A/N: Hello! As some of you may have noticed, I have not uploaded in… well, months. It's been a difficult year for me but I have not stopped thinking about this story. You see, I'm a perfectionist. Every time I re-read all this I always think I could have done greater. But really, this story has been part of my worst days and I intend to finish it 'cos writing it has always made me feel better. I'm only sorry I have to keep you waiting.

Anyway, thank you for your reviews, favourites and follows. They help me a lot 'cos they make me smile in the most unexpected moments. Have fun reading this chapter. I will try to upload sooner, around late February or March, after I graduate. Enjoy!

Kol had been unduly anxious. He had spent all morning in the treadmill located just in front of his king size bed. Dacia had been napping and reading peacefully there; now, she was just watching Kol sweat… just. watching.

Kol liked being admired. He had worked really hard on his physical appearance for a reason. He liked compliments, and he loved Dacia's feisty stare. But that day was different. No matter what Dacia did, even if she did nothing, Kol was distressed around her. He carelessly grabbed the control remote and changed to a music channel so that he could focus on the melody, the instruments and the choir.

Dacia's desire for a mundane life was making him uneasy. The more he thought about it, the more upset he got, and the reason was simple: he couldn't give her that life, not all of it was possible, and even if he could, he didn't know if that was what he wanted for himself.

In other words, Kol was scared of commitment.

"I enjoy it here," Dacia stretched her limbs, got comfortable, and smiled from her spot in the bed. "This city gives me good vibes. I could get used to it, even if it's plagued of nasty witches."

Kol breathed out loudly, suffering from the intensive exercise as he was getting closer to the last spring. He raised his eyebrows, trying to keep up with the conversation as he tried to increase the pace. "That's offensive. I could have been one of them. Remember, darling?"

Dacia smirked, approaching Kol with agile and silent cat-like steps and pulling a dreamy face. "I could have coped with the possibility of you practising magic, in a parallel universe, that is… This Dacia would have killed you slowly and then regretted it 'cause it's never pleasant to mutilate horribly a sexy guy."

"Very funny," Kol mocked. "But thanks for the compliment, sweetheart." He bent a bit down to kiss her and after he did, he raised his chin proudly with a smug smile in his face. "Now, stop distracting me. I'm finding it hard to concentrate."

Kol pressed a button twice. The treadmill was set on its fastest speed now.

"I was wondering…" Dacia bit her lip as she ruffled her hair to expose the curve of her neck. It was a simple method of persuasion before she dropped the following question. "What if we, I don't know, moved?" She shrugged innocently, sweetly.

…but Kol nearly tripped in fright. He rapidly smashed the off button of the treadmill and he took a hand to his back. "Move? In here?"

"No, silly, not here," Dacia chuckled. That's the craziest idea. "Just– move to New Orleans."

"I hope you're not serious, Dacia, or else I'm going to cry." Kol replied as he hydrated with refreshing bottled water and avoided her gaze completely. "We belong somewhere else. We already have a house."

"That's not our house," Dacia replied calmly and crossed her arms, following Kol around.

"We own it," Kol insisted.

"But it's not ours. We didn't build it. We never paid for it, we never decorated it. There's nothing in that house or country that defines us." It was difficult to argue with him when he was all fit and erotic standing in front of her. So she tried asking gently, softly, even sadly.

"Oh, and does New Orleans define you?" Kol smiled jokingly. He wasn't in the mood for this conversation but he also wasn't in the mood for an argument, so he tried to play it cool.

"There's culture and art and plurality everywhere. I miss that… I want to have my own house again. I want a safe place, a place to share with you."

Dacia jumped into Kol's arms and smirked closely to his face. Their noses were brushing but neither leapt apart, so he chuckled at the possibility of further intimacy.

"There's no way I'm moving here, Dacia. This is not our safe place. New Orleans is not safe. I loved it here, I really did, but that was a long time ago. I eventually learnt this was not for me." Kol said, as he sweetly cupped Dacia's face with his hands. "We can move back to London, once this is over."

"Are you giving up your kingdom?"

