A/N (8/8/21): Hiya! All followers and favoriters and commenters are greatly appreciated :)

So, the tricky part with this next chapter was that since Sophia is basically taking Hayley's role in TO, it was very tempting to steal Hayley's dialogue, which I resorted to on multiple occasions. (And, as all my English teachers unanimously agree, my transitions could use more work/ effort) An honest attempt was made to differentiate their characters as I figured out how Sophia fits into TO.

This chapter was admittedly a rushed job, and covers: The Originals Season 1 Episodes 3- 7.

Hope you enjoy!

The Originals Season 1: The Chosen

...Each day removes them further from the humanity we once possessed. My sweet sister Rebekah has grown quite indifferent to brutality, however, the true problem remains my brother Niklaus. He continues to hide his loneliness with cruelty. Still, I hope that I, as their eldest brother, can lead them down the correct path. A path charged with the power of a family united. For if I fail, our family's legacy will end in darkness.

Sophia heard Elijah's modulated voice in her head as she read through the journals Hayley had found hidden in a dark oak wood trunk. Journals that chronicled the Mikaelson's time in New Orleans. They were very... enlightening, for lack of a better term.

Sophia had resisted when Hayley had first recovered the journals, not wanting to intrude on the eldest Mikaelson's privacy. But the werewolf insisted Sophia read certain passages, if nothing else, and the next the old soul knew, she was being enveloped in Elijah's perceptive and sagacious words. The riveting drama that was the Mikaelson family saga aside, the journals had unlocked an unpleasant, greedy hunger in Sophia to learn anything and everything she could about Klaus's life.

She and Hayley hadn't been able to sleep after they returned to New Orleans and had stayed up the better part of the night wading through Elijah's words, and before they knew it, the sun had risen.

"Do you know what their plan is to rescue Elijah?" Hayley pressed insistently, hugging Elijah's hefty, leather-bound, textbook- esque journal to her chest.

Sophia shook her head. "They haven't told me anything."

"Don't you think you should find out?"

Sophia arched an eyebrow at her friend. The werewolf and the original vampire hadn't spent too much quality time with each other before Klaus had bartered him away- And yet. Sophia saw how engrossed the brunette had been by the noble brother's passages, shushing Sophia when she tried to interrupt.

"Why are you so invested?" Sophia asked gently.

Hayley immediately tore her gaze away from her, clearing her throat as she lightly placed the journal on a desk. "I know you said you and Klaus have turned a new leaf, or whatever, and that you're close with Rebekah- But I still think Elijah's the best chance you have of getting through this mess in one piece."

"... Besides, they were my responsibility. They attacked the helpless pregnant girl who's carrying my child." Sophia shook her head at Klaus's words as she made her way to the living room.

"Oh," Rebakh cooed in mock sympathy. "I am so moved by your newfound sense of fatherly duty towards the mother of your child, who just so happens to be your ex-wife-"

"The ex-wife would like to know what the plan is?" Sophia asked, breaking up their squabble as she walked into the room.

"Well, that depends what plan you mean, love," Klaus smiled winningly at her, then turned taunting eyes towards his sister. "My plan for global domination, or Rebekah's plan to find love in a cruel, cruel world."

Sophia didn't even have time to blink as Rebekah launched a pencil at dizzying speed towards her brother's carotid artery, which he caught with ease.

"The plan to rescue Elijah," Sophia said patiently.

Rebekah rolled her eyes as Klaus took a seat on an uncomfortable-looking armchair, propping his legs on the table in front of him. "The plan," she began, "Is for Niklaus to simply ask Marcel for Elijah back."

Sophia blinked owlishly. Okay, maybe Hayley had a right to be concerned. "And that's… it? That's not the whole plan, is it?" She looked towards Klaus who ticked an eyebrow in agreement with his sister's words, his eyes betraying his amusement of her baffled reaction.

"Oh, please." The sister original scoffed. "You know Niklaus better than that- He may be a miserable excuse of a sibling, but there is none more diabolical."

Sophia turned back towards the hybrid. He raised his eyebrows. "Well, that's only the plan A, little love. There's always a plan B," he said ominously.

"And what's plan B?" Sophia pressed, frowning at him.

His smile was distinctly shark-like as he answered. "War."

Sophia frowned as she walked into one of the mansion's many basements to see a guy, college-aged- maybe a few years older than her, lacklusterly stabbing the chained-up vampire who had tried to attack her the other night.

"What the-" she began.

"Holy shit!" he exclaimed as he turned to face her. "Where did you come from?"

"I live here," Sophia said as if it were obvious information, lost as she tried to make sense of the situation. "What are you doing?"

"Klaus ordered me to bleed this guy out, something about veins in his bloodstream?" Fear flashed in his brown eyes as he mentioned Klaus, and Sophia felt a stab of empathy as she realized who this guy was.

"You're day zero," she said softly.

"Huh?" he wondered.

"Nevermind, I'm Sophia. What's your name?"

The guy let out a breath. "Josh," he said simply.

"Well Josh, I can tell you right now you're not going to get the job done with those measly stabs."

He looked down. "Sorry- I'm not medieval torture expert guy."

Sophia nodded sympathetically. "That's fair. How'd you end up in New Orleans?"

He looked at her with mild distrust, then it was like a dam broke. He told her how he was visiting New Orleans over college break with his friend, how he was attacked and fed on by the cute guy he had been making out with at this insane party, how Marcel said it was either him or his best friend who could go on living, and it was him who was made into a vampire.

"And Klaus got to you before Marcel did, which is why you're tasked with bleeding this guy out," Sophia nodded.

"How- how do you know Klaus?"

Sophia sighed as she looked at his weary face. Poor guy, she thought. He was bound to New Orleans as she was, through no choice of his own. Impulsively, she decided honestly was her best choice here. Well- honesty with caveats. "We're old friends, and I'm sort of pregnant with his kid." If only she could say those exact words to Elena with such nonchalance.

He raised his eyebrows as he studied her, taken aback. "What- how- There's no way you're older than me, unless you're a vampire, but if that was the case how are you… with child?"

Sophia smiled limply at him as she decided to give him a crash course of the supernatural underbelly of the world, a world he was now part of. It was the least she could do, and it was unsurprising that Klaus hadn't taken the time to do this. She did wonder what this Marcel's excuse was, however.

And so she told Josh about the mechanics of vampires, werewolves, and witches. "Klaus wants you to bleed this guy out because he has vervain in his system. It's sort of a type of poison to vampires, but it can also protect you and humans from vampire compulsion. Klaus and his siblings are the first vampires ever, the original family, and are the only beings able to compel other vampires. Klaus is also the hybrid, part vampire and part werewolf. He is the only vampire who can procreate, which is how I got into this predicament in the first place."

Josh nodded abjectly as he turned back to the chained-up vampire.

Sophia cleared her throat as she continued on. "Try that rake over there and just- stab his guts." Sophia's stomach churned nauseously at the thought. "It'll get the job done faster and to Klaus's satisfaction."

Josh grimaced as he haphazardly followed her words. "Thanks for the pointers- What did this guy do to you anyway- and what do you care if I stay on Klaus's good side?"

"Well, he did try to kill me the other night. But believe it or not, this isn't personal. And I care because… I don't know- Giving you some pointers feels like the very least I can do, and it's not really anything to thank me for. You're just a kid, you didn't ask for any of this to happen. To be caught between two egomaniacal vampires-" Sophia laughed in disbelief. "How old are you anyways?"

He coughed. "Twenty. How old are you- seventeen?"

Sophia's lips twitched. "Eighteen going on nineteen."

He whistled. "And pregnant, that suck-" Josh cut himself off as he smiled awkwardly at Sophia. "I mean, congratulations."

She snorted. "It's okay- this pregnancy was most certainly not planned…"

"Bonding with the help, how… Sweet of you." Rebekah said as she continued to walk down the hallway as Sophia exited the basement. The vampire didn't pause as the brunette opened her mouth to explain.

Shrugging, the old soul went off in the opposite direction.

"Absolutely not," Sophie Deveroux exclaimed, resistant towards Klaus and Rebekah's efforts to convince her to use a locator spell to find Elijah.

Sophia was leaning against a window behind the couch where Sophie sat, her arms crossed. She took note of the shaken-up shock in the witch's voice as the Mikaelson's let it be known they knew of Davina.

"Let me cut to the chase," Klaus insisted. "Davina has Elijah. You witches - I assume- want to get Davina away from Marcel. We don't know where she is- Ergo, we need magic."

Rebekah tact on how she wanted to sacrifice a witch by the name of Katie as a smokescreen to conceal Sophie's magic from Davina. To her credit, Sophie had been resistant- Until she learned it was this Katie who ultimately led to the death of Jane-Anne by sharing the Devereux's sister's plot with her vampire lover.

Then it was a done deal.

Sophia was pacing in the dark around the pool, anxious as she wondered how Klaus's plan would unfold. She was left home once again as Rebekah and Klaus dressed to the nines for some extravagant charity ball that would be the backdrop for their scheme. She froze as she felt eyes on her, and turned to see a yellow-eyed wolf lurking in the foliage. She froze as she returned its haunting stare.

