Chapter Thirty-Eight

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 few days later

Esther was in her cove, grinding away some herbs with the mortar and pestle aggressively. She was attempting to locate Finn but was having difficulty. There seemed to be a powerful spell in place that prevented her from locating him anywhere in New Orleans, the same with Kol. At the thought of her youngest male child, she sighed deeply. Esther knew that she should have kept a tighter leash on him as he was known to be the wildest and she had underestimated him. The one thing Esther never expected was for Kol to return to Klaus' side considering the animosity between them but she had been proven wrong.

However, it was Finn that worried her the most. She knew that he was loyal to her, the precious boy that he was. He understood her reasons for doing what she needed to and had vowed to help her. He could see that her idea was the only correct thing to do to restore balance and stop Dahlia from coming for them all. She was sure that Klaus was subjecting Finn to unspeakable torture and she wanted to save the one child who had stayed by her side no matter what.

Esther stopped grinding down the herbs when she sensed someone's presence. Turning her head, her eyebrow arched when she saw Rebekah walking towards her, "Rebekah, it's lovely to see you," Esther said with a genuine smile, happy to see her daughter. Rebekah stared at her with a blank expression, one that slightly stung Esther. The fact her own daughter could look at her in such a fashion hurt.

"Why do you not give up, mother?" Rebekah questioned haughtily, "You know that Nik will not accept your deal and neither will Elijah,"

This statement caused some hope to flicker inside her, "But you have you considered my offer?" Esther asked as she placed down her tools.

"It's a lot of ask," Rebekah stated with a frown, "To give up eternal life and to be vulnerable. We've made a lot of enemies over the years," Their list of allies was low, but the list of enemies was extremely high. Their strength alone was one of the only things keeping those enemies away but if that were it change it could end disastrously.

Esther nodded her head, very much aware of the atrocities her children had committed over the millennia, "That much is true,"

Rebekah arched a brow, "Is that the sales pitch? You're really going to have to be better than that,"

"I only offer what you already want," Esther said as she moved over and poured some wine. She would have made tea on this occasion but suspected that Rebekah would want something stronger than that.

"And how do you presume to know that?" Rebekah questioned.

Esther smiled as she poured the wine into the glasses, "I am your mother. Elijah is happiest when there is order and music and Niklaus when he is the centre of attention and in control. Kol is also happiest when he is the centre of attention, particularly the females. But you, are my only child who is capable of joy, and you are happiest amongst humans. I have seen you yearn for that life, for that kind of love,"

"I would be giving up eternal life for this, for a moment that I barely remember. Power for weakness, strength for frailness. It would be a brief mortal existence," Rebekah countered back, watching her mother carefully. She was making sure magic wasn't being used or if something was slipped into the wine.

Esther stepped closer, the two glasses of wine in hand, "The choice is simple. You could have another thousand years where you could long for something or a few years where you are finally happy,"

Slowly Rebekah took the glass of wine and watched as Esther drank from hers. Rebekah was about to take a sip when her mother spoke once more.

"But of course, you're going to have to cut that boy loose," Esther commented as she sighed lowly.

Rebekah frowned, "What do you mean?"

"You can't possibly stay with that Fae," Esther sneered in disgust, "He's not right for you. I am sure you'll find someone who deserves you," She'd heard rumours about Rebekah and her affair with the male Fae. Witches from the Coven had seen them out together and reported back to her. To say Esther was disappointed that her daughter had fallen so low was an understatement.

The glass Rebekah was holding in her hand cracked under the pressure. Anger flashed in her eyes, "Raphael is a sweetheart and treats me like a queen. I will not get rid of him,"

"Of course, you will," Esther replied back confidently, "Because if you don't, then I will not help you,"

Before Rebekah could say anything, there were footsteps behind them as Klaus appeared. He was staring at Esther with a blank expression, but there was a silent fury in his eyes. Behind Klaus was Elijah, who strolled in looking as calm as ever. However, the moment Esther saw them both, the confident look on her face dropped and uncertainty flashed in her dark eyes.

"I should have known that this was too good to be true," Esther said as she stared at Rebekah in displeasure.

Rebekah was thankful that the look didn't hurt anymore – in fact, she felt nothing.

"Oh, don't be too disappointed mother," Klaus began, a slow grin appearing on his face, "The family is nearly back together,"

"Kol and Finn are still missing though," Esther pointed out grimly.

