Chapter 20
1114, Kingdom of Italy
The cart bounced on the bumpy road and a few strands of straw landed on Nora's sleeping face. She scrunched up her nose before burying her face into Kol's clothes, her arms around him. They were both lying on the straw at the back of the cart, though Kol wasn't sleeping.
Carefully, with slow movements so she wouldn't wake up, Kol removed the straw from the red hair. It failed though. Without even bothering to open one eye, she grabbed his hand and intertwined their fingers. Grinning, he brought it to his lips to kiss the joined knuckles.
At the same time, the old man farmer who had agreed to let them travel with him, said, "we will soon arrive. Do you need a place to sleep? My son-in-law and my daughter should be able to house you."
"Thank you old man but it is not necessary," Kol refused politely. "My family lives not far from there."
Not that he was going to live with them.
"Good, good," the man said. "It is a bad time to stay outside after dark."
"Oh?" Nora lifted her head up and squinted. "Why is that so, sir?"
The man sighed, "ah young lady, this is a sordid story, I wouldn't want to dirty your ears."
She rolled her eyes, unwilling to act like a shy and scared young woman. Especially when the only thing young about her was her appearance. And even then, most women her physical age were already married with children.
Kol and Nora's eyes met and they shared a smirk. After eighty years of living together, words were often unnecessary.
"Just tell her old man or she won't stop asking," Kol snorted.
A hoarse laugh shook the impressive stature of the farmer. After a few minutes, he managed to calm down and finally replied, his voice turning dark, "There are rumors of evil creatures roaming the street at night, looking for fresh blood. The work of the Devil, without doubt."
With that said, he leaned towards the road and spat on the ground.
"No matter the time, men will always be llamas," Nora muttered, her voice not loud enough for their driver to hear her.
Kol pinched her nose, "What can I say? Some things are eternal." He then raised his voice, "Don't worry old man, we will be careful."
What the hell had his siblings been doing? He might have killed lots of people, but at least he hadn't turned them into rabid vampires.
The old man dropped them at the village in which his daughter and her husband were living and left, though not before warning them once more to be careful. Without a word, Kol brushed the straw off Nora's dress and straightened up her clothes as she did the same for him.
Their journey of one month would end in a few hours. After travelling all the way from their house in South Asia, he was looking forward to see his siblings again. They had last seen each other a bit less than one year ago for Christmas and it was time they met again. Last time, he had only stayed for a few days, unwilling to let Nora alone for too long. However, seeing her guilty face when he came back made him question his decision. Now, he could admit, at least in the privacy of his mind, that he was also to blame for the distance between his siblings and him. Though their 'Always and Forever' vow still left a bitter taste in his mouth.
Nik's message said Finn would be the one to come for him. Before that though, he needed to find a house for Nora and him to live in.
With that thought in mind, he stepped forward before looking back, smirking.
"What are you waiting for?" he asked Nora with a chuckle as he wagged his eyebrows up and down.
She broke into a wide smile, eyes shining bright, and threw herself at him, climbing on his back like a monkey on a tree. At least, this particular monkey didn't have any flea. His hands holding tightly her thighs, he began to walk at a human pace.
"Do you think your siblings want to see you because of those rumors?" Nora asked him, the annoyance in her voice not failing to make him laugh.
"Still angry the message appeared while we were playing doctor?"
"You bet I am," she grumbled. "Next time, please, ask a witch to cloak us."
"Can't do that sweetheart, they are still my lovely siblings."
She rested her chin on the top of his head, and he immediately knew her lips were pursed into a pout. "Sometimes I think you were adopted honey."
He pinched her calf and deadpanned, "And sometimes I wondered whether or not you are really older than me."
"You could always ask that to Kamil when he finally contacts us."
"He's a witch Darling," he stated, pretty sure the full implications hadn't crossed her mind. "With the right spell and a few herbs every once in a while,he still has many more years ahead of him. By the time he makes contact with us, I might very well be with your younger self."
"Oh right," she realized, "it has already been eighty years. Another me is bound to pop in at one point or another. An older one though, cause I sure as hell don't remember singing Oh De Lally at King John's birth. And believe me, I wouldn't miss such an occasion to sing a Disney song."
"Do I wish to know?" he wondered aloud, as he always did when she rambled about the future.
"Probably not."
It was a peaceful walk, with Nora humming songs from her birth time. When they reached another village, she didn't try to get off his back, instead going as far as rubbing her cheek against his before the horrified stare of the passersby.