"You're not supposed to be out here," an amiable voice declared.

Sophia jumped as she whipped around. "Who are you and who let you let in?"

The slim, dark-haired woman smiled disarmingly. "Sorry- I didn't mean to scare you. I'm Sabine, we met. I'm one of Sophie's friends."

"You're one of the witches."

"Your friend Hayley let me in. Sophie thought I could provide a little extra protection with everyone out."

Sophia nodded, careful that her face didn't betray her confusion. What good was a witch without magic at her beck and call, she didn't know-

"You know, it's drawn to you." Sophia frowned at the witch's words, then looked over her shoulder where the wolf had been. "The child you're carrying is part vampire, part werewolf. You and Klaus made something special," Sabine said assuredly.

A hazy, foggy memory slowly came back into focus for Sophia. "You said our baby was destined to be born."

A surprised smile crossed Sabine's face. "That I did. A premonition gifted from the ancestors foretold of your child."

Sophia nodded, not sure what to do with that.

"You know, I can find out for you if your baby will be a boy or a girl- if you're curious?"

Sophia scrunched her face in confusion.

"It's not magic," Sabine laughed. "Just an old trick my grandmother taught me. Come on- You have to be a little curious."

Sophia took a seat on the glossy piano bench beside a sullen Rebekah, staying silent as the blonde laid her head despondently against the piano. She had heard the female vampire return home not that long ago. They both looked up as Klaus entered the room.

"Well tonight was an epic failure," the blonde said when she finally spoke.

"On the contrary sister," Klaus contradicted, "Tonight was a masterpiece."

Sophia sat up, biting back a frown as Klaus avoided meeting her eyes.

"Are you mad?" Argued Rebekah. "Katie died before Sophie could complete the spell."

"I'm well aware- I killed Katie," Klaus shared with a smile before turning to pour himself a drink.

A small gasp escaped Sophia.

The hybrid went on. "There's no way our little suicide witch wasn't going to try to take out Marcel with her- I save his life, and in doing so, I now have him exactly where I want him."

Rebekah stood up, upset, and walked around the piano as Klaus talked. "Sophie trusted you," she stated, her eyes tearing. "I trusted you against all my better instincts."

Sophia felt like an intruder as the siblings talked on, but felt helpless, frozen where she sat as they paid her no mind.

"Wake up Rebekah," Klaus said impatiently. "The witches are on no one's side but their own. This girl, Davina- That's all they want. And when they have her, what do you think happens then?"

Klaus's eyes briefly cut to Sophia's, who stood up in revelation.

She had been so confused by what seemed like half-assed planning on the witches part, wondering what their end game was after they had lured the originals to town-

Klaus's voice cut through her shock. "- A truce, of course not. They will use Davina's power against all of us-"

"Even if you're right," interrupted Rebekah, "The plan was to find Elijah- and you failed us."

Klaus remained stern. "You always did lack faith. By protecting Marcel, I've cemented his trust. So much so, that he's agreed to return Elijah to us- And when the time is right, when he has told me everything I need to know about Davina, I will have her for myself."

Sophia grasped the piano to steady herself. This was too much information to take in this late at night.

Rebekah scorned her brother. "I have all the faith in the world that you'll get what you want, Nik. You always do- No matter what it costs the rest of us. You disgust me."

Sophia sat numbly back on the piano bench as Rebekah swept out of the room.

"You should go to bed, love." Sophia looked up to gaze at Klaus's profile. "I know you and your friend stayed up all night nosing through Elijah's diaries. You need rest."

Sophia nodded as she stayed put. She was surprised when Klaus remained where he was, looking expectedly at her, and benignly realized he wanted to walk her to her room.

His expression was implacable as he escorted her. She wasn't sure if now was the right time-

He spoke up. "Goodnight-"

"I have something to tell you." Sophia's words were stringed quickly together.

Klaus quirked an eyebrow as he nodded for her to go on.

"I- I learned something today. One of the witches came by the house and she told me- She told me…" Sophia was taken aback at the frog in her throat, the tears pricking at her eyes.

Klaus's eyes narrowed. "Did she threaten-"

"It's nothing- It's nothing like that," Sophia said as she was forced to breathe through her mouth. She resisted sniffling. "We're going to have a daughter, Nik."

Klaus's irritation gave way to a brief grin, then melted into regretful understanding as he took notice of Sophia's broken smile, the wretchedness in her eyes. Words from another time tormented the both of them.

Gods help you if our daughter has a drop of wolf's blood. You won't know what to do with her.

Our daughter?

We're to have a daughter, Nik.

Sophia was focused on putting on a brave face, internally wrestling against assailing hopelessness-

Then she was enveloped in the reassuring warmth of Klaus's arms. She crumpled against him, hiding her face in the crook of his neck. She wasn't sure, exactly, of how long they stood there outside her bedroom door, Klaus her lifeline as she fought for breath.

June had passed by uneventfully as the Mikaelson's bided their time, waiting for another opportunity to strike at Marcel's forces.

"Here," Hayley said one afternoon, late into the month, as she thrust Sophia's cell phone into her hands. "Your sister has been calling you all morning, and the ringing woke me up earlier than I would have preferred," she said over her shoulder as she made her way back upstairs.

Confused, Sophia called Elena back, wondering what to make of the mess of text messages from her brother and friends. "Hello?" she asked when Elena answered.

"Finally!," her sister exclaimed, then a mess of voices sang in unison, "Happy Birthday!"

"Happy birthday?" Sophia laughed, then realized with a shock her sister was right. "Holy shit- I completely forgot! Happy Birthday, Elena."

"How did you forget your own birthday?" Sophia heard Caroline's voice demand over the phone.

"Lazy... hazy- crazy summer," Sophia rhymed in lieu of a genuine answer.

Sophia raised an eyebrow as she walked into the kitchen that evening to see a small, round white cake on the granite counter overfilled with brightly lit candles. Just short of twenty, if she counted them right. She looked around her, but as far as she could tell, she was by herself. Right next to the cake was a velvet blue-lined box. Sophia bit the inside of her cheek as she opened it, and her eyes widened at the site of a glamorous, Audrey Hepburn pearl-styled necklace and matching earrings.

With an incredulous laugh, she bent her head to blow out the candles.

"Happy Birthday, love," a quiet voice said from behind her.

Sophia turned to raise her eyebrows at Klaus. "I suppose I have you to thank for this?" She nodded at the cake and the pearls.

The hybrid had kept his word, and throughout the month, made a point of checking in with her at least every other day, even if she preferred that he didn't. (Oh, how she tried to avoid him after the crushing blow that was learning they were to have another daughter, but Klaus wouldn't let her spiral alone).

"A necklace fit for a queen," he said, the timbre of his voice heady, eyes too earnest as he walked closer to her.

Sophia laughed, trying to loosen the tension her baby's father had brought into the room. "Knowing you, you probably really did nick this from a Queen."

Klaus's eyes lightened and he smiled wickedly. "Oh, I assure you, little love, she gifted to me willingly and well deservedly."

"Ew." Sophia wrinkled her nose. She didn't appreciate how the look on his face had transported her to two months ago when-

Her body flushed, Sophia abruptly cleared her throat as she noticed how Klaus was dressed up in a fitted, button-up shirt and a leather jacket. "You're not leaving yet, are you?"

He ticked an expectant eyebrow.

She didn't know why on earth she was blushing. "It's just- I haven't seen anything but the walls of this house for an entire month, and I was wondering if you were really going to leave me alone, on my birthday-"

Klaus's pleased smile, and his low chuckle, set the butterflies racing in her stomach on fire. Or maybe it was heartburn.

She shook her head as he shrugged off his jacket and folded it over his arm. "I- I was kidding Nik. Really. I'm just going to watch some old movies, maybe eat this entire cake- It's not going to be pretty-"

He didn't heed her words, and spent the better part of the night watching mind-rotting, ridiculous rom coms with her. Halfway into the first movie, Rebekah and Hayley joined them. Sophia spent the rest of her birthday sitting at a respectable distance from Klaus on the couch they shared, then eventually, curled sleepily at his side as the night wore on, an ancient friend and a relatively new one the free arm chairs near the pair. The vampire's mercilessly ripped apart the beloved movies that had cemented their places in her heart back in middle school, egging on even Hayley to join in.

The old soul found herself thinking how she wouldn't trade the memory of that birthday for anything.

"Over the course of my life, I've encountered no shortage of those who would presume to speak of good and evil. Such terms mean nothing- People do what is in their best interest, regardless of who gets hurt. Is it evil to take what one wants- To satisfy hunger even if doing so will cause another suffering? What some would call evil, I believe to be an appropriate response to a harsh and unfair world."

"No offense," Cami broke in, "But I'm not sure why you've invited me here." She leaned against the wall of a townhouse just outside the French Quarter. The devil may care philanthropist turned to her.

