| THE AFTERMATH:
CHAPTER TEN |
"Say not in grief that she is no more, but be thankful that she ever was and though she was taken far too soon, may her enduring light show us a way through this darkness. Let us mourn as we cannot move on until we do. And though the pain may at times seem like more than we can bare, make no mistake, we will move on. And even now, the words of Ecclesiasticus are ringing in my ears, they're saying vengeance as a lion shall lie in wait for them."
Vincent's voice rang out through the cemetery, almost hauntingly. He, Marcel, Josh, Rhea, Kol and Ares had gathered round Davina's tomb, giving her the farewell she deserved.
Josh stepped forward, "A while ago, forever ago, I told Davina a story about my first boyfriend but what I didn't tell her was that I had never shared that story with anyone else. She was like a sister and a best friend and I loved her. I wish th... uh..." He could barely finish his sentence, his emotions becoming far too overwhelming for him to form a coherent sentence.
Vincent then looked to Ares, who opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out at first.
"I'm sorry, I can't." His voice cracked, he was still in denial about the whole situation. He believed that Davina would turn up at any given moment and tell them all to stop being stupid and that she wasn't gone.
Rhea squeezed her brothers hand comfortingly before stepping forward, "I've never had many friends, if any. I only knew two types of love, the love of my brother and the love of Kol. I never knew there were any other kinds. Davina was a friend and a sister, she knew me inside out and she never judged me. The love between two friends can be the greatest love of all and I'm glad Davina Claire was my best friend." She said through her tears, meaning every word. Davina Claire changed her life and she can't imagine what life would be like now, without the witch around.
She stepped back, nearly collapsing into Kol's arms, the vampire steadied her. Placing a kiss on her temple, proud that she had been able to say what she wanted— she had barely spoken a word since the ordeal.
Before Marcel could speak up, Kol's voice rang out, "I'll never forgive my family for what they've done. Davina didn't deserve this, she was worth ten of them. She will be missed." Everyone was surprised at his words, especially Marcel, knowing that he normally only showed his softer side to Rhea.
Marcels expression turned dark as he put away the piece of paper with a speech he had prepared, "Words aren't any good, the Mikaelsons need to answer for this. I'm gonna make them answer." He moved to stand in front of Davina's tomb, placing a hand on it, "I promise."
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"I'm leaving." Ares' voice startled Rhea and Kol, the three of them had been walking in a silence. Only the sounds of the city to be heard.
"What?" Rhea was confused as she turned to her brother, "You can't just up and leave."
Ares looked down with a sigh, "Look, when I came back, I was a mess and everything was so.. dark. I only found myself again with Davina, and now she's gone. I have to find myself once again, but this time I have to do it alone. I'm not in the right state of mind, Rhea. I killed Van." He confessed, he had been in such a rage that he had mercilessly killed the young regent.
Kol raised a brow, surprised by the older Monroe's actions, "Mate, I think you need to stay with your sister."
Ares shook his head, "No, I don't. She has you and you have her, you bring out the best in each other. I just need some time alone, to.. grieve." He swallowed thickly, "This isn't a debate, I'm leaving now. I just wanted to say goodbye."
Rhea's eyes teared up once again as she leant forward to embrace her older brother, "I'll come with you." She offered.
He shook his head as he pulled away from the hug, "No, little sister. You have unfinished business here." He was referring to the ancestors, Rhea was full of vengeance and wouldn't be completely happy until she had took them apart.
"I love you." She choked out, feeling like she was losing another part of herself.
"Hey, don't cry. Okay?" He said as he wiped a stray tear from his sisters face, "I'll see you soon, I promise."
She nodded, taking a step back. Ares and Kol did the man hug/handshake thing that Rhea had never really understand, but it was heartwarming nonetheless.
"Stay safe." Kol said with a nod, Ares rolled his eyes.
"Careful Kol, your humanity is showing." He said with a smirk, Kol chuckled but shrugged his shoulders.