Elijah grinned slightly, "Finn is getting what he deserves, and Kol is where he belongs, with his family,"

Hurt shimmered in Esther's eyes but it was quickly gone, "I could have given you all a new life yet you all reject me." At every turn, they dismissed her offer no matter how much she tried. She would have tried accessing their dreams but it seemed as though they were protected by powerful magic and nothing, she did could penetrate it. She had planned to talk with Elijah privately, but she could never get him alone and Klaus hadn't seemed moved by Ansel's visit. Rebekah truly was her last hope but it seemed as though she would not get her to wish.

Klaus smirked, "That's not all I've done," With the speed that only a Vampire could possess, he disappeared and reappeared within seconds, this time carrying a body. Klaus threw the body down at Esther's feet and smirked viciously.

The moment Esther saw who it was, she let out a scream and unfiltered horror filled her face. At her feet lay Ansel, who was covered in blood and gashes. It looked as though he had been mauled to death. Esther fell to the ground, crying out in anguish.

"Now!" Elijah ordered.

Within a flash, Klaus lunged for Esther and grabbed her, forcing her to stand upright. Next, Rebekah appeared before her and forced her bloodied wrist into the Witch's mouth. Esther attempted to resist but Klaus was too strong. It all happened in a space of seconds and Esther was powerless to stop it because she was too slow. Elijah appeared from Klaus' side and snapped their mother's neck with practised ease, her body falling to the ground with a thud.

There was a moment of silence as they all stared down at their mother's dead body. No one said anything for a couple of minutes before Ansel twitched.

"It's safe to get up, Ansel," Klaus said as he looked down at his father.

Ansel opened his eyes and looked around, only to find Esther dead on the ground. Sighing deeply, he sat up and winced, "Did you have to be so rough?" He asked as he got up. He was already starting to heal but that didn't mean he wasn't in pain.

"It had to be convincing," Elijah said nonchalantly. The plan was to use Ansel as a distraction, but Esther had to truly believe he was dead, that was so she wouldn't look for him in the future. If she believed him dead then he was safe and it would leave her vulnerable, defenceless enough where they could strike without her reacting in time.

Rubbing his sore shoulders, Ansel said nothing. He had seen the logic in their plan and so had agreed to go along with it. He didn't regret it but wished they hadn't been so harsh.

Klaus glanced at his sister, "And you missy, nearly blew it," They had been watching in the background, waiting for the perfect time to strike. The plan had been for Rebekah to spike the wine so Esther wouldn't know that she had been given Vampire blood, but Rebekah had acted out.

"Don't blame me!" Rebekah yelled back angrily, "She was talking bad about Raphael, I wasn't going to stand for that!" She could deal with a lot of things, but insulting the man who made her happy was not one of them. Esther had acted like Raphael was less than a person and Rebekah wasn't having it.

"Leave her, Niklaus. We have accomplished what we set out to do," Elijah chided in, coming to Rebekah's aid. He would have done the exact same thing in Rebekah's shoes, especially if his mother had started to slander Blair.

Klaus huffed but didn't say anything more.

"Now, let's get her locked up before she wakes up," Elijah said, getting everyone back on track. They had a limited time before their mother woke up while in transition. They needed to get her to a safe location before then.

Klaus picked up Esther's unconscious body and flung it over his shoulder, "Let's go," He said as he stormed off, the rest of the following close behind.

ORIGINALS

Blair was in the Garden putting the final preparations in place with Raphael by her side. They were remodelling the Garden, which had been previously used by Marcel. However, now that the Mikaelson family was running the city, the female Fae thought that it would be appropriate to repurpose it. Elijah had been in complete agreement and gave her free will to do as she pleased with the place. Raphael had been a big help by physically moving things around and Blair had spent a large portion of her time placing barrier spells around it. She had carved ancient runes in the walls, stopping people other than herself and Davina from using magic while in the Garden.

Just as she was finished, Klaus, Elijah and Rebekah made their appearance. Ansel had made his way back to the Bayou as he needed to help set up the wedding for Hayley and Jackson. The moment they were inside, Klaus flung Esther onto the ground carelessly.

"I see you were successful," Blair commented as she stared down at the Witch's unconscious body. She could see the blood caked on Esther's face and had an idea the plan hadn't exactly happened as intended.

Elijah walked over to his mate and placed a kiss on top of her head, "You guessed correctly,"

Klaus snorted, "Rebekah nearly lost her cool,"

Glaring at him, Rebekah did not appreciate his words but calmed down when Raphael took her hand in his. Just being in his presence calmed her down and made her feel safe.

