Elijah was not pleased to hear what'd transpired.
"You should have called me," he said, appearing almost stressed knowing that something might have happened to her, and he wouldn't have gotten there in time to stop it. "I would have arrived in minutes and ensured those vampires left that house."
"You would have killed them," she argued. "And I know Stefan didn't want them permanently dead. It doesn't matter anymore, Elijah. I want to learn to fight and I need to learn to fight. As soon as we're back in New Orleans, I need you to make good on that promise and teach me, please. I need to know how to protect myself."
He sighed. "Your training can begin either when you return from New Orleans after the wedding, or when we return there, if possible. Your plane ticket is ready. The day after tomorrow, Camille will drive you to the airport. I suggest you start packing. Rebekah has a dress prepared for you to wear." He checked the time. "You ought to go to sleep."
Graciela nodded, and went to get Hope. "Come on, baby girl. Sleepy time."
She held her on her hip while she brushed her teeth, then set her on the bed while she changed into pajamas. Hope knocked out almost immediately. Graciela remained propped up against the headboard, her phone in her hands.
'I take it Elijah wasn't happy,' Stefan had messaged while she was getting ready for bed.
'He wasn't. But I knew he would have just killed Enzo. Maybe even Caroline. Who is Enzo, anyway?'
'In the fifties, Damon was abducted by a man named Dr. Whitmore, who experimented on vampires. Tortured them. He and Enzo were prisoners together for the Augustine Society. I didn't know until recently. Damon was there for five years. Enzo for much longer. They bonded. Damon turned off his humanity when he had to leave Enzo behind once he escaped. Enzo survived, they reunited and... he's enacting a promise of misery that Damon made because I never went to rescue him. I never realized he was missing.'
'That sounds awful. I can't even imagine what that must be like...'
'My brother did many awful things when he was alive. But so have I. To an extent, I deserved that eternity of misery. I should have known he was gone, those years.'
'You can't change the past, Stefan. No more than I can, to go back in time and make my siblings be better people. To stop them from hurting innocents. Whatever the reason that you didn't realize it... let it go. Otherwise, what you're doing won't be moving on. It'll be running away from the pain that comes each time you remember the things you regret.'
'You give good advice, you know. Or, at least, you don't hold back from telling people what they need to hear.'
'Every day, I remember that the reason I'm in this situation is because I was ignorant. Because things were being hidden from me and I let it happen by not looking closer. I've learned it's better to be honest even if it isn't what someone wants to hear. I wish my siblings had just been honest with me.'
'You're a good person, Graciela. You're not like them. And you're not like the Mikaelsons, either. Be careful with them.'
'They've been kind to me. I'm not in danger if I'm with Klaus, Rebekah, and Elijah.'
'You say that as if there are more of them that you need to be worried about. They're all that's left. Their parents are dead, and so are two of their brothers.'
She knew he was probably suspicious, so she said, 'I can't tell you more. I wish I could. You're safer not knowing. We both are.'
'I worry that you'll get hurt.'
'Don't worry, the bad guys aren't after me, specifically. Not yet, at least.'
'I know you're safer if I don't know the truth but I hate not being able to help you.'
'You're already helping me with your company. Your friendship. Besides, if you got involved, things wouldn't be normal for you. You'd be trading one hectic existence for another.'
'If it meant helping you have your normal life, I'd do it. I have forever to get back to that. You're mortal and you want to stay mortal. And untriggered.'
'That's the plan. I don't know how long it will last. What if I have to kill someone in self defense?'
'Then you'll have been doing it to protect yourself. You fight to survive. No matter what. How are you going to enjoy your normal life if you don't live, first? Things can still be normal if you trigger your curse. Once a month you'll have to turn, but it's manageable, from my understanding. Some wolves roam free and it helps them. You don't have to chain yourself up.'
'Chain myself up? Why the hell would I do that?'
'That's what I've known when it comes to wolves. They chain themselves up so they don't lose control when they turn.'
