"Before they forced me to take her, they had me put up a cloaking spell, so we can't be tracked. Now, Lucien's taking us out of someplace, I don't know where... but there's a loophole."

   Elijah, Audrey, Finn, Kol, and Davina all stood in the study, watching the video that Kol and Davina had found left for them at St. James Infirmary. Lucien had taken Freya when she left to hide the white oak, using Vincent's help to do so, whose magic was being controlled by the Ancestors. He'd left a video for Davina to find, with an idea on how they could find them, as she was the only one he knew would be willing to help.

   The second Vincent mentioned a loophole, Finn grew annoyed and skeptical. "Just how am I the loophole?"

   "Last year, when Esther first brought us back, I got put in the body of gormless twit, but you got housed in one of the most powerful witch bodies in the city-- Vincent's." Kol explained, only just seeming to keep his temper in check. "And, even after all this time, there's still an echo of a body-soul connection between you two."

   He then clicked play on the video, letting Vincent explain the rest to them. "And Davina, that's where you come into play. I need a powerful witch that's off the Ancestors radar." Taking a knife, he uses it to slice his palm and let some of his blood drip into a vial. "I want you to find the thread between me and Finn."

   Turning the video off, Elijah turned to Davina, raising a brow. "Have you ever done anything like this?"

   "I don't even know if it's possible." Davina admitted, twirling the vial of blood around in her hands before she held it up. "But, I do have Vincent's blood. If I can take Finn's blood and do the spell right, I should be able to track Vincent down."

   Finn began to pace anxiously. "I should have sensed something was wrong when Freya didn't call. Now Lucien has a head start." He glanced over at Davina and shooed her with his hand. "Go, witch. Tend to your spells. I won't rest until she's found."

   "Hey, she's helping us." Audrey reminded him, looking unimpressed at his attitude. "No matter what issues you have with her, you will treat her with respect, Finn."

   The Claire girl looked at Audrey with a small, grateful smile, as Kol let out a scoff of disbelief at his brother. "Behold, the selfless martyr! First, he wants to rip Davina's head off for trapping him in his body, now he can't wait to be spelled."

   Finn turned to him with challenging look, as Elijah sighed and ignored Kol's outburst, rising to his feet. "Finn, you, Audrey and I will go together. Kol, you stay here with Davina."

   "You're going with him?" Kol asked Elijah in disbelief. "So, the two people responsible for not destroying the white oak when they had the chance, thus putting us in this bloody mess, are now off to try and fix it. That's just marvelous." He drawled sarcastically. "I mean, what could possibly go wrong?"

   "Kol, look at me." Davina quickly took his hand, seeing his temper flying out of control very quickly. He turned to look at her at that, Davina looking at him gently and calmly. "I don't know this magic. I need your help. Come on." She said softly, and led him out of the study, before another argument could breakout. 

   It was silent for a moment after they left, before Elijah picked up a knife from the desk, holding it out to Finn. "Let us begin."

   "Do not give me orders, brother." Finn warned him, and looked between the couple. "And make no mistake-- I do not look to either of you as an ally, or even family. The only reason I tolerate your presence is in the hope of finding Freya."

   Elijah merely rolled his eyes, as Audrey now felt herself growing annoyed. "Great, then the feeling is mutual." She gave him a false smile, taking the knife from Elijah and thrusting it blade first into the palm of Finn's hand, making him hiss in pain. "So let's get this done with, shall we?" 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

   Once Finn had given his blood to Davina, the three got on the road to start searching for Lucien and Freya. To be safe, Audrey dropped Mira off with Mary, who was also watching Hope for Hayley and Klaus. With whatever was going on, the girls were safer in the bayou with her, just until they had everything under control. So far, Davina's spell had led to Northern Virginia, and Kol immediately knew where in Northern Virginia. 

   Audrey didn't think she'd ever be in Mystic Falls again, not after the last visit, yet she now stared at the Welcome to Mystic Falls sign in front of them. The car stood still in front of the railroad crossing, as they waited for the light to turn green, and Finn scowled unhappily from his seat in the back. 

