Vampire Hearts
By: Lab7417 and Aria
Elijah turned the odd key over in his hand again as he stared at it. Stefan and Rebekah had just left for Italy on their honeymoon but before he had left Stefan had handed Elijah this key but it was what he had said that piqued Elijah's interest.
"There has been enough secrecy. I trust that you will do the right thing with everything you find here"
The key was shaped to form a hollow heart at the top in gold but the bottom was a square shape. There weren't any teeth and it wasn't even an old-fashioned skeleton key. Elijah had never seen anything like it. Stefan had assured him it worked something in The Quarters. So the brothers had set about searching for the last three months.
At last Elijah had been holding the key the other night when it had pricked his finger. The key had turned a beautiful red and the color had become brighter as they walked in the right direction. Finally, they arrived at a dead end brick alley. As Elijah held the key with the three Mikaelson brother's blood in it out to examine a keyhole appeared in the brick wall. Once he inserted the key a vibrant red door appeared. The three brothers walked in and were surprised to find opulent surroundings.
As they entered they seemed to be in some sort of lobby. The floors were marble and there was a gold gilded podium before them. The receptionist was a very beautiful vampire. Her red hair was in curls and she wore a stylish but brief black cocktail dress.
"Good evening Mr. Salvatore," she greeted but halted as she looked up. "Oh good evening gentlemen and welcome to Liberation. Is this your first time?"
"Yes," Elijah answered now very intrigued.
"Well this club is vampires only. We have plenty of blood on tap as well as other libations. There are a few rules: firstly, absolutely no fighting will be tolerated. Your key will be liberated and you will be banned. Secondly handling of the entertainment is never permitted unless they allow it. Thirdly all tabs must be paid at the end of each evening. Fourthly you do not speak of the existence of Liberation outside of the club. Now if you would please register by placing your hand on this tablet. This feature will allow you to order drinks and will control your access throughout the club." She held out a tablet and Elijah hesitated as he stared at it. Finally, he settled his hand on the tablet and his handprint was scanned in. Klaus and Kol followed suit.
"Enjoy your evening gentlemen," the hostess smiled brightly at them.
As they walked down the short hall before them they noticed that the walls were glass with a waterfall system of what appeared to be blood on either side of them. There was lots of gold gilding as far as the fixtures and marble floors. It was very opulent and refined and yet playfully indulged the secret of its clientele. They were met with a packed room and their senses instantly told them the clientele were all vampires. The floors in here were a marble shot with veins of red. It had a very 1940s art deco style. There was a large dance floor in the center and then a platform around the exterior of the very large room where there were tables and booths. There was also a second story platform to allow more patron seating. The lighting seemed to be state of the art. There was a large chandelier of gold and crystal towards the seating end. However there also seemed to be spot and pot lights everywhere capable of making any color desired. The walls were a soft nude color with the gold gilded arch motifs so reminiscent of the 1940s.
At the opposite end of the club from the u-shaped seating area there was a stage with a long catwalk extending into part of the club. There was also seating around the catwalk. On the long wall opposite the entrance there is a large heart-shaped bar with an extremely high-polished blood red Lucite bar top and two poles on either side extending all the way up into the ceiling. There was a shimmery silver curtain that billowed all over the stage end of the club and likely obscured lighting equipment and such.
The three brothers wandered towards the seating area and took a booth in a plush and very comfortable white leather. Everything here was high-end. A waitress appeared in a short, red dress and sky-high heels to take their drink orders. They ordered three scotches and she took Elijah's card information as well as his palm print to run his tab.
Suddenly Adam Lambert's song "For Your Entertainment" came on. Spotlights turned the guest's attention to the billowy fabric in the ceiling from which a large silver hoop began to descend with a woman seated in it and all three brothers did a double-take.
"That's Bonnie!" Kol gasped. Bonnie was dressed in black hose and a black leotard that was designed to look like a very brief tuxedo but with a halter top. She had her hair in a French roll and plenty of sparkles on her costume. As the hoop descended about halfway over the crowd she looped one leg in and dropped to hang upside down in the loop and Kol's breath was in his throat. She was going to fall! Instead she made several beautiful poses before climbing back into the hoop. Next she dropped down holding onto the hoop with her hands while she did the splits. It was an incredible aerial routine designed to tease and please. The audience seemed completely enraptured as she worked the hoop. Near the end of the routine the hoop dropped low enough for her to drop onto the stage. The routine met with approval. Bonnie's choosing to work in New Orleans was shocking but not entirely unexpected.
