I got 2 favs and a follow within the hour on the last chapter so I thought, hey! Might as well keep writing now I'm in the mood! So, don't just favorite or whatever, try and leave a review if you can!
"Niklaus!" Elijah shouted as he hurried up the stairs of the compound, looking around for his pain of a brother.
"Yes, brother?" could be heard from one of the rooms nearby, and Elijah poked his head in.
"What do you know of her return?" he demanded, resisting the urge to hold Klaus up against a wall by his throat.
"Now, if you're going to go about making demands like that, you'd be better off being a bit more specific."
"You know of whom I speak, Niklaus."
"Elijah, you've had more than your fair share of 'hers' and 'shes' that could be returning. Let's see, you could be talking about Tatia, or Katerina, or your beloved Celeste, perhaps?" he taunted, enjoying playing with his brother's temper. "But then again, it could be someone else that you haven't ruined the life of yet by falling in love with them, if there's anyone left. Maybe Davina, or Elena, or someone a bit more likely, Hayley? Oh! It seems I've forgotten someone. It's probably not even possible, considering she was slaughtered by the hunter Alexander, but maybe you're speaking of Vio—"
"Enough!" he interrupted. "Enough."
"Hello?" A softer voice entered the conversation, balancing out the harsh tones of voice. It was a familiar voice that the two brothers would always recognize. "Klaus?"
At the mention of his brother's name, Elijah shot him the sharpest glare he could manage, to which Klaus shrugged guiltily before leaving the room.
"Violet, so glad you decided to take me up on my offer and come."
"I can't express how grateful I am that you're letting me stay here," she said.
Elijah dragged his hands over his face, before finally deciding to leave the room as well. He leaned over the balcony as he watched Violet speak with his brother.
He remembered that the two of them were always civil to one another, unlike the rest of the girls he loved. Although he never loved them quite as much as he loved her, did he? Violet and Klaus, rarely fought, and when they did it was playful, friendly. Usually Klaus went out of his way to either kill or fall in love with anyone Elijah formed any emotional bond with, so he was grateful that his brother did nothing of the sort with Violet.
"I was amazed that someone was actually going to let me crash at their house, if you can even call this place a house, look at the size of it," Elijah heard Violet say to Klaus, and he shook his head with a little laugh. Trust Violet to be getting in Klaus' good books before she even knew who he was, or what he was, for that matter. "It's not exactly the number one thing on your list when a stranger asks if anyone will have them for a few nights."
"Not just a few nights, you're welcome to live here for as long as you like, provided you don't do anything that makes me kick you out," Klaus replied with a laugh, although he probably wasn't joking at all.
"I'll try my best," she replied with a quick grin. Her eyes searched the upper floor quickly, darting between the archways before landing on Elijah. "Elijah?"
"Violet, I didn't think I would be seeing you so soon," he smiled, straightening his suit jacket then quickly walking down the wooden staircase, ignoring the slight creak of the third step.
"Nor did I. You and Klaus know each other?"
"I was about to ask that exact question," he replied.
"Well I asked first," she countered with a shrug.
"Mature," Elijah remarked playfully. "Klaus is my younger brother."
Klaus stayed oddly silent through this whole discussion.
"And how do you know Klaus?" he continued.
"Let's just leave it at a friend of a friend…of a friend," Violet said, counting the 'friends' off on her fingers.
"I didn't know Klaus had friends," Elijah muttered quickly, and to his surprise, the look on Klaus' face wasn't at all threatening.
"I was quite surprised, too, when Caroline asked if I had some extra room," Klaus remarked.
"Caroline, huh?" Elijah asked.
"Like I said, friend of a friend of a friend," Violet repeated.
"I think it's time Klaus showed you to your room then," he said quietly, gesturing for them both to walk up the stairs. They walked ahead of him as Klaus told Violet interesting and slightly irrelevant facts about New Orleans and the Compound. If Niklaus has put her in the room next to mine there will be hell to pay, Elijah thought to himself.
As if on cue, his brother stopped his little tour at the room next to Elijah's. The two were separated only by a set of double doors.
