Author's Note:

Sorry for the wait, but I had to think about how I was going to handle this chapter. I changed my mind a bit on how the story would go down the road, and part of it might be due to some of your reviews.

I can't promise that will always be the case, but if you have requests or ideas, don't hold back. It might spark something. Hopefully the rest of the chapters won't be too long in coming.

Remember Me

Chapter 11: Safe

1347, England

Elijah had heard them tonight. He had heard Elinor's cries of pleasure, and every one was like a knife to his heart. The castle was large, but with his vampiric hearing, nothing that loud could be hidden. She had made her choice, and as much as it hurt, he had to accept it.

That is, until he heard the bloodcurdling scream that was unlike the rest. That was not one of pleasure. That was terror and pain. Without hesitation, he sped toward Klaus' room and kicked the door open to see his brother draining Elinor's lifeless body. Growling in fury, he used his brother's distraction to throw him off of her and into the wall. The force caused the stone to crack, but Klaus only roared and attacked Elijah as if there was no man left in him at all. Elijah was prepared, though, and he grabbed his brother by the throat to slam him into a wooden wardrobe.

The sounds had attracted their siblings, and all three were now standing at the door as they watched their brothers fight. Elijah turned and found the worried face of Finn. "Finn! All of you! I need to get Elinor to safety. Get him to calm down before he kills her." They could tell that he wouldn't take no for an answer, so they nodded, and Elijah picked up the redhead's limp body to speed away to his own room.

He could hear furniture being broken and much shouting, but he knew his siblings would succeed. Rebekah would be able to if nothing else, as Klaus was extremely close to her. Focusing on Elinor now, Elijah forced himself to ignore the fact that his brother's seed still stained her inner thigh, and instead keep his eyes on the wound on her neck. She was alive, but barely. If he hadn't shown up when he did, she wouldn't be.

Not wanting to contemplate something so awful, he bit into his wrist and held it to her mouth. "Elinor. Elinor, darling. I need you to wake up and drink for me." He was worried for a moment that she was too far gone, but finally her eyes fluttered softly and she opened her mouth just enough to take in a little. At first, she tried to cough up at the taste, but Elijah held firm. "I am sorry. I know that it is unpleasant at first, but you need this to live. Please..." When she seemed too weak to resist, she took in a bit more and accustomed herself to the taste. He groaned at the feel of her little mouth on his wrist, but controlled himself. This was pure necessity...nothing more.

When she'd taken enough, he pulled back and watched as both his wound and her bite healed. She would still take a while to recover, but at least her heart was stronger, and color had returned to her cheeks. It was mere seconds before she drifted off to sleep.

He covered her with his blanket, but not before taking a cloth and washing away the evidence of her night with Klaus. There was only so much a man could take after all. That also left the question of what to do with his brother. Clearly he couldn't be trusted around Elinor, and Elijah would not have her hurt just because she was unlucky enough to get wrapped up in this family. He had to protect her, and yet he knew she was stubborn and too compassionate for her own good. She would forgive Klaus if she believed he was truly sorry, and no doubt Klaus would act the proper penitent once he calmed down.

There was also the matter of Elijah's feelings for her and hers for him. He knew that she loved him as well. There was no way a woman could look at someone the way she did if they didn't.

There was one way he could protect her from Klaus and still have a life with her. Could he do that though? That would require such dishonesty and betrayal. He had always prided himself on being the noble one, but this...this was a violation of trust. If it kept her safe, though, wouldn't it be worth it? He noticed that the shouting had stopped, and that meant that Klaus had been subdued. Elijah had to make a decision, and quickly.

Hoping that Rebecca was still attending Klaus, he ran in to grab a nightgown of hers and returned to quickly put it on Elinor. Once she was decent, he took a deep breath and lifted her into his arms. Stopping to give a message to a servant, he spoke softly, "Tell Lord Finn privately to try and keep Lord Klaus from leaving the castle for as long as possible tonight. I do not care what he has to do to accomplish that, but I do not wish to be followed." When the servant nodded, Elijah was satisfied. Their staff were all too frightened to disobey any of their orders.

Without a second thought, he left the castle quietly and made his way to Elinor's farm.

It didn't take long for him to arrive at the homestead, and she had stirred once he deposited her on the bed. He quickly began gathering items he thought she might need into a sack as she looked at him strangely. "What are you doing?"

"I am taking you somewhere safe, Elinor. Tell me what you need from the house, as you will not see it again."

