"The Italians call them strega. The Yoruba of West Africa call them aje, meaning mother. Where my mother was from, they called them häxa, and here we call them witch." Elijah explained in a tone that reminded Imogen of the days when she used to sit at the back of class with Sophie, passing notes back and forth when the teacher couldn't see.

The young witch bit her lower lip as she leaned back against the side of the armchair Hayley was sitting in from her position on the floor and looked up to where Elijah was standing by the table that pictured the sketched portrait of Celeste. Most the morning had been spent staring at the drawing, trying to find out what hidden mean Davina had unintentional delivered to them and if it was a forewarning to something worse coming their way.

Elijah crossed his arms over his chest with a confused frown on his lips as he studied the portrait as though it's drawn on lips would suddenly part and tell him everything he wanted to know. "Over the centuries, vampires have fought them and fought beside them, bedded them and burned them. Whether adversary or ally, they have been a force to be reckoned with. Their ancestral magic anchors this city. There's never been one all-powerful witch until Davina."

"Who is now tucked in safe and sound down the hall under my protection." Klaus informed them as he entered the room with a jovial bounce in his step and Imogen glowered at the sound of his voice as she pointedly looked at the fireplace instead of him.

All morning she had refused to even glance in Klaus' direction from the moment she walked into the same room as him and thankfully Rebekah had been there every time to be run interference so she didn't have to worry about him cornering her.

Unfortunately, the blonde wasn't there to play defence and the comment sparked anger inside Imogen as she turned her head to glare at him heatedly. "'Protection?' You literally killed her! How is that protecting her?"

Klaus turned his head around to look at Imogen at the sound of her voice, happy that she was no longer ignoring his presence, even if it was to display her anger at him over his actions and a smirk spread across his lips as he took a step forward. "Well, she's alive now, isn't she? Isn't that the glowing conclusion you all hoped for?"

Imogen glowered at him as she shook her head in disgust before turning her attention back to Elijah and Klaus followed her gaze as he sauntered forward, his focus going to the array of sketches on the table. "Your Celeste was quite beautiful and a portent of evil, according to our volatile artist in residence."

"Yes. Perhaps Davina's mistaken what she calls evil for power. Celeste was certainly very powerful in her day, but she's been dead for over two hundred years. I don't understand. Why all these sketches now?" Elijah asked himself quietly, his expression thoughtful as he crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his oak brown eyes at the portrait of his lost love.

"Why does any witch do anything?"

"There are only six reasons anyone does anything. Love. Faith. Greed. Boredom. Fear. Revenge." Imogen informed them idly as she listed them off her fingers one by one until she was finished and she dropped her hands onto her lap as she lift both eyebrows at the mystified expressions directed her way. "Tell me I'm wrong."

"She's not wrong." The elder Mikaelson agreed softly as he studied her with an almost dazed look in his oak brown eyes and young witch glanced up at him with a small smile on her lips, a blush appearing on her cheeks when she noticed him staring.

Klaus looked between the pair with his light blue eyes narrowed thoughtfully, taking in the hasty way Imogen diverted her gaze and the way Elijah's eyes lingered momentarily. It was truly something else entirely to witness the beginning of a relationship, the awkward and tense atmosphere.

A loud crash sounded from somewhere upstairs on the second floor and Imogen immediately stood up without taking her gaze from the roof overhead, her heart beating rapidly in fright that something had happened to Davina. She was aware that Marcel was with her trying to make amends but that only eased her mind a fraction because while she somewhat trusted him with Davina's safety, there was no one she trusted more than herself.

"Davina is safe. That's her welcoming Marcel." Elijah assured the witch softly as he watched her tense with worry over her little sister and Imogen instantly relaxed as she nodded gently, sitting down on the arm of Hayley's chair in case she needed to take off at the moment's notice.

"Well, that's going well." Klaus murmured under his breath as he glanced up at the ceilings before turning his attention back to his older brother with a smirk on his lips.

