Chapter 12
1919
Charlotte had remained in England until now, and she was a close confidant of George V, frequently helping him go about his kingly duties, though she could feel him becoming quite armoured with her. His lasting glances, and large amounts of touching her 'accidentally' were enough to give Charlotte the clue to his true feelings. One morning, Charlotte was stoking the coals of the fireplace in the King's room, and she walked to where she had previously set a porcelain jug and bowl, the jug having been filled with hot water. Taking a look at the two people in bed, just to check that they were asleep, she decided not to wake them, and left the room, going into the kitchen to make a start on their breakfast. She ignored the back door opening and a man walking inside, wearing normal male servant attire, and leather gloves and boots. His hair was long and shaggy, whilst his eyes were a crisp chocolate brown. His face was very handsome, and he was also very tall.
"Good morning Charlotte." He told her when he walked inside, he had a thick, posh British accent, whilst Charlotte had more of a rustic British accent.
"Good morning Jackson." She smiled back as she plated up the breakfast for the king and his lover.
"How are you?" The man, now known as Jackson asked.
"I'm okay, how are you?" She asked, looking at him.
"I am well…Listen, I have something to ask of you later." He told her.
She nodded. "Alright, I'll speak to you later." She left the kitchen, carrying the food. Jackson's eyes followed her as she left and he followed her the whole day.
When it eventually came to the 'later' that Jackson had spoken of, Charlotte was sitting on the bank of a river, a shawl around her shoulders, and she watched Jackson who paced in front of her.
"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" She asked him, still watching him pace.
"Well…Um…I wanted to ask you something…And I know that I should do this the proper way…But since you don't have anyone for me to ask, I decided to ask you straight out…"
Charlotte looked at him, now she had an idea of what he was going to ask, and she also had an idea of what her answer was going to be.
"Charlotte Salvatore-Mikaelson, I am asking you if you would consider courting me." Jackson asked her, kneeling down in front of her.
"Jackson…" Charlotte started, but she didn't get a chance to finish her sentence, before Jackson's lips were suddenly upon hers. At feeling his lips, Charlotte pushed him off and slapped him, before she stood up, picking up her shawl and she walked away.
"Charlotte, wait!" Jackson tried to run after her.
"Leave me alone Jackson." She told him, and she broke into a run, moving at vampire speed to get back to the palace where she slept in the servant's quarters.
Yet, upon getting to the palace, she found the King stood outside, as if he was waiting for her to return.
"Ah Charlotte, there you are."
"What can I do for you, my King?" She asked, curtsying.
"Oh no, you first, you look like you want to tell me something." The King told her.
"Very well. Your majesty, I wish to resign from your services."
Her news sunned the King into silence, before he sighed and thought back to how long Charlotte had actually been serving the royal family, here in Buckingham palace and he nodded. "If that is your wish my dear, then so be it, but I do wish for you to do two things beforehand."
"If I can your highness." She told him.
"Well firstly, I wish for you to come back to visit us here, if it is possible for you to do so, and secondly, I wish to know your reasons for leaving."
"I will visit as often as I can your highness. However, my reasons for leaving, is because I feel that it is tie that I continued my journey to find my family, and because I will end up tearing the head off of your stable boy if he attempts to kiss me without permission once more."
"Kiss you without permission, well I will certainly see him flogged for his insolence." He rested a hand on Charlotte's right shoulder. "Gods speed my child, and I wish you all the best in the future, and I look forward to seeing you again."
Charlotte bowed her head. "I will send you letters my king, if and when I can." Charlotte smiled. "I will be gone by morning." She curtseyed once more and walked into the servant's quarters, packing a bag.
Meanwhile, Elijah was in New Orleans with Rebekah and Klaus, Kol had been locked inside a coffin, along with their brother Finn for quite a while now. But Elijah didn't mind, though he knew that Kol would be pretty angry when he got out…Whenever that would be. Right now, he was enjoying some time with the leader of the French Quarter in New Orleans, and he was walking around his family's home.
"Elijah, can you come and help me." Came Rebekah's voice from down the corridor.
"Of course Rebekah, what is it?" He asked, walking towards his sister, and found her stood in front of a mirror, trying to tie a corset.
"Can you tie this for me?" She asked him.
"Of course." Elijah stood behind her and pulled the strings of her corset tight. "What is the occasion little sister?"
