I Do Not Own Vampire Diaries/The Originals/Legacies
Kol walked through the Garden Coven territory with Vincent, Bonnie, and Liv beside him. Kol hadn't really, been to New Orleans city areas since he and Davina had come back; and his run through to the crypt didn't count. He honestly was a bit stunned, until they came to the LaRue home, it was as he remembered, and steeped in magic with a massive garden behind the iron fence. They made it up to the front door of the elegant, old mansion, when it was opened by a maid.
"Madame LaRue is expecting you," the maid informed them which had Bonnie and Vincent walking in. Kol patiently waited for his invitation.
"Kol?" Vincent called.
"Sorry, habit," he admitted as he stepped across the threshold, a bit surprised that he hadn't needed the invitation. He looked over at Bonnie and Vincent who were giving him strange looks.
"I haven't gone anywhere new in a thousand years, and I've been busy, I forgot!" he hissed feeling the embarrassment crawl over his skin.
"A thousand years of needing invitations," Vincent chuckled.
"You get used to it at a point. And I didn't like compelling my way through the door unless necessary," he admitted.
"A vampire with morals," Vincent asked dryly.
"Not really, you forget I was a Viking and a witch," he muttered as he followed the maid through the house. It was elegantly decorated, and very Southern. They were brought to a parlor and Kol watched a Vincent sat, and then Bonnie did. Kol chose to prowl around, he toyed with the knife he had the Traveler's soul stuck in as he walked.
"Vincent Griffith, I was surprised at receiving your call this morning, what is so urgent that you required an audience today?" a voice asked. Kol tilted his head a bit at her aged voice.
"I'm here with Gemini witch, Olivia, and members of my new Coven, Bonnie and our Coven leader because of many things, Josephine," Vincent informed the Regent.
"I could have wagered. Now who are these new Coven members you have come to claim?"
"This is Bonnie Bennett, and our leader…" Vincent started when Kol paused his prowling to turn on the Regent. He was greeted by the sight of a severe looking older woman with her auburn hair pulled up appeared, her icy blue eyes stopped him as he felt his lips.
"It is not possible," she whispered.
"I wouldn't term us a Coven, personally, or myself the leader," he mused.
"It is not possible," she repeated more firmly.
"If I didn't know better, I'd have thought you to be Odette, darling, striking resemblance," he chuckled.
"I did not invite this evil in," she snarled as she looked at him.
"Now, now, I'm not a vampire now," he chuckled as he shoved the knife in his back pocket. "And as it appears that you know who I am, darling, it seems appropriate to have an introduction."
"I command you to leave," she hissed.
"He's not…" Bonnie stated.
"I know very well who this wily, old fox is," she sneered.
"I'm flattered," Kol chuckled.
"Do not be," she snapped.
"Oh, but I am," he mused as he came to loom over her. "And now, if you would so kindly, sit, I'm on a time crunch here darling, newly mortal, I'm on a clock."
"I should kill you right now."
"And that would be exceptionally foolish," he countered dryly. "First order of business; consider this my goodwill before we get to the second and third, Regent LaRue," he said with a mock bow and pulled the knife to hand to her, her distorted, mangled hand accepted it and her eyes widened.
"How?" she started.
"Travelers are coming darling, probably because I killed Silas," he stated as he let her sit.
"You?" she sneered.
"Drained him dry, darling," Kol admitted as he sprawled out on a sofa and eyed her. "That there, is the soul Traveler I collected on my own. The Gemini Coven is in possession of the other fifty or so we captured the other day, north of here by an hour or so in St. Francisville," he explained. "They're coming this way. I had similar sightings before we left Virginia. And you know what they'll do when they get here."
"Why inform me?" she sneered.
"I'm mortal, I'm on the clock, and frankly, I like the Nine Covens more than I like Travelers, also, you're far prettier than a Traveler," he smiled. "And I'm informing you as a gesture of good faith because the Gemini Coven, whom my associate," he gestured to Liv. "Belongs too, is coming to investigate this matter."
"I see."
"My father, and the leader of our Coven will want to be in touch," Liv piped up then which had Josephine frowning as she pinned the girl under an icy glare.
"I may have a reputation for being wild and unruly when I was younger but even, I was not so audacious as to speak for my Coven leader. Do not presume to speak for your Coven leader, young one. If the Gemini should desire entry in my city, they will have to send a formal emissary, not a child."
"I…" Liv started. Kol glared at her which had her mouth snapping shut.
"What is the second matter of business?"
"We've found Eva Sinclair's victims, they are recovered and at my home, you should know it, outside the city, large antebellum mansion, the one you all avoid like the plague. They are safe there, and I can undo the ritual they are under," Kol stated. "However, to undo it, I need Eva Sinclair, and it is my understanding that Eva Sinclair has caused outrage and pain within the Nine Covens and that she is imprisoned in Fauline Cottage."
"That is correct."
"I'm not proposing her release, not by any means, but the return of the children's souls will require I have her to undo the ritual she has put them under."