As the next song came on however the spotlights turned the guest's attention to the polls at the bar. A moment later Klaus couldn't believe it as Caroline slid elegantly down one of the bars in a red silk dress and bloomers that hugged her every curve. She began to perform a pole routine right there on the bar along with another girl who was working the other side. Then the two girls continued to dance across the top of the bar. The crowd was going wild while Caroline flirted with all of them. She stepped off the bar then while the other girl continued to work the poles and bar top. Caroline flirted her way across tabletops until she was handed up onto the stage.
As The Mikaelsons took in the patrons they noticed they were completely enraptured. The drinks seemed to include plenty of blood and so far there seemed to be peace. In fact, the only two humans in the whole place were Bonnie and Caroline. Elijah wondered if they were aware of that. Surely they had to be but why come work in a place full of patrons that could easily decide you were a meal?
The waitress came back around with her sky-high heels and her flirty but elegant little red dress with blonde hair. 'Clarissa' her name badge read. She brought them another round and again Elijah used the tablet. It was an impressive system which would make it extremely easy to tag sales and keep up with the bills. They watched as the waitresses flirted their way around the floor. There were couples dancing and making out in the booths. There also appeared to be some rooms on the wall with the bar. These rooms had touch panels beside them and doors that were clear glass until they were locked and then the glass went frosted for privacy. Elijah had a feeling that he knew what went on in those rooms.
The crowd seemed to be anxious for something and finally there was an eruption of cat calls as spotlights hit the stage and Elena appeared in a gorgeous blue evening gown that hugged her every curve. The music for Peggy Lee's "Why Don't You Do Right?" began to play. As she began to sing she worked the stage.
You had plenty money in 1922
You let other women make a fool of you
Why don't you do right
Like some other men do?
Get out of here and
Get me some money too?
You're sitting down wondering what it's all about
You ain't got no money they will put you out
Why don't you do right
Like some other men do?
Get me some money too?
Get out of here and
Get me some money too?
If you had prepared 20 years ago
You wouldn't be a-wanderin' now from door to door
Why don't you do right
Like some other men do?
Get out of here and
get me some money too
I fell for you jiving and I took you in
Now all you've got to offer me is a drink of gin
Why don't you do right
Like some other men do?
Get out of here and
Get me some money too?
Why don't you do right
Like some other men do?
Like some other men do?
Two vampires tried to clamber their way onto the stage and suddenly they were obviously in pain and then their necks snapped from out of thin air.
"Well I think we know who the bouncer is," Elijah smirked. Klaus and Kol joined him. As the waitress came again Kol asked, "Could you tell me who owns this establishment?"
"Why The Mikaelsons do! Elena, Caroline and Bonnie Mikaelson run it. If you've got any trouble in mind don't. You don't want to mess with that family."
"So we own a hidden vampire club in New Orleans French Quarters," Klaus grinned.
"More than that!" Kol exclaimed, "we apparently gained some wives we didn't know about!"
"Unless of course they're masquerading as our sisters," Elijah pointed out.
"They damn well better not be!" Kol growled. Two waitresses appeared almost immediately.
"Excuse me is there a problem we can assist you with?" the brunette waitress asked.
"No, no," Elijah smiled, "sorry there's no problem here. We would however like another round." Both waitresses relaxed and headed for the bar. They noticed then that Bonnie was working the bar while Caroline and Elena were dancing on the bar top. Some of the waitresses seemed to be on the dance floor at various times. Everything about this place was designed to ensure everyone had a good time.
Later in the evening the spotlights called attention to the stage and Elena was in a little purple leotard with a bunny tail and ears. She did a very flirtatious dance routine. Then Bonnie and Caroline did an aerial routine with beautiful silk ribbons. The ribbons allowed so much movement that they nearly covered the entire dance club as they performed their routine high above. Two men held the silks on the floor and shifted their positions to coordinate with the location of where the girls should be performing at that point. Once Bonnie and Caroline were finished eight red silks descended from the ceiling and other girls began to pose on them. They merely shifted positions periodically with the silks wrapped around their bodies as they moved.