"You just can't help yourself," he snickered, although not without glaring at the villagers, "people will once again think you are a woman of easy virtue."
"And why should I care about them?" she replied shamelessly, the arms wrapped around him squeezing. "You love PDA and I love you. And it's not like they can't do anything to us."
He sighed, a fond look on his face as he was unable to deny her words. "I don't even know why I'm still trying."
"You and me hon, you and me," she laughed, the sound bringing a grin on his face.
The village wasn't big and was only an half hour horse ride away from the town where his siblings lived. From the little boy feeding the pigs to the old woman hanging out the laundry, everything in that small place breathed calm and serenity. No one was looking over their shoulder or speaking in worried hushed tones, as if any rumors about evil creatures had stopped at the village's gates.
According to his information, a witch had immigrated here a few years ago and secretly helped the villagers to get plentiful harvests in the surrounding fields. Illnesses were rare and the people healthy. Thanks to the trade with the nearby town, what had once been a poor, run-down and god-forsaken place was now a rich little village. If it weren't for the distance between the town and the village, Kol was pretty sure the latter would be teeming with life.
Kol walked until Nora exclaimed, "Look! There! Isn't that the symbol you told me of?"
His stare slid along her extended arm and finger to see what she was pointed and caught sight of a drawing of a red bird above a door, the house away from the others. Several symbols were carved upon the frame, some of which used by Eastern witches to protect their privacy. Less effective than a privacy spell cast on burning sage, it had the advantage of lasting far longer.
From where they stood, Kol could only hear a low hum and disembodied voices from inside the house. Enough to know there were people, not to know how many or what they were talking about.
"Indeed, we are on the right place."
Nora got off his back and they made their way to the house. Bigger than all the others, with flowers blooming all over its walls, it looked quite charming and cozy. With a witch as its owner, it would be a good and secure place for them to live.
Kol raised his fist to knock on the door. The moment his skin touched the wood, a powerful wave passed through him, burning and hurting, and he found himself thrown backward.
"Bloody hell," he gritted out, casting a disgusted glance at what had once been his forearm. "That's one hell of a witch here."
"You're alright, hon?" Nora asked, worried but not turning around as she placed herself between him and the door. She grabbed the sword hanging on her back and raised it before her, ready to defend them.
He stood up and groaned, "Just peachy darling."
The bone was already growing back, the pain pulsing in every inch of his arm, even reaching his shoulder.
"What do you think of a witch for your lunch?"
"Sounds good. Let's burn down the house next, it's been a while since we ate roasted meat." He took the dagger hidden in his boot. Even without an invitation to come in, it was easy to kill someone inside their house. Witch or not.
He walked to Nora's side the moment the door opened with a piercing creak. A middle-aged redheaded woman with bright green eyes caught sight of them, her eyes opening wide when she saw him, recognition shining through them.
Not bothering to wait for the witch to speak, Nora threw the sword towards the witch's arm. His little Darling was feeling slightly revengeful today.
The witch didn't move, her stare still glued on him. Just before the sword reached her, a hand stopped it, grabbing effortlessly the edge of the sword. Finn's face then appeared behind the woman.
"Kol," Finn said sternly, somehow managing to reprimand him with only the use of his name.
Nik and Bekah tended to obey to Elijah. Well, more or less, that is. Kol was mostly a free spirit, only obeying his own rules. Yet, even he had to admit that Finn was the one who had kept most of his humanity. Maybe even too much as his oldest brother hated the creature he became. Still, Finn was the most reasonable of them.
With Nik, Bekah and Elijah forming their own private little family, Kol couldn't help feeling closer to Finn. Especially since he learned of the 'secret' relationship of Finn with a young red-haired vampire.
"Innocent until proven guilty," Kol grinned, both his good arm and his bleeding stump lifted up as he moved in front of Nora. "Hello Finn. Long time no see."
Oddly enough, Nora didn't seem to care to be in the presence of one of his siblings and leaned to the side to look at Finn.
"That's Finn?" she wondered aloud, causing Finn to look at her with curiosity. "Okay, I guess I can see a family resemblance. At least he's not trying to look like a perfect angel. Or a psychopath."
Ah, his Darling was just perfect.
"Still with that? I remember a time when you were always polite with strangers."
She barely glanced at him before she quipped, "they are not strangers. One is the only tolerable brother you have and the other will be your future lunch once I have torn off her arm."
