Discussion over Breakfast

"John, where are you looking?"

"Saw a cool bird." John dismissively said, turning his attention back to the conversation. "I think we conveyed most of what we know about the situation." He faced the two sisters. "So, I'd like to hear your opinions." He asked them.

The two were silent, thoughtful even, as each of them let their mannerisms out, revealing their concern over the newly learned fact.

Freya had worry almost overflowing from her eyes, looking at Hope in silence.

Rebekah, however, rhythmically tapped her fingers on the table, seemingly better at handling the knowledge conveyed to them.

However, unperceived by everyone bar the young man, emotions and intents escaped the woman's eyes.

An intention, drowned in blood and carnage, pressured itself upon the surrounding atmosphere, slowing the very flux of air and making reality apparently heavier.

A reaction occurred by the protectiveness buried in the woman's mind.

Scary… John thought, not commenting on anything, just silently waiting for a response.

"The idea of the mere touch of my niece causing a reaction to an unknown power pursued by beings of seemingly mythological origin doesn't bring me the best of the thoughts." Rebekah, looking away from her fingers, settled at a look of worry when her gaze fell on the young woman.

"I share the sentiment." Freya added. "This means that, somehow, you might be involved in everything, Hope."

"Just what I needed." She sarcastically said, pressing her lips. "I just hope this isn't about another prophecy."

"Hardly." Freya replied, rather quickly. Her response got curious looks from everyone. "After the incident two years ago, I, with the aid of Vincent and a few other witches, searched for any potential text, script or prophecy that could have possibly mentioned you." She explained, her solemn expression unwavering. "We found nothing so far."

"At least that." Hope said, a little relieved at the fact. Although still visibly bothered by the thoughts brought by the memories of that time.

Everyone, as perceptive as they were, noticed that. And Rebekah was the first to act. "Do not stress yourself, dear. Remember, we are here for you. We would abandon everything for you."

Few words were conveyed, but they carried themselves perfectly, enacting their purpose.

In a matter of a moment, relief became comfort. And Hope, who seemed to have retreated into the chair, her arms crossed forward, let them fall onto her legs, a smile blooming in her lips. A reflection of her trust in her aunt's words. "Thanks, Aunt Bekah."

"Everytime, Dear." The vampire smiled in return.

Prophecies. John muttered, internally. The word caught his interest. Something I should take a look at afterwards. It's a very veiled concept in the books I have available. "I did a few amateurish tests on the dagger." John suddenly announced, getting everyone's attention. "Basically, I shoved the dagger into others' hands, to see if the dagger reacted to someone else's touch."

"When did you do that?" Hope asked, curious.

"Right after my conversation with Dr. Saltzman earlier." He replied. "Everyone was in the halls, waiting for class, I thought it was the most optimal time."

"Who did you test it with?"

"Josie, Penelope, MG, Rafael." John listed off some names.

"Two witches, a vampire and a werewolf." Hope recounted, immediately understanding the meaning behind his choices.

"I wanted to see if the reaction was brought out by just one of your sides or all of them." John explained, not trying to hide the reason. "The dagger certainly behaved a little differently with them, but nothing like how it behaved in your touch. Like, it was infimal in comparison. Almost unperceivable, even to me right now." He said, not moving his eyes off her figure. "And just to make the results more robust, I also saw how it reacts to a human's touch. The power behaved normally, no reaction at all."

"What about your touch?" Freya chimed in, interested in the conversation.

"The same as a human's." John promptly replied, with Freya nodding in understanding. "From this, it's easy to deduce, right? Whatever this power is, it seems to share some connection with the three species. And Hope, as a hybrid of all three…" John didn't need to finish his speech, someone else did it for him.

"Owns the largest reaction upon the power, causing its reaction." Rebekah completed his words.

"Right." John agreed, partially. He seemed to hold something.

"So, in resume…" Freya, going through what was said, tried to resume the current available knowledge they have. "Two creatures, of apparent mythical origin only just recently, appeared in your school just a few days ago. A dragon and the Leshy. Both seeking the same thing–a dagger." She halted in her words, to verify mentally if her words were correct. "But, in reality, they seek the power sealed within it, under commission of someone or something else. As we still don't know what we are dealing with."