"Because I enjoy your company," he smiled sincerely as he turned to face her. She ignored how her heart beated ever so slightly faster. "And I sense you have the capacity for understanding someone of my complexity. You see- I've returned to New Orleans to investigate a threat posed against me, what I found was my first love, pregnant, and in need of protection." Cami resolved to keep her face professionally impassive as he continued to talk. "My brother, always the do-gooder, felt it was necessary to manipulate me into helping her. He thought it might redeem me. Trouble is, I've since learned of another young woman, a girl really- One with vast potential, held in captivity by a tyrant. I want to help both these women. Free one-" Cami couldn't help but clock in the pang of despair that haunted his eyes. She knew it well. "And protect the other- She's the sort to disregard her best interest." His smile was fond, his eyes sharp and brittle. "So tell me, Cami, does that sound evil to you?"

Cami smiled and shook her head. "I don't believe in evil as a diagnosis," she explained. "I think you have unstable personal relationships, stress-related paranoia, chronic anger issues, fear of abandonment- I think you could benefit from talking to someone professionally."

He smiled slowly as his eyes grew soft. "I think I prefer to talk to you- So I'm going to offer you a job- As my Stenographer. "

She crossed her arms, her lips upturned as she humored him. "Okay. What are we writing?"

"My memoirs, of course. Someone should know my story-" his smug smile briefly fell away. "Her story." He recovered quickly as he re-adopted his swaggering affectation. "And it will give us time to discuss other riveting subjects- Like you handsome suitor, Marcel…"

"I told you, Agnes," Sophia said as she debated how to return Caroline's text, "I feel great." The french quarter witches, as a whole, didn't imbibe Sophia with warm and fuzzy feelings. She resented how they felt the need to visit her, check in on her. She subscribed to Klaus's way of thinking and didn't feel they had her health or best interest in mind.

"You are overdue for a checkup," the witch insisted.

"What am I going to do, pop into the quarter for a quick ultrasound?" Sophia countered.

Hayley snorted from a nearby armchair. "A pregnant werewolf escorted by a witch- Nothing to see here," she said sarcastically.

Rebekah spoke up from across the room. "A lot of women would kill to have a child." Sophia blushed as her friend turned stern eyes to her. "Strikes me as odd you're not taking better care of yours."

Feeling put in place, Sophia turned disconcerted eyes back to Agnes, who seized her low point. "I know a doctor out in the bayou- Off the beaten path. Now, I took the liberty of making an appointment for you, tonight, after hours. Just us. Vampires will never get a word of it."

Sophia turned to Hayley, who tipped her head as if to say 'It's up to you'.

Rolling her eyes to herself, Sophia already regretted the words as they left her mouth. "Okay. Fine. Bayou baby doctor it is.

Off the beaten path was… One way to put it.

"This is the doctor's office," Sophia asked later that evening. A small wooden cabin stranded far out in the bayou.

Agnes turned laughing eyes to her. "Dr. Paige is only this far out because Marcel's men keep terrorizing her patients. Go on- she won't bite," the witch said in dulcet tones.

As she unbuckled and stepped out of the car, Sophia began to regret not insisting on Hayley accompanying her. Agnes had said something along the lines of how having two werewolves in tow would draw too much attention- But that didn't make so much sense given how Agnes had been careful to avoid any hint of civilization on the drive over here.

"Your baby's heart rate is perfect," the doctor said confidently as she smiled down at Sophia, who couldn't help the relieved smile that overwhelmed her face.

"We're done here, right?" Sophia asked as she read a text from Rebekah.

Where are you?

"Your blood pressure's a bit high," the doctor said calmly. "I've got something for it," she added kindly as she left the room.

Sophia relayed her location to Rebekah, and was caught off guard by a wolf howling out from the darkness.

"What are those pills for, exactly?" Sophia asked as the doctor briskly walked past her to return her workstation.

"Not important," Dr. Paige said hurriedly as she turned towards Sophia, syringe in hand, ready to puncture her. Sophia yanked the doctor's hair with all her strength, using her free hand to twist the syringe and inject it into the doctor instead. She swiftly fell down with a pained cry.

Sophia rushed to lock the office door, blocking away the group of people who just arrived. Already knowing the flimsy lock wouldn't hold until help could reach her, she began her escape out the back window and into the woods.

The wolf had risen to the surface as Sophia fought off the men (witches?) trying to attack her. Enraged with adrenaline coursing through her, she managed to hold her own with a savagery that would unsettle her later.

She stared at the last one coming for her through golden eyes.

Then his head was snapped, and Rebekah stood across from her. "I have to say I'm impressed," the blonde acknowledged.

"How did you find me," gasped Sophia as she stood up.

"Your text got me here halfway, vamp hearing did the rest- Who are they?"

"Witches, warlocks- whatever," shrugged Sophia. Then she heard the crunch of twigs and leaves and turned towards the flashlights poking through the trees.

"There are more of them," observed Rebekah. "Run!" she ordered when she turned back to Sophia. The werewolf hadn't made it that far when she looked over her shoulder just in time to see the blonde vampire taken down by an arrow.

"Rebekah!" Sophia yelled. She went down too after an arrow went through her shoulder.

In a daze and all but incapacitated, Sophia limped her way back to the bayou doctor office, dully pondering if Dr. Paige was even a real doctor.

Relief hit her in full force as Klaus and Rebekah burst out of the office's door.

"Sophia- what happened? Tell me what happened," Klaus demanded, his eyes enraged.

She shook her head. "I can't remember." His hands were on her shoulders as he inspected her.

"You've completely healed," he noted sternly. "There's not a scratch on you."

"One of the perks of being a werewolf, remember?" Sophia asked, confused.

He shook his head as he stepped away from her. "No. Not that fast."

"Leave her alone," Rebekah said, batting off Klaus as she wrapped her arm around Sophia's waist and guided her to the porch. "It's the baby- The vampire blood. Klaus's blood in your system. It can heal any wound," she shared as she helped Sophia sit down on the porch. "Your own child healed you," the blonde said matter of factly.

Sophia's head was swimming as she turned back towards Klaus, wondering what he made of Rebekah's reasoning.

"How did you escape?" her friend continued. "You were outnumbered, unarmed. Those men were ripped to shreds."

Sophia looked at Klaus as she answered. "I think it was the wolf- I think it's trying to protect me."

"The witches were supposed to protect you," he said thickly. "When I get my hands on Sophie Deveraux-"

Sophia frowned. "I don't think Sophie had anything to do with this- It was Agnes-"

"Fine," Klaus interrupted, tetchy. " Agnes, Sophie- It's all the same to me. I'll slaughter the lot of them."

"Not if Elijah gets there first," threw in Rebekah.

"Elijah?" Sophia asked, thrown off.

"He's been in touch- he has a plan. All he asked was that we take care of you," Rebakh shared.

Sophia nodded tiredly. "Can I go home now- I'd really like to sleep for a few days." It seemed as if the ground shifted under her as she stood up, and her legs buckled- Then she was cradled in Klaus's arms before she could hit the dirt floor.

"I've got you, love, I've got you," Klaus murmured into her ear.

Sophia fell asleep in his arms.

"I guess we should make our unofficial buddy system a little more official," Hayley said the next morning as she sipped her coffee.

"Here's the thing though," Sophia said in an unnecessary low voice, as if lowering the pitch would be enough to keep the thousand-year-old vampires who lived with them from listening in if they wanted to. "For some reason, this guardian savior wolf was hell-bent on saving my life- And is possibly from the same pack of wolves Marcel drove from the city- who you might be descended from."

"What's your point?" Hayley arched an eyebrow.

"I'm saying- Maybe, we should try to figure out a way to sneak out to the bayou and investigate."

The brunette shook her head. "I don't kno-"

"Please Hayley, it's the best lead on your parents that we got. You didn't come here to babysit me, you came here to find them."

Wearily looking around their surroundings, Hayley nodded slowly, silently, at Sophia after she was sure they were alone.

The morning sun shined through the windows as Sophia lounged on a couch after breakfast, browsing through an old Gilbert family album she had rescued from Elena's arsonism, when Rebekah entered the room.

"Morning dear," she said cheerfully as she perched on the arm of the couch.

Before Sophia could return her greeting, she felt a rush of air. In front of her was Klaus tossing Sophie Deverioux onto an armchair.

He sneered down at the witch. "We had a deal! You protect my unborn child- I dismantle Marcel's army. And whilst I've been busy fulfilling my part of the bargain, you allowed Sophia to be attacked and almost killed by a gaggle of lunatic witches."

Sophia had sat up and oriented herself so that she sat at the center of the couch, feeling the seat cushion on the side of her sink as Klaus took a seat beside her.

"I had nothing to do with it, I swear," Sophie pleaded. "Sophia and I are linked, remember? She dies, I die."

"Then who were they?" asked Rebekah.

Sophie was emphatic as she continued on."They're a faction of extremists- Sabine stupidly told them about some vision she had about the baby."

"What kind of vision?" Klaus questioned.

Sophie rolled her eyes. "She has them all the time- They're totally up to interpretation. I'm guessing she's wrong on this one."

"Well, how- may I ask- was this particular vision interrupted?" Klaus asked as he sat forward.

