A/N: I know I promised a quicker update, but I had a lot of trouble editing this chapter. :( I liked the first part a lot, and then the rest of it kind of ruined my life for a few days there. I'm really sorry! There are some important notes at the bottom about stuff. Please, read them once you're done with the story.
As always, I ask that you forgive my many mistakes. Hope you guys can enjoy this chapter
Thank you so much to everyone who has been reading this story. 3 Your feedback, comments and messages mean so much to me! It's really the reason why I keep going with this, so thank you SO much! And please keep'em coming! I love to read your thoughts and know how you guys feel. :)
"I was angry with my friend;
I told my wrath, my wrath did end."
It's quiet in the Mikaelsons' living room.
White noise fills up the empty space: the air conditioner Klaus had installed in Caroline's room, birds chirping outside, Rebekah's heels clicking against the hardwood floor as she saunters about the house.
The sound of Elijah calmly flipping through the rough pages of the old grimoire he's been consulting all morning.
"I was angry with my foe;
I told it not, my wrath did grow."
There's something very anticlimactic about the peacefulness following Elijah's return.
Klaus assumed his brother's lack of retaliation was down to exhaustion and the weight of the revelations he brought with him from his spell in the company of Davina Claire. There was a lot to be considered and mulled over. The story Elijah uncovered changes everything, starting with Klaus' disposition to aid those treasonous witches, which was not great to begin with after their attack on Caroline. Marcel's ban on magic is, for now, working in Sophie Deveraux's favor. It's the only thing keeping Klaus from finding a way to undo the connection between her and Caroline through an incantation that she would likely be able to perform herself. As it is, the risks associated with Marcellus finding out about her still trump the benefits. But not for long.
After his encounter with Davina, followed by the heartfelt conversation she's had with Elijah, Klaus is certain that they can persuade the witch to switch sides.
"And I water'd it in fear
Night and morning with my tears.
And I sunned it with smiles
And it with soft deceitful wiles."
Elijah has not advanced against him, but he has also barely spoken a word to Klaus. His peace offering benefaction has gone completely ignored.
To an outsider, the two of them are perfectly at ease. A more attentive observer, however, could easily sense the air thick with tension. His brother's mask of civility ends in his eyes, at once cold and hostile. He's angry, bitter, but uncharacteristically not acting on it.
If Klaus had to hazard a guess on why, he'd say his brother's reason for holding back answers by the name of Caroline Forbes.
The way Elijah's eyes sparkled when he saw her, how he followed her out of the room almost immediately, made Klaus' hands itch for a silver dagger.
"And it grew both day and night
Till it bore an apple bright;
And my foe behind it shine,
And he knew that it was mine."
Klaus' desire to be forgiven for his misbehavior finds pause in his brother's fast growing fascination with Caroline.
It's understandable that Elijah would be drawn to her, seeing that she carries in her womb all of his hopes and dreams for the future of their family. But that does not mean Klaus has to like it. It brings a sour taste to his mouth, as well as unpleasant memories of a story lived a thousand years before.
He'd fallen in love with Tatia first. And she'd encouraged his advances. Even implied that he might be her chosen one to remarry after the untimely death of her first husband. Until Elijah, ever valiant and regal, came into the picture.
Even before darkness had corrupted his soul he could never compete with Elijah.
It did not end well for either of them, or for poor Tatia.
Klaus is, of course, well and over all that. Their mother killed the object of their affection to avoid a war, in turn starting something much worse. But Klaus is not what he once was. Definitely not as forgiving. And Caroline is not Tatia.
It would do Elijah well to remember that.
"And into my garden stole
When the night had veil'd the pole
In the morning glad I see
My foe outstretch'd beneath the tree."
They exist in awkward silence in each other's presence for the meanwhile - Elijah flipping through their mother's grimoire while Klaus rereads one of his favorite poems, quite appropriate for their current predicament.
He hears Caroline's approaching steps before she enters the room; he sees Elijah's eyes lifting from the pages of the grimoire for the first time in hours as soon as she does.
"What the hell?" She plants a hand on her hip, looking from Klaus to Elijah with indignant lines scribbled across her forehead. "Who the hell is that?"
Elijah sighs. "That is a peace offering," his brother says, motioning vaguely towards the girl on the center table. Well, less a girl now than a corpse.
Feeling the inquire before it arises, Klaus adds, as means of explanation, "I presumed, after so much time desiccating in a coffin, that my big brother might be a bit peckish."
"So I explained to my little brother that forgiveness cannot be bought. I'd simply prefer to see a change in behavior that indicates contrition and personal growth, not this... nonsense," Elijah's lips curl distastefully.
Caroline scoffs in disbelief. "You two killed a girl to make peace? Are you freaking kidding me?"
"I didn't kill anyone," Elijah says, mindlessly turning another page.
Klaus shrugs. "I couldn't very well let her go to waste, could I?"
Caroline glares, her nostrils flaring as hot indignation takes over. "This is a person. With a family, and friends, and people who are going to miss her."
"Oh, here we go," Klaus sighs warily.
"You can't kill people for fun!"
"Trust me, love. Fun had absolutely nothing to do with it."
"And now she's bleeding all over a two hundred years old carpet!"
Elijah lifts his gaze to the girl again. The gash on her neck has leaked all over the table, her blood now pooling on the carpet underneath it. "Oh, yes," he says, sadly. "That's a shame."
Caroline grunts in annoyance, then takes a deep breath to recompose herself. "If I'm going to be living in this house, we need to have some ground rules. You can't bring snacks home. If you're going to feed, use blood bags like normal functioning vampires would, or do it far from here. I don't wanna have to wake up to dead girls on the freaking coffee table. God."
With that she stalks away, banging doors as she goes. But Klaus wasn't watching her; he was watching Elijah.
His brother's eyes followed her as soon as she turned, an amused smile creeping onto his so far stoically grim expression.
Almost immediately, Elijah puts down the grimoire and follows her through the door.
Klaus' face twists into a scowl as he forces himself to sit still, however visibly agonized. They just got Elijah back. It won't do them any good to start cracking the family's unit so soon. They should stick together for what lies ahead. If anything than at least for Caroline's sake. However unfavorable her proximity to his brother might be, she has clearly taken a liking to him, will probably not be too happy if Klaus starts yet another uprising against Elijah.
They're an island, surrounded by enemies on all sides. He needs Elijah. It'd be incredibly stupid of him to cultivate hard-feelings born out of jealousy at this moment.
Which is not to say there won't be time to address the issue later.
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Living with the Original family is going to be even more of a challenge than Caroline first imagined, and her expectations weren't that great to begin with.
As much as she's used to being around vampires, finding dead bodies around the house is one thing that won't ever get old. She keeps forgetting that there are ruthless predators under those pretty packages. Their general disregard for human life is in their very nature. Tyler almost lost his mind after he accidentally triggered his curse, but somehow, after Klaus turned him, he just... Didn't care that much about death anymore. He said it was the hunger, that it was so overwhelming it silenced everything else, and the guilt only came later, dulled and distant.
If you live long enough, she guesses, at some point the guilt just stops coming altogether.
As the oldest there is, Original vampires are especially vicious. Even Elijah, with that mask of refinement and politeness. Didn't even bat an eyelid at the poor girl.
Caroline is not naive to believe that they are going to stop eating people just because it upsets her. But if she keeps finding corpses around the house, they're going to have a serious problem. Like they haven't more than enough of those already.
Great way to start her morning.
She doesn't even bother knocking before storming into Rebekah's bedroom, where the vampire is sorting through her clothes. At least she hasn't been feeding on living people. Not that Caroline knows, anyway. And what Caroline can't see, she just pretends doesn't exist, for the sake of her sanity.
"Can you do something about the body in the living room?" she asks in a tone that makes it clear she's not really asking at all.