'The wolves in the Bayou aren't like that. They were cursed to spend the full moon as humans, the rest of the month as wolves. They roam free always, even after the curse was removed.'
'That sounds a lot more pleasant. There's clearly a lot I need to learn about wolves. And you still need to teach me about music. I've always wanted to learn violin. Never really got to sit down and do it, though.'
'I actually have my violin with me. I can play you a song, send you the video. Or I could call you, and perform it live. Not right now, though, Elijah's asleep. But tomorrow?'
'I'd like that. I look forward to it. I should probably let you sleep, too.'
'I'm not tired. But if you are, then I'll try to fall asleep.'
'I'm not tired, either. Should we play the questions game again?'
'Alright. You ask first.'
'If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be?'
She thought about it for a moment, then typed, 'Probably France. I know how to speak French and Spanish but I don't really get to use it. The most I can do is understand what spells a witch is casting, not that that'll do me much good if I'm the one getting cursed. Like, oh no, they're breaking my bones... and then... I'm watching my bones break... feeling them break... and can't really do anything about it?? But at least I know what they're doing to me?'
He sent a laughing emoji. 'Maybe you could use the spell on another person.'
'Oh, yes, certainly, I'll wave my hands and stuff will definitely happen.'
'Go on, try it. What's the bone breaking spell?'
'Am I suppose to try and break your bones over the phone?'
'If you're a good witch, you'll manage it.'
'What part of 'I'm an untriggered werewolf' did you not get?'
'Sure you're your dad's kid? Maybe you're actually a witch.'
'Both of my parents were werewolves. I have blood and genetic tests proving I'm their kid.'
'And what prompted that investigation?'
'I was curious about doing a Punnett Square to match blood types between them, myself, and my siblings. Plus, it's good to know your blood type. If I actually have really rare blood, I would need to know that.'
'Aside from your blood type, did you learn anything interesting?'
'Um, I'm not going to get Alzheimer's. But that's about it. It was a while ago, I don't remember what the results consisted of. Have you ever had a genetic test done?'
'No, by the time those were more accessible, I was a vampire and didn't need one. I can heal from anything, and I'm technically a corpse that is able to move as if all is well, when it isn't.'
'Well, when you put it like that, it sounds so wrong.'
'It's the truth. Anyway, your turn to ask a question.'
'I forgot we were playing. If you could be any other species, what would you be?'
'Easy, witch. They're mortal and powerful and I could make my meals cook themselves if I wanted to. What about you?'
'Probably also a witch. It's convenient to be able to just flick your hand and make stuff happen. Though, they're vulnerable once their magic is compromised.'
'Well, you'd have to dose them with herbs or break their hands for that, and you have to get close to do that. That's not easy.'
'No, but it's possible,' she replied, 'There are other ways of keeping a witch from doing magic, not just lobelia flower. There are cursed manacles that you can put on them so that they can't cast spells.'
'And you've seen these cursed manacles?'
'Yep. They're ugly but they get the job done.'
'I doubt the creator was thinking 'Oh, I should make these super cute so that if the witch is subdued, they at least look fashionable.''
'Hey, I would have considered that if I was the creator. Come on, it's humiliating enough to be a witch with no magic and to have been taken down like that. At least make them comfortable, because it's not like they can take them off themselves anyway.'
'Okay, well, the point is to put them on time-out. I don't think it would be as effective if you put fuzzy manacles on them.'
She scrunched up her nose. 'I didn't say anything about them being fuzzy, that'll just look like a colorful rat's nest. I meant to make the exterior soft. Maybe out of a different material. Plus, fuzzy handcuffs or manacles sounds too kinky, some of them might enjoy it.'
'Do witches in New Orleans like to get handcuffed, then? I didn't know it was possible for the entire Coven to have the same kink.'
'I don't know enough witches to find out if they all have that kink. I suspect they don't, otherwise they'd walk around handcuffed all the time.'
