𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙋𝙏𝙀𝙍 𝙏𝙒𝙀𝙉𝙏𝙔
ミ★ ( reign of wolves, act one ) ★彡

     Caroline Forbes closed her binder with a relieved sigh. She reached back to stretch out her arms while Rhea reached for her coffee mug that was rather empty and was barely lukewarm from how long it had been sitting on the cafe table completely untouched for the last hour. Rhea had paid for the thing, so she wasn't going to complain that it was cold, she was just going to suck it up and drink it rather than just let it sit there for longer. The pair of childhood friends had decided that it had been too long since the last time they had seen each other in person—it being over a year since she had left Mystic Falls with the Mikaelsons—and the FaceTime calls were no longer sufficient.

     They met in the next town over from New Orleans. Rhea didn't want to drag her friend in the middle of whatever was happening in her city and if they were finally going to get through the planning of her wedding, she knew that New Orleans would be nothing but a place for distraction.

     "Now, that's finally done," Caroline exhaled, "I feel like I can finally breathe."

     "You're telling me." Rhea huffed, "You'd think being engaged would be a happy time... I just feel stressed."

     Caroline sent her an amused smirk, "No bride has ever said that planning a wedding would be easy." She reminded her friend, "But, that's why you have me... and Elijah." Her mouth downturned into a confused frown, "I barely had to do anything. His taste is impressive—I'm almost jealous. You really lucked out with him. You have it all."

     "Yeah..." She said in a quiet voice, looking down at her hands to fidget with them a little. She had it all. She had the man of her dreams, a family, friends; she had the strength of a being like no other, she could never get sick or die, or age; she could hear and see for miles. She had it all but there was still that part of her that yearned for the life that she had once before.

     "You're not excited." Caroline noted, "Why are you not excited? You're not getting cold feet, are you?"

Rhea looked up at her in shock, "What? God, no! I love Elijah and I want to marry him, it's just that... I don't know, it's stupid." She let out a sigh and shook her head, not sure how to say her inner thoughts, "I guess there's a part of me that envisioned my wedding day to go a little differently. It feels wrong to throw this big celebration of our marriage when everything in our lives is going sideways." She confessed and Caroline looked concerned as she continued, "Tyler hates me; as does ninety percent of Mystic Falls—people I grew up with—Rebekah left town because of Klaus and won't go anywhere near sniffing distance, Katherine's half in a grave with the way she's going, Kol's dead and as are my parents."

Rhea frowned as she thought about her parents once more, "I mean, I hated my dad. I hated him but there was always that little girl in me that wanted him to be there to walk me down the aisle and give me away to the man I married." She admitted, gnawing on her bottom lip, "And despite how rocky my relationship was with my mom, I wanted to be able to look into the stands and see her cry tears of happiness that her little girl was getting married. I won't get that anymore. My friends are all pretty much dead or on their way to ending up dead and I can't even bring myself to pick a date because even if I do—there's a chance that some enemy from before I was even born could come and ruin it."

"You're thinking too much into this." Caroline decided, "You're thinking of your wedding day as something that's to please others. Your wedding day is for you and Elijah. Everyone would support you if you decided to elope and save the celebration for another day when things are calm—not to mention when you and your annoyingly resourceful Mikaelsons find a way to bring the people you care about back."

Rhea gave her a warm smile. Caroline always knew how to make her feel better. She was right as well; the Mikaelsons were annoyingly resourceful at getting their way and somehow finding a way to survive against all odds or even somehow springing back to life.

"Would you really support me if I decided to elope?" Rhea then asked.

"Only if you still invite me."

When Rhea returned to the compound, she returned seeing an incredibly impatient Hayley standing next to Elijah who was on the phone to his brother, "Yes, brother, what is it?" Klaus breathed out when he answered.

"It appears our wolves have gone astray, brother." Elijah stated and Rhea's eyes widened when she realised why the tension in the air was so thick. She had completely forgotten the fact that Jackson and Oliver were sent to collect the black kyanite stones for the Crescent wolves and their curse.