Sophie looked towards Sophia, glibly skeptic. "Pretty much that your baby would bring death to all witches."

"Ah," Klaus said, pleased as he leaned back on the couch, smiling over at Sophia. "Well- I grow fonder of this child by the second."

To her left, Rebekah now sat beside her on the couch. "Sophie, look. I promised Elijah that I would protect the Mikaelson miracle baby whilst he tries to win your witch Davina's loyalty. Why don't you tell me just how extreme this faction is?"

"Elijah is talking to Davina?" Sophie asked, stunned.

"Yeah, as we speak, I imagine." Confirmed Rebekah.

Sophie winced. "I'm guessing she'll have… Plenty to say about that crowd."

"Do tell," Klaus encouraged as he glanced at Sophia.

"I- wasn't always an advocate for the witches…" Sophie began. She mentioned how she was raised in a strict family and took off from the French Quarter when she turned twenty one. Eventually, she returned home after deciding she wanted to be a cook. Not long after returning, her coven decided they wanted to go forward with something called the Harvest.

"What the bloody hell is the Harvest?" Rebekah demanded.

"It's a ritual our coven does every three centuries so that the bond to our ancestral magic is restored," Sophie explained. "We appease our ancestors, they keep our ancestral power flowing."

"And why haven't I heard of this?" Klaus asked.

"Because, like palia psyches," Sophie stared pointedly at Sophia, "who are typically protectively charmed to the point some witches think they're myths, the harvest also always seemed like a myth- A story passed down through the generations like Noah's Ark or the Budah walking on water. The kind some people take literally… and some people don't. They had the girls of our community preparing for months. Four would be chosen for the harvest. They said that it was an honor, that they were special. I thought it was a myth."

Sophia's eyebrows were furrowed. "Was it?"

Klaus's phone rang before she could get an answer. "Marcel," he greeted as he stood up. "Bit early in the day for you, isn't it?" They all listened on as Klaus agreed to meet Marcel out in the bayou to investigate a curious case of dead witches.

"You can't go out there," begged Sophie."I need to gather the witch's remains and consecrate them. If I don't get to them before sundown, we lose the link to their magic."

"Those witches tried to kill Sophia," Klaus reminded her. "I prefer for Marcel's informant not to find anything that would lead him back to us, to her, or to our child. Stay put," he ordered the witch. "And save the rest of your story until I return."

"Hey, what the hell?" Sophie asked after spotting Sophia and Hayley waiting for her by the exit of the crypt to finish gathering whatever it was she needed.

Sophia and Hayley exchanged glances as the old soul spoke up."You're going over there anyway, aren't you? We want to go with you."

"No thanks," Sophie turned down. "I already got assaulted by Klaus once this morning, don't need a repeat." The witch tried to make her way past them when Sophia and Hayley moved together to block her path.

"What if whatever is responsible for the dead witches is still out there?" Hayley asked.

Sophia nodded. "We've already established that it likes me and hates witches- you'll be safer with me."

Sophie scrunched her face. "Sorry if I'm not buying your sudden concern for my safety."

The witch tried to evade them again, but Hayley made a show of blocking the witch's path. "Listen- the whole reason I came to this stupid town in the first place was to learn more about my family- So we're coming with you."

"Could you three be more idiotic?" a tired voice said behind them.

Sophia felt bad for forcing Rebekah's hand into letting her and Hayley go with Sophie to the bayou, but after everything the fellow wolf had done for her, Sophia felt she owed her this. She winced as she heard the blond answer Klaus's call on her cell phone.

"Well- order up a few rounds of moonshine and stay clear of the dead witches for a few," the pale blonde suggested to her brother. "The witch is on burial mission and your baby momma is on a spirit quest and I'm keeping Elijah's promise to keep her safe so- Stall, please."

They continued to trudge through the bayou after the vampire ended the phone call. Sighing, she addressed Sophie. "So this harvest thingy- tell me more."

"Klaus said wait," evaded Sophie.

"Yes. He also said to stay out of the bayou, and yet here we are amongst the crawly, buzzy creatures-"

"We're here," Sophia interrupted as she spotted the animalistically shredded body of a witch.

Hayley and Sophia simultaneously gaped at a rather large-

"Is that a wolf track?" Sophie asked.

A crunch of leaves and everyone looked up to see a man ahead of them.

"What the hell?" He muttered. "An original?" Then he zoomed away. Sophia bit her lip as she exchanged a glance with Rebekah. That couldn't be good.

A chill had settled deep into Sophia's bones after Sophie finished gathering the remains of the dead witches. It was just the witch, her, and Hayley who remained after Rebekah left to go help distract Marcel. As they walked back to the car, she asked, "Those people- all this because of a vision about my baby you don't think is true?"

"Look," Sophie began as she opened the trunk of her car, "I love Sabine, but she's the witch equivalent of a drama queen. I've learned to take little stock in whatever she says or sees. Just kind of wished she'd kept her mouth shut."

"The harvest ritual," Sophia wondered, "You said you didn't believe in it. Were you right?"'

"No," Sophie shook her head obstinately. "I saw it with my own eyes. It was working- It was real."

Sophia stilled. "So how can you be so sure Sabine's vision isn't?"

And for that, the witch didn't have an answer.

"I don't care if we have to get you a leash," Rebekah told Sophia after she and Hayley had returned home. "That was your last trip to the bayou." The blonde side-eyed Hayley as she poured herself a drink from a crystal decanter. "Don't think I don't know this was all for your sake- What is it with you and those wolves anyway?"

"I feel like we're connected somehow." Hayley looked to Sophia. "Like we're all connected. I don't know, whatever pull your guardian wolf angel feels for you, I… I think I feel that pull too. Like…" Sophia swallowed as Hayley trailed off. The last time she had felt that sort of connection to other wolves was when she had been part of a pack.

Before the werewolf could finish her thought, Klaus came in through the front door.

"Nik- Finally-" Rebekah trailed off as Elijah appeared behind him. A smile on her face, the sister original ran to hug her brother.

"Welcome home," Sophia smiled at him. Hayley smiled and nodded in acknowledgment of him, then left the room.

"Excuse me- Just a moment," Elijah requested of those left in the foyer as he trailed off after Hayley. Hmm, Sophia thought as she quirked an eyebrow at Klaus whose eyes were laughing.

"Where's he going?" asked Rebekah.

"Everything that brought us to New Orleans was a lie," Elijah began with everyone gathered in the living room. "The story that Sophie Deveraux fabricated- This struggle for control of the French Quarter, the war between the vampires and witches wasn't over territory at all, this was over Davina. Eight months ago- Sophie Deveraux and her sister Jane-Anne lost everything. Now- seven months after that- A young pregnant girl wanders into their restaurant. Suddenly, all hope is renewed. Jane-Anne actually sacrificed her life so that her sister could use you to find Davina," Elijah said as he briefly turned his gaze towards Sophia. "If Sophie Deveraux is successful in capturing Davina, she can return Jane-Anne's daughter back to life. We thought we'd come here to wage a war for power. This is about family. In order to return her niece to life, Sophie Deveraux will fight to the death- That makes her more dangerous than anyone."

"What happened after Elijah followed you out of the room earlier?" Sophia asked, helplessly curious. She thought of the way the eldest original had admiringly eyed Hayley during his big announcement earlier.

Hayley opened her mouth to speak, then closed it. Then she poured a generous amount of liquor into a clear glass and tossed it back. Massaging her throat, she said lowly, "I slapped him."

It took a moment for the old soul to register what her friend had said, then- "You slapped Elijah!" Sophia gasped. "Why? And he wasn't... upset?"

"He wanted to thank me for watching out for you while he was gone and had the nerve to offer to relieve me of any obligation I may feel towards you- He wanted to compensate me for my services! Like I was some sort of paid thug- werewolf for hire," Hayley's eyes flashed. "… Not to mention, he shouldn't walk around making promises he can't keep," Hayley tried to shrug indifferently, but somehow, Sophia didn't buy that it was the burn of the alcohol making the wolf's cheeks bright red.

Guilt knotted in Sophia. "Despite his somewhat… insultingly poor execution, I think he had the right idea in taking the time to thank you. I'm sorry today was a bust on the bayou werewolf front."

"It's fine," Hayley smiled thinly, " Maybe this whole thing is just some pipe dream that I have of finding any real family out there- but sometimes- When I feel like it's me against the world, it keeps me going," the brunette nodded to herself as her gaze shied away from Sophia's.

The old soul frowned. "Hey," she demanded, recovering her friend's attention. "After everything we've been through- you have to know you're not alone." Hayley's eyebrows knitted together as she looked at Sophia. "Despite how we initially met- We've come a long way since then. And we're… we're a pack, Hayley. Perhaps a pack of two, but a pack nonetheless. And I promise to do everything in my power to help you track down your parents, okay?" Sophia asked (perhaps demanded) fervidly. Really, after everything Hayley had done for Sophia and her baby, it was at the very top of her to-do list.

Hayley's eyes gleamed something vulnerable as she tenuously returned Sophia's smile.

