Breathing ∞ Kol Mikaelson [1]

[76]

Sitting in the shaded area by the pool, Emma had her legs propped up on the rattan chair next to her, a smaller grimoire propped up against her knees as she read through the pages while absentmindedly reaching for her glass of water on the table.

The sound of a familiar chuckle had her looking up in time to see Kol moving the glass so it was in the right place where she was reaching for it much too far to the right. "What have you found that's got you so focused?" He asked now that her attention had momentarily drifted away from the book of spells.

Leaning over her shoulder to inspect the pages, he easily recognized it as one of the grimoires they'd found in the large library of the estate. And he was surprised to find it was one focusing mostly on mental spells, something she hadn't yet expressed much interest in.

"I'm trying to see if there are any spells that can be used to remove compulsion or to make a witch susceptible to it." Emma revealed honestly. The more she learned about witches and all that they could do, certain questions kept popping up in her mind. But the only person who could answer them was her mother.

By now, Emma had learned about the fact that witches couldn't actually be compelled by vampires. And yet, it was what her mother had told her happened to her memories of her father. She wanted to understand how that was possible. Either by finding a way that made it so, or finding a way to remove her own compulsion so she could remember.

"I've heard of such spells before, ones to remove compulsion. Even saw it being used once a long time ago." Kol revealed, making her curious eyes turn to him hoping he'd elaborate further. "However, I don't remember the incantation anymore. And with mental spells, you need to be certain in what you're doing and doing it right, or you risk causing more damage than helping."

Letting out a curious hum, Emma's eyes turned back to the grimoire, angling both it and her body in a different direction so Kol could easily read over her shoulder. However, before she could fully focus again, a pair of footsteps coming over to the table had both of them looking up as Katherine and Elijah joined them, sitting down on the other side of the table.

"What are you two so focused on?" Katherine asked curiously, eyeing the grimoire, but unable to understand the words written out on the leather covers.

"Have either of you ever heard of magic being used to remove compulsion?" Emma asked the two openly, making them share a thoughtful look before ultimately shaking their heads in denial.

"I've heard it's possible, but never saw it done." Elijah shared honestly.

"It's not really in a vampire's interest to seek out such things." Katherine pointed out. Unless you interacted with the Originals, no vampire had a need for such spells.

With a shrug of her shoulders, Emma was about to put the topic to rest, closing her book and ready to continue her research at a later time. She didn't want to be rude by ignoring Elijah and Katherine now that they'd joined them. She had plenty of time to keep looking. However, before she could strike up a conversation on a different topic, Kol started sharing his train of thought out loud, sharing what had been brewing in his mind from the moment Emma said what she was looking for.

"Compulsion, just like anything else to do with vampires is rooted in magic." He said, making eyes turn to him curiously. And they did so just in time to be able to see the spark of realisation spreading over his features. "Of course. You're not limited to just spelled objects or supernatural creatures, you can siphon anything done by us."

"What do you mean anything done by you?" Emma still wasn't fully catching on to what he was trying to suggest. She had the main gist of it, but the way he said it was quite broad, making her suspect he was taking about more than just compulsion.