"That's pretty much the current situation." John nodded, taking a sip of his drink brought by one of the waitresses earlier. "But there is more."

"What didn't you tell us?" Rebekah asked.

The young man readily answered her. "Before the appearance of the dragon, there were two beings in the school outside of the main three species. A friend of mine, Wade, and I."

At the mention of the young man's name, a strange look passed through Hope's eyes. "Right, I forgot about Wade." She said, slowly widening her eyes a little in slight surprise. However, right after, her eyes widened even more. "I forgot… about Wade telling us he is a fairy."

At the mutter of her words, John let out a soft chuckle. "You didn't believe much in his words, didn't you?"

"That he is a fairy?" Hope's voice carried skepticism itself. "Even to us, this sounded ridiculous."

"And considering recent events, what do you think of it now?" With a smile printed on his face, John asked.

"Still unbelievable." Hope bluntly responded.

"Pft!" John now truly laughed at her response. Though he himself was unaware if more for her behavior or for the intriguing aspect he knew of behind their conversation.

"Hm… I'm not quite used to being lost in a conversation." Rebekah cut in their short talk, the edge of her lips curling up slightly in amusement by their interaction nonetheless. "What are you talking about? Who is this Wade?"

"I will explain." John said, recomposing himself. "Due to one of my perks, I have the ability to see souls. Their shapes, forms, characteristics-"

Not letting him explain fully, Rebekah cut in again. "You are joking, right?" She asked, her face blank. Not knowing how to react.

The reply for her question came as a very broad grin.

"Oh God." She muttered, taking a sip from her drink.

"Just like all human beings share some similarity for being part of the same species, be it physically or spiritually, magical species are the same." John continued, ignoring Rebekah's and Freya's shock and surprise of his words. "For example, a characteristic of vampire's souls is the Immortality Spell 'printed' on them. After all, the spell is what makes them vampires."

This brief explanation was enough to get some of Rebekah's curiosity, taking her out of her surprise for a moment. "But our blood made them vampires. So, how did, hm, the spell… pass through our blood to their souls?" Rebekah slowly questioned, trying to find the best words to express herself.

"I once guessed it was because your mother altered the original Immortality Spell, somehow creating this alternative of creating vampires beyond you and your brothers." Briefly, John shared his guesses. "But truly, I don't know. So, for now, let's put that aside." Taking the helm of the conversation, he maneuvered back to the main topic. "Through this ability of mine, I can say what someone is through their soul. And I noticed Wade had a soul different from everyone in the school. Intrigued, I asked him what he was and he said he was a fae. Basically, a fairy."

"And you believed him?" Freya asked.

"Well, I kind of had visual proof to believe." John shrugged. "Later, I shared this knowledge with Hope. And from what you can see, it's obvious she didn't believe in it even when I tried to back it up." He looked at the girl by his side.

"Because everyone in the school thinks that's a joke Wade normally says…" Hope's words hung in the air, with her showing a more surprised expression, taking her hand to her head. "That's… a joke he normally says. Why, why does it seem…"

"That you totally forgot about it until now, when I brought it up?" John asked, a smirk on his face when she nodded. "Did you know that in Fae Legends, people who don't believe in the truthness of a fae's word forget that truth?"

"What? How?" Hope asked, incredulous.

"You reject that reality, and thus it becomes invisible to you. Why should it exist for you if you don't believe it?" John shortly explained, but it was easy to understand just from these words. "So, in the tales, if you reject their existence, they somehow make you forget it or blur the truth. It still exists in your mind, but probably their magic or existence make you evade that." He expanded his explanation. "And not wanting to sound rude, but before you ask, I have no idea how that works." He looked in another direction.

Rebekah closed her mouth, retreating into her chair.

"Now you believe that Wade is a fairy?" John asked Hope.

"Against my will."

