We're doing a time-jump (flash back) in this chapter. I hope it does not feel confusing. Let me know if it does. Including AND aside from the flash back, this chapter is important for back-story. And amusing insights into the (very dirty) mind of Elijah's monster, of course :)
Boldface sections = Monster's POV - (Please remember; Elijah is a gentleman. His inner monster is not...)
Chapter 2 - Elijah's Story
Present Day
My, my. She's a delectable little thing, isn't she?
My monster, never one to censor himself, filled my mind with images of what we could do with this gorgeous female. We could 'eat' her, and then we could fuck her, and then we could ACTUALLY eat her AND fuck her at the same time! Just imagine…
I clamped down hard on the thought while mentally ordering my Monster back in his cage. He resisted for a moment but then sulkily gave in, retreating to the back of my mind and no longer having access to my eyes. I really don't know how long I would have been able to resist letting him take the reins if I hadn't banished him now, not when I was sitting this close to the object of his, no our, desires.
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1 year ago & moving forward
When Kol told me that he had fallen in love I truly couldn't believe what I was hearing. If I'm honest, I didn't believe it. But then I started seeing the changes. Day by day, week by week, the baby brother I had loved, cherished, tutored and protected made his return. Slowly but surely the 'real' Kol began breaking through the thick walls his Monster had built around his soul for more than a millennium now. Where I had worked long hard to become the Master of my Monster, Kol had quickly succumbed to his. The power struggle was brief; only a few years after we were turned the essence of who Kol truly is had been relegated to the back seat while his Monster took the reins. I still loved him and I still believed in him; every time I had a glimpse of Kol when his Monster reluctantly let him to the forefront I was reminded of my love for him and my duty to him. Forgiving his atrocities was easy, it wasn't truly him. I would have done the same thing had my Monster been in control. Hell, I had done the same things whenever that happened.
So that was the weird dynamics of our family, something that simply defied explaining. There weren't four siblings left, there were eight of us; me, my siblings and our Monsters. In my case I had won, for Kol the Monster reigned supreme while Rebekah and Niklaus were still going through their own power struggle.
One would have thought one thousand years would have been enough to declare the winner, but with those two this had still not been enough time. In Rebekah's case she was coming close to winning. Her improvements had been rather drastic in the past few years when she finally allowed me to help and tutor her in how to cage it after first coming to terms with that she wanted to cage it.
Niklaus was still tethering on the edge, kept there by his pride and near-megalomania which prevented him from either asking for, or even receiving, advice. It truly made a big brother's heart ache but despite our past failures I still had hope, especially now when Rebekah was making such progress; Niklaus always hated to be alone. But, I digress.
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It must be almost a year ago now, the evening Kol returned from one of his frequent trips to Europe and immediately called me to see if I was free to talk. Something sounded different about him, a feeling that was enhanced half an hour later as he stepped through my door. His whole demeanor had changed.
First of all; he couldn't stop talking about her. Anna this, Anna that, Anna smells so good, Anna is so special, Anna laughs at this, Anna likes that. It might have been irritating had this not been Kol, who had never been infatuated before. To my shock I realized that it actually was Kol, speaking, pacing, lecturing, and worrying the entire evening. Not his Monster, but Kol. I had not been graced with my little brother's actual presence for this long since a couple of years after the change. That's when I actually started listening. That's when I realized there really was something different about this girl.
I was dying (pardon the pun) to meet her, of course. Without my little brother's knowledge I gathered as much intel on her as possible and then flew over to Europe to take a look at her myself. What I saw was a boisterous and beautiful young woman in her mid-twenties. Her looks and her demeanor actually reminded me a bit of Ms. Forbes, a slightly older and quite a bit more mature version of course, but with retrained joie de vivre.
I smiled to myself at the comparison, thoroughly approving of Kol's choice while I followed her. I noticed her walking into a daycare center and would have been confused to see her step out a few minutes later holding the hand of a pretty little girl, had my sources not informed me that her best friend, a widow the same age as her, had a daughter. Sure enough, the two of them did not go to Anna's home, instead walking through the park to different area of the city where they were met by another woman. I saw a glimpse of dark brown, almost black, hair and felt the scent of vanilla and violets before I decided I had seen enough. Not wishing to invade their privacy any further I returned home, satisfied that this Anna was, at the very least, not a direct threat to Kol.
So, when a couple of months later he told me she was moving to the US, on his insistence, I was in complete agreement. My only concern was if he had thought about changing her and about how honest he had been so far. He set my mind at ease with his reasoning, he had arranged for a separate house for her and even made sure her best friend also received a Green Card so that she would not be alone. Once she was comfortably settled he would broach the subject when the time was right. She would be changed, of course. Preferably by her own choice but, if not, he had no qualms about compelling her, both before and after; not in any way to change her personality, only to make her content with her change.
