"I can't believe you summoned those witches." Klaus spoke at last, playing with his glass. The two brothers eyed each other across the polished table, their faces carved in impassive stone.
"I didn't summon them. They came of their own accord because we have a common enemy."
"You know, we could solve this predicament by killing our progenies! Be done with it."
"We could, brother, but that would eliminate a threat, not the threat. As long as the Serratura exists ..."
Klaus frowned, obviously rethinking his words, when the sound of high heels hitting his hardwood floors had him alert.. The sound progressed in a steady rhythm and within moments two women entered - a tall, elegant brunette and behind her, moving boldly, a younger female. She appeared to be in her mid-twenties, but the heavy makeup made it difficult to tell.
The contrast between them was striking. One was poised, wearing a fine ivory dress and her hair pulled back into a classic chignon. The other one looked wild - the quintessential goth-rock chick, in form fitted leather jacket and tight ripped jeans, paired with stiletto ankle boots. Although her silvery-white hair was gathered messily into a large bun on top of her head, he could easily imagine that it was really long.
"Ladies," Elijah greeted, getting up, "We bid you both welcome. How fortunate that you were able to travel on such short notice."
The brunette smiled politely, keeping her gaze locked on Elijah's, making it obvious that she was in charge.
"This is a time of war, Mr. Mikaelson, and we share a common enemy. It was only logical to do so."
Elijah smiled back, then turned to his brother.
"Niklaus, allow me to introduce you miss-"
"Mrs." the woman corrected, "Mrs. Ruth Arbogast. And this is my associate, Mallory."
The girl remained silent but her sharp eyes scanned the room, and, for a brief moment, she studied their faces, carefully searching for anything that might warrant suspicion.
"It's lovely to make your acquaintance, but let's cut the chitchat here, shall we? Why don't you tell me, exactly, what business your Coven has in my city."
Ruth's lips curled at the corners, feigning amusement, but the smile didn't reach her olive colored eyes.
"The Serratura. Your progenies wish to activate and lock you and your siblings away."
"Yes, the Regent of New Orleans is to perform the activation spell - you bring old news, sweetheart. So, I ask again," he said, beginning to lose his patience, "What business do you have here?"
His glare should have scared her blindly, but it didn't. Ruth wasn't at all intimidated. She seemed untroubled, a little haughty even, having the air of someone who spent years talking down to others.
"The Serratura was created by a witch from our Coven. To activate it, blood from our line must be spilled in the ritual. Obviously, we will not have it! We do not like having our girls kidnapped and killed."
"And here I was, thinking this was a totally selfless act on your part!" Klaus said, flashing a mocking smile.
"Niklaus, please!" Elijah finally intervened, trying to sway his brother, "We're being hunted. All of us. This calls for an united front, don't you think?"
"One would agree, but here's the deal: Lucian and the Martels are a powerful and determined lot. Any mistake can be fatal, so the allies I engage must be... not only fearless, but powerful enough to fight against all odds. And I don't think these lovely ladies have what it takes to fight by my side."
He only managed to take one menacing step toward Ruth, before the lights began to flicker.
"Step away from her," the younger woman said, moving forth, "or you'll find out just how powerful we are!"
Suddenly the temperature dropped and the air around them began to change. It felt like it was charging up, building up to something. The table began to shake, the chandeliers, everything rattled while static electricity filled the air, making small crackling sounds and giving off tiny flicks of light.
As if bidden, Klaus found the girl's eyes. They were bright, gleaming silver, unnatural.
"That's enough, Mal!" Ruth cautioned. "Be nice!"
The white fires glittered for another moment then died out, Mallory's eyes slowly returning to their natural black. Moving past them, she walked to the table and sat down, smiling maliciously in a silent challenge.
"I am sorry." Ruth continued "The young think showing off is a virtue."
"I guess we all like to show off from time to time." Elijah noted, trying to cool down the rising spirits. "Besides, my brother has always appreciated a good display of strength."
"My own good display of strength."
Mallory scoffed, leaned back in her chair and crossed her legs, dropping her high heel boots nonchalantly on the table.
"Let's get one thing straight, fellas: I don't trust you - either of you. Moreover, I couldn't care less if you live or die. But the lunatics you sired, are planning to exsanguinate a seven year old girl, whom Ruth and I love deeply. So, to put it briefly, my tolerance for crap has dropped from limited to zero."
