As promised, she spent her morning writing spells.

She hadn't even paid attention to Finn and Kol when she went down for breakfast once she'd sent Damon everything she had to give. She finished her meal, kissed Klaus, and skipped off to the Bayou to check on Jackson, who was meeting with a very worried Aiden.

"The wolves are freaking out," Aiden told Jackson, Hayley, and Esmeray. "They know it had to be an insider who took down Finn last night, seeing as no one could have been anywhere near him."

"Did anyone suspect it was you?" asked Jackson.

Aiden shook his head. "No, not yet. But, they're gonna figure it out, which pretty much means I'm screwed unless we come up with a plan."

"Call a meeting," Hayley suggested. "The whole Pack, tonight. If they're so scared, now's the perfect time to convince them they need to ditch Esther."

Aiden held up his hand to show off his moonlight ring. "She gave them these."

"She put them on a leash," Esmeray noted. "She turned them into slaves."

"No!" said Aiden incredulously. "They make us powerful. We were exiles before, but now we run the city! The vampires are scared of us, and nobody, including me, is just gonna walk away from that because—"

Jackson got up in Aiden's face. "Set the damn meeting," he said gruffly.

Aiden looked down before stepping aside. Jackson moved toward the docks, and Hayley followed, but Esmeray lingered behind. "I know they make you powerful," she said quietly. "I can make those same rings for all of you if we get more black kyanite. The difference is that I'm not going to use that as leverage. I'm not going to say that you all owe me for it. Esther is using you. I want to help fix things, but we can't do that if everyone is misinterpreting Hayley and I's intentions to help the Pack. Have them come to the meeting to discuss their concerns in a group setting."

Aiden sighed. "Look, Esmeray, I respect you. I do. You're rational and you don't answer to anyone, so you're fair about things. You've been really nice to me even though I'm sure you've heard by now that I'm dating Josh—"

"Why wouldn't I be nice to you?" asked Esmeray curiously. "I'm pan, Aiden. Just because I'm dating Klaus doesn't mean I'm not going to be accepting anymore. Love who you want to love, and don't let anyone give you shit for that."

"The point," he said, "is that you've made me feel good about being a wolf. I just need you to know that I honor what you've done before I say... that I don't think this is going to work."

"I get that you're concerned," said Esmeray, putting her hands on his shoulders. "Please, let us address those concerns at the meeting so that we can all work through it together. Maybe they won't want the rings if they come from me. But I at least want them to see that rings from me will mean no forced servitude. I want them to hear me say that."

Aiden nodded, and walked away. Esmeray turned back to see Jackson had gone in another direction, deeper into the Bayou, while Hayley remained on the docks, flipping through a familiar leather-bound journal belonging to Jackson.

"Esme," said Hayley, speeding over to her and holding the journal open to a particular page near the center. "This is what you told me about, isn't it?"

Esmeray could see that Jackson had taken notes, clearly from when he and Ansel were getting to know each other. At the top of the page, 'UNIFICATION RITUAL' was written, and underneath, bullet points about how it worked. "Yes," she said, reading over it. "He wasn't kidding when he said Ansel used more detail than I did. I knew most of this, but not that specific. I attended the ceremonies, and knew most of how it was done, but since the Poldarks never did it, I didn't know about this thing he mentions... the trials."

"Tell me more," Hayley prompted.

"Even centuries before I was born, it was used to pass down abilities. Honestly, by the time I was born, wolves already had a lot of the same abilities. I think the only difference I have from currently existing wolves is my venom. I'm pretty sure it's more lethal. Aside from that, I don't know, because I haven't gotten to understand my wolf form fully, and I wouldn't know what I have that others don't. The Poldarks didn't want to participate in those things. Even in my time, the Crescents and North East Atlantics did it mostly for power, and it caused a lot of problems between them. We just attended the ceremonies when they happened. Ansel recently told me that Klaus and I might've been married with a ritual like this. I don't know what would have happened with that, but it was mostly about uniting the Packs."

"This thing is one hundred percent real?" she asked. "You swear it?"

"I saw it happen, Hayley. The other Alphas had children way older than Klaus and I, so I got to see some of them get married to each other. You feel this... this warmth when they do the 'kiss the bride' part and your inner wolf gets a new ability. I didn't know at the time that the warmth indicated I was a wolf, I just thought I was happy to see a wedding."

Hayley slapped the book shut before going to where Jackson was. "Jack!"