Rebekah frowns. "What body in the living room?"
"Your brothers' breakfast is lying on the coffee table right now," she replies, her mouth twitching into a grim smile.
"Oh. Is that what she was for? I saw when Nik brought her home, but I thought - Never mind." Rebekah cuts herself short at the look Caroline shoots her. It's bad enough that he seduced a girl to eat her. Caroline can do without imagining what else might've happened there, thank you very much.
"I don't have stomach for that and I'm pregnant," she says, drawing out the last word for emphasis. "Please?"
Rebekah sighs in defeat. "You have no qualms with playing low, do you?"
"None."
"Fine."
"Thank you."
All that stress so early in the morning has made her hungry, so she marches down to the kitchen and starts rummaging through the cabinets after the box of cereals she's certain she asked Klaus to buy a few days ago. It's ironic that all that blood has worked up an appetite instead of making her nauseous. She wonders if that has anything to do with the baby, and if so, how worried exactly she should be.
"Good morning."
She turns around to find Elijah standing by the door, smiling affably at her.
"Not that good," she says tersely, finally locating her Cheerios.
"I apologize for the unfortunate scene you were made to witness. I keep forgetting that you're not one of us." After a beat, he adds, "A vampire, I mean."
"No, I'm not," Caroline smiles wanly, pouring cereal and milk in a large bowl. "But I'm used to your kind and I have opinions on your disregard for human life."
"It won't happen again."
"Don't make promises you can't keep, Elijah", she says, stabbing her cereal with a spoon and eating a mouthful. "We both know it will. You do this like it's nothing. We're all just food to you."
Elijah approaches the island, holding her gaze with an earnestness in his eyes that makes it impossible for Caroline to look away. "That's not true."
Caroline can hear the subtext that goes unsaid - You're not food. And she truly believes Elijah means it wholeheartedly, but it's not the point. Even if they would never hurt her - and, to a certain degree, she believes none of them would, at least for the time being - they would still not hesitate to hurt everyone else, which does nothing to appease her mood.
"Can you just... Do this somewhere else? Somewhere I won't accidentally trip over a dead body or wake up to a pool a blood on the living room carpet?" So I can at least pretend I'm not living with a bunch of psychopaths, she doesn't mention.
"Of course," he nods.
"Much appreciated."
"I hope my siblings were hospitable toward you in my absence. Unpleasant dinner parties aside," he says, grinning.
"Well, let's see." Caroline stuffs her mouth with cereal and pretends to think while she munches on it. "In your absence, as you like to call it, which is a polite way of saying your brother put a dagger in your heart, I have been attacked by vampires and French Quarter witches who believe my baby is the spawn of Satan."
Elijah sighs. "Yes, Niklaus has filled me in on all the latest developments."
"Right. To sum it up, absolutely everyone has been crappy. But your siblings are... Fine. They're weirdly protective."
"Even Niklaus?"
The inflection on his voice makes Caroline think Elijah might be particularly concerned for Klaus' behavior. Which - well, she can't exactly blame him. He's been gone for almost a month due to his brother's volatile nature. But she doesn't really know how to explain that he has been the most protective of all. Bordering on paranoia in many occasions.
"Especially him," she replies.
"So you're getting along well?"
"Oh, you know," she shrugs, looking down at her bowl. "Ups and downs and all that. But... I think we've made some progress."
"Really?"
"He's... trying. Or something. In his own twisted way."
"I suppose that's the best we can hope for from Niklaus. I'm glad to hear it. I'm also glad that, despite all of the attacks you described, you're still in one piece."
"Haven't you heard?" Caroline says, pointing to her belly with the spoon, the corners of her lips curling up into a proud grin. "Your niece is quite the fighter. She healed me."
Elijah's brow furrows. "Healed you?"
"Someone shot me with a crossbow. I felt it shattering my bone. When I woke up, the wound was gone."
"Huh," he mumbles thoughtfully. "That's... interesting."
"And extremely useful if I'm going to keep getting ambushed out there."
Elijah opens his mouth to say something else, but snaps it back shut as though something just hit him, his brow furrowing inquisitively. "Forgive me - did you just say niece?"
Caroline meets his eyes again, a smile so big breaking onto her lips it feels for a moment her face might split in two.
"How do you know?" Elijah asks.
"Courtesy of the witch Sabine, before she went out spreading rumors about how my daughter is going to tear the whole world to shreds or something."
"So back to the murderous witches," Elijah says. "I have some concerns."
Caroline sighs. "I was reluctant to admit it, but this bunch is batshit crazy. And my life is still linked to Sophie. Not a comforting idea, considering how many of them want me dead."
Rebekah walks in, dragging the body behind her. Caroline wrinkles up her nose. "Really, Rebekah?"
"You asked me to get rid of it, didn't you?" she says, opening the French doors that lead to the back yard. "As for the witches, I'm all for ending this stupid link. As soon as they're unlinked we get to leave this crap town. Who do we have to kill?"
"No one," Elijah answers hurriedly, seeing the protest that almost rises to Caroline's lips. But then, after a second, he relents. "That wasn't entirely honest. Potentially everyone."
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There's a reason why Rebekah wants so desperately to leave New Orleans.
Her brothers only exist in two states: they either can't stand the sight of each other, in which case either Elijah disappears for long bouts of time or Klaus settles the dispute by daggering him; or they are thick as thieves and absolutely nothing comes between them. There's no in-between.
The first case scenario is usually when Klaus becomes most unhinged. When he goes for too long without Elijah's harmonizing presence, he tends to lose touch with his humanity completely. They fight, Elijah leaves, Klaus becomes extremely bitter, starts lashing out, blowing everything out of proportion, and the whole mankind suffers the consequences of his terrible mood swings. In the second case scenario, Rebekah becomes a mere bystander to the Niklaus and Elijah show.
From time to time, Elijah's determination to rescue Nik's damned soul gets renewed. When that happens, nothing can dissuade him. Not even Klaus' terrible judgement and raw sensibilities. She's lost decades of her life because her brother is a tosser and Elijah decided not to pick a fight in fear it would send Nik spiraling.
Yes, she can hold a grudge. Sue her.
Right now, she's inclined to believe they're about to plunge into a long stretch of the second case scenario. As soon as Rebekah heard about the baby, she knew Elijah's faith in Niklaus had been magically revived, even if he didn't exactly get the girl pregnant on purpose and would likely take it back if it was up to him. That Nik putting a dagger through his heart and shipping him over to Marcel for weeks hasn't even put a dent on Elijah's loyalties is enough confirmation to Rebekah's suspicions. If that didn't break them apart, nothing else will.
Or almost nothing else.
There's something keeping Klaus and Elijah from shaking hands and becoming attached at the hips as they always do in second case scenario situations. She's noticed it in Nik from the day she arrived, every time Elijah's name came up, and now that their brother is back, she has a better idea of what exactly is behind that strain on their relationship. It's also the reason why Rebekah hasn't left yet.
Caroline Forbes.
Elijah barely waited a second before going after her as soon as he was back home. He's cornered both her and Nik this morning, making questions about Caroline and the baby while he was gone. And just now, in the kitchen...
It might just be all about the baby. Elijah could be trying very hard to compensate for Klaus' lack of warmth and general bad mood by being extra fussy and showing too hard that he cares.
But.
The way Nik looks at them, how his eyes flash every time Elijah's name comes out of Caroline's mouth, it tells Rebekah a different story.
It's just a mild suspicion for now, but enough for her to want to stick around for a bit more. If anything, she might be able to convince Elijah to leave town with her when Caroline is officially out of danger. She's Nik's problem, after all, not theirs. And as terrible as she believes her brother will be as a father, Caroline seems to exert a kind of control over him that none of them can. She'll be fine.