Elijah lifted his gaze from the side of Imogen's face to glower at him and narrowed his oak brown eyes at the nonchalant tone in his brother's voice. "If you were trying to win the girl's trust, perhaps poisoning her one true love was not the most splendid idea."

"Oh. Are there any more inopportune deaths you'd like to wave in my face?"

"Give me a month. I'll get you list."

Imogen laughed in amusement at the eldest Originals sarcastic remark, her face relaxing into a bright smile as she looked over at him and his lips turned up slightly at the joyful sound he only had the pleasure of hearing a handful of times before. It was a contagious sound, so innocent and blissful like no one could see beyond the moment into the darkness inside.

Another loud crash echoed down the stairs from the second storey, making Imogen stand up with a slightly panicked expression on her face and her gaze locked onto the roof overhead as she silently assured herself that Davina was one causing the chaos, not the one being affected.

Klaus pressed himself up with his seat on an armchair with a disgruntled purse of his lips and he shot the young witch a tight smile as he walked passed her on his way out of the room, "Young, old, dead, or alive, witches are a pain in the ass."

"Oh, because you're so free and breezy." Imogen snapped at him in annoyance as she started following him out of the study, a scowl marring her lips as she hurried to keep up with his long strides.

The top floor of the Abattoir was basically empty as they rushed down the corridor towards Davina's bedroom, an occasional crash echoing throughout the house and that only made Imogen run faster as panic for her sister flooded her veins with adrenaline. The door to Davina's bedroom was open slightly and the light from inside the room streamed through the crack illuminated the darkened hallway, chasing away the shadows.

"Davina. Davina!" Marcel exclaimed in concern from inside the room, his voice rising slightly with anxiety and Imogen forced herself to move even faster, willed herself to go quicker. This was her sister, her light and promise of a better day. If anything were to happen to her, Imogen didn't know what she would do, how she would go on or get through the day knowing Davina wasn't in the world.

Imogen pushed open the door so hard that it hit the wall behind and bounced back quick enough that it almost smacked Klaus right in the face as he followed her into the room. Her eyes darted all around the room, looking for any sign of danger before her gaze landed on the large bed in the middle of the bedroom.

Davina was kneeling on the centre of the bed, her back hunched over as she coughed roughly and her brunette hair curtained her face from Imogen view. Marcel stood beside the side of the bed protectively, his dark brown eyes clouded with concern as he kept his gaze locked on the young girl and rubbed soothing circles on her back as she whimpered under her breath.

"What's with all the racket?" Klaus asked with irritation lacing his accented voice as he came to a stop at the end of the bed and Imogen rushed passed him faster than seemingly possible for a human, bumping his shoulder blindly on her way to Davina's other side. "Bloody hell."

Dirt was strewed all over the bedspread as Imogen sunk down on the edge of the bed, her hand instantly soothing back her younger sisters hair and she frowned in confusion as Davina started heaving soil, her whole body wracked of dry sobs that shook both of the sisters.

Tears burned Davina's eyes as she gagged on the dirt coming out of her mouth, confusion making the process even more painful. She tried to focus on the semi-coherent soothing words coming from Imogen, tried to pull confidence and strength from her older sister presence. Something was wrong, that much was clear to everyone in the room and Davina hated that she was once again at the centre of the problem. Sweat glistened on her forehead, her skin ashen as tendrils of brunette hair stuck to her face and her normally bright blue eyes were dull as she slumped her shoulders.

Marcel watched cautiously as Davina finally stopped heaving, exhaustion spreading across her expression as she collapsed backwards into her sisters arms and Imogen glanced up at him with a frown as she wrapped her arms tightly around the younger girl.

Suddenly the house began to shake violently as though there was an earthquake taking place, the windows were rattling as Imogen tightened her hold on Davina and she looked around wildly with a panicked expression on her pretty face. Marcel sat down on the edge of the bed as his arms went around both of the witches protectively, shielding them with his body from any falling debris.

"That's certainly not normal." Klaus murmured to himself as the shaking stopped just as suddenly as it started and he looked back at the three people huddled together on the bed, the two adults glancing around in confusion as the girl drifted off to sleep.

