New Beginnings

The sixth part of my series 'Originals & Shield Agents' and I took some liberties with the course of events.

Here is the betaed version of the chapter.

I'm so grateful for Senema's help. Without her finding plotholes I create or things I forget to explain, my stories would be much harder to read.

Thank you to TheOtherWorld too. She pointed out to me that it was Kol, who voted for killing Lucien, not Finn.

So I made a few changes to the previous version and if there are mistakes, I'm responsible for them 'lol

Tell me how you like the first chapter. Updates will be irregular but you already know that by now 'lol

Chapter 1

Elijah was still contemplating Finn's revelation of how he had progressively gotten more conscious and aware of everything going on around him in these 900 years.

It had shocked him deeply to learn this; no wonder Finn hated them so much. He could understand and accept Finn's actions against them now much better but Elijah still found it hard to forgive Finn for trying to kill Hope. Even considering that Finn knew about Dahlia or the way Esther had pressured him, he had still tried to kill his little niece.

Anyway, it was time their family tried to mend their bridges with Finn, which meant Elijah had a lot of convincing to do. Neither Klaus nor Kol would be very thrilled about his suggestion, which he could understand in Kol's case. Elijah just hoped Finn would accept these olive branches if he could bring Klaus and Kol to see reason. Elijah sighed inaudible. But if Finn didn't want to do it, he could understand that too. Sometimes it really bothered him that he always stuck between the fronts.

Almost an hour later, Elijah wondered how the situation could have gotten so out of control.

Freya lay injured on the floor, Finn stood protectively over her and Vincent held Elijah back with his magic. None of them could stop Lucien anymore, who had just filled two vials with the magic potion and was now getting ready to drink one of them.

Elijah was very concerned about what this would mean for his family but he was unable to act.

Suddenly an arrow appeared out of nowhere, aimed at Lucien, who caught it without effort and looked at it contemptuously. However, that expression got brushed aside quickly, when the arrowhead exploded and engulfed Lucien in a pink mass, leaving only his head and Lucien's hands free.

Elijah felt how Vincent's hold on him broke and he reacted without hesitation. He vamped to Lucien to take the vials from his hand. The impotent anger in Lucien's eyes made him smile mockingly at him. "I think they are much safer in my hands."

Elijah slipped the vials into his breast pocket before turning to face Freya. Meanwhile Finn had given her his blood and then helped her up.

"What just happened?" Freya asked confused.

"I don't know", Finn said equally confused. "Someone shot an arrow at Lucien but it doesn't seem to be exactly a normal arrow."

"I can see that", Freya replied dryly, looking with amusement at Lucien in his pink bubble. He desperately tried to free himself but it was clearly recognizable that this mass could withstand and contain even the superior strength of a vampire.

"Are you alright, Freya?" Elijah asked worriedly. Another part of him was busy trying to figure out where that arrow had come from and who might have shot it. A trick arrow, which could take out even a vampire pointed to a specific person but what reason could Clint have for being here in Mystic Falls?

"Yes, thank you." Freya straightened up determinedly and Finn removed his supporting hand. He knew his stubborn and proud older sister too well, she never accepted help for very long.

Elijah heard Vincent, who had finally recovered from his surprise, starting to chant; he clearly wanted to free Lucien. Before Elijah could silence him, a red cloud enveloped Vincent and threw him against the nearest tree. The cloud pushed him up the tree until he was several feet off the ground. The force of the impact and the rough bark must have torn Vincent's back open because Elijah could smell blood.

Elijah allowed himself a small smile. Perhaps a few others might be able to shoot arrows like Clint although Elijah honestly doubted it but he knew only of one person who had a skill like this. Therefore, he wasn't the least bit surprised when Wanda floated out of the trees with outstretched arms.

"Elijah", Finn said in a tight and worried voice.

"Don't worry, Finn", Elijah replied calmly. "They are on our side and friends of mine."

Wanda touched down gently on the ground in front of Elijah and smiled brightly at him. "Elijah."

Elijah walked up to her and hugged her. "You look well, child. And it looks like you've practiced a lot."

Wanda laughed softly. "Yes, I did, not just with these kind of powers. The grimoires you gave me were very helpful and informative."

"Come on, let me introduce you to two of my siblings." Elijah gently pulled Wanda towards Freya and Finn. "This is Wanda Maximoff, one of the true Avengers, although she is currently on the run. Wanda, these are my older siblings Freya and Finn."

"Hello, I'm so excited to meet some of Elijah's siblings. Not to mention that I owe it to him that I'm still free, he helped me so much a few weeks ago. I don't know, where I would be if it weren't for him." Wanda smiled cheerfully at Freya and Finn.

Freya stared at Elijah. "So that's what you did during your so-called vacation."

Elijah shrugged. "It was a very relaxing vacation", he said nonchalantly.

