"So, what is it that you want to do today?" Damon asked Lenora half-heartedly.

"Mommy says I have to clean my room," Lenora said. "But can't we do something else instead?"

"Maybe later," Damon told her. "If your mother told you to clean your room, we should probably start by doing that."

Lenora's face fell. "I don't see the point of cleaning my room!" She said. "I'm just gonna make it messy again."

"Well, maybe if you'd put things where they're supposed to go after you finish using them, you wouldn't have to clean your room as often," Damon told her. "Did you ever think of that?"

"I did," Lenora nodded. "But it's easier to throw stuff on the floor." She opened her bedroom door and Damon's jaw dropped. Clothing was draped over every surface, Lenora's bed wasn't made, and toys were out of the toy chest and all over the floor, except for a very narrow clean pathway from the bed to the bedroom door.

"No wonder your mother said you needed to clean," Damon said. "It's a real mess in here." He stood in silence for a moment and let out a breath. "All right then. Let's start cleaning!"

"Just a minute!" Lenora said. "I have an even better idea! Promise you won't touch anything?"

"What are you going to do?" Damon asked, his tone guarded. "What's your idea?"

"It's a good one," Lenora insisted. "I saw it in a movie once." She ran out of the room and came back clutching a broom. "I can make this broom do all the cleaning, like Micky Mouse did!"

Damon's eyes widened. "You mean like in Fantasia? Lenora, honey, I don't know if you paid much attention to that movie, but things didn't end well for Mickey. He got in big trouble!"

"Well that's only because Mickey didn't know how to use his powers yet," Lenora said simply.

"And you do?" Damon asked. "Did your mommy tell you you could do magic by yourself?"

"I'm not by myself," Lenora said. "You're here. Everything will be a-ok."

Damon sat down heavily on the bed. "My god," he said, running his fingers through his hair. "This will not end well."

Lenora just giggled at him, put the broom against the bedroom wall and muttered some stuff under her breath. Sure enough, the broom sprouted arms and began picking up clothes and throwing them in the hamper. Pretty soon, the floor was clear enough that they could actually walk around without tripping over things.

Once the bedroom was clean, Lenora tried to get the broom to stop, but it wouldn't listen to her and began walking around to clean other parts of the house. Several dishes and pots were broken in the broom's relentless pursuit of cleanliness, and finally Damon said to Lenora, "Are you sure you're saying the right thing to make it stop?"

Lenora shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe. I forget sometimes."

Damon shut his eyes and said through his teeth, "This is exactly why your mother doesn't want you doing magic either by yourself or with someone who has no idea how to help you with it, like me."

"Well, what are we gonna do?" Lenora asked him. "We have to make the broom stop!"

Damon looked around the kitchen and finally found some matches in a drawer, just as the broom was turning on the kitchen faucet. As the water ran over the sink and onto the wooden floor, he managed to get a match lit and throw it onto the broom, which burned. Unfortunately, so did a dish towel and some plants and a set of floor length curtains. Soon, the entire kitchen was ablaze.

"Get some water!" Lenora cried. "Get some water!"

"Can't you put the fire out?" Damon yelled.

Lenora muttered some under her breath, but all that got soaked were her and Damon. Damon spit some water out and said, "Well at least you tried," then pulled out the fire extinguisher from under the sink and sprayed it in all directions until the kitchen was nothing but white foam and charred fabric.

Lenora looked around sadly. "I think we made a mess," she said. "Mommy won't be happy."

"But look on the bright side," Damon said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "At least we got your room clean."


"Lucy?" Lucy paused at her pottery wheel and looked at Mimi. "What is it?" She asked. "Did you bring the mail? Anything from him-I mean, home?"

"Are you at a point where you can take a break?" Mimi asked.

"Sure," Lucy said, staring forlornly at the lump of clay she was attempting to transform into a pot. "Damn it, I just cannot get anywhere with this!"

"Why are you doing pottery?" Mimi asked. "It's not exactly what you're used to doing. Why not just continue with painting?"

"Because the only classes that Lucia has available now are ones that involve painting naked people and I don't think Damon would appreciate me doing that, even if it was for artistic purposes only."

