up, Elena headed over to the school to get one last goodbye with Jeremy. On the way, she was attacked by an envious Katherine and in the ensuing fight, Elena showed the cure down her throat. Katherine being human was unexpected and from the mass amount of texts sent to Riley, she hated every second of not being a vampire. Riley told Katherine many times that the spell she cast on her daylight bracelet only protected her from supernatural death. It would not save her from normal occurrences like a car accident. Besides a human Katherine, Stefan was like a ghost. He intended on leaving Mystic Falls but he had not messaged any of them since he dumped Silas's body in the lake. While the girls worried that he was in trouble, Damon assured them that his younger brother needed time to himself.
Riley was sitting in the living room of the boardinghouse, listening to Jeremy rehearse his own cover story to explain his return from the dead. She offered to compel the town to forget about his supposed death but Elena did not want to risk the spell wearing off or not working on every person in the town. The alternative, a story worthy of its own Lifetime movie, sounded much worse. Jeremy would claim that losing so many family members in such a short time drove him to drugs and alcohol and he faked his death for attention. Elena urged him to stress that setting the house on fire had been an accident.
"Or I could just not go back, considering my school already had a memorial for me" said Jeremy.
Jayden nodded. "Sounds like a good plan"
"No, it's not. Jeremy, you can't spend all your time here, hiding. You need to get back to your normal life and that means school"
A car horn honked outside. Caroline was waiting to drive them to Whitmore. Since she would not be attending college with them, Riley promised to be with them on their first day. Elena was anxious, wanting to stay in Mystic Falls until she was sure that Jeremy would be comfortable at school. Damon refused to let her stay, telling her to enjoy college while he took care of Jeremy. Jayden and Jeremy grimaced when they shared a passionate kiss. Her friends had not gotten used to the idea of Elena and Damon as a couple. Caroline repeatedly voiced her own objections to the relationship, thinking that Elena deserved better. Unlike the rest of her friends, Riley was just supportive of her cousin being happy for more than five seconds.
"Riley will meet you in a minute. This is the last time I'll see her before she runs off to be with her fancy Original so we need to talk"
"And why can't we be here for this talk?" asked Jayden, crossing his arms.
"Go on, jock boy…or should I start you calling frat boy? Here's some advice. When you're getting hazed, swallow the biggest fish to impress the upperclassmen"
"You're hilarious" he replied, sarcastically.
"I'll be right there. Tell Caroline that it's okay if you're not the first ones at the dorms" said Riley.
As Elena and Jayden left the boardinghouse, she followed Damon up to his bedroom. He poured bourbon into two glasses. She grabbed a glass and took a small sip.
"Still won't tell me why you're really going there, shorty?"
"I told you why"
"And I know you're lying"
"No, you think I'm lying but I'm not"
"But you're sure that you're safe without your magic"
"Damon, I'll be fine. Nothing is going to happen to me with Elijah and Klaus there. Maybe it's better that I don't have my magic. If the witches figure out who I am and that I'm powerless, they might not care that I'm alive. Besides, I don't need magic to beat someone up"
"Let's say…hypothetically that something does happen down there. You'd tell me, right?"
She smiled at him. He glanced around the room as if thinking that Elijah was standing by the window.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"You're going to miss me"
"Pfft, what? Don't make such a big deal. You're the one leaving me all alone to deal with little Gilbert and his teenage issues"
"Aww, you don't want me to go. Who knew that inside, the bad boy was like a little teddy bear?"
"I am not a teddy bear. I just—without you around, who's going to help me with these idiots? I'm fine with you going to New Orleans. Go…have a blast. It would just be nice if you called once in a while. Someone needs to make sure that you don't get killed by hanging out with those crazy Originals, especially Señor Hybrid"
"I promise that I'll set aside a special day just for you so we can gossip over what's going on in each town while we drink scotch like we're at the grill. It's only a matter of time before Mystic Falls has some kind of drama. I'm surprised that we went an entire summer without any problems"
The car honked loudly. "Riley, hurry up!" shouted Caroline.
"I should get in that car before Caroline throws me into the trunk. Make sure Jeremy doesn't get into trouble"
Riley was caught off guard by Damon hugging her. He was not completely heartless but it was rare for him to show affection.
"Be careful down there. If you miss one call, I'll drive down there and set fire to both those Originals, starting with your boyfriend"
"I'll miss you too, Damon"
Hurrying down the staircase, she saw that Jeremy had not left for school. "You're supposed to be at school soon. Why are you here?"
"This is a bad idea. Maybe I could go to New Orleans with you"
"That's not happening. You are going to school and after a week or two, people will forget all about you faking your death or whatever. If any of those guys give you a problem, call me and I will be in Mystic Falls as soon as I can so I can kick their asses. I might not live here anymore but I can still scare those jocks with one look. Is Bonnie here?"
"She uh just showed up, actually"
"Tell her not to worry about me either. I won't be in any danger unless one day, I pop up next to her on the Other Side. She's probably got that 'heart attack' face on now so tell her it was a joke"
"She says that she'll keep an eye on you in New Orleans like she'll do for Elena and Caroline at Whitmore"
"Good. I can scare everyone at my new school that I have a ghost bodyguard. That will be an awesome first day prank. Remember to call me if you ever need to talk, Jer. Don't worry about school. At first, it will be a little scary but then it'll be like you never left"
Giving him a quick hug, she left the boardinghouse and got into the backseat of Liz's car with Elena and Jayden. He allowed Cameron and Garrett to drive his car up to Whitmore, wanting to be around Riley as much as possible before she left for New Orleans. The ride to Whitmore was almost three hours. During the ride, Caroline left over a dozen voicemails for Tyler about registering for his classes. Klaus, busy with his plans to take over a city, allowed him to return to Mystic Falls. For the whole summer, Caroline waited to see him but he would make excuses like helping werewolf packs in the mountains. She had high hopes that he planned to surprise her before the first week of classes. Her expectations were so great that she believed Jayden was in on the surprise and Tyler was living in connecting rooms with him, Cameron, and Garrett. Once they were at Whitmore, Jayden headed over to his dorm while Riley helped Caroline and Elena with their belongings. She carried Caroline's shoe bin. Walking towards their residence hall, she listened to Elena talk about recent dreams of Stefan. Caroline brushed it off as guilt for breaking his heart.
