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Esther Mikaleson POV :
It had now been three months since Esther, Kol and Finn came back to life. Everything was going out pretty well according to Cassie’s (Esther) plans. They had brought several wolves to their side and Kaleb (Kol) has made his first bounds with the harvest witch Davina. Finn was helping her efficiently, and she had even found a witch ready to help them.
It was time for the four of them to make their regular assessment in the evening. Esther was waiting for her sons at the entrance’s cemetery. They were late, as usual. The silence was usual but at this time, it was only annoying her because it was a reminder about the lateness of her sons, something that was irritating her intensely.
When they finally arrived, Kol immediately spoke up : “you were right, Davina is hiding something in that attic, the door was closed with a rather complex spell”.
- It could be a weapon, source of power, Esther was thinking aloud, I prefer not to leave anything to chance. Better we know what she had and whose side she’s on, Esther said calmly. So, you’ll take her to dinner, Esther ordered her youngest son.
- I just stood her up for coffee, she probably hates me by now, Kol complained to his mother. Davina is smart, and right now, distrust is probably her highest feeling, we cannot botch our moves.” Kol marked a pause in his speech : “I’m ready to bet she’s probably gonna be too suspicious about me and won’t give me any information, at the end, it will be nothing but a waste of time.
- Just do as you’re told ! Finn complained about his little brother again.
- I’m just saying we could better try to discover what she’s hiding through spells and magic, I’m too suspect if I’m inviting her on the same day, believe me, she’s not stupid. Kol explained.
Esther stopped walking, considering a backup plan, she raised her head, letting the ancestral magic graze her spirit. Until the gears in her mind clicked into space with a safe plan
- Kol is right, Davina will find him too peculiar if we’re doing it that way, but…. we cannot use magic on the attic, the girl probably casted a spell to find us if she realised someone is trying to break into her attic, Esther sighed quietly. Follow me, both of you, she instructed her sons.
They went into the glasshouse where several craftsperson and jewellers were working on the moonlight rings (against a great remuneration), only one witch was casting the spell for the rings, when Esther hadn’t enough time for it. They approached the girl to speak with her. The witch was quite tall, not as tall as Kaleb’s body but almost as tall as Vincent’s. She had very long wavy dark hairs, brown eyes and tattoos on her wrists. Esther sensed something familiar about her but couldn’t quite place it.
She finally spoke up, including the witch in their conversation :
“Vincent, Kaleb, may I present you Hestiah, she’s the witch here to help us, she has proven her loyalty to us, and she has already met the harvest witch”, she said alternating her look between the girl and her sons, “so she’s gonna replace Kaleb tonight.”
The witch had met Davina a few weeks ago, when the Guerrerras were still ruling over the city. She helped the harvest girl to escape from the wolves when they tried to catch her, Davina had obviously upset them. Not long before this event, Esther had tested Hestiah’s loyalty; she couldn’t take the foolish risk of betrayal.
Three days after her granddaughter's death, Esther and Hestiah met for tea (enchanted with a powerful elixir to prevent the witch from lying). Hestiah had revealed herself to be trustworthy.
She was actually the grandniece of Bastianna Natale, the elder, who got killed by the vampire who was calling himself the king of the city at the time.
Hestiah stopped her studies in criminology and came back when she heard about the “supernatural war” in New Orleans. She was there to avenge the death of her grandaunt. It was credible, Esther had learnt in the ancestral plan Bastianna had no children, but she had a younger sister : Elvira, who had children unlike her sister. Esther believed it because nobody in the French Quarter knew about Bastianna’s sister.
So Esther had ordered after that her to keep a close eye on the Harvest witch as a backup plan.
“Are you sure ? Hestiah asked in confusion, without looking at them, concentrated on the gremory in front of her, I still have a lot of work with the rings…
- It’s okay, I’ll take care of that in your absence”, Esther answered calmly, a calculating smile on her lips.