"Woah," Sophia laughed brightly one late summer morning as she opened a kitchen cupboard to find it overstocked with peanut butter.

"I believe Jiff peanut butter was one of your cravings, was it not?" Elijah asked from over her shoulder. "Hayley mentioned something to that effect."

Those two had become thick as thieves, with Elijah prompting the wolf to gather unfiltered insight over what happened while he was gone. "It pairs well with the orchard apples," Sophia smiled. "Have you seen Nik this morning?"

"He's already left to attend to business in the quarter," Elijah answered succinctly.

Try as she might, Sophia couldn't help how her smile dimmed, and Elijah certainly picked up on it.

Holy inferiority complex, batman! Sophia had thought when she noticed how overly brusque and … prickly… Klaus had been now that he and Elijah were under the same room again.

Klaus didn't like how his older brother had appointed himself leader, and during the hybrid's more unpleasant moods, he was no longer as indulgent of Sophia as he once was. Oh, he didn't completely give her the silent treatment and ignore her as he did when she had first moved in, but he wasn't in tune with her as he had been earlier in the summer, and was displeased that Elijah was taking up the slack.

"Jesus Christ," cursed Sophia a late August next morning after she walked out of the kitchen and into the living room at the sight of a dead woman bleeding out on the coffee table.

"Good morning Sophia," Elijah smiled politely over his book from where he sat in an armchair.

"Good morning love," grinned Klaus angelically as he angled to face her.

Sophia held up her index finger, indicating she needed a moment as she placed her other hand over her mouth as she fought back the need to vomit. And here she thought she was rid of her morning sickness.

Sophia turned away from them as she made her request. "I know me and Hayley are the only ones in the house who drink milk- but can you please make sure it's on the grocery list? And please keep," Sophia waved a vague hand over the coffee table, "The dead bodies to a minimum- At least until after my morning sickness goes away?"

Shaking her head, she made her way back into the kitchen, staring regretfully at her phone. Today was Elena's, Caroline's, and Bonnie's first day of college, Sophia thought morosely as she read through her friend's text and emails.

She bit her lip as she answered Jeremy's call. "Shouldn't you be in class right now? It's the first day of school, right?"

"According to Google," he greeted, "It's officially the end of your first trimester, and I'm phoning in not as your brother, but as a concerned uncle. Are you going to tell Elena about the baby yet?"

Sophia pinched her nose. "I will Jer- But I think it's the kind of news that can wait-"

"Still-"

She heard a bell ringing over the phone. "Sounds like times up to me- Go to class, Jer, I promise I'll call you back later." She hung up over her brother's protest.

As soon as she did, Sophia felt a stabbing pain in her neck. "Ow! What the fu-" she muttered as she felt and saw blood.

"What the hell was that?" Rebekah asked as she stormed into the room.

"Hell if I know," answered Sophia. "It felt like I was being sta-" She quieted as a disturbing thought occurred to her. "Sophie."

After the Mikaelson brothers set out to find answers, Sophia was forced onto house rest until they got to the bottom of things.

"It's time for the demon spawn to snack," Rebekah announced as she entered the living room where Sophia and Hayley lounged, holding a wooden basket filled with bright red apples.

Sophia's lips quirked. "I really wish you wouldn't call her that."

"I'm sorry- Have you picked another name yet?"

Hayley laughed as she flipped through her book.

"Take one," the original vampire offered as she held the apples before Sophia. "The plantation is lousy with them. How's your neck?"

"I feel...Fine." Sophia acknowledged. It had been such a keen pain, and the lack of it now unsettled her. "I'm sure this is Sophie- related."

"Well do me a favor and don't die on my watch," Rebekah asked. "I'll never hear the end of it."

Sophia smiled at her friend. "I'll do my best."

"You know," Hayley spoke up, "When I first met you, I thought you were a real bitch."

"What changed your mind?" wondered the blonde.

"Oh, I still think you're a bitch," Hayley assured her. "I've just grown to like that about you."

A surprised laugh escaped Rebekah. "Well, that sweet of you to say," the vampire said as she tossed an apple to Hayley, who caught it. "Remember it when I'm gone."

Sophia sat up. "Gone? Where are you going?"

"I only came to town to make sure everything was okay with Elijah. He's fine, and he hasn't punished Klaus for daggering him, so- As usual, they'll be thick as thieves, and I'll be left to clean up the mess. It's time for me to fly the coop."

Sophia frowned. She had found comfort in Rebekah's presence in the house. "Oh," she said disappointedly- then winced as a wave of heat overcame her body.

"What's wrong?" Rebekah asked. The old soul felt cool relief as the vampire touched her hand to her forehead. "You're burning up."

"Stop fussing, will you," Rebekah asked as she tried to hold a shifting Sophia still. The werewolf tossed and turned in discomfort in the bed the vampire had laid her in, she couldn't help it. "Elijah will be here any minute."

Sophia shook her head, her entire body damp with sweat. The only other time she had felt like this was when…

She had been little ways past her first trimester then too. Her eyes stung as she contemplated what this fever meant. "Not again," she said urgently as she grabbed Hayley. "Get Klaus- I need to see Kla-"

"Niklaus is tracking down the witch," Rebekah explained patiently. "And just because you're carrying a baby doesn't mean you get to act like one," her friend said as she soothingly pressed a cold towel to Sophia. "I'm sure my little niece is healing you up as we speak."

"You don't understand," croaked Sophia. Elijah and Sophie entered the room before she could finish her thought.

"What the hell is she doing here?" the blonde vampire demanded as she stood up from the bed.

"I'm trying to help," Sophie explained. At Elijah's insistence, Rebekah was sent out to gather the herbs the witch required to save Sophia's baby.

"She's burning up," Hayley said, huddled near Sophia by the pool outside that evening.

"Get her in the water," Sophie demanded.

Hayley jumped in, steadying Sophia after Elijah helped to lower her into the pool.

"I don't see how a midnight swim is supposed to help," commented Rebekah.

Even in the water, the heat was unbearable. Tears leaked from Sophia's eyes. "It's happening again," she gasped to Hayley, even the effort to speak straining what was left of her energy. "Qetsiyah cursed me, and my daughter will die for it again!"

"The witches did this to you Sophia," Elijah explained from the edge of the pool. "And we can undo their magic."

"What do you mean?" Hayley asked roughly, acting as a crux for Sophia who didn't have the strength to stand upright on her own.

"Agnes used the needle of sorrows on me- It's a dark object meant to induce miscarriage by raising your baby's temperature in utero," Sophie explained as she ground up the herbs Rebekah had collected.

Sophia shook her head in denial. That couldn't be- She had had this exact fever a thousand years ago.

"With Sophia's temperature sky high, the water- with the help of the herbs- should cool us down," Sophie said as she also walked into the pool. "Drink this," the witch shoved a cup into Sophia's hands, who followed her orders without question. "You're going to have to get her heart rate down," Sophie said to Hayley.

"And how am I supposed to do that?" the werewolf demanded.

"Hold her," Sophie said. "It's a natural human remedy to slow the heart rate and reduce blood pressure."

"This is never going to work," Sophia heard Rebekah say as Hayley lifted Sophia to cradle her.

"Davina will break that link," Elijah insisted. "We just need time."

Sophia shook her head weakly. "Where's Niklaus? Tell him-"

"Tell him yourself, Sophie," Hayley encouraged gently

"I can't breathe," Sophia gasped.

"Take long deep breaths," encouraged Elijah. Hayley nodded along.

"Sophia, look at me," said the fellow wolf. "We're a pack, remember. Listen to me- look at me. Take long, deep breaths. Just focus on the sound of my voice."

Her friend's words acted as they were supposed to, distracting Sophia from the thorny, horrifying spiral her thought's had taken.

"You'll be okay, you'll be okay," her friend soothed. And for a moment, the old soul believed that…

"Ow! Ow!" she cried as she thrashed in the water, feeling a piercing agony- the world's worst stomach ache… Esther had put me out of my misery before I could experience this before, she thought blurrily.

Then a switch flipped, and it was gone.

Sophia was still gasping for air as Sophie said, "I just felt it lift."

Hayley allowed Sophia's feet to touch the bottom of the pool, helping to steady her. "Come on, let's get out of here."

As Rebekah wrapped a towel around her shoulders, she overheard as Sophie begged Elijah to keep Klaus from killing Agnes, the last elder and the only access to the power the witches needed to survive.

"I'll make you one last promise," Elijah said after hanging up a brief phone call. "I won't let my brother kill Agnes." Then he was gone.

Outrage burned all over Sophia, rivaling the fever her body had just expelled. A little more clear-minded, and she was now able to put together what had truly happened to her all those years ago.

It hadn't been Qetsiyah's curse, or her own fault- It had been dark magic. And there had only been one witch at the time who toyed so freely with the lives and wellbeing of others, who insidiously meddled with the laws of nature itself...

Her hands in fists, her eyes rivaling the darkest parts of the ocean with their likeness to a furious chasm, Sophia briefly blocked the witch's path as she stepped out of the pool. "I know you were just using me to save your people," Sophia told Sophie, "But try it again, and I'll kill you," the old soul promised in a silky voice she had inherited from the mother lost to her over two millennia ago.