"Regardless, it's done," Elijah said, moving them on. The whole way there, Rebekah and Klaus had bickered with one another and it was exhausting to listen to it.

Klaus looked around the Garden, clearly impressed with the work, "You two have been busy," It looked completely different than before. It was void of any magic making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. This would be a Witch's worst nightmare and it made him grin with glee.

"I wanted to get rid of Papa Tunde's taint," Blair sneered as she remembered the harvest Witch that had come back. Even after his passing, Blair could still sense his magic lingering in the air and she had eradicated that completely.

Rebekah nodded her head in appreciation, "Good, we don't need any reminder of him,"

"Are the barriers in place?" Elijah asked.

Raphael was the one who answered this, "Of course. Blair spent a lot of time setting them up. There is an alarm that will inform her of any intruders as well as a barrier that doesn't allow the prisoners to leave," He had watched as Blair set up everything, still finding her level of magic to be fascinating.

Blair nodded her head, "He's right, with this barrier in place, no one will be allowed to leave unless they have permission from one of us." Other than the Abattoir and the Bayou, this place was one of the safest locations within the French Quarter, all to ensure that the Original Witch did not escape her prison.

At this answer, Klaus seemed satisfied and his shoulder dropped ever so slightly. The stress of the whole situation was starting to get to him because there always seemed to be a danger against his family. It was true that he thrived off chaos and fighting, but he did not enjoy it when his daughter was at risk.

Just then, Esther groaned and everyone stood up straighter. They hadn't expected her to wake up so quickly but they all improvised. Forming a circle around her, with Klaus at the head and Elijah and Rebekah at either side of him. Blair watched as Esther slowly woke up groggily, and watched as she looked around in confusion.

"What did you do?" Esther demanded as she stared at Klaus with accusing eyes.

Klaus smirked, "You're in transition, mother,"

Revulsion swarmed her eyes, "No, no, that can't be possible!" However, it soon hit her as she remembered what happened. Klaus had been the one to hold her back while Rebekah gave her blood. She vaguely remembered seeing Elijah and suspected that he was the one who killed her.

"Becoming the very thing you hate, how poetic," Elijah said softly as he looked down at his mother with no sympathy.

Rebekah snorted, "Kol would be so disappointed to miss this,"

"I've promised him that he can take the lead when we deal with Finn," Klaus brushed off, knowing that Kol and Davina had an important job to do, otherwise they would have been here.

Raphael threw a blood bag into the middle, the bag landing directly in front of Esther, "You might want this,"

At the sight of the blood, Esther's face became ashen and she started to shake.

Kneeling down, Elijah looked directly into his mother's scared eyes, "We're giving you a choice. You're much too problematic as a Witch, but as a Vampire, you are weak to our compulsion. If we die, so do you,"

"Which is more than you ever gave us," Klaus snorted.

Blair smirked, finding the situation to be laughable. It was Esther's reaction that tickled her. She truly believed what she was doing was right by trying to rid the world of Vampires, and now her bubble was burst because none of her family wanted to join her. Finn didn't count because he was scarily devoted. Blair wondered what Finn's reaction would be to this whole situation and couldn't wait to find out.

"In the meantime, you'll be here, regardless of your choice," Elijah said as he stood up. He moved closer to Blair, who was standing beside him and took her hand in his.

Esther looked down at the blood, desperation colouring her face, "My own family has really betrayed me…"

"You've tried to kill them, several times," Blair cut in bluntly, "What do you expect?"

At hearing the Fae's voice, Esther's whole demeanour changed. No longer was she sad and depressed, but angry and irritated, "And everything I have done for all of you, this is how I am repaid." This time, she turned to look at Klaus, "I even planned to reunite you with that girl from Mystic Falls,"

Klaus became deathly still, "Excuse me?"

Looking between his mother and brother, Elijah became cautious, "Whom are you referring to?" It was a very leading sentence, but if Esther was talking about one particular girl then he feared for Klaus' reaction.

Laughing, Esther smirked wickedly, "A young sweet girl came to New Orleans looking for you. She had no idea who I was when she came asking for directions." She remembered how smitten Klaus had been over her in Mystic Falls and thought it to be perfect. If Ansel hadn't managed to convince him, then this girl certainly would.

Rebekah let out a gasp as the penny dropped. There was only one woman Klaus had been so enamoured with in Mystic Falls. Raphael and Blair looked at her, not knowing what had caused her to react in such a manner.

