#she is so shaken after drinking from the well and after that conversation about kieran and the revelation about her mom

[buttsonthebeach]

I'm replaying Ellana's save file a bit and just replayed the scene with Morrigan, Flemeth, and Kieran - and I am happy I did, because I totally forgot that Flemeth takes the old god soul from Kieran. I thought he still had it and thought we had a good chance of seeing him in Veilguard.

I do still think they need to pay off which soul it is - I strongly suspect Flemythal taught Morrigan about the Dark Ritual, maybe even encouraged her to do it, or at the very least orchestrated Morrigan finding out about it if she thought Morrigan wouldn't listen to her directly. So why this Blight? Why was this archdemon's soul worth attempting to preserve? Or did she try it with every Blight and fail? (Obviously, in many world states, there is no Dark Ritual for the Fifth Blight either, and it's entirely possible that Morrigan did come up with this on her own - or I am misremembering what we do know from DA:O, it has been so long.)

So which soul is this? A friend of Mythal's from within the pantheon? If I had to give an off-the-cuff unresearched answer, I might guess Dirthamen, given all the "secrets" Kieran knows, but I wouldn't put money on it.

I really hope they pay this one off for worldstates where this scene happens. I am so desperate to know!

Bonus desire: I would love it if they paid off the Architect somehow, particularly for worldstates where your Warden let him go.

[saiilorstars]

The Girl in the Forest

Chapter 3: The Undead

// Story Masterlist //

Pairings: Klaus Mikaelson x Original Female Character

Summary: Maleny inadvertently shows that she truly is not a regular human. In the meantime, Cami begins to learn the truth about her ‘cousin’.

Pronunciation of OC: Ma-leh-nee

No real warnings for now!

"What do you mean she's gone?" Cami could not believe what she had just listened to.

Maleny, who sat on her bed once more, with teary eyes, had finished telling Cami of the events that took place last night at the cemetery. Cami could not believe that Davina was...dead. It had to be some sort of mistake, or some cruel joke Klaus was playing on them. Such an innocent girl could not end up like that. But as Cami looked at Maleny for some sort of retraction of her statements...she saw nothing but sadness. It was true.

Davina was gone.

"I saw it happen," Maleny repeated, doing her best not to sniffle, "That woman, Sophie, she slit Davina's throat...and she died."

"But they can't be gone," Cami let herself fall on a chair behind her, "They're supposed to return, aren't they? That was their promise to the girls..."

"And yet they are all gone," Maleny fell back on her bed, her arms spread out on either side of her. As the hours passed by since Davina's death Maleny felt more and more guilty that she had let such a thing happen.

"But they were innocent girls!"

"I know, but...what else is there to do?"

Cami thought for a moment until something popped into her head, "Wait...okay hold on," she thought for another minute, "Okay, so the whole point of the harvest thing is to get power and bring back the sacrificed. Well, you said you saw the power flow back into the Earth."

"Yes," Maleny closed her eyes and put a hand on her head. She would prefer not to relive the moments of last night, "But the girls didn't come back. We know this part, Cami."

"But that's just it, all that power can't...disappear," Cami crossed her arms, "No, it had to have gone somewhere else."

Maleny's eyes snapped open and she sat up, "What did you just say?"

"Mal, think about it, alright? The Harvest did work in a way, who's to say it didn't work all the way?"

"But it's like you said," Maleny stood up, "If the power did flow back...where'd it get to?"

"We need to figure that out," Cami stood up with a smirk, "because if we can figure that out then maybe there's still a way to get Davina back."

Maleny nodded, "And I think I've got just the person that can help. Here's the plan," she stepped closer to Cami.

~ 0 ~

Maleny walked through the streets of the Quarter, her head turning here and there for a certain Original blonde, having gotten pointers from several of the locals describing the same blonde with a man in a suit. Maleny had to be quick before she lost the track and consequently ruin the plan between her and Cami. Cami, at the moment, was heading over to her job at Rousseau's, potentially waiting for the one drinker that was sure to come after last night's events where he'd lost a very close friend. The only thing Maleny hoped for was that she didn't bump into Klaus for the moment. She knew, whether Klaus wanted to admit or not - probably not - that he was more than shaken up to know that she could be the potential Maleny Rowan, the first woman he'd loved - and she was. She knew that blonde was her body, meaning she was Maleny Rowan, the girl in the forest. She did understand on some level, if it was the other way around she would be slightly afraid.

The past was meant to stay in the past, but she'd broken that rule.

Last night she'd left him all the files she had on the different women she saw in her dreams and visions, just so he could see for himself that they were all the women he'd ever "had affection for", apparently. Hopefully it would give him strength to face what they would have to deal with in order to solve the mystery.

