Chapter 21: Consequences
*****The Next Days******
Willow checked her phone as soon as she woke up. Frowning, she saw that she still had no messages, no call from Rebekah. Was she that upset? She went downstairs to get some breakfast. Buffy wasn't there; she'd stayed at Rick's. Dawn was eating some cereal.
"Good morning," Dawn said. "Can you believe yesterday wasn't a dream? It still feels like it was."
"Yeah, I know," Willow said with a sad sigh. She grabbed a cup to pour herself some coffee. "It was so great to see Tara. I can't believe I had to let her go."
"I can't believe we got to see her. We got to say goodbye this time," Dawn pointed out.
Willow nodded. She knew that was the most important thing. "Rebekah hasn't called me. I think she's really upset with me," Willow said, looking guilty. She knew if their places had been reversed she'd be upset, too.
"I'm sure she's just dealing. Tara's gone, though. You should go over there and talk to her," Dawn advised.
"I will," she said. "How's Matt? Have you talked to him?"
"He called me last night. He was pretty upset. One minute she was there. Then she wasn't," Dawn said. "He didn't get to say goodbye."
Willow winced. "We should've called him," she said.
"I should've called him. I dropped the ball," Dawn said with a grimace. "I have to work at ten. I'm hoping he's still speaking to me."
"He will be. There was so much going on," Willow said. "I'm going to go check on Rebekah. Wish me luck."
"Good luck," Dawn said as Willow took another drink of her coffee before grabbing her keys.
******Mikaelson's*****
When Willow rang Rebekah's doorbell, she was surprised to see Elijah at the door.
"When did you get here?" Willow asked.
"Not long. It seemed best that I come and lend a hand. Niklaus seemed more than a little annoyed with all the dead coming back," Elijah said, stepping back and letting her in.
"Yes, it was a bit discombobulating," Willow said. "But the veil is closed now, though. You kind of wasted your trip."
"On the contrary. Someone on the Other Side is out to destroy my family. I doubt that will be their last attempt," Elijah said.
"You're probably right," Willow said. "Is Rebekah here? She's not answering my calls. I wanted to see if she was okay."
Elijah frowned. "I thought she was with you. She's not home," Elijah said. "Kol! Niklaus! Please come down!" He called over his shoulder.
Niklaus came from downstairs and Kol upstairs. Niklaus glared to see Willow in his home. "What is she doing here?" he asked.
"She has come looking for our sister, who I assumed was with her," Elijah said.
"Is she in her room?" Willow asked Kol.
Kol disappeared a moment and came back shaking his head. "No. The bed hasn't been slept in."
"I'm sure she's fine," Klaus said with a shrug. "Our sister is a bit high strung. She did have to watch you fawn all over your dead lover. Give her a few days. I'm sure she'll reappear."
"Wouldn't she at least send a text message?" Willow asked.
"Our sister has not grown up in your technological era, so it might not be her first thought," Elijah said, feeling a disquiet at his sister's absence. She was prone to dramatics, however, so he wasn't sure there was a real problem with her absence.
"Knowing Bex it might be weeks before we see her," Kol said with a smirk.
"Leave it to Rebekah to disappear when someone is trying to end our existence," Klaus said in annoyance.
Oz appeared at the top of the stairs. He smiled to see Willow. "Hey, Will. I thought I smelled you," he said, coming down the stairs.
Kol snickered. "Not a way to win a gal's heart. Telling her she stinks!"
"That's not what I meant," he said in annoyance. He glared at Kol.
Klaus frowned. He'd never seen his hybrid get so easily annoyed. In fact, Klaus didn't think he'd ever seen Oz glare at Kol. Normally, that was Klaus's job. He watched in silence as his hybrid came down to stand in front of his witch. He put his hand on her cheek.
"Are you okay?" he asked, compassionately.
"I think Rebekah is upset with me because of Tara. I wasn't prepared to see her again, so I kind of ignored Rebekah," Willow admitted.
Klaus observed their interaction with interests. He didn't understand them. Klaus noticed that Oz looked at none other quite the way he did the witch. She was still the most important thing to his hybrid. It was obvious to anyone that the witch both loved and trusted his hybrid, yet she preferred his sister. Rebekah was beautiful, of course. She was loyal, but Oz was so steady. He would never falter. The witch would soon find out how much work his beloved sister really was. Her disappearance now wasn't much of a surprise to Klaus. Rebekah was probably hurt that the witch's great love reappeared even if only for a night. He watched Oz embrace the witch. However, Klaus frowned when he noticed Oz's eyes glow wolf yellow.
"Oz? Are you all right?" he asked.
Oz closed his eyes and pulled away from Willow. He felt edgy and out of sorts. "I'm not sure," he admitted. "I don't feel like myself."
Willow looked at him in concern. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. At least I don't think anything is," Oz said with a frown. "I just feel odd."
"Your eyes were yellow when you were hugging her," Klaus said.
"Do you feel all wolfy?" Willow asked.
"Maybe for a moment. I feel fine now, though," Oz said.
"I'm sure it's nothing. Just a momentary reminder that you love another," Klaus said to Willow. "It's bound it irritate."
