Kasia got changed into a white tank top and red shorts before snuggling into the warm guest bed that had almost never been slept in. She knew Ester would try and test her and her sister so she had to be well rested. Being back with the family in mystic falls where they first met Ester and became part of the family felt almost too much for Kasia. She heard the door opened slowly then close shut again. She didn't bother turning round to see who it was as the moment the person who disrupted her sleep wrapped their arms around her waist she knew who they were
''Night Kol'' she smirked before closing her eyes softly
A fifteen year old Kasia ran through the forest with nineteen year old Kol right behind her. She shrieked as he wrapped his arms around her waist and spun her in circles, laughing at her girlish screams.
He set her on her feet laughing as she whipped round to face him. The sun made his eyes go a slightly lighter brother than what they were as his brown hair to match hung close to his chin.
Kasia looked over Kol's shoulder at twenty-one year old Niklaus who was sitting on a fallen tree by himself, he hadn't spoken to anybody since two nights ago when Mikael lost his temper and took it out on him, his siblings were afraid he may become a mute. Even from a distance she could see the bruising on his puffed up eye and lip. As she looked up her eyes wandered to seventeen year old Aribella and Rebekah who sent her a questioning looks as they both tore their gaze to Niklaus. Kol looked over his shoulder to see where Kasia was looking. His eyes saddened when they fell upon his older brother, he looked so broken and lonely.
''I'm going to go and sit with Niklaus for a bit, do you mind?'' Kol asked turning back round to Kasia. She smiled and shook her head
''Of course not Kol, I must help mother with washing up anyway. Father, Finn and Elijah are out training Henrik so I suspect they'll be hungry when they return, and I should really get started on dinner anyway'' Kasia smiled walking towards the hut.
With a long sigh Kol sat down next to Niklaus. Nik looked up at him and Kol could see the blue bruises on his face and the cut on his bottom lip where Mikael back-handed him. Kol studied his older brother's face carefully. Nik glared at him
''He went to far Niklaus, I just wish I could have been there to stop him'' Kol admitted. The corners of Niklaus' mouth turned up slightly as he knew Kol wouldn't stand a chance against their father.
Niklaus' hands began to shake in fear as he saw Mikael come out of the woods opposite them with Henrik, Finn and Elijah following him. Mikael made a B line straight towards them and Kol began to grow tense as Elijah did also. Niklaus looked down at the ground as Mikael stood over him. Elijah stood by his father's side ready to stop him if he decided to smack Niklaus once more as Henrik was hidden slightly behind Finn who glared at his father as Mikael glared down at Niklaus
''Are the swords sharpened and polished?'' Mikael spat at Niklaus
''All except Finn's sword father, I could not find Finn's'' Niklaus' voice trembled a little in fear. Mikael raised his hand to smack Niklaus who immediately shut his eyes waiting to be hit but luckily Elijah was quicker than Mikael and grabbed his wrist. Elijah always showed Mikael respect but stopped him if he felt Mikael had gone to far, and he had.
''Look at his face father, don't you think you've done enough'' Elijah snarled looking Mikael dead in the eye. Mikael looked down at Niklaus' who's confused gaze was fixed on Elijah.
''He won't always be around to stop me, boy'' Mikael snarled down at Niklaus
''I'll make sure I am, father'' Elijah snarled in reply to Mikael's comment. Mikael marched off to the hut as Elijah took a seat beside Niklaus. Elijah put his hand under Niklaus' chin and forced him to look Elijah in the face so Elijah could see the full extent of his injuries
''Aribella, could you come here a second'' Elijah shouted over towards his sister. She walked over slowly after seeing the way Mikael threatened to hit Niklaus again.
''Yes, Elijah?'' she said looking straight at her brother and not daring to look at the bruised face of Niklaus
''There should be some ointment in mothers cupboard, it'll bring the swelling down on his eye and lip, it'll also help the pain. Bring it to me please along with a cloth'' Elijah replied smiling up at Aribella. Niklaus just looked at him confused
''I...I don't understand, why do you want to help me?'' Niklaus stuttered staring confused at his eldest brother
''You're my baby brother Niklaus, do I need a reason to want to help you. Besides if I don't patch you up, who will. I've been on the receiving end of father's hand a few times'' Elijah smiled
''We all have except for the girls, father would never hit them'' Kol cut in but he knew Mikael went further than slapping Niklaus or even back handing him
''He's just never went this far with one of us before and we want to help, whenever he goes to far we will pull him back, we promise'' Finn smiled own at Niklaus. Aribella returned with the ointment and cloth. She pushed Elijah further up the fallen tree towards Kol before started to dab the ointment onto Niklaus' wounds. Rebekah and Kasia followed her.
From a distance Ester watched as all her children began laughing at something Henrik had said to Niklaus.
