Chapter 33
When the trio returned home, the vampires could hear Niklaus pacing in the foyer as they drove up to the old plantation. Sharing a look, Elijah shot Rebekah a warning look as the blonde sighed and turned towards Caroline. She had taken refuge in the backseat solely so she could lie down.
"He's home, isn't he?" Caroline asked before Rebekah could get another word out.
"Pacing like a caged lion," Rebekah's lips spread into a smile as Caroline rolled her eyes at the very apt description of her boyfriend.
Was Klaus her boyfriend? Caroline wondered something about that felt wrong. Not that Niklaus being hers was wrong, no that felt extraordinarily right. When Rebekah gently tapped on her shoulder, the blonde opened her blue eyes to see both Mikaelson members waiting for her outside the car.
"Not having second thoughts?" The female original teased softly as the vampire gently entwined her arm with Caroline's slowly walking her towards the door. Elijah nodding toward the two before taking his leave once he had seen that his sister was to escort the blonde to their irate brother.
Caroline laughed, " a little late for that, no?"
Before they reached the door, Rebekah turned to her, "Last chance, do you want me with you when you tell him?"
Reaching the door, even Caroline could now hear the hybrids pacing, allowing herself a smirk. "I have this. Go run for safety."
Caroline didn't even wait for the now familiar sound of the original flashing away with her vampire speed before opening the door. Upon opening the door, Caroline immediately saw the amount of stress Niklaus was letting run loose with her hospital visit. The ordinarily immaculate room had two recently deceased bodies on the floor; bending down slightly, the pregnant woman could see that they were from the wrong side of town.
"Caroline."
"I see you had a temper tantrum while I was gone," Caroline's nose wrinkled in disgust. Even if they were against her personal beliefs, not at his actions, but rather at the way, he kept them on the ground seeping blood into their floor.
"Don't worry, love, they were trying to rob a little old lady. In broad daylight, I figured they deserved their fate. Wouldn't you agree?" Caroline shivered at the malice in her man's voice.
"As a vampire, I preferred blood bags. I never wanted to kill someone, even thieves or murderer's" Caroline said dryly, knowing that the Caroline of the past would have been deeply scandalized by temper tantrum.
This Caroline had seen him murder an entire family with actual reasoning even if it appeared he had gone mad. That Klaus had been dead for years by the time of the full moon attack, their daughters all grown and taking over the supernatural troubles that plagued their lives.
"Blood from the vein will always be superior, yet I've kept those habits away from you out of respect for your choices. Yet when I—" Niklaus began only for Caroline to step over the bodies even if the smell of the blood made her nose twitch to step well within his personal space.
"I'm sorry, I should have been more patient, especially because I know about your history with Marcel," Caroline admitted. " That doesn't mean I didn't chalk at being told to stay indoors for so long. I have classes starting next week!"
Niklaus growled, his eyes flashing amber, alerting the blonde how close to the surface. An average person would step away from the hybrid. Still, Caroline knew that would only appear to be running in Niklaus's mind. His wolf would take it as a challenge in their relationship. As fun as Caroline found it when he felt the need to reinsert his dominance, the blonde knew he had to know about the baby.
"Love, remember when I told you about the magical loophole that led to Hope?" Caroline started delicately. Knowing that if he focused on her past, rather than their presence, then the wolf would at least calm slightly. It certainly helped that her hands found their way to his neck and wrapped themselves tightly around him.
"You mean the timeline that is now meaningless, because you came to your senses a long time ago?" The low growl in his voice was there, yet the timber of the wolf was not.
That was good.
"Niklaus, this is important apparently, the loophole does not only apply to the wolf on wolf sexual activities," Caroline barked. The blonde pulled his face close, forcing him to keep his eyes on her.
"That would mean…" The hybrid couldn't finish the sentence as he took in the seriousness of her gaze. Caroline remained perfectly still as she whispered for him to listen. The blonde watched as his eyes narrow and darken. His focus shifted from her in general towards her belly immediately.
Caroline kept her stillness, allowing the moments to pass as she watched emotions pass across his eyes. The only part of him that never quite learned how to hide in a mask. In a pinch, they could, but for this? The blonde saw when he first heard the heartbeat.