Wanda snorted. "Breaking into a high-security prison, helping to break out prisoners, sheltering fugitives from the law. You'd better reconsider your definition of relaxation, Elijah."

Elijah chuckled softly before turning to Freya. "I'll be right back, I just have to get Clint so he doesn't have to walk all the way." He stared at both, Finn and Freya. "I trust that Wanda is in the best of hands with you."

"Of course, brother", Freya said immediately and Finn nodded in agreement. "Wanda made me very curious; I can't wait to hear more from her about your vacation."

Elijah grimaced briefly. Well, at least it was just Freya and Finn, and not Rebekah, Niklaus or Kol.

With one last smile at Wanda, Elijah hurried off. He listened intently to human heartbeats, in the process tuning out Wanda, Vincent, and Freya. He heard two additional heartbeats nearby and one was now with Freya, but when he recognized Matt's voice, he relaxed. Should he cause trouble, Freya and Finn would have no problems dealing with him. It only took Elijah a few more seconds to find Clint and to appear in front of him.

To Clint's credit, he didn't even flinch. "Elijah, long time no see."

He was clearly being sarcastic and Elijah laughed. "What are you and Wanda doing in Mystic Falls? And how could you two be in the right place at the right time to intervene?"

"Wanda wanted to expand her skills as a witch and if possible meet other witches. SHIELD had quite a bit of information about the weird things happening in this town, and with the knowledge I learned from you, I found hints to witches, so that's why we came." Clint shrugged.

"And why we were able to help you? From what Wanda told me, the psychic connection you made on the plane has certain and surprising side effects. She felt your presence as soon as you entered the forest and as she searched for reasons, she found this other vampire, whose aura she didn't like at all. So I had enough time to find a good position and to cover your back."

"Your help is very appreciated and your timing was more than perfect." Elijah grimaced. "I dare not imagine what would have happened if you hadn't been here. Let me take you to the others. Close your eyes. Otherwise, you might get confused, especially with your extraordinary sight."

Clint closed his eyes and Elijah grabbed him before he rushed back to the others at top speed.

"We have arrived, you can open your eyes", Elijah said calmly and Clint opened them again. Elijah felt Clint sway slightly and grabbed his elbow. "As I said, if you're not used to this type of movement, it can be very confusing."

"No kidding", agreed Clint. His gaze swept from one to the other and Elijah knew that he assessed the dangerousness of those present.

"Let me introduce you. This is Clint, although he is better known as Hawkeye, one of the Avengers who stopped the invasion of New York."

He was amused about Matt, who stared open-mouthed and not a little awestruck at Clint. "You know one of the Avengers?" he asked shocked.

Elijah chuckled. "I also know Black Widow and Captain America, and of course Wanda." He pointed to Wanda.

"What do heroes like them have to do with a monster and killer like you?" Matt said, startled. He'd always been a fan of Hawkeye, who as a perfectly normal human was a full member of the Avengers and could still keep up with a superhuman like Steve Rogers. Learning now that he was friends with an Original made him ill at ease.

Clint smirked at Matt. He'd sensed the inherent contempt and insult in Matt's remark and couldn't wait to get back at him for this. "As I've worked as a master assassin for the government and my kill count is quite impressive by the way, I can't exactly claim the moral high ground against Elijah. Also, I don't think he is a monster, believe me, I have met much worse humans. I owe my life to Elijah several times over and the life of my family. There is not much that I wouldn't do for him."

"What Clint said applies to me too", Wanda said and glared at Matt.

"Oh, Matt can't claim the moral high ground either, after all, he's responsible for the deaths of several thousand vampires", Finn said and eyed Matt sardonically, who looked down guilty. "Although I have to acknowledge that he couldn't have known that when he murdered me. He thought, I was only connected to my siblings and wanted to wipe us out in one fell swoop."

Clint looked at Elijah, quite unsure about this revelation. He couldn't reconcile it with Finn standing alive before him.

"It's hard and difficult enough to kill an Original anyway. And with magic, a witch can bring back the dead if particular circumstances are given, if she is powerful enough or if other resources are available for her", Elijah explained calmly.

Clint nodded thoughtfully. "I see."

"This is my older sister Freya and my older brother Finn, she is a witch and he is an Original like me." Elijah pointed to Matt. "This is Matt Donovan, he used to date my sister Rebekah for a few months. Frankly, he's one of the better guys she's been with. And he's definitely better than the one she fancies at the moment."

Freya giggled when she heard Elijah's dig at Marcel. "Hello, Clint", she said kindly.

Finn just nodded in greeting. He didn't want to say it openly but he partly shared Matt's surprise that Elijah had made friends with some of the Avengers. He had met Natasha and Steve shortly too and knew that Elijah liked them well enough. But he could also see that the bond between his brother, Wanda and Clint seemed to be a lot closer.