If, however, her suspicions prove to be right and Elijah is indeed making more than just concerned uncle eyes at Caroline... Oh, lord save them all from going through the Tatia drama once more, only with steroids this time, considering Nik has become a much, much worse all-around human being since then.
Either way, for now, the role of cleaning up after her brothers' messes has already landed on her lap.
Rebekah not only had to dispose of the body - that no one invited her to taste, mind you - but she also has to clean the carpet. It's shameful how they have no respect for a 200 years old splendid piece of homeware.
While she scrubs - "Cold water and detergent only or you'll ruin it!" Caroline instructed with all her acquired know-how of years of removing blood stains -, Nik keeps his eyes firmly on his book, but he hasn't flipped a single page in almost half an hour. The crease between his eyebrows and the pursed lips tell her everything she needs to know, really.
"I'm the one cleaning your mess and you're the one getting all cranky?" Rebekah asks.
"I'm trying to read and you keep distracting me with your scrubbing," he says, mindlessly.
"This carpet is ancient."
"Nothing we can't replace."
Rebekah scoffs. "Poetry about poisoned apples from dead trees?" she asks, reading the title on his book. He's carried the dreadful thing with him for ages. Highly overestimated, in Rebekah's opinion. She has to say, though; it's quite appropriate for the moment. "Looks like someone is worried about impending daddyhood."
He lifts his eyes to her, a crude smile ticking the corners of his lips. "Nonsense. Elijah is safely returned. In his presence all problems turn to pixie dust and float away."
Rebekah opens her mouth to call Nik out on being jealous and tell him in no uncertain terms that she'll murder him if he tries anything against Elijah again, but their big brother beats her to it.
"Strange. I don't recall any pixie dust from the darkness of the coffin I was recently forced to endure," he says, picking up an old book.
Rebekah's brow bunches as she realizes it's not just any old book. "What are you doing with mother's spell book?" Elijah ignores her, flips through a few pages and removes one of them. Rebekah gasps. "Did you just rip off a page? Elijah!"
"In exchange for my freedom I promised the witch Davina that I would share a few pages from mother's grimoire. Right now her magic controls her more than the other way around and she is scared of it. I offered to help her learn how to control it. Thought we'd start with a little unlinking spell," he explains, smirking.
"Wait." Rebekah stands up, removing her latex gloves. "You want to use her to unlink Caroline from Sophie Deveraux?"
"Sophie brought us to this town under false pretenses. She doesn't just want us to take down Marcel and his minions; she wants to take Davina back so she can murder her. So she yoked her own cause to ours with magic, threats and half-truths. I don't know about you, but I'm not willing to indulge her any longer."
Klaus puts down his book, turning his full attention now to Elijah. "What are you saying, brother?"
"As of now, our deal with Sophie Deveraux is null and void. We just need to make sure Caroline can no longer be used as leverage. A little representational magic in the hands of an all-powerful witch harboring a lot of resentment towards her coven should do the trick. Niklaus, I need you to come with me. I need five minutes alone with Davina and you have to guarantee I'm not interrupted."
"What about me?" Rebekah asks.
Elijah grins. "You stay here and watch Caroline," he says like it's the most obvious thing in the world.
Rebekah huffs. "How did I get elected supernanny?"
"More importantly," Klaus starts, his grim expression leaving no doubt that he is just as annoyed at Elijah as she is, albeit for very different reasons. "Who put him in charge?"
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Caroline is halfway through reorganizing the book shelves in the library when she feels a sharp pain on her neck.
It's very quick, but so strong it makes her holler and drop the book she was holding.
Rebekah is there by her side in a second. "What the hell was that scream?"
Caroline lifts a hand to the spot where she felt the prick, her skin still tingling. "I don't know. I felt like... A stab."
"Stab?" Rebekah asks, approaching her and removing her hand from her neck to take a look. "Like a knife?"
"No, more like... A prickle."
"There's a little blood on your neck," she says, rubbing Caroline's skin and then showing her the red on her finger. "But no puncture. It's all healed. Might have been a scratch. What were you doing?"
"Nothing, just putting a book back on the shelf."
"Maybe it was a mosquito."
She glares. "Really? Have you ever heard of anyone screaming from a mosquito bite?"
"I hear they can be quite big out here in the Bayou," Rebekah shrugs.
Caroline sighs, rolling her eyes as she bends over to pick up the book she dropped. Great, she thinks. Vampires, rogue witches and now freaking poltergeists too. She'll have to add ghosts to the list of factions that want her dead.
"Try not to scare me again, will you? I thought something serious happened."
"I'm so sorry me feeling pain is an inconvenience to you."
"I was left in charge of your welfare today and I don't want to get berated by my jealous angry brother or my overprotective brother when they return from their far more interesting tasks."
Caroline snorts. "Wow, Rebekah. Do you think you could be more of a bi-"
Caroline's entire world goes suddenly white. She doesn't remember fainting, but when her vision flickers back, Rebekah's holding her, pushing her down onto a chair.
"Woah," she mutters.
"What happened?" Rebekah asks with none of the bitchy attitude of before, concern now etched onto every line of her face.
"I don't know... Everything just... The world is spinning really fast." Caroline inhales deeply, trying to catch her breath. She feels hot, like she's walked into an oven. "Who turned up the heat?"
"No one." Rebekah puts a hand on her forehead, and then on her neck. "Oh, bloody hell. You're burning up."
Caroline slumps back against the chair, scrunching her eyes shut against the heat and the dizziness. And then it hits her.
"Oh, shit," she grumbles, trying to focus on Rebekah's face again. "I think something happened to Sophie."
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Things were looking brightly promising after Elijah's encounter with Davina at the church. The little witch was hesitant, but enticed and more than eager to learn. It's not every day one gets their hands on a page straight from the book of the Original witch. Even someone as young as Davina knew exactly the kind of treasure she held in her hands - and to have access to more, she'd have to cooperate.
Elijah was cautiously optimistic. With Davina's youthful ardor and her keenness to control her own magic, not to mention the kind of power she harbored inside of her after the failed Harvest ritual, it wouldn't take long before she managed to unlink Caroline from Sophie Deveraux.
Rebekah's phone call, however, completely soured Elijah's mood.
Truth be told, Elijah wasn't completely opposed to the magical bond between the mother of Niklaus' daughter and Sophie, not from the start, anyway. Even with all the obvious downsides, the fact Caroline couldn't leave New Orleans was a good thing for their family. He's certain she would've never stayed with them if she thought she had a choice. And considering she's a witch herself - and a talented one, by his siblings' accounts - she would only ever be found if she desired so. After Niklaus' appalling behavior upon being delivered the news, well... It's safe to say that would never happen. Caroline and the child would be forever lost to them, and with them, Elijah's hopes of ever making their family united again.
However inconvenient, Sophie Deveraux's little scheme had its perks.
But Elijah has since changed his mind. He woke up to find out the girl had been targeted by the very witches with whom he bargained a deal on her behalf, and the aftermath of that disastrous kidnap attempt at the Bayou makes him believe they're not ready to give up. They'll come for Caroline again, and Sophie is an irreparable weakness. Unless they are willing to take her into their home and keep her under strict surveillance 24/7 - which, to be clear, they aren't -, anyone could use her to harm Caroline. Not all the protection three Originals can provide to that girl will be enough to keep her safe as long as that link exists.
Even at the risk of having Caroline choosing to leave them, the link must be extinguished. Elijah would rather let her go than let her die.
Niklaus would probably voice a different opinion, he's afraid. One more on the lines of She's neither dying nor going anywhere, even if I have to lock her up in a dungeon to ensure it.
He so lacks the subtlety of human connections, his brother...
Right now, however, Elijah's afraid they might be too late.
After Rebekah calls to report on Caroline's complaint of having felt a stabbing pain on her neck, he and Niklaus go straight to Rousseau's to find Sophie. But what they encounter there is not at all encouraging.