On a turn, Maleny noticed a man with a French bureau hat walking on the opposite direction as her and happened to mention the name 'Rebekah', prompting Maleny to hurry towards the him.

"Yeah, near the docks," Thierry, one of Marcel's closest vampire friends, was saying when the woman snatched the phone from him, "Hey!"

"Rebekah Mikaelson?" Maleny raised an eyebrow and pointed at the phone.

"Who are you?"

"I swear to God if someone asks me that again," Maleny muttered before taking over the phone call, "Rebekah this is Maleny and before you say anything let me start: I'm in," Maleny took a breath, ignoring Thierry's confused face, "Whatever you're planning I'm in. You're right about Klaus, I've learned my lesson. I'm in."

"You've made the right decision," came Rebekah's proud voice from the other line.

"But I want to be included in everything," Maleny warned, "So talk to me about this 'warehouse'."

"Oh n-n-n-no," Thierry wagged a finger and shook his head.

Maleny simply made a 'stop-talking' sign with her hand and turned to the side, "Warehouse, where is it? I'll be there in a snap."

"Go with our good friend Thierry," Rebekah said casually, "I'll meet you there soon."

"Good," Maleny ended the conversation and handed back the phone to Thierry, "Hi there, my name's Maleny Woods and I'm your newest partner."

"What's your game?" Thierry questioned.

"What's yours?"

Thierry opened his mouth but found a hand covering it, "Just take me to the stupid warehouse so I can talk to Rebekah, alright? I won't mention any of this to Klaus as long as we're nice to each other," Maleny flashed a cheeky smile, "Alright?"

Thierry lowered Maleny's hand and sighed, "Alright," for him the more in the anti-Klaus team the better.

~ 0 ~

Cami had come to a terrible shock as she entered Rousseau's and saw the place completely thrashed. She moved behind the bar and looked at the broken shards of glass, the floor covered in the drinks and glasses thrown about on the counter and tables. She took out her phone from her bag and dialed for Sophie.

However, she only came up with a voicemail, "Sophie, the restaurant is an epic disaster again. Do you think maybe you could come in today and..." but she was cut off by the automated voice and sighed in irritation, "Good-bye."

She heard the doors opening and 'gasped' in surprise as she Marcel coming in, "Looks like I should've been here last night," he looked around, unperturbed.

Cami tried hiding her smirk as best she could, but Maleny had been right. Out of everyone in the group of vampires it was Marcel that had taken Davina's death the worst. He was prone to run out of drinks and therefore head over to the restaurant.

"Before you try anything, I'm on vervain," Cami decided to warn. She would not be going through any of those episodes again.

Marcel took the news with a small shrug, "Yeah, Klaus mentioned you broke free of his compulsion. Good for you. Sophie around?"

"No, why?"

"Got a witch problem," he cut the explanation short, "Thought she might have answers," he moved over to one of the stools and sat down, "Mind if I wait?" he grabbed a bottle off the bar and poured himself a drink.

Cami smirked and moved closer, "It's a little early for day drinking. Let me guess, Klaus problems involving witches, yes?"

"Maybe."

"Look, I know about Davina," she took a seat beside him with an earnest expression, "I'm sorry for that."

"Yeah, me too," Marcel drank down the drink.

"But the thing is, my cousin Maleny and I think there's something else we can do."

"Your 'cousin'?" Marcel raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, adopted, but nonetheless cousin."

"You know, there's something about that woman that doesn't quite add up," Marcel reached for the bottle for another drink.

"Leave her out of this please," Cami sighed.

"No, I'm serious," Marcel nodded, "Because if she's your cousin then she'd have to had come to this city for years now, right?"

"She has," Cami corrected, "Plenty of times."

"But the thing is...I know all the locals in this city, including your family. And because you're Kieran's blood I know your family a tad better. This 'Maleny Woods' has never been to this city."

"Don't be stupid and don't think I'm stupid," Cami shook her head and moved to stand when Marcel reached for her arm to stop her.

"I'm being serious, in all this time I've been in power...there has not been one mention of that woman you call your cousin," he declared with so much assurance that for one split second Cami nearly believed him.

~ 0 ~

Maleny and Thierry walked into a warehouse filled with storage of several items, though it seemed pretty solitary to Maleny, "Why are we here?" she demanded.

"I'm not telling you anything," Thierry shrugged.

Maleny rolled her eyes, "Please, I'm on your team now, the best you can do is be honest. Why did you bring me here, why did you want to bring Rebekah in?"

