Chapter Twenty-Two

Disclaimer: I do not own the Vampire Diaries or the Originals, but I do own my OCs.

Summary: Blair has been on the run for 400 years, trying to escape her past. She never stays in once place long enough, but she finds herself drawn to New Orleans and it is there that she meets the Originals. She soon finds herself drawn into their drama and ends up connecting with the Noble Original, Elijah Mikaelson. Slowburn.

ORIGINALS

A couple of days had passed and things had been tense. Klaus had come back from his low mood with a vengeance and helped finalise the attack against Francesca and her family. He was meticulous in his planning and Blair was impressed with his finesse for violence and revenge. If this plan went ahead as planned then Francesca and her whole family would be dead by midnight. Klaus had also been very good about Raphael's presence in the compound and it even seemed as if he liked Raphael, which boggled Blair. In all fairness, the male Fae was trying his best not to offend Klaus too much because he was now living in the French Quarter since Hayley had moved back in. Hayley had agreed to move back in – though she did so reluctantly – as she understood she was still a target for the Witches and the near hexing had shaken her up. She had also been scolded for her impatience in regards to the attempted ambush on Francesca and was now excused from any planning as punishment. She had thrown a fit and expected Jackson and the rest of the pack to back her up but they had all surprisingly agreed with Elijah and Klaus' suggestion, much to Hayley dismay.

In a weird twist of events, Blair and Klaus seemed to have bonded over their plan to get revenge on the Witches. Klaus had felt used by Genevieve – even though he was using her too – whereas Blair just wanted to make some Witches pay. Davina had also joined in with these plans against the Witches, much to the surprise of a lot of people except for Blair who understood why Davina would want retribution against her own kind. The plan that had been devised was a slow one and would require patience. Klaus would continue to string Genevieve along, making her believe that he still needed her and then they would all strike when they least expected it. Seeing Klaus in action while charming Genevieve had been a surprise to Blair and she found that he could be quite the convincing actor.

That morning, Blair was in town, doing some shopping. This served to make her joyous mood even greater because she felt like she was riding on a high but even she knew it wouldn't last long – her happiness never did. For that day, she was dressed in a pair of dark blue skinny jeans, a white tank top, a grey suede jacket and black ankle boots.

The French Quarter was buzzing with activity, all the humans unaware of the war that pending. Blair sighed drearily, ignorance certainly was bliss. New Orleans was full of supernatural beings and yet they hadn't been discovered, now that was surprising considering how careless some Witches and Vampires had been in the past few months. Blair was snapped out of her thoughts when a human male walked up to her, a phone in hand.

"Marcel would like to speak with you," The man said, his eyes glazed over with compulsion.

Blair glared down at the offending phone. She was tempted to tell the human to go away but knew it would do no good. The human was under Marcel's compulsion and would do nothing to deter him. Instead, Blair took the phone and placed it close to her ear, "Hello Marcel. How has the nightlife been?"

"I want my ring back," Marcel demanded over the phone.

Blair snorted, "As if that's going to happen," After thwarting his attack during the Witches celebration, she had stolen his daylight ring. It was currently in her possession, hidden away where only she could access it.

Marcel growled lowly making Blair smirk. "If you don't give my ring back, I'll take someone else's,"

"Then I will simply take that one too," Blair replied back instantly while checking over her nails. She was due for a manicure and was tempted to treat herself to one if she had time. Plotting people's murders took time and effort and she found she was a slightly out of practice.

The line was silent for a moment. The silence stretched on so long that Blair thought that he had hung up. But then Marcel's voice was back, "What have the Mikaelson's got on you? Why are you working for them?"

"That is none of your business," Blair answered back while rolling her eyes. It was so dull that he had formulated that conclusion. Klaus and Elijah had nothing on her and if she wanted to leave then she would in a heartbeat. The only thing keeping her in this city was the promise that she had made to Chloe. As soon as the baby was born, she planned to place some protection spells on the child and then she was gone along with Davina. Her promise to Chloe would be fulfilled and therefore there would be no reason for her to stay in New Orleans anymore.

