ACHILLES' HEEL
— 4. Preparations
The day of the sacrifice, Annikah stood in Alaric's apartment. She was relieved that it was finally time to break the curse. She had spent over a thousand years trying to break it with Klaus. Now, after ten centuries, she was finally going to help him break it so that he could become a true hybrid, just as she was. The only difference was that she was half witch and half werewolf while he would be half vampire and half werewolf.
Annikah held the moonstone in her hand. She walked around the island in the kitchen, eying the white rock that had bee ripped from her hands five hundred years before. She had been the one carrying it when Katherine stole it from her. It was the reason she had been in the woods in the first place. To find it before Klaus could get angry with her.
Klaus was angry with Annikah when he found out she had been the one who Katherine stole it from, but immediately forgave her when he found her buried in the woods. She had gone through all of that torture just to get the moonstone back for him. It meant a lot to Klaus, that she was that loyal to him.
Elijah called it blind loyalty, but everyone else knew what it truly was. Klaus and Annikah knew as well, but never dared to say it out loud because they knew it was the same reason for Klaus' "blind loyalty" to Annikah.
Annikah caressed the smooth texture of the moonstone with her hand, not even realizing that Klaus was walking over to her. He walked up to her and stopped when he was standing behind her. He placed his right hand on her waist and Annikah tilted her head upwards to look him in the eye.
Klaus smiled at her, their faces just inches apart as he used his other hand to grasp the hand she was using to hold the moonstone, "I can't say I've missed this," She commented, turning her head to look at the stone they were both holding instead of at Klaus.
Klaus immediately snapped out of his thoughts. He cleared his throat, looking away from Annikah and at the moonstone instead, "Why's that?"He asked her curiously, his tone calm, just as Annikah's was.
Her back was still pressed against his chest, but Klaus quickly removed his hand from her waist in fear of her making a comment about it, "It has brought us nothing but bad luck these past five centuries." She responded and Klaus quietly laughed at her.
"Not all bad luck," He reminded her with a small smile on his face.
Annikah playfully rolled her eyes at him and nodded her head, "Perhaps not all bad." She responded. agreeing with Klaus.
_____
That day, outside Mystic Falls hospital, Annikah approached Caroline and Tyler, who were on the verge on walking their separate ways.
She outstretched her hand in a claw pointed toward the duo. Caroline held her head and screamed in agony alongside Tyler. Maddox and Greta approached Annikah, standing beside her.
Soon enough, Tyler fell onto the ground, unconscious. It took longer for Caroline to knock out, leading to Greta moving closer to her and injecting her with vervain, "Bring them to the tomb in the woods. Guard it, Maddox. I will be there soon," She ordered and both witches immediately obeyed her.
Maddox moved closer to Tyler, grabbing ahold of him while Greta did the same with Caroline.
____
Inside the Mystic Grill, Damon walked over to the bar and sat down, asking her a drink. Soon enough, Alaric arrived, taking a seat next to his friend, "I'll have the same." he told the bartender, who nodded before going to get their drinks.
"I screwed up," Damon complained, letting out a large sigh in defeat, "Not just with Elena, but with Ann too."
"Yeah. Yeah, you did," Alaric replied, nodding his head in agreement, "With both of them."
"I can't believe our Ann is Klaus' partner in crime. She saved our asses more times than I can count. She pulled Stefan and me out of that fire that John set on Founders' day," Damon complained to Alaric, "She helped me kill Mason Lockwood."
"Don't forget the part where you were starting to fall for her," Alaric suddenly remarked, causing Damon to turn and glare at him, "Or that you slept with her."
"Screw you, Ric." Damon snapped at Alaric, but before Alaric could respond, an unfamiliar voice spoke up.
"Gentlemen?" An unfamiliar British accent spoke up, "Why so glum?"
Alaric and Damon turned their heads, only to see Klaus and Annikah standing next to them at the bar, "Ugh, Klaus, I presume." Damon spoke up, glaring at the duo.
"In the flesh," Klaus responded, a smile on his face.
"Can't say I'm happy to see you, Ann," Damon remarked, looking directly at Annikah, who had an unreadable expression on his face.
"I could say the same to you, Damon," Annikah responded, sending him a small smile.
Damon continued to glare at Annikah, causing Klaus to smile in amusement before he turned to look at Alaric, "Thanks for the loaner, mate." He told Alaric, which only angered Damon.
Damon immediately stood up, turning to face the duo with an angered look on his face, "Any reason you two stopped by to say hi?" He asked them, his tone threatening.
"I'm told by Annikah that you and your brother fancy my doppelganger," Klaus informed Damon, leading to the eldest Salvatore giving Annikah a betrayed look, "Just thought I'd remind you to not do anything you'll regret."
Damon broke into a smile, causing Annikah to feel as though he had already done something he regretted, "Ha. Thanks for the advice," He responded and Klaus nodded before Damon stopped smiled, "I don't suppose I could talk you both into a postponement, by any chance, huh?"
"You are kidding?" He questioned Damon, turning to look at Annikah, "He is kidding, right?"
"I don't believe he is, Nik," Annikah responded, shaking her head in response.
"I mean, come on, what's one month in the whole grand scheme of things?" Damon continued to try and convince Klaus, which led Annikah to believe something had happened that he didn't want her and Klaus to know about.
