*Skipped Exquisite Corpse... This chapter goes along with the episode mentioned in the title but the scenes are mixed up to a way that I think better fits my story... I am so sorry it took so long to update, I hope you enjoy!*

It didn't take long for Hanna to arrive. When she did, she wasn't alone. Claire greets them outside, leaving Finn and Klaus alone with their sister. 

"Thanks for coming so quickly," Claire says, leading both Hanna and Asher into the building.

"It's no problem," Hanna replies. Nothing else is said, but Claire sends a glance at Asher. Asher had always been more on the serious side, but something seemed to be bothering him. She made a note to ask about it later.

"Well, it's good to see you're all in one piece," Claire mutters when they reach the Mikaelson siblings. The corner of Freya's lips lifts while Klaus rolls his eyes. Finn returns to Claire's side while she addresses his sister. "This is Hanna; she'll be the one looking through your thoughts to determine if you're trustworthy or not," Freya stares at Claire before her eyes go to Hanna.

"I understand how much of an invasion of privacy this is. Everything will be kept confidential unless I find something potentially dangerous to this family, coven, and city," Hanna explains. Freya nods again. "Don't worry; it won't hurt,"

Freya shifts on her feet as Hanna inches closer to her. Slowly, she lifts her hands and hovers them an inch from the sides of Freya's head. Freya becomes tense when Hanna begins her probing. It doesn't last nearly as long as Claire thought it would before Hanna was pulling away.

"So?" Klaus asks with impatience. 

"Mom?" Asher asks a second later. Claire walks to her side, noticing that she's paler and her eyes are wider. Claire presses a comforting hand on Hanna's shoulder. The simple touch is enough to break her from her daze.

"Dahlia... She's channeling you," Hanna states, causing the air around them to become tense.

"Wh-what?" Freya stutters.

"You and your aunt are connected; she's channeling your power," Hanna clarifies.

"Bonded," Claire whispers, turning her eyes to Freya. "You mentioned that you and Dahlia had bonded. It's how she finds you, and it's how she's so powerful,"

"Why am I not surprised?" Klaus growls. Freya looks at him, terrified. Claire knew the terror didn't come from fear of her brother but rather fear of her aunt. "You've been against us from the start,"

"No! I didn't know about this!" Freya shouted, her hands trembling.

"Hanna, besides her being bonded to Dahlia... can we trust her?" Claire asks.

"Obviously, we can't," Klaus growls. "She's working with the very evil she warned us against!"

"She wants to be free of Dahlia; she speaks the truth on that," Hanna assures. Claire sighs, turning her gaze to Freya.

"I didn't know about this, Claire," Freya states, begging her to understand.

"If we could break the bond between them, would that free Freya? Would it weaken Dahlia?" Claire asks. Hanna thinks.

"In theory," Hanna nods. "Dahlia draws power from Freya, and she's been doing it for centuries. It wouldn't be simple nor easy. If it's done then Freya would be free and that extra source of power would be cut off from Dahlia,"

"Kai was telling Archie and me some tricks about siphoners. Do you think it would be possible for me to siphon the bond from Freya?" Claire asks.

"It wouldn't be that simple," Hanna states. "This bond has been established and abused for a long time. You would have to siphon a lot of magic. There would be a fine line between siphoning the bond and taking all of Freya's magic. It could be fatal for Freya if you weren't careful,"

"And for Claire? Would it endanger her?" Klaus asks.

"Would the bond transfer from Freya to Claire?" Finn further questioned.

"It wouldn't endanger Claire," Hanna shakes her head. "You would feel full. You would have to use the magic quickly so that it won't fester in your body. If you hold that much for a long period of time, it could hurt, but it won't be fatal," Hanna's a little hesitant to answer Finn's inquiry. "The bond should dissolve. Once it leaves Freya, it should just disappear,"

"Should?" Klaus arches his eyebrows. 

"There's always a possibility, a slim possibility, that the bond could transfer," Hanna states. "From what Freya says, Dahlia is mighty. She'd sense the bond breaking, and who knows what will happen," Hanna shrugs.

"Too risky," Klaus shakes his head. "We'll deal with Dahlia our own way,"

"You can't-" Freya starts, but Klaus silences her.

"You don't get a say," He snarls. "Whether Hanna believes you to be trustworthy or not means nothing as long as you're bonded to Dahlia,"

"Klaus-" Claire starts but quietens when his glare turns to her. His look softens but continues to be stern.

"No, it's too dangerous," He tells her. "Dahlia is already threatening our daughter, and I will not put you in her path as well,"

"I'm already in her path," Claire tells her. "If Dahlia wants Kaylin, she's going to have to go through me. It doesn't matter if her focus is on me right now or not; it will be eventually. If I can siphon the bond from Freya that frees her and weakens Dahlia,"

"Dahlia won't let me go that easily," Freya whispers.