'New Orleans is starting to sound like a weird city. Anything you want to tell me, in case I ever go?'
She giggled to herself as she wrote, 'Oh, yeah, the vampires run massive orgies every night in Algiers and the wolves do the same but on the full moon only. The rest of the month, they just walk around in chokeholds with each other. And the witches, as you know, like their handcuffs.'
'You know, even while knowing that you're joking, I'm having doubts about the vampire and wolf orgies.'
'You do realize that if there were orgies, I wouldn't actually know about it, right? So, I guess we'll never know. You're welcome to come and find out, though, you can be the guinea pig because I sure as hell am not leaving myself vulnerable to horny wolves on a full moon. I'll end up a teen mom and I think Elijah will have a heart attack.'
'Where is your sense of adventure?'
'Oh, okay, BRB, going to join in on the next orgy.'
'Cool, I'll go see if the vampires have room for one more.'
She had to muffle her laugh to keep from waking Hope. She was having fun joking around with him, and she didn't want to sleep, but she was already starting to get tired. 'I'll be honest, I'm already yawning into my hand.'
'Go to sleep. I'll still be here in the morning. I can call during my lunch break.'
'About that. If we end up calling anytime in the future after that, should we have code names for each other? So that we don't reveal anyone's identity?'
'Sure. Your name is Graciela Guerrera. Initials... G.G. Your nickname can be 'Gigi.''
'Okay, I like that. Your name is Stefan Salvatore. Initials S.S. Makes you sound like a steamship.'
'Please don't tell me that's going to be my nickname.'
'It'll be 'Steamship' unless you give me a better alternative. Ooh, unless I just call you 'Chef Stef.''
'I was being nice with my nickname but maybe I should call you something ridiculous.'
'Go for it. How much can you really butcher my name, huh, Salvatore?'
'Oh, we're calling each other by last names now? Wait a second, this isn't fair, yours sounds cooler because it just sounds like I'm calling a warrior in Spanish.'
'See? I win. I can be Gigi and you'll be Chef Stef.'
'You might as well just call me Stefan. There's no danger on your end towards me. You're the one texting me from a safe house.'
'Hmm, I'll figure something out to make things fair. Don't worry. I'm going to try to sleep now.'
'Yeah, of course. Goodnight, Gigi.'
'Goodnight, Chef Stef.'
She set her phone down and laid onto her side, caressing Hope's face before she closed her eyes.
Cami arrived early the next morning to get Hope. Graciela was too tired to get up.
"I'm going to go to the store," said Cami. "Want to come with?"
"I'm too sleepy," she replied, hugging onto her pillow. "Go without me."
"Someone was up late last night. Texting Stefan, I imagine?"
Graciela hid her smile in the pillow. "I just need another fifteen minutes."
"Alright. Elijah's working on fixing some stuff around the property today. If you need him, he'll be outside. Maybe go and keep him some company so he can tell you about his long-lost sister, Freya, being alive."
She nodded. "Thanks." She closed her eyes again, and fell asleep once more.
She awoke around ten minutes later, stretching her legs and forcing herself to get up. She went downstairs to have breakfast, serving herself some cereal and milk. Checking her phone, she was glad to see that Stefan had informed her that his lunch break would happen right at noon. She let him know she'd be ready to play by then.
The door opened behind her. "Hey!" she said, figuring it was Elijah, and not looking up from her phone. "So, I'm going to call Stefan at noon so he can hear me play vi..." she trailed up when she looked up and saw a man who was certainly not Elijah.
"Who the fuck are you?" she asked, standing up quickly and backing away.
"Where is the child?" he demanded.
"What fucking child?" she snapped back. She inched toward the knife rack, and when the man moved toward her, she grabbed one of the knives, holding it up. He flicked his hand, and it flew into the wall.
"I will not ask again," he said. "Where is the child? I know she's here. Camille's sweater was in the living room."
"Elijah!" yelled Graciela, starting to move further away from the man.