"They should have been back hours ago." Hayley cut in as she anxiously paced around in a circle, chewing on her bottom lip as she thought about all of the horrible things that could be happening to them at that very moment. She had grown attached to Jackson—increasingly so—ever since they first met. She would be the first to admit that his revelation of their arranged betrothal shocked her, but after getting to know him... she wasn't exactly opposed to the idea.

Jackson was a good man. He had proved it to her many a time, and after the life Hayley had growing up, she needed good in her life. Jackson was what she needed despite what her heart had lead her to in the past; like Klaus. If anything, she needed what Rhea and Elijah had.

"We need to find them." Elijah urged him.

"Well, that might be a bit tricky. You see, we've located their car on a back road in the middle of nowhere. I suspect they've been shanghai'd." Klaus informed his older brother.

Elijah froze, "And you didn't feel the need to share this information?"

"It was my intention to present you with a problem only after I had found an appropriate solution." Klaus explained his reasonings.

"Do enlighten us." Elijah requested almost sarcastically.

"I'm closing in on it as we speak. The only person who would be bold enough to snatch my wolf allies is the one who has the most to lose." Klaus thought out loud.

Rhea sighed in realisation, "Marcel." It had to be from how he was recklessly attacking everyone in his former city. Marcel no longer cared who got hurt as long as he got his payback for getting banished out of New Orleans.

Hayley's eyes widened in fear. If Marcel was behind their disappearance, then they definitely weren't safe. "No, he'll kill them!"

"Genevieve assures me that Marcel has procured a cloaking spell. The only witch who will aid Marcel is Davina. I just need to get one last bit of leverage before I pay her a visit." Klaus explained and Rhea sighed when she realised that Klaus was going to do something horrific to get something out of Davina, "And there it is." He then hung up the phone.

"If Davina doesn't hate us all now, she probably will if Klaus does anything to hurt someone she cares about." Rhea muttered sadly.

Within the hour, Klaus texted them an address and Rhea went with Elijah to the docks to find Jackson, who was bound to his chair and had a black hood over his head—but Marcel and little sidekick, Diego, are both gone. Klaus ripped the hood off of the werewolf's head and he flinched, thinking he was about to be tortured again but relaxed when he realised he was actually being rescued.

Klaus grabbed Jackson's face in his hand, "Accolades to Marcel, he did quite a dance across the bridge of your nose." He said as he examined his facial injuries that were slowly healing, but the damage was so severe that it still looked quite painful, "Where is he now?"

Jackson looked around, and then looked down at the floor to find that there was an explosive rigged to the legs of his chair, which was connected to a crate that had an even larger bomb inside.

"Nowhere to be found." Elijah answered for him as he walked over to the large crate and opened it, revealing another explosive, "Although, he did leave us a delightful parting gift." Rhea's eyes widened but she almost immediately recognised the explosive device as the ones used at the encampment the day they were attacked.

"What about the stones?" Klaus asked Jackson.

"I don't know. Untie me, I'll help you find them!" Jackson answered him frantically.

"Oh, my God, please sit still!" Rhea exclaimed as as she rushed to him, "If you move too much you'll blow yourself up and I don't really feel like ruining this outfit."

Elijah grimaced, "Maybe you should allow me to examine at such close proximity." He said to his soulmate, gently moving her aside in case if the device did explode, he wouldn't die but she would. Elijah then knelt down to examine the triggers on Jackson's chair, while Klaus looked into another crate, which held yet another bomb.

"Our focus should be the stones." Klaus said with disdain.

Elijah smiled at Jackson, "Disregard my brother. Over the course of the last millennium, his capacity for tact has somewhat diminished."

"Well, that's typical, isn't it? Marcel fills a room with dynamite, and yet, I'm the tactless one." The Original hybrid complained with annoyance.