Mimi looked over at the half -finished portrait of a nearly naked Damon that sat by Lucy's bed. "And it doesn't look like you need help with that anyway," she said. "And that's the reason why I came in here. He sent you a letter. I wonder why he didn't just email you?" She shrugged. "Maybe he thought a letter would be more romantic."

Lucy opened the letter eagerly.

"Hey, there, Cookie Monster!

How's Europe? Seeing a lot of fun sights? I hope you are. I've been having a lot of fun too. Or if not fun, then excitement. Lenora brought a broom to life when I made her clean her room the other day, just like in Fantasia. I've missed you a lot, I admit. Your mother came to check up on me after a week and was a bit ashamed of what she saw, but don't worry. I'm better now. You may not be here with me, but at least I see you in my dreams at night. That's something. And just so you know, I'm thinking of coming to visit you for my birthday. It's five months away, though. I just wanted to give you a lot of time to think about what to get me for a present. Just kidding. I think you know what I want for a present.

Anyway, I just wanted to write and see how you were doing and tell you that I missed you. Do you miss me? I hope so!

Love,

Damon"

Lucy looked up at Mimi. "Isn't that sweet?" She asked. "And I'm glad I'm gonna get to see him, even if I do have to wait five months."

Mimi smiled. "I'm sure you'll find some way to occupy yourself until then."

Lucy sighed, picked up a piece of clay and threw it against the wall, where it hit and made a wet slapping noise.

"Why don't you get out of here for awhile?" Mimi suggested. "You and I could go look around the city, see what there is for you to paint."

"All right," Lucy sighed. "I don't know what else to do."

She followed Mimi out the door and they walked around until they ended up near the opera house, where a young man flagged Mimi down.

"Pierre!" Mimi ran toward the young man and embraced him. He was very pale and almost skeletal-looking, with dark hair plastered to his head and deep set dark eyes. "How have you been? You haven't been eating very well, I see."

"I've tried," the young man said. "I've tried. But the work, it takes so much out of me, all I have time to do is sing, sleep and sing some more." He gave Lucy an interested look. "And who is this?"

"This is Lucy," Mimi told him. "She's one of my artists back home and she's here doing work under Lucia."

Pierre leaned over Lucy's hand and kissed it. "If you're working for Lucia, you must be very good. She's very temperamental and exacting."

"A little," Lucy agreed when she took her hand back.

"So what sort of work do you do?" Pierre asked her. "Sculpture? Painting? Photography?"

"I'm most comfortable painting," Lucy said. "I'm working on several things right now. Why?"

"Just because I'm curious," Pierre said. "And Monsieur Matthieu has been saying for ages that he'd like a mural put up on one of the walls of the main theatre, but he has yet to find someone talented enough to accept his vision. Perhaps you would be interested, Mademoiselle Lucy?"

Lucy looked at Mimi out of the corner of her eye. Mimi nodded encouragingly and pushed Lucy forward just a little bit. "That seems like something I could do," Lucy said at last. "Although I'd have to check with Lucia first, of course."

Pierre nodded. "Of course. I will tell Monsieur Matthieu that you will see him soon." He gave both women a bow and headed back into the opera house.

"He's something, isn't he?" Mimi said quietly. "He's Monsieur Matthieu's star singer. A big prima donna, that one."

"How do you know him?" Lucy asked. "I thought you only dealt with visual artists."

"Now I do," Mimi said. "And Pierre is the reason why. Painters are so much easier to deal with than singers."

"Do you think he was serious about me painting the mural for the opera house?" Lucy asked. "He hasn't even seen any of my work."

"Of course he was serious!" Mimi said. "And if he knows you've caught Lucia's eye, he doesn't need to see your work. He already assumes you're good. Lucia's name has that effect on people."

"Speaking of Lucia," Lucy said. "We better go talk to her. Who knows how she'll take it."


"You've been asked to do what?" Lucia Fiori surveyed Lucy and Mimi over her desk.

"I've been asked to do a mural at the opera house," Lucy said to her. "Are you upset? I'll try and make sure that it doesn't take away from all the work I'm doing for your gallery."

A grin broke out on Lucia's face and for the first time in Lucy's memory, her dark eyes had light in them. "Oh, never mind about what you're doing now," Lucia said. "All your other projects can wait. It will mean more in the end for you to be doing this mural for Monsieur Matthieu anyway."

"Really?" Lucy asked. "So you're okay with it?"