"I can help you if you need to get free of them," Marcel offered, trying to be charming, "If we work together then we can bring down the Mikaelson's,"

Blair snorted loudly, "As if I would ever work with you." It was laughable that Marcel was trying to build up power to take back the city but Blair knew it would never work. Klaus would never let go of this city now that he finally got it back. Marcel no longer had the support of the Vampires, they had all abandoned him. He only had three Vampires on his side altogether and one of them was a spy planted by Elijah and Thierry was no longer alive. Marcel was desperate for allies and Blair found it very pitiful.

"Then give Davina back," Marcel demanded once more.

"Davina is not a possession!" Blair snapped back before she reeled in her anger. Taking a deep breath, Blair calmed herself down before she drew in the attention of the humans, "Davina has made her choice and you are not a part of her life. If you even try to come for her again, I will kill you and I will make it hurt," He was testing her patience and Blair wasn't sure he had any regard for his life. Marcel was too arrogant that Klaus wouldn't kill him because of their shared past – same with Elijah, but Blair held none of that nostalgia and she would kill him with no remorse.

"I will get Davina back," Marcel vowed.

"Try it," Blair hissed lowly, "and see what happens," Ending the call, Blair handed the phone back to the compelled human and walked away, feeling her anger climb even higher. She hated Marcel and his arrogance and she swore she would make him regret even talking to her. Blair didn't make it ten steps before she received a message on her phone. Taking out her phone, she saw that it was a text message from Elijah, the only contact she had on the phone.

Come back to the Abattoir, there has been a development – Elijah.

With a sigh, Blair turned around and walked back in the direction of the compound. It seemed as though the shopping trip would need to be delayed until further notice. She knew this newfound happiness wouldn't last long.

It didn't long for Blair to make her way back to the Abattoir and when she did, she was greeted to an unusual scene – though she shouldn't have been surprised considering who she lived with. In the courtyard, there was a human tied to a chair with a gag over his mouth. He was surrounded by Elijah, Klaus and Camille – now Blair was surprised to see the bartender because she had avoided the compound like the plague since Genevieve had taken to sleeping with Klaus. They all seemed to discuss something, Klaus and Camille arguing over something whereas Elijah seemed exasperated. The human was glaring at everyone, hatred in his dark eyes but his focus seemed to be more on Camille than anything.

"What happened here?" Blair asked as she announced her presence.

Camille looked to the Fae and recognition shined in her eyes, "I remember you. You came into my apartment with Davina and helped break Klaus' compulsion," When she had asked Davina about Blair, Davina had been rather vague, not giving away too much information but Camille could see that Davina held Fae in high regards.

"Not important," Blair said, ignoring the glare that Klaus sent her way, "Who is he?" She pointed to the human that was tied to the chair. There was blood pouring from an open wound on the man's head, showing that there had been a struggle and she doubted that Elijah and Klaus had been the ones to inflict these wounds. They would have done much worse with their supernatural strength.

"This man is Carlos Correa," Elijah explained, getting to the point of the matter, "He attempted to kidnap Camille,"

"And we thought to use him as leverage against his sister," Klaus smirked viciously. When he had received a frantic call from Camille, he had run straight over. Camille had been near hysterics as she feared she had killed someone but luckily Carlos was just unconscious. He would wake with a killer headache but very much alive.

Blair arched a brow, "Oh, now that's intriguing," She didn't see why someone would want to kidnap Camille, except if they were trying to aggravate Klaus. It was obvious that the Hybrid held some affection for the bartender and this could very easily be exploited. However, Blair suspected there was more to this issue than was being said.

Camille nodded her head, her heart rate rising, "That's not the only thing. Francesca and her family have been harassing me and my uncle for weeks. They're after this key and it wasn't until yesterday that I found out why," After years of suspicion, Camille had finally figured out what her uncle's secret was. Apparently, for the last three hundred years, her family had tried to keep the peace between humans and the supernatural and she suspected Sean was killed because of this. "Kieran showed me the room and it is filled with weapons and books, all stuff that talks about the supernatural,"

"Why would Francesca want that?" Elijah asked with a frown.