   "Of course. Mystic Falls. Birthplace of our sorrows." He muttered, though both Elijah and Audrey ignored him. "So, are we to drive around this entire pathetic town, hoping to run into my sister before Lucien murders her?"

   Elijah let out a deep sigh, closing his eyes in annoyance for a moment. "Kol has a plan."

   Finn scoffed. "Kol and his ridiculous gambits."

   "We didn't hear you offering any suggestions." Audrey gave him a look of annoyance through the mirror.

   Elijah couldn't help but roll his eyes. "900 years in a box... and zero patience."

   Finn's face fell in offense at that. "It's all a joke to you, isn't it?" He asked. ""900 years in a box" just rolls off your tongue as if the time passed without consequence. I assure you, it did not."

   "What are you suggesting?" Elijah looked back at him. "We never experienced anything, least of all the passage of time."

   "Being daggered for decades and being daggered for centuries are very different things." Finn snapped angrily, before he took a deep breath. "It starts off as a dim pinprick of light, growing brighter year after year, a slow consciousness that I was paralyzed, entombed in my own mind." He let out a deep sigh, as Elijah look surprised at his words, guilt beginning to appear on his face. As the reality of all Finn had truly experienced sunk in. "That despair... utter loneliness... All amplified and made endless."

   The rest of the drive into town was quiet after that, and Audrey could see Elijah did truly feel bad for his older brother. Finn was the first out as soon as the car was parked, the couple following him out as he perched on the hood of the car. Audrey glanced around the town square, her eyes flickering from the Grill, to the clock tower, then finally onto her dad's old building. So many memories came to mind, but she didn't focus on any of them, just shaking her head as she ignored them.

   "Nothing ever changes here." She muttered to herself.

   "How will we know when or if this magic trick of Kol's works?" Finn asked them. 

   "He says you'll know." Elijah told him, biting his lip for a moment as he leaned against the car.  "It's strange... The birthplace of our very misfortune, beyond that hill. Do you recall the first time we fled together, Finn?" He asked, Finn glanced at him and just rolling his eyes, saying nothing. "We were but children. Nothing but the clothes on our back, desire we had no idea how to control, and a father hellbent on erasing us from the earth." 

   "The first of many times we ran together over the next one hundred years." Finn nodded, as the three began to walk across the square. "Til you all left me entombed for nine centuries."

   Elijah let out a sigh. "You were a danger."

   "Danger?" He repeated with a scoff.

   "Yes." Elijah nodded honestly.

   Finn gave him an incredulous look. "Klaus and Kol killed everything that moved, yet I was the one considered too dangerous to undagger?" 

   "Despite their bloodlust, you were the poison that crippled--"

   Audrey pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh, as Finn angrily grabbed his arm and forced them to a stop, giving Elijah no choice but to look at him. "Here we go." She muttered knowingly. 

   "Poison?" Finn interjected furiously. "I anchored us!"

   "You despised us." Elijah shook his head, pulling his arm from his grip. "You despised yourself, terrified of everything that we became. You threatened our very survival, Finn, just as you have every time we made the mistake of freeing you from that box."

   "I was made that way because of that box!" Finn let out, his fury and anger growing, causing Elijah to look at him in concern. "Every time I close my eyes, I go back to that black horizon, that place where I was abandoned and forgotten by my own family. So yeah, I came out mad. And I remain so." Refusing to take his pitying looks, Finn stormed off ahead toward the Grill, leaving the couple stood still for a moment before they followed him. Audrey knew there was nothing she could say to make things better between the two, so she didn't try, knowing there was a chance she'd just make things worse. "I hate it here. This place birthed all our pain and sorrow. I refuse to let it be the place where our sister dies. Let us not wait for Kol and his witch's tricks-- let us simply tear this town apart and find her."

   As they walked down the alley beside the Grill, a familiar voice spoke up behind them, making Audrey pause in surprise. Turning around, they looked up onto the small walkway, to see Matt pointing a gun toward them in his deputy uniform. "Yeah, that's not gonna happen. See, I just ran every single vampire out of this town. So, visiting hours are, well... never."

   "Really, Matt?" Audrey asked him, giving him a look.