His hands slowly wrapped themselves around her wrists, pulling her away from him as he brought them to his lips. She remained silent as his focus remained on the beating she knew he could hear with the enhanced hearing of both his wolf and vampire sides.
"Your pregnant."
XX
Leaving his soon-to-be sister-in-law in Rebekah's capable hands. Elijah decided that his time would be best suited in tracking down the little wolf. Who was surprisingly adept at causing more trouble than she was worth. Despite Caroline's insistence that the she-wolf was a good mother.
Maternal, she maybe that did not erase the brunette's other serious flaws. One example is allowing herself to get into shady dealings with people for a scrap of information on her biological parents. While Elijah could admit that he admired the girl for her dedication to her family, the fact is being as desperate as she was didn't think everything through.
Hayley Marshall was more soldier than commander that Elijah was of no doubt of. Wolves were known for their loyalty to their own. While Hayley has betrayed a pack already, instinctively, Elijah knew that her birth pack would be different. The she-wolf would want to bond with it.
Then was that curse, his brother had informed him of. Elijah then managed to gain more information from some of Marcel's older but not intelligent foot soldiers. Their insider knowledge allowed Elijah to conclude that Hayley must be dealt with. Before she got the rest of her parent's pack slaughtered. If the girl was who his family thought she might be, something that Caroline refused to confirm out loud, then the girl was dangerous.
The French Quarter was already a shitstorm waiting to happen. The last thing they needed was angry werewolves to add to the mix of vampires and witches battling for dominance. Marcel thought he was so smart; the noble original had taken the time to talk to a few locals with mouths too big for any real information.
But the essential information they did have.
Marcel thought he was smarter than anyone else, finding a way to track when the magic happened in the quarter. It should be all but impossible to the extent that Marcel could follow all magic in the city. Then there was the fact that Marcel, that had the wolf clan cursed, to begin with, whispers of a baby being spared only deemed to keep up with his own rules.
If Niklaus had taught the man one thing, it would be to never harm a child. While he didn't know what Marcel could have to track magic like that, it would be his youngest brother if anyone did. Kol would undoubtedly have an idea. Which was why he dragged Kol from his compelled harem of local college students into the bayou.
"Why am I here? I'm of no help with werewolves!" Kol whined as he dragged himself behind his older brother.
"No, but you've always been friendly with witches. The wolves have a witch problem, one that you could help solve. Am I right to assume only a witch could possibly keep track of all the magic happening in New Orleans?"
Kol looked thoughtful for a moment stopping in his tracks. Elijah paused in his own movements as they heard the nearby forests' rustle. Wolves. Kol looked towards the woods and frowned. "A witch would be needed to place a curse on the wolves to be sure. As for magic all around the city, Marcel could potentially be given a strong enough artifact, but that would die out with time. Do you know how long the witches have been in a magical lockdown?"
Elijah shook his head, "That was one thing no one would say. Obviously, the witches would never admit to how long they were trapt."
"I doubt Marcel has the Gaul to keep a witch in line for more than twenty years without a break. I assume the magical band is new," Kol muttered, "The witches of New Orleans…they practice ancestral magic…"
"What are you thinking, Kol?"
"That Marcel just about started a civil war, and I doubt the witches will leave vampires alone for long. They will attack."
Elijah hummed softly, "Then we must pay Hayley Marshall a visit."
Kol frowned, "Why? I thought we were done with her."
"Caroline's refusal to confirm my theory has only made me suspicious."
"Of?" Kol cajoled.
"Hayley Marshall is actually the Labonair heir."
Kol frowned, "I've been locked in a coffin for a century. You will have to catch me up, I thought the Labonair's were werewolf royalty around these parts. Why would they abandon their heir?"
Elijah grimaced, "It appears our brother's prodigy discovered an internal war with the Crescent Wolf clan. In a clash, the Labonair's were killed off, and Marcel does have a rule about children."
"Marcel gave the baby Hayley up for adopted, then what cursed the wolves?"
Elijah's glare shut his brother up, "That is exactly what I am saying."
During their conversation, the two vampires strayed into wolf territory. Elijah found a little mobile home on the edge of the lands still legally on bayou lands. Kol smirked, "someone's trying to make a run for it."
Just then, the door to the poorly made mobile home slammed open, revealing Hayley with two large duffle bags.
"Hello, Ms. Marshall. Or are you going by your original name Labonair?"