Ares left them then, feeling a relief almost as soon as he left the quarter— he was starting a new adventure that terrified him, he couldn't remember what a life without Davina Claire was like— but he would damn well be sure to make her proud.
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Kol and Rhea entered the compound, finding Freya pouring blood into a bowl in one of the many rooms.
"I didn't think anyone was here." She said quietly, eyeing the two warily. This was the first time she had seen them both since she had done the most horrific thing to Davina and very nearly Rhea.
Rhea took a threatening step forward, Kol let her, knowing she needed to release some of her built up anger.
"I'm sorry, did we interrupt you? Did you think we'd be at Cami's wake? Funnily enough, I think the funeral of my dead best friend took priority today. You remember Davina Claire, don't you? Young, powerful, whole life ahead of her. And you took that away, condemned her to an unknowable hell and tried to bump me off in the process! So I thought I'd pass on dear Camille's wake, but oh, what's your excuse? Is the guilty finally starting to gnaw away at your cold heart? The ice starting to melt around it? Or were you simply too busy playing with dead bodies?" Rhea was getting angrier by the second, the many ornaments and decor around the room slightly shaking gave that much away.
Kol picked up the skull on the table, "Is this your new hobby now?"
Freya sighed, "When Lucien died, he was convinced the prophecy would still unfold. I need to know if he was right. These are the remains of his oracle Alexis. Hers was a power I barely understood but now that my own strength has been augmented by the ancestors, I can try to channel her, forecast as she did and find out if Lucien was right or if we can put this nightmare behind us."
Rhea scoffed, "The power you stole whilst pretty much committing murder, right."
Freya went to defend her actions but Kol was quick to speak up, "I personally hope the bloody prophecy is true, you can all rot in hell for all I care. I'm just sorry we won't be around to see it." He finished as he took Rhea's hand, leading her out of the room.
He wanted to get Rhea as far away from New Orleans as possible, Ares leaving had given him the right incentive— this was a dangerous place, and staying with his family any longer was going to be their ultimate downfall.
"Where are you going?" Freya called out.
"None of your business, alright? There is nothing for us, here." He confessed, Rhea looked up at him in admiration, she could see why he was doing this. He was doing this for them, he wanted a better life for them— and he was acting on it.
"Kol, you know that's not true. Your family.." Freya trailed off, trying to convince him to stay.
Kol turned to face her suddenly, anger taking over his features, "Do not lecture me about family, sister or not! Now you may have searched your entire life for us, but I never for a second wanted you." He all but growled at her, before finally leaving with Rhea by his side.
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Kol had gone to sort a few things out whilst Rhea was packing a bag, she didn't want to take too much. Most things she owned contained too many memories of her time in New Orleans, so she was packing light.
The music box beside the bed suddenly began playing a light, gentle melody— Rhea looked at it with a raised brow before looking around, "Kol? Freya? Is anyone here?" She called out, but she got no reply.
She heard eerie whispering, it wasn't distinctive but it was enough to make the hairs on the back of her neck raise in anxiety.
"Who's doing this?" She breathed out, as soon as the words left her mouth, the door slammed shut, causing her to jump slightly.
She turned, stepping towards the mirror, the whispering seemed to get louder as she stepped towards it.
Rhea began choking and gasping as she witnessed her own throat get slit in the mirror, the worst thing about it all was— Davina appeared in the mirror.
"Davina! DAVINA!" She screamed as she gasped for breath. She closed her eyes, telling herself that it wasn't real.
When she opened them again, the whispering had stopped and there was no sign of her throat being slit. She bought a hand up to her throat as the door burst open.
"What's wrong? Why were you screaming?" Kol questioned, taking quick strides until he was in front of Rhea, taking in her dishevelled appearance and heavy panting, he knew something was seriously wrong.
She took a few moments to compose herself before looking up to Kol, telling him, "We need to talk to Vincent."
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At long last!
Remember to check out my Joseph Morgan social media fic ✨
Let me know your thoughts, as usual.
-Meg✨