"Good enough." John said, still with a smirk on his lips. "Anyway, despite the clear pattern of the power reacting only to the three species, I decided to test it with Wade to make sure. And, as I expected, no reaction from it."

"Then why bring all of this conversation?" Freya asked.

"To create a climax." John nonchalantly said, almost getting looks from everyone around the table. However, his tone of voice quickly changed. "Mostly, to make sure you keep your minds open. Open it to any possibility when considering the supernatural, as if you are learning about it for the first time and any crazy thing you had ever heard of from legends and myths is now a possibility." He explained the reason in his previous words. And proceeding to his next words, he kept his serene tone. "And lastly, I wish you to remember that I said there were two beings from uncommon species in the school before the dragon's appearance. That changed right near its appearance, as one more showed up."

With a look of realization, Hope immediately knew who he meant. "Landon…" The name was softly muttered by her lips.

Facing her boyfriend, some disbelief amounted in Hope's eyes. Though very little as other thoughts crossed her mind. "Is he related to this?"

"I wouldn't bring up his name without foundation on my part." John said, assuring Hope. "You know that." He added, his voice steady, calm.

Hope nodded, not trying to find reasons to not believe in him. And even if she did, she knew they wouldn't be without sense.

"I know." Hope said, her hand tracing out to his. Her fingers intertwined with his, the coupled hands resting over the table.

From across the couple, Freya and Rebekah exchanged a look between them. And under their eyes, their lips curled up in a brief moment of enjoyment, with bits of pride hidden under the surface.

Seemingly unaware of the sisters' expressions, John took a sip from his hot drink and continued. "I was curious, and even though I knew there was only the slightest possibility of any reaction, due to the pattern formed through the tests up to that moment, I wanted to see it." John said, remembering vividly that scene from earlier. "I had my vision already altered by the moment I approached Rafael and Landon. And with every step I took approaching them, the power in the dagger erupted. It tried to desperately break out of the seal. And… how should I say it? It tried to launch itself in Landon's way."

"Did you let him touch the dagger?" Hope asked.

"I thought for a moment to test it out, but I was against it in the end."

"Why?" Questioned Rebekah.

"Because a thought popped in my mind." John said. "Rafael and Landon, both arrived at the school on the same day the dragon appeared. And from the power's reaction, it's obvious Landon has some connection to it. What if… they coming into the school, approaching the dagger when they passed by the main hall, was enough to stir the power within it. Thus, somehow, revealing to who is searching for the dagger its location?"

"Are you accusing this… Landon of attracting these creatures?" Rebekah asked.

"Far from that." John quickly replied, shaking his head. "After all, I am sure of one thing: Landon's ignorance of the supernatural. From the very beginning he has been with us," He pointed at himself and Hope. "Landon has shown genuine surprise and shock about our reality. I am fairly sure he is unaware these things might probably be happening because of him."

"So… everything turned out to be the result of a great coincidence?" Freya asked, not believing the possibility of her words herself.

Shrugging his shoulders, John replied to her. "Maybe yes, maybe no." He said, half serious. "I mean, we live in a world of magic. What are the chances of coincidence?"

"A lot smaller than we'd wish it to be." Rebekah answered. She looked at her side, seeing her sister with her eyes down right now, seemingly thoughtful. "But you are the witch here, sister. What do you have in mind?"

"I would need more information to think of something." Freya said, looking at the young man now. "What else do you know about this Landon?"

"Not much, honestly. Orphan, has been going around foster homes ever since he was born. We met him in a church in Atlanta when his foster brother was going through his first full moon." John said, telling her only what he 'supposedly' should know. "Decided to bring him with us since he was the only one who could tell us more about Rafael and could act as a comforting presence for the wolf."

"Hm…" Listening to all of this, Freya returned to her thoughtful state. Holding her chin with her fingers all the while.

She lasted for a few moments in this state, with no one trying to disturb her, just calmly waiting for her response.

"I…" After a few long lasting moments in this state, with no one trying to disturb her and just calmly waiting for her response, Freya came up with an answer. "... think there are options."

John, as the curious nerd he was, promptly questioned. "Which options?"