"Well, she's not going to have a say when she's dead," Claire shrugs, looking at her. "She can join her sister on the Other Side. They can complain together about how we've foiled yet another one of their plans," She smirks.

"Do you ever listen to me?" Klaus growls. 

"What's your plan then?" Claire asks, turning toward him. "If you're so uncomfortable with this, what do you want to do?"

"We'll discuss our plan in private," Klaus states, sending Freya a look. "When Dahlia has been dealt with, if you're still alive, then we can reassess you joining the family," Klaus promises. Without another word, Klaus picks Claire up and speeds her back home.

"I'll talk with him," Finn promises. "We will deal with Dahlia, but for the time being, stay somewhere safe and out of sight," Freya gives him a sad smile and slowly nods. Finn sends her a reassuring look before speeding after his brother and mate.

"Here," Hanna says, writing down an address on an old receipt she found in her pocket. "Go to this place. It's an old apartment I used to live in. You should be safe there for the time being,"

"Thank you," Freya whispers.

"I'll drive you," Asher speaks up. Freya looks at him, a wave of calmness quenching her anxiety. "I'm Asher," He introduces himself. "Come on, I'll keep you safe," Freya smiles a true smile. Hanna raises an eyebrow at her son but remains silent. Together, the three of them walk back to the car.

"Well, that was a rather rude and abrupt departure," Claire grumbles when Klaus sets her on the ground in front of their home. Once she gains her footing she walks inside with Klaus and Finn, who arrived a few seconds later, following her.

"So? How'd it go?" Henrik asks sitting in the main area with the other siblings.

"Could have gone better," Claire admits, taking the seat beside him.

"As Kol and I so accurately predicted," Klaus announces with a smug smirk. "Our newfound sister is a traitor,"

"That's going a bit far," Claire says.

"A traitor?" Rebekah deadpans. "And where is Asher?" She asks, watching the door for her beloved to enter.

"Why don't you just explain things starting with when Freya woke," Elijah suggests. 

"Well, when she did wake up she wasn't very happy with the fact that Kol had killed her," Claire states, looking toward the smug attempted murderer. "When we got past that little bit she further explained why she hated Dahlia-"

"Ah, yes," Klaus says. "The moving tale of her dead beloved and child. Did it ever cross your mind, darling, that she could be lying? She knows of your past and she wants our help. To get our help all she has to do is get you on board with her plan,"

"She wasn't lying," Claire snapped. She sends him a stern look warning him to drop the theory. "Not about that," Henrik reaches over and grabs her hand. "Hanna said she was speaking the truth on wanting to be free of your aunt. When she looked into her memories she found out that Dahlia is channeling Freya through the bond they share. Freya didn't know about it and I believe her,"

"So, how do we help her?" Rebekah asks.

"It's possible for me to siphon the bond that tethers Freya to Dahlia. It should sever the bond which will free Freya and weaken Dahlia," Claire explains.

"Don't leave anything out, love," Klaus states.

"What else?" Elijah presses.

"There's a slim chance that the bond could transfer instead of dissolve," Claire explains.

"Transfer?" Elijah asks, sitting up.

"It is a possibility," Kol mutters. "Slim but there,"

"And I'm sure the rest of you will agree to my refusal to put our mate in danger no matter how slim," Klaus states. Claire isn't surprised by their agreement.

"I guess we'll just ignore the fact that I'll still be in danger as long as Dahlia and any enemy are around. It's the real world, loves, I'll never be completely safe," Claire tells them.

"Never being completely safe and putting you in an uncertain situation are two different things," Henrik mutters. 

"I understand that," Claire responds. "But what is an alternative?" 

"Freya told us that with the proper materials we can stop Freya," Klaus says.

"Materials that she send Mikael to collect," Kol remembers. Klaus nods to his little brother.

"So, instead of letting me liberate your sister, you want to enlist the help of the man who's spent the better portion of a thousand years hunting you down. The man who's traumatized all of you your entire lives," Claire says slowly wondering if she were the only one to recognize the madness.

"I'd much sooner trust Claire with Freya than Mikael," Rebekah states. Claire sends her a smile.

"Let's say that the bond does transfer," Claire says, shifting in her seat. "Then we have a direct line to Dahlia. She can't channel power that isn't there but we can use the bond to find her. Maybe we can manipulate it in our favor," Claire suggested.

"Dahlia would be more reluctant to hurt Claire than Freya," Henrik speaks up. "Claire's in a position to give her more children, Freya isn't. Therefore, Claire's more valuable to Dahlia,"

"Which is why we should keep her as far away from our deranged aunt as possible," Klaus says. "If we want to protect something we don't put it in the path of those who want to hurt or steal it," 

"She won't steal me," Claire tells him. "I'm useless to her without you. I can't exactly produce babies on my own," She lightly jokes. Three-fifths of her mates manage a smile.

"So, which plan do we go with?" Rebekah asks.

