A/n: Ok so wow, I finally post something again and it's not even the updates I wanted to be finishing. Nope, I was attacked with Kalijah feels, they've become one of my OTPS this last month and I am still in shock. But I am on spring break, so hopefully my Klaroline stories will get updated. But I do have a lot of ideas for other one shots…so I may just put them into Life With the Originals. (Fair warning, some of them aren't compliant with the verse I had made for that story seeing as I stopped shipping Elejah a while ago.) Anyway, I know parts of this may be a bit OOC, but tell me what you think! Because Elijah's POV is kind of even harder than Klaus'. Why do I always write in first person? Why?

Disclaimer: If I owned any of this, I wouldn't be laying on my bed like a sloth while writing tributes to the show which I call fanfiction.

"Brother," I heard called out to me as I walked through the door to the mansion, Bekah leaning heavily on my side from sleep.

I smiled, genuinely happy to hear his voice; with all the race for the cure and…Katerina, I hadn't contacted any of them in months.

"Hello, Niklaus. I think we should get Rebekah inside, she seems to have had a trying day, and something she wishes to discuss with us in the morning," I gave my sister a pointed to look so she would know not to bring it up tonight. I knew it would be better to talk about such serious things in the clear light of day, but honestly that wasn't the reason I said it; I simply could not deal with it tonight. All my family, and most of the vampire world, knows me to strong and always calm, but I felt unsettled and worn out. I knew it was because of her, the words she said to me before walking away, but I hadn't let myself realize what her giving me her only bargaining chip truly meant yet.

Niklaus frowned, "You just got home, I thought we could talk for a while. Surely, you're not tired, Lijah?" He cracked a slight grin, one that I hadn't seen on his face since the years after we were turned.

I tilted my head and raised an eyebrow, "Did something happen here today, brother?"

He instantly scowled and stepped back, like an instinctual defense mechanism. I rolled my eyes.

"No, and we were talking about you. Bekah said you were a complication…why were you even in Pennsylvania? What about the cure is of any interest to you? "

He seemed genuinely confused, and I would have laughed if not for the thoughts currently spinning around in my mind.

Bekah smirked slightly and stared at the ground, "He didn't come to that stupid hick town for the cure, believe me."

My eyes automatically cut to her in a glare, trying to achieve her silence again.

But it was too late; Klaus had heard her and absorbed her words, his eyebrows shooting up, "The only other thing of any notice in that town was Katerina, Elijah…Oh, I see; so that is how you got the cure. Did you trick it out of her?" He smirked.

Bekah stared at the ground, blinking almost in amazement, "He didn't have to. She put it right in his hand, I saw it."

Niklaus' eyes widened and an ache was forming behind my temples.

I heaved a sigh and shook my head, "Please, brother. Not now. Interrogate me tomorrow if you must."

He blinked, seeming to read my mood and nodded shortly, "Alright then, we will all talk tomorrow. Bekah," he gave her a look that I remembered well, which meant she should do as he was saying, or implying. I laughed at the familiarity and out of place normalness- he was the original hybrid yes, but right then, he was a brother telling his little sister to go to bed. Our family feels a bit surreal at times, but they are still mine. Always and forever, I thought with another sigh.

I nodded at him politely and left them in the living room, retiring to the room Niklaus had reserved as mine after I first woke up from his daggering. I mentally rolled my eyes. I love Niklaus, he is my brother, but sometimes he truly is a child, except his temper tantrums result in stabbing a sibling occasionally.

Once I was safely in my room, I searched for some peace. All my books were still here, lining the walls. So I took one of my favorites down- the Rise and Fall of the Roman empire- and reclined on my bed with it, kicking off my shoes by the door. I regulated my breathing carefully as I scanned the words I'd read a million times, trying to regain some semblance of control over my mind or these errant emotions.

But every other time I blinked, her face appeared in my mind's eye, her eyes pleading with me to give her a chance. I knew it was fololishness and could prove enough of a distraction to get me killed one day, but I couldn't seem to classify those as good enough reasons to not just believe what she swore to me, to forgive her and move on. I'd fought against it for more than five centuries, but I think somewhere in the back of my mind, I always knew it was true- I love Katerina. I always have.

I growled a sigh and promptly threw the book hard against the opposite wall. It wasn't doing my mind much good anyway. Or the tugging sensations in my chest. I had just laid back fully into my pillows when I heard a rustling by the window beside my bed.

I froze, my entire body going on alert the way it'd been trained to for centuries. I was off the bed and pushing the intruder into the wall by their neck before another blink could pass.

She gasped for breath and reached a hand up to my face, "Lijah, it's me."

"Katerina…" I exhaled in relief as my mind registered there was no threat. I dropped my hand quickly and turned my back, going to pick up the book I'd thrown.

"Surely, you're novel didn't deserve that treat me."

Her voice was teasing, a dark playful lilt I'd become familiar with over the past months. But I also knew her well enough to recognize it as her trying to diffuse the tension- she tends to break the ice with a tease or a dark joke. Well, her kind of joke.

But I wasn't amused this time; I turned back to her with a weary feeling in my chest, "Why are you here? I am going to negotiate your freedom for you. You don't have to check to make sure."