"From what I know. A spell to alter someone's destiny, or maybe the luck in regards to certain very precise situations."

In surprise, John widened his eyes at the mention of such spells. "Do you have such spells?"

"More like their rests." Freya replied. "These are some spells Dahlia, our maternal aunt," She gestured for her and Rebekah. "kept in her personal grimoire. I took a glimpse of it a few times." She explained. "...Took a really harsh lash after I asked her about these spells later." She muttered the last part, but everyone heard it clearly.

"Our poor Freya was still an innocent girl?" Rebekah playfully mocked her sister.

"Very funny." Freya gave a very sarcastic smile.

"Wait, wait. Go back a little." John urged Freya, interrupting the interaction between the sisters. "You own such spells?" When asking, John's voice was slightly elevated, a result of his surprise over what he just heard.

"Don't need to get too agitated." Freya said calmly, trying to tone down the conversation. "As I said, these are just the rests of what Dahlia had. They degraded over time."

"Wasn't she the 'addicted to magic Aunt'?" John asked, getting a nod from Freya and Rebekah. "Then wouldn't she properly take care of spells that work around such concepts?"

"Normally? Yes…" Freya agreed, but it was clear from her tone of voice that there was more in there. "However, from what Dahlia said, these spells were incomplete. And according to herself, they were some very difficult ones–to the point she herself never attempted one for lack of proficiency in them." She explained why the spells degraded in their care.

And, at the end of her words, when finished explaining, Freya's expression changed. It seemed a little of sadness descended into it. "Believe me. If I had any spell with power over destiny, I would have used it to change our family's." She muttered, thinking over how such spells could be useful for her family.

Listening to her, Hope and Rebekah didn't doubt for a second Freya wouldn't attempt to use such spells if she had even the slightest chance.

They knew Freya did her best to save her family from all tragedies. Just like any person part of their family, she sacrificed much for its sake.

I should end this topic here. John thought, seeing where his curiosity was leading the conversation to. But that's something I have to take a look at later. I could learn something even from withered papers. When the mood is better, I will ask her to see the papers. He thought, thinking of how to proceed the conversation.

However, seemingly as if Freya read his mind, she focused on him. "If you want, I can hand them to you to study. I know you like to study magic, and they are just collecting dust over in our house."

Listening to it, John nodded, smiling lightly to express his appreciation. "Thanks."

Freya nodded, accepting his thanks. She recomposed herself fairly well. "I brought these spells to light because of the slight chance a similar spell was used in your friend Landon. Although I've never heard of witches using such spells, I thought it's worth sharing them since we are dealing with a lot of 'maybes', question marks and unknowns here." She said, her words carrying reason.

"That… makes a lot of sense." John nodded, slowly.

[John's PoV]

Yeah… I, better than anyone, should have my mind open for such absurd possibilities. Not only for what I said earlier, but for my origin.

I can't just put everything into something like an unproven phenomenon to restore the world to its original path or just how things should be.

It's clear, very clear, this world is different from the one I've watched through my life.

The people are the same, the locations are the same, but… the world is different.

The world I saw was a probable attempt by someone to bring the course of actions of a magical world to television. The rules here are not the same as there.

Here, there is no thing as a budget. The world runs its course in full capacity, true to its reality.

Hope is proof of that, Rebekah and Freya are as well, alongside everyone I've met so far.

Their existence isn't restricted. Their restriction is only what the world permits or they themselves permit. In this case, they are just like me.

Hm…

Raising my head, I looked at the three figures. And somehow, it seemed I was seeing them for the first time. Like I saw them differently.

Strange… Even though I never saw them as… someone lesser due to my origin. I think it's the first time I have the insight of people being like that, in this world or the previous. That they are their own.

Very strange indeed.

"John?" Rebekah called me, and I focused my vision on her.

"Yeah?"

"You seemed strange for a moment." She said, tilting her head to the side slightly, narrowing her eyes at me.

"Ignore him. He has moments like these." Hope quickly chimed in, taking a sip from her peanut butter blast. "He probably had an 'enlightenment'. It's something he often has." She said with a smug smile, obviously making fun of me.

