𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘-𝐎𝐍𝐄 — the dislodged stick

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𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 Elijah had hosted, despite its rather placid start, had ended just as Ophelia had thought; with a fight. 

The siphon and the noble original had stowed themselves away in his office, swaying to music that wasn't suited for a slow dance, but they continued, chest to chest, nonetheless. That is until a commotion had been heard.

It seemed that Oliver and Diego had gotten rather... boisterous with one another; not entirely surprising as the pair were untamable little beasts. Of course, Elijah interrupted with a threat to which Hayley did not take lightly. The wolf with the swollen tum had practically stormed down the stairs of the compound, words of wisdom on her lips as she listed the dastardly deeds of each faction; pointing out that the only one in the room who hadn't even shown her face to the crowd, the one who wanted to aid Elijah's quest to peace had locked herself away.

The wolf shouted and scolded each faction as though they were mere children, telling them that each of them had committed atrocities, and none of them were exempt from the consequences. Ophelia had joined her side, looking rather out of place amidst the dresses and suits that everybody adorned. But that didn't stop the siphon from speaking her own words,

"All of you, each faction despises me, whether for things I've done or simply because of what I am. I didn't attend this 'party' because of that, Elijah wants peace and my presence disrupts that. But clearly the animosity between the rest of you is a far larger obstacle. You all say you want to protect your people, and yet here you are, starting fights and putting your own people in danger. If that's the case, kill each other. Do it now and save the rest of us the energy of waiting for you all to get over yourselves. Either kill each other or put some effort into creating a community, because if you don't, New Orleans will forever be at war, and your people, your families will never be safe."

Hayley had stood by the siphons side, the pair of them holding their heads high as humans, witches, vampires, and wolves stared and finally digested their words. 

The night had ended far better than the party; the leaders of the factions; Hayley, Diego, Genevieve, and Francesca, as well as Ophelia and Elijah, had all come together with slices upon their hands, their blood mixing in an inkwell before each of them signed their names on Elijah's treaty.

 Solidifying their promise for peace in New Orleans.

⋆⋆⋆

The morning was an early one indeed. Ophelia had planned to get as much sleep as she possibly could seeing as she lived with vampires who couldn't go an hour without getting themselves into some kind of situation that ruined the minute bursts of peace and quiet that rarely occurred. 

But no, Ophelia had instead awoken to the sounds of drilling and was about ready to curse, hex and place spells upon whoever had the pure audacity to wake her, only then did she recall that it was Elijah who deemed it necessary to remodel the compound.

So, rather than cause the scene that she wanted, Ophelia simply hauled herself from her bed and got herself ready. Her hair had been tamed, her face had been washed and clothes had been slipped on within fifteen minutes. The breeze that bristled throughout the compound brushed against her as she exited her room, her light dress jostling along with the hair that hung un-styled down her back.

Sleep was still evident in her eyes as she lazily made her way towards Elijah who surveyed the work being done. Plants were being hung, vibrant green leaves falling from planters. The ground was being torn up, ready to be replaced with something new and improved.

Her elbows came to rest upon the balcony and Elijah tilted his head towards the siphon, "My apologies for the early rising." his voice rather teasing when he uttered the word 'early'.

"You don't sound sorry at all."

He simply hummed, amusement clear on his face as he concealed a small smile and turned to walk away, his steps taking him to the ground floor. Ophelia watched him walk away after rolling her eyes, admittedly, her eyes did linger on the noble man; his suit was seemingly discarded, instead replaced with a — In Elijah terms — casual set of jeans and a shirt with a slight V-neck, arms on full display.

She shook her head, her tongue wetting her lips as she pushed herself up to follow. Her heels clicked against the steps and along the ground as she made her way back to Elijah's side, and before she could make a comment, Klaus beat her to it, his booming voice louder than the construction as he appeared out of his bedroom, Genevieve trailing behind him, "Enough with all the racket!"

"Is there a problem, brother?" Elijah spoke, entirely unbothered by his brother's outburst. He turned towards the workers, a small nod and gesture directed towards them, signaling them to leave, "Gentlemen, please."

