Without further delays... My eternal gratitude with be below.


Freedom.

It should be the best feeling in the word for someone that spent centuries evading capture but it wasn't. It was just too good to be true. Too easy to be true. A person like Klaus Mikealson doesn't just change over night because a pretty blonde bats her lashes, not if she's being realistic here. For the moment Katherine was free since aforementioned pretty little blonde had the bastard far from New Orleans at current times. So here sat newly free Katherine Pierce bar hopping in the French Quarter instead of sun bathing on the nearest beach. Not exactly what she had in mind but it was still very good luck that she stayed because she was privy to some new information via eavesdropping. Information that she was going to share with a certain someone that had been her shadow for the past half hour.

Katherine downed the last shot, not bothering to pay since the bartender was already compelled and slipped off the bar stool towards the door. In true Katherine Pierce fashion she swayed her hips in form fitted black jeans and heels, enjoying the never changing sex appeal that being a vampire provided as humans looked on. There was an extra sway to those hips as the shadow that followed close behind was certain to be following the movement and she gave her curls a shake over top of her leather jacket, remembering how he loved the feel of them beneath his fingers.

Why not mix business and pleasure?

Katherine slowed her steps and tilted her head to the side to speak over her shoulder while not turning around.

"You might as well walk beside me since we both know you're tagging along."

It took mere moments for him to join her.

"Hello Katherine."

"Hello Elijah." She tossed him a smug smile while turning back to face forward. "After six hundred years of following me around you think you could be a bit more discreet."

"You only knew of my presence because I wanted you to. What dive are we head off to now?"

"Well yours of course." The answer earned her a questioning look from the Original.

"Come to welcome us to our new home, how thoughtful of you." Elijah's tone was playful but still guarded.

"I'm bored." Katherine pouted while shooting Elijah a look. "Caroline's off to Georgia and took that bastard with her, Enzo isn't answering his phone so that means he is shacked up somewhere with your sister and Kol couldn't care enough to bother looking for me."

"I'm honored to be your source of entertainment." Elijah gave her a gentle smile but knew there was more. There was always more were Katherine was concerned and he knew he wouldn't get anything else out of her while they were still in the streets. A few blocks later and the pair made it to the compound in the heart of the city. Compelled humans were taking away Marcel's old belongings while some where on their hands and knees scrubbing blood off the hardwood floors. Considering the amount of death that took place just a few days ago, the buildings was in surprising shape.

"I'll assume you want privacy and comfort so the study upstairs is more to your liking." Elijah motioned his hand towards the stairs as he walked with Katherine just behind. "The battle was contained to mostly downstairs so there wasn't as much to fix in the higher levels."

Katherine inspected the room, a few centuries old chairs in front of an equally ancient mahogany desk. Her feet wondered to a glass window that overlooked the streets.

"So what is it you need to discuss? You can't convince me you are only here for social reasons." Unknown to Katherine, Elijah's eyes traced the lines of her curves as he sat in one of the vacant chairs.

"You know me so well." Katherine may joke but the statement was still true. She held the smirk on her face as she turn to give her full attention to the man in the chair. "So I've been taking in the local scenery and those little fluffy donuts things covered in sugar. What do the locals call them again?"

Katherine tapped an index finger to her painted red lips while looking off in thought, silently searching for the answer she already knew.

"Beignet Katherine. Please tell me where I fit into this equation?"

"Right Beignet. After I enjoyed a bakers dozen of those, I started my day drink at LaFitte's where I stumbled upon a group of vampires. One was about six foot, brown hair with a cute smile. I thought it was funny since we killed so many of them just a few days ago so I listened in."

Katherine sauntered over to the desk and sat before the Original, crossing her legs as she delighted in the flicker of annoyance he let slip.

"Who were they? Drifters?"

"I'm thirsty Elijah would you mind getting me a drink?" Elijah sat unimpressed and not moving at her request. "Fine! The brown haired guy was named Josh. I've also been keeping my own tabs on Klaus since I've been in town. You know, keep you enemies closer. Then I remembered Klaus had this vampire slave named Josh. They left I followed."