Kol stared at Dacia with loving eyes and paused for a moment. He could feel the heat of her body against his exposed torso. He loved Dacia's dimples, the mole just above her eyebrow, and the way her eyes shined when they were so close to each other. He just melted at the realization of how lucky and how egotistical he was. "I'm giving up my kingdom." He whispered softly, and nodded in agreement.

Dacia smiled lovingly at the idea. Then, she remembered. Kol's proposal would have been amazing had she not purchased a residence already…

She kissed him with this thought in her head.

"Now, what about we have a shower?" Kol suggested amusingly. But she giggled and shook her head.

"Can't. Marcel promised to show me around the city." Dacia pecked Kol's forehead as he reluctantly released her.

Was he jealous? It's not like Kol didn't trust Dacia, he simply didn't trust men, especially Marcel. This man had already messed up with Rebekah's feelings. Also, Marcel had Klaus. They were reciprocally loyal, always faithful to each other. However, Klaus' affection was something Kol had never experienced… and that was painful.

Kol frowned, and for the first time, he didn't complain. Truth was he really needed some time for himself.

"Have fun in the shower without me," Dacia joked as she left.

Kol rolled his eyes and grabbed a towel. "I'll try to."

"What is that you saw in him? For real. Why does a woman like you fall for a psychopath like Kol Mikaelson?"

Marcel had taken her to Rousseau's, a charming pub located in the French Quarters of New Orleans. All customers were either having beers or cocktails; Dacia realized they were probably one of the few people who were drinking shots; in fact, the number of tiny glasses was increasing considerably and she was already feeling buzzed.

She chuckled and took her hands to her hot, rosy cheeks. "Where do I start?" Dacia asked rhetorically.

"Why don't you start from the beginning?" Marcel suggested, as he ordered a glass of bourbon this time. Dacia refused to have another drink and lit a Malboro instead. If she was to speak about Kol with a stranger, she needed some smoking.

"I hated Kol the moment I met him. I had my life in London, my perfect, lonely life. I'd say he ruined it but I'm obviously thankful I got to meet him." Dacia explained. She was carefully saving all her belongings inside her purse, including one of those rare but useful artefacts they called 'cell phones' that occupied a great space of her bag. "I've been many things in this second life: a pirate, a traveller, a thief… I rather think of myself as a collector, though. I'm an art and antiquities enthusiast. I have an amazing collection in my summerhouse, in Spain.

» The late 19th century was a period of prosperity and personal growth for me. I bought a house in the city centre and I started to control my bloodlust. It took me a while, I'm not going to lie. I'm quite old, and even though I had my dark moments, I felt productive and satisfied with myself. I was like a cat, lazy during the day, a hunter at night. When the war began… the atmosphere was obviously different.

» Curiously, the 1940s was my most peaceful decade. One day, though, I found Klaus' coffins and…" Dacia shrugged. She usually never talked about Kol and her to anyone that wasn't Rebekah, but it was nice to do it every now and then. Marcel raised his eyebrows, encouraging her to continue. "I was unconsciously attracted to Kol. I figured the dagger through his chest was valuable so I…"

"You tried to steal it, huh?" Marcel gave her a polite smile and nodded. At first, he thought Dacia was quite a plain woman, posh and uninteresting. However, the more they chatted, the more he could relate to her. They were both in love with a Mikaelson, after all. "Okay, I'm beginning to see where all this leads to. That is the reason Klaus hated you."

"Exactly," even if Dacia was laughing, being Klaus' enemy had been no fun. "The feeling was mutual. Except, he wasn't afraid of me and I was genuinely terrified of him. Now I understand Klaus is just… misunderstood. He needs affection. Every single one of the Mikaelsons is hurt and broken in their own way. Kol, actually, is a pretty sensible and insecure guy when you get to know him."

"Are you saying his lack of empathy is justifiable? Kol, that man gave me dreadful nightmares. Our relationship was… is quite turbulent." Marcel grimaced and took a sip of his drink. He could imagine Kol right now, arguing with his brothers violently about the strategy to defeat Mikael, their father, once and for all. He was glad he was in Rousseau's, getting drunk with his oddly charming girlfriend.