"Or you're just a very concerned friend. Let's consider the possibility that these dreams are just dreams. You're in college. Leave all the supernatural craziness of Mystic Falls behind" said Riley.
"And is that what you're going to do while you're shacked up with two Originals? Because that won't happen unless you and Elijah just plan to stay in the bedroom forever"
"Caroline, mom ears" said Liz, carrying a box of appliances.
For a college dorm, their room was very large. The only explanation in Riley's head was that the room was for three people, accounting for the above average size. She placed the shoe bin in the closet.
"You guys have a fireplace. Did you compel the school to give your room some upgrades?"
"Hmm, Whitmore looking a bit better now?" asked Caroline.
"Care, this isn't up for discussion. I am not going here for college. We will have weekly skype chats and it will be like I never left"
"But you are, Riley. Wouldn't it be more fun to be with us than having to meet new people?"
"It's not terrible to make other friends"
"Speaking of friends, have you talked to Bonnie lately? When is she getting here?" asked Elena.
"I uh think she said she'd be here for classes. She's still in California with her mother"
Liz embraced all three of them, teary-eyed. She mentioned to Elena that Uncle Grayson began his love for medicine at Whitmore. Riley had to promise not to get arrested down in New Orleans since Liz could not be there to bail her out of trouble.
"And remember what your mother said this morning. You are going to call her every single day"
Struggling between letting them grow up or taking them back home, she hesitantly left the room. Caroline opened up her suitcase and tossed a blood bag to Elena and a beer bottle to Riley. They wanted to celebrate their new freedom at college. As they tapped their drinks, there was a knock at the door. Caroline hastily stashed the blood bags in her suitcase. The door opened and a girl with caramel brown hair in low-hanging pigtails and glasses, carrying several boxes and a bulky backpack. Riley was the only one who did not look confused. She had dreaded this moment when Caroline gushed over being roommates with Bonnie and Elena. Now that Bonnie was dead, this girl was the replacement. She introduced herself as Megan. Elena glanced at Riley, who simply shrugged.
"Hi Megan. I'm Riley and this is Caroline and Elena"
"I didn't know there was four people in one room"
"Oh, I'm not a student here. Elena's my cousin and Caroline's one of my best friends. I was just hanging out with them for the day, helping them move in and stuff"
"Well, it's nice meeting you. I see you guys already unpacked. I'm going to get the rest of my things from my car and then we can get to know each other"
Seconds after leaving the room, Caroline sent emergency texts to Bonnie. She freaked out that they had some stranger as their third roommate instead of their best friend. Elena wondered why the college would assign them a new roommate.
"Bonnie just needs to get her ass over here to fix this mess. They'll put her back in this room and that girl can go be friends with other people"
"That's so sweet. We can just chuck her stuff out the window as a friendly gesture too" said Riley.
"This is all going wrong. First, you're not even with us at Whitmore and now, our other best friend isn't our roommate. We don't know anything about this girl"
"She seemed nice"
"You talked to her for less than a minute"
"Well until Bonnie gets here, Megan is staying in this room. It wouldn't kill you to be nice"
Caroline was not interested in making a new friend. As she folded her clothes, she stared at Megan with a harsh, unwelcoming gaze. Megan was none the wiser, setting up her laptop. Riley nudged Caroline's side as she folded a blouse.
"Talk to her" she whispered.
"No. I don't want to know her, Riley. We won't be friends"
"And you wonder why you didn't win prom queen. At least drop the harsh looks. You're going to scare her"
"Good"
"Elena, would you tell her to stop overreacting?"
Elena was busy talking to Damon about the roommate situation. Like Caroline, he suggested using compulsion on Megan to kick her out of the room. Riley chucked a stuffed unicorn at her, a sign to not take that advice. Compulsion would only create more problems. If they wanted to be more mature, they needed to be open to new experiences and people. Elena gave her a slight nod, agreeing that she did not want to use compulsion every time something went wrong at the college. Caroline shifted from harsh looks to pouty faces. Riley's phone vibrated in her pocket. Checking to see who called, she stepped out of the room.
"Katherine, if you keep calling, I'll start thinking that you have a weird obsession with me"
"I need your help. I can't risk someone turning me into a vampire because of the cure. No one's ever taken it so I don't have a lot of information on what happens if someone snaps my neck with vampire blood in me. I want you to find another way"
"When did I become your personal witch? Oh wait, I don't have magic"
"You have grimoires. There must be some spell in there to create a vampire. Give me it and I can find a witch to cast the spell"
"Or you could just deal with being a human"
"Someone is chasing me, Riley"
"If you're worried that Klaus sent his goons after you, don't. I juiced up that ring to prevent you from a supernatural death. You're safe. Goodbye, Katherine. Don't stay out all night. You could catch a cold"
The atmosphere in the room was still very tense. There was a clear divide between Elena and Caroline on their beds and Megan at her desk. Taking it upon herself to get rid of some awkwardness, Riley suggested that they walk around the campus. Rebekah would be picking her up in about an hour. In the middle of her summer road trip in Europe with Matt, she sent a few messages to Riley. She was concerned about Elijah because he was not answering any of her calls. A small part of her suspected that it was a clever ruse to get her to New Orleans. Upon returning from her trip, she agreed to drive Riley to New Orleans to meet with Elijah herself.
Of the two, Elena was being friendlier to their new roommate. She told her about her relationship with Damon and her worries about Stefan.
"Do you have a boyfriend, Riley?"
"Yea. He's a little older. I'm actually staying with him when I go to my school"
"Instead of staying with her best friends since diapers" muttered Caroline.