Thierry sighed, "I used to run things down here for Marcel. I thought maybe Rebekah would like to see what I found before Klaus did."

"And what exactly would that be?"

Thierry stopped walking and gestured ahead of them. Maleny moved forwards and came to a halt at the sight of a salt circle on the ground with two very dead vampires in the center.

"But they're...they're desiccated," she murmured, "But this wasn't here always was it?"

'I don't know, I just got out of my prison today," Thierry responded bitterly.

"Prison?" Maleny glanced back.

"Klaus."

"Ah," Maleny now understood the hatred for the hybrid, "Well..." she studied the vampires, "...what's that symbol?" she pointed on the foreheads of the vampires on the ground.

"Don't know and frankly I'd rather not know at all," Thierry replied.

"I bet you would if it meant your salvation," Maleny rolled her eyes, "This is a witch's job, a very powerful man if I do recall from a vision."

"A what?"

"Never mind," Maleny waved him off, her head snapping up when she heard footsteps behind them, "Rebekah?" she turned to find a man dressed in a white suit, "I know you..." she pointed, "...I do, but..." she closed her eyes, "...what was your name?"

"To know me would be impossible, mademoiselle," Papa Tunde gave a small smile, "I am not from around here."

"Oh I know that much," Maleny assured, "You're from 1919..."

"Maleny..." Thierry backed away.

"Oh just run you coward," Maleny rolled her eyes, not even offended when the man did just that as soon as she spoke her words, "Rebekah's going to need another teammate."

"I was in need of an Original but I suppose for the moment I can do with you," Papa Tunde's smile widened, "You can serve as fine bait for one."

"I am no one's bait, buddy," Maleny backed away, looking for a way out that wouldn't spell her death, "But I know you, I know I do."

"Impossible," Papa Tunde seemed to be amused in the chase that loomed.

"No, I do, I just..."

Papa Tunde reached for the woman's arm and brought her closer, taking a minute to look her deep in the eyes. The moment he touched her arm he felt a spark; he knew a sacrifice where there was one.

"Maya," Maleny swallowed hard, "You know Maya, don't you? Or did. Maya Sterling, you knew her! I know you had to even if I can't remember it all."

"Of course," Papa Tunde raised his eyebrows, beginning to understand, "You're the little redhead Klaus Mikaelson had around him. You live, interesting," Maleny felt a shiver to feel his fingers tracing her arms, "Perhaps I can use you for a sacrifice as well."

Maleny's eyes widened, "What!? No!" she tried getting free but the man grasped her neck to begin the ritual.

"Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi. Embrace-toi. Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi. Embrace-toi. Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi. Embrace-toi. Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi."

Maleny's face changed into a grayish shade with the same colored gray popping in the form of veins on her face and neck. She gave one last gasp before everything went dark.

~ 0 ~

"You are saying more stupid shit than you have ever said to me in five minutes," Cami shook her head at Marcel, "You expect me to believe that Maleny is lying to me? To my entire family?"

"I'm not saying she's lying," Marcel reminded, "I'm simply telling you the truth from my point of view."

"What you are saying is false, an utter lie. I have clear memories of Maleny and my brother. We used to go to the park and go on the swings. Maleny and I used to have tea parties and then she'd start messing with Sean."

"Cami, I've got no reason to lie to you. In this city there has never been a Maleny Woods," Marcel shrugged, "Those memories you have, could very well have been implanted in your head - you're entire family's for that matter."

"And what exactly would Maleny gain from this?" Cami crossed her arms, "We're not rich," she counted on her fingers the reasons, "We're not royalty, we're not the picture-perfect family. Marcel, she was a kid when we first met."

"And when you were a kid I was more than a hundred years old. I keep good reigns on this cit - kept," he corrected himself, "I've seen you and your brother as kids, but I've never seen this Maleny woman as a kid. From my information, your aunt and uncle never adopted a child. There was never a child with them."

"You're lying," Cami insisted, "Maleny is my cousin and you have nothing better to do than mess with my head again."

"I'm really not," Marcel shrugged, "But you know what? She does remind me of someone Klaus used to know back in 1919, a woman. They have the same attitude, same behavior. And her name was..."

Marcel had just returned from a very bloodshed war to find an ongoing party in the compound. Despite the rather rude greeting he received from Rebekah, (not that he could really judge her), he was content to be back home. He had taken a drink with Klaus and Elijah and listened to the two brothers and their apparent problem with a certain new witch who wanted power in the city of New Orleans.

"His name is Papa Tunde. I think he's a charlatan," Klaus rolled his eyes.

"And yet you decided to invite him," a woman's voice neared, "Who is the charlatan here?"