"All of us are disgustingly despicable with everybody else but none of us is truly… a monster, Marcel." Dacia reasoned, her shimmery green eyes fixed to his dark ones. "That's why I agreed to come help Klaus. He wronged me in ways the rest of his family never did. Do you think that's justifiable? It is not but I want to see his best side."

"No, none of that is. You're right. Nothing that we vampires do is really justifiable. It's who we are but..." Marcel's mouth was left open but no words came out.

Dacia nodded and formed a sad smile. "You still don't like Kol. Yes, I understand."

"Exactly."

She sighed. "We argue a lot," Dacia said. She wasn't looking for Marcel's sympathy, it just felt good to let it all out. "I'm really capricious and he's really stubborn. Sometimes I'm afraid I love him so much it will eventually tear us apart. I just want to have an ordinary life with him."

"I wish I could have an ordinary life," Marcel scoffed at such ridiculous idea. "Or wait, no, I don't."

"I couldn't tell him I bought that shop. I wanted to make it our living place, our new sanctuary," Dacia groaned. "Earlier today I convinced him to give up his stupid kingdom in Europe. I got what I wanted and still, I couldn't tell him. I feel like I'm constantly giving him reasons to abandon me."

"I wouldn't be so dramatic, Dacia. Buying a house without his consent is not the most terrible thing that could happen to you."

"Oh, but you know my brother, Marcellus," Klaus' voice startled Dacia who was more than tipsy. She took her hand to her brow and tiredly stared at the Original vampire, who sat on the stool beside her. "I noticed you were just having an interesting conversation about me." Klaus noticed with an amusing smirk. "If you want to see my brightest side, Dacia, I suggest we start thinking about our strategy to defeat Mikael. How about you leave to Mystic Falls, let's say, in two days?"

Confidently, Klaus gave Dacia a ticket to Virginia.

"It's a first class flight to Richmond. A man of trust would pick you up at the airport and take you to Mystic Falls." Dacia observed the boarding pass in her hand intensely, then gazed at an impassive Marcel. "Don't worry, love. Marcel is aware of everything."

"If you want to end Mikael once and for all, there has to be an element of surprise." Marcel agreed with Klaus.

"This would be a lot easier if I was allowed to simply join the assassination squad," Dacia replied bitterly and saved the ticket in her wallet.

"Even if you finally join our wicked team against Mikael, Marcellus is right. We still need an element of surprise in case my siblings and I fail to contain Mikael." Klaus explained.

Dacia raised a shot and gulped it with a sour expression in her face. "So, I'm going to have a nanny in my trip to Mystic Falls? How considerate of you," Dacia said sarcastically with a grin, and stared ungratefully at Klaus. "Who's that man of trust that's going to supervise me?"

"Just a nobody." And with that, Klaus called the bartender. "Have you thought about an excuse?"

Dacia observed him from up to down. "I'll tell Kol I'm visiting Stefan or something like that," Dacia thought, "although I don't even know if he's in town."

"I wouldn't use that alibi, sweetheart, if Rebekah finds out she might be disappointed that you didn't invite her to your little trip." Klaus contemplated, and he was right. It wasn't a clever alibi.

"Who's Stefan?" Marcel asked suspiciously.

"You must know, Marcellus, that you're not Rebekah's one and only." Klaus replied unsympathetically.

Dacia's eyes widened at Klaus' rude remark. After a moment of silence and sour stares, she decided to intervene. "I'll tell him some other thing, then. Chill out both, gentlemen," Dacia said, trying to calm the atmosphere as Marcel scoffed and grabbed a dart from the counter to join some humans in the game. "That was mean, Klaus."

"I don't like him around my sister. They are family, they cannot be lovers." He simply said. Klaus did not want to have this conversation, especially with Dacia.

"That's stupid." She mumbled.

"We practically raised him." Klaus insisted, apparently uncaring.

"Fine, if that's how you feel, you should tell him," Dacia reasoned, but Klaus didn't need a voice of consciousness right now. "He may not approve your perspective but something tells me Marcel would be glad to know he's part of your family."

After a moment of silence, Klaus changed the subject. "So darling, do you remember what you have to do?"