Hestiah raised her head to finally look at Cassie (Esther), Kaleb (Kol) and Vincent (Finn). She had a confident posture and didn’t seem impressed by the three people in front of her, but Esther didn’t notice arrogance either. She closed the book and finally said :
“Alright, I’ll do my best, what exactly do you need to know about her ?”
Once they explained everything they needed to discover about Davina, Hestiah just nodded her head and left the room, phone in hands, surely sending an invitation to the harvest witch for this evening.
Now that Tina was gone, Esther changed the subject, she turned to her sons, picking a kyanite on the way, as she concluded with confident eyes :
“Once the moonlight rings will be done, we will pay a visit to your brothers, and teach them the unfortunate error of their vampire ways.”
—------
Davina Claire’s POV :
She was just leaving Algiers after the confrontation with Elijah and Marcel when she received a message from her new friend Hestiah, a witch that had helped her to escape the Guerreras a few days ago. She was asking for a coffee at the end of this afternoon, at Rousseau’s. Davina answered favourably to her invitation, hoping she wouldn’t stand her up like Kaleb did sooner today.
She had an hour before the meeting with her, so she decided to stop by the attic again, to continue her research on breaking Klaus’s sireline, and to make sure Mikael wasn’t planning to burn down the whole church.
….
After calling in at the church again, it was already time to leave for Rousseau’s. Davina walked through the French Quarter, it was a sunny afternoon and the sun had already made a big part of its descent, casting a beautiful orange light on the buildings.
When she arrived at the coffee shop, there were many people inside. Among them, she noticed a tall figure with long dark hair—so long it could only belong to one person.
Tiah (the surname she gave her friend after the witch called her D) was sat from the side in relation to Davina, she was wearing a straight blue jean with a skin-tight black asymmetrical body that was covering her left shoulder. She had DrMartens on her feet, several golden rings on her fingers and a combination of golden piercings on her ears. She seemed pretty calm and she already had ordered a tea that was still letting off steam. Her gaze was fixed on the windows and Davina could tell she was lost in her thoughts.
Hestiah seemed to have felt Davina’s presence because she turned her head in her direction, her brown eyes meeting Davina’s blue ones, a soft smile appearing on her face. Davina came closer and her friend stood up to give her a hug.
- How was your day D ? she asked, after ordering a latte.
The waitress was quick, returning with the coffee within the same minute.
- Tough day, I’m doing research about some spells, vampires are trying to threaten me and a guy just stood me up…. she answered, sighing with a sarcastic smile.
Tina seemed surprised : “Really ?! What are vampires asking for ?
- My services as a witch, but they are not really good at negotiating, even if some of them are trying…
An understanding silence followed Davina’s answer.
- I guess our powers are inestimable, it can be frustrating for them”, Hestiah replied, trying to comfort her friend.
Davina’s phone rang as she was taking a sip of her coffee. It was Marcel. Excusing herself to Tiah, she step outside Rousseau’s to take the call.
It didn’t take long for Marcel to admit he knew -thanks to her confrontation sooner with him and Elijah- that she had the White Oak stake, the eldest Mikaelson brother figured it out. But Marcel had the audacity to ask her where she was to discuss :
“I’m at Rousseau’s, don’t bother coming, I’m leaving now.”
When she returned inside, something felt off. The atmosphere had shifted—people were leaving the café in a hurry, except for her, Tiah (who seemed to have the same worries than her), and a group of at least eight men who slowly surrounded them when Davina reached Hestiah.
“What’s happening ? Davina asked, trying to hide the worry in her voice.
- I’m afraid things are about to turn unpleasant,” Hestiah responded nervously, looking around her, trying to assess the situation they were both in.
The two witches were back-to-back. Suddenly, Hestiah discreetly pressed something into Davina’s hand—a small piece of paper.
“Keep it with you !” she almost whispered without looking in the harvest witch’s direction, probably focused on how to deal with the situation.
One of the men tried to come closer to Davina, his eyes glowing gold. She didn’t think twice before raising her hand and defending herself.
