Kol slipped out of bed in the middle of the night famished. He drained a few blood bags on the bedside table, but it barely satisfied him. In the box, he was mainly unconscious and but there were times he dreamt. He dreamt of blood and women and magic. True, there was no pain, but there was also no pleasure. Being daggered was like being underwater and never resurfacing. His fist tightened and he had to stop himself from smashing it through the wall of this pretty new room. Klaus wasn't even going to undagger him! He needed a taste of his own medicine. His thoughts drifted to Mary Alice Claire and Astrid. He assumed they were still trapped in the Fauline cottage in New Orleans. He would try to slip away and check on that situation when he could, but it may be a long time until he could do that. There only crime had been to try to help him tame Nik, he hoped that Nicole didn't end up the same, or worse.
He heard light footsteps and heard his door slide open.
"Think of the devil and she appears," he smiled, vamping over to Nicole and embracing her.
"Finally, I felt like this day would never come," Nicole cried.
"Darling, I can never repay you," he assured the black haired witch sincerely.
"Oui, your bastard brother tells me the very same thing. Do you know what I had to do to get you out? I've been so busy here cooking and playing servant that I am ready to crack. First the boys and now I'm cleaning up after your sister smashing glasses and wanting me to show her how to wear the 'new' fashions," Nicole seethed.
"Sorry, I'll see that Nik gets a real maid and maybe Bex will get some friends. We'll say you have the pox or something. What's with those kids being here anyway? Who the hell are they? Klaus is good at playing daddy to orphans until they try to challenge him or they take a fancy to my sister," Kol chuckled.
"The boys are actually sweet, mon cher. Your brother has surprised me with his love and caring for them, though he tends to spoil them rotten. There were times when I almost came to think he was a good man, a man of honor...Then, I thought of how he took you from me and hid you away. It's been almost twenty years. I have longed for you every single day," she confessed.
"I'm so sorry. You are the only person I can depend on. They were going to leave me in there forever with that bore Finn. And now he is spoiling human 'sons' that are not of our blood? Nik never used to spoil for anything except a fight," Kol whispered.
"You don't have to whisper. I spelled the room for privacy," she said kissing him deeply.
"Oh, you did, did ya, Love? I thought you weren't anchored. How are doing spells?" Kol inquired, kissing her neck. He could hear his pulse quickening, it was driving him mad.
"I may have joined a small coven. Don't be mad, my love, but it was the only way I got the power to find you and get you out," Nicole said, her black eyes afraid.
"Nicole, what did you do?" Kol worried. He feel a jot of fear.
Nicole looked down,"I thought they were only doing expression, at first. Then, I found out that this new coven is doing sacrifice magic. There is a heavy cost for them to empower me to help you."
"What do they want, Darling?" Kol asked slowly.
"Your brother. They want to channel your brother, the hybrid, for power," Nicole said, tilting her head to expose her neck to him. "Drink and I'll tell you more later. You must feed as much as possible. We must also be very, very careful. It is the only way we can defeat him."
Kol caressed her and said, "He'll never separate us again. I promise you." Then, he sunk his fangs into her neck and drank until he forgot about his brother.
Several days later:
Jeremy and Tyler couldn't help but laugh watching Finn try to navigate the modern world. Had he really never seen a refrigerator before? Water coming from the sink seemed to perplex him. Neither boy was really sure if or how vampires used the bathroom and they really didn't want to know. Elijah patiently assisted Finn and warmed him up a mug of blood.
Finn grimaced and growled, "I cannot abide this slop. Is there a hunting ground near? I will find my own fare."
"Ah, do not fear, Finn. We shall find you sufficient hunting grounds. Perhaps you can show the boys here a thing or two about how to hunt like a Viking?" Elijah suggested.
"That would be cool!" Jeremy chimed in.
"I can drive you," Tyler added.
Finn just gulped down the rest of the blood and nodded. Then, he walked outside without another word.
To the boys, Elijah said, "Let me speak to your father, it might be good for us to have a bit of a day out."
"We were supposed to go fishing today, but hunting with a Viking sounds better," Jeremy admitted.