"I agreed to a general sprucing up, not a bloody three-ring circus."

"Marcel and his minions abused our home for the better part of a century. Now, you might be content to live in squalor. I'm not."

"I agree with your brother." Genevieve added; both Ophelia and Elijah sharing a knowing look, "It's a new era in the French Quarter. This place could use a makeover."

"Careful, Elijah. When this one agrees with you, it's a sure sign she wants something."

"Actually, I do have a request. I'm told our coven hasn't been able to celebrate feast days in the open since Marcel restricted the use of magic. Now with the new peace, I'd like that to change."

Ophelia sighed, an unenthusiastic smile on her lips as she addressed the redhead. "Let me guess; La Fête des Bénêdictions?"

Genevieve shifted, a sly smile upon her lips as she regarded the siphon. Her skin crawled as she met the dark eyes of the woman. The ginger could recall the sweet satisfaction of plunging those needles into her, the rush of snapping the bones of an enemy of the ancestors.

Genevieve snapped out of her relishing and nodded, her lips curling upwards, "The Feast of the Blessings. In the past, members of the community offered witches gifts in exchange for blessings. We'd like to use it as a forum for introducing our young Harvest girls to society."

Elijah hummed, his brow quirking just slightly as he ran his eyes over the witch in a less than appealing manner, "So your coven attempted to destroy my family — and you yourself held my siblings in unspeakable torment, as well as that, you tortured Ophelia and placed a curse upon her... Now you would like a party for the witches?" 

Genevieve nodded, ignoring the chuckle that bubbled from Klaus and the small huff from Ophelia, she shrugged, "I made my amends with your brother. Why don't you think it over?" with that, Genevieve spun on her pointed heel and left the compound, shining red hair bouncing as she did.

Ophelia blinked, her eyes drifting from the departing witch to settle on Klaus, a coy smile dusting her lips, "'Making amends' hm?"

Klaus simply grinned at the siphon who shook her head at him before directing his words to his elder brother, "Oh, don't be such a stiff, Elijah. The tourists love a good festival. Besides, what better way to cement the solidarity than a show of faith toward a one-time enemy?"

"A one-time enemy with whom you've grown rather nauseatingly intimate." Elijah replied with a grimace.

"Well, who said maintaining alliances can't be fun?"

Olivia scoffed incuriously, "So drowning isn't fun, but what? Whoring around with the wicked witch of the west is? And here I thought your morals weren't that skewed."

"You just called me a whore." Klaus spoke, his tone plain despite the amusement dancing in his eyes.

"Am I wrong?"

Elijah let out a deep sigh as he rolled his shoulders and looked down at the siphon, "Not at all."

Niklaus rolled his eyes, a small chuckle spewing from his lips as he clasped his hands together behind his back. "So, Lia, will you be gracing us with your presence tonight... Or will you be sneaking around with my brother again, hm?"

Ophelia hummed, a pink painted nail tapping at her plump bottom lip, "Well... Sneaking around with your brother means avoiding you..." She let out a small laugh, "I'll be there."

"Brilliant. Now, are you joining Elijah in his quest to schmooze his guest list," He grinned momentarily at his brothers' eye-roll, before his voice lowered, "Or might I steal you away for a moment?"

Ophelia frowned upon Klaus's change of tone; he had gone from his usual snark filled speech to something far more serious. "I'm not as charming as I sometimes think I am; I think I'd shorten the guest list more than anything, so you can steal me away."

Klaus merely nodded towards the stairs of the abattoir and proceeded to move his way towards them. Ophelia looked up to Elijah with question, though he seemed uncertain as to why his brother's behavior had shifted so suddenly.

"It's best to not leave him waiting," Elijah muttered, his eyes on his brother as the hybrid disappeared into a room. His gaze flicked back to Ophelia, a small smile upon his lips, "Now, I was wondering if I might escort you to the party... Or do I need to sway your answer once again?"

"No need to sway." Ophelia smiled as she took a step backward, eyes on his, "I'll see you tonight."