"I have to look for the Bennett witch, Sheila Bennett, and pretty much persuade her to join us in this suicide plan against your father. If I bring her here, she will help us defeat Mikael." Dacia explained, rather mechanically.

"Good." Klaus nodded.

"Klaus?"

Klaus hummed in response. Once Dacia saw she had his full attention, she shrugged and asked:

"Since I have arrived, no one but you has mentioned Mikael's name to me. I get that me being useful is the reason you have told me what all this is about, but do Rebekah, Elijah and Kol really trust me so little not to share their intentions with me?"

"I'm always glad to create a conflict, darling. I personally enjoy meddling in the affairs of a couple," Klaus began with a joke, and before he continued, he took a sip of his drink.

"I've noticed," Dacia interrupted him. "You must really hate your brother to pester him for having a girlfriend."

"I don't hate Kol." Klaus replied urgently and grumpily. "In all honesty, I think he just wants you to stay out of it because he wants to protect you. I'd respect his choice if I didn't need you. But Mikael really is a perverse foe. Elijah has most likely accepted Kol's decision; as for Rebekah, she will come up to you eventually. She's a very communicative person…"

"In other words, she's a blabbermouth," Dacia smirked, and so did Klaus.

The Original vampire fixed his gentle blue eyes to Dacia's. "I saw your potential in London. I know you are really fast, agile and weapon-friendly."

"Weapon-friendly?" She questioned, somehow confused.

"I heard Kol say something about the arsenal in your house. He may have stolen an axe from you." Klaus said casually.

"That it's not an arsenal. It's a collection of weapons I haven't used in hundreds of years, like yours." She muttered, lowering her voice for no specific reason as she put out the cigarette.

"You should consider using them again. I personally love to get my hands dirty but some weaponry can be unbelievably creative and give you beautiful, grotesque results. It's fascinating." Klaus glanced at his watch and looked back at Dacia. "It's late and you are drunk. You should get going. Once you come back from Mystic Falls, I'll get into details. Try to make a witch friend, Dacia. Sheila Bennett is very influential in her community. Be nice to the witch and if she refuses to aid us…" The dark veins behind Klaus' eyes suggested a very naughty thing.

While Klaus and Dacia discussed business in Rousseau's, Kol, Elijah and Rebekah did the same in the French Quarters, in the Mikaelson family house.

"Before Nik called us, there were an impressive number of vampire attacks in New Orleans. Nothing out of the extraordinary, I first thought…" Elijah was delivering a speech on how Mikael had slowly taken over New Orleans in the past few weeks. Rebekah was sitting in an armchair, admiring her heels while she listened. Kol was leant on a bookcase, silently cursing at the presence of Dacia's cats carefully following him around the house. "The shocking part was that the victims were vampires, too. They had been bitten, fed on and brutally murdered," Elijah continued.

"Father dearest is probably the only idiot who feeds on his own kind." Kol interrupted, and poured himself some old fancy wine.

Rebekah tentatively raised her empty glass to Kol and gave him a cocky smile. "Dear brother, right here!" She called, and like a queen, waited for her drink.

Kol smirked and placed the bottle in a round dining table. "You're an independent woman, Rebekah. Come and do it yourself."

"That's lovely. Are you this neglecting with Dacia, too?" Rebekah rolled her eyes and so did Elijah. They had gathered to catch up on the last eventualities and it seemed none of them was serious enough to have this conversation without having their usual idiotic arguments.

"Klaus' mutt, Marcel," Kol continued, and Rebekah gave him a nasty stare at the affront. "He found disturbing evidence which proved that Mikael had been lodging in the Plantation. Right, brother?"

"Indeed. The house is horribly stained in blood now, the furniture is destroyed… and there's no sign of him anymore. He must have left as soon as we got here. I assume he knows we are here…"

Kol was certain Mikael was watching them, testing the waters. He started thinking that bringing Dacia had been a terrible idea. He still hadn't asked her about the vervain incident. What if it had something to do with Mikael? What if she had been compelled? What if Dacia was Mikael's puppet? He then shook his head. Mikael was not a tactician. He was hot-headed, impulsive. If Mikael had known Dacia already, she would have probably been dead by now.