The wolf came back not long after, looking confused. "This is the solution," said Hayley, holding up the journal. "The Unification Ceremony or Ritual or whatever the official name is. I have a unique ability. Because I'm a hybrid, I can control when I change! So, if this mystical marriage thing works, then— then our people get my power, and they can ditch the rings! Which means Esther no longer has a hold over them. Jack, this is exactly the answer that we've been looking for. Let's find a shaman, we'll say some vows. Hell, we'll make it a party!"

"It ain't just a party," said Jackson, not looking very happy. "If the vows ain't honored, it doesn't work. It's gotta be a real marriage, in every way, for the rest of our lives. Are you up for that?"

Esmeray gulped when Hayley didn't answer. "Didn't think so," Jackson muttered, going back the way he came.

The werewitch decided to follow him. "Jackson," she said, seeing he'd gone back to chopping some wood with his axe. "Talk to me. What's bothering you?"

"She still feels something for Elijah, doesn't she?" he muttered, bringing the axe down. "She'll never stop feeling that. I can't do that to her. I can't give her hope that this will work if the marriage is too much for her to handle."

"She feels something for Elijah, yeah, I'm pretty sure she does. But she feels something for you, too. If she's suggesting this, it's because she wants to go through with it. You're a good man and she knows that, and she wants you to be her husband to help the Pack and because she cares for you. You two were supposed to be married, and she's following through with it."

Jackson shrugged. "I don't think it's a good idea. Just... please come to the meeting tonight. Let the wolves hear that you can make the same rings without a price. They know you, and they trust you a hell of a lot more than they trust Esther. If they want to complain that her magic is stronger, they don't get to, because your magic is pretty damn strong."

She was prepared to channel her inner speech and debate student to prove her point. But it turned out, she didn't have to.

"I know you're angry and scared," Jackson was saying as he stood on the sacristy of the St. Anne's Church. "But we are a pack, no matter what. I want you to hear me out."

"You've been checked out for months," one of the wolves asked. "Why should we listen to you?"

Aiden got to his feet from a few rows ahead. "Because he's the Alpha! You got a problem with that?"

"I want to hear what Jackson has to say."

Esmeray, who'd been sitting at the very back, turned to see Hayley. She walked toward the sacristy, and the wolf from before scoffed. "This is a Pack meeting. You're not one of us anymore."

"No?" said Hayley, turning to face him. She held her arm out, and made a show of having it start morphing into a wolf paw, her eyes glowing amber. With ease, she turned herself back fully human. "I am still a wolf. And, I didn't need any magical rings to control when or how I change. You want the same? Then, sit down, shut up, and listen."

She went to stand beside Jackson, who looked pretty pleased to see her. "You all need help, and you know it," said Hayley. "Now, whatever it is that you think of me, I was born a Crescent. I'm the last of the Labonair line, which makes me an Alpha. Jackson is your Alpha. Now, I don't know how many of you bought the story you grew up with, the Unification myth. Well, it is all true. If you have doubts, you can ask Esmeray. She saw those rituals happen with her own eyes. What it all means is that if Jackson and I get married, anyone with the guts to turn up to the ceremony has as much control over their wolf form as I do."

Jackson looked a bit shocked to hear this. The two whispered for a moment before Hayley addressed the confused crowd. "This isn't just about uniting our pack. It's about forming a new community."

"This ceremony will change everything for us," Jackson said. "It will give us the strength we need to defend ourselves. Then, and only then, can we finally have peace."

"The choice is yours," Hayley offered. "Keep the rings and be somebody's bitch, or be part of the greatest pack that ever lived."

Aiden was the first to get to his feet, going toward them and dropping his moonlight ring to the floor. "I'm in," he said, and like dominoes, the rest of the wolves followed, though in different intervals, because some came straight to Esmeray to ask for confirmation.

"That was wild," said Esmeray once all the wolves were gone. "Are you both sure you want to do this?"

Hayley nodded, and turned apologetically to Jackson. "I'm sorry I sprung that on you."

Jackson smiled. "You know, I always thought it would be me popping the question instead of being the one put on the spot." He looked up at Esmeray. "If you'll help us prepare, I'll be ready." He turned back to the hybrid beside him, and took her hand. "I promise I will be a good husband to you," he whispered before saying, "Hayley Marshall, will you marry me?"

Hayley laughed lightly. "No ring?"

"Not yet," Jackson teased.

"It's a yes anyway," Hayley said, and Esmeray clapped.

"Yay!" she said. "I've been wanting to attend a modern-day wedding." She reached into her bag for a notebook. "So, in the past hours, I took notes on everything Ansel told you, Jackson, and I know what needs to be done. I can guide you, but the thing is, we might need an extra hand. I may be the oldest living wolf, but that doesn't necessarily make me an Elder. To be safe, I think a regular Elder should do it... like a wolf with more than thirty years of experience."

