Chapter 1 - Awake at last

                                    

                                          
The first thing Maeve noticed was a piercing ringing in her ears. She tried putting her hands over them, but the high pitched noise continued. Her throat felt horribly dry and scratchy and she swallowed, ignoring the throbbing pain in her head that radiated down her back to the rest of her body. 
She tried to recall how she got here. Where was she? Why was she here? She couldn't remember. Her eyes slowly opened, she didn't recognise the dimly lit room she was in at all. She blinked a few times, nothing was familiar, it made her more nervous. 
The ringing in her ears gradually got quieter and stopped and sat up cautiously feeling a wave of nausea. The deep breath she took hurt her sides, chest and shoulders. 
She was lying in a bed in the middle of a room. Alone. The walls were a light grey colour with a large clock hanging on one wall. The chest of drawers underneath was wide open and the scent of lavender and smoke filled Maeve's nostrils. The rest of the room was bare except for a singular wooden chair and a bedside cabinet to the left of her. 
The large door in front of her opened and a woman Maeve didn't recognise walked in. She was of average height with dark hair tied back and wore strange looking clothes that Maeve had never seen before. The woman didn't speak but handed her a glass of water which she took gratefully. 
"Who are you?" Maeve asked quietly, making eye contact with the woman as she took a sip of water. 
She gave a short reply but Maeve found she didn't understand it. Nervously she put the glass down beside her and tried again. 
"Where am I?" She asked the woman but this time got no response. The woman smiled and turned to leave the room leaving the young woman staring at the back of her head confused. 
Anxiety filled her chest as she attempted to get up but the door opened again this time with a familiar face entering the room. 
"Maeve, how are you feeling?" Mikael walked over and sat next to her on the chair. 
Maeve had known this man for years, he was friends with her father. This fact put her at ease knowing she was safe but she wondered where her father was. 
"Where am I?" She ignored his question. "What am I doing here? Where is my father?" 
"You're safe here. Firstly, what's the last thing you remember?" Mikael questioned. 
"Um, I was with my father, you and Esther discussing the spell and whether we should consider it." She paused for a second, her memories slowly returning to her. "Wait we did it, we must have done, that's why I'm here right?"
"Yes, it all went well and you're already getting your memories back which is a good sign. You'll need to drink this and I'll explain everything you want to know," he replied. 
Maeve thanked him and took the drink. It was a murky liquid that changed from dark grey to black to brown and back again within seconds. It felt warm in her hands. 
"What is this?" She wondered aloud curiously. 
"The sleeping spell required a form of magic called expression. It can be perfectly safe but sometimes there are a few unexpected effects. This will help your body adjust back to normal quicker. It will also prevent any unwanted magic from the spell remaining in your body. You'll need to drink quite a few of these and I must warn you, it will be painful and unpleasant but it will not harm you, Mikael admitted to her nervously, hoping she would trust him. 
"Expression? That's dark magic. Why would that be lingering in my body after the spell? And why was that used in the first place?" Maeve's nerves shot up at Mikael's words. 
"Your father knew the risks, he was still willing to do the spell to protect you. Please, drink," he gestured to the unappealing liquid. 
Maeve's heart sank at the mention of her father. She knew he'd be here if he was alive. He had promised her he'd be by her side when she woke up 100 years later. She would have to ask Mikael about it sometime soon but right now she didn't think she could even discuss her father without feeling overwhelmed with grief. It felt like she just saw him in perfect health yesterday. 
Turning her gaze back to the warm cup in her hands she sighed. Bringing it to her lips she took a sip, finding it to be surprisingly unflavoured. She quickly finished it with no complaints.
"The pain will pass after a few hours, I can stay if you would like?" Mikael looked at Maeve with concern in his eyes. 
"No thank you, although I'd appreciate if I could have some questions answered after that?" She replied, just wanting time to think after her feeling mind has settled. 
"Yes of course, I will be back later," he agreed before standing up. "If you need anything don't hesitate to call out, I will be informed and come straight up here. You won't be able to talk to anyone else here at the moment as they don't speak our language anymore."
Maeve nodded in understanding as he picked up the cup and left the room, the door creaking as it opened and closed. Almost instantly after he left a wave of nausea hit her and she lay back down in the bed. Her limbs started to tingle and pain shot though her abdomen. 
She cried out, clutching the white sheets to her chest as a stabbing pain went through her head. A second later it happened again. Her knees involuntarily curled up to her stomach which eased some of the pain for a while but it returned with increasing intensity a few minutes later. 
Maeve had never felt so much pain, it left her gasping for breath as if the room had no oxygen. As the pain got worse she found herself passing in and out of consciousness. 
When Mikael came to check on her a few hours later she was covered in sweat and shivering. What surprised him the most was that she was no longer under the covers in the bed. Nor lying on top of the sheets. She was floating a meter or so above the bed, unconscious, still shaking. 
Mikael grinned to himself, as long as he played his cards right, he could probably take this even further than he had initially planned. He knew she was strong but even he was impressed at her capabilities especially after being in a coma-like state for 1,000 years. Even stronger than his Kratos witch. 
———
This is the prequel to Claudia Lockwood-Mikaelson, exploring Maeve and Elijah's relationship. 
Mikael has her, she's not as safe as she seems🫣
So far, I have no plans to update this on a regular weekly basis like my other stories. This is mainly for me as an escape when I feel like dipping into it. My plan for this is exciting but be warned about slow updates to this particular story♥️
Ceryn x