The kitchen has all the signs of a struggle, and another witch is lying on the floor, unconscious. "Sabine," Niklaus informs him, baring his teeth at the woman, ready to rip out her head just to placate the obvious growing rancor inside of him. Elijah remembers the woman from the night when Niklaus was brought to New Orleans, and Caroline was telling him about her just this morning. The one who found out she's expecting a girl - and also the reason behind the witches' sudden decision to have his niece murdered before she's even born.
If she wasn't their only witness, Elijah wouldn't be opposed to letting his brother work out his discontentment whichever way he pleases.
As it is, however...
"We need her alive," he says, biting on his wrist and crouching down beside the girl to feed her a bit of his blood.
Klaus grunts something unintelligible behind him, but remains still. Angry and impatient though he may be, Niklaus is far from stupid.
The witch's eyes fly open not ten seconds later, scared and electric.
Elijah offers her a hand and helps her stand to her feet, which she does with a painful groan.
"What happened?" he asks.
"It was Agnes," Sabine replies with a grimace. "Her men took Sophie."
"Day one in charge, brother, and already the witch linked to Caroline has been abducted by zealots," Niklaus hisses. "What do they want?"
"I don't know."
"Where is she?" Elijah asks, trying to stand between his brother and Sabine. Klaus' patience isn't going to last for much longer.
Sabine shakes her head. "If I tell you where Agnes is, you'll just kill her."
"Oh, is it that obvious?" Niklaus derides.
"I know she's a little cuckoo, but she's our last living elder. That might not mean a lot to you but it means plenty to us. The elders are the only ones who can do important spells."
"Like completing the Harvest ritual?" Elijah asks.
Sabine's eyes widen with a mixture of shock and worry. "You know about that?"
"You'd be astounded by the things I know."
"Enough of this!" Niklaus growls, pushing Elijah out of the way. "Tell me where she is, now, or your last living elder won't be the only dead witch by the end of the day," his brother speaks measuredly through grit teeth, his eyes flashing yellow.
Sabine takes a step back, swallowing, perhaps trying to play hard, or perhaps now too scared to speak. Either way, Elijah is done playing games.
"I think what my brother is attempting to communicate here is that neither the life of this elder nor the Harvest ritual nor your coven's connection to magic is of any relevance to him whatsoever. So I suggest you start talking."
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Klaus cannot guarantee he won't do something incredibly idiotic which he will terribly regret if his hands get anywhere within reach of Sophie Deveraux, so he stands back and lets Elijah break her free of the chains Agnes put her in.
Aside from having been a little roughed up by her fellow witches as they dragged her here and immobilized her with the chains, Sophie looks fine. Which makes no sense. Rebekah's called them twice already, saying Caroline's fever is skyrocketing.
"Speak," he orders as soon as Elijah puts her down.
"Agnes stuck me with a needle," she says, rubbing her bruised wrists. "It's a dark object, called needle of sorrows. It was created -"
"I don't care about context. Skip a few decades and go straight to what it does, will you, love?"
She stops for a moment, swallowing. "It kills a child in utero by raising the blood temperature."
Elijah turns to him, a panicked look on his face. "It's for a miscarriage."
Klaus' beast roars inside of him as he feels something snap. In a second, he's on Sophie, pushing her against the wall and breathing barely-controlled anger twists from rage in front of her. His gum itches as his fangs beg to be used. "I am sick of you witches trying to harm the mother of my child."
"Niklaus," Elijah says, placing a hand on his shoulder. "The link."
He lets go of the woman, who lets out a gasp as she drops to the floor.
"How much time do we have to fix this?" Elijah asks, keeping his voice cool. But Klaus can see the worried lines on his forehead, the way his shoulders tense. His brother is about to snap, too. These witches are playing with fire.
"It'll do what it's meant to by tonight's high tide," Sophie explains. "And believe me, it will work."
"Believe me when I say you most definitely don't want it to work," he barks at her.
"Where can we find Agnes?" Elijah asks.
"You can't. There are a thousand places she could hole up to wait it out. I doubt she's even at the French Quarter."
Elijah sighs in frustration. "That's precisely why we need to unlink you from Caroline. This can't go on. No more putting her or the child in danger."
"What? No!" Sophie protests, standing to her feet. "If I'm not linked to Caroline, I lose my leverage on you. We had a deal."
"We are not on the same side, Sophie Deveraux, your people have made that crystal clear," Elijah says, an undertone of danger on his cold voice that Klaus knows only too well. His brother disguises his monster better than the rest of them, but he's just as ruthless, and in certain occasions, like when his family is threatened, more. "You lied, and your guarantees seem to be rather null when Caroline and the child keep being endangered by your own people. We kept our part of the bargain, but you have repeatedly undermined yours. So our deal no longer stands."
Sophie opens her mouth to argue, desperation flashing across her eyes as she realizes her whole plan is about to crumble. Before she can start, though, Klaus walks up to her again, shutting her up with a golden glare. "If I were you, I would be very careful now. As soon as you're unlinked, or if anything happens to her or to my child, you and your entire coven will be wiped out from the face of earth in excruciating pain."
"Well. You heard him," Elijah says, standing shoulder to shoulder with him as they stare down the conflicted witch.
Sophie has a choice now. She can either side with them and do whatever is in her power to save the child and, therefore, her own life, or she side with her fellow witches, kiss goodbye to their Harvest ritual and pray that Klaus never finds her.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Rebekah is not at all surprised that Caroline is a nightmare as a sick patient. The worse she feels, the more restless she becomes. Rebekah has to make use of her vampire strength in a moment of weakness, when dizziness takes over and Caroline nearly tumbles, to carry her into the bedroom and make her lie down.
Rebekah puts cool towels on her head and on her belly, but the fever only gets worse. At some point, she's so hot she starts alternating between moments of clarity and hallucinations. Starts calling Rebekah Elena, trying to push her off as Rebekah holds her down on the bed. "You don't understand, Elena! I'm pregnant! I can't just lie down, I have to do something!"
She never thought taking care of one human girl could be so exhausting, but it makes sense that Caroline would be a handful. Nik likes them spirited. Too spirited, perhaps.
At least taking care of Caroline gives Rebekah a distraction from her own anxiety. She's called Elijah about a million times already and there's still no conclusive answer. Last time they spoke he told her he was on his way home. She hopes to God he's bringing a cure along with him. Her chest feels tight, heavy, at the thought of anything bad happening to this child. She doesn't really share Elijah's idealism, but she's come to care a lot more about this baby than she ever thought she would. Rebekah's opinion that Niklaus is the worst father material this world has ever produced remains unchanged, but she cannot deny that what he and Caroline made really is a miracle. And in any case, it's her blood, her niece.
Caroline starts stirring again, trying to remove the towel from her head.
"Don't fuss," Rebekah says, taking the towel from her and wetting it again in a basin by the bed, before wringing it and putting it back on her sweaty forehead.
Caroline takes a deep shuddery breath, giving Rebekah such a pitiful look the vampire has to turn away for a moment. She's so scared, the poor thing.
"Elijah should be home any minute," she says, trying to offer some measure of comfort, however flimsy.
"And Klaus?"
Ah. It's not Elijah the brother Caroline wants to hear from.
"I don't know. They were together, but..." she trails off, shrugging a little.
Caroline groans, removing the towel from her belly.
"Would you stop doing that?" Rebekah slaps her hand away.
"These are awful," she protests. "They're hot and humid. It feels worse."
"Just because you're carrying a baby, doesn't mean you get to act like one."
"That's easy for you to say. You're the one who's been microwaved."
"I'm sure my little niece is healing you up as we speak."
"I don't think the vampire blood is working, Rebekah."