Trusting Finn to not attack him and to stop the witch from doing so, he turned around to face Nora, his grin all but gone. They stared at each other for a few seconds, Finn and the unknown witch's stares heavy.
"Is it alright?" he mouthed to Nora worriedly.
The small amused smile slipped off her face and she nodded before touching his good arm. "It's alright if it's him," she replied in the same way.
Far from reassuring him, a from appeared on his face. Beside the time Elijah had killed her, several centuries in the future, Nora had never met his siblings. Lately, Kol had been thinking to keep it that way for the next nine centuries until Nora's first time jump. At least, that way, he could ensure her existence.
For Finn to not be a reason to worry, it meant he wasn't a part of his life in the future. Either something happened to him, or he chose to leave. Knowing he was in love with Sage, a woman his siblings hated, Kol truly hoped it was the second option.
He turned back toward Finn with a grin, the concern hidden deep inside him. "So, what are you doing here Finn? With your two arms? Usually, I'm the one who run with witches, not you."
Finn smiled back. Being with Sage seemed to good for him. He was less tensed than before and didn't look like a constipated fish anymore.
"I had business in the village. And you? Our meeting point was at the town's gate, not in this village."
A wide smirk split Kol's face as his eyes twinkled in delight at the prospect of teasing Finn. "Is this business called Sage? I think I can hear someone else in this house. Let me guess…" he tapped his chin. "The damsel wishes to walk in the sun again, right?" He then glanced at the witch. "You let them come in, so you're helping them, isn't it?"
Finn stopped the woman from answering. "How do you know about Sage?"
"Finn, my dear and oh so tragically naïve brother, the only one who doesn't know about your Sage is our lovely father. A good thing he's so obsessed with Nick or he would be here to lecture you about courting a former whore."
"It wasn't her choice," Finn snapped. "Her parents sold her when she was a child."
Nora clicked her tongue, interrupting the conversation. "Now buddy, Kol didn't say anything wrong, just facts. No need to be angry. Beside, the real issue with whores lies with the clients. No clients, no market; end of discussion. Now, can I know why that damn witch is still looking at my man like a lovesick cow?"
Kol burst out laughing, the sound waking the witch from her torpor. He wrapped his intact arm around Nora's shoulder, leaning against her. "Now Darling, all these years by my side and you still don't know that you are the only one for me? No need to be jealous."
"Jealous?" she glared at him before she pushed him away and dug her fingers into his wound.
He immediately hissed, his eyes flashing red. Dark veins appeared beneath his eyes before fading away. During this short span of time, Finn had left the house to stand beside them, worried and ready to defend what he probably saw as a too brave woman - to not say stupid enough to anger a vampire.
"That… was harsh Nora," Kol breathed out.
"She hurt you," she spat. "She doesn't dare to leave her house to face the consequences of her acts but looking at you bleeding all over the place? No problem!"
"Right…" he glanced at Finn briefly, "Don't worry, there is absolutely no risk that I hurt Nora." He then pulled the woman by his side closer. "Nora, Darling, sadly, the witch seems to be a friend of Finn. Killing my brother's friend would be bad form."
His words calmed Nora and Finn stepped back.
"Alright," she agreed ad then admitted, "Killing her because of a non permanent wound is a tad overkill."
Even as she spoke, Kol noticed the curious stares from the villagers. Whether it was the voices raising or the blood drawing their attention, Kol wasn't sure. Well, it was a lie. It was probably the blood. And his missing arm. His healing soon to be back arm.
A frown marring his forehead, Finn hesitated before going back to the witch. "Sófi, maybe you should invite them in? It's not a good time to draw attention to ourselves."
The witch - Sófi – didn't answer him straight away, her eyes going back to Kol. Finally, she nodded and said in a clear voice, "Come on in."
Nora followed him inside the house, stepping on Sófi's foot as she crossed the threshold - and putting all her weight on her leg as she did so. When Kol glanced at her with amusement, she simply shrugged and said with an innocent smile stretching her lips, "no permanent wounds."
End of chapter 20!
So about those one-shots I spoke in the last chapters. I have sooo much ideas! Which one would you want first?
1. Kol and Nora meeting future and original Klaus/Elijah/Kol/Rebekah in TVD/TO (you pick)
2. Kol and Nora meeting Elena and co in VD
3. Harry Potter
4. Lords of the Ring
5. Avengers
We are not there yet, but the 100th reviewer will get to choose the plot for a one-shot.