Rhea rolled her eyes at them and she opened another crate, letting out another sigh seeing the bomb inside of it, "This is so overkill." She commented before muttering, "There has to be somewhat of a compliment in this somewhere."

"I recognise these explosives from the attack on the Bayou." Elijah also noticed before turning to his brother, "Could you remind me, again, why you believed that Marcel was innocent?"

Klaus simply shrugged, "Remind me to ask him before I pull out his innards." Klaus opened another crate that contained at least six bombs, "Okay—" He gestured around him and the crate, "—Exercise extreme caution in this general area. Bit of a mess."

"This whole loft needs exercised caution, as you put it." Rhea remarked, gesturing to all of the crates around them.

Elijah's cell phone then rang and he saw Hayley is calling him. He answered it saying, "Impeccable timing."

"What's going on?" Hayley demanded to know.

"Jackson is fine." Elijah lied, "He's... a little tied up right now. Can we call you back?" Klaus and Rhea sniggered at Elijah's joke, Jackson only sending her a flat look, not finding the joke funny.

Klaus then flipped open another crate, his smile dropping to a frown when he saw another handful of bombs with a folded slip of paper on top. His frown then deepened just as the red blinking light on the bombs turn green, "Oh, that doesn't bode well."

"Are you trying to kill us?" Jackson snarled.

Having heard Jackson and what he said, Hayley said, "Elijah, tell me what's going on, now!"

Klaus picked up the folded paper as they all watched him read it out in a whisper, "This is for Thierry."

Rhea, Klaus and Elijah realise they'd been set up, so Elijah quickly grabbed Jackson as they all sped away as quickly as they could. The building exploded in huge bursts while Hayley was left listening to everything and could only sit in her spot in crippling fear.

Hayley was pacing around in the study when Elijah, Klaus, Rhea and Jackson, all looking very disheveled and covered in ash, returned home. Jackson groaned and turned to Elijah, who was carrying him into the compound, "I got it."

Hayley ran toward them, "Thank god you're alive!" She gasped as she hugged Jackson, thanking Rhea and Elijah over his shoulder before she sat Jackson down to tend to his wounds.

"I'm fine, too, thanks for asking." Klaus spoke sarcastically.

"Yeah, me and Elijah, too." Rhea said before turning to Jackson, "Why is it every time I'm around you there's some sort of explosion or something?"

Jackson only shrugged slyly before wincing at how the action hurt his ribs. Hayley looked at the Mikaelsons, "What about the stones?"

Elijah only sighed, "Scattered across the bed of the Mississippi, I'd imagine."

Klaus went to pour himself a drink, "Marcel's not a fool. He knows an empowered werewolf army would mean the end of vampires in New Orleans. The explosion is his way of saying he means to prevent that. For all the good it'll do him."

"Well, it did him pretty damn well, didn't it?" Hayley remarked as she looked at Elijah, who only frowned in response.

"This is my fault. I'll find a way to fix it." Jackson said, shaking his head with disappointment in himself.

Hayley rubbed his shoulder affectionately, "No, Jack, you're hurt. No one's blaming you." She disagreed.

"I'm blaming you!" Klaus said.

"Shut up, Klaus!" Rhea hissed, "Marcel is your adoptive son so his actions are technically your fault why he's acting out like this."

"He may be my adoptive son and he might've got the one up on us, but unfortunately for him, I always have a backup plan." Klaus smirked evilly.

Within the hour, Francesca walked into the compound with five other men, all of whom were wearing suits, and one of was carrying a briefcase. Klaus, Elijah, Rhea, Hayley, and Jackson went downstairs to greet her upon her arrival.

"You can't seriously mean her! She's a gangster!" Hayley exclaimed as soon as she saw her.

"And we are all supernatural creatures, I unfortunately have to say we can't judge her lifestyle, Hayley." Rhea sighed.

"I see her more as a means of procuring rare items at short notice." Klaus says as he turned to Francesca and her entourage, "Greetings, Ms. Correa! I see you've brought company."

