In a house in an undisclosed location, Rebekah tells Hope a bedtime story about a king who lived with his brother in a kingdom full of art and music. The king had a baby daughter but had to send her away to protect her from some evil beings, like a ruthless beast (AKA Francesca) and a wicked sorceress (AKA Genevieve). The king and his loved ones had to leave their castle.
Now the shadow of the “once mighty king” haunts his daughter’s nursery. Beasts closed in on the king’s realm, unaware that he and his brother were working to defeat their enemies. Once day, they hoped to bring the princess home to the castle to live happily ever after. Rebekah puts Hope in her crib with the little wooden knight.
Elijah checks out some space in an old foundry company, claiming his organization wants to protect the building. A guy showing him around says the place is a dump and the Correas (now publicly known as the Guerreras) would be doing New Orleans a favor by destroying it. Elijah spots the moonlight ring the guy is wearing and says that the building is protected by law and can’t be taken over by a casino.
Klaus wants to paint to take his mind off of his problems, but he seems to be uninspired. And also angry. For months now he’s been doing what Elijah said – namely, nothing. He’s trying to make it look like he’s grieving his deceased daughter. But he’s facing another full moon, which means another night where the moonlight rings tap his strength. He’s tired of not being able to do anything. He wants to kill.
Elijah gives him good news: He’s found all 12 of the moonlight rings. He’s eager to put their plan in motion to defeat the Guerreras. Elijah would love for Klaus and Hayley to support each other through this difficult time, but Klaus says she can lean on Elijah instead. Elijah tells him that she’s choosing to get through this alone.
In the bayou, Hayley comes in from a jaunt in the woods as a wolf. She finds a doll in some mud, looking a little singed from the bombing. Meanwhile, Marcel and Cami enjoy their own kind of alone time, which is much less sad than Hayley’s but involves the same amount of clothing as when Hayley’s in wolf form. Cami has to go back to the Quarter to meet her new adviser, as her last one suddenly died. Marcel wants to see her later, but part of their thing is not making plans or having any strings. She tells him he’s not missing anything in the Quarter. Francesca’s running everything and the humans are letting her as long as she keeps the tourist dollars coming. Marcel says he never expected the Quarter to be rid of vampires.
He asks about Klaus, but Cami says no one knows how he is. Marcel doesn’t get why Klaus hasn’t made a move against the werewolves. They attacked his home and killed his child (or so Marcel has been compelled to believe). Something must be going on. Cami mentions that she saw Davina, who left her coven and went back to high school. Marcel’s happy to hear that. Cami thinks she has the right idea – move forward instead of holding on to what we can’t change.
Davina has become a regular at a vinyl shop called Second Life, buying up a lot of Icelandic folk records. She spots a guy named Kaleb, who leaves as Oliver arrives. He tells her that Cassie (really Esther) has been helpful to the werewolves since coming back from the dead. Davina thinks “Cassie”‘s decision to make the wolves moonlight rings is more of an alliance. Oliver advises her to leave the shop, then kicks out the other customers so he can talk to the owner, Joe. Oliver has figured out that Joe is a vampire, and he’s here to take him out. Davina tries to stop Oliver as Joe makes a break for it. Some werewolves catch him and drag him back in. Davina gives them all magic migraines and helps Joe escape.
Later, Oliver and Esther meet with Francesca to discuss what Davina’s punishment should be for interfering with the wolves’ plans. Esther says that Davina isn’t part of the New Orleans coven anymore, so she doesn’t have to follow the same rules the other witches do. As if Francesca will just let her off the hook because of that. She complains about her bodyguards, who are supposed to protect her from Klaus, even though he’s become a hermit and isn’t exactly a threat to her anymore. She’s going crazy waiting for him to make a move.
Esther meets up with Finn (in Vincent’s body), who thinks Elijah and Klaus’ plan this whole time was to do nothing and let Francesca be done in by her anxiety. Esther wonders if her sons will be that impressive when it’s time for them to face their not-so-dear, not-so-departed mother.