In response, I just flickered my fingers, and very surprisingly, a good bit of her milkshake splashed on her face.

"Wow, how did that happen?" I, very dramatically and innocently, asked. "Anyway-"

"Hey!"

Ignoring the scream, I continued. "If we disconsider these possible spells, can you think of something else?" I asked the oldest of the Mikaelson siblings.

Honestly, I wouldn't doubt Malivore using these possible spells, or somehow make someone use them to follow his will. The guy has consumed countless mythical creatures and beings told in legends for centuries, he would know of such things if they even existed.

He has proven to have at a very least decent magical knowledge by how he put a part of his will or himself into the dragon's mind and in the Leshy's essence through magical means.

Mentioning the Leshy… For how long no Hydra has jumped upon me to retrieve the dagger, I think my theory of his incapacity of releasing, or at least controlling, more than one powerful being at once is being proven true up till now.

I just hope it continues like that…

"Yes, a very obvious one." She said. "A very powerful and certainly exclusive connection, bloodline."

"Blood?" Rebekah blurted out.

"Yes." Freya nodded. All the while, I, unbeknownst to the witch, admired her intelligence. "You, better than anyone, should know the power of blood." She looked at Rebekah. "After all, your death can result in the death of thousands of others all across the world through the simple connection all your sired vampires share, your blood."

"When you say that, it certainly makes sense." Rebekah nodded in understanding.

"If you follow a certain line of thought, it makes even more sense." Freya said. I remained silent, wishing to hear what she had in mind. "Going by the hypothesis that someone is trying to take this power through others, by the reason it can't personally do it, I took the liberty to think of them previously owning this power."

"It would make sense." Hope added, briefly interrupting her aunt. "They want to recover it, but they can't do it personally since, you know, they lost their power."

"Exactly." Freya said. "And let's take into consideration something… If they didn't act until now, then that must mean they didn't know where this power was. Which also raises the question of why it is in the school's possession." The last part she added after a brief contemplation on her part.

"According to Dorian, it was previously held by the Armory, a group led by humans who apprehended any supernatural artifact and dealt with not so good supernatural beings." It was my time to interrupt. "However, it's impossible to know where it came from. The archives with this data were completely burned by a special type of fire."

"A pity. But we can still work without fully knowing how it reached the school." Freya said. "As I was saying, let's take into consideration that it can't move to take this power by the fact someone is sending others to take it, and it doesn't know where it is. How would you try to find it?" She asked, slowly.

"If I can't search for it myself, don't know where it is, and taking into consideration this power belongs to me… I would send someone with a connection to me to search for it?" I answered, trying to hide how impressed I was over the fact she came up with the same conclusion I was thinking. The difference? I had a lot more confirmations than her.

"Exactly." Freya nodded at my response. "They would send someone with a connection to them. Someone that once in proximity to the power, the power would react. Or maybe even have a reaction to them. Did you notice any difference in your friend Landon when taking the dagger to him?"

"Just outwardly. His behavior changed a little." I commented, remembering Landon's expression when I approached him with the dagger. "He seemed… fascinated by the dagger. Tried to hold it a few times, but nothing beyond that."

"Then, if my theory is correct, that would just enforce it. He certainly has some connection with it, and the power also reacts to him. And mostly sure, the power is acting as the beacon to alert whoever is after its location after coming in the presence of your friend." She calmly explained. "And honestly, I can only think of someone who once shared a very close connection to it, or through very powerful means, to feel it even without it in their possession."

I nodded, understanding what she meant.

Yes, that's a lot of maybes and speculation, but adding what I know, it's most probably correct.

The seal did its job and sealed Malivore's power, keeping it hidden. Almost like a slumber.

However, as soon as Landon, Malivore's son, approached it, the power reacted due to the connection they share, as the power literally is a part of his father.

For now, Malivore is alive as the pit, and the power is a part of him. Although separated, they share a connection. Hm, somewhat similar to me and the Fragment.