"Ignore Caroline. She doesn't like the idea of me being at a different college"
"Not when it's just for a guy"
"Do you have a boyfriend too, Caroline?" asked Megan, curiously.
"I do. His name's Tyler. He had to miss move-in day but he'll be here for the first week of classes"
"Assuming he registers…and picks a dorm…and buys books" said Elena.
Caroline discussed ground rules with Megan, including privacy. Her rule about not following her if she left the room in the middle of the night sounded strange. A slightly suspicious person would consider it a warning that they were troublemakers or part of an illegal activity.
"She's not trying to be subtle, right? If she is, she's failing" she whispered to Elena.
"This won't end well"
Their conversation was interrupted by an older, dark-skinned guy. He handed a flyer to Caroline. It was for a party at a building on campus called Whitmore House. Caroline did not seem to care but Riley noticed that the guy was eyeing her with interest.
"We'll be there" said Elena.
"I hope so" he replied, his eyes on Caroline.
He walked over to another group of students. Riley smirked at her.
"He likes you"
"What?"
"He couldn't keep his eyes off of you, Care"
"He can look all he wants. I have a boyfriend"
Around two o'clock, she received a text from Rebekah that she was waiting in the parking lot. Riley had could not take even one step because her friends refused to let her go, hoping that it would prolong her dreaded move. She reached into her purse and handed Caroline a paper bag.
"You might need this for the party"
"What is it? A scarf or—Riley, what the hell?! Condoms?"
"My dad forced me to take them. I'm pretty sure that I have zero chance of getting pregnant but he says nature always finds a way. Just more conspiracy theories from him. If you meet that guy again—"
"Nothing is happening because I'm with Tyler"
"Hey, it's college. You never know…"
"You are so not funny"
"Both of you be careful and try to give Megan a chance"
"Well when Bonnie gets here, we can get rid of her"
"That's Caroline speak for we'll be nice" said Elena, shaking her head.
Rebekah was sitting in a red convertible, swiping on lip gloss. Riley sat in the passenger seat. On the way to New Orleans, they discussed Elijah. He had not yet answered Rebekah's calls. When Riley used Rebekah's phone, the call went straight to voicemail. Their suspicions grew when he immediately answered a call from Riley, passing off his ignorance of Rebekah as giving her time apart from the family. They agreed that something was wrong with him, likely thanks to a misdeed by Klaus. Riley placed one of his calls on speaker, allowing Rebekah to hear his odd behavior.
"He doesn't sound like himself. That wanker…Klaus is behind this, no doubt"
"You think Klaus got the witches to put a weird spell on Elijah?"
"Perhaps. I wouldn't put it past him to use a dagger either"
"But we're definitely hearing Elijah in these calls. None of this adds up"
"Once we find Elijah, I'm leaving. I have no intention of staying in that wretched city"
"Klaus will tell us the truth"
"You have a better chance of driving the white oak stake through his heart"
"I have my ways. I don't need magic to get him to talk"
The drive to New Orleans lasted nearly eighteen hours. In between, they stopped at a hotel for rest. At eleven o'clock the next night, just half an hour away from the French Quarter, Riley's stomach grumbled from hunger. Rebekah sighed, glancing over at her.
"You humans get hungry so easily"
"We don't have to stop. I'll eat at the house"
"No, I'm feeling a bit hungry too. There's a bar not far down the road. We'll need some liquor in us before we hear Klaus's latest lie. I can't imagine what story he'll come up with, especially in front of you"
She pulled into a nearby bar. It was quite small with polished wooden chairs lined up around the counter, a little over a dozen tables, dimly lit lights, and a single pool table. As she entered the bar, she got a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. Some of the people, dressed like bikers, were vampires. She avoided eye contact with them and was relieved that she sprayed that herbal mixture to mask her scent earlier in the day. Rebekah looked at the very few humans in the bar while ordering drinks.
"She's a good choice. I'm too tired to compel her. Go talk to her for me"
"And say what? Hey, you want to come out back and let my friend feed on your blood?" whispered Riley.
"Fine. We'll play pool. If I win, you have to get her outside. If you win, I'll do my own dirty work"
They grabbed their drinks from the bartender and walked over to the pool table. Riley was uncomfortable with the lustful stares of the vampires. Even with her sweet scent hidden, it was not enough to stop them from seeing her as a meal. She focused on playing pool. Sinking in her fifth ball to Rebekah's one, she stuck her tongue out at her.
"Looks like you'll have to charm that girl yourself, Beks"
"It's not over yet"
"Why don't you put that tongue to better use over here, darlin'?" she heard.
Turning around, she was face to face with one the vampires. He was a chubby man in his thirties with dark hair and a thick beard. His clothes smelled heavily of beer and cigarette smoke. She scrunched her nose when he gripped the front of his pants.
"Fuck off"
"Oh, sweet thing's got a nasty tongue"
His friends sniggered. Glaring at the man, she noticed that the other humans were gone from the bar, including the bartender.
"I told you to fuck off. That means leave me alone"
"You should be nicer to me"
"Why? Because you're a vampire?"
"So you know about the monsters that lurk in the dark?"
"I don't know about monster. All I see in front of me is a fat, dirty man hitting on young girls who have no interest in him"
Veins protruded under his eyes. "You best apologize before I make you my late night snack"
"Leave my friend alone. Go find some drunken floozy to bother" said Rebekah, standing beside Riley.
"Or what?"
Rebekah pierced his stomach with her cue stick. He groaned in pain. Whacking him in the face, she knocked him down on the floor. The other vampires advanced on them, angrily. Riley grabbed her own cue stick and snapped it in half on her knee. The man who had been flirting with her grabbed her from behind. She threw her head back, making contact with his face, and stabbed him through the heart. He collapsed to the floor, dead. The bar soon turned into a slaughter as she and Rebekah killed all six vampires. They returned to the convertible and continued their trip.
"You have some blood on your cheek" said Riley.
"Thanks"
Smiling, Rebekah wiped away the spot of blood. Riley cut her wrist with her car keys and let her blood drip into an empty water bottle. She handed it to Rebekah, who looked very hungry.