Lucia nodded. "Of course I am, Bella. You and I will go down to the opera house right now and present ourselves to Monsieur Matthieu. Is that good?" She raised an eyebrow and it almost went into her dark hair.

"Yes," Lucy nodded. "It's good! Let's go!"

Saying a hurried goodbye to Mimi, the two of them left Lucia's office to head back to the opera house. When they got in the building, they were met by a balding stout man in a tux. "Lucia!" he said, giving her a hug. "Pierre tells me you have a new student who excels in painting?"

Lucia nodded and gestured at Lucy. "This is Signorina Mikaelson. Mimi brought her over. She does beautiful work, exactly the sort of thing you have in mind for the mural you want in the main theatre. Very dark, deep painting."

"Wonderful!" The man Lucy assumed must be Monsieur Mattieu clapped his hands and gave Lucy a look. "When can you start?"

"Any time," Lucy said. "I could start now if you like." As she followed Monsieur Matthieu, she knew she'd have to call and tell her mother about this soon.


"Do you realize your father only started being nice to me after I told him about Gregory?" Selina asked Elijah.

"Yes, I did notice," Elijah said. "But what does it matter, really? At least he's decided he no longer has reason to be angry with you. That's a good thing."

"No, it is not!" Selina said to Elijah. "You just don't get it, do you? The reason why he warmed up toward me is because he is the sort of pompous, self-absorbed jerk who thinks that women are only worth something if they have male babies. And since I did, woo-hoo, yay for me. It's like when Marie Antoinette had her first son. She was told that she'd fulfilled her purpose as a queen and at the same time as a woman. That's how your father thinks of me. Is that how you think of me?"

Elijah was silent for a moment and then said, "Oh, no! You're much more than that. You're so smart and funny and-"

"If you say 'pretty', I will hurt you," Selina said. "Don't tell me I'm pretty."

"I think you're just being silly," Elijah said. "You've got yourself all worked up over nothing. It might just be a coincidence that Father lightened up toward you after he found out about Gregory."

"Lightened up, my ass!" Selina burst out and strode out of the room. "Just where is your father? I'd like to have a word with him!"

"Selina, don't..." Elijah said, running after her.

She found Mikael and Gregory in the living room, playing with his blocks. Mikael would build up a tower and Gregory would knock it down and then burst into laughter."

"Your son is quite intelligent," Mikael said when he saw them. "How old is he now?"

"A year old," Elijah said.

"Well, it's about time you had another one, isn't it?" Mikael asked. "The boy's getting old enough that he shouldn't be coddled anymore. Having another one will stop your wife from being bored."

"That's what I've been telling Selina for a little while now," Elijah said. Selina elbowed him in the gut. "Whose side are you on, anyway?"

"I have mentioned that you're coddling Gregory too much," Elijah said when he got his breath back. "I've just left out the rest of it."


That night, Elijah found Selina in her spare room. "Are you coming to bed?" He asked her.

Selina looked at him. "No," she said flatly. "I think I'll stay in here, and get a good night's sleep for once."

"Oh, come now!" Elijah said. "If it's today you're upset about, you're being silly. Father says things sometimes. He doesn't mean anything by them It's just his way."

"If it's just his way, then how come you agreed with him?" Selina asked. "About the whole 'me needing a new baby so I won't be bored' thing?"

"Well, you have to admit you don't do much," Elijah said. "Maybe if you got a hobby, you'd have reason to be as upset as you are, but you really don't do much other than watching Gregory . And that's not a bad thing. It just proves Father's point."

"I'm sorry," Selina said, "did you come in here to try and get me to come back to bed with you, or to prove exactly why it wouldn't hurt you to have a few nights to yourself, because it would seem like you're doing the latter now."

"In case you don't know it, having babies is what sex is for!" Elijah said.

"I do know it," Selina said. "It's not like I haven't had six kids already. And maybe once you've apologized, we can try for seven. But knowing how boorish and stubborn you are, that won't be for a very long time!"

Elijah scoffed. "Oh, I'm stubborn? What about you? How you fuss and go on and on about this all when it's really not that bad."

"You know, having your father here has changed you and that's not a good thing!" Selina said. "You used to be nice and understanding and we did everything with Gregory equally, but now you're acting like it's all up to me. Like bearing your children is my only purpose in life and I should consider being with you some sort of blessing. Well, I don't. At least not now. So I will stay here and you can go back in your room and think about what you've done."