"I've got someone in mind," said Jackson. "I'll get you in contact with her."

"Hang on," said Hayley, standing up and looking at Esmeray as if she was an entirely new person. "Esmeray, your ritual."

"An Elder wouldn't work for that," said the werewitch, shaking her head. "She'd have to be a Poldark or Paxon, and I don't want to ask Aaron or Elvis to help me after what happened with Anya."

"No— not that. Your ritual was meant to help you get control over your wolf side. This ceremony... would it do the same?"

Esmeray furrowed her brows. "I... I actually don't know. It... it might, though."

Jackson seemed more delighted with the prospect of marriage now that he knew this. "That's great, then! If simply attending a wedding could grant you full access to your powers... you won't need to ask anyone to perform your ritual with you."

"It's a long shot," said Esmeray, not wanting to get her hopes up. "I don't know how well that would work. But..." her eyes widened. "But... I know who it would work for."

She looked at Hayley, as if trying to telepathically send her a message. "I would hope," she said, putting an emphasis on her daughter's name, "that any wolf who attends this ceremony will feel inclined to help us if we ever need it."

Hayley nodded slowly, seeming to understand where she was going. "What are you thinking?"

"When I traveled these past months, basically every Alpha in the United States acknowledged me as their Queen. This ritual was meant to bestow powers upon every attendee unless an Alpha acknowledged another as their Alpha. Obviously, in my time, people didn't do that, because there were seven main Packs. So instead, everyone had to attend, and there were hundreds of people at the ceremony. But if all these Alphas have bowed down to me... then I can technically accept the blessing for them if I accept you both as Alphas and become a part of the Crescent Pack. That way... every wolf in the country could control their turning after their first ever full moon, since that's sort of a rite of passage. So long as their Alpha has acknowledged me, they will get that blessing. This is how we unite the wolves. We give them all the power they deserved from the very beginning. This is how we turn our lycanthropy into a gift."

She pulled out her phone, looking through her contacts. "From here, we should try and get the wedding to happen in fourteen days. I can contact those Alphas whose phone numbers I have, and in the first four days, I can travel to speak to any Alpha whose number I don't have saved, since some of them don't use phones. It's perfect. We're giving them hopeand power, and that will re-establish the mass wolf loyalty that once existed."

Hayley knew what she meant. If nearly every living wolf had the ability to control their turning because of Hayley giving them her powers, they would all be inclined to protect Hope wherever she went.

"I'll plan the trip now!" she said excitedly, going off to the side to rest her notebook against one of the pews so that she could write down everything she needed to accomplish in four days.

And the good thing was that she had nothing taking up space during those four days. Klaus and Hayley had left in the evening to see Hope, and though Esmeray would have loved to go and see her, she didn't want to intrude while Klaus was enjoying his limited time with his daughter, and at the moment, contacting the Alphas was most important.

Little by little, she dialed numbers, talked about what was going on, and marked down who was willing. Some did not wish to be a part of it. Most wanted to reap the benefits.

Those who she couldn't contact via phone had been on her visiting list. On the flights to and from different places, she was updated on what was happening with the Mikaelsons. Apparently, they had an aunt Dahlia who had cursed the firstborns. It suddenly made sense to Esmeray why Finn had been so insistent on her getting away from the family before she ever had a child with Klaus. The only other things that occupied her mind were one, writing spells to help Cami and Rebekah so that Esther couldn't possess their bodies or force them into her bargain, and two, figuring out how to react once she learned that Hayley and Elijah had slept together.

"You're joking," she gasped when Klaus called to tell her. "How do you know?"

"They had a certain glow about them," he chuckled.

"Damn. You're in a good mood, then. You got Esther turned into a vampire and then finally got to hear that Elijah and Hayley banged. For a fangirl like you, it's a dream come true."

"I expected you'd be more excited, love. Are you really that worried about where Rebekah might be? I'll search for her tomorrow, after I bring Camille to the safe house so that she can hide from Finn."

"I don't know how I feel. I'm excited, I guess, because I did want them to get together. But... what about Jackson? Hayley told you about the wedding, didn't she?"

"Ah, yes."

"I don't know how I feel about her forming an even greater attachment with Elijah when she's about to marry Jackson. He's my friend, and I don't like when people are unfaithful. It always bothered me seeing the way Elena was with Damon and Stefan. Granted, some of the conflict was their fault, but still. It just... bothers me. Love triangles always end up with people getting hurt. I was going ballistic just knowing that you, Anya, and Damon all had feelings for me. And that's considering I didn't act on it with Anya once I started getting involved with you."