"Where is she?!" Klaus demanded, taking a threatening step towards his mother. He would have had her pinned against the wall by her throat if it wasn't for Elijah, who was holding onto his shoulder tightly.

"We need her, Niklaus," He whispered lowly so Esther wouldn't overhear. Blair had explained that her vision showed that Esther was important for dealing with Dahlia, how exactly was uncertain. It was already revealed that Esther would choose to transition to become a Vampire in her vision, but this new ploy by their mother had not been shown.

While Elijah held back Klaus, Blair placed a quick barrier spell around Esther, so to protect her from his wrath. She never thought she'd be protecting the Original Witch and it left a bitter taste in Blair's mouth. However, she could see how much this was affecting Klaus and knew that it was serious for him to flip at such a crucial time.

"Only I know where she is," Esther provoked smugly, not truly seeing how much danger she was in, "And I will take it to my grave," To prove her point, she threw the bag of blood out of reach.

Klaus snarled in response and his eyes flashed the Hybrid gold colour. This caused Elijah to tighten his grip on him considerably and Rebekah moved over to assist, grabbing Klaus' other shoulder.

"We can force her to transition then you guys can compel her," Raphael suggested, making Blair nod her head in agreement.

"That's if you find her in time," Esther said ominously.

"Where is Caroline?!" Klaus shouted, his patience had snapped at this point.

Elijah looked to Blair, hoping she could help, "Do you think you could find Caroline?" His mother's words concerned her as if there was a time limit on her safety.

Blair nodded her head, "I can try,"

Hearing this, Klaus relaxed massively, enough for Elijah and Rebekah to let go but stay close to him in case he attempted something. Stepping back, he kept his deadly gaze trained onto his mother, "Rebekah, Raphael, I want you two to stay with her. I want her changed over, but leave it to the last minute. I want her in as much pain as possible." It was the most pain he could inflict on her at that moment but he planned to come back and get revenge. If anything happened to Caroline then he would repay the favour ten times over. When Esther was a Vampire, she would be fair game.

Raphael and Rebekah nodded their heads in understanding.

Storming out of the Garden, Klaus motioned to Elijah and Blair to follow him. They had a Vampire to find.

ORIGINALS

At the same time

Kol and Davina stood in front of the Dowager Fauline Cottage. It was a two-story house that appeared lovely on the outside, but the horrors that awaited them on the inside put a downer on the niceness of the outside. The gate surrounding the cottage was decorated in dolls' heads, which only added to the creepiness factor and often made people think twice before getting too close. It was imposing and brought back bad memories for Kol, making him visibly wince. This had not been the finest moment in his life and a time when he'd got daggered by Klaus as a result.

Seeing this reaction, Davina looked to him, "Are you okay?"

"Just brings back some bad memories," Kol admitted slowly, ashamed for Davina to see this. At first, when it had been proposed that he and Davina were to come here, he vehemently refuted this and demanded that someone else went. He hadn't wanted Davina anywhere near this place but she stubbornly refused to be side-lined and had argued back. It took some time, but Kol gave in, knowing that her stubbornness wouldn't let this go, but he demanded that she not leave his side.

Taking his hand in hers, Davina smiled encouragingly, "I am here if you need me,"

Kol squeezed her hand in appreciation. Dowager Fauline Cottage was his and Klaus' doing. The Witches that lived in there was basically his Witches. "What do you know about this place?"

Looking at the building, Davina frowned, "There used to be ghost stories about this place when I was in the Coven. It was said that all the bad and crazy Witches got sent here because nowhere else could contain them. It was said that once you were inside, there was no getting out," Elders used to threaten the fledglings that if they didn't behave, they'd be sent here and it kept most people in line. Davina had almost forgotten about it until Blair mentioned what she had seen in her vision.

Considering her words, Kol pursed his lips together and nodded his head, "That isn't far off. This place was spelled in 1914 to trap my Witch allies because I was searching for something to kill Klaus with. Unfortunately, Klaus found out about my plan and trapped all my Witches inside with one of his own. They were never allowed to leave with how powerful the boundary spell is around the property," He was pretty certain that all the original Witches that had been trapped inside the house were dead. On the way, he had spotted a graveyard in the back and guessed most of them were buried there. When a Witch was sent to this cottage, they were essential ex-communicated from their Coven and were buried there, unless someone from the Coven came and claimed the body, which didn't happen very often.