Elijah sighed. "Things will not change," he said. "Father has more influence over me than I'd care to admit and if he saw me treating you as an equal then, well...I'd hear about it. It's a lot easier to just do as he says. He's someone I respect and admire, Selina, and I don't want to disappoint him. Can't you understand that?"

Selina narrowed her eyes. "You may respect and admire your father, but you love me. Or at least I thought you did. I thought that what we had would be worth more than any threat your father poses. It used to be. You saved my life and got me out of Paris in the twenties when all your father wanted you to do with me was kill me. Why is it so hard for you to be like that now? To think that same way?" She paused. "Look, I'll make a deal with you: we go and play a game of tennis in the indoor court we have but never use. If I win, you stand up to your father and fight for me. If you win, then we'll just go on like this and I'll come back to our room."

"Normally, I would tell you I don't negotiate, especially not with such silly terms, but as I have never lost a tennis match before, I will accept your deal," Elijah said with a smirk. "I just have to ask. Are you certain you're prepared to play with me?"

Selina grinned. "Am I ever! And after we're done," she winked. "How about a little tennis?"


Mikael and Gregory happened to be going past the indoor tennis court when Elijah and Selina finished their game. "What are you so upset about?" Selina called after Elijah, who was grumbling angrily to himself. "We weren't even keeping score!"

"We were too!" Elijah said. "But it doesn't matter because it was a stupid game anyway!"

"What's going on here?" Mikael asked.

"Nothing, Father," Elijah said. "Nothing. I'm going to go and get some work done. Do something that's actually productive with my time!"

He strode off and Selina grinned to herself, following him at a much slower pace. "You know," she said, "I really didn't expect to beat you at tennis. I believe you when you said you've never lost a game before. But you played really well."

Elijah ignored her and kept walking.

"Are you going to shower?" Selina asked. "You can go first if you want. You should be nice and clean before you tell your father that you and I have an equal relationship."

He turned and saw her smirk for only a moment before he let out a growl and pushed her against the wall. "Shut up," he said firmly before kissing her deeply. She didn't kiss back right away, but soon, her arms went up around his neck and she was kissing him back. Then she felt his hands going down her back and over her butt and that's when she pushed him away. "That's enough for you, mister!" She said."I'm not gonna let you do that. I'm too mad at you."

"You're too proud, that's what you are," Elijah said. "Always thinking of yourself."

"How am I thinking of myself?" Selina asked. "Is it because I won't have sex with you? Now, let's ask ourselves who the really selfish one is here."

"Well, it's certainly not me," Elijah said. He began walking toward her and she began backing away. "Why won't you have sex with me?"

"Because, as I told you, the only reason you want to have sex, ever since your father put the idea into your head, is so we can have another baby. Not just because you want to enjoy my company or anything like that. And did it ever occur to you that even though I might not currently do a lot more than watch Gregory, I could have something in the works?"

"Do you?" Elijah asked.

Selina nodded. "As a matter of fact, I do. There's a bakery that I go to every so often and the lady that runs it says she's gonna have to close it soon because she no longer has the energy to run the business. I told her that I would be interested in buying it, pending a conversation with you, of course. I've always been interested in running my own business and you have to admit I make good cake."

"And what are you planning to do about Gregory?" Elijah asked.

"Well, you could try watching him," Selina suggested. "Especially since you don't want me 'coddling' him. Or I could take him to work with me. I'll let you decide."

Elijah smirked. "I'm sure Father and I together could handle Gregory. How hard could it be?"

Selina gave Elijah a look and then strode back to Mikael. "Sir," she said to him, inadvertently knocking over Gregory's block tower and making Gregory let out a screech, "I just wanted to let you know that I have decided to start my own business, so you and Elijah will be watching Gregory. I agree that it's about time I let it happen anyway. I do find myself getting much too attached to him." She paused. "And have you considered finding yourself a girlfriend? If your wife can find herself someone new, surely you can too. Granted, Ronan's not exactly new to her, but-"

"Will you stop talking?" Mikael asked. "Elijah, make her stop talking. She's saying things that make absolutely no sense."

"Get used to it," Elijah said to his father as he herded Selina away. "She does that a lot."