Hayley's face contorted into a sneer, "Don't you worry your little heads. I'm on my way out."
"Actually, Ms. Marshall, we were hoping to talk with you and your clan."
"I've been here all summer. My clan is cursed to stay as wolves; very few were spared that fate. You'll pretty much only see the elderly and children. Their leader is stuck in wolf form, unfortunately."
"You didn't take over?" Kol asked in surprise.
"I'm a stranger. Just because I was born a Labonair doesn't mean they trust me yet," Hayley snapped.
"But you are trying to break their curse, are you not?"
"Of course, I am. They are my family! I may be royalty. That doesn't mean I don't need to earn their trust."
"Haven't had any luck have you?" Kol taunted.
Hayley turned towards Kol and glowered at him as Kol's face only brightened. Fascinated by the werewolf temper when it was not his hybrid brother, the only wolf that actually could defeat him.
Elijah sighed, "Kol, stop tempting her to bite you."
"What the hell do the Mikaelson's want?" Hayley ordered, waiting for them to answer her impatiently. It felt wrong to have originals so close to werewolf land. She only hoped that their answer was a quick one.
Kol looked over at the she-wolf smirking, "We are here to discuss a deal. One that gets you your pack back with conditions, of course."
Hayley hissed at them, "They have nothing to give!"
Elijah held up his hands, "We would only ask that the wolves don't cause trouble in the quarter as we fix the mess one of our own has made."
Kol snorted, "Yeah, that and possibly aide in a potential war between vampires and witches."
XX
Bonnie sat in the local ice cream shop close to the Whitmore campus, watching warily as Enzo sat across from her. The young woman had a hard time figuring out what to do with this recently escaped vampire. He stayed well away from Whitmore for apparent reasons. If she heard about the recent scandals surfacing about the Whitmore family, Bonnie never mentioned it.
She was grateful enough. She hadn't heard of the last Whitmore left dying. Yet she was beyond thankful that Enzo had stayed around Mystic Falls. Dropping in on her weekly under strict orders from Caroline to prevent her from overdoing her magical training.
Kol had cackled the entire conversation when Bonnie grumbled that Caroline had stuck a babysitter on her. "Just because you have magical stones in storage, mind you, which are being used to keep Silas at bay, does not mean your invincible."
'I know that," Bonnie had snapped.
"Penny for your thoughts," Enzo's voice brought Bonnie back to reality, shaking her head as she noticed that some ice cream dripped onto her hand.
"I think I figured out how to fix Caroline's humanity problem" Was informing Enzo the right thing? Bonnie wasn't so sure. Her idea was not fool-proof.
"That's good isn't?" Enzo asked casually, looking over the dark-skinned beauty with concern, "it's safe, isn't?"
"As safe as Esther's spell originally was. The problem I have is the warning the ancestors gave me," Bonnie admitted with a frown.
"Spooky. What was the warning?"
"I'll be needed in New Orleans. The question is, why?"
"For the spell?" Enzo guessed, earning a snort from the dark-haired witch. Smiling at the vampire, Bonnie shook her head, "I admit I doubt Caroline would trust another witch to do this. I don't think that is what they meant."
Enzo frowned, "Do you know when?"
Bonnie shook her head, "That's why I kept my classes online. This way, if the problem is serious, I won't flunk due to participation. Truthfully with our luck, I imagine it's something major."
Enzo sighed, "Well then, if something big is about to go down, then I might as well do this." Before Bonnie could respond, she lifted her head and felt his lips on hers.
XX
"Come on, Elena, a just go in. I promise she won't bite. She came highly recommended," Stefan urged his ex-girlfriend gently as they stood in front of the center.
"You want me to see a shrink that's still in school?" Elena asked warily, "isn't there a supernatural counselor that would be a better fit?"
"She's been highly recommended by a family friend," Damon drawled, " in fact, said a friend helped to ship her here for your convenience."
Elena's eyes narrowed, "What family friend?"
"Elijah," Stefan murmured in her ear, shooting a glare at Damon. Knowing without a doubt that most likely the Mikaelson's were behind this, but with Caroline's influence, this couldn't be a trap. Could it?
Stefan doubted that Caroline would want to hurt them. Elijah called them himself that they heard of their plight, offering their services in finding someone suitable. Elijah was an original that Elena had gotten along with, had hated plotting against. Stefan could only hope her paranoia would not extend towards Elijah.