Sophia showered in uncomfortably hot water, scrubbing her skin raw as she tried to fend off the memories coming at her at back-breaking speed.

'Your presence isn't welcome in my home' Sofijah had told the matriarch witch, then hissed in pain as she moved to shut the door, seemingly punctured by an invisible needle.

'Trust me, child,' Esther had said she took away the baby Sofija had birthed much too early, 'No mother should have to see their babe like this.'

Sophia gingerly crouched down against the wet tiled floor, hugging her knees to her face as she sat under the comforting rain of falling water.

"Where is he?- I've been trying to find him all day," Josh asked from her front porch that night, having had to resort to Sophia as he tried to find Klaus. "Marcel knows that Klaus lied about where he lives."

"I would tell you if I knew Josh," Sophia told him. "But he's been gone all day, I have no idea where he is."

He looked frustrated as he ran a hand through his hair. "Please just tell him to call me," the baby vampire said before leaving.

Sophia sighed heavily as she closed the door. Where was Klaus? She wanted to know herself. Hayley and Elijah and Rebekah had all offered their company, sensing she needed it even if they didn't know what she was grappling with, but the only person she really wanted was Nik. He wasn't answering his texts and his calls went straight to voicemail.

At this point, she wasn't even sure she should tell him what she learned. Esther Mikaelson was dead and finally gone, and what good would it do dredging up centuries-old pain and trauma for Klaus. Sure, for Sophia it felt as fresh as day-old paint, but what good would it do for Klaus to know of it?

Before she could even start her hike up the stairs, someone was knocking at the front door again. "Josh?" she asked, confused as she opened it.

Not Josh, she thought, immediately thrown off by the unfamiliar man on the other side. Never had she seen a grin so reminiscent of the Cheshire cat from Alice and Wonderland.

"Hi there," he smiled beguilingly. "I'm Marcel. I don't think we've met."

"What are you doing here?" Cami asked as she finished cleaning up the bar that night.

"Do you remember the promise I made you?" Klaus asked as he walked inside. That's what she got for not finishing up locking up the doors- Not that that would have stopped him.

"Promise? No," she said, confused by what he meant… Until she stepped closer to him. Then she somehow remembered that the rich, too good looking for his own good philanthropist with money to burn was actually a…. Vampire. An ancient vampire who, against all odds, experienced transference with her. "You promised you'd find out what happened to Sean," she recalled, holding her breath. Finally, she thought desperately.

"And I kept my word." His gaze didn't stray from hers. "Your twin brother's behavior was not born of natural causes. A witch hexed him to commit those murders and to kill himself."

She didn't flinch, didn't falter. "I knew it- I knew he wasn't crazy. Who is this witch?" she demanded.

Klaus dipped his head. "Oh, you needn't trouble yourself over her. She has already paid for her actions in blood." he smiled.

"What- Wait, you killed somebody?" Her mind couldn't register his admission.

"Well," he briefly looked away as his lips twitched. "I had a hand in the matter, yeah." She reacted on instinct, not registering the crack of her slap against his face until after the fact. She had certainty smacked his smirk off.

"Forgive me if I'm a little surprised by your reaction-"

"How dare you," she exclaimed. "How the hell am I supposed to react? You just made me culpable in a revenge murder I never asked for!"

"I've been alive for a thousand years," he responded. "And, I can assure you, many people have died for far less. Besides, now you can find comfort in the truth." He placed what she supposed was meant to be a reassuring hand on her shoulder. She shrugged him off.

"The truth," she scoffed, at wit's end. "You compel me. You make me at peace with something that should be tearing me up inside. I don't know how, but I will undo whatever the hell it is you've done to me," she vowed. "And when I do- you're gonna wish you never laid eyes on me."

Petulant. That was the only word that came to mind for the look on his face as he nodded at her- A tomcat who didn't understand her revulsion at the dead rat he dropped on her doorstep. Then he left…

And Camille O'Connor was stumped as to why her heart was racing and she was on the verge of crying in the middle of an empty bar.

"Well- Klaus's Marcel. I'm not gonna lie, it's nice to finally meet you," Sophia said honestly.

"I'm not Klaus's anybody- not anymore." His face remained amicable, but there was certain steel under his words.

Sophia pursed her lips, channeling her inner cheerleader, and smiled guilelessly."So. How can I help you?" she asked brightly.

"Just wanted to meet the pretty young thing Klaus has been keeping to himself- And here I thought he had a soft spot for blondes. Why does he keep you hidden away, sweetheart?"

Oof. This Marcellus was all honey and somewhat backhanded charm, smooth where Klaus was rough. A predator all the same, however- one who didn't have the brute strength and centuries of savagery under his belt that his sire did. Ignore the blonde comment, Sophia told herself, wondering if the vampire's throwaway remark held the answer to where Klaus was tonight.

"My kind isn't exactly… Welcomed, in the Quarter." Sophia raised an eyebrow. A light went on behind his eyes.

"Ah- The mythical, pregnant werewolf. I was starting to think my guys had made you up. Tell me- What is the Mikaelson's interest in you- hmm?"

Sophia laid a protective hand on her barely-there baby bump, recalling Elijah's words as he recounted Davina's story to her. "I thought you drew the line at hurting children- or does that rule not apply when they're still in utero?"

He stepped half a foot away as he made a production of sizing her up, taking his time as he looked her over from head to toe, raising his hand to massage his jaw. Sophia debated telling him the worst kept secret in New Orleans- that she was knocked up with his sire's baby- then decided she could do without Klaus's yelling over such an insurrection. There would be plenty of shouting to go around over how Marcel ended up at their doorstep in the first place. "Look- It's pretty late. I'll tell Klaus you stopped by and maybe we can have you over another time?" she offered, all politeness and pleasantries.

He nodded in agreement. "Sounds like a plan. Goodnight…?"

She filled in the blank. "Sophia."

Sophia's voice was muffled against the rag tied around her mouth as she tried to kick Hayley awake. She and the fellow wolf were sharing trunk space at the back of a beat-up car.

Not long after Marcel had left, the bloody doorbell had rung again, and Hayley had offered to go answer it. Almost ten minutes later when the brunette had yet to return, Sophia walked over to the left open front door to peer outside, debating on whether to call out for the wolf or to go look for her. All it had taken was a tentative step outside the house's threshold, and she was whisked away from its safety.

Finally, Hayley blinked awake, having enough wits about her to stay quiet as she stared at Sophia with wide eyes. She was quick to take notice of the plastic zip ties binding their arms and feet. Sophia stayed low as the brunette leveraged herself to kick open the glass trunk window, when the car pulled over. The driver broke no sweat as he pulled off the shattered glass window.

"Seriously," Tyler Lockwood scorned as Hayley tried to kick him. "You don't want to fight me Hayley- You know you can't beat a hybrid."

Sophia struggled against him as lifted her over his shoulder. "Stay put unless you want Sophie to get hurt."

Hayley continued to shout as the hybrid carried her away."Let her go you backstabbing, half breed, piece of shit-"

"Shut up!" Tyler shouted back at her.

The sun had risen by the time Tyler had returned with Hayley to the backwoods wooden cabin he had dumped Sophia at. She had managed to loosen the rag he tied around her mouth. "What is this place?" she asked calmly as he set Hayley beside her on the porch.

"The armpit of Louisiana," he shared as he took out a dagger from his back pocket.

"What are you going to do with that?" Hayley asked warily, edging closer to Sophia.

"That depends on you two," he said as he cut off the ties that binded Sophia's legs, then Hayley's. Their hands still remained bounded.

"You kidnapped us from our home Tyler, not the other way around," Sophia said carefully as she stood up.

The hybrid shook his head at her. "That's not your house, Sophie, it's Klaus's. How are you both shacking up in a mansion with that psycho- Do Elena and Jeremy know where've you been this entire summer?" He said, looking pointedly at Sophia, then he turned disappointed eyes on Hayley. "And you're a long way from the girl I met in the Appalachians helping other werewolves-"

"Hey- To be fair to Hayley, she's still in the business of helping other werewolves," Sophia cut in as Hayley was shaking her head.

The brunette tilted her head at Tyler. "Tyler, I'm sorry- but," Hayley's eyes briefly flicked over to Sophia. "A lot has happened since the last time I saw you."

"You mean like how Sophie's pregnant?" He said, eyeing Sophia's midsection. Her loose black tunic hid the low swell of her stomach, leaving the casual observer unaware that she was pregnant.

"How-" she began to ask, alarmed.

"A hybrid baby- Yeah, I know all about it," Tyler interrupted. "I've been roaming around the bayou, asking questions. Let me tell you what I learned." He tugged at the sleeve of Hayley's shirt, stepping back after she tried to head but him. "That crescent birthmark means you come from a big shot family, some kind of… Royalty to the werwolves of this region. And right here- This is all that's left of them."