Marcel glanced to the side and saw a woman with short, red hair and brown eyes, in a green flapper-dress, approach them. With an impish smile she took Klaus's glass and drank it all down.

"Careful there Maya, appearances do count around here," Elijah warned as the woman set back the glass on the counter. He didn't seem to surprised of her actions.

"You'll have to excuse me but only with a drink I can tolerate your brother's attitude," she flashed a smirk.

"Now who's the fraud here?" Klaus raised an eyebrow.

"I did learn from the best, my dear," she looked at Marcel, "You must be Marcel, nice to finally meet you."

"And you would be...?" Marcel looked at the two brothers behind the woman with a curious face.

"This is Maya Sterling, a good friend of mine," Klaus introduced, his arm sliding around the woman's waist.

"Friend?" Marcel could almost scoff.

"Very good friend," Maya added as she reached for Klaus's glass that had been refilled for him.

"So?" Cami raised an eyebrow, finding the entire story to be irrelevant, "What does this have to do with Maleny now?"

"The attitude," Marcel began, "The way that woman walked around the place is the same way Maleny does now."

"So what do you expect me to believe exactly?"

Marcel had shared with Cami the night Klaus and his siblings ran out of New Orleans (but never revealing who was at fault) due to their father hunting them down. Maya Sterling, who had been left behind because she was 'dead', had surprised Marcel that night - as the two had been hung like props on a play stage by Mikael.

"The woman, Maya, she was no ordinary human…Klaus thought her to be dead," Marcel sighed, "I regained consciousness and just as I was about to leave…she gasped awake."

"She survived being hung like a prop?" Cami blinked with wide eyes, "But…but how…?"

"I have no bloody idea," Marcel honestly said, "But we got out and the more I pestered her on how she survived, the more she avoided me. I kept a close eye on her for the next couple days...but then she disappeared."

"Just like that?" Cami was now intrigued but even that wouldn't make her disbelieve in her cousin.

"I don't know…" Marcel replied in a way that let Cami know even he wasn't fully over the mystery.

Cami took a pause to think of what she just heard, "Okay, so maybe that Maya was some immortal creature but what does this have to do with my cousin?"

"I'd tell you if I knew what was going on, but I don't. I only know that Maleny Woods does not exist in this city and perhaps has never even existed. I've seen many of the women Klaus has taken and somehow I can see a connection with this one right now."

"'This one right now' isn't going to be anything of Klaus's," Cami snapped, "That is going to be over my dead body."

"Mm, I wouldn't make that promise if I were you. Someone tried doing that in 1919 and Klaus was more than displeased. And we all know what happens to people who piss off Klaus Mikaelson."

Cami knew the answer very well but nonetheless remained firm on her opinion of 'Maleny and Klaus'. It wasn't going to happen, "Who was it?" she curiously asked.

Marcel gave a small smirk as he continued his little story...

"Hi there," Maya gave a courteous bow to Papa Tunde, the man having entered the compound with his twin sons behind in a rather fashionable way. She was one to be polite.

"I was not expecting such a pretty woman to welcome us," Papa Tunde took Maya's hand and gave a kiss to its back. Maya smiled back but not in the way the man would've wished.

"That's because it wasn't planned," Klaus had joined the group, less than happy to see the little greeting.

"I was just trying to welcome the guests," Maya explained innocently, knowing it was bothering him. While it wasn't planned she did love to make him jealous, "That's not okay?" she looked up at him.

"Why don't you let me take care of this, love?" Klaus asked her in a very different, softer tone than the one he used for nearly everyone else.

Maya lightly sighed, "Okay, but I expect to see you later," she winked and went on her way.

Klaus looked at Papa Tunde with a forced, polite smile, "Thank you for accepting our invitation, and welcome."

"Pleasure before business, then," Papa Tunde chuckled.

"Yes..."

"Might I say you have a lovely friend," Papa Tunde followed the direction in which Maya had gone off to.

Klaus noticed the drifting eyes and clenched his fists, practically swallowing down the urge to rip the man's head off at the moment. He had to be smart in this and he had to be precise. He would get him.

"Jealous? He killed the witch man or whatever out of jealousy?" Cami scoffed loudly, "Please, that would imply that Klaus Mikaelson has feelings."

Marcel had a small laugh, a first genuine one since yesterday, "I had my doubts too back then but after a couple days I knew they were real. Whoever that woman was, Maya, she had the most murderous, evil, conniving vampire wrapped around her little finger. Already your cousin, Maleny, has shown to pique his interest so early and I have no doubt it'll be another of those stories."