"He won't hear you," the witch replied. "He's incapacitated. Tell me, or things will start to be less pleasant for you."
"The fuck do you think, that I'm pleased right now? Get out of this house!"
He swept his hands up, and she flew back into the wall, landing against it hard enough to knock the air out of her lungs. She coughed on the ground, wheezing, unable to stop him from yanking her to her feet.
"Camille!" he yelled, dragging her around the house. "Where are you, Camille? There's no use in hiding! Bring out the baby and this girl here won't need to be harmed further."
They passed by a small table with a decorative vase. Graciela grabbed hold of it, smashing it into the man's head. He let her go, and she started to run to the door, but he made her fall face first. She shrieked as her chin hit the ground, hard. She tried to crawl away to get back to her feet, but felt her body being dragged backwards, toward him.
"ELIJAH!" she screamed, clawing at the ground. "ELIJAH! HELP!"
"He won't hear you," the man repeated. He wove his hand over her, and she let out a scream as her arm twisted itself at an odd angle, breaking it instantly. "Come out of your hiding spot, Camille! I know you're in here!"
Graciela sobbed in pain. "Why are you doing this?" she demanded. "Who the hell are you?!"
"Finn Mikaelson," he said, kicking her down when she tried to stand again. "I'm going to do what should have been done months ago."
She managed to swipe her leg back, knocking him off of his feet. She crawled into the nearest room quickly, holding her arm and lifting herself up, trying to run to the back door. Finn entered the room, and pulled her toward him, forcing her onto her knees.
"If you won't tell me willingly," he said, grabbing her head, "I'll simply take the information right from your—"
She snapped her head down, hitting him right in the groin. Thankfully, that made him yelp, and she was able to grab a painting off the wall, hitting him on the head with it.
"AHH!" she yelled, suddenly holding her temples as a blinding pain shot through her. "Ow— ow— OW! ELIJAH! E— AHHHHHH!"
"You're not a full wolf," Finn panted, his forehead bleeding. "You won't heal from your injuries. I don't imagine you wish to die for that child."
"You're gonna have to kill me," she said, sinking to the ground weakly. "I'm not... gonna tell you... where she is..."
A knife suddenly flew through the open doorway, lodging itself in Finn's abdomen. Elijah sped in, picking Graciela up. She started to run out of the house, her head aching with every step that she took. She could hardly feel her arm, her vision was blurring, and she had a feeling she had a concussion. Her chin was bleeding where it had been scraped, and she sensed there would be bruises on her back.
She brought out her phone when she was outside, whimpering as she called Cami. "Please pick up, please pick up..."
She didn't answer. "Finn doesn't know they're not here, so they're safe," she whispered. "But if he manages to subdue Elijah, and they show up... there's nothing I'll be able to do to protect them..."
Her heart sank when she saw a car approaching in the distance. A car she recognized.
She started to run forward, waving wildly and standing in the middle of the road, so that she would have to stop. Cami did, but pretty far from where she was. Graciela forced herself to run faster, and when she got there, she saw Cami was frantically pressing buttons trying to turn the car on.
"The engine just stopped," she said. "Graciela— you're hurt! What's happening?!"
"Finn is here," she said, collapsing against the door. "I feel..." Everything started to spin. "Got... to... leave..."
Right as she fell, she heard the sound of an explosion in the background. "Oh my god!" said Cami. Graciela could hear the engine running again. She sensed Cami stepping out of the car and lifting her up, but after awhile, she could only hear buzzing.
But then, she was able to make out a conversation between Cami and someone on the phone.
"... house got blown up, we don't know where Elijah is." A pause. "Yes, I know it won't kill him permanently, but how long will it take for him to regenerate? What do we do?" Another pause. "Okay. Okay, I'll tell her."
Graciela felt someone tapping her shoulder. She turned to the side, and saw Stefan. "Stefan?" she whispered. "What are you doing here? Where... are we?"
"Parked behind the auto shop to use the pay phone," he said, helping her sit up. "You weren't waking up. I fed you my blood to heal you."