Throughout the night all of the girls took turns working the bar at some point. Finally, the lights flashed and the waitresses came around for last call. The girls on the silks finally came down and flirted with the patrons some dancing and others drinking before they made their way for a door that took their handprint and likely admitted them backstage to dressing rooms.
So this is the secret Stefan had been keeping? How long had he known that the girls were right here under their noses? Apparently the girls hadn't forgotten them. The drink menu was full of Mikaelson references. There was a drink named after each brother as well as The Mikaelson, The Grand Slam which was made with Kol's favorite bourbon and his favorite blood type AB negative, The Hybrid which was Bacardi 151 and Everclear with blood and served so that the two alcohols never mixed unless in your mouth and La extraction de Couer which was very good scotch and Elijah's favorite blood type.
"Should we say hi?" Klaus smirked as the club was beginning to clear and the workers were beginning to clean up. Bonnie, Elena and Caroline were putting glasses into dishwashing drawers and unloading others to stage them back on the elegant glass shelves. Caroline was dancing around on top of the bar as she stashed the liquors back on the higher shelves.
"Oh yes, we shouldn't neglect them. They are after all Mikaelsons," Elijah smirked. The three brothers made their way across the now deserted dance floor and over to the bar.
"Hello Caroline," Klaus purred and all three girls jerked their direction. Elena dropped two glasses which shattered all over the floor. Bonnie paused mid-air with two fists full of money where she was starting the night's accounting and Caroline fell right off the top of the bar. Klaus caught her deftly in his arms but all three of the girls were pale as they stared at the brothers.
"Mikaelsons, really?" Kol asked as he watched each girl stare at him and his two brothers.
"You have quite the club," Klaus had his eyes on Caroline as he spoke. "I'm curious, who helped you finance this place? The Salvatores?"
Elijah made a move to stand in front of Elena and he gave her a warm smile. "I half expected you to be in Mystic Falls with the elder Salvatore brother."
No one spoke after what the three brothers were saying.
Klaus and Kol decided to ask the question that plagued all of the males.
"Who else knows you're here?" The girls looked at each other for a long moment. Caroline was still in Klaus' arms though her breathing was coming in heavy gasps and the girl's heartbeats were racing.
"Okay, I'm sure you have questions," Elena said.
"Quite a lot of them darling," Kol said.
"Stefan is the only one from Mystic Falls that knows we're here," Elena said. "Damon has no idea we're here."
"As for the financing..." Caroline looked to Klaus, "you've been paid back, two years ago actually. There's also an account that pays you thirty percent of the profits from this place."
"How did you get your hands on Mikaelson money?" Elijah asked.
"I think I can answer that one," Kol said. "If Stefan knows then our sister knows as well. He wouldn't ever keep anything from her." The girls had returned to resetting the bar as they spoke and as they finished Bonnie finished the tab.
"Alright girls thirty-five thousand tonight," Bonnie cheered and the other two joined her.
"Thirty-five thousand dollars?" Klaus gaped at all three girls.
So far, just by glancing at Elijah and Kol, he knew that they were angry that men were gawking at them, especially in what their attire was.
"What about Damon? What is the status of your relationship with him?" Elijah questioned. Elena gulped. How should she answer this question? Be honest or lie?
"I haven't seen Damon in three years Elijah," Elena said.
"Yes thirty-five thousand and that's a slow night," Bonnie said boldly. She wrote down a number and passed it to Elijah. "Here's the account number your proceeds are in. There should be a little over 3.5 million in there." As Elijah looked at the number he knew it was one of the accounts that the family had held for some time. He just had never accessed it. The workers began to appear from the door in the far corner then with duffel bags and such headed home.
"Thank you for another wonderful evening everyone. See you tomorrow night," Elena called out. Two ladies appeared then and walked over to the girls.
"They were perfect little angels, tired themselves right out," the one woman said and she passed a little girl who was mostly asleep over to Bonnie. Her long brown hair was in a ponytail and one hand was rubbing a sleepy green eye as she took in the view from her mother's shoulder.
Meanwhile the other woman passed a little boy to Elena. She struggled to get the boy onto her shoulder. He clutched her shirt and stared back at Elijah, Kol and Klaus with eyes that Elijah had stared at in the mirror for a thousand years.