"Davina did that. What's happening?" Imogen asked in a fearful voice as she gazed down with tears in her eyes at the resting girl in arms, her voice cracking with emotion. The two vampires shared a indecipherable look, neither one of them wanting to admit that they didn't have a clue when she already appeared to be breaking.

"I don't know. But I swear I'm going to find out, sweetheart." Marcel vowed softly as he placed a lingering kiss to her forehead, making her lift her head to look at him with muted blue eyes but he could see the hope buried deep down. Imogen nodded her head absently as he gently lifted a sleeping Davina out of her arms and laid her down on the pillows at the top of the bed before pressing a kiss to her forehead. A blanket was placed over her body as Imogen tucked it underneath her arms, brushing some hair off of her face and sitting down next to her without taking her eyes off of Davina's peaceful expression.

Imogen didn't even notice when the vampires left the room, their footsteps were practically silent on the carpeted flooring. Her attention was on the seemingly peaceful expression, the subtle flickering of her eyelids as she dreamed, the gentle inhale and exhale of her breathing. She looked so innocent in moments like that, like she was the little girl who used to beg Imogen to attend tea parties with her stuffed animals. But the lives they lived did not go hand in hand with innocence and every minute Davina spent in the supernatural world was another minute she fought to hold on to the childhood she had left behind.

Gone were the days where the girls would play make believe in the backyard, pretending to be lions in the jungle or cowboys in the old west. Gone were the days where Imogen would allow Davina to raid her closet while playing dress up and let her act as if she worked in a beauty shop by suffering through a makeover.

Most people spend their whole childhood wishing that they were older, but when they're older they realise all they wanted to do is go back to being that carefree and innocent. Imogen wasn't one of those people. Her childhood was full of lies, bruises and cuts, and pushing boundaries. That was why she fought so passionately for Davina to have normal childhood full of hopes and dreams, imagination and freedom.

Imogen sighed to herself as she traced her fingers down Davina's cheek with a soft smile on her lips and the movement caused the younger girl's eyes to flutter open as she shifted sleepily. Her blue eyes slowly focused on the older sister's face, making a small smile spread across her lips as she stretched out on her back before realisation crossed her face and her breathing immediately started to become shallow as she began to panic.

"Hey, hey. It's okay, Pixie." Imogen assured her in a rush as she leaned forward to cup Davina's ace in her hands and offered her a small smile as she soothed her thumbs over her cheekbones in comfort.

Rebekah came rushing into the bedroom with a worried expression on her face as she closed the door behind her and quickly made her way over to the bed as she searched the sister's faces intently for answers. She gently sat down on the opposite edge of the bed from Imogen as she swept her gaze over Davina's pale face and sympathy flooded through her as she placed a hand on her arm. "Hey. What kind of game do you think you're playing? I said disrupt the household, not destroy the whole city."

"I didn't do it. Not on purpose. I - I don't know what's wrong with me." Davina stuttered weakly as her frantic gaze switched from the Original to her sister and she blindly reached out for Imogen's hand, seeking her strength in her time of need.

"I'm going to go find out." Imogen stated firmly with determination clear on her face as she stood up from the edge of the bed and bent down to kiss Davina's forehead gently before striding out of the room.

"I would not want to get in her way." she overhead Rebekah murmured in amusement to the younger girl as they watched her exit the bedroom and a smirk spread across her lips as she hurried down the corridor.

Heavy footsteps were muffled on the carpeted floor as Imogen strolled purposely towards the study on the ground level of the compound. Some of the vampires glanced at her as she passed them but didn't say a word, mostly because they recognised the resolute expression she wore and didn't want to suffer her wrath. They may be immortal creatures of the night with enhanced strength but they had either heard the rumours that circled around the French Quarter or had met her personally and knew not to get on her bad side.