"I have been asked out to dinner Elijah." She told him happily, before she got her outer skirts on and she looked at him. "How do I look?"
"You look beautiful Rebekah." Elijah told her, and before he knew it, Rebekah had left. This just made Elijah shrug, he was happy that his sister had found someone to love that wasn't a family member, but he was also sad about himself. He had yet to get over Charlotte, despite it being decades, and he frequently found himself reading a letter that he once received from her and holding back his tears. But, tonight he refused to think about her, at least not to the point where he was going to break with his grief, instead he and Niklaus were going to a party and Klaus was determined to get his brother to have some fun.
Modern Day
When he heard Charlotte struggling to breathe, he suddenly ragged his brother away from her and threw him into the far wall, before he picked Charlotte up and put her on her feet, holding her close. At seeing how Elijah held Charlotte, Esther wasn't very amused, yet she didn't comment.
"Mother, what are you doing here?" Elijah asked her.
"I came to make my family whole Elijah." She told him. "And get rid of species that shouldn't exist." She looked pointedly at Charlotte when she said it.
"Over our dead bodies." Kol told her, moving to stand close to Charlotte and Elijah.
"Kol, rethink that sentence." Charlotte told him.
Kol shrugged, he wasn't going to admit he messed up, so his shrug was his answer, and he watched as Rebekah and Klaus stood with him, Elijah and Charlotte.
"She is an abomination, she doesn't belong here. Why are you defending her?" Finn asked his siblings.
"Because she is Elijah's love, you idiot, can't you see how he holds her and how she clings to him?" Rebekah asked, as if it was the most obvious thing. "Honestly Finn, has being kept in a box made you blind as well as dense?"
"Rebekah, do not speak to your brother like that." Esther scolded.
"Mother, both you and Finn can leave Charlotte be whilst she lives under this roof, or you both get out." Niklaus told her, before he looked at Charlotte and Elijah. "So, did anything interesting happen whilst you two were out?"
"We met up with your crush." Charlotte told them and she left the group, walking into the kitchen.
Charlotte picked up an apple from the fruit bowl as she pulled herself up onto the counter, and she heard the door open and Rebekah walked in.
"Are you alright?" Rebekah enquired to the little girl on the counter.
"I'm fine Rebekah, Esther has never liked me that much, and neither has Finn, so I'm not that fussed." Charlotte told her with a shrug, before taking a bite of the apple.
"They will have to start treating you justly then, won't they?" Rebekah smiled.
"Rebekah, Charlotte, mother wants to speak to us all." Kol told her as he walked in, and he watched Charlotte throw the apple into the bin, and jump down from the counter, before she followed Kol and Rebekah. When she all got into the drawing room, Charlotte moved to sit with Elijah on the sofa, and Rebekah came and sat next to her. Esther watched them, and she grimaced slightly as Elijah and Charlotte shared a kiss, before she decided to start.
"Well, since we are now all together, I wish to hold a ball to celebrate that." Esther told them. "That means that everyone in the town will be invited, and that you girls must be in formal dresses, whilst you sons will be in tailored suits." She told them. "Now, all of you start getting ready, I wish to speak to Charlotte alone."
At this, Rebekah, Kol, Elijah and Klaus all tensed up, and Elijah's grip on Charlotte's hand tightened to the point that it might have caused an injury if Charlotte has been human.
"I'll be okay guys." Charlotte told them. "It's just me and her, talking, it's not a bad thing."
"I'll be right outside." Elijah told her, knowing not to argue as it would have had to happen eventually.
"Okay Elijah." Charlotte gave him a smile as he left with his siblings and Charlotte found herself alone with Esther, who was now burning sage since she knew that Elijah was going to be listening.
When they were alone, Esther looked at the young hybrid who was still lounging on the sofa, now that she had pulled her legs up beside her.
"My son seems infatuated with you, Charlotte." She told her.
"He is, and I am with him." Charlotte told her. "Elijah is one hell of a man."
"That he is, his brothers are regularly jealous of him." Esther mused.
"What are you getting at Esther?" Charlotte asked, moving to stand.
"Just that Elijah can get any girl that he wants and yet he chose you…He certainly doesn't love you like you think, you're his plaything." She told her. "He will get bored of you eventually, and when he does, you can't tell me that I didn't warn you." She told her.