"Since you didn't get to feed from that girl…"
"I forgot since we were having fun killing those pigs"
Rebekah drank the bottle of blood in one sip. She licked her lips, contentedly.
"You've no idea how incredible your blood tastes"
"Well, I never had to drink my own blood so I wouldn't know myself. I'll take your word for it"
Parking in the driveway of the plantation house, she called Elijah. He, once again, ignored her. She left a frustrated voicemail and walked into the house. Riley grabbed her bags from the backseat. Entering the house, she saw that Rebekah had met Hayley, who was holding a fire iron. They were having an awkward conversation.
"You have your brother's manners" said Hayley.
"And his temper, so watch it"
Riley tossed her bags on the floor. "That's her way of saying nice to meet you. Glad that you're still in one piece"
"You're here, finally. I couldn't stand being alone with him for another minute. It's good to have another girl in this house"
"How's the b—"
"Where's Elijah?" interrupted Rebekah.
"Beats me. He's long gone"
Hearing that Elijah was not in New Orleans only confirmed her suspicions. Hayley explained that he mysteriously vanished, despite making promises about protecting her and the baby. According to Klaus, he left the city to find some magical object to help Riley against the witches.
"I thought he was in Mystic Falls with you, Riley"
"When did he leave?"
"He was gone the night that you went home. Klaus said that he was looking for a talisman to keep you safe if the witches here figured out your real identity. I thought he found it and you two were going to come back after your graduation"
"None of that's true. Klaus lied to you but I doubt you're shocked about that"
Rebekah shouted for Klaus, stepping into the living room. Riley followed her, wanting answers about Elijah's supposed disappearance. A pair of doors opened and Klaus entered the room. He was acting very calm. Their slaughter at the bar had been discovered by Thierry, one of Marcel's lackeys. The culprits were unknown but Klaus assumed that Riley and Rebekah had killed the vampires.
"They were very rude, trying to victimize two poor, innocent girls just trying to find their way to the Quarter. So sorry, were they friends of yours? Oh, that's right, you don't have any friends"
"I do have friends. I have Marcel. You remember him, don't you?"
Rebekah looked edgy from just hearing Marcel's name. There seemed to be some past history between them.
"Yes, of course you do. He fancies himself the 'King of the Quarter' now and he has these rules about killing vampires. I suppose Riley never mentioned them. It'll be fun to see what sort of punishment he comes up with for you. I assume he'll let Riley's involvement go because he enjoys her feisty attitude"
"I don't care about Marcel or his rules. Elijah doesn't welch on deals. What did you do to him?"
"Perhaps he's on holiday…or taking a long autumn nap upstairs. Go on. Take a look around"
The entire time he spoke, he never looked at Riley directly. Rebekah proceeded to search the house. Before Riley could join her, Klaus grabbed her wrist.
"Leave Rebekah to her paranoid delusions"
"Where's Elijah? I've called him for the past three months. He's said that he has meetings with the witches but Hayley just told me that he's been gone since the day I went back to Mystic Falls"
"The little wolf is confused. I suspect the pregnancy hormones are affecting her memory a bit"
Hayley scoffed. "What? You're joking"
"Elijah left recently. He told you himself that he was on an errand to find that talisman. He worried that the witches would figure out who you truly are without some magical help. He didn't want to tell you where he was because he didn't want to put you in any danger if you went after him"
"Riley, you don't seriously believe—"
"I guess it makes sense. He's just looking out for me"
Klaus grinned. "Of course he is and he'll be back as soon as he finds it. No need to worry. Come outside. Hayley, come get us if my sister starts to break any furniture"
Putting his arm around her, he led her outside. He assured her that she had no reason to worry about Elijah. In the backyard, there was a very expensive black convertible. He handed her a set of car keys.
"A belated birthday present. We can celebrate tomorrow night"
"You bought me a car?"
"Well, you need one to get to your classes, don't you? You can impress those dullards with this"
"I—I can't…you have to take this back. It probably cost a lot"
"Money doesn't matter when it comes to you, love. I've got something else"
"What, a boat?"
A gold-chained necklace was placed around her neck. It had a pendant with an engraving of a snake, the two eyes replaced by emeralds.
"To replace the one you lost in those caves. It may not be as sentimental but I thought it would be a suitable replacement"
"Thank you"
Riley wrapped her arms around his neck. For a second, she could feel his breath catch in his throat and his grip tighten on her waist. Rebekah's shouts disrupted the quiet moment. Returning to the house, they found her at the bottom of the staircase, arms crossed.
"Where's Elijah?"
"You need to stop being so paranoid, little sister. Riley believes me. As I told her, Elijah should be back soon"
"You believe him?" asked Rebekah, confused.
Riley nodded. "Klaus wouldn't lie to me. He knows that if he did, I'd be very angry and maybe never forgive him"
"Yes, which is why I am being honest. You should be a bit more trusting" said Klaus.
He glanced at his phone. Marcel invited him out for drinks. Rebekah doubted that getting drunk with Marcel would aid him in his plan to take New Orleans. Klaus argued that a drunk Marcel could spill many secrets, such as how he maintained control over the witches. Kissing the top of Riley's head, he left the house.
"What the bloody hell was that? You believed—"
"Not for a second. I just pretended to believe that lame story. If Elijah was really looking for some special talisman, he wouldn't have kept his location a secret. He would've told me because he knows that I don't like the thought of him in danger. Klaus is obviously lying. Instead of confronting him about it, I'm going to wear him down. Sorry about before, Hayley"
"It's okay. So what, you think he did something to Elijah?"