Hayley frowned as she looked around. Lake water ripped gently to Sophia's right, and all that hinted at civilization was the dingy cabin Tyler had brought them to. The forestry ahead of them was sparse and empty of another living soul- and then Sophia heard the crunch of leaves. She and Hayley looked up to spot a fair, blonde woman, a good handful of years older than them from what Sophia could make out from so far.

"Hey! Help us!" Hayley called out to her.

"They can't help you!" Tyler exclaimed as the woman ran away. "They're in the woods- hiding because they've been persecuted for decades by vampires."

A vaguely threatening man with forearms the size of Sophia's head stepped out of the work. "Is that her?" he asked as he gestured to the pregnant werewolf.

"Yeah- get her and I'll take care of the other."

"Tyler- Tyler," Sophia called out as she was led away by the hybrid's accomplice.

"Tyler-" Sophia said as he entered the cabin. "There's a wolf who's been watching me lately- like it instinctively knows that I'm part of it's pack- You're a hybrid. You can turn into a wolf whenever you want- was it you?" she wondered, only for Hayey's sake. The old soul herself highly doubted it.

He shook his head. "No. But you're right Gilbert- only hybrids can control when they change, and I'm the only one left besides Klaus- Which is why we're here."

Sophia winced as she gathered the courage to play her next card. "Tyler… You have to know your whole kidnapping plan isn't a good idea. The whole original family has made some sort of pact or something to keep me and the baby safe, so if you hurt me, they will kill you."

Tyler looked dispassionately at her. "What makes you think I'm afraid to die?" He bit back a bitter smile. "You know, I do know the basics of your history with Klaus, Sophie. Caroline gave me play by play, and with the way he was looking at you the night I had run out of town and leave her- Well, after everything Klaus had taken from me, a lesser man… A lesser friend would have killed you for retribution- But then, well, that would make me like him."

Hayley narrowed her eyes as Sophia fought to keep her breathing even. Before another word could be said, Tyler's helper friend returned. "You ready to do this?" Tyler asked.

"Let's do it," he agreed as Tyler pulled out a syringe from his pocket.

"What are you doing?" Sophia asked as the man walked over to Sophia to hold her still while Hayley shouted at Tyler to stop.

"No Tyler!-" Sophia begged as he crouched before her.

"Klaus destroyed everything good in my life- So I'm going to take away the thing he wants most. Don't worry, that's not you, Sophie."

"No, please! Tyler please," Sophia cried out as he stabbed the syringe into her stomach, taking it out once it was filled with blood.

He nodded over to Hayley. "Hold her still." Sophia fell back against the wall as Tyler's goon went over to Hayley. "This is the least you deserve after you served the people you were supposed to help free for Klaus to slaughter."

Hayley tried to fight back, but it was no use. She was held down as Tyler injected Sophia's blood- the baby's blood- into her. Sophia's entire body recoiled as he snapped Hayley's neck soon after. "No! What did you do Tyler?! What did you do!" she shrieked as she tried to scramble towards her too- still friend.

"I'm so sorry Hayley," Sophia cried softly as she brushed Hayley's hair away from her face. Tyler had allowed her to be near Hayley, and Sophia had lifted her friend's head onto her nap, her tears spilling onto the dead werewolf's face.

Tyler rolled his eyes at her as he paced back and forth. "Dwayne did initially volunteer to be the guinea pig," he offered. "But then I saw Hayley, and I figured I owed her one- After all, she was the one who helped me break the sire bond."

"You killed her," Sophia hissed.

"Hayley is a werewolf who died with your blood in her system- same blood you share with your hybrid baby."

Sophia shook her head as she was finally beginning to understand Tyler logic. "You're trying to turn her?" she asked in disbelief. "That's impossible."

Tyler was all candor as he continued to speak. "Been running with wolf packs all over the country- one of them was tight with a witch. She had nightmare visions about your baby and how Klaus could use it's blood to make an army of hybrid slaves."

Sophia held back a growl. "I am sick of these witches and their premonitions about my baby- She's just a baby."

"Maybe- maybe not," Tyler shrugged. "That's where Hayley comes in. I did her a favor, really. A chance to be part of a superior species. Trouble is, all hybrids are sired to Klaus- they follow his every move." Tyler unsheathed the same dagger from earlier out of a bag and placed it against the chair in front of her. "No way I'd let that happen."

"Me and Klaus had no idea that others thought the baby's blood was capable of-"

"Don't be naive, Sophie. Klaus Mikaelson- killer of men, women, and puppies- All of the sudden wants to be a daddy? Or, he's got an ulterior motive." Tyler crouched before her again. "Hybrids can walk in the sun, their bite is lethal to vampires- They'll take over New Orleans by the end of the week. And you know what's going to stop Klaus then- Nothing."

Sophia kept her face still. Tyler's words didn't dissuade her. They both jumped as Hayley gasped in her arms.

"You're gonna have to feed on her," he told the brand new hybrid as he held the dagger to Sophia's neck. Hayley batted it away, growling at him. Sophia sat up straight- It worked. Hayley was alive!

"Hayley, here. It's okay." Sophia held out her wrist, crying out as Hayley roughly bit it with a set of sharp fangs. She didn't take much before she let go.

"It's okay, Hayley. It's okay," Sophia said soothingly as she tried to calm the wild brunette. Hayley was on the verge of collapsing as she stumbled outside the cabin, Tyler following her. Sophia immediately made a grab for the dagger he dropped, using to cut off the zip tie that bound her hands.

"You're okay- You're okay Hayley," Sophia overheard Tyler say.

She stilled as she heard Hayley's voice. "I'm better than okay."

"Don't think you're a match for me Hayley- You still need to feed," Tyler taunted. The newbie hybrid then asked what the hell was he thinking by turning her, and Sophia rolled her eyes as she had to listen on again as he explained his theories about Klaus's intentions with their baby.

"It worked- didn't it? She's a hybrid." Sophia asked as Tyler walked back in.

Tyler nodded, frowning. "If Klaus gets a hold of you, if he gets that kid, he wins," he said as walked menacingly towards her.

"No, Tyler-" Sophia's plea was cut off when Hayley walked inside.

"What's going on here?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at the other hybrid.

"Tyler wants to hurt me- to hurt the baby." A split second- then Hayey's eyes glowed yellow as she shoved Tyler against the wall, plunging his stomach with a broken piece of wood. Sophia grabbed her friend's hand.

"C'mon- let's get out of here."

"Run," Haley ordered. "I'll catch up."

Sophia nodded and sprinted out into the desolate woods. She halted against a tree, wondering if Hayley was a match for Tyler. Feeling breathing behind her, Sophia turned around, raising the dagger in her hand high. A calloused hand wrapped around her wrist, stopping its arching motion.

"Forgive me, love," Klaus dimpled. "I thought you were in danger- It appears I was mistaken." He dropped her wrist and she dropped the dagger. Breathing hard, Sophia hugged him with all her might, feeling her muscles relax as he wrapped his arms around her, one hand running through her hair.

"Where have you been?" she demanded, still not ready to let him go, but acquiesced when she felt him pull away.

Klaus remained silent as he narrowed his eyes. "Who were you running from?"

Sophia shook her head. "Please- don't do anything rash-" Sophia faltered. Caroline loved Tyler, and Sophia loved Caroline, but he had nearly-

The pair turned their heads as Hayley was suddenly in front of them. "Finally," she said as nodded at Klaus, unimpressed. "Took you long enough."

"Are you okay? What happened to Tyler?" Sophia asked.

"Tyler-" Klaus began.

"I lost him, but he's still somewhere out there."

"Ah- So you've located Sophia," Sophia heard the eldest Mikaelson say from a few feet away

"Elijah-" Sophia started.

"Tyler wants to kill the baby- We need to do away with him now," Hayley growled. The Mikaelson brothers stared at her, silent and their eyes staggered, as Hayley's eyes flashed gold while she bared her fangs.

Sophia cleared her throat. "So. There's something you both should know about the baby..."

"Sophie! Don't make this harder than it needs to be- Give up now, I'll end it quick," Sophia overheard Tyler say from Klaus's arms as the pair neared him.

"Quite an offer- though not one I'll be extending you," the original hybrid said as he gently set Sophia down near the abandoned campsite Tyler had been poking through.

"Klaus," Tyler greeted.

"Hello Tyler- You look well. I aim to change that." Klaus gestured towards Sophia, then wagged a finger at Tyler. "Threatening not only a pregnant girl, but your childhood playmate, in order to exact revenge against me. I never expected you to sink so low," he said as he strolled closer to Tyler.

Sophia looked around for Hayley and Elijah, but they were nowhere to be seen.

"I admit, I'm impressed," Klaus went on.

"I used to hang out with you," Tyler said as he and Klaus circled each other. "I guessed something must've rubbed off."

Sophia made an impatient noise at the back of her throat. "What do you think Caroline's going to say when I tell her what you've done- and what you would have if I hadn't gotten away from you!?"

Tyler spared Sophia a glance, and Klaus took the opportunity to throw him against a tree.

"C'mon mate, give it a bit more effort," Klaus challenged. "I want to enjoy myself." He smirked as Tyler ran away. "Back in a moment love, wait here for Elijah." Then he was gone too.