   Matt's eyes fell on her and his face faltered slightly, and Audrey had a good idea why. The last time any version of her face, would have been the day he and everyone else said goodbye to Elena. "Long time, Audrey."

   "Matthew Donovan. How adorably inconvenient." Elijah looked at him, unimpressed. "Unfortunately, we don't have time to play right now. I'll pass your regards along to Rebekah."

   Matt didn't react, as he glanced toward Finn, who looked back at him blankly. "Finn, isn't it? Sorry, I suck at names, but I never forget a face-- especially when it's someone I've already killed." He nodded over to a spot on the steps. "That was right over there, right? Did you come back for some more?"

   "The gun doesn't make you invulnerable, Matt." Audrey gave him a look. "So stop being deputy death-wish and let us go."

   Finn didn't look at all bothered, and instead sent the Donovan man a patronizing look. "Do you expect to scare me with that crude little toy?"

   Matt narrowed his eyes on them. "Why are you here?"

   "Our sister Freya has been taken." Elijah answered, Matt making a face. "Yes, we have another." He answered boredly. "Option one-- you go about your business like a good little boy." He begins, walking closer to him, not caring about the gun at all. "Option two? Violent disembowelment. What's it gonna be?"

   "I'm gonna go with option three-- this is my town, my business." Matt didn't let the threat faze him, or at least, he didn't show it if it did. "Especially when it comes to anything with fangs. Now, you, me, and these ten wooden hollow points can stand here and argue that fact, but... how much time does your sister really have?"

   Audrey rubbed her face with her hands in frustration, resisting the urge to take the gun and hit him around the head with it. Caroline had told her all about how Matt was taking Mystic Falls back from vampires, from the supernatural, but she didn't realize just how serious he was about it. He was willing to threaten to Originals, knowing he couldn't do any true damage to them, knowing they could very easily kill him. Just to get them out of town. 

   "Matt, you'll get us out of your town a lot faster if you just let us--"

   Finn's groans cut her off, making Elijah turn and rush over, as his brother dropped to his knees. "Finn?" 

   Finn swallowed hard as he breathed deeply, looking at Elijah weakly. "I know where they are."

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

"Lucien?"

   The four arrived to the spot in the woods Finn tracked Vincent to, to see Vincent on the ground unconscious, Lucien holding Freya in a headlock as he turns to face them. "Oh, just in time for the party, lads!" He holds up a vial of led liquid and pops the cap off, smirking as he held it up. "Cheers." He grinned before he downed the contents. "Let the fun begin! Can any of you get to me faster than I can rip your darling sister's head off?" Elijah, Finn, and Audrey glanced at one another warily, causing the Castle vampire to chuckle smugly. "Didn't think so."

   Before Lucien can do anything, Finn speeds toward Matt and puts his hand over Matt's own, using Matt's hands to pull the trigger on the gun and shoot at Lucien three times. Freya gasps in pain, revealing the gunshots went through her shoulder so they would end up right in Lucien's heart. 

   Lucien looks at them in surprise as his skin starts to desiccate.  "Oh, you clever bastard." He let out before he and Freya dropped to the ground. 

   "Freya." Audrey rushed and pulled her up, Finn moving behind to hold her in his arms.

   "Hold her head." Elijah instructed, before biting his wrist and pressing it to Freya's lips so she drank, the bullet wounds beginning to heal.

   "It's okay." Finn told her soothingly, as Freya gasped awake, coughing and breathing frantically as she looked around. "You're okay."

   "Where is he?" Freya asked desperately.

   "That guy?" Matt gestured toward Lucien's grey and desiccated body. "Dead."

   Freya's face fell in horror. "No..."

   Elijah cupped his sister's face in his hands, turning her to look at him gently. "Listen to me. It's done. It's over."

   "You don't understand." She let out frantically. "He drank the serum."

   "Freya, what serum?" Audrey asked her calmly, as they all at her in confusion. "What's going on?"

   "He wanted you to kill him." She answered quietly. "You helped him take the final step..."