"99.9% sure. Somewhere in this house is a clue. We just need to find it"
The three girls searched every inch of the house. Klaus would cover his tracks well if he suspected, for a second, that Riley was suspicious of him. Not a single room showed any trace of Elijah. Rebekah remembered that the governor had secret rooms around the house. She brought them into one of the rooms in the basement. The room contained two of the family coffins. Elijah's was not among them but Riley had no doubt that he had been daggered the night he returned to New Orleans. Hayley was surprised to learn about Klaus's penchant for daggering his siblings throughout the centuries, mostly if he was angry with them. Riley proposed that he hid Elijah's coffin in a different spot, knowing that she would be in the city by the end of the summer. When Rebekah told Hayley that she should have left months ago, Hayley told her about the linking spell between her and Sophie. Rebekah only worsened Hayley's own fears, thinking that Klaus planned to kill her after the birth of the baby.
"Where can I find this Sophie? She's the witch in charge, isn't she?"
"She works at a bar called Rousseau's. No point in going there now. We can go see her in the morning. Maybe she has an idea of where Elijah's coffin could be…" said Riley.
"Fine. Until then, we still need to deal with Niklaus"
"Let me do it. I'll wait up for him"
"I hope you know what you're doing"
Riley sat in the kitchen, waiting for Klaus to return from the bars. After about three hours, she heard a door open. Klaus walked into the kitchen, seeing her with a carton of chocolate chip ice cream.
"It's nearly three in the morning, love. Why are you up so late?"
"I'm a little worried"
"I told you that Elijah won't be gone for long"
"Not about Elijah. It's…college. Most of my friends are at Whitmore and I'm all the way down here. I don't know anybody except three vampires and a werewolf. What if I don't make any friends?"
He sat beside her and grabbed the carton. "You are being bloody ridiculous. If you don't have people lining up to be your friend, they're not worth your time"
"I just—you'll think it's silly…"
"You can tell me"
"I've had it all planned out for months. I'd drive down here. You would be busy trying to overthrow Marcel and Elijah would be stopping you from making a big mistake. He was supposed to come with me on the first day and tell me over and over again that everything would be great. I should call him. Maybe he'll give up looking for that talisman if I tell him that I don't need it"
"Heh, Riley, it's very late. No need to wake him up. You could call him in the morning"
"It's fine. He won't care"
As she dialed his number, she heard his familiar ringtone. It was coming from Klaus's pocket. He tapped the screen of her phone, ending the call.
"Why do you have Elijah's phone?"
"I don't. You must have dialed the wrong number. I can see that you're tired. You need to rest"
"But I wanted to—"
"Call him in the morning. I'm sure he'll answer right away. Come along"
Klaus brought her into his bedroom. With all of his scheming, he had no time to clean up her own room before her arrival. He offered to let her sleep in his bed while he slept on the couch downstairs.
"That's silly. I can sleep on the couch"
"I don't mind. I'll be up for a bit longer"
"Klaus"
"Yes?" he asked, standing in the doorway.
"Do you promise that Elijah will be back soon?"
"For someone who isn't worried about him, you're asking about him often"
"I just miss him. We haven't seen each other for months and…I can't help worrying. What if he gets hurt out there? It's not like we have the link between us anymore to tell me if he gets injured. If he was hurt, I'd never forgive myself. I don't think I could take it"
Klaus was visibly tense. He managed a weak smile, gripping the door handle.
"I swear to you that he's safe. Good night, Riley"
She listened for the sound of fading footsteps. Once the sounds stopped, she dialed another number on her phone.
"This is a late night call. I'm a bit busy drinking"
"I hope you're being discrete"
"Of course. I've been discrete all summer. No one knows that I'm back"
"Are you here?"
"Staying at the Palace Royale hotel. Are my services required?"
"Not yet, but soon. Stay in that hotel room until I send you the message. Klaus isn't going to be easy to crack but I'll wear him down throughout the day. Seeing you will make it that much easier to find out what he's hiding"
"You know, finding out the truth could go much faster if you were willing to shed some clothes"
"Hilarious. I'll see you tomorrow"
Riley received a call from Elijah in the middle of the night. She listened to his voicemail the next morning, swearing that he would return to New Orleans as soon as possible. He was aware of her concern for his safety but wanted to find that talisman. If something had happened to her because of the French Quarter witches, he would never forgive himself.
She spent the day with Hayley, not willing to leave her alone at the house. Klaus claimed that Marcel had no idea about her but with werewolves being banned from the city, she did not want to risk the lives of Hayley and the baby. Rebekah was busy meeting with Sophie to discuss Elijah's disappearance. Sophie was clueless about the situation and unwilling to use magic because of Marcel's rules. Needing new clothes, Riley decided to take Hayley into the city for shopping. She had used hair dye in the morning to make her hair platinum blonde and put on the heavy makeup and piercings, matching her appearance from the last time she was in New Orleans. Hayley looked through a jeans rack at the boutique.
"It's pointless for me to shop. I'm just going to grow a huge belly and then none of these will fit"
"I bet the witches can cast a spell to help with that"
"You're not nervous that the witches might see through that disguise?"
"Well, I only met a few when I looked like myself. Jane-Anne's dead, haven't seen Bastiana, and I only spoke to Agnes for a couple minutes so I don't think she'll recognize me"
"And how long are you keeping this up?"
"Until I'm sure that these witches aren't as crazy as the ones who willingly sacrificed themselves to get rid of me"
"Between us, we could have a TV show"
Sophie was passing by the boutique. "I uh wanted to talk to Sophie about a witch thing. Will you be okay by yourself?"
"Yea, don't let me slow you down. I can make it back to the house by myself"
Riley chased after Sophie. She had gone into the kitchen at Rousseau's. In the middle of chopping vegetables, she looked up to see Riley and almost sliced her finger.