No. Of course it isn't. But Rebekah wants to believe otherwise, that the baby's magical blood is fighting this weird infection that took root on Caroline, because she dreads the alternative.
"Rebekah?" Elijah calls from the first floor.
"Up here!" she calls back, jumping to her feet. "Caroline's room!"
A moment later, her brother is there, and she's about to let out a sigh of relief when she sees who he brought with him.
"What the hell is she doing here?" she demands.
Sophie stops by the door, raising both her palms in the air in a sign of surrender. "I'm trying to help."
"Help? You're the reason we're in this bloody mess," she spits out, then turning to Elijah like her brother has gone completely insane. "Why aren't we unlinked with this witch already?"
"We're working on it. In the meantime, let her do what she can."
"I may know a way to slow the fever down, but I'm gonna need some special herbs. I'll text you a list. You can find them in Katie's shop."
Rebekah senses a dozen less than polite expletives rise to her lips. The nerve! But then she sees the silent plea in Elijah's face, which means that he's run out of options and Sophie Deveraux is their best shot.
For fuck's sake.
"Fine. Glad to play fetch girl," she says, taking one last look at Caroline's dejected form, reminding herself she's doing this for her niece and storming out.
This thing better work, or she swears to God she's going to paint that room red with Sophie Deveraux's blood.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Rebekah is going to leave them.
She was always determined to enjoy her moment of reprieve away from Niklaus. With their brother busy in New Orleans, she's free to go wherever she wants, do whatever she wants, and that's not a freedom Rebekah has enjoyed many times over the past few centuries. It's selfish to even ask her to stay for the sake of the family when that's what she's done for hundreds and hundreds of years at great personal cost, but still Elijah hoped that the baby would persuade her to change her mind.
He can see now that his plan has failed. His sister is all but ready to fly the nest, and it's at least partly his fault for not showing her the kind of appreciation she deserves.
He writes a mental note to tell her that later, to remind her that, despite his many faults, he loves her very much. And so does Niklaus, in his own peculiar way.
But this will have to wait. There are far more important things at stake here than his sister's centuries' worth of hurt feelings.
"How are you feeling?" Elijah asks Caroline.
"Hot. Dizzy. Pissed off," she replies, drily, swallowing down hard. He immediately turns to find water, filling a glass and passing it to her. "Where's your brother?"
"He's trying to locate Agnes."
She lets out a bitter laugh, a shadow crossing her fever-ridden eyes. "It's too good a chance to exert justified revenge over someone he can actually hurt for him to pass, isn't it? He just can't help himself. Not even when - holy shit it's hot in here."
Elijah shoots a look at Sophie, who starts moving around the bedroom, gathering things.
"Agnes has used a dark object on Sophie."
Caroline falters. "What kind of dark object?"
"It's called needle of sorrows," Sophie explains. "It's raising your body's temperature to-" The witch hesitates, exchanging a quick glance with Elijah.
There's no point in keeping things from Caroline at this point.
"To force a miscarriage," Elijah finishes.
Her eyes widen with terror as she looks from him to Sophie, searching for something. Reassurance, most likely. The promise that they have a way to fix it. Elijah's heart sinks in his chest. He swore to that girl that he would keep her and her child safe, struck a deal with people he knew to be untrustworthy out of some misguided attempt to keep her by their side. Now his selfishness might cost the child's life. He won't ever be able to forgive himself for ruining his one chance of doing something right for this family, for doing something good. For not keeping his promise to her.
He should've just let her go. Found a way to break the bond between her and Sophie and told her to run. That would've been the decent thing to do, the human thing. Mikaelsons, as always, destroy everything they dare to care for. They don't know how to protect life; only how to extirpate it.
"No," Caroline says, a desperate tinge to her voice. "No, I can't let this happen. How do we stop it? What do I have to do?" She sits up in bed, her arms almost buckling under her weight as she leans on them. Elijah can't tell if it's the fever making her shake or the fear of losing her baby.
"Niklaus is trying to retrieve the object. Agnes might know how to undo it and... You know how persuasive my brother can be." Even as he says it, he knows he's lying. It's a feeble hope, and the look Sophie gives him confirms it. Dark magic has very peculiar ways. Once it takes root...
And Caroline, obviously, knows it as well. "And what if she can't?" she asks, crestfallen.
"We're trying to get you and Sophie unlinked. I'm hoping it'll come through, but we need to make time."
"And this is where I can help. I've already texted Rebekah the ingredients, she'll be here soon."
"Did you ask for... uhm... Motherwort? Valerian, also. And, uhm... Shit, I can't... Remember..." Caroline shuts her eyes, slumping back against her pillows as though suddenly losing all strength.
Elijah gives Sophie a pointed look. "We need to do something now."
The witch nods, biting on her lip thoughtfully. "Do you have... a bath?"
"We have a pool."
"Even better."
He put his arms under Caroline's body and lifts her off the bed as though she were a plume. She stirs a little, making a grimace, but doesn't open her eyes. At this point Elijah isn't sure the curse won't kill her as well. No human body can endure that kind of strain. She's soaking wet and burning up, her heart beating a lot faster than it should be possible to.
He leads the way to the back yard with Sophie on his trail, carrying her to the pool side. The witch tests the water and, apparently satisfied that the temperature is cool enough, orders him to sit her down and put her feet inside.
"I'll go grab some stuff from your kitchen to prepare the concoction," she announces, disappearing back inside the house.
Elijah removes his jacket and sits down by the pool, pulling Caroline up, leaning her back and head against his shoulder so she'll stay up, with her feet in the water.
After a moment, she seems to return to her senses, a loud groan escaping her lips. "What is this?" she asks, blinking slowly.
"Sophie says the water might help cool you down."
"Not even burying me in ice will do much help at this point."
"We just to need to buy some time for Davina to complete the unlinking spell."
"Davina?" Caroline turns to him, a tiny spark of hope in her eyes. "You spoke to her?"
He nods. "She's under the impression that the unlinking spell is a powerful manner for her to practice control, which is not entirely untrue, just... We're hijacking it a little bit. I'm sure she'll get there."
"I should've done this myself a long time ago. I don't know why I listened to that crap about the... The magic ban," she stutters a little, gasping for air again. "What's the point of being a freaking witch if I can't even... Save my own baby."
Elijah puts a hand under her chin, forcing her to meet his eyes. "None of this is your fault, Caroline," he says, softly. "You couldn't do magic because that would bring vampires straight to you, and not even a witch would be able to stop all of Marcel's army. It was our job, mine and Niklaus', to keep you safe and we have disappointed you. But I'm not giving up yet. There's still time."
Caroline looks like she's going to say something, a complex set of emotions crossing her face, but then she presses her lips shut and turns away from him.
"I got it," Sophie announces as she returns with a bunch of bowls and mixers. The moment for Elijah to say something else - to apologize or appease her - passes, and all he's left with is his helplessness.
For all his talk about the baby being his hope, he so detests it when that is all he's got.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Rebekah manages to make the trip from the plantation to the French Quarter and back in record time. Minus a small run-in with Marcel, who caught her sneaking into Katie's shop, there were no incidents. She called Nik on the way, but he didn't answer.
Her faith in Sophie Deveraux is shaky to say the least, and she would argue that Elijah's trust on her has been clearly misplaced. She speaks for the witches but doesn't seem to be able to control them at all. What kind of leader is that? One that should be deposed, in Rebekah's modest opinion. But Rebekah's opinions haven't exactly been resonating with her know-it-all brothers lately.
The only reason she's agreeing to any of this is because they are running out of time and she can't really come up with a better solution. So let Elijah have his way. But she'll have words once this is all over. The way they are conducting things around here is just plain wrong and if this is how Elijah and Nik intend to raise a child, then maybe a miscarriage won't be the end of the world.
Damn it.