Elena frowned, "I know he is a man of his word, but he is still Klaus's brother. I drank from Caroline. I doubt even her insistence will stop Niklaus from hunting me down."
"I'm sure they have their own worries right now. Like ensuring Caroline is safe, she is dating someone with a terribly long list of enemies over the years," Stefan reminded, steering her closer towards the door.
Before Elena could pull away, knowing that Stefan would never actually hurt her, the doppelganger found herself in the waiting room of the health office. A woman her age smiled up at her, "You have an appointment?"
"Yes, my name's Elena Gilbert."
"Let's look you up, shall we?" The assistant smiled, typing her name into the computer, "There you are. You will need to fill out a few papers, then your therapist shall be with you shortly."
The young woman passed a clipboard with standard forms through the opening between the desk and glass. Elena offered her a small smile before grabbing the clipboard. She began filling out the forms glaring at the two Salvatore's who sat on either side of her.
"You don't have to babysit me," She hissed.
Damon tutted, "Ah, that is where you are wrong, my pretty. We do."
Elena angrily turned towards the forms ignoring both Salvatore's returning her paperwork to the nurse with a tight smile.
"Your therapist will be with you shortly."
Elena reluctantly sat once again between the two vampire brothers. They had yet to really talk about what Caroline had confirmed to Stefan. That the cure was inside Elena right now, if a vampire was to drink from her, they would turn. If she were to be drunk dry, she would awaken as a fully human still, and any attempts to give her vampire blood would only hurt her.
The hard truth was if one of them were to drink from her, then be fed on themselves, they would undoubtedly die due to their natural human age. While the cure is in their system, they would age gracefully and be entirely human, but their bones would turn to dust matching their real age if attacked.
The cure acts as a containing agent, Elena thought to herself. If a vampire who's lived long past their natural human years were to drink it. They would become human again once again the age of their turn. If the cure were taken from them, there would be nothing to stop the vampire from dying of old age.
It was a frightening prospect; Elena would be okay because of how short a period she had spent as a vampire. But the brothers, who desperately wanted to be human again, would risk immediate death if another vampire crossed their paths and decided to have a sip. But they could get lucky, and Stefan could die a peaceful death as a human.
Yet she couldn't ask him, just like Elena knew that the sole reason Damon would even consider becoming human again. Would be to live a human life with her.
"Elena Gilbert?"
Elena shook herself from her thoughts, looking up to see a woman a few years older than herself, a pretty dark-blonde who smiled way to brightly. She reminded her of Caroline…. Elena shook her head once again; Caroline was a bright, bubbly blonde while this woman… was similar, yet something was off.
"I'm Elena" She offered her a small smile.
The blonde walked up to her shaking her hand confidently, "Hello, Ms. Gilbert. My name is Camille O'Connell; it's a pleasure to meet you. Please follow me."
Camille's office was bright, with a lovely plush couch that reeked of old money. Something screamed at Elena in the back of her mind. Either Camille came from an old wealthy family, or someone was paying for all of this.
"So, tell me, Elena, what brings you in today?"
XX
Sage rolled her eyes as she watched the Mystic Falls gang's golden trio entering the local mental health clinic. They had been babysitting the trio for weeks now. She glanced casually towards Finnick, who held his phone to his ear, "Finn Mikaelson."
Finn's expression darkened, "Kol, what trouble did you get into now?"
Sage held back a laugh as she leaned into her mate's chest, listening as the youngest original male denied being in trouble. The red-haired vampire said into the phone, "What's the reason for your call? It's not the time for our standard check-in."
"Ah, Sage, lovely to hear from you. Not tired of my boring brother yet?" Kol's voice could be heard from the other side.
"Kol," Finn growled in warning.
"You lot are really getting old and boring," Kol booed, "Anyway, our lovely brother has decided to call you home. We have a family situation all hands-on bored."
Finn felt his spine straighten, "What's happened?"
"Can't tell you on the phone. Just get home as soon as possible, yeah?"
The eldest Mikaelson turned to his beloved, who only shrugged, "they wouldn't be calling if it wasn't more important than babysitting."
Finn spoke into the phone, "We'll be on the next flight out. I assume our family plane is being made available?"