"Good. And boys, please try to control your amusement at Finn's ineptitude with the modern world. None of us chose to be a vampires, but he especially shafed against what he felt like was a curse. Finn was always closer to our mother than any of us, I suppose he just never fit in. Have you ever felt like that?" Elijah asked in a low tone.
"I have, I guess...ah, Uncle...," Jeremy added, not knowing what to call Elijah.
"You can call me Uncle Elijah, if you like," he smiled.
"Uncle Elijah, we shouldn't have made fun of him. He just seems so weird and like, royally pissed off," Tyler added.
"Tyler, he probably is. I have to admit that I'm not proud of how we treated him for too many years. I'm going to try to make it up to him somehow. I have a feeling it won't be easy," Elijah said gazing outside at his eldest brother.
Finn was outside sharpening a stick with a rock. He already had a small pile of spears gathered. The squirrels of the mansion would not be safe as long as the ancient hunter was near.
The next day:
"Elijah and Finn are taking the lads off to hunt today. Would you like to go?" Niklaus asked Rebekah, while he poured her a cup of coffee.
"Hunt animals? Me? I would rather scrub your toilets, but thanks for asking. I only like to hunt for tasty men to take a drink out of and then compel to forget me forever. It's easier that way. But I do wonder, why you are inviting me to such manly pursuits. I thought you liked to keep the ladies in their place," Rebekah smirked. She sipped the hot liquid and added three or four tablespoons of sugar.
"Oh, well, I have long since learned the errors of my ways. I'm all for equality now. Plus, it makes me happy to think of how angry Father would be if he knew that you learned to hunt with weapons. Remember how he didn't even allow you to touch them?" Klaus mused.
"Aye, and I found that I had other weapons to use against both man and beast," she said coyly, batting her eye lashes. "Speaking of, can I have some money to go shopping? I think I need more conservative undergarments."
"Please, allow me to remain ignorant of that. This should be more than enough," Klaus signed, taking a wad of bills out of his wallet to hand to her.
"Thank you, Brother," Rebekah said, tucking the money in her bra. "I won't even be mad at you for daggering me or giving Elijah that blasted stick to thrash me with the other night. Do you know I went to destroy it this morning and he's already hidden it?"
"Oh little Sister, you were being a bit of a pill with all that cursing and backchat and were asking for a little attention. Since Elijah spanked the dickens out of you, you have behaved like a perfect angel. Sometimes I fear we neglected providing you and Kol with the support and discipline you needed in decades past. Look at the years we lost you all and you ended up sleeping in a coffin," Klaus said refilling her cup.
"Sleeping? In a coffin? Nik, you put us there," Rebekah pointed out.
"It hurt me to do so. I swear that we will not neglect your needs or give into any childish whims this time. I also have two boys to protect now. I am really happy we are all here now, but I am also a little afraid that we will fall into old patterns," Klaus mused.
"So you're saying that we are going to get our tails lit up for the slightest fuss? That is until you and Elijah get distracted by trying to rule over whatever city we are in. Right? Same old story. Did Kol go on this epic hunt?" Rebekah asked wondering if she could drag him shopping with her. He didn't have the worst taste in the world.
"Rebekah, we are not worried about power or controlling things. Just family. I haven't seen Kol yet today. Do you want me to take you shopping?" Klaus asked. To his surprise, she accepted.
_
After everyone had finally left, Kol and Nicole slipped into his bedroom to plot. Elijah hired a cleaning crew to come in two days a week which freed her up a bit.
"So, did you speak to the elders about their terms?" Kol said, pulling off his clothes.
"Oui, they want us to lure Niklaus to a nearby cave. From there, they think that they can restrain him and carve the symbol into his forehead. Then, once they link their magic, they can use him as a source of great power," Nicole muttered between kissing his bare chest.
Kol frowned, "Will it hurt him?"
Nicole stopped and looked at him, "Cher, are you getting cold feet?"
"No, of course not, but I'm not sure they understand how strong Nik is. I've seen him rip entire towns to shreds," Kol uttered bitterly. "Hell, I'm helped him do it."