"Is Rupert at your house?" Elijah asked, changing the subject. "I must speak with him."
"Yes. He should be up now. We had a late night, but he isn't one to sleep all day. Not even on Sunday," Willow said.
"Yes, I've noticed," Elijah said. Rupert Giles was a creature of habit. A man after his own heart. "I will go see him now." He looked at Klaus. "Keep me posted. If you hear from our sister, call me."
"Maybe you should call her," Klaus said. "You are her favorite. If she's going to answer anyone's call, it will be yours."
Elijah acknowledged his words by pulling out his phone and making a call. Her voicemail picked up. "Rebekah, this is Elijah. I'm home. Give me a call when you get this message." He hung up and looked grim. "She didn't pick up."
"Maybe her cell is dead or she hasn't turned it on for the day," Willow sad, trying not to worry.
"Maybe," Elijah said, giving her a slight nod. "I will speak with you later. If she calls back, I will tell her to call you."
Willow gave him a grateful look. "Thanks," she said. She followed him out the door.
******Gilberts'******
Buffy woke up after a restless night of sleep. Mostly sleep evaded her. She still couldn't believe it'd really happen. She'd seen Tara and Anya again, which had been wonderful. But her greatest nightmare had also come back to haunt her. Although Buffy had faced greater foes than the Master, he had been the one to actually kill her. No amount of time could dim the memory of being drowned. She felt a hand on her forehead.
"I see frown lines," Alaric said.
Buffy opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him. "I can't believe the Master came back and Klaus, my sort of enemy, killed him and saved Xander," she admitted.
"Yeah, he was finally good for something," Alaric said with a sleepy grin. "How about I take your mind off it?" He leaned over to give her a slow kiss.
When he pulled back, Buffy raised her hand to caress his cheek. "Have I told you yet that I love you?" she asked.
Alaric's eyes grew warmer. "Not in so many words, but I was hopeful since you implied it a few times," he said. He leaned down and dropped a soft kiss on her lips before pulling back. He looked so serious. "I love you, too." He sat up and reached for to pull her up with him. "I loved Isobel so much, but she ended up being someone I didn't know at all. I'll never quite understand how I was so deceived. Then with Jenna I deceived her for so long. Just when she learned who I really was and started to forgive me, she was taken away. I didn't think I'd ever love another woman again. I didn't know a woman like you existed. Every day with you is more perfect than the one before. Even fighting for our life."
Buffy laughed. "You really are perfect for me if that's what you think," she said. Alaric wasn't like Angel, or Riley or even Spike. He was so much his own unique person. So patient, so sensitive, so kind, and so very strong. But most of all, he knew who he was and was confident in himself. She wasn't having to constantly reassure him. It was a nice change. "I'm pretty lucky myself. You can't know how wonderful it is to be with someone that knows who he is. That's not conflicted or torn. Someone that isn't always looking for an exit."
"I'm not going anywhere," Alaric told her. He kissed her again, wanting to show her with his touch how much he treasured her. When they came together, it felt different somehow—significant. Buffy knew that she would never be the same. Something had changed.
An hour or so later, they finally went downstairs. Elena was eating cereal in the kitchen with Matt. She smiled at the sight of Alaric with his arm around Buffy's shoulders, her arm around his waist. Rick was finally happy; Elena could see the change in him. His eyes no longer looked sad.
"You two are so cute together," Elena observed.
Rick gave her a sheepish smile. "Coffee?" he asked Buffy.
"Please," Buffy said. Rick pulled away to pour them a cup. Buffy sat down next to Matt. He touched his arm. "Hey, are you okay?"
Matt nodded, looking sad. "Yea. It was great to see Vicky again. It sucks that she was just gone, but at least I got to see her. She seemed like her old self. It's good to know she's watching out for me, and that she's okay," he said.
"Good. I'm glad you understand that we had to close the veil," Buffy said. Rick put her coffee in front of her. He couldn't resist leaning down and kissing her before sitting in the other open chair. Buffy flashed him a smile.
Elena was struck by that smile. She remembered when she used to smile like that. Memories of Stefan pierced her. Was he okay? Did he think about her at all? It made Elena terribly sad to think she was forgotten so easily by the first man she had ever truly loved.
Buffy glanced at Elena. "How are you doing? You got to see your dead vampire birth mother," Buffy reminded her.
"It wasn't too bad. It was even kind of nice. For once, she had no agenda," Elena said. "I wish, though, we could've seen Jenna."
"The fact that you didn't probably means she passed on. She's with your parents," Buffy said.
The thought made Elena smile. "I hope so," she said. She finished her cereal, watching Buffy tease Matt, making him smile. She chased away his sorrow. Elena looked at Rick. His sorrow was finally gone. "You look happy, Rick."
Alaric looked at Elena. He thought a moment and then said, "I am." He smiled at Buffy.
Elena saw Buffy give him a loving look. She reached over and squeezed Buffy's hand. "Thank you. I'm so glad you came to Mystic Falls," Elena told her. "You were exactly what this town needed. What we needed."