"Over my dead body," Cami gritted her teeth.

Marcel smirked at her attitude, "Don't forget I lived with them for years, I've seen the stories and they all go the same."

"Well not this one!" Cami slammed her hand down on the counter, "No!"

~ 0 ~

Rebekah strode across the warehouse as she searched for Thierry and Maleny, only to come to a halt as she saw a salt circle ahead and a woman laying in the center, "Maleny," she breathed and hurried towards the circle.

"I wouldn't," she heard a distinct voice behind.

Rebekah turned to find Papa Tunde behind her, "You..." she stumbled back, easily recognizing him.

"Your pretty friend has a lot more power than she shows," he informed casually, "Though nothing compares to an Original. Join her," he snatched her by the throat and pressed his hand on her forehead, beginning to chant the same words he had done with Maleny, "Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi. Embrace-toi. Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi. Embrace-toi. Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi. Embrace-toi. Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi."

~ 0 ~

"I'm telling you Cami, there's nothing you can do about it," Marcel finished pouring himself a new drink.

"You expect me to sit down and watch my cousin, my cousin," she made sure to emphasize it because as far as she knew everything Marcel had said about Maleny was a complete lie, "end up in Klaus's wrath?" her face crinkled at her next thought, "Or worse...his bedroom," she shook her head, "No. Absolutely not. Over my dead body."

"You know you're human right?" Marcel felt the need to remind as she insisted on that line, "That's not such a difficult thing to arrange."

Cami rolled her eyes, "You amuse me."

"This is no joke, Cami," Marcel gave her a serious look, "Let me tell you how Papa Tunde ended up as an example. He said he wanted to empower the witches. Mostly, he wanted money and territory. Apart from that, Klaus learned of the little gifts he'd been slipping Maya-"

"And how do we know this woman wasn't doing her little something-something back to the man as well?" Cami interrupted, "Klaus has poor taste in women."

"Because just like Maya had Klaus wrapped around her finger, Klaus had her wrapped around his finger. Whatever they had was real, at least in that time, and Klaus was having none of Papa Tunde's tricks nor gifts. After a lot of massacres from each faction in the city, Elijah offered a truce to Papa Tunde. He gave his word, in fact, but Klaus, being Klaus, and jealous, had another idea."

"What did he do?" Cami feared to ask.

"The twin sons were...beheaded, literally."

Cami gasped, her hand covering her mouth, "Oh my god."

"And then Klaus went straight for the kill," Marcel finished with a raise of his glass before drinking it all down.

"That's awful!"

"Oh, to Klaus, it's just business."

"And don't you think there's something fundamentally wrong with that? Don't you worry you'll end up one of his victims or, worse, just like him?"

"Poor Marcellus. You remain always in the shadow of your father," Papa Tunde's voice broke the conversation as he entered the bar, "Climb out from beneath it, will you, so you can die like a man?"

Marcel stood up and turned to face the man, "Cami, you need to run now. Don't look back. Just go."

" I think she should stay," Papa Tunde spared a glance to the blonde, "I prefer an audience, and I'm about to put on quite the show."

Cami did take a step back from the moment, "Marcel?"

"I said get out of here!"

But Cami couldn't find herself to leave. As much as this was a plan between her and Maleny, which had gone in a bit of a different direction, a plan was worth nothing if someone else died.

"You cannot defeat me. I channel the power of an Original vampire. Soon, I will have all three. But first, I will take you," Papa Tunde declared.

~ 0 ~

Elijah and Hayley entered the warehouse in which Papa Tunde had left his victims. Immediately they saw Rebekah and Maleny lying in the center of the salt circle and so ran towards them.

"Oh my god," Hayley breathed while Elijah ran towards the circle, "Isn't that the woman from last night?" she studied the brunette woman beside Rebekah.

"I don't understand how she's here," Elijah muttered, "But I can understand why Rebekah is," he knelt down beside his sister but found he couldn't cross the circle.

"What's happening?" Hayley moved closer.

"Some kind of boundary spell. Someone is channeling them. Typically, it's a lethal process, but because Rebekah's an Original, she can't die. Instead, she's an endless source of power."

"And the other...?" Hayley stared down at Maleny.

"Like I said, it's a lethal process," Elijah sighed. He would not like to be the one to tell Klaus about this.

"So what happens now, then?"

"We have to get Rebekah out of there," Elijah took out his phone and dialed for the one witch that could help.

~ 0 ~

Back at Rousseau's, Cami had found herself thrown across the bar into glass, falling unconscious and leaving Marcel on his own. Marcel quickly found himself near to death with Papa Tunde holding his bone blade to his forehead to begin carving his famous symbol.