Katherine leaned back on the desk to steady herself with her hands and watched Elijah absorb the new information.

"There were survivors." Elijah spoke aloud as he walked to get his own glass of liquor, turning in time to see Katherine roll her eyes. " I suppose it's likely but I assumed any vampires left alive were bitten by Niklaus. My brother left town so unexpectedly that we hadn't begun a search of the city.

"Well you assumed wrong." Katherine slide to her feet to cross the room, removing the glass from Elijah's hand and drank the rest. They were a few foot apart and Katherine couldn't help notice his quick scan of her features. Elijah's expressions were always stoic but if you had known the Original for as many centuries as Katherine, there were tells you could pick out. A clinch of his jaw in anger, a quirk of his lips in joy but his eyes were Katherine's biggest and favorite clue. Eyes that now studied her as if she wasn't really here. Eyes she secretly admired.

"So we kill them and move on. We don't need any followers of Marcel's left to make a move of revenge."

With a shrug Katherine walked back to the desk ad leaned against it with her arms crossed to her chest.

"I just thought you should know and maybe offer my services. I do enjoy the kill from time to time."

Their gazes lingered between one another and unspoken emotion shifted between them. The rare flicker of sorrow or perhaps even longing in her former loves eyes made Katherine turn to look at anything else in the now much smaller room.

"That's not all." The raise in Elijah's voice was an attempt to get her attention but when she refused he forced the attention by stopped in her line of sight. "You could have told either of your friends this information but you chose to find me."

Arrogance laced Elijah's tone and it pushed the anger out of Katherine.

"Don't flatter yourself Elijah. I told you I was bored." Katherine's inflection was ice as she continued. "And all these centuries I thought Rebekah was the conceded one."

"A text message would have been adequate." Elijah closed another step between them. "You know I can tell when you're lying Katerina. Even if your just lying to yourself."

Katherine's head turn at her name that was rarely used and the caress that formed over each letter. Katherine Pierce wasn't one to be shaken easily by anyone, even Elijah Mikelson, so she stood from her feet to play her own game of cat and mouse.

"And what exactly are you implying?" The seduction dripped off her tongue while Katherine's hand ran up his stomach, her fingers not missing the flex of his muscles under his finely pressed suit.

"That your presence here is strictly because of me."

Elijah's perfect control was slipping and it only made her smirk. There was only one instance were he dropped all inhibitions and the noble Original veneer to became nothing more than a man. Katherine wanted that again.

Manicured fingers gripped his tie and slowly made their way up higher, one on top of the other. The movements drew them closer together as Katherine's lips stalled inches from Elijah's and the tiniest flex of his jaw muscles made her feel triumphant. She was winning.

"It's just sex Elijah. It doesn't have to be meaningful, it just needs to be pleasurable."

Another exaggeration of the true Katherine told herself because after six hundred years there was meaning in each touch. There was history in the way he spoke her given name instead of using her protective one. After six hundred years they didn't need introductions and I'm sorry, they could just be. Katherine hadn't forgotten how Elijah chose his family over her but in this moment it didn't matter.

It's just sex.

Katherine closed the last remaining inch between their lips and immediately felt strong hands on the backs of her thighs to wrap around his waist. Wind shifted around them so Katherine could be placed gently on the bare desk. They parted only for a moment so Elijah could run his palm against her cheek and push away the grey strand of hair.

"Katerina."

With as much restraint as she could, Katherine removed Elijah's suit jacket and trailed her finger down each shirt buttons until they all hit the floor. The sight of the Originals exposed chest made her draw their bodies closer together with the legs that were still wrapped around his. Of all the lovers she had taken over the centuries most of them were skilled but not in the same way and every touch made her want for more. Red lipstick stained down Elijah's stomach as Katherine's fingers removed his belt and pants until he stood only in boxer briefs, Elijah's increased breaths were one of a few sounds to fill the room. Her lips continued farther down leaving ghost touches against his erection through the fabric, fingers leaving soothing patterns against his thighs. Katherine's smirked against the head of his cock as he hardened against her lips.

"You always loved to tease..."