That got her attention, and her eyes narrowed at him. "Pardon? I appreciate everything you have done for me, but I am not leaving my home. I have responsibilities here. My animals and fields. I am sure Klaus did not mean to lose control the way he did, but I will tell him that we will have boundaries until he can learn to control his instincts."

Elijah's jaw ticked and he dropped the sack to go over to her. "I know my brother, and although I love him and my family with all my heart, we are all monsters. Klaus is perhaps the most beastly of us. Beyond just running from our father, which is a story for another time..."

"He told me."

"Alright. Well, besides running from Mikael, we often have to move because word gets around of the monstrous Klaus Mikaelson. His name is cursed throughout many lands, as is Kol's, and for good reason. They have little remorse for the killing and destruction they leave in their wake. I cannot claim that I am innocent, but I do try to rise above my baser instincts. I am more surprised by the months of calm that Klaus showed you than I am by his display tonight. What he did this evening was his true nature, and I will not let you fall prey to that. I would not be able to live with myself, or him, if I did. We have both craved your blood, and now that he has tasted it, I have my doubts that he will be able to control himself in the future. Oh he will grovel and insist that he can, but what will happen if I am not nearby the next time? When Rebekah told me you asked for him tonight, I was going to do the noble thing and step back. You had made your decision. However, now I cannot. I apologize, Elinor, but I love you. I will not let my brother destroy you."

She was staring at him as he spoke, and realized that he was very close to her now. She couldn't deny that the feelings she had for Elijah were still there, but she was not one to sleep with one man and lead another on. She had made her choice, and she had to stick with it...even if his words did bring some doubt into her mind. "Elijah. I fell in love with both of you, but I am not a whore. I will not sleep with one man and go with another. I have made my choice and I must stay with it. Besides, how can you even look at me now, knowing what I have done? I should have talked to you first and told you of my decision. It was just when my father..." She seemed to trail off.

Elijah had been so focused on getting her to safety that he hadn't realized her father hadn't been in his usual spot by the fire. "Where is your father? Rebekah said that you mentioned something about him when you called for Niklaus."

Ellie took a deep breath and forced the words out, purposefully not looking at the fire. "He is dead."

Elijah moved up to sit on the bed beside her and hugged her to his side. "I am so sorry, my love. I do not hate you for what happened tonight. I am jealous, of course, but tragedy and grief can do unusual things to our minds. You needed comfort, and you sought it out. I am only sad that I was not the one you sought it from."

She gave a sad smile and leaned against him. "If I could have sought it from both of you, I would have. However, Klaus had always seemed like he knew a sort of sadness that I needed in a kindred spirit tonight. I am sorry. Then one thing led to another."

Elijah nodded and forced himself to remain calm, pressing his lips to her temple. "I understand. He has not had an easy life. None of us have, but he has known pain especially. That is likely part of the reason he is the way he is." He should do the honorable thing and respect her decision. Free will was one of the only things that someone like her had, and with her fiery temperament, compulsion would feel like the ultimate betrayal. However, all he could remember was the sight of her nearly dead body and Niklaus still fighting to drain her completely.

No. Her forgiving nature would be the death of her...literally. He couldn't allow that to happen. Perhaps eventually he would lift the compulsion and she would forgive him, but for now, he needed to protect her. "Please forgive for what I am about to do, but I must protect you, Elinor. Even if it means being selfish."

He knelt before her now and took her face in his hands, holding her cheeks firmly as he looked into her eyes. "What do you mean? What are you going to do, Elijah?"

The innocent look in her eyes almost broke him, but he had to do this. It was the only way. "Elinor, you will forget all about Klaus Mikaelson..."

"No! Stop!" She was trying to fight it, but Elijah pressed on.

"You will forget you ever met him, you will forget he ever existed. You will forget his siblings Rebekah, Kol and Finn. You will forget that you loved him and that you made love to him. The only Mikaelson you remember is me, Elijah. Your feelings for me will remain untouched and real. Tonight you allowed me to comfort you after your father's passing, and we are leaving to take you somewhere where his memory will not haunt you. None of this will change who you are, or what you feel toward me."

Her pupils dilated then returned to normal and he knew he had her. Releasing her face, he asked, "Who is Klaus Mikaelson?"

Looking up in confusion, she frowned. "Who?" He nodded in satisfaction.

"Who am I?"

She smiled softly. "Elijah Mikaelson. The man I love." It seemed that with Klaus out of the picture, she was much more willing to profess her feelings. The guilt inside him was strong, but he would deal with it for her. He had to.