Kol awoke with the memory still alive in his brain. He smiled as he remembered them all laughing and joking after that.
His smile faded as he realised none of them had kept their promise to Niklaus as none of them ever did pull back Mikael because they were terrified of him. Kol flinched as he remembered how bad Mikael got towards Niklaus, to the point where Niklaus was beat unconscious before Ester intervened as she threw Mikael against the wall of the hut and warned him that if he ever beat any of their children like that again she would send him to hell.
Kasia stirred lightly beside him. Her bright blue eyes opened up slowly to adjust to the morning light. She turned on her back to face him and sighed
''Meeting with mummy dearest today, I just hope I have enough strength'' Kasia smiled never moving her eyes from Kol's
''Same here, it's going to take all my strength not to kill her for using Mikael as a threat as she knew we'd back down immediately, isn't it amazing how seven people can be so petrified of just the one man'' Kol chuckled turning himself onto his side while supporting himself on his elbow with his head rested on his hand
''I think you'd be a fool not to be scared of Mikael, we all know that Kol and yet Elijah never seemed that scared of him as he grew older'' Kasia remembered how Elijah always stood up to Mikael
''Yeah that's because when Elijah got to a certain age Mikael knew he'd lose if he tried to fight Elijah, you remember that day Elijah over powered him during a swordfight'' Kasia nodded chuckling ''that was one of the funniest moment of my human life. I got back handed for laughing of course but it felt good to know someone could protect us from father'' Kol smiled
'Mikael looked so embarrassed, plus he could barely stand after it, Finn had to help him up and he was limping for about three days, Elijah got one heck of a back-hander after that thought. I remember father's ring caught his cheek and tore it open '' Kasia laughed through the silent house
''Elijah looked so smug after it, i think it was because he knew he was then stronger than him. I thought Mikael was going to attack him or set one of the werewolves on him or something'' Kol laughed
''Elijah always was arrogant after that'' Kasia said raising her voice to make sure Elijah could hear her
''Speak for yourself'' she heard Elijah's voice call from the bedroom opposite the one she was in. Kasia began laughing
''I guess we all owe Elijah, I think we were all saved by him once when Mikael lost his temper'' Kol smiled as Kasia's laughing died down
''Was that supposed to be your version of a thank you Kol? Someone call a doctor Kol's thinking about someone other than himself for once'' Niklaus' voice drifted from a bedroom two doors away.
''Of course not Nik but Elijah knows I'm grateful, the day I spilled that glass of wine on Mikael I thought you lot would be digging me an early grave, but Elijah managed to calm him down before he even had a chance to hit me'' Kol raised his voice even though he knew that even if he whispered his siblings could still hear him
''I remember the day Elijah managed to knock Mikael to the ground when he tried to go after Henrik after Henrik accidentally broke a sword'' Rebekah laughed
''I knew what father would do to him if he caught him, Henrik was only nine at the time, I didn't want him to go through that'' Elijah sighed.
''All hail Elijah, our great protector of the might beast Mikael'' Aribella laughed as she climbed up the stairs
Aribella walked into Elijah's room. He was standing in nothing but a pair of baggy jogging bottoms which she suspected were either Klaus' or Kol's as Elijah owned nothing that casual.
''Your up early, it's only half past six,'' Aribella smiled moving over to sit cross legged on Elijah's bed
''What! Half six, I'm going back to sleep!'' she heard Rebekah shout from down the hallway. Elijah chuckled as he grabbed a white shirt off the rack and began to put it on
''Hold on, don't change your trousers till I come back,'' she said before dashing off into Niklaus' room. He was sitting up in bed sketching with only a pair of boxers on
''Aribella what the heck, ever heard of knocking before entering, you should try it love!'' Niklaus shouted. She moved swiftly over to his wardrobe
''What are you doing?'' he asked as confusion covered his face when she began searching through his pile of jeans ''Do I even want to know what your doing?''
''I'm trying to find a pair that would fit Elijah, I'm sick of seeing him wearing suits all the time and Kol's too tall so you're the next best option,'' she smirked over her shoulder at him before digging out a light blue pair ''perfect'' she dashed back into Elijah's room before Niklaus could argue.
After half an hour. Her, Rebekah and Kasia had managed to convince Elijah into wearing the jeans she picked out for him. She got dressed into a blue knee-length strapless dress
''We all going somewhere?'' Kol asked walking into the sitting room
''Yeah we're gonna go for a bite to eat and a few drinks at the mystic grill and then you guys are gonna show me and Aribella around'' Kasia smiled
''And by a bite to eat, she means food not people. You coming?'' Aribella asked Kol
''Yeah why not, might as well take my mind off thinking of ways to kill our mother'' Kol chuckled grabbing his jacket and throwing Rebekah hers. Elijah chuckled softly as Kol made his way over to Klaus' car.