The Devil's Daughter

Humanity

                Damon and Klaus worked around the clock to try to save Kate. Every couple hours they'd make sure Kate stayed down, whether by sedative or an accidental neck snapping. They'd gone through everything they knew, but only came up with one conclusion: Andre, Kate's emotional trigger, was dead. Bringing him back wasn't an option. They were powerless.

Meanwhile, Kol ran around the entirety of Mystic Falls trying to find Patricia. Like Damon and Klaus, he'd found nothing. The one thing they did know about this witch was that she was powerful and good at covering her tracks. The only lead he had so far led him about half an hour out of town, but he was willing to make the trip for Kate.

Bonnie burst through the Salvatore doors, Grimoire in hands. She slammed the dusty book on the table triumphantly. "I think I've got it," she cheered. Damon and Klaus gathered around, awaiting Bonnie's explanation. "My Grams collected Grimoires from other families, and I think I found the one belonging to Patricia's blood line," she explained, quickly flipping through pages, "This talks about a spell used against other supernatural creates, compared to flipping a vampire's humanity switch."

"So, you're telling me that Patricia didn't flip Kate's switch?" Damon asked in confusion.

"Exactly," Bonnie nodded, "This spell latches onto some part of Kate's humanity, intensifying the pain felt by that part to the point where it's unbearable. This effect locks all of Kate's humanity away inside of her subconscious."

"I don't suppose there's some sort of mental key," Klaus murmured sardonically.

"Actually, there is," Bonnie grinned, "The spell is linked with some sort of talisman that is chosen by the witch who casts it. It has to have some connection between the victim and the witch, and it has to be present during the spell."

"So, you're telling me that the only thing that could save my daughter is just something that she and Patricia liked, but we have nothing else to go off of? What's to stop her from destroying it?" Damon cried.

"The talisman has to exist in order for the spell to work. Destroying it would put both Kate and Patricia in some sort of mental limbo, but there aren't too many details on that. You also have to think of this from Patricia's perspective: she isn't just going to leave the key to her plan laying around. If she needs to return Kate's humanity, she'll want the key readily accessible. At the same time, she's not going to keep it so close that someone can take it from her," Bonnie continued.

Klaus walked off so that he could enlighten Kol with the new information. He dialed his number and waited. "Hello darling brother," Kol chirped. Klaus was always amazed at his ability to remain jovial in intense situations. Klaus quickly spat out the new information, barely taking a breath in between words.

"How far are you from your lead?" Klaus asked after he'd finished his rant.

"I just arrived," Kol explained, stepping out of the car. He was hit with a sudden migraine that he was very familiar with. "I think this is the place," he hissed through gritted teeth. Patricia sauntered out onto the porch of the small house smugly.

"Finding me was the easy part," she spat, releasing Kol from her infliction. In a flash, Kol was at her throat with fangs ready. "If you kill me, Kate will be plunged into an emotional limbo that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy," she taunted, causing Kol to reproach.

"What's it going to take for you to release her," Kol asked, hating the feeling of not being in control.

"Kate ruined my life, and promptly ended it, to save herself. I will release her when she destroys everything she cares about. I want her life to plunge into chaos before she gets her humanity back. I want her to suffer the pain and helplessness that I had to endure," Patricia spat.

"I may not be able to kill you, but I can torture you to the brink of death," Kol hissed, merely inches away from the witch. Ignoring his comment, Patricia didn't even flinch.

"In order for my spell to work, I had to latch onto something that hurt Kate. Do you want to know what that is?" she called to both Kol and their audience on the other end of Kol's phone call that he'd forgotten about. "That girl is terrified of you and Klaus. Whether she realized it or not, she is afraid that you will snap and kill her, or worse. In the back of her mind, she still fears you as the monster she spent centuries running from. This atonement you thought you'd made, it never happened," Patricia hissed, leaving Kol speechless.

He couldn't believe it. Kate had seemed like she trusted him again. He'd worked hard to get back in her good graces. How could she still see him like that?

Patricia smirked before sauntering back into the house, casting a protection spell on the house before shutting the door.

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