No One's POV
Brooklyn felt the bed dip before she was fully awake or alert, but few people attempted to disturb her slumber knowing how irritated she could be, and being that she was in the Mikaelson mansion, she could take a guess at who it was.
"Little Wolf," Niklaus' voice whispers into Brooklyn's ear.
"What do you want, Nik?" Brooklyn grumbles, attempting to pull the covers around her more.
"Ah, now, none of that, my Little Wolf." Niklaus pries the blanket from her grip, his arm coming around her.
"Nik…" Brooklyn grumbles more.
"It's time to wake up." Niklaus sing-songs into his best friend's ear in an annoyingly chipper tone.
"Nik…" Brooklyn deadpans. "I say this as nice as possible. Go to hell."
"That's not nice." Niklaus huffs a laugh. "Besides, if you don't wake up, your loyal lap dog might be the next one to barge in here or start scratching at the door."
"You're such an asshole. And just for that jab, you don't get to cuddle with me anymore." Brooklyn finally tells Niklaus, rolling over carefully, only to push her best friend out of the bed.
"Hey!" Nik growls in protest, glaring from the floor, looking ruffled.
"You deserved that." Brooklyn only replies with a smug look.
"Oh, you're going to pay for that!" Niklaus growls with a sudden mischievous look, launching himself on the bed.
"No! NIK!"
"Take it back!" Niklaus growls, tickling Brooklyn slightly.
"No! Stop! That tickles! Fine! Fine I take it back!" Brooklyn admits defeat.
"See now, love? That wasn't too hard was it?"
"You only won because I'm injured!"
"Keep telling yourself that, love." Niklaus offers as if he's being generous.
"I will."
Downstairs, the Mikaelsons were already gathered, Elijah in an armchair, Rebekah lounging on the couch filing her nails, and Finn standing awkwardly to the side, seeming more anxious by the second.
"Hey everyone." Brooklyn greets, immediately claiming the loveseat. "Feel better, Finn?"
"Yes." Finn nods, already gravitating towards his sire.
"Good." Brooklyn nods.
"Did you rest well?" Elijah asks pleasantly, gaze shifting from his journal.
"Yes. Thank you for asking."
"I'm glad." Elijah replies, a hint of a smile ghosting on his face.
"So, now we're all here, brother. What exactly do we need to talk about?" Niklaus comments flippantly, seating himself in another armchair.
"Rebekah found out information she wanted to share." Elijah comments. "I thought it prudent that we all know."
"Ahh, yes do share, sister… Have fun in your torturing session today with the oldest Salvatore?" Niklaus scoffs a little.
"Oh shut it, Nik. You'd be pissed too is someone used you." Rebekah snaps.
"Nik, be nice." Brooklyn scolds her best friend, helping to play referee.
"There are eleven White Oak stakes total." Rebekah informs.
"What about the ones used to attack Finn and I?" Brooklyn questions.
"We already burned them. There were only two that were made from the White Oak, the other one was made of regular wood." Elijah informs.
"Okay, well there's only nine stakes left then," Brooklyn nods absentmindedly.
"Rebekah, were you able to get any more information from the oldest Salvatore?" Elijah asks.
"No." Rebekah replies.
"So, now that we know how many we're dealing with… Do we have the next step to finding the rest of the White Oak?"
"No, first things first is retribution for their earlier stunt. However, I've already gotten that taken care of. I'm sure Kol will be calling any moment. Status update and all." Niklaus corrects.
"Nik! What did you do?" Brooklyn sighs; that was exactly what she didn't want, more killing just because Niklaus and Elijah felt like they needed to defend her honor or something ridiculous like that, not that she didn't expect it, but she had hoped, apparently in vain…
"Nothing too extreme, love. Just a little leverage. Nobody died, if that's what you're concerned about. But if you'd rather, it could be arranged. I'd be happy to give the order." Niklaus offers with an evil smirk.
"Uh- no- I'm sure what- it's fine." Brooklyn offers hastily.
"Thought so." Niklaus says smugly.
"You're impossible!"
"Alright, well if this 'family meeting' is officially over. I have places other than here I'd like to be. All this torture, revenge, and blood is seriously ruining my wardrobe choices! I haven't been shopping in a week!" Rebekah interjects annoyed, rising gracefully from the couch and tapping her foot impatiently.
"Of course, we wouldn't want to interrupt your shopping time now would we?" Niklaus snorts, earning a huff and glare from his sister.
"You wouldn't understand, you're not a girl." Both women answer together, Rebekah and Brooklyn turning to look at one another with surprise clear in their expressions, for once, Rebekah not glaring daggers at the she-wolf or going out of her way to show obvious disdain or be aloof, the only two reactions she had since Brooklyn had arrived in Mystic Falls.
"Fine. Then why don't you two go together?" Niklaus suggests, rolling his eyes.
"I wouldn't mind. If you don't. It's up to you, Rebekah. Nik owes me a credit card." Brooklyn offers lightly, shrugging; perhaps it was a way for the Original to warm up to her.
"Well I guess you don't have completely awful taste. So, I guess. Why not?" Rebekah shrugs, her snippy remark also a partial acceptance; she took after Kol a lot in that way.
"Perfect. My two favorite girls getting along and spending some quality bonding time together! How wonderful." Niklaus says dramatically, handing one of his credit cards to Brooklyn as she stands.
"Don't push it, Nik." The two echoing again, turning to throw ice melting glares in Niklaus' direction as they walk towards the front door.
"Well… That will get old fast." Niklaus mutters quietly, but still loud enough for both the woman's enhanced werewolf and vampire hearing to catch.
"We heard that!"
"For what it's worth…" Rebekah starts, flicking through a rack of clothes at a high-end boutique, her tone deceptively casual, but her gaze says a different story. "I love my brother, Nik. I do. I mean, obviously, I wouldn't have stuck around for a thousand years and saved his backside a million more…"
"But…" Brooklyn raises an eyebrow at the Original as if sensing a 'but' in the sentence, wonder just where Rebekah was going with her train of thought; they hadn't really talked much on the way to the mall, spent the first hour with Rebekah still refusing to acknowledge her existence, before Rebekah finally seemed to crack and they fell into a much easier tone between each other.
"He's a grade-A asshole and complete narcissist twit most of the time." Rebekah offers bluntly. "Elijah is… Elijah is honorable. He's the good brother… He would treat you better."
"I wasn't asking." Brooklyn replies almost equally as blunt, to which Rebekah nearly glares back, hot enough to melt steel. "But, I do know that, Rebekah…"
"Then, why-" Rebekah protests, ready to defend her brother from what she perceived was a slight against him.
"I don't- I don't get a choice, Rebekah." Brooklyn replies quietly. "I mean… A wolf… My wolf. It's hard to explain. My wolf is a part of me. Ingrained in my soul. And, it chooses. I didn't choose. And… It chose Nik." Brooklyn explains to Rebekah.
"Oh." Rebekah suddenly looks a little more contrite about how she had been treating Brooklyn, as in, she had been treating her like she was worse than the devil, believing she had been purposely been leading both her brothers on, like Tatia or Katerina had been.
"It's not to mean that… That I couldn't decide differently. Other wolves have. It's rare. Sometimes a mate doesn't mean true love. But that isn't easy either, Rebekah. And it's a pull that's pretty hard to deny. How would you decide? If everything in you is pulling you towards one person? And you have to try and walk away from all of that? Towards something else? It isn't as if I don't know Elijah likes- loves me." Brooklyn tries to explain better.
"I don't know." Rebekah answers.
"I don't know either." Brooklyn replies.