Nicole put her slim brown hand to his face, "He made you a monster. Now let him suffer for his sins. Then, we can be free forever. If we do this, they will grant me a new life. I will not grow old and I will be almost as strong as you. If we don't, they will kill me."
"Just hold them off, I need to try to find out if Nik can free my friends he trapped in New Orleans," Kol begged.
"Mais your friends are not as important as my life," Nicole replied.
"You don't understand, Darling. Those friends are the only ones who can create such powerful dark objects. One of the dark objects that we need is a converted white oak stake. We also need a paragon diamond. There is no other way that coven, or anyone, can conquer him, he is too powerful," Kol surmised peering into his eyes.
"There is no other way, Cher?" Nicole trembled.
"Not that I can see. Those girls he trapped are the key to trapping him," Kol said.
At the hunt:
Finn finally seemed to be in his element in the woods. Elijah brought a small arsenal of various crossbows, bows, knives, and slings. He knew that a gun would be out of the question for Finn to use. With their Original vampire strength and senses, they could easily hunt without weapons. Yet Elijah assumed Finn would want to hunt like they had in their human lives, so long ago.
"Now, boys, I want you to be very careful. Safety is our first priority. You can have fun, but please take care stay with me and be aware of your surroundings. Do not touch anything without my permission or supervision," Elijah cautioned.
"Yes, sir," Tyler said.
"I have a forest full of switches to apply to any backside that cannot mind me. Very well, shall we try for a deer?" Elijah went on.
"Sounds good," Jeremy said wondering if Klaus would really allowed Elijah to take a switch to either of them. He certainly hoped not.
Finn indicated that he wanted to go his own way to track a bear. Elijah figured that he would start out by teaching the boys the bow if they were interested.
Tyler had a little experience hunting deer, but Jeremy had never done it before. As they practiced their shots, Tyler ended up sharing about the little cave he found with the wolves caved on the ceiling.
"I always meant to go back and check it out again, but they my dad died and I never had a chance to go back," Tyler recalled.
"I'm sorry about your father, Tyler," Elijah said sincerely.
"Thanks, we didn't always get along. I'm glad we had the last few months of his life to make things right," Tyler admitted.
Elijah added, "You know, you boys should make sure that you stay connected to friends and family. Would you like to stop off at the Mystic Grill for dinner? You could call everyone and tell them to meet us there. It will be my treat."
"Yeah, that sounds great. I'll text them now," Jeremy said. "Tyler, do you want to use my phone to call your mom?"
"Nah, man, thanks. She has her council meetings on Tuesdays. Now that she is the mayor, she can't miss," Tyler said rolling his eyes.
"We'll invite her another time," Elijah assured him.
"It's always something with her. I mean, if it wasn't for Klaus, I'd be alon
As Jeremy was texting, Tyler picked up the crossbow angry thinking about how his mother seemed to have abandoned him so quickly.
Elijah turned and said, "Put that down-"
No sooner than he finished the word "down" the crossbow ejected and the bolt sailed across and landed in Finn's chest.
The next few minutes seemed to happen in slow motion to Jeremy. He saw Finn look down at the bolt embedded deep into his chest and tear it out. Then, he face changed suddenly, his eyes turned black and fangs popped out of his mouth. Finn seemed to appear in front of Tyler ripping the crossbow out of his hands as Tyler stood mouth gaping open in shock.
Elijah whizzed over and got in front of Tyler, pushing him back slightly. He shouted something in another language to Finn. Finn still tried to come at Tyler until Elijah said something in a much calmer voice. Elijah reached out and touched his brother on the arm, but Finn brushed it off quickly. Elijah then pointed back to the woods and finally looked back at a terrified Tyler and Jeremy.
Finn grunted something roughly and vamped back into the woods. Elijah finally exhaled and slumped against the maple tree behind him in a daze.
Tyler choked out, "Thank you. I think you just saved my life."
Elijah nodded, "I did, young man, but not your backside. I assured Finn that I would discipline you thoroughly for this."
Jeremy sputtered, "But it was an accident!"