"As I recall, you're one of the few people Niklaus Mikaelson ever gave a damn about," he smirked, "You know what he did to my family," he pressed the blade to his forehead, ignoring the scream Marcel gave, "The sins of the father are paid for by the son. I will take pleasure in telling Klaus how you died."

Suddenly, Klaus sped inside the place and threw Papa Tunde across the room, not too pleased with what he had found around, "I remember killing you. I rather relished it. What a joy it is to relive fond memories."

"Unfortunately, this time around, I got to Maya before you did," Papa Tunde taunted and immediately put Klaus on edge. He had to be talking about Maleny.

"What did you do to her?" Klaus wasted no time in starting a fight.

~ 0 ~

"You're not listening," Elijah snapped over the phone while pacing back and forth, "We cannot enter the circle. There's some kind of confinement spell... If I can't remove her, we can't break the link."

"It's a convoluted spell. It's like a witch's recipe. You can spoil the balance by adding a more potent ingredient," Sophie explained from the other line, "A mystical binding agent. I don't know, volcanic ash, rock salt... anything up to and including eye of newt."

Elijah stopped his pacing to look back at Hayley, "What about the blood of a witch?"

"Do you have the blood of a witch?"

"I need a favor," Elijah said to Hayley once he hung up on the call.

Hayley, already understanding, nodded, "The baby. She's a quarter witch."

With no hesitation, she held her wrist for Elijah to bite. Gently, he bit into her skin to where enough blood could be taken out for the circle. They moved closer to the circle and Hayley let the blood from her wrist fall to the floor. The boundary line fizzled as it deteriorated into nothing. Elijah quickly went into the circle and took Rebekah out, holding her in his arms. He was about to take her and Hayley away when he heard a distinct sound, apart from Hayley's and the baby's.

"What? What is it?" Hayley questioned, noticing the sudden halt he had taken.

"That's a heartbeat..."

"Yeah, and?"

"No, you don't understand," he turned to face her, "It's not yours nor the baby's."

Hayley blinked as the realization hit her, both she and Elijah turning back to the circle, "But you said it was a lethal..."

"It is," Elijah nodded, completely lost the more he thought about it. The heartbeat belonged to Maleny, and while weak, it was beating. No human could survive that. None.

"So then how did she survive?" Hayley stepped into the circle and pressed two fingers to Maleny's neck, sure enough feeling her pumping blood,

"I don't know..." Elijah could only stare at Maleny with intrigue and confusion. The woman was laying there still unconscious but slowly her skin was regaining its healthy color.

There was just no possibility. She couldn't be a plain human.

~ 0 ~

Right when Papa Tunde was about to finish his attack on Klaus, he felt his connection sever and so stumbled back as the weakness took him over. Klaus pushed the man back and rushed to Marcel, unaware the escape that had been made behind him.

"Uh, is he dead?" Cami, now awake, had rushed from around the bar counter.

"Get out of here," Klaus muttered.

She went to Marcel who was on the floor, hopefully unconscious, "Is Marcel dead? Did that guy kill him?"

"He didn't finish him off. Marcel needs blood to heal. Go. Find me someone off the street."

"I'll do it," Cami volunteered.

"I'd rather it be a stranger."

"I wasn't asking you," she snapped, "You don't control me anymore, remember?" she moved over to Marcel's side and pushed her hair to the other side of her neck.

At the sound of his phone ringing, Klaus took it out from his pocket and answered, "What is it now?" he sighed in irritation. At the explanation on the other line he glanced at Cami, the woman too distracted to notice him speed out of the room.

~ 0 ~

Maleny slowly blinked open her eyes to find herself in a new bed of a new room she had not yet seen. She looked to the side and saw a woman with brown hair and green eyes, recognizing her as one of the people who had been at the cemetery with Davina last night.

"Where am I?" Maleny asked, her voice scratchy. She felt incredibly weak but she needed to know where she was and how she'd gotten there.

"It's okay, you're okay now," Hayley assured, reaching for the glass of water on the night-stand beside the bed, "Here."

Maleny slowly pushed herself to sit up, leaning back on the bed's headboard, "Thanks," she took the glass and sipped the water, "I'm sorry but who are you?"

"I'm Hayley," the brunette introduced herself, "I know we haven't actually spoken."

"Sorry, in my mind I sort of branded you as the 'pregnant one'."

"Yeah, don't worry, it's sort of my little nickname," Hayley leaned back on the chair she sat on, "The knocked-up-pregnant-wolf."

"Yikes, hate to know what the father's nickname is," Maleny drank more from the water, her throat felt really dry.