⋆⋆⋆

"Father Kieran is deteriorating, he is hexed and you are a siphon, can't you just... Get rid of it?" 

Ophelia sighed, her form slouching into the plush couch as she watched Klaus pace, his hands gesturing here and there, "I can take away the hex, Nik, but I'm not a miracle worker. A hex of that magnitude... It takes seconds to taint the mind. If I were to siphon Father Kieran, yes it would take the marking away, but the roots have latched on to his mind, that's not magic; that's mental health."

"So what you're saying is that he's doomed to succumb to his own mind."

"Yes." Ophelia sighed as she placed her elbows atop her knees, chin resting on her clasped hands. "I've distanced myself from Cami because I'm sure that, by now, she knows what I am and the things I can do... She doesn't deserve this, and I won't crush any hope that she has. This is how it ends for Father Kieran."

"There must be something."

"Then continue looking, but you won't find the answer within magic, that I can assure you."

His steps stilled, anger flowing off him in harsh waves as his knuckles grew white. "Bloody witches." he hissed to himself, though Ophelia heard him loud and clear, her head nodding to his statement was a clear sign of that.

"I know. Well, if that's all —"

"— Wait." Klaus interrupted as Ophelia stood. His body loosened as his cerulean eyes met her umber ones, "You met with Davina."

"Elijah brought her to me, yes... Why?"

"Well, love, every chance I had to apologize to you of the misfortunes that befell the little witch were rather rudely brushed to the side by yourself. I am sorry for the part that I played."

Ophelia allowed a small, forgiving smile form upon her lips, "I know you are. But she's family, Nik. You of all people should know how one responds to their family being in danger. I've only ever had Kai, and from the day that I lost him, I promised myself that I would never let anybody in... I couldn't help but allow Davina into my heart... And you helped to rip that from me. I forgive you..." Her voice trailed off before her eyes narrowed at him, "Do anything like it again and I will bring my threats to fruition." 

And she was being entirely serious. She might not have been someone to so openly express her emotions and feelings, in all honesty she didn't see the point. But when she had watched Davina lying still, when she had watched the Harvest ritual fail, she had broken. And though it wasn't all Klaus' fault, he did play a large role. She did forgive him; the blame wasn't on him... but she knew the man, she knew that he would do whatever he could to have his hands clasping around power, around a throne.

"I don't doubt it." Klaus chuckled as he made his way towards the table littered with pots of paint. The wooden surface had splotches of blues and reds, primarily deep shades of red, actually. It seemed to be his preferred color; the color of blood. His calloused hands gripped at a thin brush, "I have a gift for Davina, actually. I'm certain she'll like it."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Nik. You'd be lucky for her to even accept it, whatever it is."

"It's something she won't want to turn down, trust me, little thief."

⋆⋆⋆

"No. Never. Why do I own that? That's not even mine." Ophelia muttered to herself as she rifled through her vast wardrobe. Clothes and hangers littered her wooden floor, creating a rather complex obstacle course for the barefooted siphon.

A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she stumbled backward, almost tripping over the multitudes of discarded clothing until she finally reached her bed and fell onto it with a huff. Now, Ophelia Parker had a very stocked wardrobe... In fact, she had the wardrobe within her bedroom, as well as another in one of the smaller rooms of the compound, so she definitely had a vast array of clothes to choose from... But she was.... Picky.

Normally, for Marcel's parties that she would sporadically attend, she would ask Davina for help; the young witch had a completely different taste to the siphon, but even so, the little witch loved seeing Ophelia wear things that she herself would never attempt to pull off.

Then there was Rebekah who would simply barge into the siphons room every morning before her departure to help find outfits for the siphon, as well as herself.

"Rebekah..." Ophelia whispered, her eyes growing wider as she hopped up. Her freshly painted toes kicked a clear path through the clothing until she finally reached her desk where her laptop was resting. She quickly pulled it open and clicked on Rebekah's name. As per usual, the blonde came through and answered on the third beep, her grinning face popping up on the screen.

"Ophelia! I wasn't expecting a call."