Unfortunately, it didn’t take more for the situation to degenerate. A second werewolf came on her and pushed her. She would’ve fallen harsh on the floor if Hestiah wasn’t behind her to catch her arm and avoid the painful impact of her fall. Davina didn’t realised Hestiah was looking at her wrist :
- What’s linked to your bracelet, Davina ?
Davina didn’t even have time to give her any answer because the other werewolves attacked them. Hestiah threw one of them against the wall but couldn’t help Davina, too many of them were on her. Davina finally freed herself from the werewolf who was holding her, and she immediately called Mikael through her bracelet, damned be the consequences, she couldn’t die tonight.
It probably took ten seconds before Mikael came and immediately started the bloodbath. Hestiah struggled with two of them but was still defending her life, but things really started to suck when a werewolf tore off Davina’s bracelet, and by extension, her control over Mikael.
Hestiah had finally dealt with the werewolves around her and was standing behind Mikael, the hands…red, and confusion in the eyes.
The silence hit the room like a gong bang. Mikael had quickly noticed the absence of the bracelet on Davina, and this one noted her witch friend assembling the puzzle in her head. Mikael finally spoke up :
“What an interesting turn of events ! the victory sparkled in his eyes, he then turned to Hestiah.
- You even brought me my diner ! What a nice surprise, little witch !
He was walking to her friend, the thirst in the eyes, his fangs out :
- I’m going to enjoy this girl !
Determination had replaced confusion in Hestiah’s eyes, she seemed ready to reply to Mikael’s approach.
But before he reached the girl, Mikael flew through the room, thrown by no one else than Elijah Mikaelson.
—-
Elijah Mikaelson’s POV :
Precisely when he thought his day couldn’t have been worse, he was surprised again.
His father was standing in front of him, in the flesh, very much alive.
“Father…”, he whispered in shock, his eyes meeting his father's. Like it wasn’t enough, the white oak stake was also in the room, in Mikael’s iron fist.
- Hello son !... I’d hoped to see your brother first, but we have some unfinished business as well.
Elijah didn’t hold back his punch, expressing a part of the hatred he had about Mikael. But his father didn’t wait to fight back, the white oak stake pointed toward him.
Mikael hurled himself on his second son. The pointed end would’ve been in his heart if a powerful spell hadn’t thrown his father against the door.
Elijah turned his head, expecting to see Davina Claire casting the spell, but what he saw turned his mind upside down.
The witch he saw was too familiar to be ignored, he was willing to bet he had already seen her, the feeling was familiar, even if she wasn’t the person he had lost many years ago. The memory of it has been living in his mind since. Elijah never expected to feel it again, he believed it to have lost it forever, around twenty years ago.
Time just froze for a few seconds in his head, it wasn’t much time in reality, but it was enough time for his father to reappear.
This time Davina stood up to Mikael, holding a bracelet in her right hand : “Stop !” Mikael froze, still drawing the white oak stake, madness was sparkling in his eyes, “Go back now !” Davina ordered with more confidence than Elijah expected from her.
Mikael let out a grunt, not able to do anything else than obey. Davina followed Mikael outside, and Marcel ran after Davina, trying to get explanations.
He was standing straight in the room, a tinnitus in one of his ears. After a few seconds, he turned his head back at the other witch, in hope to see her, alive. Unfortunately the witch had already left.
Elijah Mikaelson was alone, he had been this way for a long time in his life, running from the troubles, from reality, but this time felt different, the past seemed to have found him, and somehow, he knew he couldn’t run from it now.
—-
Davina Claire’s POV :
“You shouldn’t have intervened ! I could’ve killed him, isn’t it what you wanted after all !
Mikael was barking like a hound, back in the attic. The rage and the frustration was burning in his voice. But Davina answered back, her self control back again :
- I decide when and where you kill anyone,” she holds his murderous look, the head high.
Davina shoved her hands in the pockets of her jacket, feeling the piece of paper Tiah gave her. She discreetly opened it to see what was the meaning of all this.