However, because of the seal and Malivore's current state, most possibly, the only way to enact a reaction from this sealed power is through someone who shares a very close relation to him. And who better than his own son?

And through the connection, with whatever power he has left, Malivore can let out monsters to reclaim the sealed power, obliging them to do it through magical means.

And the cherry on the top of the cake. He would know the overall location of his vessel.

… Such a plan makes sense.

And what surprises me the most about it is the fact that although sealed, separated and put into a supposedly lesser state, Malivore is capable of so much.

It makes me wonder how high his prowess was before everything.

"I understand why Landon would be attracted by the dagger, and why it reacts to him. However," Hope blurted, her face now clean of the unexpected splash of peanut milkshake. "just how would this connection attract Landon to the power's location?"

… That was a good question.

"Landon once lived in Mystic Falls, and his presence around the town never enacted any reaction from the dagger, or we would've seen monsters by then. That means the dagger and him need to be very close to each other to have any effect upon the other. So, how would he still find it?"

To that question, no one knew exactly how to reply. No one had a concrete answer for that.

In my mind, certain words passed through it. And I had a few ideas of how.

But among them, I permitted only one out.

"Coincidence?" I blurted, my single word phrase attracting everyone's attention.

Around the table, everyone looked at each other. Nodding in acknowledgment of my word.

"I think that's the only answer we have for now." Freya said.

Rebekah turned to us. "This friend of yours is an enigma, isn't he?" She commented.

"Certainly he is." I agreed, playing my role. "And to further prove that, we still don't know what he is."

"No idea at all?"

"None." I shook my head, lying through my teeth. "We only know that his blood lacks any magic and his soul seems to be ready to explode in blazes at any moment."

Freya seemed to peek up at my words. "He lacks any magic?"

"No. His soul just absorbs the magic just as fast as it produces, so no magical energy manifests through his body." I explained.

"That's interesting." Freya commented, holding her chin, wondering about the fact.

"I think the same." I said, a little delighted over the fact that Freya seems to have a more enhanced curious side than I expected.

"Well, now I think that you told us everything, right?" Rebekah questioned me.

"I think so." I said. "However, I have plans later for-" Halting in my words, I turned my head to the side, sensing a familiar presence.

And just as I did, Rebekah instinctively did the same, looking at the same point as me.

There, at the very end of the avenue, I could see the figure of a young man looking at us.

Seemingly more surprised at the woman across the table than anything.

"Oh, it's been some time since I saw Gilbert Boy." Rebekah commented, seeing Jeremy slowly walking our way. "Still a hunter, isn't he?"

"A good one." I commented, getting a glare from Rebekah. "He told me some stories of his travels around the country last time he was by the school."

"Now that I think, I remember Marcel telling me something a few months ago. Some not so well behaved vampires in Chicago suddenly missing." Rebekah commented, her eyes still following the movements of the hunter, who steadily approached us. "Was it him?" She asked me.

"Yeah." I nodded, not seeing the need to hide. "Two dozen vampires died over the course of one night."

As we talked, Freya chimed in. "Is he one of the hunters created to hunt the first Immortal? Who attempted to kill you and our brothers?"

"Yes." Rebekah nodded, very nonchalantly despite the absurd words said by Freya. "Though, since Silas is dead, technically there shouldn't be more of them sprouting around. He might very well be the last of them."

"I think the same. The purpose of the Brotherhood was accomplished. The spell shouldn't try to pass itself onto others anymore." I agreed.

"Let's wait for him. I am already wondering why he returned so early." I said, getting confirmations from everyone.

And then, we just needed to wait a few seconds.

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Hey, what do you think of this chapter?

I tried to take some more comedic tones in a few moments, but not by much. Also, give me your opinions on something. I am trying to not give too much information head on. I know this chapter was thought by me to be a discussion/informative chapter, but I still held something that I thought "Hey, this is not exactly necessary here. It would be just throwing on their face." I want your opinion on that.

Thanks everyone for your support! If possible, give me Power Stones. It helps me greatly in progressing on Webnovel and motivating me.

See you soon - Author.