"Let's come to our enemies. This is Vincent. Although he is right now being controlled by the Ancestors, he'd also prefer to see us all dead as well." Elijah shrugged. "Honestly, he's only alive because Freya seems to have some affection for him and because he is sometimes useful. He should better hope that his usefulness is never less than the annoyance he generates in me."

Elijah smirked at Vincent, who glared at him. "The one in the pink mass is Lucien, he wanted to become more powerful than an Original, which he can now forget." Elijah patted his breast pocket. "The only question that remains about his fate is if I kill him right here or if we bring him back to New Orleans so Niklaus can deal with his good-for nothing-offspring."

"You and Kol were right, we really should have killed him with the others", Finn said nonchalantly. "Too bad Niklaus, Rebekah and I overruled you back then."

Elijah blinked in surprise. He couldn't remember the last time Finn had said something nice to him, he must still have alive back then and much younger. "Thank you, brother, in hindsight it would have saved us a lot of trouble. But we can't change the past as much as we want too sometimes." Elijah stared meaningfully at Finn and he could see at his surprised reaction that his brother perceived his regret about his past actions. "We shouldn't stay here any longer but we should also clean up a little. Freya, could you please destroy the jar with the remaining elixir?"

Freya mumbled a few words and made a hand gesture. The spot where Vincent had brewed the elixir caught fire and everything burned down until no traces of the preparations for the spell remained. "What about the vials in your breast pocket?"

"Let us decide later what we do about them", replied Elijah calmly.

Freya narrowed her eyes, Elijah was clearly planning something but she knew better than to confront him now, not in the presence of Vincent and Lucien.

"Could you teach me this spell?" Wanda asked intrigued. "I'm new to this kind of magic and could use someone to teach me more."

Freya smiled at the young witch. "Gladly. I'm always happy to help Elijah's friends."

"Thank you, Freya, for both." Elijah looked indecisive. "Is it possible that Vincent will ever be able to create this elixir again?"

Freya looked at Vincent who was looking at her anxiously. They both knew that her answer would determine whether Vincent survived the next five minutes or not. Elijah would never allow anything that threatened his family to exist. However, Freya wasn't willing to lie for Vincent either, fortunately she didn't have to. "Unless there is a piece of white oak left somewhere, it is impossible to replicate this elixir."

Elijah's face remained at first blank but then he nodded. "You're lucky once again, Vincent. You better hope it stays that way."

Vincent shuddered. He had been close to death before in his dealings with the Mikaelsons but he knew he had never been closer.

"Let's get to the next part of business." Elijah looked at Lucien. "How do I get him out of this?"

Clint pulled a little tube from one of his numerous pockets. "This will disintegrate the mass. However, it works very fast, so be ready."

Elijah pocketed the tube. "Thanks for the info, then let us free Lucien last. What are you planning to do next, Matt?"

"You will all leave Mystic Falls?" Matt asked cautious. Elijah nodded. "Then I'll stay out of everything. I'm not crazy or suicidal enough to get involved in your family drama."

"Good choice. Like I said, I will give Rebekah your greetings." Elijah smirked. And he would do it, when Marcellus was also present. He knew that Rebekah still had a soft spot for Matt and she would be no doubt delighted hearing from him.

"Do this please." Matt nodded stiffly and then walked away.

"Luckily no one could ever claim that I'm sane or unwilling to take risks", Clint said gleefully as he watched the young man leave. "How do you think about company when you return to New Orleans?"

Elijah sighed in resignation. "Let me guess, you and Wanda want to come with me?"

"That too but I think it's time I meet your family", Clint said seriously. "You know mine too, after all. I did meet Klaus, but the circumstances were different and not very pleasant."

"Yes, I remember. Fortunately isn't yours as murderously inclined as mine is", Elijah murmured softly.

"You did meet Natasha, didn't you?" Clint said amused.

"You do know that she and Steve are in New Orleans at the moment, right?" Freya asked, entertained by the banter.

"Yes I know. But I didn't know you met them." Clint narrowed his eyes at her. "How did this happen? Are they okay?"

Elijah wanted to reassure Clint and so told him how their meeting had come to be and why they lived at the compound.

Clint shook his head and sighed. "So the cat is finally out of the bag and they know everything. How did they take it?"

"Pretty good actually." Elijah allowed himself a smile. "Natasha made friends with my younger sister and they do a lot together. By the way, they terrify everyone they meet. Steve is always unsure whether to apologize for their antics or laugh."

Clint smirked. "Yes, that sounds like Natasha and Steve."

Freya snickered. "Also, many from the supernatural side of New Orleans were eager to meet Natasha. Someone spread the word about the way she took out Marcel. She's a celebrity and not just because she's an Avenger. Many wanted to buy her a drink."

Finn rolled his eyes; he knew after all who had spread this story. He was also aware that Freya didn't like Marcel, he didn't care about him either, so it was alright for him to make his life difficult.

