Kept At Bay

Disclaimer: I don't own The Vampire Diaries or The Originals (the TV show, the books and etc.) which includes any of its characters, dialogue and story arcs. I also don't own any other book, movie, song, character or dialogue I may have mentioned along the way. I just so happened to use it for nonprofit able fun in my spare time.

Author's Note: This is a story that is made up of one-shots chronicling the exploits of my OC- a Mesmer named Bae Marlow- and our (mostly) favorite Hybrid Original, Niklaus Mikaelson. This starts out as a series of one-shots that will eventually turn into a full blown story that has some chapters that have elements of the television show and some chapters that are purely the television show. This is basically a story that gets to the point when telling the story of these two power houses... Please enjoy.

Pledge.

Bae walked into his house without bothering to knock or wait for someone to come to the door to let her in. She wasn't in the mood to wait around for him. He'd called her just as she got home from working down at the Mystic Grill, sending her a text that made her roll her eyes before turning around and getting in her car again.

"Niklaus?"

"Hello, Bae,"

She looked up to find Niklaus watching her form the top of the stairs, smiling down at her as if he were the cat that had caught the canary. It set her ill at ease as she watched him move down the stairs with ease until he came to stand in front of her.

"What do you want?" she frowned, crossing her arms over her chest. "I was in the middle of something important,"

"Oh really?" he smiled, looking her up and down. "Well I couldn't have been too important if you came running when I called,"

She chuckled up at him with a roll of her eyes. "I just got off work when you texted me. I have about an hour before I drop off to sleep no matter where I am,"

"So I see," he murmured, looking from her old tennis shoes to the splatter of grease on her shoulder to the exhaustion in her face. "I'll get to the point then… I want you to pledge yourself to-"

"No,"

He seemed shocked at first but then raised an eyebrow at her. "Why not?"

"Because," she shrugged. "I know what that word means to anyone older than the last few centuries. It means more than just helping you out a few times in your stupid search for power. I do not intend to pledge myself just because a big bad Hybrid thinks he can bully me about,"

"Thinks?" he repeated with a devilish smirk.

She raised her hand, freezing him in place and forcing him to stand like a tin soldier. He snarled at her despite himself, glaring at her from his frozen stance. She walked up to him, her face inches from his, smiling at him.

"Thinks," Bae repeated. "Mesmer. Remember?"

"You owe me," he snarled at her. "I let you live,"

She frowned at him. Yes, it was true that he'd let her live a month ago when she'd snuck into town. She'd just made her place, bought her own house with the money she'd swindled her way into before arriving, got the job at the Mystic Grill, she'd met the local supernaturals. Then, one night, she'd been on her way home when a voice stopped her.

"My, my,"

Bae gasped as she spun around to find a man standing directly behind her. He was a handsome man, his hair looking red in the darkness of the parking lot. He was dressed well, British if she could tell anything from only those two words he'd spoke so far. However, he made shivers run down her spine as she came to face him. Not only did he have a dangerous quality to him but there was no way a human could sneak up on her the way he'd done.

He was stalking towards her now, with a mischievous smile on his face. "Don't you smell absolutely delicious,"

Bae shifted uncomfortably against her PT cruiser, keeping her keep in her hand so that she could either be quick to drive away from danger or to stab the man in the eye. "That's a strange way to introduce yourself to someone,"

He dropped his eyes from hers as if shy, chuckling softly before he met her eyes again, pinning her against her car. "What are you?"

"Certainly not a person who falls victim to compulsion," she bit at him as she watched the pupils of his eyes shift. "Or to a vampire,"

There was a twitch in his face that told her that he was shocked but he hid it well, letting the smile return to his face as he stopped a few feet from her.

"Then do tell, love, what are you?"

She smiled back at him, mirroring his comfortable stance.

"Come now," he sighed, tossing his head. "It's obvious you aren't mundane,"

"Obviously," she smiled, her fingers twitching at her side. "But you'll never find out,"

He jerked forward as if he'd meant to attack her but he never got more than a few inches before he came to a stop. It was almost comical watching him frozen in his spot, his face morphed and frightening when he had nowhere to go. What almost had her smiling was the golden eyes that widened in surprise as he looked down at himself, as if wondering why his body had betrayed him.

"Funny," she snorted, raising the hand that held him under her power of control. With his body under her control she stepped towards him, confused at the black and golden eyes of a werewolf when he'd only a moment ago been trying to compel her, the fangs that poked from his mouth being those of both creatures.

"… What are you?"

"What are you doing to me?" the man spat at her viciously, desperately fighting the control she had over him.

She chose to ignore him. "You aren't a werewolf… but your eyes…"

"Let go of me!"

"So what? You can attack and eat me?" she threw back, dipping in until their faces were close enough so that she knew he could smell her blood. "Give me a reason,"

He frowned at her, his face remaining the monstrous mix of wolf and vampire as he stared at her, hating her silently.

"That's what I thought," she smiled, stepping back to get into her car, managing to keep her control on him even as she climbed into the car and buckled in. "Back off. I'm going to be in town for a while and don't think I won't walk you into something deadly if you come after me again,"

She drove away, letting him go just as she turned onto a busy road… and he didn't follow her.

She'd expected him to follow her but when she'd stepped over the threshold of her house she'd let out a breath of relief. However, it had been only a few days before he found where she lived, knowing on her door politely and waiting for her to answer. She'd been surprised and a little frightened when she found him standing on her doorstep. To her surprise he'd been there to offer her his protection against those who might threaten her in town if she would become one of his lackeys. Of course she'd refused and slammed the door in his face, despite how stupid it was to do so.

But he hadn't hurt her, never been violent towards her. Maybe because, despite her being the only person that might hold power over him, he was planning on not killing her. Maybe it was because he knew what she was even back then and knew that it was take more than a little force to sway her. Maybe it was because he liked her enough to be friends.

"Letting me live is your problem," she told him with another shrug as she turned her back on him, maintaining her hold on his body despite him not being in her line of sight. She could feel him fighting against her when he believed her control to be the weakest but he failed. Once she had control over him, she wasn't going to let go of it until she chose to let him go. "Nice try, Niklaus. You aren't going anywhere until I want you to,"

"Bae,"

"You aren't going to force my loyalty, Niklaus," she told him, turning around to meet his eyes again. "You can earn it… we can become friends and I might chose to help you in a few of your debacles… but you will not force me to pledge my loyalty until I think you're worthy,"

Niklaus's lips turned into a thin line as he frowned at her. She thought it was cute.

"You'll be mine eventually, little Mesmer,"

She grinned, turning back to open the front door and head out to her car. "Good luck with that,"

Author's Note: Also! I added an "E" to any chapter that is an episode straight out of the series. There are other chapters that have elements of the show but these are the chapters that literally have the moments/characters/dialogue from the television show.