"And thanks for bringing your hot sister, who is our age," Matt added with a grin.
Buffy laughed. In that moment, it all came together for her. She was home.
*****Elsewhere*****
Damon had a very bad feeling about this. He didn't like this at all. He eyed the corpse they had awakened with distrust. He grabbed Spike and pulled him away.
"This is not a good plan! A guy chained up like that shouldn't have been awoken. This is not going to end well," Damon said in annoyance.
"Relax. He doesn't look like much to me," Spike said, glancing at the man. They had checked into a nearby hotel, and he'd cleaned up. Now he looked a lot less creepy.
"He feeds on vampires!" Damon reminded him, still a little sick at the thought. Katherine had found out the hard way.
"He didn't kill her," Spike reminded Damon.
"Yes, and we couldn't have done a single thing if he had. He's older than us. He has to be if he's a threat to the Originals," Damon said.
The man could hear them. He stepped closer. "I am the original. My name is Mikael," he said.
Damon looked at him sharply. "As in Mikaelson? You're the father!" he exclaimed as realization dawned on him. When Katherine had mentioned the name, he hadn't made the connection.
"Yes. I'm the reason they exist. The reason any vampires exist," Mikael said, his eyes showed how unhappy he was over their condition.
Damon thought of that for a moment. Talk about one messed up family. "If you kill Klaus, it could kill both me and Katherine. That's not a plan I can get behind!" Damon said.
"You were sired by Katherine?" Mikael asked. Damon nodded. He looked at Katherine. "Rose sired you?" She nodded. Mikael smiled. "Relax. You are from my line, not Niklaus. She and her friend Trevor were one of the last I turned."
Damon looked skeptical. "How convenient," he said dryly.
"See, Damon. This will work. We'll get rid of the thorn in our flesh, and I can finally be free. I can get a life," Katherine said.
Spike put his arm around her. "We'll have loads of fun!" he said with a wink. She smiled, glad to finally see an end to her constant running.
Damon frown unhappily. "I'm going for a walk," he said. He left the hotel and pulled out his phone.
"Stefan. We have a serious problem," he said.
******Mikaelson's*******
Xander woke up Sunday morning feeling more than a little down. He'd seen Anya and that had been wonderful. However, he'd gotten his throat slashed. Once again, he was a liability to Buffy. Even with his new eye, he'd not been prepared for what had happened. It looks like his second sight wasn't going to be all that reliable. Figures.
Willow and Buffy were both gone when he woke up. He'd crashed on their couch, not feeling up to facing any of the slayers Giles had brought with him. When he checked his phone, he saw a text from Andrew. Elijah was back in Mystic Falls. Xander decided he was just the man he needed to talk to. Elijah's wisdom and calm presence was just what he needed.
He walked there instead of borrowing a car. It was a few miles, but the fresh crisp air felt good. It cleared out the cobwebs. He finally made it to the large, white mansion. Klaus opened the door.
"Ah, I wondered when you'd come by to see me," Klaus said with a satisfied smirk.
Xander gave the deadly hybrid a confused look. "Actually, I heard Elijah was in town, and I wanted to speak to him," Xander said.
Klaus stepped back and let him in. "I thought since I saved your life less than ten hours ago, you might want to see me about something else," Klaus said.
"Didn't I already thank you last night?" Xander asked, still missing what Klaus was hinting at.
"I don't need your thanks. I thought maybe you'd thought about what I said," Klaus said. "You have my blood in your system. You could die now and wake up a vampire. And not the evil, soulless kind your slayer likes to kill. You'd be faster than them. You'd be able to protect yourself and your slayers."
Xander frowned. He honestly hadn't thought about it. "I don't think that's a decision I can just make. What if I become a ripper like Stefan? I don't want to kill people," Xander said.
"Well, you have nothing but superhuman friends. I'm sure they can contain you until you get your bloodlust under control. Not all vampires kill. Caroline doesn't. She uses blood bags. Oz doesn't either," Klaus pointed out.
Xander knew he had a point. However, the thought of willing becoming a version of the thing he'd killed and hunted for so long seemed too weird, even wrong. "I don't know. I don't think Buffy would like that," Xander said. She'd flip.
"You think your slayer enjoys having to always worry about you? Having you constantly risking yourself? She has to protect you all the time. They all do. Face it. You're the weakest link. Now you have a chance to change that," Klaus said, hitting his insecurity hard. Klaus had a feeling that Xander would be the kind of vampire he could count on. He didn't have his hybrids anymore. Oz was the only one he could make as long as the witch was so powerful. However, Klaus thought it would be more than a bit of poetic justice if he had a hand in turning her best friend into a vampire. Having Xander choose to be one would make it all the sweeter.
His words hit Xander like a blow. He knew Klaus was trying to manipulate him; however, it didn't make his words false. He was the weakest link. Buffy did worry about him all the time. Losing his eye had made her overprotective tendencies even worse. He got his eye back and soon after manages to get his throat sliced. Klaus wasn't wrong. If he was a vampire, he'd never been a liability to his friends. He'd be an asset.
******Chapter End******
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