"There is a book in the room with detailed records of supernatural people, like a list." Camille continued quickly, not mentioning the other files, dark objects that had been enchanted by Witches and items that had been blessed by the Fae. "In the records, it showed someone called Gabriel Guerrera being adopted by the Correa family. This was very shortly after Marcel had all the Guerrera Wolves killed," When Marcel had told her this, she had been disgusted that he had committed such an act. Slowly, he had been trying to get back into her good graces but this was something Camille could not overlook.

Blair's eyes widened for a moment as she looked at Carlos. Guerrera's were a very well-known Werewolf pack, she would often hear the Alpha of the New Zealand pack refer to the family as ruthless. Elijah and Klaus seemed to share her surprise. They had dealt with some of the Guerrera family when they were last in New Orleans. Klaus remembered then well, though not fondly. He found them to be a brutish pack of thieves and killers with no honour. They had all been assumed dead after Marcel had them killed off but it seemed as though he missed one.

Everyone turned to look at Carlos, who glared at Camille in hatred.

"I think you're onto something, Camille," Klaus smirked widely.

"He must be untriggered, that's how you overpowered him," Blair said as she spared Camille a glance. If Carlos had triggered his curse then Camille would have been easily overwhelmed. Werewolves possessed a higher level of strength even in human form.

Camille swallowed nervously but didn't dispute what was being said.

Elijah hummed softly, "However, it seems unusual that a woman of Francesca's ambition to not trigger her curse," While there were some disadvantages to being a Werewolf, there was also some advantages and so this made it odd.

Walking over to Carlos, Klaus forcibly removed his gag. "I suggest you start talking before I kill you, mate," He said with an unnervingly charming smile.

"Go to hell," Carlos spat out angrily.

Quicker than anyone could react, Klaus, slapped Carlos across the face. Carlos cried out, feeling his teeth accidentally cut through his lip at the sudden action and he cursed lowly. Camille let out a small gasp and looked away at the sight of blood.

"You're a human, so you heal very slowly. But I can prolong your pain by feeding you my blood and our fun can continue for however long I deem fit," Klaus said as he circled Carlos like the prey he was.

Carlos sneered at Klaus but didn't say anything.

Elijah stepped closer, "I would suggest complying. If you don't, we'll make sure your family suffers before we kill them," If all went to plan then all of them would be dead regardless. However, they could suffer before they died and this was something was pack were howling for. Francesca was the main target but her family was just as good too.

Slight fear flashed through Carlos' eyes.

Blair looked to Camille, "I suggest leaving before it gets ugly," She could see how eager Elijah and Klaus were to torture Carlos and sensed that Camille wouldn't have the stomach to watch. The bartender was already paler than paper and knew she wouldn't last much longer.

Nodding her head, Camille quickly left the compound, needing something to calm her down.

Sensing that Camille was now gone, Klaus smirked wickedly, "Now, the fun can begin," He had been holding back for Camille's sake but now he could act freely.

This time, pure dread radiated from Carlos.

An hour had passed and it didn't take long for Carlos to break. He had acted like he could handle pain but as soon as Klaus started to remove his fingernails one by one, Carlos was done. He screamed that he'd have them all killed for what they were doing but that quickly changed when Klaus offered his blood to soothe the pain, he was in. Drunk on Vampire blood, he had told them everything. According to him, Francesca's main goal was to steal the moonlight rings from under Klaus' nose and use them for herself and her family, who would then trigger their curse to gain even more power. They would then take control of New Orleans and it would be under the control of the Guerrera family. Francesca had also made a deal with the Witches, where they would get rid of Klaus, Elijah and Blair, if Genevieve handed over the rings that she would spell. Carlos had also revealed that the suicide bomber in the Bayou had been sent by Francesca – the man had been in a lot of debt to the casino and Francesca offered to wipe the debt if he did this little favour. The attack served as a warning and a show of power to turn the tides against the Vampires. Luckily, it hadn't worked otherwise there would have been bloodshed. Once Carlos had served his purpose, Blair knocked him unconscious, knowing that he would come in handy later.

"Well, that was informative," Blair commented dryly.

"The plan is still happening tonight, right?" Elijah checked, looking to his brother for confirmation. These transgressions could no longer go unpunished and he was itching to make Francesca and her family pay for what she had done.

Klaus nodded his head grimly, "Heads will roll tonight,"

Elijah looked to Blair, "Has Raphael reported any issues?"