Elijah also knew who was responsible for the rumours and just grinned. "Wanda, can you let Vincent down, please?"

Wanda nodded and with a wave of her hand, Vincent floated slowly to the ground.

"Finally." Vincent glared at Wanda. "How can you as a witch help an abomination and a monster like Elijah?"

Half a meter above the ground, the red cloud disappeared and Vincent fell hard to the ground.

"Oops", Wanda said, smiling. "And I help him because he is my friend and I don't like you."

Elijah bit back a smile. "Wanda, can you cut his connection with the Ancestors? Here their influence on him is very limited but once we get back to New Orleans that will change again."

"I can try it." Wanda went to Vincent, who in the meantime had gotten to his feet again. Her eyes began to glow red and she moved her hands, from which a red cloud emerged, which wrapped itself around Vincent's head. Despite this, Elijah could see his eyes whiten and then he collapsed.

"Is he ok?" Freya asked worriedly.

Wanda smiled at her. "As I disconnected and burned out the pathway to the Ancestors, his mind shut down to process the shock. These ancestors will never be able to influence him again." She got serious. "However, he will also never be able to access their power and magic again."

Freya bit her lip. She knew what that meant for Vincent. The witches of New Orleans, narrow-minded as they were, would expel Vincent from their community.

"Well, I can live with that", said Elijah pensively. "The witches from New Orleans doesn't seem to be having much luck with their regents lately. I think Davina will like it too, when Vincent gets banished as well."

Freya just sighed. Nobody knew how to hold a grudge like Elijah.

Elijah grinned at her mischievously as if he had read her mind. "Okay, what do we do with Lucien?"

"Actually, I'm all for killing him right now", Finn said, completely unexpectedly. "To be honest, I don't trust Klaus to do the practical and necessary thing. He can be amazingly sentimental at times and is far too easily manipulated in these situations."

Freya sighed. "Klaus will be angry if we kill him without his input."

"But?" Elijah asked calmly.

"I agree with Finn. After what Klaus and Hayley reported, they pretty much levelled Lucien's company." Freya saw Lucien look at her in horror and grinned maliciously at him. "While I don't think Klaus would let Lucien get away with it, who knows what could happen in the meantime."

"Yes, we must remember the prophecy", Elijah said thoughtfully. "With Lucien's death we would definitely have one problem less to deal with."

Wanda frowned. "What kind of prophecy?" She had learned quite a bit about these. Shana had introduced her to an old witch without much magic but she had been very knowledgeable about the history of witches and the different sorts of prophecies.

Elijah looked at her thoughtfully. "Now that you're here, maybe you can even help us with that. Let's talk about it later."

Wanda nodded understandingly.

Clint sighed. "Magic, prophecies, witches. Almost sounds like I'm out of my depth again."

"I don't doubt for a second, Clint, that you'll rise to the occasion," Elijah said seriously.

"Me neither", Wanda said loyally and Clint smiled at her.

"What are you gonna do, Elijah?" Freya asked calmly.

Elijah smiled, suddenly stood in front of Lucien and struck off his head with a casual movement of his hand. "I agree with you, let's get rid of him immediately."

Freya saw that Clint didn't bat an eyelid while Wanda looked startled. She understood why, Wanda was young and from what she had told her while Elijah was away, she had never seen his monster come out to play. She had only seen his helpful and kind side, while Clint must have seen his other side.

Elijah pulled out the small tube Clint had given him and squeezed its contents onto the pink mass. It dissolved quickly and as soon as air came to Lucien's body, it rotted at breakneck speed. Elijah assumed it was at least partly due to Lucien's old age.

Without waiting for Elijah's request, Freya set the remains of Lucien on fire, leaving no trace of him.

"I like it much better that way, the clearing looks neat again", said Elijah with satisfaction. He looked at Clint and Wanda. "How did you get to Mystic Falls?"

"With a cloaked quin-jet", Clint replied. "We were scheduled to pick up Natasha and Steve as soon as they finished their business in New Orleans."

"Freya, can you keep Vincent with Finn's help under control while I escort Wanda and Clint? I have to help them find a safe place to land in New Orleans", Elijah explained.

"Yes, sure", Freya replied immediately.

Finn walked over to Vincent, picked him up and tossed him effortlessly over his shoulder. "Let's get out of here. If at all possible, I never want to see Mystic Falls again."

Elijah could understand that only too well. "Thank you, brother, for your help."

Finn smiled with a certain affection at Elijah for the first time in a very long time and meant it that way. "You're welcome, brother."

Freya and Finn left the clearing with the still unconscious Vincent.

Elijah gave them a thoughtful look before turning to Wanda and Clint. "Let's go to the quin-jet and on the way I'll tell you what the prophecy is all about."

Clint started walking without saying another word and the other two followed him.