Now that she accepted the move, she helped him pack the basic essentials and believed him when he said he'd move a villager in here to take care of the animals until they could be sold. She insisted on bringing Fenris and Alfie, though, so they loaded up the cart and hooked Alfie up to it after she said goodbye to her animals and took a last teary look at her home. "Ready."

Having already sent a message to sell the animals, he snapped the reins and was glad when they started off into the night without the sound of a hybrid following.

break*

Elinor fell asleep quickly into the journey, and Elijah was on the defensive for any danger as he listened intently to the world around him. He knew that Niklaus would not be happy if he discovered Elinor missing, so their best bet was to get as far away from the castle as possible tonight.

When the sun started to peak over the east horizon, Elijah was quite famished and decided that they had traveled far enough. He had been careful to go off the main road, and now he had reached a little cottage in the forest that seemed to have only one occupant. An old woman. Not his ideal meal, but she'd have to do.

Laying Elinor down to continue sleeping for the moment, he slipped into the cottage and compelled the woman to not make a sound as he fed. He drank as much as he dared while still leaving her alive, and then told her to go and take her old mare that he'd seen outside to the nearest town to find new living arrangements. The last compulsion was of course to not tell anyone of he or the woman he brought with him.

Finally he cleaned up the blood around his mouth and scooped Elinor into his arms. Luckily the woman kept a rather nice and tidy little home, so he laid her on the bed and put the wagon and Alfie away. He'd still have to figure out what to do about Niklaus. If he knew that Elinor was alive, he'd never stop searching for her. He had to make him believe she was dead, and make it convincing. For now, though, he needed to stay with her and make sure that she was well before he returned to the castle.

The bed was large enough for two, so he slid in beside her and drew her to his side. Sighing as the magnitude of what he had done settled over him, he closed his eyes. "This is the only way to protect you, my love...the only way."

Maybe if he said it enough, he'd actually believe it.

Back in the village, a vampire drank from the neck of a whore and then dropped her lifeless body to the ground. He was getting tired of waiting. When the redhead had come onto the scene, he had thought he had the perfect vessel for his revenge on the Mikaelsons, but those damn brothers were taking too long. He was not known as a patient man, even if he was 300 years old.

When he heard scared footsteps enter the pathetic shack he'd lived in for months, he growled. "Yes, yes. Come in and speak. Get on with it."

The timid servant girl from the Mikaelson castle that he had compelled stepped into the room and removed her hood. He had chosen her because she was a plain little thing that could go around unnoticed and spy for him. "Milord. You told me to tell you when the red haired woman lay with either Lord Klaus or Lord Elijah. She did so tonight."

A wicked grin split his handsome face and he felt much more at ease. "Ah. Excellent. Pray tell who was the lucky brother?"

"Master Klaus, milord."

His smile grew larger. This was fitting into his plans perfectly. "Oh that is just too delicious. It almost makes the wait worth it." He then called to another room, "Beatrice! Come! We have work to do!" An older woman with dark hair and coal black eyes entered wearing a gown of purple so dark it was nearly black. She had necklaces of trinkets and totems that jingled when she walked, and she stood ramrod straight as she waited.

The servant girl spoke quickly, "There is something else, though, milord. Lord Klaus almost killed her toward the end of their...their...well, their encounter, and Lord Elijah made it just in time to save her. While the other siblings calmed Lord Klaus down, Lord Elijah escaped with the woman and never returned."

The vampire frowned, but nodded. "You have done well, Hetty. Go and send that useless drunkard from town in to me. Come again if anything further happens in the castle." She curtsied and left.

He stewed for a while before a man stumbled in with a lopsided grin on his face. "Ello, milord. Stanley at your service."

The vampire's lip curled up in disgust, but he sighed. "Go and check Elinor Farmer's homestead and see if she is there."

He hiccuped before speaking again. "Oh I can already tell you she ain't. That Lord Elijah came in and said that her animals were to be sold, and 'til then, he would be payin' someone to take care of 'er farm. They was leavin' town real quick like."

Drunk as he was, he was a useful source of information. The vampire sighed and cursed. Thank you, now leave my sight. Stanley smiled and nodded before stumbling through the door. Turning to his witch, he spoke. "Can you find her?"

"We will find her, Lord Lucien. Do not fret."

Author's Note:

So it seems Lucien may have some secrets. Muahaha! ;)