Her face shifted, looking like I'd just slapped her, flinching at my words, "That isn't why I'm here, Elijah. I thought you'd have realized my freedom isn't the first thing on my list of priorities anymore."

I blinked and turned away again, feeling absurdly weak under her gaze and refusing to let her see it, "I believe you. So why are you here? I thought you said I got to decide this part."

I could hear hesitantly out of character steps walk up behind me. She put a hand on my shoulder and I could almost see the look she'd have on her face. I swallowed past the sting in my heart and lungs that descended upon her touch as she spoke, "I decided I didn't want to wait; I didn't want you to have enough time alone to convince yourself I wasn't worth trying to find anymore."

I inhaled slowly, shakily, and shook my head, "I'd already decided, Katerina. I just needed time here to talk to Niklaus about the cure, and…well, be with the only family I have left."

She gently- all of her mannerisms seem to be off today- tugged on my shoulder to turn me around. I turned because we both knew she wasn't strong enough to force me to do anything, but in a more important way, we both knew she completely was capable of making me do anything.

She frowned nervously, "So what have you decided then?"

I steeled my control and looked down into her eyes carefully, finding them more scared and hopeful than they'd been since she was human. Maybe she is still that Katerina…

I breathed in carefully and nodded, my voice lower than usual, strained in a way, "I decided to try. I want to try. And I do trust you, against a thousand reasons not to and my own much better judgment, I trust you."

Her eyes lit up like lights in a darkness and I felt the need to make her understand exactly what this meant between us now.

I caught her gaze and tipped her chin up with my fingers, "If you ever deceive me, lie to me, there will be NO more chances, Katerina. Do you understand me?"

Her eyes widened slightly and she nodded slowly and for some strange reason, I felt a smirk come over my face at her rare sincerity, "I see you still have enough sense to fear me."

Her face dropped into an annoyed half glare in two seconds, "Don't attempt humor, Elijah, it doesn't work on you."

I chuckled deeply and the ties in my chest untangled as I grabbed her waist to pull her forward, looking down at her, feeling cautious happiness start to creep up within me, "What does work for me then, Katerina?" I purred her name the way I was very aware she enjoyed.

She grinned wickedly and leaned up on her tip toes, planting her lips to mine and speaking against them, "Suits. Stick to looking good in suits, Lij."

My smirk widened at her disguised compliment and I leaned down to recapture her lips, my eyes sliding closed as I lost myself in her yet again, stepping backward to throw her against my bed, crawling over her and trailing kisses down her neck, nipping at her delicious skin, "Have I ever told you how wonderful you taste?"

She moaned, her back arching alluringly, her body pushing itself into my chest, "Might have."

I shook my head helplessly and pulled her shirt up over her head, leaning down to whisper against her neck, "I love you too, my Katerina."

I could feel her smile as her heart sped up when she wrapped her arms around my shoulders, scratching down my back.

I grunted slightly as I blinked, bright sunlight filtering through my window and assaulting my still drowsing eyes. I was never one to sleep in, but from the angle of the light, I surmised the sun had only just risen. I judged I could afford a few more hours before submitting myself to the inevitably painful talk with my siblings.

I tried to roll over to block the light from eyes, but quickly realized there was some weight pressing against my chest. I moved my hand and realized it was on a woman's back when my fingers slid over soft skin. I blinked my eyes open in confusion before being met with the sweet scent of her, she never changed her perfume, and the sight of her full dark curls splayed over my chest. I wanted to laugh but knew that I was most likely the only one awake in the house. Bekah and Nik had never been morning people.

So I simply tapped on her back and spoke quietly, "Katerina."

She groaned and shifted her head on my chest, her eyes blinking open and filling with the same temporary surprise that I was met with when I first woke, "Elijah?"

I raised an eyebrow with a smirk and nodded, "You're the one that found me last night, don't be so surprised."

Her eyes changed to be strangely warm as she remembered what had happened, "Yes, I did," a wicked smirk came over her face, "And you liked it."

I kept one eyebrow lifted at her, amused, as I simply nodded, "Indeed. But I promised my siblings I would discuss everything with them today and I assume you do not wish to be part of that discussion?"
She shook her head vigorously and let out a small breathless laugh, "No, no thank you."

"I figured as much."

"Don't worry- you're starting to get that crease between your eyebrows again- I'll stay in here until you're done talking. I don't plan on leaving the bed soon anyway."

"Elijah!" I heard my brother's low voice call from downstairs, "For some unknown reason our sister has woke before noon and is insisting we eat breakfast as a family. So I suggest you come down here."

I saw an evil light glint in the woman's eyes and before I had time to stop her, she called out an answer to Niklaus, "Don't have a fit, Klaus! Elijah will be down once he's dressed!"

Shocked silence resonated through the entire house.

I glared flatly at her, "What was the point of that demonstration?"

She grinned wide, mischevious and child like, making me shake my head and roll my eyes as she simply responded with one word, "Fun."

A/n: Oh yeah this was unedited….but I hope you like. Comment if you have any requests, I'm kind of open for anything! Oh, and to OKBooey for inspiring part of this with her Kalijah feels inspired fic. Love ya.