Francesca gestured to the men behind her, "These are my brothers. I always include them in delicate business matters." She introduced them before saying, "Fellas, meet Mr. Mikaelson."

Klaus smiled, "Please, call me Klaus. All my friends do."

Francesca smiled back, "I don't know if I'd call us friends." She then reached into the briefcase her brother is holding, and pulled out a small black drawstring bag, "But, if you and Marcel are planning on having a little throw-down, I'd prefer my family to be on the same side as the inevitable victor."

"Then, you have what I asked for?"

Francesca held out the bag, "Not enough for an army at such short notice, but, it's a start."

"Strange. I wasn't aware that she was familiar with our plan." Elijah spoke up, Rhea crossing her arms as she also wondered when she became aware of everything also.

"My price for doing business is full disclosure. Your brother complied." Francesca explained.

"And what does the human faction stand to benefit from all of this?" Elijah asked cautiously. He doesn't trust her motives.

"I only want us to solidify our allegiance to the ruling class. It's good for business." Francesca answered.

Klaus remained the stones in his hand, "If only everyone shared your capacity for reason."

"Sadly, they don't. Marcel is being especially vindictive. I'm worried he might come after me, or my family, just for meeting with you." She took a deep breath, "It might be in our best interests if we combine our efforts."

     Klaus only grinned in response, "So be it! The more bodies we have to defend the compound, the better. Let's get started, shall we?"

     Genevieve arrived to the compound within minutes after Klaus called her to come by, whether she was eager to be with him or because she wanted to do the spell, Rhea couldn't tell. But, they were quick to get to work and Genevieve started the spell on the moonlight rings while Klaus, Rhea, Hayley, and Elijah watch carefully. She placed her hand out and began to chant.

     Francesca rushed into the room after a few moments, "My people say Marcel is on the move, and he's bringing friends."

     Klaus turned to Elijah and Rhea, "Get Hayley to safety."

     Elijah immediately walked over to Hayley to grab her arm, "Come with us." He told her.

     Hayley removed his arm from his grip, "No. Some needs to watch her." She says and she gestured to Genevieve.

     Francesca looked at Elijah and Rhea, "You should help Klaus. My brothers and their security detail won't be much against a vampire army. I'll stay with Hayley."

     The couple looked at Hayley who nodded, "Go." She urged before she added, "And don't hold back."

     They reluctantly agreed to the plan and left the study.

     The couple strolled downstairs into the courtyard where Francesca's brothers and their security guards were aiming guns at the vampires who had flooded in from every direction. They joined Klaus in the center of the room as the vampires surrounded them on all sides.

     Klaus smirked, "I thought this lot had learnt their lesson!"

     "Well, they're not exactly renowned for their genius." Elijah remarked.

     Klaus looked in the crowd, searching for Marcel among the faces that surrounded them, "So, where's the ringleader of this circus?" He asked them as he turned to face the other side of the room, "Too afraid to show his face? "

     Marcel appeared on the balcony, "I'm here! And I'm gonna offer you one last chance to pack your stuff and get the hell out of my town."

     "You'll allow your men to rush to their deaths?" Rhea asked Marcel, cocking her head to the side as she added, "Again?"

     "Look around." Marcel said, holding his arms out and gesturing at everyone that was surrounding them, "Every vampire in the Quarter is coming out! They want their city back. No surrender this time. You're gonna have to kill us all."

     Klaus' jaw clenched as he seemed completely unfazed by the ultimatum, already having made up his mind, "Okay! I think I'll start with you."

     "Fine." Marcel responded, "Then, come get me." Within a blink, Marcel was gone.

     "If you don't kill him, I will." Elijah stated to Klaus angrily, regretting having not killed him earlier after what he had done to Rhea.

     "He's mine." Klaus shook his head, "This won't take long."