Kol chuckled, "What do you think we are savages? The plane's landing in 10 minutes."
XX
A yellow taxicab pulled up towards the abandoned Mikaelson household when Katherine Pierce stepped out of the backseat, looking up at the house with a look of disdain. After the disastrous talk with Elijah. The brunette vampire decided that it was best she took leave for a while. Assuring Caroline that if she was needed, she would only be a phone call away.
Katherine even said goodbye to Rebekah, who told her bluntly that her brother was an idiot who frankly didn't know what he wanted. Her long-dead ancestor, Tatia, still forever on his mind. Oh, how Katherine wished she could strangle her ancestor. The bitch didn't need to live as she had already delivered the child that would continue their precious blood.
It was ironic, truthfully Esther must have assumed Tatia's child would die young, or the line would quickly die out. The Original witch never planned for her child to free himself of his curse. On the other hand, Esther Mikaelson knew nature's need for balance ensured a loophole that would make it challenging to sire his precious hybrids.
If Esther wasn't a total bitch trying to kill ALL of her own children, Katherine thought she might have liked her. Alas, it was never meant to be. The doppelganger quickly gave the taxi driver his fare and a generous tip—just a little something she took out of Elijah's spending account, the bastard.
Taking her luggage, the doppelganger quickly settled into her room, mentally reminding herself to compel some servants for her stay. Settling her stuff down for the servants, she'll get later, the brunette strolled through her phone.
Her little descendent was off with the Salvatore's, somewhere in Colorado. The brunette smirked, wondering how saint Stefan and the devious Damon were handling the truth about the cure. Were they fighting who got to live with their precious Elena?
Strolling further down, Katherine smirked. How could she have forgotten the precious little human boy surrounded by the supernatural? Perhaps she should visit Matt Donovan and see how life in Mystic Falls has been after leaving for all this time.
It was pathetically easy finding him; the boy was once again working at the Mystic Grill. She knew the moment he saw her because his jaw dropped before his eyes narrowed as he spotted her hair was curly, not straight.
"Katherine," Matt greeted her neutrally, obviously wary of the vampire. Katherine let a smile grace her face; perhaps the boy was not a total lost cause either way.
"Matt, how have you been?" She asked, keeping her voice friendly.
"Why would you care? Aren't you supposed to be, I don't know, chasing after men that don't want you?"
Katherine pursed her lips, "No need to get so snippy. I just here mind my own business; if no supernatural weirdness is happening, I'll happily leave you alone. I just thought with Bonnie in Whitmore most of the week and the rest of your supernatural gang gone. I wanted to check no one left you to deal with the supernatural fallout."
Matt sighed, "No, wait. I'm sorry. It has been hard since the others left. A strange man came out of no-where when I was ending my shift a while back and shouted something at me. I didn't want to worry anyone, but I've been having memory lapses ever since. I even set a videotape up to record me when I would blackout."
Katherine looked intrigued, "And?"
"It's better if I show you," Matt waved over at the second bartender to signal he was going on break before signaling for Katherine to follow him.
In the backroom, Matt pulled out a camera and found the footage he was waiting for. Clicking play, he scooted over to allow Katherine room to view it. The footage was slightly grainy, but clearly, she saw Matt waking up from sleep. That is when it got weird; the video version of Matt walked to the camera and waved.
"Hello, Matt Donovan," Matt said to the camera before going on to explain that by now he realized something strange was happening. The young man on camera began to speak in a language that Katherine knew all too well, before slicing his own hand. That was where the footage ended.
Katherine looked down at Matt's bandaged hand, "Matt, I'm sorry, but you're being possessed by a Traveler."
Matt looked mystified, "A what?"
Katherine rolled her eyes, "A special type of witch that was cursed long ago to only be able to practice a certain type of magic. It allows them to jump into other people."
Matt looked grim, "Is there anything that can be done?"
Katherine frowned, "I can't say you're going to like it. But you wouldn't happen to have found a strange knife after the incidents started happening, did you?"
Matt shook his head, laughing perplexed. He held out the dagger, "Was this what he was asking for?"
Katherine took it gingerly, "It's the only thing that can truly push a traveler out of you."
Matt's face paled, "I'm going to be stabbed again, aren't I?"
"I'm afraid this is going to hurt mostly him, not you." the vampire warned before pushing the dagger into him.