   Elijah looks behind them as he hears the sound of rustling leaves, and his eyes widen in horror when Lucien rises to his feet. Finn looks absolutely stunned as he sees Lucien develop double-fangs on both the top and bottom jaws, and his irises grow bright red as the darkened vampiric veins around his eyes stretch all the way down his face. Just then, Matt starts to shoot round after round at him, but Lucien just laughs and spreads his arms wide as the bullets pass through him, the wounds causing him no pain and healing as quickly as they're made.

   Lucien backhands Matt so hard that he flies backward and is knocked unconscious, causing Elijah to leap to his feet to fight against him. Elijah gets in several punches but is knocked down quickly, and Finn only has time to lunge at him before Lucien hits him in the chin with a right hook and sends him flying to the ground.

   "No." Freya grabbed Audrey's wrist as she went to help. "Help me." She told her sternly, holding up her cable tied wrists. "I can help them, but I need your help."

   Audrey nodded and helped her get free, while Lucien looked at Elijah mockingly. "Poor show! Poor show! Come on, gents. You can do better, surely!" Elijah rushes toward him, only for Lucien to kick him backwards in the chest. "What do you think, Elijah? This new power-- it suits me, no?" Elijah kept trying to fight against him, only to get knocked back and down with each attempt. " I've pondered this... Whom to end first, you or Klaus? I had thought him. But now that I'm here, I think it should be you."

   Lucien lifts Elijah up by the lapels and lets his fangs out to bite Elijah "NO!" Audrey yelled, but before she could do anything, Finn appeared behind Lucien and smashed the old basin over his head, causing him to drop his hold on Elijah. 

   Lucien snarled and sunk his teeth into Finn's neck, causing Finn to scream out in pain as he bit him. He lets him go and Elijah catches Finn before he can hit the ground. The Mikaelsons stare at Lucien in horror as he licks the blood from his lips, but when he tries to walk toward them, he's unable to move farther than a few steps as Freya thrusts out her now unbound yet bloody wrists, blocking him from getting any closer. 

   "A barrier spell. How delicious." He tests the spell by running his fingers along the invisible boundary. "I do appreciate a bit of spice being thrown into the hunt. It isn't very fun if the quarry just rolls over and offers its neck, is it?"

   "I can keep this up as long as I need to." Freya sneered at him determinedly. 

   Lucien smirked. "I don't doubt it, you little minx. Never mind. I have waited a thousand years... I can wait a tad longer. I'm gonna enjoy making this last a long time."

   Lucien rushes away so quickly its as if he's simply vanished, leaving the unconscious Matt and the weakened Vincent, Finn, Freya, Audrey and Elijah behind to deal with their injuries. Freya and Elijah waste no time crawling over to Finn to check on him as he wheezes on the ground, writhing in pain.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

"Don't leave me in here! Don't leave me alone!" 

   With one of his arms around each of their shoulders, Elijah and Audrey struggled to carry Finn into the compound, as he writhed and shouted incoherently. His symptoms had only been getting worse the entire journey back to New Orleans, Lucien's bite taking a quick effect over him.

   "Put him down." Elijah nodded to Audrey, and the pair eased him down onto the couch.

   Freya quickly bent down at his side, trying to calm him as he thrashed around. "Hey, hey, hey. You're not alone, Finn. I'm here." She assured him, taking his hand in hers.

   As Elijah tried to help steady him, Finn grabbed onto his hand tightly and stared him in the eyes. "Don't leave..."

   "Why is he talking like this?" Freya asked in worry.

   "It's hallucinations of our betrayal." Elijah answered uncomfortably. "It's his nightmare."

   At that moment, Kol walked into the room, looking unbothered by the sight of Finn's discomfort as he heads straight for the opposite couch, where he flops onto his back. "Well, he looks awful. Werewolf bite. That's got to hurt, mate. So, Lucien's a bloody hybrid?"

   "We don't know what he is." Elijah answered him. "His venom seems to work twice as fast."

   "That's good." Freya tried to be optimistic. "Maybe it'll work through his system twice as fast."

   Kol sat up and shrugged as he got to his feet. "Or it's twice as lethal. Now, if Niklaus doesn't get here in time, he might die." He mused. "With a bit of luck..." He added.

   Appalled, Freya sprung to her feet and punched him in the face, causing his face to change toward her. "What is wrong with you?" She demanded.