The door to the study was partially opened as she entered the room silently, not wanting to draw attention to herself as the three vampires conferred in a slightly heated conversation. Klaus was slouched lazily on the couch while Marcel stood in front of the large window with his arms crossed over his chest and Elijah sat on the edge of one of the armchairs to the side of the room, his head snapping up when the witch snuck into the room.

"This is madness. How can a 16-year-old girl shake the entire French quarter?" Klaus asked incredulously with a frown on his lips as he sat up straighter and directed his question towards his former protégé.

"I've seen her rock the church, but I've never seen anything like this." Marcel replied in a confused yet worried tone of the voice as he stole a glance at Imogen before turning back to the hybrid with a frown.

"How did you control her when she was in the attic?"

"I didn't have to. But then, I never killed her boyfriend."

Klaus rolled his light blue eyes at the quip as he waved a hand dismissively in the air and ignored the accusing stare burning into the back of his head from where Imogen was standing by the door to the study. "Yes, yes. We've been over this part already. The point is in her present state she's useless as a tool against the witches."

"She's not a tool!" Imogen snapped angrily as she stepped forward, her blue eyes flashing fiercely and Marcel immediately walked over to her side with a consoling hand on the small of her back. The witch glanced at him as he gave her a look that neither Original could decipher and she started to calm down as she offered him a small nod.

"Something's wrong with her." Marcel admitted softly as he ducked his head slightly to meet her worried eyes and she searched his dark brown eyes for reassurance, hope surging through her even though she knew it was almost pointless to place all of that on him.

There was still so much unsaid between the two of them, so much they had to discuss since Marcel had broken her trust. Being able to forgive someone was easy but being able to trust them again was a completely different story. Their friendship hung in the balance, just waiting to either mend or shatter. At that moment it was fractured, but that didn't mean it was gone beyond repair. They needed each other. Whether they wanted to admit it or not, somehow in the months since the Harvest ritual they had become friends. They had become family.

"She has too much power that she cannot control. That much we already knew. But why is it manifesting itself in such an aggressive manner?" Elijah pondered quietly to himself as he diverted his gaze from the brunette witch standing so close to the former king, his blood burning with jealousy.

"Well, what do we know about the Harvest?" Klaus asked them in a slightly annoyed tone of voice as he looked at the three of occupants of the room and everyone snapped their heads around to look at Imogen for answers.

The witch's eyes widened in surprise as she glanced around wildly in confusion and pointed to herself as Marcel started leading her towards the vacant couch. "Oh, I wasn't exactly paying attention when we learnt about the Harvest. I thought it was complete bullshit."

"Well, what do you know?"

"The Harvest is a sacrificial ceremony that is commonly performed by witches of the French Quarter coven, i.e. my coven. The ritual is performed once every three hundred years as a means to strengthen the connection between the living witches of New Orleans and our deceased ancestors, from whom we draw magical power. Since our magic weakens over time, the ritual is meant to appease the ancestors by giving them an offering of power in exchange for the ancestors strengthening the coven's connection to our magic. The offering is meant to prove the coven's faith, not only in the Harvest ritual, but in the ancestors themselves. The Elders failed to mention the four young witches would be brutally killed via having their throats being slit."

Imogen whole body practically vibrated with fury as her hands curled into fists at her side and Marcel gently pried one of her hands open, lacing his fingers through hers as he soothed his thumb over her knuckles comfortingly. She offered him a small grateful smile as she tried to relax, to remind herself that Davina was fine even if the other girls were not.

"Where are you going?" Klaus asked his older brother as he watched Elijah stand up with a thoughtful expression and started strolling out of the room as he straightened his suit jacket.

"This is witch business. I'm going to go ask a witch." The Original stated calmly as he stopped in the doorway and looked back over at the brunette witch with a smirk on his lips, amusement dancing in his dark brown eyes. "One that paid better attention to her studies."

"Hey!" Imogen exclaimed in an affronted tone but there was humour in her eyes as she tried not to smile, pleased that Elijah was comfortable enough around her to tease. A small smirk played on the edge of his lips as he exited the room and she detangled her hand from Marcel's as she stood up from the couch.