"Sorry, Mae. I was just—I forgot that you were coming back at the end of the summer. Plus I'm a little jumpy from meeting Rebekah this morning"
"She's like a female version of Klaus. I know you told her that you haven't seen Elijah. I was just curious about something"
Reaching into her purse, she pulled out a small bottle filled with crushed dark green herbs. "Why did Klaus have this in his bedroom? Before you try to play dumb, I will tell you that it's pointless. I already know about these herbs. They're used for certain spells. Since you're probably the only witch besides me that he trusts, it must've been you that gave him this bottle. I can tell if you lie to me, Sophie. Make this easier on yourself and be honest"
"It's just to help him sleep at night"
"That was awful"
"I—I'll tell you but please don't be angry with me. He threatened to kill the entire coven if I didn't give him the herbs. They were already cast with the spell before Marcel got his secret weapon against us. The morning after Elijah disappeared, he showed up here. He knew you'd ask questions when Elijah didn't answer your calls and he asked for help to hide the truth from you"
Sophie confessed that the spell cast on herbs altered a person's voice. The only other ingredient was to mix the herbs with the hair of the person. When eaten, they would sound like that person for a short time. Klaus had been using the herbs since Elijah's disappearance, posing as him for Riley's phone calls. Sophie witnessed him using them multiple times, including the day of graduation when she left that urgent voicemail. Riley's nails dug into the wooden table. She knew that Klaus was deceiving her about Elijah's whereabouts but he had been tricking her for months, posing as Elijah. It all started to connect in her head when she thought about how Elijah sounded strange at times and he seemed puzzled about her mention of the darkness. She was furious that she had been speaking to Klaus during very private and intimate conversations. Her anger was also directed at Sophie, who practically betrayed her by working with him. If she did not have a link to Hayley, she would be in a hospital bed at the moment, being treated for a nasty stab wound or worse. Before she could say a single word, she was distracted by a call from Klaus.
"Hey Klaus. You've been busy all day. I was just shopping with Hayley. She went back to the house early"
"I hope you didn't forget that I wanted to celebrate your birthday"
"No, I remember. When did you want to meet?"
"How about now? Meet me at Maison Bourbon"
"Okay. I'll meet you there. Don't get started without me"
"We're not done, Sophie. After I deal with that bastard, we'll have another talk and I suggest you hide all sharp objects"
Riley walked over to Maison Bourbon, a local jazz club where Marcel performed karaoke. Klaus was sitting at a back table with a bottle of scotch.
"Here's the birthday girl. I take it by the lack of bags that your shopping was unsuccessful"
"I'm not much of a shopper anyway. Less talking, more drinking"
For an entire hour, she and Klaus downed shots. She stopped herself from getting too drunk by secretly pouring most of her shot on the floor. Klaus was unaware of her deception. He was too focused on telling her about his own manipulations against Marcel. To replace the six nightwalkers lost the previous night, Marcel wanted to turn one of two tourists found dead with vampire blood in their system. With Klaus's arrival, Marcel ordered all of his lackeys to drink vervain to prevent compulsion. Klaus was able to compel the newest vampire, a young guy named Josh, to do his bidding and spy on Marcel for him. She poured tequila into their shot glasses. Some of it spilled onto the table.
"I think you've had too much, love"
"No way. We're just getting started. It's my birthday. I can drink as much as I want"
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to get me drunk"
"You're even more paranoid when you're buzzed"
"Not even close to that yet"
"Is it getting hot in here?"
Riley removed her leather jacket, showing off her low-cut, short-sleeved crop top. Half of the tequila in his shot glass dribbled down his chin. He wiped it away, his eyes obviously not on her face. She poked his chest.
"Hey, my eyes are up here, perv. Don't make me get Elijah to kick your ass"
"He can't do that now"
"What do you mean? He's not that far from New Orleans, right?"
"Y—yes, but…he's busy looking for that little trinket for you. Best not to bother him"
"Then be a gentleman and keep your eyes on my face"
"Is that supposed to deter me from doing something that could get me in trouble with my older brother? That only makes me want to do it more. Perhaps if you wore a paper bag over your head…no, that still wouldn't work"
"Be nice or I will bring someone here to make your life a living hell"
Their fun night was ruined by Marcel. He was displeased that Klaus never mentioned Rebekah was in New Orleans. His discomfort only confirmed that he and Rebekah had an turbulent past. While they discussed Rebekah's problematic return, Riley texted under the table.
"Maybe it was her that killed my guys"
"Doubtful. Unless that biker bar is frequented by small-town, high school quarterbacks, I can't imagine she'd be interested" said Klaus.
Riley giggled. "You'd totally get that joke if you knew….but you don't so it's not as funny to you. Stop with that grumpy face. It's my birthday. Well, it's not today but we're celebrating now. You can drink shots with us. You're going to need a lot to catch up but I bet it won't take long. Elijah's gone so I'm numbing the sadness with alcohol. When I get really drunk, I like to cuddle. We can be like an oreo cookie…well, Klaus is a vanilla oreo so it's like twisting off half of one of those and putting it with half of a regular oreo. I really want oreos now. "
"Don't bother, love. He's got his eyes on a pretty little bartender"
"Really? You had to tell her that?" asked Marcel.
"I doubt she'll remember this night at all"
She flipped through a dessert menu. "Yea, I'm awesome with secrets. Ooh, they have an oreo cake. I want one but I don't want to pay for it. It's my birthday. It should be free"
Klaus eavesdropped on Marcel's phone call with one of his lackeys. She wandered over to the counter. Getting the bartender's attention, she asked for a piece of the oreo cake.
"That'll be—"
"It's my birthday. Can it be free?"
"Afraid not"
"You're really cute. If I kiss you, will you reconsider?"
Arms wrapped around her waist. Klaus apologized to the bartender, who looked disappointed, and carried her back to the table. He warned her not to leave without him, due to her drunken state. Marcel was informed of a werewolf in the French Quarter. His first thought was that his lackeys spotted Hayley.
"I wanted that oreo cake. Why didn't you let me get it? I was only going to kiss him. Elijah wouldn't find out"
"You're not thinking clearly, Riley. You would have regretted it in the morning" he replied, though she knew the real reason.
"Let's play never have I ever. I'll go first. Never have I ever gotten someone pregnant"
"Cheap shot" he said, downing his shot of tequila.
They went back and forth, using both vague statements and statements purposely directed at the other. She downed her fourth shot of tequila.