Shaking her head, Blair answered him, "No, everything is going smoothly," Earlier that morning, Raphael, Davina, Jackson and Oliver had all set out to pick up a large shipment of kyanite stones, which would be used to create the moonlight rings. They were very rare, pricy and hard to locate, but luckily Klaus and Elijah seemed to know a guy who could supply enough to dress a small army and money was of no issue to them. They were going to pick it up and bring it to New Orleans. Raphael had his orders, that if anything went wrong, he was to take the stones and Davina and flee the scene as soon as possible. It wouldn't surprise Blair if Francesca had something planned to make sure this didn't happen but Blair was prepared for this. As another contingency plan, Davina could easily magically transport the stones – a spell Blair had taught her for this exact purpose. Jackson and Oliver were basically the muscle of the group and Oliver wanted to atone for what he had done so it was a win-win.

"Will the stones be here in time?" Klaus asked.

"They will," Blair said confidently. She had checked in mentally with Raphael to get a status report and they were already on their way back to New Orleans. They would be back in a few hours with the stones and she would spell them. Since she and Klaus agreed that Genevieve could not be allowed anywhere the stones, Blair had agreed to take the Witch's place in the plan so now the moonlight rings would be created by her.

"Good, let's prepare for war, shall we?" Klaus smirked widely.

ORIGINALS

Night had fallen and everything was in place. The kyanite stones had been delivered by Davina and Raphael and Blair was just adding the finishing touches to the spell. Reluctantly, Blair had to glance at Esther's notes on the moonlight rings as this wasn't a spell that the Fae was familiar with. As much as she would like to deny it, the spell was complex, even more so than a daylight ring but she was more than up to the challenge.

"Do you have everything you need?" Klaus asked curiously as he watched the Fae set everything up. She had drawn a circle and filled the circle with twelve stones, the first batch of many moonlight rings to come. A lot of kyanite stones had been brought back – nearing a hundred and fifty – and so there was a lot of spare if anything went wrong.

Blair nodded her head, "I think I have everything I need,"

Klaus arched a brow, "Really? Genevieve said that she would need my blood for the spell and a full moon," He had allowed Genevieve to live – for now – and she was still under the belief she was enchanting the moonlight rings for him but at a later date.

Blair scoffed, "The only reason she would need your blood was to weaken you. Whoever wears these rings using your blood would channel you and therefore weaken you. This would make the wearer very powerful and you, very weak,"

Growling softly, Klaus felt his hatred for the Witches grow to higher levels.

"This spell also doesn't need to be completed on a full moon. Genevieve may have needed to draw on the full moon for more power but I do not need it," Blair further answered with a smirk. It was almost amusing how much of the Witch's lies that Klaus had fallen for and it made her wonder what they would do without her sometimes.

Klaus sent her a glare, "Just get it done,"

Rolling her eyes, Blair got back to work and looked at Esther's notes once more. "I just want to check something first. These twelve stones will allow the users access their wolf abilities, even their venom, and the other stones will not," The original spell was very basic, only allowing the wearer to control when they shift, much like how the daylight ring only protects Vampires from the sun, but Klaus had demanded that these extra skills be added too. It was because of this request that Blair had spent a lot of time weaving these factors into the spell while trying not to mess up the entire enchantment altogether.

"Of course," Klaus responded with a smirk, "We can't have all the Wolves having access to that much power, only the ones that can be trusted," Only certain Wolves would get the privilege of wearing the special rings. The limited number included; Hayley, Jackson and a few other Wolves that had earned it. Klaus was very much aware of Jackson's ambition to take back New Orleans and Klaus had no intentions of giving him that opportunity.

Blair nodded her head in agreement, seeing Klaus' perceptive of the situation. If the Wolves were given too much power too quickly, it would go to their heads and inflate their egos. New Orleans had already experienced too many battles in a short space of time, there needed to be some respite on all sides and this couldn't be done if the Wolves were threatening to take over.

Looking at the clock, Klaus realised that he was needed elsewhere. "I expect those rings to be done when I get back," He walked out with a smug smirk that made Blair sneer but she held her tongue.