"As if I would trust you," Josephine sneered.
"I don't expect you to, and by all means, attempt to deny me, I'm here as a courtesy," he indicated dryly. "I will be taking Eva Sinclair, even if I must bust her out of the Fauline Cottage myself, I had the expertise when I didn't have magic, and now that I'm fully reconnected, it should worry you if I decide to storm it and take her myself, imagine all the things I'll forget to relock up," he said with a toothy smile.
"If I am to release her to your custody the families will revolt."
"By all means, invite the families to the ritual, they will have their children returned to them in perfect condition, I'm happy to accommodate the families as long as it takes, which shouldn't be more than a day, maybe two, most of that is prep work to undo the ritual."
"What ritual?"
"Rites of Nine according to my associate," Kol answered. He watched the severe woman's face drain of all color. "I can undo it though, and all those little rug rats will be returned in perfect order, and you can take Eva back to Fauline Cottage where she may forever rot," he cheered cheekily.
"You cannot undo the Rites of Nine."
"You can, it's just difficult if done properly, and I must say, Eva did a good job doing it up all proper. My associate and I are happy to undo it," Kol shrugged. "Hell, it's already on the Honey To-Do List so might as well, you know, just so I can cross it off."
"And who is your associate?" she asked dryly.
"And that's the third order of business," he chuckled as he got to his feet. "My associate is one of yours." Kol felt the anxiety he'd been ignoring overtake him as he started pacing around, unable to sit still now.
"One of mine?"
"Yes, a lovely little vixen who you mistook for a lamb and attempted to lead to the slaughter," he growled icily.
"Kol," Bonnie whispered as he felt his magic rattle the house violently. "She wouldn't want you to ruin this," Bonnie reminded him.
"I'm trying not to, darling, but it really pisses me off," he snarled.
"Who is your associate?" Josephine asked once he got his temper under control and the house ceased rattling.
"Davina Claire," he answered, and he saw her look stricken. "Harvest Girl of the French Quarter Coven."
"You have no right!" she started.
"I have every right," he roared, which shattered the windows of her house and had everyone jumping. "You dared to permit a Coven which does not practice Sacrificial Magic to perform a Human Sacrifice! And not only that, they're little girls, just young lasses, they're sixteen, they're children in this era's standing! Davina sought me out after her father, Marcel Gerard, vampire King of the Quarter, rescued her from your negligence!" he spat out. "You are Regent, you should've stopped it before we got this far!"
"It was not my place!" she started.
"It is," he snarled as his magic then reacted by pulling things into the air. "It is your place, and you know it, you sentenced a girl to die. My third order of business, because I am about the only bloody person in the room who truly understands what you've put Davina Claire through, is how her Harvest will be Reaped," he snarled as he loomed over the Regent.
"You condemned her to bear the power of her three friends, as well as her own, you cursed her to be connected to all of Nature, on this plane and beyond, you sentenced her to death, and as such I will dictate the terms of how her Reaping will be processed or I will kill her myself and never permit her to be consecrated, the French Quarter Coven will die out before the year's out, and as such, the connection to the Ancestors and dead will remain gone, forever! The Nine Covens will only be eight and by the time I'm through, by all the gods I know, those eight will be no more," he warned.
"What do you want?" Josephine asked warily.
"Vincent Griffith will perform the Reaping at a time of Davina's choosing, not before. Upon the Reaping Davina Claire's body will be returned to me, immediately, the French Quarter will not have her." He warned harshly. "When she is resurrected, she will be released from the French Quarter Coven. Should anything happen, any attempt to shred her soul upon the Other Side, or any sabotage by the Ancestors, and I will tear your Covens apart and burn your world to ash," he warned. "I will unleash hell."
"All this for one traitorous little girl."
"Davina Claire is mine, Regent, and I like to keep what's mine," he snarled as he flashed her his teeth. "Those are my matters of business, accept them or I'll do it anyway, but you'll be in my way, and I eliminate obstacles, Josephine, don't attempt to go to war against me, you won't win."
"You're so confident," she sneered.
"I'm my father's son," he mused humorlessly. "Do we have an understanding?"
"Vincent, he will betray you."
"No," Vincent said softly. "We were betrayed so long before he came to town. The Ancestors are corrupt, Josephine and you know it. I'm happier to serve his Coven than I ever could to serve mine when we cowered because the Ancestors said we could not act. They're doing the right thing."
"So presumptuous," she stated. "But then youth does invite such hubris," she stated. "Very well, it appears I cannot outmaneuver you, so we will agree to your terms. I will speak with the other Covens tomorrow about the return of the children, and the safety of Davina Claire. But I demand to speak with the girl first," she warned. "I will take it as an act of good faith on your part, I desire to inspect Davina Claire myself to ensure you have not exploited the girl."
"Like you have?" he demanded as the air of the room chill so he could see his breath. "If Davina should desire to speak with you, I will arrange it," he countered. "You betrayed her," he stated before he turned to leave.