"My turn. Never have I ever pretended to be a relative on the phone and then flirt with their girlfriend. Come on, a thousand years and you never did anything like that? I don't believe it. Let me try again until I find the right one"
Klaus chuckled uneasily. "It's my turn"
"My birthday, my rules. New rule says birthday girl gets to keep going until the other person drinks their shot. Never have I ever lied to a friend for months about where someone they care about really is…"
"Riley"
"No? Wait, I've got it. Never have I ever pretended to be Elijah for three months by using magical herbs given to me by Sophie Deveraux and acted like him on the phone for his girlfriend, lying that he wanted her away from New Orleans until summer was over because he wanted to protect her then talk all about her birthday so she doesn't keep thinking about Elijah mysteriously leaving"
"What are you doing?"
"Calling you out on your bullshit. I know Elijah was daggered, Klaus. I know that you threatened Sophie to help you hide it with those herbs to disguise your voice. I tried using a guilt trip on you when I showed up with Rebekah last night but that didn't work so instead, I've purposely been getting you drunk so you'd admit it to me. Where is he?"
"You're not thinking clearly. You've had much to drink"
"Actually, no. I've been pouring my shots on the floor the whole night. You were just too distracted to notice. I'll ask you one more time. Where is Elijah?"
"Don't tell me you haven't been enjoying this night. I wanted to celebrate your birthday. Why ruin it now?"
"Distracting me won't work. You left me no choice. My friend will help get the truth out of you"
A hooded figure pulled up a chair to their table. Sitting beside Riley, they removed their hood. Klaus's glass fell to the floor, shattering into pieces. Kol was across from him, a smug smirk on his face.
"Hello, brother"
"W—what is this? Some witch trick?" asked Klaus, shocked.
"No. I resurrected Kol on the night of graduation. I knew you were hiding something and who better to torment the truth from you than Kol? He's been keeping a low profile all summer and I told him to meet us here. My last act of magic was bringing your brother, who annoys you, back to life. Does that tell you how pissed I am already?"
After Klaus told her to postpone her move to New Orleans until the end of the summer, Riley had no doubts that he was being deceitful. Between putting the veil up, she used the magic in her necklace to resurrect Kol. He was sent directly to her bedroom. They had a long discussion that night about Elijah's strange behavior and Klaus's involvement. She allowed Kol to leave Mystic Falls under the condition that he was not recognized by people in the supernatural community. Keeping his identity hidden required a lot of compulsion.
"Kol is useless. He can't hurt me"
"Maybe not but he can tell Marcel all about your plan to overthrow him"
"Let's not be hasty, darling. We could always torment Nik while he tries to win back this city, destroying each of his plans and calling it an accident. Marcel will suddenly get anonymous tips moments before Nik executes his scheme of the day. I'd find that much more enjoyable"
"You're right. I mean, we could do all those things because we have no personal interest in ruling New Orleans. Maybe we could be convinced to help if he told us what happened to Elijah"
"But then we don't get to make him angry. I prefer the first alternative"
"Enough of this. Riley, I swore to you that Elijah would return soon and when I take the city, he will"
"That could take years and I'm a very impatient girl"
Rebekah sent her an urgent message to meet her at the house. Some of Marcel's vampires found Hayley and there were now two dead bodies and a very weakened man in the front yard. Riley put aside her own agenda and showed the message to Klaus. Furious, he headed back to the house. Riley hurried after him, dragging Kol with her. Klaus was reprimanding Rebekah and Hayley for almost ruining his plans. Before Rebekah could defend herself, she spotted Kol.
"K—Kol? What—"
"That is a subject for later"
"Oh, it's quite simple, Nik. Riley brought me back after her little graduation. She knew our brother had done something awful and planned to use me to find out what that was…until you interrupted us with these dead fools" said Kol.
She looked at Riley. "You knew all this time and you never—"
"Quiet!" shouted Klaus.
He revealed his ongoing plans to destroy Marcel's empire. Knowing that he needed a spy who never ingested vervain, he purposely killed those two tourists. Marcel was desperate to replace the six dead vampires from the bar incident so it took little effort to convince him to bring one of the tourists into his circle as a new vampire. Besides recruiting a spy, he compelled Marcel's crush, the bartender, to let Marcel take her on a date. She was also compelled to tell Klaus about Marcel's whereabouts throughout the day. He angrily dragged the weakened vampire into the house. His new plan was to drain him of vervain and compel him to believe that the other two vampires left for a new city. The cover story would help Marcel understand why he lost three more vampires.
"Hayley, what were you doing in the bloody French Quarter in the first place?"
Hayley was silent. "Answer me!"
"Leave her be" said Rebekah.
"You wanna know what I was doing? I was buying poison, so I could put your little baby out of its misery" said Hayley.
Klaus sped towards her and pinned her to the door. His hand was tightly wrapped around her throat. Riley, Rebekah, and Kol quickly jumped to her defense. Even with all three of them combined, it was difficult to restrain him.
"Nik! Nik!"
Rebekah pushed him off of Hayley and held him by the shoulders. Hayley massaged her throat, breathing heavily.
"I don't blame you, love. Who'd want his baby?" said Kol.
"Not now" hissed Riley.
"All this bluster about not wanting the child and then the second she tells you she's ready to get rid of it? It's okay to care. It's okay to want something. That's all Elijah was trying to do, all he's ever wanted for you. All we've ever wanted"
Klaus sat down on the floor, with Rebekah beside him. He glanced up at Riley, tears in his eyes. Her heart raced when he confessed to giving Elijah to Marcel. After daggering him, he handed over the coffin as a sign of trust. Marcel was nervous about two Originals being back in New Orleans. Without the offering, it would have been impossible for Klaus to carry out his plans. Riley stormed out of the house. She was not familiar with the area but decided to just keep walking until her feet hurt. Klaus appeared in front of her. Unable to say anything, she punched him across the face. She threw several punches but they had no effect. Her fists pounded against his chest. He grabbed her wrists.