There were writings on it, it was french. It wasn’t really an obstacle for her since her mother forced her to learn the language soon after her fifth birthday, for the spells. But the confusion came after she read the content of the message :
Kaleb t'utilise ! ne fais confiance à personne d’autre que toi ! Je t’expliquerai quand je le pourrais, je suis désolée !
(translate : Kaleb is using you ! don’t trust anyone but yourself ! I’ll explain to you as soon as I can, I’m sorry !)
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
13th January of 1974, The Bayou, Louisiane
The eclipse had started in the sky, a total solar eclipse. The light was decreasing in a spectacular speed, until the darkness fell onto the place.
This darkness hits the room like a final judgement moment, only broken by the crying of a newborn : Marjorie and Robert’s first child.
The anxiety had grown immediately after the birth, everyone watching the blood accumulating on Marjorie’s sheets. Any normal human would’ve already died with such a lost of blood, and even if the death from giving birth was very rare among the werewolves, everyone seemed to know Marjorie wouldn’t live to see the daylight coming back.
Robert’s entrance broke the silence, immediately kneeling next to his wife. Unfortunately, it was only to witness the life leaving Marjorie, the name of her daughter on her last breath.
Allycia.
Allycia Kenner
The name of the new member of the Kenner family had been barely whispered, and yet it was powerfully echoing among all the people present in the room.
With the life out of Marjorie Kenner, the daylight had started to slowly reappear, as if the darkness was leaving after stealing a life.
Robert Kenner ‘s shaking hands were looking for a pulse of life he already knew had left his wife. He brushed her skin still warm, when his world had just frozen.
Juliette Labonair walked to him, the little Allycia in her arms.
- Robert…
He didn’t look away, still watching the lifeless body of his wife.
- Take her.
He still didn’t move
- She’s your daughter, Robert…
The atmosphere was strained, everyone waiting for Robert’s next movements, his next words, anything to break the silence. The moment was full of symbolism, full of tragedy. The daylight fully came back on the Bayou, but it didn’t soothe the atmosphere.
Robert’s face darkened, his eyes filled with a quiet wrath and a dangerous despair. He slowly turned his eyes to the child. So tiny. So fragile. And yet already so guilty according to the visible accusation in her father’s eyes.
-
She looks like her
….someone whispered
Robert bluntly looked away and without a word, he left the room.
He disappeared in the Bayou’s forest, leaving behind him a lifeless wife and fatherless daughter.
Juliette Labonair had watched him leaving, still holding the little girl in her arms. The blanket around the baby fell off a little, revealing a little red crescent’s birthmark on her left shoulder.
For a lot of members of the Crescent Pack, this birthmark was the symbol of a bad omen.
—---
Allycia Kenner’s POV
When life had been supposed to be one where solidarity and loyalty were at the center of it, it had been mostly solitary for Allycia Kenner. The first woman born among the Kenners in five generations.
Allycia was envious of all the children who were talking about their family, the love they felt from their parents, the unconditional support the parents were offering. She had never really felt it. Her mother died giving birth to her, and for as long as she could remember, her father had been nothing but cold or drunk when she was in the same room as him.
When she was just a child, she tried to break into his stoneheart he had built since the death of his father John Kenner, killed by vampires, and strengthened since the death of his wife, killed by herself. Allycia wanted to understand why her father behaved like that with her, but he never answered anything kind to her, too focused on his hatred against the vampires. He had no energy to give to anything else, even less to the child who had taken away his beloved wife.
Allycia could always see the accusation in his eyes the rare times he was daring to look in her direction. He didn’t really make efforts to hide these accusations either, calling her a “cursed child” and a “killer”, with venom dripping from his mouth. She was crying of the failure to understand what she had ever done wrong, without any family to comfort her or to explain her.
The other members of her family were ignoring her, with despise or with fear, Allycia couldn’t tell. The only time they deigned to speak with her was only to instil their damned values in her : the honor of lycanthropy, the obedience to the elders, the cult of duty…. All of that was for Allycia pretexts to earn more control over the members and shape them as they wanted them. No need to explain that she despised these traditions, unlike her cousin Jackson, born six years ago in 1983, who was doing everything to yield to them.