"Your Witches?" Davina questioned with a frown.

Kol flashed a smirk, "I am pretty popular with Witches, love,"

Davina rolled her eyes.

"I just can't imagine that anyone would want to be here, willingly," Kol commented with a frown. Blair had shared her vision of how Freya had placed herself in the cottage, a fact that baffled him.

"Well, once we get Freya, we can find out why," Davina said as she took a step forward. As she got closer, she could feel the powerful boundary spell but paid it no mind. Kol had been worried that she would get trapped in this place, but Blair had assured her that the protection mark she'd placed on Davina would prevent that.

Kol followed closely behind her, eyes peeled for anything dangerous. They made it past the gate that was littered with severed doll heads and opened the door. Once inside, they were immediately greeted with a sombre sight. Witches were wandering around the house like a bunch of zombies, all looking zoned out and sickly.

"Oh god," Davina whispered when she was filled with a sense of dread. It was like this place sucked out any happiness in people. It made her uncomfortable because these used to be her people. It was said that being here was a fate worse than death and she was starting to agree with this.

"Let's hurry up before we're spotted," Kol said as he grabbed Davina's arm. Using his Vampire speed, he and Davina flashed away, trying to find what they had come here for. He wanted Davina out of this place as soon as possible.

It was surprisingly easy to navigate the house without being seen. The wardens of the house were much too preoccupied exerting their authority over the Witches to even notice them. The Witches in the house didn't seem to notice them either, all too zonked out to notice their presence. There was screaming radiating from the other room and Davina spotted some of the wardens forcing some pills down a Witch's throat. Kol was quick to move her away from there and they continued their search but seemed to be struggling. It wasn't until they got to the last room that they noticed something different. There were protective charms around this room and it seemed as though the wardens avoided this room.

Peeking inside, Davina spotted a glass coffin with Freya inside

"Found her," Davina whispered softly as they moved into the room. Looking around, it seemed to be quite bare and desolate.

Kol looked down at Freya, the sister he thought had died during a plague. She looked like a Mikaelson and resembled Klaus and Rebekah quite a bit. Looking down at his sleeping sister, he thought it to be eerily similar to when he and his siblings were daggered. Freya seemed to be holding something, a necklace and was wearing an old dress, one he hadn't seen in a hundred years but it looked familiar.

"She's really alive," Kol said as he watched Freya's chest move up and down. If it weren't for that, he would have thought her dead.

"We need to get her out," Davina said, drawing Kol away from his thoughts.

Nodding his head, Kol looked at the glass coffin, "There seems to be a spell around it, protecting her," Despite no longer having magic, he was still sensitive to it and could feel it in the air. There was a powerful spell surrounding Freya, protecting her from any harm.

Examining the spell, Davina frowned, "I don't think I have the power to disable it," It was much too advance and powerful for her to begin to unweave.

Kol hummed as a thought came to him, "Channel me, that will give you enough power to undo the spell," Every supernatural creature possessed magic, and everyone used it differently. Just because he couldn't use it like the Fae and Witches didn't mean he didn't have it.

Without hesitation, Davina took Kol's hand in her and closed her eyes. Slowly, she began to chant a spell, siphoning Kol's magic and began to unweave the spell around Freya. It was a slow process and one that took time and patience. She couldn't rush it in fear something would go wrong and this trip would be for nothing.

Minutes later, the sound of clicking echoed in the room as the locks came undone to the glass coffin. Cancelling the spell, Davina grinned widely, "We did it,"

"You were marvellous, my little dove," Kol kissed the top of her head, proud at what she had done.

"Now, we just need to get out of here," Davina said.

Wordlessly, Kol moved and opened the glass coffin with no resistance. Carefully, he picked up his unconscious sister, "Hang onto me," Kol said as he looked to Davina. Entering this place was the easy part, but leaving with someone from here wasn't going to be easy, especially if they were spotted.

Having an idea of what Kol planned to do, she held onto his arm tightly. Within seconds, Kol used his Vampire speed and flashed out of the room and the cottage. Now that they were outside, they relaxed slightly. They hadn't been spotted and there was no interference.

"Let's go home," Davina said as they walked out of the gate. She could feel the boundary spell trying to keep her inside but the mark Blair placed on her repelled the spell. She made sure to keep hold of Freya so the mark would protect her as well, allowing Freya to easily pass through the boundary spell. Mentally, Davina sighed in relief when this seemed to work. She would hate to be trapped here and was silently thankful for the mark.