Rebekah bites her tongue, her own thoughts leaving a bitter tang in her mouth. That's not really how she feels. She doesn't want the child to die, she doesn't even want Caroline to get hurt, and she's never been favorable towards that girl. But Rebekah is angry, and frustrated. She's an Original vampire, supposedly one of the most powerful beings to roam this earth, and all she can do to help is break speeding limits to fetch a couple of herbs.
The sun has already gone down by the time she returns to the plantation, and Elijah and the witch have taken Caroline to the pool. Her brother is pacing like a maniac while Caroline tries not to pass out. Sophie immediately takes to chopping and kneading and mixing things.
"How long do we have?" she asks, trying to keep her voice low so Caroline won't hear her. Not that it makes much of a difference, but she hardly thinks that adding to the already tremendous panic will help.
"We have until tonight's high tide, so..." She sends Rebekah a pointed glance. Not long, then.
"She's getting even warmer," Elijah says, touching the side of Caroline's neck. "We need to do this now."
"Get her in the water," Sophie commands.
Elijah doesn't even hesitate, just jumps inside the pool and pulls Caroline with him. She goes without a hint of a protest, as though she's hardly controlling her body anymore.
"How's a midnight swim supposed to help here?" Rebekah asks.
"Her temperature is sky high, and the water, with the help of the herbs, should cool us down."
Sophie transfers the herbs into a different bowl, mixes it with water and then jumps in the pool after them. "Here," she says, pushing the bowl to Caroline's lips. "Drink this." She obliges, but immediately starts coughing, almost gagging. "Hold it in," Sophie says, putting a finger on Caroline's lips until she can swallow the whole thing down. "We're gonna have to get her heart rate down."
"And how do you suggest I do that?" Elijah asks, sounding clearly annoyed.
"Hold her. It's a natural human remedy to slow the heart rate and reduce blood pressure."
She didn't even have to ask, really, because Caroline can barely keep herself up. Elijah pulls her closer, putting a hand under her legs and the other around her shoulder, and she curls up against him without much of a fight. Eyes closed, lips parted. She's hardly aware of what's happening to her right now, lost in a state of semi-consciousness.
"This is never going to work," Rebekah mutters, as the last shreds of hope she was clinging to begin to dissipate.
"Davina will break that link", Elijah says, but he might be trying to convince himself more than Rebekah.
One thing Rebekah knows for sure, though, is that she hasn't seen her older brother that distraught in a good many... decades? Granted, she spent a very long time separated from Elijah. But not even when their mother came back from the dead he became so overflown with concern. She realizes just how much this child means to him, and for all of her initial dismissive remarks, it has come to mean something to her as well. But...
It's not just the child.
Rebekah wasn't here when Elijah and Caroline met, she doesn't know what happened on those early days. Niklaus certainly never seemed very keen on sharing, mostly because, from what Rebekah gathered from the bits and pieces she heard, his reaction was as terrible as one would expect, and Klaus' way to deal with his shame is to bury it, pretend it's not there and become offended whenever anybody brings it up.
It's easy to understand how Caroline would become close to Elijah then, considering her baby daddy was having one of his famous temper tantrums. Her older brother is a nurturer, a protector, he's always been like that. Took onto himself the responsibility of being the head of the family, even when Finn was still around, spilling nonsense about how they should all kill themselves to atone for their sins. So he took Caroline under his wings and has extended to her the same kind of care he offers his own blood. It makes perfect sense. Elijah is exactly that kind of person. It's what Rebekah's always loved the most about him. His ability to show kindness.
Then why is this situation rubbing her all the wrong ways, then?
It becomes a little bit clearer when Caroline, in her feverish daze, starts mumbling a bunch of incoherence, and calling out for Klaus. Every time their brother's name escapes her lips, Rebekah sees a muscle tense on Elijah's jaw.
He's developing feelings for Caroline Forbes, isn't he? The damn fool.
How can he let this happen? How can he cultivate that kind of sentiment for a girl who's carrying Nik's baby? Has he spent so much time apart from their brother that he's forgotten what he's like? Can he not imagine the hell Nik will unleash upon them when he finds out? Or rather... When he confirms it. Nik is paranoid enough to have already picked up on it. How he never hesitated to put a dagger through Elijah's heart, the way he's been sulking about the house ever since he came back... He's suspicious. And oh, good lord, if Caroline ever dares to reciprocate Elijah's feelings...
This is going to end in tears. For everyone.
Rebekah doesn't know if she has the stomach to watch it happen.
Caroline suddenly gives a violent jerk, coming out of her semi-comatose state to claw desperately at her own throat. "I can't... I ca... Breathe..." she whirs out, her eyes bulging as panic takes over.
"Do something!" Rebekah yells at Sophie, who's still inside the pool. Useless witch.
"Caroline, look at me," Elijah coos, softly, taking her hands in his. "Long, deep, breaths... That's it. Calm down. You'll be ok. You'll be ok."
Miraculously, she seems to settle for a moment, gasping for air as she locks eyes with Elijah. But the calm only lasts a second. She starts screaming in pain, clutching her belly, squirming in the water. Elijah grabs her, keeps her from going under, and she passes out again in his arms.
Both Mikaelsons look at Sophie, ridden with fear and confusion. The witch blinks calmly. "I just felt it lift," she says.
"What? The link is broken?" Rebekah asks.
Sophie gets out of the water and takes a knife from where she was preparing the potion, making a small cut on her hand. Elijah takes Caroline's hand to check. There's nothing.
"What about the baby?" Rebekah asks.
"I can hear it," Elijah says. "The heart. It's still beating."
Rebekah sharpens her hearing, canceling out all the other noises. And sure enough, there it is. Tiny and fast, too fast maybe, but beating nonetheless. Alive.
Sweet relief floods Rebekah as a weight in her chest lifts.
The baby is ok and the bloody link has been broken. At least this nightmare is over.
Elijah puts Caroline, still unconscious, on the edge of the pool and then pulls himself out of the water. That's one pair of Italian shoes he can kiss goodbye to.
"Elijah," Sophie calls, sheepishly. "As soon as your brother finds out that the link is broken, he'll kill Agnes. I know you don't owe me anything, but please don't let him kill her."
Elijah doesn't even dignify her request with a look, which seems harsh even for Rebekah. He crouches down and picks Caroline up in his arms again.
"Please," Sophie continues. "She's our only access to the power we need to survive. I will do anything - whatever you want me to, to make sure the witches won't charge against the baby again. But we need Agnes. Promise me that you'll stop Klaus."
Elijah finally turns to her. "In spite of having summoned my brother here, you seem to have some terrible misconceptions about him. For starters, he hardly ever listens to anyone, not even me. One person whose opinion he does seem to value, however seldom, is this girl. The one your people attacked."
"Elijah, please."
He hesitates for a moment. "I won't let him kill Agnes. You have my word."
He whirls around and goes back inside the house. The witch turns to Rebekah then, a silent plea in her eyes.
"Sorry. I could help, but I don't really want to," she says with a shrug. "Also, try to pull off anything like this again and I'll kill you," Rebekah adds before following her brother.
She finds Elijah putting Caroline gently down on a chair in her room.
"Can you take care of her?" he asks, not needing to turn around to know Rebekah is watching him. "The sheets on her bed need to be changed."
"Sure. And now that the link has been broken, maybe we can start making plans about -"
"Not now, Rebekah," he says, turning around and brushing by Rebekah to go change out of his wet clothes. "Can we talk about this when I return?"
"Where are you going?"
"To find Niklaus."
Of course he is.
Rebekah was naive to ever think he'd leave New Orleans with her. Elijah lives his life just waiting for an opportunity to let bygones be bygones, forgive the past and join Klaus again, and now he has the best reason of all.
She only hopes that Caroline and the baby don't end up coming between them. If anything, then for the girl's own good.