"There are plenty of wardrobes and things, the bathroom is here, and Elijah's room is just through there," Klaus smirked devilishly, clapping his hands together. "However, I think it's best if you explore this place yourself, it's more enjoyable when you find out the secrets that the Compound holds yourself."
"If I get lost, I expect one of you to find me," Violet said with a frown, before putting down her bag and leaving the two brothers alone in her new room as she explored.
"So it's true. The lovely Violetta has returned, as Violet this time around," Klaus said to his brother, with an air of cockiness.
"You knew about this? How did you know about this?" Elijah demanded, taking a step towards his younger brother.
"Brother, I'm the most powerful being currently walking this earth. I have connections."
It was true. No matter what happened, Klaus was always one of the first to know about it.
"Who told you?"
"I never reveal my sources. But who told me is irrelevant. More important is the fact that she doesn't remember you."
"How does any of this concern you?" Elijah asked, worried about his brother's interest in Violet. Things that peaked Klaus's interest usually ended up dead within a year.
"How wouldn't it concern me? Violet was my friend, back then, not just your lover. And now, after all this time she's alive, but she doesn't remember you? This is fascinating, I'm not going to ignore it."
"If you hurt her, I will do everything in my power to ensure that you never see the light of day again. Harm her and I will skin you," Elijah threatened, and he was surprised at his own words. It wasn't often that he lost his temper like that, and it reminded him of the lengths he was willing to go to for Violet's protection.
"I don't believe you understand, brother!" Klaus shouted. "This isn't the kind of fascination where I find something I like and I kill it, like you always think will happen. This is the kind of fascination where I am genuinely concerned and intrigued! I wouldn't hurt Violet! I couldn't even if I tried. Contrary to your belief I don't think of her as my plaything."
Elijah simply stared at his younger brother, trying to determine whether or not he was being truthful.
"Elijah it is my aim to find out what Violet is doing here, and protect her. Now, are we on the same page?"
"Yes."
Violet looked through each room on each hallway, silently admiring the decor. Artworks were hung in each room, some signed with the same little scribble in the bottom right hand corner.
As she rounded the corner onto another hallway, looking up at the stonework, she collided with something. Or, upon closer inspection, someone.
She looked up at the someone she had run right into as Elijah watched from a distance. The moment he saw that Violet had run into Marcel, of all people, he almost rushed to keep her away from him, but caught himself before he did anything rash.
He knew that Marcel wouldn't hurt her right there and then unless he had good reason. Good reason in this circumstance would probably be that she was significant to Elijah. If Marcel found out how much she meant to him, Violet would become a chess piece in an instant, if her didn't snap her neck first.
He listened in on their conversation.
"Woah, are you alright?" Marcel asked her, steadying her with a laugh.
"Sorry, should've been looking where I was going," she apologized quickly. She didn't seem afraid of Marcel, which was something you didn't see very often, but she certainly wasn't uninterested in him.
"No, it's my fault, you're fine." Even the sound of his voice annoyed Elijah.
"Yeah, thanks. If you're looking for Klaus, he's probably in the room over there," she told him, pointing to a room near Elijah. He rushed behind a pillar calmly before Marcel's keen eye could catch him.
"I am, thanks. I'm Marcel."
"Violet," she told him before ducking around him with a brief smile and continuing her exploration.
She simply left Marcel standing there, clearly desperate to find out more about the Compound. Elijah saw Marcel turn around and run his hand over his chin as if in thought, smiling at Violet.
He continued walking, heading to the room that Violet walked to, so Elijah slipped into his own bedroom and sat on his bed.
All he needed was just a few moments to think about Violet, the girl he had loved and lost, so many years ago.
His head rested in his hands, his elbows on his knees as he sighed and remembered, a faint smile on his face.
He remembered the way she was back then — an even balance between polite and casual, kind and intimidating. The first time he saw her was the first time he had felt alive since his initial death when Mikael had buried a sword in his chest.
As he sat on his bed, he filled in the silence by listening closely for the only heartbeat currently in the building — hers.