Cami confronts two of Francesca’s guys following her in the Quarter and tells them to tell Francesca to knock it off. She’s so used to being followed that she knows one of the guys’ coffee orders. She goes to the Compound, where everything has been covered in sheets except the things in the rooms Klaus is actually using. He watches her but doesn’t let her see him.
Elijah emerges and tells her that Klaus doesn’t want to talk to her. Plus, she’s putting herself in danger by being there. Cami complains that New Orleans has turned into a police state. The Guerreras are running it like they’re gangsters, and the Mikaelsons aren’t doing anything to stop them. They should team up with Marcel, who was able to get rid of the Guerreras almost 100 years ago and would happily help them do it again. Elijah just dismisses her. She tells him that she knows he doesn’t believe the rumors that Marcel killed the baby. If the Mikaelsons really want to get rid of the Guerreras, Marcel is their secret weapon, and he’s ready to be fired. “I like her spirit,” Elijah tells Klaus as Cami leaves. “So do I,” Klaus replies.
Josh brings a bunch of humans to Marcel, who’s been looking for new members of his crew but hasn’t found any who meet his standards. He wants people who are ready to live out their childhood dreams of having superpowers. When they leave, they’ll be compelled to forget this meeting, but they’ll know deep down that they received an offer to join Marcel and be like him. They’ll find their way back to him because they want and need what he can give them.
Once the humans are gone, Marcel tells Josh he’s still dissatisfied with his prospects, though Josh thinks one woman, Gia, will come back. He’s not really sure what Marcel’s looking for. Marcel wants warriors, who are more than just tough people. Klaus arrives and explains the difference – warriors fight for what they believe in. They fight for their family.
Hayley catches Elijah clearing out the nursery at the Compound. He comments that she’s there for the third night that week; she spends all the others in the bayou. She reminds him that she’s an invincible hybrid now and doesn’t need protection. He explains that he’s keeping up their ruse of mourning Hope by pretending they’ve gotten to the point where they want to get rid of her things. Hayley would rather focus on getting revenge on Francesca. Elijah promises that she’ll get that. She replies that the nursery is still part of her room and she’ll be the one to decide what happens to Hope’s things.
At St. Anne’s, Mikael listens to one of the records Davina’s been getting him and looks fondly at the indestructible stake. She offers him some of her blood, even though he’d prefer to drink from another vampire instead of a human. She still controls him, though, thanks to her magical bracelet. As eager as they both are to get rid of Klaus, Davina won’t let Mikael kill him until she can figure out how to prevent Marcel and Josh from being taken down as part of his sireline. She’s getting close, thanks to Esther’s grimoire, so Mikael just needs to be patient.
Marcel tells Klaus that the werewolves have a numbers advantage. A hundred years ago, the vampires were able to take them down using guerrilla warfare, but there are now wolves from other packs in New Orleans. Klaus says they can just focus on the 12 with moonlight rings right now. Marcel thinks the Mikaelsons are stalling, and Klaus confirms this – the indestructible stake went missing the night Hope “died,” and the wolves could have it.
Marcel wonders why Klaus would tell him that. Klaus says it depends – does Marcel have it? Marcel points out that he can’t use the stake since killing Klaus would mean killing himself. Klaus invites Marcel to help him get it back. They’ll attack the werewolves tonight; they won’t expect Klaus to come after them while he’s weak.
Joe arrives and Marcel introduces him to Klaus. Joe was one of the vampires who helped take down the Guerreras in 1925. Since then he’s been out of the faction wars, at least until today, when Oliver found out he’s secretly a vampire. Joe tells Marcel that Davina saved him but the wolves will just come after him again. Marcel advises him to leave town until things blow over. Joe refuses to let the Guerreras chase him out. If they come for him, that just means it’s his time.
Klaus offers him the chance to get back in the fight. He’s realized that he’s approaching this all wrong. The Guerreras are primal and love to hunt. Why haven’t they made a move on him? Marcel guesses it’s because they don’t have the indestructible stake. That means Klaus has nothing to fear going up against them.