Kol wanted to know who had incapacitated Dacia with vervain. Then again, he didn't have the right to ask because he hadn't told her about this family conflict.

"We could ask Dacia to track Mikael." Rebekah suggested. With Dacia's name now in the conversation, Kol was paying full attention again.

"I don't want her involved, Rebekah." A week had passed and Dacia still ignored what they had come to New Orleans for, os so he thought. Ignorance was the best way to keep her alive. "I nearly lost her once. I'm not losing her to Mikael. Could you imagine the atrocious things he would do to her? Father will find a way to hurt us all and you both know who's my weakness." Kol stated sternly, pointing at his siblings with his accusing index fingers. "If father knows what Dacia means to me, he will kill her. I'm not up for it."

Dacia had just returned from Rousseau's in the blink of an eye. As soon as Klaus had told her to leave, he reasoned that was probably for the best. She had just crossed the main door when she heard Kol, Rebekah and Elijah have this conversation. She sighed, and without interrupting them, she flashed upstairs.

The following evening, Dacia was packing for her small visit to Mystic Falls. She had explained to Kol it was something she needed to do. Kol winced, but he didn't complain... at least, not at once.

"Why are you going to Mystic Falls?" He asked.

"There are a few antiquities I have my eye on. I'm starting a new collection." That would have been great, to start a new collection, if it weren't just a lie.

"If you want old stuff, why don't you have me? I'm worth my weight in gold." Kol raised his eyebrows seductively as he grabbed some panties Dacia had just put into her case.

"Funny." She laughed dishonestly, and snatched at her lingerie.

"You can acquire all sorts of curiosities right here in New Orleans…"

"Am I not allowed to leave for a few days? What am I, a prisoner?" Dacia smiled. Kol's overwhelming dependency for her was actually adorable to her. The Original vampire shrugged and laid down on the bed they shared. He took his hands to his neck and sighed.

"You're not a prisoner in this house. Do you feel imprisoned?"

A few seconds of silence later, Dacia admitted she was indeed feeling that way. "I came here to help you and Klaus re-bond, to help reconstruct this family by fighting… whoever you are fighting against. You're hiding things and you're making me want to hide things from you, too." Dacia wasn't comfortable with lying, she despised herself for doing so. But she believed in Klaus as a flawless strategist. Kol was also a great contriver but he was careless and too violent for his own good. And from what Kol had told her, Mikael was probably the evilest man on Earth. He was unstoppable and insatiable.

"I'm not the one who's on vervain, love," he said, indignantly.

"That was nothing, trust me. I just bumped into a witch bitch."

Kol rolled his eyes. Dacia's hatred for the witches bothered him. It made him angry, and it caused him a huge emotional pain, a pain he endured because he loved her. "Why am I not surprised?"

"I know you're thinking that you're protecting me. But you're not. I never needed protection. What you're doing is trying to control me. If you don't want me to be part of this family then I may as well leave for a much deserved trip to Virginia." Dacia stated, grudgingly closing her suitcase. But when he heard the following question, the heat of her body decreased.

"Do you want us to get married, Dacia?" Kol asked in a raspy voice.

"Wh- what?" She stuttered. Dacia was completely puzzled. "I've always told you, I don't need to get married."

"You don't need to get married but would you like to?"

"Is this a serious proposal?" Dacia turned to Kol and took his hands to her hips. Kol was still lying on the padding mattress and it didn't look like he was willing to stand up to face her.

"All I'm saying is our relationship is getting way too serious and I haven't had a relationship like this in a thousand years. I'm just wondering, what's our next step now?" Kol raised his eyebrows. This whirlwind of emotions he was feeling for Dacia was engrossing. "Should we get married? I'm willing to move, to give up something I really I'm not ready to get married. It's not my style."

"Kol, darling…" Dacia whispered in a velvety voice. She approached Kol and knelt beside him to take his hand. "Sweetheart, my love. Don't worry, we don't have to get married. Where did you get that from?"