"Oh, it's 'murderous-hybrid," Hayley informed casually. Maleny nearly choked on her glass, coughing violently as she handed the glass to Hayley, "Are you okay?" Hayley set the glass on the table and stood up.

"Y-yeah," Maleny slowly finished coughing and blinked with wide eyes, "Excuse my nosiness but isn't that sort of...impossible?"

"Not when he's not fully dead," Hayley mumbled as she sat back down.

"Well, miracle baby then," Maleny looked to the side, "So I suppose it's all a happy family around here? Sorry if my appearance has caused problems between you-'

"Oh please don't," Hayley shook her head rather fast, "Klaus and I are not...never...no."

Maleny let a small smile escape as she looked back to Hayley, "Really?" she blinked a moment after she realized how she sounded, as if...relieved.

That couldn't be right.

"No, never ever," Hayley assured.

"Oh..."

"Do you need anything?" Hayley asked, "Elijah said you were healing rather fast with his blood in your system now."

"Oh, right," Maleny could vaguely remember the feeding of blood she had to do after being rescued from the warehouse, "That's not an awkward way to officially meet," she muttered.

Hayley smiled in amusement, "It's alright, as long as you're okay. But we were a bit intrigued to find you at Thierry's warehouse," she noticed how Maleny tensed up.

"Wrong time and place," was Maleny's simple response.

"I know we don't know each other but you should know I'm no idiot," Hayley flashed a knowing smile, "What were you up to?"

Maleny sighed, "It was a stupid idea."

"Well, Rebekah was pretty pissed about it," Hayley informed, unaware of the second tense Maleny had just given.

Maleny knew she would have to explain her real intentions to Rebekah as soon as the blonde returned. That...wasn't going to be easy. She could only guess where Rebekah was at the moment and knew poor Thierry was done for. And thanks to that, Maleny knew that Rebekah would only grow more angry after knowing she'd been lied to by Maleny as well.

Klaus strolled inside the room with a mock-glare for Maleny, "Hayley you can go now. I need to have a chat with Miss Woods."

"Good luck," Hayley murmured to Maleny before standing and walking out of the room.

"Would you mind explaining what the hell you were doing in a warehouse that just so happened to belong to Thierry?" he moved right to the side of the bed.

"I'm fine, thank you for asking," Maleny mumbled as she sat up straight, "And I'm just going to start by saying I don't owe you any explanations."

"You do when you asked for help," Klaus snapped.

"It was nothing," Maleny looked to the side, "I was just looking for someone to talk to."

"And by that 'someone' it just so happened to be that deranged Papa Tunde? The very same man who trailed after you like some lovesick idiot?"

"I didn't know he'd be there," Maleny frowned, "You think I just planned on getting myself sacrificed or something? He surprised me, alright?"

"What the hell were you doing at that dock?" Klaus repeated his question, more menacing than the first.

Maleny looked down, knowing she had really screwed up with him. The only thing left was to tell the truth and hope it would simmer his anger, "It was a stupid idea, a plan, to discover what happened during that Harvest. Because I know something happened during the thing, I know it."

Klaus let out an exasperated sigh, an actual irritation growing the more people spoke about that damn Harvest, "Yes, I have reason to believe something else happened as well."

"Well I wanted to find out myself," Maleny explained, deciding to leave Cami out of the explanation, "I'm no expert on witches but I know power like that can't just vanish. And with that man, that...the sacrificial witch, he's dead. I know he is. Or...he's supposed to be dead," she shook her head.

"How do you know that?" Klaus asked, now taking a seat as his interest had been called upon again.

"There was this woman there," she began slowly, trying to separate the other piles of dreams from the one she needed, "During that man's time, there was a woman I dreamed about. Um...Maya."

"Maya Sterling," Klaus decided to give the answer, growing serious.

"Maya Sterling," Maleny remembered instantaneously, "Right, the American. The witch had an interest in her during that time, um...Papa Tunde. Yes."

"Yes I am quite aware the man has inexplicably returned," Klaus sighed, "Had a run-in with him a couple minutes ago. He indicated he'd hurt you."

Maleny stared a him a moment before the realization hit her, "You worried. You worried over me..."

Awkwardly, Klaus cleared his throat and looked away from her curious brown eyes, "I'll have to ask that you don't expose yourself in the future."

Maleny shared a dim smile, "Okay," she nodded, knowing he wouldn't admit to his concern openly. A minute of silence passed before Maleny spoke again, "If Papa Tunde is supposed to be dead then why is he here? The dead don't just rise up again unless...they're called upon. Four witches died and now we get this one man who's been dead for a near century? C'mon Klaus, you're smart, do the math. That power is from the Harvest. Perhaps we can save Davina after all."