Elijah had not been dwelling upon Hayley Marshall's pregnancy being because of Niklaus. In truth he didn't know if the wolf was even aware of the heartbeats and life growing within her, she was so early in her pregnancy that it was possible she was unaware. He had been around so long though that he knew all the signs, and sounds associated with pregnancy. Still, it hadn't stopped him from enjoying his time around Hayley, she was so frequently around because of Davina, and their friendship was tentatively, and entirely structured around his brother's and Davina's strong relationship. But he would still consider her a friend of his, and he did not have too many he would dare to give that title to.
After most of the day going of his memory of what Hayley had mentioned as her haunts the night was starting in full bloom and he came upon her favorite craving haunt for burgers and gumbo, Rousseau's. He was being served by a blonde bartender as he scanned over the crowd for a familiar hint of Hayley and not finding one.
He remembered Niklaus had raved about Jane-Anne Devereaux during their phone call when Niklaus had announced he was coming back to New Orleans. It was not a name Elijah was familiar with from Hayley's stories, but it was a start as this was the last place, he knew Hayley would have frequented.
"So what brings you to the Big Easy?" a very non-New Orleans voice asked which had him looking up as she served his martini.
"I used to live here, recently returned," he answered with a small smile.
"Really!? When?" she asked with a curious smile.
"Oh, feels like a hundred years ago," he mused honestly.
"I just moved here myself," she offered up. "What brought you back?"
"Well, my brothers returned, and currently, one of them is here somewhere and I'm afraid he might have gotten himself into a bit of a bind," he mused as he played with the stem of his glass.
"You say that like it's a common occurrence," the blond mused as she started pouring another drink for another patron.
"With this one… he's complicated," Elijah mused humorlessly. They were all complicated, but Niklaus did so love throwing Elijah's life into complications compared to Rebekah and Kol. "Defiant, ill mannered, and a little temperamental," Elijah admitted dryly as he sipped his martini. "See, we don't share the same father, of course that never bothered me, but this brother resents it deeply; he never felt like he belonged. All told, he has a long history of getting himself into trouble."
"And I'm guessing you have a long history of getting him out of it," she mused earnestly and sympathetically. He felt his lips twitch at her refreshing candor, it was so like Davina's or Hayley's it was most amusing. He wondered if by chance Davina had learned her candor from this blonde. "What about the other one?"
"The other one is currently on a mission, I'm merely here to keep him from finding himself in over his head," Elijah admitted with amusement.
"So what kind of bind is your 'complicated, ill-mannered and a little temperamental' brother in?" she asked as she polished a glass.
"He believes there are people in this town conspiring against him."
"Wow. Narcissistic and paranoid," she mused with a bob of her head before looking mortified at what she had just said to him. Elijah chuckled as she started backtracking. "Sorry, bartender with a grad degree in psychology, total cliché," she offered.
He smiled at her honesty, he wondered if she was someone Davina had collected because he was seeing a lot of similarities between them. "Listen, Camille… I'm looking for someone who might shed some light on this current predicament. She might work here, Jane-Anne Devereaux? Any idea where I might find her?"
"No, but I might know someone who might," Camille said. "Sabine Laurent, she's walking a supernatural tour tonight, she's got big hair, and is hard to miss."
"Thank you," he said as he paid for his drink and left.
Sabine Laurent wasn't hard to find, if fact, it was startling easy, he watched her buoyant personality lure people around, and he was reminded a bit of Céleste watching her. She brought her group into a voodoo shop, and he waited to approach her when she suddenly turned around and looked right at him.
"Are going to continue following me, Elijah, or do you want to talk?" she drawled out and he was surprised at the look of utter amusement on her face.
"You know who I am," he mused absently.
The woman did so remind him of Céleste, which was startling. Her features though were squarer, bolder, her hair bigger and more untamed than Céleste's had been, but her eyes, the way she looked at him… it was the stirring of an old memory which had him wanting to smile.
"Original vampire always wears a suit," she stated flatly as her eyes moved over him appraisingly. "You and your family are famous amongst the witches. Especially with your brother back in town."
He was surprised she didn't say 'brothers' but didn't press the issue. Kol must have been keeping a low profile when he came into the city, which was a surprise to Elijah but done for a reason most likely.
"Well, Niklaus is here because he believes that a witch is conspiring against him, someone by the name of Jane-Anne Devereaux," Elijah stated.
"Well, if he's looking for Jane-Anne he's a little late."
That had Elijah quirking a brow, until Sabine's amused expression melted into the one of sorrow. Dread filled the pit of his stomach as his only lead to Hayley was slowly dying out. If he didn't get to her before Niklaus, there was no telling what would actually happen to Hayley or the baby, and he had given his word to Kol that he'd keep her safe. "Are you telling me she's dead?"
"Come on," Sabine said softly. "Her sister Sophie is going to want to talk to you."
He numbly followed as dread filled him.