     Klaus then followed after Marcel, leaving Elijah and Rhea with the rest of the vampires. Elijah confidently unbuttoned his jacket while Rhea cracked her neck. Elijah looked over at her and smiled, not noticing a drop of fear on her, only blind rage that she planned to take out on each of them, "Gentleman." He started before he held his arms out wide, "Shall we?"

     Vampires started to jump down from the balconies and lunge for them, and without hesitation, they fought back.

     Despite being fiercely and severity outnumbered, it seemed that the couple could hold their own and could still manage to win the fight. Both with their strength and skill, they managed to take on Marcel's wannabe army. Maybe vampires tried to stake them but they simply stole them back and used the stakes on them instead or Rhea tore into their jugular with her toxic hybrid teeth.

     Upstairs, one of the security guards made his way into the room where Genevieve was still casting the spell, in order to get Francesca out of there. Francesca held up a hand, "Not yet."

     "Ms. Correa, we need to go. Your brothers are already headed out the back." The security guard told her.

     Hayley's phone buzzed with a call from Cami while Genevieve continued to chant. Hayley ignored it so she could keep watching Genevieve, not wanting to take her eyes off of her for even a second because of how little she trusted her. Once the witch stopped chanting, she picked the stone up to examine it. She seemed impressed by her work, "The stones are finished. I've done my part. Now, it's up to you."

     Hayley went to grab the stones, "I'll get them to the Bayou."

     Francesca walked over to Genevieve and held out her hand, "Actually, she was talking to me."

     Hayley looked in between the two women with narrowed eyes, "What the hell is this?"

     Genevieve, looking guilty, placed the stone in Francesca's hand, "Call it a side deal. The point is, I'm taking the stones."

     She started to walk away and Hayley followed after her angrily, "Are you out of your mind? You think the humans can go up against Klaus?"

     Francesca stopped walking and turned to face her, "No, I don't. But, I'm not human." She told her before she pulled out a knife, and used it to slit the throat of her bodyguard. When the bodyguard dies, she doubled over in pain almost immediately. She looked back up at Hayley with gold eyes and fangs, "I'm like you, Hayley. And now, I'm gonna take back my town!"

     Hayley lunged for Francesca as she snarled, "Like hell you are!"

     Before she could do any damage, Genevieve used a spell to knock Hayley out, and she fell on the floor. Genevieve gave Francesca the rest of the stones, despite the nervous and guilty expression on her face, "Don't look so sour, Genevieve. We both got what we wanted." Francesca walked away from the witch and went downstairs to her brothers and began to and out the moonlight stones to them, "We spent two generations living a lie. And now, our time. Our time has come." She says as she squeezed one brother's shoulder, "You know what to do."

     When she left them alone, one of her brothers killed another bodyguard to trigger his werewolf curse, as did the rest of them until each of them were all werewolves, fully in control of their curse.

     By the end of the fight, the fountain in the courtyard was full of blood, the once clear water only gushing red instead while Elijah and Rhea paced around the room at all of the severely injured, slowly dying and already dead vampires laying around the room. Rhea wiped her forehead from the blood that was dripping down into her eyes, only for it to smudge because of her bloodied hands. She could only wait for the godly shower she was going to take—but she knew her cute outfit was going in the bin because there was no amount of washing detergent that could get out the blood that had drenched her clothes.

     "Are we done?" Elijah asked them with boredom.

     Diego was lurking in the corner, he was injured but braced for another fight when Francesca entered the room, "Well, nice job! Saved me the trouble of killing all these vampires myself!"

     "What the hell are you talking about?" Rhea spat at her but didn't receive a response, only watched in horror as two of Francesca's brothers viciously bit into Elijah's neck. She turned to look at Diego, "RUN!" She ordered them and all of the wounded vampires who could still run, did so.

     Elijah dropped to the ground and Rhea snarled at the Correa brothers, one of them going to attack her as well but her hand went into his chest and pulled his heart out instantly and she snapped the neck of the other. Francesca glared at her before telling her other brothers, "Kill as many of them as you can."