He goes home and tells Elijah that they have the Guerreras right where they want them. Elijah isn’t sure but Klaus is willing to take the risk. Might as well take out one of their enemies while they can. As the moonlight rings start doing their job and sapping Klaus’ strength, he says that tonight they need to “plant the right seeds.” They’ll need help for that, though.
Joe goes back to his shop, where Oliver and some other werewolves are waiting for him. Joe tells them he just wants to pack his stuff and leave town. Oliver has no reason to let him go, but Joe says he has information that Francesca would appreciate having. At the Compound, Elijah tells Klaus and Hayley where the moonlight ring-wearers are. Oliver takes Joe to Francesca and Esther, and he tells them that Klaus thinks the wolves have the indestructible stake. Esther says that means the Mikaelsons don’t know where it is. Francesca instructs her to do a locator spell and find it.
Klaus plans to use his perceived weakness to his advantage. As they take the wolves’ moonlight rings, he’ll regain his strength. But he’ll still be weak, so he, Elijah, and Hayley will have to work together to win this fight. Elijah’s like, “I’m already on board; you guys are the two who need to agree to that.” Hayley’s fine working with Klaus as long as he can guarantee Francesca’s death. Elijah says he’ll handle the last piece of the puzzle.
Esther tries a locator spell but doesn’t have any luck. She tells Francesca the stake must be cloaked. Francesca wants more information from Joe or she’ll kill him. He says there’s a rumor that Kieran had his hands on the stake at one point. So Francesca sends minions to Cami’s apartment, and Cami gives them an address and the key to Kieran’s secret apartment. As the minions leave, Elijah comes out of hiding just outside Cami’s window and the two nod at each other.
Francesca gathers wolves at her place before sending them off to find the stake and kill Klaus. Oliver notes that Hayley and Elijah will be with him. Francesca tells him he’s free to bite Elijah to weaken him, and she’ll give a bonus to anyone who kills Hayley. Francesca will be staying put and letting her minions do all the work. In the business world, that’s called delegating. In the supernatural world, that’s called cowardice.
One group starts the search at the old foundry, where Marcel and Josh are waiting for them. They lock them in and set off the sprinklers, which are full of liquid vervain. Marcel then starts chopping off the hands of the wolves who have moonlight rings. Oliver leads a group to the Compound, where Hayley takes them on. As Klaus starts to get his strength back, he feels inspired to paint.
Elijah easily takes out some of Francesca’s guards, then heads to her front door. Two wolves manage to breach the living room at the Compound, but Klaus kills them by chucking paintbrushes into their throats. Hayley faces off with Oliver, slamming him for weakening the pack. She takes his ring and says she’ll kill him if he gets another one. Klaus uses blood from one of his kills to start his next painting.
Elijah tosses the head of one of Francesca’s guards into her house to announce his presence. She’s not intimidated since he can’t come into her house (and she’s definitely not going to step outside). Elijah compares her to Al Capone – he also thought he was invincible, but he got busted for failing to pay his taxes and wound up in Alcatraz. Francesca is also going to go down for a reason she didn’t see coming. Elijah convinced the city to give her house heritage status, then invoke eminent domain to seize it. That makes it a public building, so Elijah can enter without an invitation.
When Elijah gets home, Klaus says he’s still not at full strength, so there must still be at least one ring out there. Elijah tells him that Francesca escaped, sort of. As she speeds down a road, trying to flee the Quarter, Hayley appears and stops her.
Josh tells Marcel that the wolves got Joe. Marcel says he knew what he was getting into. Joe sat out the battle for a long time, but he jumped in when it came to his door. He wanted to die fighting, which made him a warrior. Josh asks what they’re even fighting for. Marcel says he’s fighting for his home and for the other vampires’ dignity. What is Josh fighting for? Josh doesn’t know, and he doesn’t see an end to the battle.