"Let me be clear..." Klaus trailed off threateningly, taking a step toward Damon, "I have my vampire. I have my werewolf. I have everything I need. The ritual will happen tonight. So if you want to live to see tomorrow, don't screw it up."
With that, Klaus turned away from Damon, walking away. Annikah went to follow after Klaus when Damon spoke up, "You're a bitch, you know that?" He suddenly said, causing Annikah to stop walking and turn to face him, "You used me, you used all of us just to get information. You manipulated us."
"So what if I did?" Annikah questioned Damon, no sign of guilt or regret in her expression, "I'm Annikah Peerson. It's what I do. It's what I'm known for. I manipulate and I lie."
"You're already a hybrid, why do you want to break it so bad?" Damon questioned, earning an annoyed look from Annikah.
Annikah took a deep breath, taking a step closer to Damon, "Because Klaus wants to," She informed Damon, who rolled his eyes at him, "We promised each other a thousand years ago that we would stick by each other no matter what. Breaking the curse means something to Klaus, which means it means something to me. If he wants to do this, I will stand by him and do whatever he needs me to do." She explained, glaring at Damon before she turned on her heel and left.
___
In the woods, Damon walked up to the tomb in an attempt to free Caroline and Tyler so that Klaus and Annikah wouldn't be able to go through with the ritual. Just then, Annikah and Maddox appeared, earning a glare from Damon, "Let me guess, you're here for Caroline, aren't you?" She asked, earning yet another hateful glare from Damon.
"Did you really think Klaus would leave them unprotected?" Maddox asked Damon, who shrugged in response.
"Wishful thinking," Damon replied, rushing over to Maddox and snapping his neck as if it were nothing.
He turned to Annikah, who was ready to fight him if he tried to Attack her. He vamp-sped over to her, pinning her to the ground. Damon wrapped his fingers around her, beginning squeeze as hard as he could.
Damon immediately became alarmed when Annikah growled at him, her eyes glowing yellow. She grabbed Damon by the shoulders, biting his arm. Damon yelled out, grabbing the girl by her neck with his free hand and began slamming her head down. Without her realizing, Damon ripped the ring she was wearing on her left ring finger and tossed it. He had been informed by Katherine that it was the only thing stopping her from turning on a full moon.
Annikah used her powers to throw Damon back against some rocks, causing him to fall on the ground as Annikah stood back up. She lifted her hand, using powers and provoking a headache. Damon screamed out in pain, clutching his head as he tried to fight through it.
"I don't want to kill you," Annikah spoke up, glaring at Damon with a cold look on his face, "But I will."
Suddenly Annikah heard a gunshot from behind her. Annikah gasped out, looking down to see that she had been shot in the chest. She lifted her hands, clawing at her chest to rip the bullet out as she dropped to her knees. Damon quickly stood up and rushed over to Annikah, snapping her neck before she could react.
____
Annikah shot up from the ground with a gasp. She glanced around, finding it to be nighttime. She placed a hand on her chest, only to wince in pain as she felt the bullet still inside her and grazing against her heart. She took a deep breath, just before she dug her fingers into the wound, causing her to cry out in pain.
She felt relieved as her fingers finally touched the bullet. She grabbed ahold of it, yelling out in pain as she ripped it out of her chest. She became alarmed when she saw that the bullet was made of wood. Someone in town knew. But then, she realized, she didn't live in Mystic Falls. It was all an act. She only lived in Mystic Falls all those months to gain intel on the people of Mystic Falls.
After the sacrifice, she wouldn't be coming back. Klaus had said that they would be going to Chicago.
Annikah turned her head to see Maddox's dead body laying on the ground, causing her to sigh in defeat. She needed to get to Klaus. He needed two witches for the ceremony and Maddox was now dead.
Suddenly, Annikah groaned in pain as she clutched her chest. She panted for breath, a frown on her face when she became confused as to what was happening to her. Her eyes suddenly widened, finally realizing what was going on.
She gasped, looking up at the sky to see the moon. She looked down at her hand, only to see her ring no longer there, "No, no, no," She muttered to herself, shaking her head in disbelief.
Annikah lunged forward, beginning to search through the grass for her moonlight ring. She needed it. She refused to endure every full moon like she did before Esther created the ring for her. It had been a thousand years since she was forced to turn against her will. Yes, she had turned since then, but it was never because her curse and the last time she turned into a full wolf was over fifty years before, meaning it was going to be painful.
As Annikah attempted to stand up, she groaned in pain, her leg breaking. She fell onto all fours, crying out. She jerked back up, her arms and wrists breaking and forming into what would be a wolf's legs. Annikah screamed out, keeling back over as she attempted to look for the ring, "Come on!" She screamed in frustration, finding herself unable to find it.
She couldn't use her magic. She wouldn't be able to focus while being transitioning into a wolf. She cried out as numerous other bones broke and her fangs began to form. She sped forward, colliding with the stone wall of what used to be Fell's Church.
She gasped in shock, looking forward to see the ring just a few feet in front of her, the moonlight reflecting off of it.
Annikah lunged forward as her bones continued to break. She grasped the ring, continuing to cry out as she slipped the ring back onto her finger.
As her transition stopped, Annikah laid on the ground, panting for breath. She sighed in relief, finding herself slowly healing from all of her bones breaking one by own. She needed to get to Klaus. She needed to help him break the curse so that she could get the hell out of that town.