She felt her arm, which was now back to normal. Her head no longer hurt. "Thank you," she whispered. She pulled him into a hug, sighing shakily, and resting her head on his chest for a moment, her lip starting to tremble. "I was scared... I was so scared... and... oh my god... the house blew up. All my stuff is gone. My violin..."
"All of it can be replaced," he said gently. "We can get you another violin."
She shook her head, tears brimming in her eyes. "My brother got me that violin. He... he got me my violin..." She started to sob, holding his arm tightly.
Suddenly, they heard a rustling sound behind them. Stefan shot up, standing protectively around Cami, Hope, and Graciela.
"Who's there?" he asked loudly.
"If you try anything," said Cami fearfully, "I will gouge out your eyes!"
Elijah appeared in front of them. His clothes were burnt severely, and his entire body was covered in ash. "Actually, Camille, that's probably not necessary. Quickly, we must go."
He ushered them into the car. "Stefan," he said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Thank you. Your help is greatly appreciated. We cannot stay any longer."
"I understand," he said simply. He looked at Graciela. "Be safe. I'll see you around."
"Thank you," she said. "For healing me." She waited until Elijah made his way to the driver's seat to tiptoe and kiss his cheek. He remained still, quite stunned as he watched her climb into the back seat beside Hope. She held onto the little girl's hand, trying not to start crying again.
She couldn't really pay attention while Elijah was explaining how Rebekah had been trapped in a witch asylum and met Freya there. She couldn't pay attention when they got to New Orleans after several hours of driving, and walked into the Compound to greet Klaus, Hayley, and Jackson. The servants were already beginning to lay out materials to decorate for the wedding the following morning.
She went to her room, locking herself in the bathroom and sitting on the edge of the tub, trembling and rubbing her arms, trying to calm herself down. Graciela squeezed her eyes shut tightly, her breathing becoming labored until she started to cry.
Sinking down to the floor, she pulled her legs into into her chest, burying her head between her knees.
"Graciela."
She flinched when she heard Elijah knocking on the bathroom door. "I'm fine," she said, her voice breaking. "I'm gonna go to sleep soon so I can wake up early tomorrow."
"Please, may I come in?"
She almost didn't want to let him. But she croaked out an, "Okay." He opened the door, finding her leaning against the wall in the corner.
To her surprise, he sank down on the ground beside her. "The violin," he murmured. "I am sorry."
"Not your fault," she murmured. "I shouldn't even be crying. It's so stupid."
"You are allowed to miss them. You are allowed to feel pain when gifts they gave you are damaged or lost."
Her lip quivered, and she covered her face. "I miss them so much, Elijah, I try to pretend I don't, I try to act like everything is fine but it's not."
"Are you unhappy here?"
She shook her head. "No, I want to stay, I want to have a family again. B-But I didn't want to lose the one I had. With all their flaws, they still loved me. They were monsters, but..."
"But so are we," he finished. "You are right. Niklaus and I... we've done to others what your siblings did to our family. We've harmed innocents. Schemed and torn families apart."
"I want a normal life," she whispered. "But I don't know if that will ever be attainable. At least not until I can keep myself safe. Today, I felt so pathetic, so weak. That's not how I would have been raised if my family didn't have to hide their abilities. The Guerrera Wolves raised their young to be warriors from a very young age. Maybe if I embrace that, as a shield for myself... I won't feel powerless. And when the opportunity to have a normal life arises... I know I can do so without worrying that someone will barge in to ruin things."
He nodded. "Of course. The day after the wedding, I will take you to Algiers, and we will train. I will teach you to fight, I promise you that. So long as you are careful, and fair. Better than me, than my siblings. Better than your siblings. Do not use your abilities to do harm to the innocent. Use it only to defend yourself."
"I know," she whispered. "I know..." she sniffled, lowering her head again.
Elijah scooted closer, putting an arm around her. She laid against him, allowing herself to continue crying.