"I suppose you couldn't just wake up change your own clothes, could you?" she mutters to Caroline before letting out a resigned sigh.
As annoyed as she is by all this, she's also relieved. They came real close to losing this baby tonight. Of all the things that have fractured this family's bonds over the centuries, she doesn't think anything would ever hit harder than the loss of her miracle niece - and possibly Caroline, as well. Nik would certainly take ages to get over it, if ever. She'll play maid to Caroline, just this once. After what she went through tonight, she deserves a respite.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Klaus twirls the needle of sorrows in his hand, eyes never leaving the face of the haughty witch sitting across from him.
His calm exterior is all but a façade. Klaus is exploding with rage on the inside. He can feel the blood pumping through Agnes' body in his bones, the vein on her neck jumping at him, begging to be drained. The beast inside is roaring, desperate to be unleashed. But he waits. And the calmer he remains, the longer the silence lasts, the more antsy the witch becomes. She thinks she's doing a good job at keeping her dignity, but Klaus can hear the way her heart is hammering in her chest. How every time he moves, or blinks, or grins, her guts clench and her whole body goes stiff. He can smell the fear on her. He'd forgotten how satisfying that was - to relish the capture before the kill. But he'll appreciate sinking his teeth into Agnes' poisonous flesh just as much. And he'll be sure to make it hurt.
Maybe he'll turn a cauldron of boiling water into her mouth. Let her know how good it feels to be cooked from the inside out.
The wait is giving him time to have ideas. He was annoyed by Elijah's request that he waits before finishing her. If he'd done as he pleased, she would've gotten a quick death, hours ago. As it is, who knows where Klaus' creative evil genius will take them by the end of the night?
Agnes will beg for mercy before he's done with her.
Klaus enlisted the help of the human faction to find Agnes. The witches have angered quite a few of them, and they were more than happy to use their archaic intelligence to track her down. It didn't even take that long. He caught her trying to escape a house in the Bayou. All alone, the silly witch. Didn't even try to run. It was either getting caught by him, or getting caught by Marcel, if she tried to use magic. Agnes mistakenly assumed that Klaus wouldn't end her, hoping that the agreement between Sophie and Elijah would save her life. He's a bit offended that those witches don't seem to know him at all, truth be told.
Well, no matter. They'll get a thorough introduction before the night is over.
Elijah called him half an hour before to tell him it's over. Davina managed to undo the link and Caroline and the child are out of danger.
Something inside of Klaus seemed to turn over then, and he breathed as though for the first time in hours. The world seemed to fall back into focus around him; he'd been seeing everything through the blurry lenses of hatred.
"You should go to her," Elijah told him at the cemetery. "I'll go find Agnes."
And he'd wanted to. How badly he'd wanted to... But that was precisely why he couldn't. Klaus doesn't know how to sit back and watch. How to wait for other people, other circumstances, to do his bidding. He wouldn't be able to stand still while Caroline burned in fever and their child slowly died. He wouldn't be able to look into her eyes and admit he had no idea what to do. He wouldn't know what to say. Just to imagine her disappointment... And if the baby died...
No. Klaus couldn't go to her. He had to find Agnes, whom he could torture and break and terrorize to exorcise all the frustrations eating away at him. That he knows how to do.
As much as it pains him to admit it, Elijah would be a far more soothing presence to Caroline in that moment than he ever could.
And in any case, it's over now. And all there's left to do is decide Agnes' fate.
He'd be lying if he said he doesn't find this part delightful.
"This is quite a large needle," he says, his lips curling into a wicked smile as Agnes shifts in her place. "I wonder what it'd feel to stick it in your eye. I was thinking of maybe boiling you alive, but perhaps leaving bits of you artfully arranged outside your family's tomb leaves a more fitting message, wouldn't you agree?" He stands to his feet, and the woman shudders from head to toe. "It says Don't touch my family."
Just as he's starting to feel that he's at the end of his patience and ready to get it over with, Elijah arrives. Klaus hears as his car parks outside and, seconds later, his brother is there, face unreadable as he takes in the sight of the terrified Agnes, unfortunately still in one piece.
"I gave my word, Niklaus," his brother starts. "That you wouldn't touch her."
Klaus growls, his lips curling back into an ugly grimace. In a blur, he's grabbing Agnes and pulling her up, his fingers digging into her neck, read to rip it open with his claws. "You tend to give your word at the most inopportune of times, brother. If you think I'll spare this witch's life after what she did today, you're completely delusional."
"Niklaus, do not make another move," Elijah says, his voice deceptively calm. "You have asked for my forgiveness for putting me in a coffin. I will grant you that forgiveness, but do not make me break my word."
Klaus grinds his teeth, his jaw muscles twitching. A roar that comes from somewhere deep inside of him escapes his lips and, painfully slowly, he commands his body to let go. Everything in him wants to taste Agnes' blood. But he owes Elijah, both for daggering him and for what he did for Caroline today, and his brother has a penchant for picking the worst of times to collect.
He opens his arms in an overtly dramatic manner as he steps away from Agnes. It physically hurts to let that woman go free. "My noble brother," he speaks from behind grit teeth. "How's that for personal growth, eh? It is just like you to spoil my fun."
"Not exactly."
In a blink, Elijah's on Agnes' face, grabbing her by the neck with something feral flashing behind his eyes. The woman whimpers, emanating fear from every pore on her body.
"I swore you would not die by my brother's hand. I said nothing of my own." Elijah squeezes, a sharp wheeze squeaking from her mouth before he twists her neck violently to the side. Agnes drops to the floor like a sack of potatoes.
Now, that was truly unexpected. Klaus is too stunned to even speak. He should be mad Elijah stole the honor of finishing Agnes from him, but something in his eyes make him hesitate. Elijah is... Distraught. Burning with anger. In fact, Klaus sees a lot of himself reflected in his brother's demeanor in that moment. And he can only imagine what it must've been like back at the plantation house, the horror Caroline must've been put through. For Elijah to be driven out of his mind with vengeance this way, it was a lot uglier than he made it sound like over the phone.
"No one hurts my family and lives. No one," he says before whirling around and walking back to his car.
Klaus can't help the smile that creeps onto his lips. Divergences aside, he is actually proud of his big brother.
He wanted so desperately to be more like Elijah... Well, it seems they have more in common than he thought.
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Caroline wakes up from something that isn't so much sleep as an unnatural state of unconsciousness.
The last thing she remembers clearly is the heat. Impossible. Suffocating. Consuming her from the inside out. It felt like dying an excruciatingly slow death. The pain itself is gone, but the memory is it is imprinted on her nerves, echoing inside of her.
She can vaguely recall water. Did they take her to the pool? And then Elijah talking to her. Telling her to breathe. That she would be all right. And that's about as far as her memory goes.
Her baby.
Caroline sits up like a thunder, putting a hand on top of her belly. Did they stop the magic? Did they break the link? It's dark outside, and she doesn't feel like she's been out for long, but it could've been hours. She doesn't even know how long she hallucinated for. She feels slightly uncomfortable, but not in pain. And she isn't bleeding either. If the dark object had been successful, she should be having a miscarriage right now. So that's a good sign. Right?
Somehow, they managed to stop it. Davina must've undone the link, after all. And in the nick of time, if Caroline's hazy memory is anything to go by.
She shuts her eyes, takes a deep breath, feels a weight lifting off her chest. That was close. Closer than the vampires at the French Quarter and closer than the witches in the Bayou. God, can't a girl just have a break? She just wants to have regular mom-to-be concerns for a change, like swollen ankles and fighting Klaus on baby names.
It doesn't escape her that someone's changed her clothes and maybe even cleaned her up a bit. She remembers enough to know she was gross from all that sweat. And coming to think of it - her sheets were changed as well. She hopes to God it was either Rebekah or Sophie and not Elijah. Or Klaus. But Klaus wasn't there. Klaus is never there.