"I don't believe you." Charlotte told her. "Elijah loves me and I love him, all we ever need is each other. End of story." She then left the room and walked straight into Elijah's arms.
"What's the matter?" Elijah asked, holding her close.
"It's nothing." Charlotte sighed.
"Come on then, let's head up to bed, it's late and tomorrow Rebekah will be taking you shopping for a gown." Elijah told her, and he held back a laugh at her groan.
"Shopping is so boring, I don't see how Rebekah finds so much enjoyment from it." She told him.
This time Elijah did laugh, though this got him a playful slap from his lover, before she took his hand and they walked upstairs together, straight into her room. Yet Elijah done what he normally did when he was in her room, and he took off his blazer, tie and shoes, unbuttoned and untucked his shirt, whilst Charlotte changed into a pair of pyjamas, and she slid into bed with him.
"Charlotte, you give me the same look every time that we lie here together, before you go to sleep, what are you thinking?" Elijah asked as he gently moved some hair from her face.
"It's nothing." She told him, suddenly gaining a deep blush to her cheeks.
"Obviously it is." He got her to look at him. "Come on, tell me." He told her.
"Well, it's nothing, I just wondered if you would take your shirt off…" When she said it, she hid her face into her pillow, though she peaked at him when she heard the bed creak as Elijah sat up. "Elijah, what are you-"
She cut off as she noticed Elijah unbuttoning his shirt, and he looked at her just as she was about to speak again.
"You wanted to see, so I'm letting you see." He told her simply as he got up and took his shirt off, revealing a well-muscled body underneath, and he put his shirt on top of his blazer, before he looked back at Charlotte who was gawping. At seeing the look on her face, Elijah gently ran his fingers down one side of her face.
"What?" He asked, a smile playing on his lips.
"You're…You're…Very…Um…" She gave up trying to speak as Elijah kissed her, and she kissed him back, a hand moving into his hair to pull him closer.
Elijah deepened their kiss as he was pulled closer, and he soon found himself hovering over her, his knees either side of her petite waist, leaning down over her as their lips fused together, their kiss deepening and changing in passion as one of his own hands wound itself into her dark brown curls. When they eventually pulled their lips away from each other's, Charlotte looked up at him, her eyes half lidded, her breathing heavy, just as Elijah's was.
"I love you." Elijah whispered to her, moving to run his hand that was in her hair, down one side of her face, and then down her body. "Maybe one day we can fully become one, but until then, I'd settle for this happening again." He told her.
Charlotte watched his hand, he was so gentle, so loving that it set her pulse racing at thinking of what it would be like for them to take this further. She had put what had happened to her behind her years ago, but something still held her back. Maybe it was her lack of experience, since she knew that Elijah had lay with many other women, whilst she had never lay with a man. Or maybe it could have been that despite her love for him, she wasn't ready to have that kind of relationship. She didn't know, but she did know that Elijah loved her and he wouldn't do anything to jeopardise what they had together. She snuggled into Elijah's arms when he moved to lie beside her and she nuzzled his neck.
"You are so handsome Elijah." She told him, gently brushing her fingers to his naked and well-muscled chest.
"And you're so beautiful, Charlotte." Elijah replied, kissing the top of her head as he arms rested securely around her.
The next morning, Charlotte woke up and found herself still in the arms of a sleeping Elijah, at seeing how in peace he looked, she smiled to herself. Before she checked the time of her alarm clock, and she moved to press kisses to his face and neck as well as his arms that remained entwined around her. At feeling her kisses, Elijah groaned, though he fought to stay asleep.
"What?" He asked her sleepily, nuzzling his face into the crook of her neck.
"We need to get up." She told him, nuzzling him.
"No we don't." Elijah told her.
"We do, or your siblings will come in, or worse, your mother." Charlotte told him, and this caused Elijah to let out a quiet growl of frustration before he moved to sit up.
"Did you sleep well?" Elijah asked when he was fully awake.
"It was amazing." She smiled. "Seeing my lover's half naked body every time that I wake up." She told him. "How was yours?"
Elijah smiled, his eyes drifting down her body, before moving back up to her face. "And mine was just as amazing, in fact just having you in my arms feels amazing."
Charlotte blushed, as she slid out of bed and walked to her wardrobe, looking for something to wear that day, and she closed her eyes and lent back when she felt Elijah slide his arms around her waist and rest his head on her shoulder.