"In all honesty, I wasn't going to call, but I need some help."

As ever, Rebekah's sparkling eyes narrowed in worry, "Are you okay?"

A light laugh escaped the siphon, mildly touched by the originals misplaced worry, "I'm fine, but I have a party to go to tonight..."

"...And you have no idea what to wear?" Rebekah finished, an ever-growing grin pulling at her lips. The original clapped her hands together in delight, "Alright! Show me the contenders!"

By the time the girls had finally agreed on the outfit for Ophelia to wear, two hours had passed. But their choice was certainly one to marvel at; the dress the two had chosen was beautiful; it had a black bodysuit beneath the flowing and sheer fabric, the material that fell over the top of the bodysuit was sheer and black, with golden leaves and vines that heavily covered the chest area and slowly faded out and became sparse towards the bottom of the dress. It was a deep plunge, with just two thin straps that wrapped around her shoulders keeping it in place, but it was gorgeous.

Rebekah had suggested that, for once, the siphon should tie her hair back, rather than use her long brunette waves to obscure the dress, and so, Ophelia pulled her hair back at the base of her skull so that it was slick against her head; not a single bump in sight, and the long ponytail trailed down her almost completely bare back in loose waves. 

A cluster of stars fell from her ears, golden and glittering every time she turned her head and the light caught the earrings. Just her locket hung around her neck. And short, black heels adorned her feet.

"You look absolutely stunning, Ophelia... I'm certain Elijah will think so too." Rebekah teased with a sly grin.

"Rebekah." Ophelia sighed as she kept her gaze on herself in the mirror, her steady hand applying a thin layer of clear gloss to her lips, "It's not —"

"—You are going as his date, aren't you?"

"Well, yes —"

"— Exactly! Come on Ophelia, you know there's something there!"

The siphon smacked her lips together as she slumped in her chair, her eyes falling away from her own reflection to look at Rebekah, "I don't — I don't know."

"Sweetheart. I've been in love more times than I can count, I know when somebody else is smitten." Rebekah's face softened as she assessed her friends' conflict, "I know you separate yourself; I know you're afraid of letting people in... But my brother... He's a good man. He has his own demons; I really believe that you could help each other... I think you could learn to love yourselves whilst loving each other."

Ophelia found herself unable to speak. The words that Rebekah had uttered were nothing short of the truth. She did separate herself, she was afraid of letting people in... And she didn't love herself. She was confident, arrogant at times, but even so, she hated parts of herself.

"There is something." Ophelia spoke, her voice but a whisper, "I know that I feel something. This is an area where I have almost no experience Bek's, I'm afraid of people leaving or being taken from me so I just... I just don't bother to try."

"We're immortal, love. You couldn't get rid of us even if you tried. Take your time, do what makes you comfortable..." Rebekah bit her lip, uncertainty crossing her features as she pondered her next words, "Elijah feels something for you, that much I do know. My brother, he puts everybody's happiness before his own. The people he falls for don't often... Like us, his family, and Nik gets jealous... And so do I if truth be told. But you? You have fought for us from the moment you met us, you have our trust and you've gained it faster than anybody I've ever met. You're a part of this family and you make us all happy, but none more so than Elijah. You make him smile and laugh... That stick up his ass? I think you've almost dislodged it."

Both of the girls let out barks of laughter, and Rebekah smiled; she smiled at the soft and carefree look upon the siphon's face. She looked happy.

Ophelia let out a deep breath, feelings were never her strong suit, she was one to keep them bottled and disregard them entirely. But, no matter how they brushed it away or turned a blind eye; something was there between the siphon and the noble stag; light touches, shared smiles and time spent by one another's side had built and grown over the months that Ophelia had known them all, the only question was; would she allow herself to let him in, let him get that close, and would he want to?

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19-06-21

i hope you all enjoyed this chapter, please let me know what you think, and are you all enjoying the story so far? 

we have just TEN chapters left for part one, and then there will be a hiatus for this story whilst i plan and write part two before posting. i'm unsure of how long the break will be, but i'll update you all before this part ends! ily <3