I was beginning to get used to, and enjoy, speaking to Kol whenever Anna was the subject. She brought out the human in him and I loved her for it. It had taken more than a thousand years for me to be able to spend quality time with my little brother again and even if I of course hoped that compelling would not be necessary there was no way I would allow her the choice to die of old age and return the reins to his Monster. Much as I pride myself of my conscience, I know I will feel the same way once my true Mate arrives.
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This brings us back to today. The girls, sans daughter (who was apparently in the custody of the friend's in-laws until she was sure she would stay), had arrived from Austria this morning and we would be having an introductory dinner at Kol's mansion in the early evening where I was to be introduced to her and her friend. In a weak moment I had promised Kol I would take her friend, Karin I believe her name was, on as a housekeeper in my New Orleans mansion, thereby easing Anna's worry about Karin not having a job and not feeling at home. Of course, I didn't eat, I didn't sweat and I didn't make a mess so I truly had no need for a housekeeper – but I would do anything to aid Kol's progression towards human control at this point, even if it meant sharing my oh-so-precious private space with an unknown human female.
Anna had barely dropped Karin off at their new house before she got back into the rental car and drove to Kol's house. She whirled through the door and into my brother's waiting arms, his face lit up as a bonfire when she came near him; it was a true joy to behold. We only had time for the barest of introductions before the two of them got so completely lost in each other that their arousal and longing filled the air to a level beyond what I could bear. I suggested we cancel the limo booked to pick Karin up for dinner, instead offering to pick her up myself. I cited that the opportunity to get to know her beforehand might be beneficial as my reason, but truly I only needed to get out of the house before my brother and his human girl tore the clothes of each other's backs. I might have taught him quite a few things in regards to women, but I did not think he would welcome my participation in this reunion. Maybe at a later date… My Monster listened in and could not help to comment. Secretly, I might, just might, have agreed.
That's why I find myself pulling up outside a fairly small, 'quaint' house located on the NO-outskirts. No, I need to not be judgmental. In fact it's a nice neighborhood and I guess the house would be considered above average size for someone less used to mansions than I. Kol would not have housed his mate (does she even know that is what she is, yet?) anywhere less than adequate. In fact the only reason she and her friend is not living in a mansion is to let them feel independent, my brother even told me so. He is subsidizing the rent of this house, of course, to make it affordable to them – but not more so than what to them could (barely) be excused by the difference in price levels between the US and Austria. In actual fact they would not have been able to rent more than a hovel in this neighborhood for what they were paying for this two story Greek-style villa. I had promised not to let them know, though.
I slowly slid up to the curb and dropped the clutch, slipping my stick shift into neutral before, reluctantly, turning off the engine of my newest baby; a pre-release 2015 Jaguar XJ220 in the only color a Jag should ever come in; British Racecar Green. I paused a second to inhale the scent of the soft beige leather interior before opening the door to go greet my passenger-and-housekeeper-to-be. That's when I saw her. No, I am not making this clear enough….
That is when I saw her!
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That is, *I* saw her and something happened; I rushed out and came to the forefront. I usually don't do this, I could feel his surprise.
The cage wasn't locked of course. We have a respectful relationship, Elijah and I. He lets me out to play often enough, but only on his terms. I don't mind, I really don't, I get enough freedom to keep me happy and after I realized how strong his mind is I knew it was either this or be locked away in the recesses of his mind forever. As it is, he is a good Master and knows how to both make me happy and how to make good use of me. Because we work together I don't push him to the back when he lets me take over either, so he gets to experience the glorious feeling that only I can provide. It's a win/win situation.
So, when I rushed out and started sending him images of all the things I/we could do to this excruciatingly delicious human female before us, while making some choice comments about her appearance, it took him a moment to realize what happened. While he still hadn't picked the reins back up I used my limited time to ensure the best possible outcome –I inhaled while moved our eyes down and then up her body, registering every curve and scent, while releasing a massive wave of pheromones towards the woman that even her dull human senses could not help but pick up. Her reaction was immediate and welcome, she began walking towards us with a seductive sway to her hips while regarding us through her lashes.
Yes, yes, Elijah! We can reel this fish in! Now just imagine us…
DAMN! He's out of his shock and telling me to move back, out of control. Sulking yet slightly proud of myself I do as I'm told. Ah well, it was fun while it lasted and I'm pretty sure I got a ball rolling that he has no interest in stopping. He will give me the reigns soon enough…
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We could 'eat' her, and then we could fuck her, and then we could ACTUALLY eat her AND fuck her at the same time! Just imagine…
The crude words, repeated with a snicker, brought me back to the present day. I clamped down hard on the thought while mentally ordering my Monster back in his cage. He resisted for a moment but then sulkily gave in, retreating to the back of my mind and no longer having access to my eyes. I really don't know how long I would have been able to resist letting him take the reins if I hadn't banished him now, not when I was sitting this close to the object of his, no our, desires.*
This? THIS is the full vision of Anna's best friend? The scent of violets and vanilla hit me again and there was no question in my mind that this is the same creature that I previously had captured but a glimpse of. Good thing it was only a glimpse, or I might never have left Austria.