Damn it, how she wants to speak to Klaus... Maybe yell at him a little bit for not being home while she went through the scariest moment of her life. Caroline's faced near death several times before, but somehow this felt worse. It felt real and unstoppable and her baby was dying faster than she was and there was shit she could do. Rebekah was incredibly supportive and Elijah did manage to calm her down a little, but all Caroline wanted was for Klaus to be there. It doesn't matter that he'd gone after Agnes. Agnes could freaking wait.
It's been over a month and she has no idea where Klaus stands with this pregnancy. He's committed, to a certain degree; that much is obvious. But sometimes she gets the feeling he wants to distance himself from it as much as possible. Like he might have an ulterior motive to want a baby, but definitely does not want to be a father.
Caroline wishes he would just talk to her. He certainly seems to have no problem talking to Camille.
Ugh.
If the witches, or the vampires, or the other witches don't get her killed, this family probably will.
She gets out of bed, stretching out her arms and smiling as she realizes she's not sore in any obvious ways. "Good baby", she mutters, patting her belly gently.
The house is oddly quiet. After all that madness, Caroline expected to find the siblings up in arms. But lights are out everywhere and there's not a sound. "Klaus?" she calls. Silence. "Elijah? Rebekah?"
Great. She's home alone.
And hungry, she realizes as her stomach starts to grumble.
She makes a peanut butter and jam sandwich and eats half of it when someone starts banging on the front door.
Caroline freezes, standing very still, quickly thinking of places to hide - and then she realizes if it was someone trying to hurt her, they would probably not bang on the door, would they? Especially since the house is clearly empty.
She approaches the door tentatively, preparing to send caution to air and just use magic if they try to jump her.
It's Josh, Klaus' compelled newbie vampire.
"Jesus, Josh," she says. "It's the middle of the night."
"Where's Klaus? I need to speak with him," he says, urgently.
"Get in line. He's not here, I don't know where he is."
Josh clicks his tongue. "I've been trying to reach him all day, he's no answering his phone."
"Yeah, well. It's been a rough day. Have you tried Rousseau's?" she suggests, not exactly hiding the bitterness on her voice. If Klaus really is at Rousseau's having a heart-to-heart over a drink with Camille after what happened, she's seriously going to flip. But only on the inside, because she'd never give him the satisfaction of knowing it bothers her on a personal level.
"Yeah, he wasn't there." Well, good. "Can you please tell him to call me as soon as you see him? It's important. Marcel knows he's lying about where he lives."
Oh.
Oh.
"Ok, sure. I'll let him know."
"Thank you."
Josh doesn't even wait for her to shut the door before he whooshes away. That explains the haunted look on his face. He's probably scared Marcel will find out about him next. And Klaus probably threatened him in case he failed to inform him of anything important. Josh seems like a nice guy. Caroline feels sorry for him.
She's not even back to the kitchen yet when there's another bang. "Oh, holy crap," she grumbles, turning around and pulling the door open ready to berate Josh with a I was almost fried today and I'm trying to eat a freaking sandwich, can you give me five minutes, Josh? but she stops. Her words die in her mouth, her whole body freezing.
It's not Josh.
"Well, well, well. Hello there. I believe we haven't been introduced yet," the visitor says, a bright, charming smile as big as the world on his face and a dangerous glint in his dark eyes. "I'm Marcel."
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
It's late when Klaus finally gets home.
After Elijah left, he took Agnes' body to Lafayette Cemetery. Not as a courtesy to the witches, but as a warning. Try anything like this again and you'll end up like your last remaining elder. Nothing like a good lesson to teach some decent manners to rebellious witches.
He considered stopping by the Quarter to be seen around Palace Royale, but he's done for tonight. It's not every day Klaus gets this sort of feeling. Not so much a physical exhaustion, but a weariness that runs deeper, seeps into his bones and makes him crave for a few hours of sleep.
It's not every day Klaus feels like sleeping.
It's something about needing this day to be over, maybe. Sleeping sometimes gives that feeling of closure.
He also needs to feed. The more distraught he feels, the hungrier he gets. Elijah didn't just steal his murder victim, he also stole his dinner. A trip to the French Quarter would also give him a chance to find a quick snack, but fresh food can wait. He can make do with a blood bag - or three - this evening.
Above all, he needs to see Caroline.
Just to see with his own eyes that she's safe. Part of him is still not entirely at ease.
He's just parked his car outside the house, right next to Elijah's, when his phone rings.
It's Marcel.
Klaus grunts in annoyance. What could he possibly want at 2 am?
"Marcel. Do you happen to own a watch, mate?"
"I thought you'd be up. Friend of mine just saw your close to the witch cemetery."
Bloody brilliant. "Just paying my respects. Can I help you with anything?"
"You're not still mad about our tiff the other night, are you?"
"Water under the bridge."
"Listen... I just had the pleasure to meet a friend of yours."
"Really?"
"Yeah. She's cute. I was wondering why you never introduced us. Afraid I'd still your girl?"
Klaus' eyes narrow to slits. "I'm not sure I'm following."
"Oh, you must know who I'm talking about. Caroline."
Klaus goes instantly into alert mode, eyes searching for any sign that he's being watched. There's no movement, no sounds, no lights...
"You've met Caroline?" he asks, trying to keep it as casual as possible. He needs to know how much Marcel knows. Maybe he didn't meet her, maybe someone told him about her. Josh. When Klaus gets his hands on that mouthy little -
"It's the funniest thing, actually. I swung by your place earlier to commiserate over a drink and there she was."
Klaus' eyebrows furrow in confusion. "You stopped by the Palace Royale?"
"No, man. I mean your other place. The one you didn't tell me about? Loved what you did to the house, by the way. I remembered it differently from my days as a slave there."
Klaus stops listening, turns back to the house. His heart lurches inside his chest.
Marcel has been here, and he knows about Caroline.
"Anyway. Just thought it would be nice to let you know. You know, since we're friends and you've got nothing to hide and all. I'll talk to you later."
As soon as Marcel ends the call, Klaus storms through the door. The house is mostly dark, but he follows Elijah's voice to the second floor.
He's in Caroline's room, talking on the phone.
"I said Caroline's gone, Rebekah. She's not here. Where is she?"
A knot twists painfully inside Klaus' chest, fear unfurling in his guts. Not the nightwalkers, the witches, or even Agnes' dark objects; the thing that frightened Klaus the most was Marcel finding out about Caroline. About the child.
The despair must show on his features, because when Elijah turns to him, his expression morphs into one of sheer panic.
"What is it?"
Klaus balls his hands into fists at his sides, his jaw set.
"Marcel was here."
TBC
A/N 1: I mention Esther killed Tatia and yes, I know it was actually Elijah, but this is TO season 1. At this point, neither Klaus or Elijah knew about that yet. They only find out in season 2, when Esther comes back and opens that whole red door nonsense and then Elijah remembers he was the one who murdered the woman he loved (and a lot of crappy existential crisis ensue). At this point, all Klaus knows is that Esther killed Tatia to use her doppelganger blood to perform her spells.
A/N 2: I KNOW a lot of you will say you missed a Klaroline sweet moment here, and I agree. I love writing those moments. But I really needed the stuff that happens in this chapter to happen like this because it triggers a lot of events going forward. Klaus has to be in a certain mind frame for things to happen as they should, if you know what I mean. Either way, I feel like this is a necessary moment for Klaus and Elijah in the story. So I hope you can forgive me for this and still appreciate the update and where the story is going and just in case anyone gets worried, DON'T. Elijah and Caroline are not going to be a thing, I promise. I just want the drama.
A/N 3: I'm thinking I might have to add two more chapters to this story. :( What do you guys think?
Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it! :) Drop me a note and let me know your thoughts!