"You know, Rebekah will come looking for us soon, and I can't concentrate on getting ready with your arms around me like this." Charlotte told him, though she sounded like she was daydreaming.
"Maybe I don't want you to go out and get dressed." Elijah told her.
"Well I do, so let her go Elijah."
Charlotte and Elijah turned around and saw Rebekah standing at the door, and then they both looked at each other.
"How long have you been stood there?" Charlotte asked her, moving out of Elijah's grip.
"Not long, a few minutes." She told them. "Now come on you two, chop, chop." She then left them to it, and Elijah kissed her once more before going to his room to get changed, as Charlotte got dressed. When they were dressed, the all skipped their morning hunt and climbed into Rebekah's car, even Niklaus went with them, and Rebekah drove them to the shopping mall in the next town. Once there, and Rebekah had chosen a particular parking spot, the girls split from the guys, and they all went in search of outfits. Rebekah and Charlotte ended up in a rather expensive looking shop, which sold the dresses that they needed, whilst the men ended up in a tailors.
"So, what happened last night?" Rebekah asked as she and Charlotte looked through the rows of dresses that were on sale.
"What do you mean?" Charlotte asked, keeping her eyes on the dresses that she was flicking through.
"I walked into your room this morning, to find my brother half naked, so come on spill, what happened?" Rebekah walked over to her and stood beside her.
"Nothing really, I've always wanted to see what he looked like without a shirt, and I told him that. The next thing I knew, he was taking his shirt off and then we kissed…But this kiss felt different…"
"How did it feel different?" Rebekah asked.
"I don't know…It was more passionate I suppose that is how you could describe it…"
"Then what?" Rebekah pushed.
"Then I was lying on the bed, with him over me, and we were pretty close…I mean if he wanted to take me then he could have…But he didn't."
"Of course he didn't, he values you too much." Rebekah told her, smiling softly.
"Now come on, let's get this over and done with before the guys come back." Charlotte told her, and she pulled out a strapless deep blue dress, with diamantes' covering the bodice. When she looked at Rebekah, she had a few dresses folded over her arm ad they both walked into the changing rooms. When she had put the dress on, she walked out from her changing room and found Rebekah waiting for her. "What do you think?"
The dress itself fell down to the floor, and hugged her waist as well as accentuated her breasts. The mere sight of it made Rebekah smile.
"You look beautiful Charlotte, my brother or any men for that matter, won't be able to keep their hands off you."
Charlotte blushed. "I don't look that beautiful Rebekah." She told her, before she went to get changed into her casual clothes. Once the girls had bought their dresses, they went straight into shoe shopping, and Charlotte found herself wondering what Elijah was thinking about.
Meanwhile, whilst Charlotte was being dragged from one shoe shop to another by Rebekah, Elijah and his brother had spent their time in the tailors, laughing and watching Kol make a fool out of himself. But everyone else had already been measured up for their suits, and it was just him that they were waiting on.
"Come on Kol, behave so we can go and find Charlotte and Rebekah." Klaus told him.
"And so you can get to see Caroline, right?" Elijah asked him from where he was sat on a comfortable looking chair.
"That too." Klaus told him with a laugh, as he sat down on the chair next to his older brother.
"Anyway, enough on Niklaus, how are things with you and Charlotte?" Kol asked as the tailor took his measurements.
"Things are fine Kol." Elijah told him. "Why do you keep asking?"
"No reason, we just can't hear anything, and we all know that you sleep in her bed." Kol shrugged.
"Kol, before you ask the question that I know you really want to ask, no Charlotte and I haven't made love to each other, and nor do we intend to anytime soon and no I will not tell you if we have or haven't or any details about it." Elijah told him in a stern, older brother, manner, which had Niklaus laughing.
"No fair Elijah, I tell you two anything about my love life." Kol told him, in an almost child-like whining tone.
"Yes, but we hear everything so really you're not telling us." Klaus told him between bouts of laughter.
"Shut up Niklaus." Both of them told him, before they all left the shop once everything had been dealt with, and found Charlotte and Rebekah sitting at a table with coffees beside them, one for each of them. As they all sat together, Elijah slid his arm around Charlotte and pulled her into him, much to the look of approval from Rebekah, and the group speculated ideas behind the real reason that Esther had returned. They all had to admit, they had a pretty long list of ideas lined up.