"Riley, I know you're angry"
"Angry? You think I'm angry? No, I'm way past that. I am even past rage. I am at a part of the emotional spectrum that hasn't even been discovered yet. I told him not to trust you. I knew you would—I thought he was daggered but you blew past expectations. Giving him to Marcel…"
"I needed to gain his trust"
"Bullshit. You act like you were so torn up over the choice but you weren't. You were happy to give him away. You lied to me. You pretended to be him every time that I called and when…how can you think that it was okay?! Let go of me!"
"Not until you—"
"What? I forgive you? I am never forgiving you, Klaus!"
A nearby street lamp flickered intensely. Klaus would not let go of her wrists, even as tears trickled down her cheeks.
"Riley, please. I never thought he'd be in Marcel's possession for this long. It's why I told you to come at the end of the summer. I assumed that it would be over by then and Elijah would be undaggered. It's why I kept you in the dark. I knew you'd be distraught"
"You tricked me all those months. I bet it was a lot easier with my magic gone because I couldn't cast a spell to see Elijah for myself. Just stay away from me. I can't—I want to be alone."
She shoved him away from her and walked down to the park. The light drizzle outside turned into a torrential downpour. She did not care about the sudden shift in weather, just laying on a bench with her knees pulled up to her chest. All she could think about was Elijah. Giving him to Marcel was dangerous. At any time, if Marcel suspected treachery from Klaus, he could dump the coffin in the deepest part of the Atlantic Ocean. An even worse thought occurred to her, regarding Marcel's secret weapon. If the weapon could subjugate an entire coven of witches, she worried that it could draw enough power to kill an Original. She remembered how they planned that with Bonnie when they wanted to kill Klaus during the sacrifice. As she brushed away the wet strands of hair from her face, she heard a buzzing noise in her head. She closed her eyes tightly.
"Go away…stop…I said go away!"
The noise immediately stopped and she stayed outside in the pouring rain…
~Marcel~
Marcel was in the attic of St. Anne's Church, staring at an open window. Seconds before, Davina, a very powerful witch and his secret weapon, had sent Rebekah through the window to teach her a lesson. He led Rebekah to the attic, under the pretense of reuniting her with her older brother Elijah. The truth was that he hoped this little incident would scare the Originals, especially Klaus, from making a stupid mistake and challenging him for control of the city.
"I'll have my guys pick her up and take her back to the compound. Don't worry about her coming after you"
"I wiped her memory. She won't remember where she saw me"
"Good"
"When did another Old One get here?"
"Yesterday, with the girlfriend of Elijah. She's a little witch but she's harmless. According to Klaus, she lost her magic after a nasty fight. Girl's got a mouth on her but not that dangerous. Klaus will keep her in line, just like his sister"
Davina became very alert, her eyes wide. "Magic"
"Where? Tell me where it's coming from and my guys will go get them"
She stood in front of her easel, drawing on the paper with charcoal. Drawing allowed her to focus her energy. He had seen her detect witches using magic before but this time, her demeanor was different.
"I can't see…something's blocking me" she said, her eyebrows knitted together in frustration.
Suddenly, Davina was thrown against the wall like a rag doll. Marcel rushed over to her, helping her up from the floor. She clutched her stomach in pain and coughed up blood in her hand.
"Are you all right, Davina?"
"I—I think so"
"What happened?"
"T—they fought against me. I started to see something but then this invisible force came out of nowhere. It was like they redirected my magic towards me. T—that's never happened before, Marcel"
"It's okay. Did you get a clear picture of their surroundings? I could use that to find them"
"Just a bunch of trees"
"Why don't you get some sleep? I'll send my guys out anyway. They'll keep an eye out for any witch performing a big spell"
Clearly shaken from the strange encounter, she laid down on her bed. Marcel sent some of his men out to different areas of the city. They were ordered to watch for suspicious activity. Returning to his compound, he waited for any news. His first thought was that the French Quarter witches banded together to overpower Davina with their combined magic. As he paced back and forth, Diego entered the compound, two nightwalkers trailing behind him.
"You find anything?"
Diego shook his head. "No witches at the park. I saw Klaus's little witch friend…the one who can't use magic now. She was sitting all alone and in a bad mood"
"What makes you think that?"
"Might've been the fact that she told me to fuck off twice. Thierry's checking the cemetery. The witches draw their magic from their ancestors. Maybe that last elder was channeling them to cause some trouble"
"Maybe. I want the nightwalkers out all night at their posts. We might be able to catch the witch again if they try another spell"
The two nightwalkers left the compound. Marcel was calm in front of his men, passing the incident off as the witches trying to be cocky. On the inside, he panicked that they found their own weapon to use against him. He never witnessed Davina getting thrown around like that and just the thought of it made him uneasy…
A/N: Thanks for reading. Now that Riley knows the truth about what happened to Elijah and the depth of Klaus's deception, there will be a lot of tension between her and Klaus. She will return to the house, not because she forgives him but because she wants to protect Hayley and the baby. It will take awhile before she even considers forgiving Klaus for his actions. Her anger with him isn't just because he handed Elijah over to Marcel. When he had been posing as Elijah during their phone calls over the summer, some of the conversations had been very intimate and she's both disgusted and upset that she said certain things to Klaus, thinking that he was Elijah. She also is angry with Sophie for her own part in the deception, which will not make her trustworthy of the witches any time soon. The other big part of the chapter was the reveal that Kol was brought back by Riley on the night of graduation. He was the person that she spoke to at the end of the previous chapter. I chose Kol because I think Riley sympathized with the circumstances of his death and for a show called The Originals, it's never a bad thing to have more of the Original family (Note: If you watch the show and saw that ending scene for the season one finale, I'm still annoyed about those "two people" being alive instead of him, especially the boring mommy's boy. Wasted opportunity on TVD for Kol to not grab Bonnie when she was passing people back over to the physical world). With Kol's return, Klaus will want him to keep a low profile because having three Originals running around the city will only make Marcel more anxious. However, what Klaus wants and what Kol will actually do may be two very different things.