Turning back to the kyanite stones, Blair grabbed some chalk and began drawing some complex seals. It was needed to direct where her magic would flow so each stone received the same amount of magic. This spell required a high level of power but in a balanced manner otherwise, it wouldn't work. Blair sensed for Klaus but found that he was no longer in the compound and this made her smirk. Only Elijah and Hayley were present. Hayley was in her room, where she was safe and hidden behind a sea of spells and Elijah was acting as a guard until he was called away. It was very likely that Marcel would show his face if he caught a whiff of chaos, more than likely trying to kidnap Davina and his daylight ring. Davina and Raphael were with the Wolves, helping out with kidnaping Francesca and her brothers and the male Fae had specific instructions to keep Davina safe. If there was even a chance that things turning south, he was to run with her in hand.

Inhaling deeply, Blair began the spell. She chanted out a few archaic words and allowed her magic to flow into the chalk circle. Each of the twelve stones lit up like lights and they slowly lifted off the table. She was so absorbed into the spell that she didn't hear or sense anyone else entering the room until it was too late. A loud gunshot pierced the room and suddenly, all Blair felt was a pain in her chest. Crying out in agony, Blair fell to the ground, and so did the stones as the magic stopped flowing through them. Turning her head, Blair spotted a man in the doorway, a gun in hand.

"Where is he?!" The man shouted.

Blair glared at the human, "Who?!" She yelled back in anger, her eyes flaring an ominous purple colour.

"My brother," The man said back, his jaw clenched.

Suddenly, it clicked. This man was one of the Correa brothers, also an untriggered Guerrera Wolf. The more Blair stared at him, the more she could see the resemblance between him and Carlos. "Oh, great. Another one of you," She muttered lowly. She wondered where Elijah was and how he could have allowed this human to slip past. Something must have happened to keep Elijah occupied.

The gun clicking was the only warning before Blair felt another bullet enter her body. She hissed loudly as it burned. She was pretty sure they were iron bullets or lined with iron at least because the burn was very similar.

"Tell me where he is?!" The human yelled out again.

"Stop fucking shooting me!" Blair yelled at him, forcibly pulling out the bullet inside her. The first one had shot through her but the second one was lodged into her shoulder and she needed to get it out so she could heal. Throwing the bloody bullet away from her, her shoulder continued to burn but at least it didn't burn as badly anymore.

The human stomped closer to her that's when she attacked. Waving her hand, her eyes glowed purple as water materialised behind the human. With a snap of her finger, the water hardened and formed into ice and shot at the human. It pierced through his head and through into his eye socket, instantly killing him. The male Correa gargled some words before he fell to the ground, lifeless. Blood pooled out from his eye socket and Blair made the ice disappear, turning it back into liquid. Blair stared down at the lifeless human with no remorse, her only regret was not letting him watch Carlos as he died. The whole Correa family was going to die anyway, that much was certain.

Turning back to the kyanite stones, Blair stood up and began chanting from the beginning. Since the incantation had been interrupted, she needed to start all over again and this made her mentally curse. This was going to take longer than she originally planned. She was supposed to head to the Bayou when this was over but it seemed as though she would be delayed. Klaus wouldn't be happy but he would just have to deal with it. The stones once again lit up and lifted themselves up into the air as she worked her magic.

Blair didn't know how much time had passed but she was done. She had made twelve moonlight amulets that could be fashioned into jewellery, but that fully depended on the wearer's taste. Now finished with her task, Blair grabbed the twelve kyanite stones and placed all of them in a protective box for safekeeping. Klaus and Elijah planned to present Hayley with a moonlight ring and so she would leave them to that task. Expanding her senses, Blair realised that Elijah was no longer in the compound. She assumed that he must have been called away and that's probably how one of Francesca's brothers got to her. Just as she realised this, she received a text. Grabbing her phone from her pocket, she saw that the text was from Elijah.

We have Francesca. Bring Carlos to the Bayou alive – Elijah.

Blair grinned and walked over to the basement, where Carlos was being held. However, before she could make it to the basement, she sensed a presence in the Abattoir's entrance. With a frown, Blair changed directions and saw Genevieve stood there with a pained expression on her face. The moment she spotted Blair, her shoulders dropped.