"I see the way you look at those humans, happily married people, proud parents, with their uninteresting, decaying routine. You want that kind of life for yourself, don't you?"

"I do, sometimes… or at least I want some aspects of it. But then I remember the bright side of being what I am, feeding with ecstasy, living adventures no human could ever have, doing our kinky, disgusting and gory things together... That makes me happy." She smiled and stroke Kol's cheek. "Don't be paranoid, okay? I just want you to be by my side, trust me with all kinds of information and let me be part of this strong pack."

Kol close his eyes and sighed. All he wanted was to go on a kill spree and follow his wildest instincts. "This sucks. I'd do anything to tear and disembowel in peace like we always do, far away from New Orleans."

"We can do that when I come back. We could take a day off and drive wherever you want." That was a great idea, Kol thought, and his cocky smirk was back to his face. Dacia laid down beside him, her cute turned-up nose breathing calmly against his shoulder. "Why do you hate New Orleans so much by the way?"

"It reminds me of what I was and I could have been. It reminds me of the family I've never truly had." Kol answered reluctantly.

Dacia frowned. It made her sad to see how broken Kol really was, how isolated Kol felt from his siblings. "Don't be ridiculous, Kol. You're an essential member of your family. They all love you."

"They may love me but I will never be one of them. I don't feel one of them, I don't feel included, never completely." Kol groaned. He was not even capable of looking at his girlfriend's eyes now because of his inner rage. "Even when it comes to defeat our enemies, I always fuck it up. It's about time I do it this time, too."

"Don't fuck it up, then." Dacia wrapped her arms around him while he asked her not to go. He didn't really say a word, although he didn't have to. "I'm leaving to Mystic Falls, I'm not meeting with the devil. I'll be back in a few days."

"The devil is in New Orleans," Kol replied. On second thought, it was for the better that Dacia left, even if he didn't like the idea. He decided to inform her who they were fighting against, so that she could take care when he wasn't around, in case Mikael chased her. "My father, he's always been haunting us. Apparently he's been wandering the city."

"I had a feeling this was about your dad…" Dacia said rather awkwardly.

"Father will kill Klaus or at least he will try to. But this is not just about Nik, though. It's easy to blame the parents; however, our parents are the true monsters of this story and I'm one of their victims. This has to end." Now Kol was facing her, and their noses were brushing. "Before you say anything else, love, I don't want you to be a collateral damage. Niklaus, Elijah, Rebekah, Finn, we all have the same blood but you are my family."

Dacia smiled and she slowly kissed Kol. She wrapped his arms around his neck this time and slowly closed his eyes as Kol's delicious and distinctive scent wafted in the air.

"One more thing before you leave, sweetheart." Kol whispered lowly in her ear. "Don't be such a bitch around witches. I was a witch before I was a vampire. I loved the power. I loved the rush. And then when we turned I lost it all."

Dacia nodded. She knew Kol had went through a bit of dark period. It all started when Kol lost his magic to vampirism. His switch remained off for centuries and still, Dacia had never truly seen this side of Kol, his non-human side. Kol was wicked, mischievous, destructive, but she had always seen even the smallest hint of emotion in him. She had been lucky. Or perhaps she had made him switch it back on.

"Take care of my babies, okay?" Dacia asked, referring to his cats.

Kol groaned. "Don't expect me to get emotionally attached to another cat. He doesn't even have a name."

"We could call him Churchill?"

Kol stared at her intensely after such idiotic suggestion. "You're such a geek. That's a punishment, not a name."

"I love you," Dacia laughed. And while Kol thought "always and forever", he took Dacia to have a drink before she left tomorrow.

"Hey, what's your deal?" A young man in his mid-twenties approached Dacia as she smoked a mid-night cigarette outside. Kol had taken her to have a few drinks and they had ended up in a random student pub uptown. This guy, probably a student, too, looked rather awkward. In all honesty, he was quite cute and looked like an upright guy. His intentions were probably good, but Dacia couldn't help raising his eyebrows at his clumsiness.

"Is this your way of… how do you guys call it nowadays… hitting on a girl? Wow, times have truly changed." Dacia replied uninteresting as the boy took his hands to his pockets and tried other methods to impress her.