     The newly-turned werewolves rushed around and attacked all of the vampires that they could get their hands on. Before Diego could get away, one of the brothers finds him and latched onto his neck.

     "Bring it on, bitch." Rhea snarled before she lunged at Francesca, getting impaled in the heart by the knife that she still held in her hand from when she killed her security guard.

She let out a groan as she felt her skin desiccate, "Bitch." She coughed as she fell to the ground, dead. Elijah let out a groan, his own skin desiccating as well while he stayed unconscious.

     Francesca only smirked as she stepped over her dead body and left the compound.

     When Marcel returned to the compound, he couldn't help the shock and the horror that he felt when he saw all of his vampires laying around the compound, either dead or dying from werewolf bites, "No. No, no, no, no, no." He mumbled, completely distraught as he knelt beside one of his vampires, only to find that they were dead.

When he checked on another one, he realised they had been attacked by werewolves—but he just wasn't sure whether it was done by Rhea, who was laying dead beside them, or by another person. Diego limped into the courtyard, covered in bite marks, "Marcel. I'm sorry." He says and Marcel went to hug him, but Diego stumbled and fell.

The Gerard man caught him before he hit the ground, "Rhea got you good. It's okay though, Diego, she's dead now."

"It... wasn't... Rhea." Diego choked and Marcel looked fearful, "She—she... tried to protect... us."

Cami suddenly rushed into the courtyard, "Oh my God, Marcel! I've been trying to find someone, anyone!" She then looked around and takes in the scene, "Where—what's happening?"

Marcel walked over to her and clutched her shoulders, "You gotta get outta here. My guys have been bitten by wolves. They'll get sick, and then blood-crazy."

Cami noticed the hybrid bite on him and says, "We need to find Klaus. His blood can heal you." Clearly unaware that it was from Klaus.

Suddenly, Elijah and Rhea sat up with a gasp. Rhea immediately placed her hand over her heart where the knife had pierced her body when Elijah was by her side.

     "Are you okay?" He worried over her, looking over her body to make sure she was unharmed while she looked utterly concerned, "I felt you die—as if you were actually dead."

Rhea had momentarily died from a neck snap before, but she had never gotten into the situation where she actually would die from a wound that would kill an ordinary vampire—like a dagger to the heart or the removal of the organ all together. Elijah felt as if it was his own heart that received the violence but thankfully the necklace he had given her back when they went to Italy still resided around her neck and protected her.

What concerned him, was whether it would work again if Rhea found herself in that same position. He didn't know how strong Matteo spelled it, and he didn't want to wait around to find out, "I was dead." Rhea confirmed, before her hand touched where her necklace was that Matteo had spelled for her, "Thank God for witches, huh?"

     "Witches." Elijah repeated back in a hushed tone before he then realised and ran upstairs to where he had last seen Hayley.

     Cami ran over to the hybrid, "Are you okay?"

     "I'm fine." She said as she stood up off of the ground, "Francesca's entire family are fucking werewolves and they have the stones." She told them and Cami's eyes widened as if she had just confirmed something for her and Marcel almost relaxed as if it wasn't her that killed all of his men.

     Elijah then stormed into the room, "She's gone!" He yelled, "Where is she?" He snarled at Marcel and threw a chair angrily, "Where is Hayley?"

     Rhea's eyes widened as she didn't even realise that she was missing during the commotion... or her death.

     Cami threw herself protectively between Marcel and Elijah before the Original could get to him, "He doesn't have her! Please! I know you don't trust him, but you know I wouldn't lie. He doesn't have her."

     "Someone does." He responded calmly as he walked over to Marcel, "Where is my brother?"

     Marcel sighed, "I left him in the street. He was gonna kill me. And then he got jacked up by some witch's spell." He started to pant, clearly weak from the hybrid bite and the fight from earlier.

     Elijah and Rhea then realised, and they both furiously growled out, "Genevieve."