Marcel says New Orleans was worth fighting for even when he was born during the time of slavery. His blood and the blood of his friends is in the city’s gutters. Klaus will want to rule again, and his blood also runs deep there. Marcel’s listening to the only album Thierry ever made, and it could only have been made in New Orleans. He’s fighting for the soul of his hometown. Gia arrives just then, as Josh predicted.
Hayley destroys the furniture in the nursery, upset that killing Francesca didn’t make her feel better. Elijah tries to comfort her, but Hayley’s struggling to adjust to becoming a hybrid and doesn’t want to live like one. She was much happier in the bayou. Being a wolf felt pure and noble. She killed eight other wolves tonight before Francesca. There was no nobility in that. She might as well be a vampire. Everything’s changed, including Elijah’s feelings for her. “I was a mother, and now I’m a monster,” Hayley laments. Of course, in the Vampire Diaries universe, you can be both.
The next day, Davina is disappointed to see that Joe’s shop is closed. Kaleb runs into her outside and introduces himself. He teases her for her horrible taste in music and says she needs him. Klaus and Elijah gather the kyanite stones from the moonlight rings so they can destroy them. Klaus blames himself for everything that’s happened; he let his greed take over, and now he’s lost his daughter. Plus, he’s lost the one weapon that can kill him and Elijah. (Uh, and Rebekah, but whatever.) Elijah says he’s survived 1,000 years of Klaus’ attempts to destroy him, so he can survive this, too.
Klaus thinks Elijah’s wasted his time seeking redemption for Klaus. It’s like he’s pushing a stone up an “endless mountain.” Elijah replies that no mountain like that exists: “Some are just steeper than others.” He destroys the stones, then urges Klaus to reach out to Hayley since he’s the only other person who can understand the pain she’s feeling. Klaus doesn’t know what he would say to her, though.
Cami and Marcel are back at his place, aware that things in the Quarter probably won’t get better any time soon. She admires Joe’s bravery, and Marcel tells her she’s brave, too. She says it doesn’t matter. She can’t keep sleeping with him and letting herself get deeper into his world. She needs to focus on humans and their problems instead.
Klaus tries to convince Hayley that things will get better. He’s been through so much over 1,000 years that it kind of runs together, but the real moments are vivid. Her pain will fade. Hayley knows that won’t happen until she gets Hope back. Klaus promises that she will, but they need to get back control of the city first. They need to start by uniting the wolves.
Hayley doubts that they’ll want to work with the Mikaelsons, but Klaus thinks they’ll admire them for waging war on Hope’s behalf. They’ll even respect and follow Hayley. After all, she’s their queen. Hayley asks about their other enemies, like the witches. Klaus reminds her that they defeated the witches by remaining united. That’s how they’ll face all their enemies. They’ll fight as a family.
Cami goes to meet her new adviser. He’s Vincent, AKA the witch whose body Finn is currently using. Later, Finn tells Esther that Cami has no clue who he really is. He’s forgotten what it’s like to be in a human body. Esther isn’t thrilled to be in the body of a teenager. They’re joined by Kaleb, who calls Esther “Mother” and says he likes his body (but even better, so does Davina). Esther tells Finn and Kaleb – better known as Kol – that they’re about to be able to take root in New Orleans. They need to get to work planning a big Mikaelson family reunion.
Etc.: Marguerite MacIntyre (Liz) co-wrote this episode.
I’m not sure Elijah purposely planned to drive Francesca crazy by doing nothing, but talk about an accidentally brilliant strategy to throw off your enemies.
I would watch a spin-off about Joe, the secret vampire who just wants to sell records and stay out of trouble.
It’s quite a trip to go from, “Oh, how nice, it looks like Davina’s getting a love interest” to, “Crap, someone get Davina away from that guy!”
The Kaleb/Kol reveal is great. The Vampire Diaries brought back Kol just long enough to remind people that he existed, and then no one mentioned him again. It was easy to assume that he went away with the Other Side. This is a nice twist.
An Eternity of Misery 