"Sophia, we need to talk," the old soul heard Elijah say from behind her. She raised her eyebrows, hands on her hips, as he and Hayley walked towards her.

"Where have you two been?"

"Sophie- As much as I hate to admit it, Tyler was right about one thing. Klaus must have known baby's blood- It's the only explanation. Remember how he was before- he could care less about the baby," Hayley said angrily.

Sophia's gaze went back and forth between the hybrid and Elijah. "We need to have a talk later," she said to Hayley, " but Elijah, I don't know if you've noticed, Hayley's not in her right mind right now."

He raised an eyebrow as Hayley continued to speak despite Sophia's words. "He just wants her to be born so he can use her to make more sired hybrids." Elijah nodded in agreement to the former wolf's words, disappointed, but also as if he expected nothing less.

Did they not see the look on Klaus's face when Hayley was revealed to be a hybrid-

"Hayley, Klaus doesn't want to hurt the baby- Okay?" The baby hybrid furrowed her eyebrows, perplexed as she slowly nodded in agreement to Sophia's words.

"I could be wrong-," Hayley said as she looked towards the original.

"I- I think Hayley's sired to me- or to the baby, I don't know. But I do know that Klaus didn't know what the baby's blood was capable of," Sophia said earnestly, trying to do damage control. Elijah, understandably, still hadn't quite forgiven Klaus for daggering him.

"I should take you home," he said impassively. "Regardless of my brother's intentions, mine remain the same. I will protect you Sophia, and I imagine Hayley will continue to do so as well. Even if need be from Klaus himself."

Sophia's stomach dropped. "That won't be necessary," she said as she began to walk away.

"There you are," Klaus said as he stepped out of the cabin where Tyler had held her and Hayley. "I see you've found our wandering strays." His eyes zeroed in on Hayley, a few feet behind Sophia. "A hybrid I didn't sire myself- Who knew that would be possible?"

Sophia frowned as Hayley's firm expression wavered. "But didn't you already know," the brunette murmured, looking towards Sophia for direction.

"Ignore her," Sophia said as she tried to move in closer to Klaus, when Elijah's arm blocked her from doing so.

"Ah- Well aren't those two fast friends," Klaus said as he looked between his brother and Hayley, ignoring Sophia.

"Well, come on then," Klaus addressed Elijah, looking for a fight. "What horrible accusations have you conspired to levy against me?"

Elijah stepped forward. "As you saw, Tyler Lockwood brought Sophia and Hayley here to test a theory- That the blood of your child could be used to sire more hybrids- He claimed you knew that. Furthermore, you intended to use this knowledge to build an army."

Sophia saw how Klaus's expression minisculely faltered when he saw that his brother bought into Tyler's propaganda.

"And, of course, you assume it's true," Klaus said, aggravation flaring in his eyes. "I mean, why else would I show any interest in my own flesh and blood?" he asked rhetorically. "A heartbroken little crybaby points his finger at me, and my own brother falls in line, eager to believe it. How quickly you assume the worst-"

"Oh, spare me your indignation," Elijah cut him off. "When have you demonstrated any kind of concern towards Sophia or her child beyond your own selfish pursuits-"

Sophia tried to intervene. "You haven't been around, Elijah-" She immediately winced as her eyes flashed warily to Klaus. "Through no fault of your own, obviously-"

Elijah burrowed on. "What was it you once said to me?" Elijah asked of his little brother. "Every king needs an heir," he mocked in imitation of Klaus.

Klaus's jaw ticked. "My big brother," he nodded. "So you doubt my intentions- Well, I can't say I'm surprised. Standing beside the noble Elijah, how can I be anything but the lesser brother. A liar, a manipulator, a bastard." Klaus walked off the porch and up to Elijah. "That's all I am to you, isn't it? And to Rebekah- and judging by the way Hayley hangs on your every word, it's clear Sophia's little wolf feels the same way- No doubt, it won't be long before she and my child will as well."

Sophia opened her mouth to speak as Elijah finally seemed to realize his misstep. "Brother, if I-"

Klaus grabbed Elijah's shoulders. "We've said all that needs to be said- brother," Klaus rasped. Then he let go, his lips curved upwards. Sophia stepped back away from the pair, pulling Hayley along with her. Klaus's eyes flickered darkly over to her as she did so, and she only just kept herself from flinching, realizing how he would interrupt her act of self-preservation.

"I'll play the role I've been given," he said as he looked back towards his brother. He appeared to walk away, then Sophia was gasping at how Klaus was savagely biting Elijah's neck.

Hayley immediately went over to check on him, while Sophia turned wide eyes to Klaus. "You two enjoy each other's company," he said as Hayley bent over Elijah. Then he was at Sophia's side, wrapping an arm around her waist. "You'll have much to bond over- once the hallucinations and dementia set in- Consider that bite my parting gift to you both."

Sophia instinctively wrapped her arms around Klaus's neck to balance herself as he lifted her up, closing her eyes as the forest became a blur around her.

Sophia had afforded Klaus with as much space as she could, which wasn't much, when her impatience was getting the best of her to go check up on Hayley and Elijah. She tentatively walked into the living room where she found Klaus, changed into fresh clothes, and sipping at bourbon by the window.

"Nik- we have to go back for Elijah and Hay-"

He sneered as he turned to face her. "And why would I welcome your stray back into our home after she's conspired to turn you and Elijah against me-" Sophia stayed put as Klaus made his way to her, close enough that she could see his pupils were blown and feel his breath on her face (He smelled like a distillery). "Now," he went on, all gravel, "Elijah's never been one to resist a pretty face, but you, Sophia- What made you so sure your little friend and Tyler Lockwood were incorrect about my intentions with our child, hmm?"

Sophia raised an eyebrow as she crossed her arms. "We promised to communicate better with each other, remember? So, I'd like to think that if you wanted to use our daughter to make a hybrid army, that that's something you would have ran by me first." Sophia looked sternly back at the hybrid, whose eyes darted over her shoulder to the window. "And Hayley wasn't conspiring against you- Tyler got into her head after he turned her-"

"And she just couldn't help sharing his cretinous theories with my brother, could she? And he couldn't resist buying them," Klaus chuckled darkly as he tried to walk past her. "I am beset on all sides by incompetence and treachery-"

"Nik," Sophia admonished as she kept him in place by grabbing onto his shoulders, raising one hand to cup the back of his neck, and made him look her in the eyes. "Suffice it to say, this afternoon's rescue mission spiraled out of control. You and Elijah are still in a- a fragile place after everything that's happened between you two, and Hayley's emotions are probably everywhere after her transition… But that's all beside the point right now. I remember what you said back at the swamp, and I remember the look in your eyes a thousand years ago when I told you we were going to have a baby. I saw it again, earlier this summer, when I told you we're going to have another daughter- And that's why no one will ever convince me otherwise that you have anything less than the best intentions for our baby."

Klaus stared attentively at her, gently tugging down her wrists, then raised one of her hands to press his lips against the back of her palm. "Despite how well acquainted you are with how brutal and uncaring this world can be, I marvel at how you still manage to retain your sentimentality, your ingenuousness… I wonder why I find it so much more agreeable on you than I do my siblings." Sophia's mouth turned down. Klaus didn't say that like it was a good thing. His grin was dreadful as she knitted her eyebrows at him. "Perhaps it's that I know you are far from the naive, unwary girl you donned on as armor for Marcel. One doesn't live on for two thousand years without acquiring any self preservation- And that's how I know, even now, Silas's words still whisper themselves in your ear-"

Sophia stepped entirely away from Klaus, apprehensive. "What does Silas have to do with anything-"

"It's rather plain to see that his reminders and your revulsion of all my prior sins are why you have yet to give in to your evident affection for me." Klaus's face twisted unpleasantly. "The lesser brother, the half breed bastard," he spat, "you're bound to through no choice of your own- After that night you spent with me in Mystic Falls, I wanted nothing more than you by my side for the rest of time, even as I said I would let you go. I can no longer regard the law of surprise as a laugh, or a wivestale- Not when I am still reaping the benefits of saving your father's life a millennia ago. I wished for you at my side, and now here we are, further tied together- unalterably- by a child. You said so yourself, you are only here, with me, for her sake."

Sophia placed a hand to her stomach as uneasiness unfurled throughout her body. "That's- that's not fair, Nik-"

"No." His eyes glinted resentfully. "It's not."

A/N: Some Spoilers for the interested (I may delete this later):

The Klaus/ Cami angle will be a factor in this story, but will not be endgame (It's gonna take awhile for Sophia and Klaus to get over themselves). Despite everything, Sophia mates for life, and Klaus is her lobster; giving her another love interest doesn't seem in character for her (my friend is really advocating to give Klaus some competition). I do have a rough outline of her own individual arc. At the moment, I foresee very few permanent character deaths going forward, if at all. We have canon for that. I am sticking pretty close to TO Season 1- 4, occasionally incorporating Mystic Falls drama as Sophia's siblings do live over there. Hopefully I can update soon, thank you for reading!