"Please, I need your help," Genevieve begged, desperation in her voice.

Arching a brow, Blair stared at the Witch, "What?" The last person she expected to run into was Genevieve but it seemed as though the universe liked to throw curveballs at her.

Genevieve walked further into the compound, "I can't do it anymore. They're asking for too much and… I just can't do it!" As she spoke, her voice started to get higher as she became more hysterical. She had been holding this guilt inside her for so long and she couldn't handle it anymore.

"Who are you talking about?" Blair asked with a frown. She had never seen the Witch so guilt-ridden before. Actually, Blair couldn't recall ever seeing a Witch act like Genevieve and it made her curious to know what had happened.

Genevieve stopped and stared at the Fae sadly, "The Ancestors. They're after the baby,"

Blair mentally cursed that she had been right. "Why?" She demanded, wanting more answers. She wondered if her theory was right – she hoped it was wrong but this was the perfect time to get the answers they needed.

"They want to consecrate the baby's body to complete the Harvest. It was supposed to be me but the Ancestors decided they wanted someone else when I asked to be spared," Genevieve admitted lowly, ashamed that she had been part of this. She had wanted a second chance at life since Rebekah had stolen hers. She had begged the Ancestors to have someone take her place and they had, but unfortunately, it was a baby.

"Bastards," Blair cursed loudly, she had hoped that her theory was wrong but it wasn't.

However, Genevieve wasn't done. "Also, the main voice that has been commanding this is Esther, the Original Witch," Genevieve continued, feeling a weight lift from her chest as she admitted this. It had been weighing on her since Esther had started communicating with them – mainly through Monique.

Blair's eye twitched at the news, this did not bode well. She knew both Elijah and Klaus would not react well to this information. It was their hasty actions by allowing their mother's bones to be consecrated that started all this. "Why come to me with this? Witches aren't meant to trust my kind?" Blair asked with a challenging brow.

Quickly, Genevieve snatched Blair's hands, causing the Fae's eyes to widen slightly. "I need you to stop them. This baby is innocent and shouldn't be pulled into this. The Ancestors should have never asked for this," She had been on the other side, been one of the Ancestors that guided the young Witches when they asked for counsel and never before had this been requested. Killing a baby was something that went against every moral in Genevieve's body. If there was a way around this situation then she was going to find it – and Blair was her best chance.

Blair was silent for a moment as she considered Genevieve's words. They were genuine and sincere and that's what shook her. "No harm will come to that baby, that I can promise you," Blair replied, her words binding. Blair had already promised to protect that child for Chloe and she intended to fulfil that promise no matter what. Certainly, Maeve and the Witches were not getting their hands on this child either.

Genevieve sighed in relief, her shoulders sagging as she released Blair's hands. "Thank you," Suddenly, there was a nervous energy around her and this made Blair frown in question. "I actually… have another request," Genevieve admitted slowly, her gaze unsteady.

"Get on with it already," Blair said impatiently. She did not have time for this, she needed to head to the Bayou with Carlos but Genevieve was getting in her way. Blair mentally cursed her curious nature, she should have turned the Witch away.

Inhaling deeply, Genevieve's gaze remained locked on the floor. "I would like to ask for your protection like you've protected Davina,"

Unable to hide her surprise, Blair's eyes widened, "What?"

Gaining more confidence, Genevieve looked at her, "You offered Davina your protection and this stopped the Ancestors from harming her. I need the same protection. If I can't get them this child then they will kill me and I don't want to die,"

For a moment, Blair was stunned to silence. Davina was another topic altogether because she was young and vulnerable, whereas Genevieve was a grown woman who was powerful in her own right. Genevieve was actually the Witch elder at the moment and yet she was seeking protection from her – a Fae – and they are meant to hate each other's kind. Before Blair could give an answer, she received another text and she looked at it, needing a distraction.

Where are you? – Elijah

"I can't deal with this right now, I am needed elsewhere," Blair said, shaking her head, snapping out of her shock. She turned around to walk in the direction of the basement, needing to grab Carlos before she left.

Genevieve watched her go, biting her lip. She hoped that Blair would at least consider her request because she didn't know what else to do. She just hoped the Ancestors never found out about this conversation.