   "Kol, hey!" Audrey quickly got between them and pushed him back. "Calm down!"

   "Behave yourselves!" Elijah ordered as he helped keep them apart. "Both of you."

   "Sibling squabbling. How familiar." Klaus's voice interrupted as he walked in, breaking up the fighting entirely. "Although, the teams seem to have changed... Someone care to tell me why?"

   "Our brother needs us." Elijah told him firmly.

   Finn moans and wheezes from the couch, and the sight of him wipes the smirk off of Klaus' face. Klaus looks between Finn and Elijah for a moment before sighing in exasperation and walking over to Finn. He rolls up his sleeve, bites his wrist, and feeds Finn his blood while the others watch in varying states of surprise.

   After moment, Finn stops feeding and sighs in relief, causing Klaus to pull his wrist away. "Thank you, brother." He breathed out as he calmed down.

   "How are you feeling?" Freya asked as she bent down beside him.

   "I feel..." He looked thoughtful and let out a weak chuckle. "Strangely euphoric."

   Klaus smirked from where he stood behind the couch. "I've been known to have that effect."

   Kol watched for a moment before he rolled his eyes, slowly and dramatically clapping.  "What a precious family moment. Pardon me while I go and gouge out my eyes with a hot poker."

   As everyone else looked at him, unimpressed, Finn just looked toward Kol with a serious expression. "I thank even you, Kol. Your little witch actually came through." He let out. "Today... I saw a glimpse of your coveted "Always and Forever.". And I--"

   He's cut off as he breakout into an intense coughing fit, throwing himself over the edge of the couch as he vomited blood up onto the ground. "Finn!" Klaus rushed over to his side.

   Audrey moved to help hold him down, as Finn once again began to thrash and writhe violently in pain, his symptoms returning like they never left. "What's wrong with him?" Elijah let out in utter disbelief.

   "His body." Freya whimpered in horror. "It's dying."

   Audrey swallowed hard as she looked at the side of Finn's neck, seeing the bite worse than it was before. "His bite is getting worse."

   "No!" Klaus let out adamantly, in denial. "No, it's not possible! I cured him."

   "Freya--" Finn grunted as he wheezed, clawing in their grip.

   "Hey, it's going to be alright, brother. We'll fix this, you'll see. Okay?" The Mikaelson witch tried to pull herself together, and turned to her brothers with a urgent look. "Get my pendant."

   "It won't work." Kol let out, as Elijah turned to go grab it. "Davina fused his soul to his body." 

   "We've got to try!" Freya snapped, losing her temper in frustration. "There's no Other Side! No Ancestral well if he dies!"

   Klaus's tone became desperate as he turned toward Kol. "No, get your bloody girlfriend back here to undo what she's done! Finn, you will drink from the source until Freya can move you."

   He bites into his wrist to feed him, but Finn stops him. "No." He let out anxiously.  "Don't leave me alone."

   Freya grabs Finn's right hand and squeezes it, just as Elijah takes Finn's left. Klaus, standing behind Finn's head, reaches out and puts his hand on his chest, and Finn smiles weakly when he realizes he's not alone. "Brother? Finn? Hey, brother, we're here. We are here. I'm here, brother." Looking guilty, Kol reaches out and places a hand on Finn's leg as Freya broke down into sobs. "You are not alone. I am here. I am here. I am here with you. Okay? I'm with you."

   Elijah grips Finn's hand tighter and does his best to keep himself from crying just as Finn looks up at him one last time before his skin desiccates and turns gray, the life slowly leaving his eyes. Freya breaks down, and tears start to fall down Elijah and Klaus' cheeks. Even Kol can't help but shed a tear at the loss of his brother and the sadness his siblings are feeling as they slowly let go. Audrey stepped back and placed her hand on Elijah's shoulder, squeezing it silently in comfort as she bowed her head in respect.

   None of them in that moment, able to picture how things could get worse than this. But they were truly about to get much worse.

Double update? I was on a bit of roll writing again, and sat binge watching old Dream SMP streams as I wrote. We're very quickly approaching the end of season 3 now, and everything is about to get very intense. 

I hope you all enjoyed!