"Ah," Klaus exclaimed theatrically, "The young lady decides to join our conversation. I was wondering which one of you was the wildcard."
"Sure you did; you're all quizitive and shit," Mallory shot back. "Make one mistake big shot: one, single, wrong move and I will..." she rose her eyebrows undecided "...handle you."
Klaus liked the girl's fire and the way she spoke her mind, but he didn't like it enough to overlook the menacing tone. It was clear that she'd have to be kept in check.
"You should know, little girl, that I don't respond well to threats! But pray tell, how exactly would you handle me?" his arms folded across his chest. "I cannot be killed! I am - "
"Half vampire, half beast. I know, I know..." she said, looking him up and down. "Though, you're not exactly what I imagined."
"Excuse me?" Klaus smirked.
"Not to hurt your male pride and all, but... I was expecting something more beastly; the immensely buff and athletic type, you know? You..." she looked him up again and her nose crinkled a little "You look quite delicate."
Although they were both grinning ear to ear by the time she finished talking, Elijah eyed them suspiciously as if they were ready to tear each other apart.
"Will you mind your language, young lady?"
"Yes," Klaus added, "don't you know, it's best not to insult those more powerful than you?"
Hearing him, Mallory rose from her reclining position, stood up, and, still looking steadily at him, walked over to him. With a half smile and a very determined look on her face, she crossed the room and faced him.
"And how do we decide who's more powerful?" she asked, sternly this time. "Do we wrestle?"
Although he didn't say anything, a smile flickered across Klaus' face. Wrestle. She was, literally, a foot shorter! He took a deep breath, pondering his course of action. Clearly all the biting comments were intended to provoke him.
Deciding it was best not to push the hybrid's limits any further, Ruth narrowed her olive eyes in a biting expression and addressed her associate's behavior.
"My apologies for Mallory's rude treatment. This whole situation has rubbed her clean of manners."
"Indeed it has." Klaus agreed, without taking his eyes off the accused.
"Niklaus," Elijah insisted. "We're all just trying to get what we want. Let's try to get along - they are here to help us."
"Is that so? I'm under the impression that this one is here to mock me."
"I would never!" Mallory gasped affected. "You're far too dangerous: pure evil that kills a lot, yada, yada, psycho, yada…"
This time Klaus made no effort to conceal his amusement.
"Sweetheart, if you weren't so disrespectful, I swear, you'd actually be fun to hang around."
–-ooOOOoo–-
Mallory slammed the door opened and stomped into the hotel room, heading straight for the liquor cabinet, to fix herself a much needed drink.
"What on earth were you thinking?!" although angry, Ruth kept control of herself. Apart from a small frown creasing her brow, nothing pierced through her perfect composure. Mallory hated it. The elders, and David, were slowly turning her cousin into a bloody robot.
"We need to keep this alliance a secret, Mal." the brunette continued, pinching the bridge of her nose, "If my elders find out that we've aligned with the Mikaelsons, we are as good as dead."
"They won't find out! Here — have one," Mal said, holding out a glass of whiskey, "I think you need this more than I do."
Ruth shook her head and dropped instead onto the sofa.
"Why did you provoke him like that?"
"Just testing his self-control..."
"By starting a fight with him?!"
"Yes! I needed to see if he would hurt me, when provoked. Better to find out then and there — when I expected it, than later with our lives at stake."
She took a gulp from her drink, before speaking again. "What matters is that he didn't hurt me; I think we can trust them."
"Only enough to get our girl to safety. Don't let your guard down! They're vampires, they-"
"Kill to survive. I remember, hun; don't need the pep talk... "
She took another deep gulp, closing her eyes at the brief break and enjoying the hot sting of the whiskey.
"But they're also psychotically hot, don't you think? In their brooding - "I might kill you" kinda way."
"Dear Lord, Mallory, not this again!" Ruth's eyes widened in outrage. "You shouldn't joke about it! It's not funny!"
Mallory could see the fear and the worry written all over her cousin's face so she tried to put on a smile.
"Relax honey, it won't happen again," the smile turned bitter "I've learned my lesson."
Thank you all for reading.
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