Allycia was spending her time alone, walking in the Bayou she had learned to know like the back of her hand. She loved to read, she was curious about other cultures, about how hospitality could be in other places, imagining herself welcomed among a people, with a lot of people to cherish and to love. She was learning different languages, and she was very good at it : she was able to speak french, arabic, spanish, portuguese, italian and persian, conversing with groups of tourists she could meet in town, or with chiefs of traditional restaurants in the French Quarter, because they were often from the country of the said cooking.
Nothing was uninteresting for Allycia, because everything was often more interesting than what happened at home, it was a very sad and impersonal place.
Even her own pack was looking differently at her, because that’s what she was : different. She was born during a total eclipse, a black sun, a short moment where everything is just darkness
There was a belief among a few Crescents, particularly the Dumas, based on an old unknown legend. It was talking about a certain black sun. Everything this black sun could produce was a poisoned chalice, more of a curse than a blessing, and the fact Marjorie Kenner died giving birth to Allycia had only brought the good spark, to set a fire of mistrust toward Allycia.
She wasn’t rejected by the pack, but she felt she wasn’t welcomed either, and toward her relation with her family, she was avoiding as many meetings with the pack as she could. Even more when Richard Xavier Dumas became an alpha of the pack.
Everytime she looked into his eyes, she was able to see a spark growing in his eyes. At the beginning Allycia wasn’t able to tell what this spark was made of, but time passed, and she had seen this spark growing into madness : the madness of revenge toward vampires.
Richard and Mary Dumas had lost their daughter, Bernie Kenner had lost his wife, Lise Kenner, the mother of Jackson. She had been found in the forest of the Bayou, with several gash on her body, more than enough to bleed to death. Since then, the three of them had joined Allycia’s father in their desire to clear the town from vampires. As an Alpha of the pack, Richard wasn’t hiding his opinions, but Allycia had the deep feeling war was coming, and with werewolf blood would flow.
Allycia really became certain the war was inevitable that tragic evening…the day she triggered her curse. In an act of defense, in an act of rage.
That moment still remained like a mirage in her mind, she remembered it was three days before the full moon. She remembered the wrath caught in her throat, before it finally exploded.
Bernie Kenner. Drunk next to his cousin Robert, also drunk. Jackson, Bernie’s son, was asleep.
Her father had started to make remarks about vampires again, like he had often done over the course of her life. Nothing was really different than usual. Bernie was answering favourably to Robert’s comments.
But this time, Allycia stupidly tried to reasonned them on the subject : maybe not all vampires were evil. The silence that followed was broke by her father, telling her to shut up and to mind her business, nothing unusual between them.
But everything changed when Bernie decided to put in his two pennies, saying a phrase that would be fatal to him : “a werewolf who kills his own has no right to speak for the pack”.
The moment he ended his phrase was the moment the wrath Allycia had been containing for so long overflew, making her hands shaking. It was no longer just wrath, it was rage, it was fury.
The rest was a black out for Allycia.
She couldn’t remember the events. Her memories resumed when she was watching Bernie, on the floor, lying in his own blood. She stayed frozen in chock, her whole body still shaking, a tear dripping off her cheek. Then she walked out of the house, and she threw up, before getting back on her feet. She didn’t even hear the yells of her father behind her, only the whistling in her mind, and the pain that followed. She fell on her knees, holding herself to a barrier, it had been like someone was putting in a nail in her head with a hammer, and for a moment, she didn’t see anything but darkness, she only heard the comments the others were making about her :
“
Her eyes…”
,
“look at her eyes…”, “why is her iris white ?...”
A question Allycia would’ve liked to have an answer
.
From this evening, too much changed, she could see it,...she could hear it,...she could feel it…
Everyone was briefly watching her during the funerals, as if watching her too long could put a curse on them.