"If we bring Mikael in and we work with him then we'll be able to keep an eye on him and his movements while we deal with Dahlia," Elijah explains. "And when we're done with her we'll know where he is to send him back to the Other Side,"

"A brilliant plan," Klaus grins.

"For that plan to work, we'll have to find him first. How are we going to do that?" Claire asks. "Freya might help but-"

"Freya isn't our only recourse," Klaus says. "We have other witches, more trustworthy than her, here in New Orleans. Mikael has spent a rather long time on the Other Side. Lucky for us, we know someone who's rather in tune with the dead. Perhaps he will be able to find who we're looking for,"

"They'll be at the Abattoir," Claire says. "While you're there ask Caroline and Enzo if they'll bring Madelyn back home. I want to update them on what's happening and I want our girls under the same roof,"

"I'll go with him. They'll be safe," Elijah promises. Both Klaus and Elijah kiss the top of her head before speeding to the heart of New Orleans.

"Since no one answered my question earlier, where's Asher?" Rebekah questions.

"With Freya," Claire says. "He's helping her get somewhere safe,"

"You left him with Freya?" Rebekah growls. "Dahlia is hunting her. I want him here," She snapped, grabbing her phone to call her mate while rubbing her large stomach.

"Who is it?" Freya asks as Asher pulls the phone out of his pocket.

"Rebekah," Asher says, smiling a bit even though he senses he's in trouble. "Give me a minute," Asher answers the call. "Hello, sweethe-"

"Where are you?" Rebekah snaps.

"I'm taking Freya somewhere safe," Asher says. "Then I'm going to buy you a bouquet of hydrangea's, massage whatever body part that is sore with warm oils, and remind you just how lovely and beautiful you are," Asher plans out hoping it's enough to pacify her. Rebekah's silent for a moment.

"Get home," Rebekah demands. "...I love you,"

"I love you more, gorgeous," Asher smiles, ending the call. "What?" Asher asks, noticing Freya's look.

"Mathias used to look at me like that," Freya mutters.

"Who's he?" Asher asks, struggling to keep the jealousy from his voice.

"Someone who used to mean a lot to me," Freya whispers, lowering her head. Asher's heart clenches.

"I know things don't look too good right now but I know Claire," Asher tells her. "She'll find a way to help you. She'll convince the others to help,"

"I wouldn't be so sure," Freya sighs, walking through the crowd beside him. Her mind flashes images of her sibling's mistrustful expressions.

"She has this way with them," Asher says. "And you're family, whether they will admit it yet or not. We may be a complicated bunch but we look after each other," Freya sends him a small smile.

The smile slowly begins to falter when she notices more and more people staring at them. Freya grabs Asher and begins pulling him through the crowd faster.

"What's happening?" Asher asks, noticing what has her so shaken.

"It's her," Freya's cracks. The two are forced to stop when a woman appears in front of them with white eyes. "No," Freya whimpers and turns around only to come face to face with Dahlia.

"There you are, after all these centuries," Dahlia says. Freya clings to Asher's hand. "Hello, my Freya,"

"Dahlia," Freya trembles. Asher instinctive steps closer and slightly in front of her. Freya cowers behind him. Dahlia tilts her head at the pair. She briefly wonders why she can't control him until she notices Freya's protective grip on his wrist.

"How convenient that I find you here," Dahlia states.

Dahlia does not mention the protective spell Freya's unknowingly casting over her mate. Dahlia could sense the bond forming between the two. It was the only reason Freya is strong enough to protect him.

"Mere footsteps from that which is owed to me," Dahlia begins to circle the pair. "Let me guess... did you make a promise to your wretched siblings? 'Together we'll fight the wicked witch, side-by-side?'" Dahlia laughs. "Tell me, darling, how did they respond to your overtures? Did they welcome you with open arms and weep tears of joy at your miraculous return? Hmm?"

"What are you going to do to me?" Freya whimpers.

Asher knew he was no match for the witch in front of him but it was hard to ignore the protectiveness. He wanted to protect Freya. He also knew if they didn't stop Dahlia then she'd go after Rebekah and their unborn child. He couldn't allow that to happen nor could he let Freya get hurt.

Dahlia's eyes glanced at the pair's interlocked fingers. She couldn't hurt Freya just like she couldn't hurt the man to who her niece clings to. Dahlia only hoped that they would remain oblivious to the power of soulmate bonds as she sends her final warning.

"Soon enough, you will beg for me to bring you back into my home," Dahlia tells her. "After all, once I am done with these poor souls, I will be the only family you have left. You should know better than to defy me. A lesson your father and brothers will learn shortly," She warns.

Freya and Asher standstill as Dahlia walks away. When everything returns to normal, Asher pulls Freya into his chest. The witch continues to cling to him as she finally lets the tears fall. He shushes her softly.

"We'll protect you, you have my word," Asher promises. "I'll protect you,"