MINE! The inner growl takes me almost off guard and I must remind my Monster to stay in the cage and trust me. I try to send my thoughts straight at him. 'Trust me, I will let you out, and she will be there when I do.' Slightly mollified, he retreats again.
Regaining my composure I straighten my back from where I, no my Monster, had been languidly leaning against my Jag to take a step or two towards her advancing form, reaching for and kissing her hand; every inch the gentleman I pride myself on being. Slowly rising from my bow I caught her eye and locked it inside my own while I spoke a greeting in a voice as close to a purr as I could allow it to become without scaring her.
'Good evening Ms. Aigner. It is a true pleasure to make your acquaintance.'
She flinched, a good flinch, at the sound of my voice and I could feel the delicious scent of her arousal fermenting the air. Good. Releasing her hand (was that a slight scowl from her at the loss of contact?) I instead lightly touched her elbow, lead her around the car and helped her get seated inside. It has always been an art form for a woman in any kind of formal attire to gracefully enter a low sports car, but this girl managed to maintain an air of relaxed elegance while she slid into her seat, aided by nothing more than a light touch of mine on her elbow. Exquisite!
Moving around the car and sliding into the driver's seat with a grace only a vampire could achieve, I teasingly upheld the release of pheromones that my Monster initiated. I had not failed to notice the effects on her and I had no intention of discontinuing my assault. This was one of the very many reasons my Monster and I had actually learned how to get along. I am the undisputed Master, but I do not ignore or belittle his requests, especially when they are as valid as this.
I start the car and smirk at her reaction of the slow vibrations the rumbling motor sends through her. I feel her eyes travelling up and down my frame as she peruses me as strongly as if it was a physical touch. I also do not fail to notice how the scent of her arousal increases as she does. She inhales through her nose, covertly trying to scent me, and from the added increase in her own scent I can only deduct that she approves of how I smell. She takes another deep breath and I can tell she is trying to regain some sense of control before she speaks.
'So, do you enjoy giving rides to strangers?'
Her German accent actually makes the words sound like bed-side-talk and I glance at her with a smirk gracing my lips, just in time to catch a blush rising on her cheeks as she suddenly realized how what she said could be construed. I cannot help but raise my eyebrows at her rather blunt comment, even though I know it was innocent enough in her head. Her blush increases and she shakes her head.
'I'm sorry; I am still not completely comfortable in your language. I am also a bit nervous as I have never had a professional driver come pick me up before. I feel like Cinderella.'
She thinks I am a professional driver? Oh, this is precious! She has no idea who I am; she has been flirting with me because she thought I was someone she would never have to see again. This set-up is too excellent to ignore! Of course, I will not lie to her – but I also do not have to put her misconceptions right immediately, do I?
No, we don't! Ah, good. We agree on something, my Monster and I.
'My enjoyment depends completely on the passenger.' I say, before again allowing my eyes to give her a complete once over but this time with me, rather than my Monster, in control. Having finished scanning her frame in an obvious enough fashion for her to blush AND (fuck me!) send out another wave of arousal I continue; 'In this case, I'd thoroughly enjoy 'giving you a ride', Ms. Aigner.' I can't (or won't) help it, I allow my eyes to briefly drop from her gaze to my lap at the end of that statement. She, of course, is unable to prevent her eyes from following mine and is so presented with an eyeful of the tent my straining erection is beginning to make of my slacks.
Her pupils widen and her gaze doesn't follow me back up when my brief glance is over. My eyes return to hers but she remains frozen, staring into my lap while her breaths turn shallow. The scent of female arousal in the car is beginning to reach levels that are impossible even for me to withstand and I can feel the tingling around my eyes that precede the appearance of first my darkened veins and then my fangs. Luckily, after a few seconds she shakes her head, bringing herself out of her lust-induced stupor and starts staring straight ahead while lowering her window. Fresh, if hot, air enter the car through her window, airing some of the concentrated arousal out while simultaneously pushing the pure scent that is all her into my nostrils. She takes another deep breath and I realize that it is the first time she has inhaled in over a minute. Then she glances over at me, suddenly her expression and demeanor is anything but confidently sexy, instead she appears slightly flustered and shy. (OMFG! That blush is SUCH a turn on!) Turning her gaze back out the window she speaks to me in a voice barely above a whisper.
'Karin. Please call me Karin. Ms. Aigner was my mother.'
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Footnote:
* Yes, I am aware that this is a repeat. It is meant to be, not a cut-and-paste error ;)