"Elijah knows that she is marrying Jackson. I will speak with him about ensuring he does not sabotage what you and Hayley are trying to accomplish through this marriage. Speaking of that... I thank you, love, for your work in creating the strongest werewolf army possible to protect Hope."

"As long as you promise not to call them your army, I'll be fine with it."

"I promise, love. How has your mission been so far?"

"One more Pack to visit, and I'll be flying back. Most of the wolves really want this. Some of the packs— mostly those with a lot of older wolves— are fine staying the way they are. Those are also packs with mostly untriggered wolves running around with them. In the future, at least, almost every wolf will be able to control their turning. Anyone else can get moonlight rings if they ever want to be a part of it. This just ensures I don't have to make too many moonlight rings. That's a lot of work."

The real work came when she returned. Finn had escaped the Compound and somehow managed to team up with Mikael. For the sake of tormenting the wolves and vampires, he'd trapped them together within the Mikaelson Compound, which hadn't been so bad at first, until the spell started making the vampires incredibly hungry.

For those like Hayley, Klaus, and Marcel, controlling their hunger was rather easy. It was better that Elijah wasn't there, as he was still suffering the after-effects of Esther's curse. Klaus, for example, had merely been polite in asking Esmeray if he could drink from her. She'd allowed him to.

The other vampires were struggling. It had taken the combined efforts of Davina, Kol, and Esmeray to undo the spell in a way that wouldn't simultaneously neutralize the daylight rings sitting on each vampire's hand. It had left the three drained, and it hadn't helped that Kol had stabbed Rebekah in the back by sending her into a random witch body that they had yet to locate. Klaus had had his feast with him, nearly killing him in the process.

"Are you going to the Bayou because I almost killed my brother?" asked Klaus when he saw her packing that same night.

"No, of course not," she said. "I'm going to the Bayou to help Hayley and Jackson with the wedding stuff. There's ten days left before they get married, and I need to oversee their trials. I've already performed the spell I need to create a temporary link between myself and the other Alphas so that they will receive Hayley's powers once I become a Crescent. Jackson's taking us to meet his grandmother tomorrow, so I need to do that soon."

"Will you be alright?" he asked, pulling her into a hug from behind. "I feel as though I haven't held you properly in... forever."

"You know why you feel that way?" she asked, smirking to herself. "Because the full moon is drawing near, and you can sense I'll be going into heat soon. We haven't... in months. Your inner wolf misses it. Mine does, too. I think our awareness of the fact that we're soulmates leaves us needing intimacy more than normal. Plus, your wolf is still trying to knock mine up. The binding spell won't let it happen, and it's probably feeling confused about why I'm not sporting a baby bump yet. It's just been so busy with everything, and I don't want to initiate anything if we'll need to stop halfway to solve yet another problem."

"Alright then. But on the night of the wedding, you're mine," he whispered in her ear, making her shiver.

"The wedding night is for them, not for us."

"Who cares? Put up a Silencing Spell for both rooms, no harm done. Do you know what you'll wear yet?"

"No, not yet. I'll find something."

"What if I find it for you? Something teal. Fancy slippers to wear beneath the gown. A crown for your hair, which would look marvelous curled..."

"I don't want to dress too fancy, it could be considered disrespectful."

Klaus turned her to face him. "You may be acknowledging them as your Alphas for the sake of bringing the blessing to the other Packs, but no matter what, you are their Queen."

Esmeray squirmed. "Well, yeah, but I don't want to make it seem like I'm trying to outdo the bride..."

"Truth be told, love, if you end up 'outdoing' her, it's her fault."

She rolled her eyes as he dipped down to kiss her, holding the back of her head tenderly. "I'll find myself a dress that isn't too fancy so that I won't be sad if you rip it. You, focus on how you want this place to be decorated for the wedding, since you so generously implied the other day that you'd like to host."

"It will be a marvelous party," he promised, kissing her forehead and releasing her so that she could finish packing her things. "Now, let me drive you to the Bayou so that we can chat about the arrangements."

Esmeray gasped playfully. "Is the wedding planner doubting his own abilities?"

"No, not at all," said Klaus with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I just want to know what you think of the scenery I'm imagining."

She narrowed her eyes. "I'm sensing a sexual implication somewhere."

"Oh, yes, certainly. Let your imagination run while, and you'll have your answer. I'll wait for you in the car."

Klaus patted her head affectionately before walking away, leaving Esmeray to smile to herself and shake her head.