"Heh, right… You're so beautiful you made me forget my pick-up line."

Kol was a few meters beside them, watching the amusing scene with a beer in his hand. The young man's friends were watching, too, and laughing at his pathetic attempts of seducing her.

Dacia couldn't hide an embarrassing smile as she looked at him rather pitifully. She knew what was coming next, and the poor guy… he didn't really deserve it.

She could picture Kol's sadistic smirk and amusing look. Like a lion, he was about to attack his pray. He had been studying the people for half an hour when he usually never bothered this much. But tonight, he wanted to choose the snack, and that poor guy hadn't realized he was asking out his vampire girlfriend. This dude was slim, he didn't even look like he would resist. His friends, on the contrary… they would be Dacia's dinner. She would not feed on the six of them, those idiots… they were not worth the energy. But she would always have some energy left to kill them.

"How about we go have a walk and…?"

"How about, no," Kol intervened, dropped his empty bottle and rubbed his hands anxiously as he approached. Dacia rolled her eyes. Kol and his tendency to make a dramatic entrance…

"And wh- who might you be?" The brown-haired asked, taking a step back cautiously.

"This is very uncomfortable, mate. She's my girl and you are my dinner."

"Oh, I'm sorry," the guy nodded… until he realized what Kol had just implied. "I beg your pardon?"

"Ah, yes, you're going to beg." Five minutes later, seven bodies laid on the ground, forming a gigantic pool of blood. Dacia had fed on the jock (the brawniest were usually the healthiest) and she got rid of the remaining pathetic humans by breaking their necks, tearing out their hearts and bowels, or breaking their spines. Each crack and splash of blood gave her a rush of adrenaline she enjoyed every time.

But all this excitement disappeared suddenly when Kol recognized a masculine voice and an elder figure coming out from the shadows. "Well, this escalated quickly."

Dacia turned in the man's direction only to see Mikael carrying a… gun? She tilted her head and watched cautiously each of his moves. Mikael approached his son, completely ignoring Dacia, and violently grabbed his arm to twist it.

"Father?" Kol asked in utter shock, groaning and fighting back his hold. Then, Mikael pulled the trigger.

Kol shrieked in agony. He rapidly lifted up his shirt only to see a glowing wound burning his body from the inside. The bullet was made of UVA rays. He remembered that time back in London, those many years ago, when they accidentally contacted Mikael and he was using that munition against allied men… allied vampires.

Dacia flashed to them and quickly pounced on the old man. His eyes were light blue but had nothing of gentle, it was all pure malice, and they looked at her with abhorrence. Mikael threw Dacia against the wall with no effort, and she hit the ground with a loud thud.

"Oh, well, well… Aren't you a fighter?" Mikael said with vigour. He then laughed at his son who was still struggling to remove that bullet from his system. The pain was unbearable.

Mikael took his big hand to Dacia's swan neck and started to squeeze. "I may not have Viking blood running through my veins but I'm bonded to your son and his courage is contagious." Dacia struggled to joke, and again, she tried (in vain) to kick Mikael in order to get rid of his grasp.

"My son was never courageous, he is incautious and so are you." And with that, Mikael snapped Dacia's neck.

Kol glared at him and managed to take out the bullet. It was gleaming in purple between his fingers. "Did you really think this would kill me?"

"I had my hopes. I had to taste it on an Original vampire before I used it on your brother. Unfortunately, I see that the white oak stakes are really the only weapon that can end you… Don't fret, my son. I'll get some soon."

Kol was breathing heavily. The bullet had left him exhausted, but watching Dacia lay lifeless in the ground had made him furious.

"I'm impressed, boy," Mikael continued as he ran a hand through his blonde beard. "You found yourself a woman with a pleasant face. It's such a disgrace she's just like you, a parasite." Mikael roared with laughter and disposed of his gun. "Let's see how long she lasts next time. Oh, and send my greetings to your siblings. Tell them we'll be meeting soon."

Kol closed his eyes and squeezed at the excruciating pain. When he opened them again, his father was nowhere around.

Updated: 06/02/2016

A/N: Drop a review?