Elijah agreed,"It was. But if Finn were a human, he'd be dead. Didn't I tell you not to touch anything without permission?"
Tyler nodded and said, "You did. I didn't think it would go off. I mean, did he go off to die or something?"
"No, Tyler, your Uncle Finn went to feed again to hasten his healing. I am sorry that I had to intervene like that, but I was afraid that he was going to give you a small fraction of what our father would have doled out when we displeased him," Elijah said wiping off his forehead with his embroidered handkerchief.
Jeremy added, "I thought he was going to eat Tyler."
Elijah frowned and said, "Let's get this over with." He started heading to a trees and leading Tyler by the arm.
"Are you still going to tell Dad what I did," Tyler said nervously.
"No, young man, but you will. Jeremy, you can start heading back to the truck, this won't take long. Tyler, I warned you about disobeying me. You're getting a whipping and then we'll go into town. Now lean against the tree trunk quickly and I'll let you keep your shorts on," Elijah said briskly.
"What if someone sees?" Tyler asked anxiously.
"I will hear them before they get close. I promise you that no one will see," Elijah said feeling a moment of compassion for the boy. He really didn't want to do this, but he wanted to keep his word and appease Finn at the same time.
Tyler's face flushed. He leaned his arms on the trunk awkwardly hoping to get it over with before Finn came back and saw. Tyler heard Elijah moving around behind him but he wasn't even sure if he wanted to know what was in store for him.
Elijah leaned down and whispered, "I know the scare of what you went through is probably punishment enough, but Finn was injured and you must learn to listen to me. Try to stay still as much as you can, but this is going to hurt."
Elijah brought the switch down smartly over the middle of Tyler's backside. Through two layers of material, it still managed to smart a great deal and he flinched. Elijah was flicking the switch with his wrist and not applying much force at all. He worked his way down Tyler's behind and on to his thighs. The switch was a little whooshing sound.
"Ah, it stings, man," Tyler blurted out, unable to stay still.
Elijah grabbed him with his left arm and leaned him forward to apply another few lashes to the squirming backside in front of him.
"When Finn comes back, you will apologize to him and tell him that you got a whipping. Then, you will talk to your father tonight before bed. I would expect that he will probably reinforce the lesson you're learning now," Elijah lectured.
Silent tears streamed down Tyler's face as he tried to hop and move. The areas where the switch came down felt like lines of fire. Elijah swished the slender stick down twice hard on Tyler's sit spots and said, "Done."
He snapped the stick in two and tossed it to the ground.
Tyler's hands went to his behind to try to rub out the burning sensation.
Elijah smiled and reached out to embrace his new nephew.
"Thanks," Tyler muttered.
"For what? Lighting up your backside? You're welcome," Elijah joked.
"No, I know that wasn't very hard. You were barely flicking that switch. It still stung, but I was expecting it harder," Tyler admitted, wiping the stray tears away.
"Well, you will still have to deal with your father tonight. I know that after I gave Marcel a licking, Niklaus would often follow up with a little spanking at bedtime," Elijah shared.
"Who was Marcel?" Tyler asked as they headed back.
"Oh, ah, he was Klaus'... first son. He died a long time ago when we fled New Orleans. It might be something that is hard for us to talk about," Elijah said loading up the equipment.
Just as Tyler started to ask what happened, Finn vamped back.
Tyler got in and put on his seatbelt. Jeremy was relieved to see he was in one piece.
"You okay, man?" he asked Tyler.
Tyler was squirming a little, but said, "Dude, he was swatting me as lightly as possible. It stings now, but he was really holding back."
The adults got in the trunk and they drove to the Mystic Grill for dinner.
Jeremy asked Tyler, "Hey, is that Matt's truck?"
"Yeah, he usually works Tuesdays. I'm glad he's here. He sounded lonely the last time I talked to him, you know without Vicky. Then, his mom took off again. I feel bad for him, man," Tyler replied.
"We should invite him over," Jeremy suggested.
Tyler joked, "He'd see that house and Rebekah and never want to leave."
Jeremy laughed and said, "True! Do we have room for one more?"