"Well, well, you turned out to be more clever than I gave you credit for," Klaus showed a hint of a smirk.

Maleny rolled her eyes, "Yes, thank you for realizing I'm not stupid. Now what do you plan on doing about this?"

"What makes you think I'll do something?"

Maleny gave him a mock glare, "Because you're you and you can't have a witch killing all your little vampires. Plus, if it's true the Harvest power went to raise the dead - probably your enemies - of course you'll have a plan to kill them."

"Speaking of killing," Klaus raised a finger, choosing to ignore her basically correct thoughts, "You do know that you should be dead right now, yes?"

Maleny quieted down and nodded, "I'm aware."

"So what happened there?"

"Does it look like I know?" she raised an eyebrow, "I don't know anything, I told you that. You're supposed to help me, remember? Knowing why I didn't die is part of it!"

"And I will get to that as soon as I end Papa Tunde."

"Can I help with that?"

Klaus laughed lightly, "Right, I'm gonna let the human help."

"This human happens to be immortal as you can see," Maleny reminded, "Perhaps you should."

"If you keep up with the clever clues I may just."

"What are you going to do now?" she asked curiously when he had gotten quiet.

"I'm thinking," he raised a finger to stop her from talking, "About what you said..."

"I said lots of things," Maleny blinked, managing to get a small smile back.

"No, about the sacrificing..." Klaus got to thinking, "...if I need to end Papa Tunde then I need to stop the sacrificing."

"Then you can start by rounding up your vampires that crawl the city," Maleny pointed out and looked out the shut window on the side of the room.

Klaus's eyes widened, "Unless he figures out where to find a spot full of vampires..."

"What are you..." Maleny couldn't finish when Klaus had jumped out of his chair and dashed for the doors, "What's going on?" she moved to get off the bed.

"Stay here," he snapped, "Here," he pointed to the room, "As in: inside these four walls."

"Why?" Maleny blinked. When she received silence and no look, Maleny sighed and moved off the bed, ignoring her body's weakness, "You don't have to worry about me, you know," Maleny stood up but remained where she was by the bed, not very good with walking for the moment.

Klaus simply scoffed yet didn't walk out like Maleny expected him to when confronted about his actual feelings, "I don't worry."

"I know you do about me, that is why you came here after all...I assume Elijah called you to let you know what had happened and where I was. Plus, if Papa Tunde told you about me then you were already worried. If you really didn't have any concern for me then you wouldn't have even bothered to show up," Maleny crossed her arms.

"Don't confuse my strategies with concern for you," he muttered and moved to walk out of the room.

"I know I scare you," Maleny called, wincing at his loud scoff.

"You scare me?" he looked her over and laughed, "I think it's the other way around."

"I claim to be the very first woman that has ever capture that heart of yours, both living and dead," she slowly moved for him, both for her weak state and for fear of what he might do afterwards, "I am that girl in the forest. I reckon I have some impact on you," she whispered.

"I'd watch your tongue if I were you," Klaus warned, stepping closer to the woman with a dark look on his face.

"Or what?" Maleny asked casually, "You'd kill me?"

"Wouldn't be such a bad idea..."

"You act like you would but I don't think you would anymore. Rebekah is right on some level: I could be a good potential asset to you. I can't die, apparently, who knows what more I can do," she remained perfectly calm, even feeling odd about it, "I don't expect you to tell me what you actually feel, but I'll tell you how I feel: you intrigue me to no doubts end. I've seen the affectionate side of you with along with bits of your bad parts. But now...now I'm seeing this whole other side, the dark killer side...and I cannot, for the life of me, stop wondering what else is there about you," she bit her lip as she cautiously leaned up on her toes to place her hands on either side of his face, "Can you tell me why?" she whispered and awaited an answer that he never gave, "What do you think?" she tried again.

Klaus stared at her for a minute, making Maleny believe that perhaps she'd get a word out of him. Suddenly, he pushed her hands down and looked her dead in the eye, "Do not leave this room until I say otherwise," and with that he left the room in a vampire speed.

Maleny rocked back on her feet with a sense of disappointment. For a split second she thought perhaps Klaus would allow her to know how much of an impact she was having in his thoughts...but she should've known better. He would never reveal his true thoughts to a stranger. A stranger is what he probably viewed her as right now, a stranger with possible power for him. And for some reason, she felt a bit...hurt, that this was what he saw her as.

An asset.

Was that all he'd ever see in her?

What more did she want him to see in her?