The remainder of Elijah's sentence was never spoke as the Katerine's small hand stroked his cock over the fabric, a groan left unintentionally. Katherine looked up with devilish eyes.

"You make it too easy."

Katherine's smugness was short lived as Elijah began his own assault of his lips against her throat, hand trailing the nape of her neck.

"Your not the only one that remembers."

Elijah's breath made Katherine's lips parted and her skin goose bumped under the hand that ran up her blouse, removing it completely. Elijah's hands lingered along the tops of her jeans and just before his hands could tear the buttons away Katherine's hand caught his.

"These are designer Elijah. I would hate for you to have to replace them."

Katherine tossed him a challenging look and he obliged by taking both her hands and gently pulling her from the desk. Elijah took one of her hands to spin her in a old fashioned dance twist so Katherine faced away from him and pulled her against him with his hand flat against her stomach.

"I'll do the honor." Elijah spoke with a whisper just before tearing the buttons from Katherine's jeans to caress her over the lace of her thong. Katherine couldn't stop the groan, a mixture of desire and exasperation, at his blatant payback.

"Whose the tease now?" Katherine peered over her shoulder as she felt her hair being swept away and soft lips trailing along her neck. "More Elijah."

The words came out in shallow breaths and Katherine moan when he finally stroked her wet folds, the contact making Katherine grind against Elijah's erection. The sensation was brief as Elijah dropped to his knees while still behind her, pulling the jeans down as he went to remove them. Elijah's hands skimmed her outer thighs and he paused to place gentle kisses along the backs of her thighs. Katherine's legs shifted apart allowing Elijah a perfect view of the wetness he felt and his lips stopped just before touching where they both wanted.

"Elijah." His name came out in a growl and Elijah palmed her ass to acknowledge her warning. Not giving her more time to protest, Elijah ran his tongue along her entrance causing Katherine to fall forward using the palms of her hands as support and her nails chipping away at the wood. The movements only allowed Elijah better access to run his tongue further inside her, dig his own nails into Katherine's supple skin as she came apart around his tongue.

All to quickly Elijah rose to his feet, delicately removing her bra to palm her breasts. Katherine's head fell back against his shoulder as she absorbed his words.

"I never imagined I would be with you again. I never imagined I could feel your skin against my own." Elijah removed his briefs and stroked his cock against her ass making Katherine shift her hips with his movements. "I never imagined I would hear my name from those lips and hearing it now is intoxicating. "

Elijah's hands slid from her breast to grasp her hips as he pushed into her, drawing moans from both of them. They weren't sweet, gentle thrust of love making but were full of passion and longing of decades past. Decades of hope they had both wanted but could no longer be.

Katherine knotted her fingers in Elijah's hair to draw his lips to hers, tongues clashing together as they both quickly found their release. Elijah stilled his movements but kept the kiss going, slowing down to a more intimate touch. Katherine's chest tighten at the emotions that were once again clawing their way free, the feeling of strong hands grazing her sides brought her back to the here and now. Katherine pull back from his touch, allowing Elijah to pull out of her in the process and stepped back to start building her guard against him again. As she gathered her button free jeans, Katherine couldn't help but catch from the corner of her eye Elijah's few seconds of pause before gathering his own clothing. He felt the connections, there was no way he couldn't.

Flipping the leather jacket over her shoulders, Katherine turned to see a mostly clothed Elijah. The silk dress shirt missing it's buttons stayed opened to reveal the smeared lipstick stains down his front, necktie and jacket tossed onto the desk along side the chipped wood from her fingernails. The softening of his ancient eyes was to much too look at and Katherine wanted nothing to do with his words.

"Katerina.."

"Since I have nothing better to do, I'll help you get rid of the young vampires. " Katherine fluffed her hair back into place, taking a few steps closer to stand tall against the Original. "I still hate you Elijah.. For what you did to me."

Elijah followed her movements as Katherine left towards downstairs where he heard her heels stop and the small thud of her falling into a nearby chair.

"Ofcourse Katerina." Elijah's murmurer was barley audible past the smile on his lips.


Author's Note:

Thank you so much to those of you that stuck it out through my writer's block. This isn't one of my longer chapters but I had this written and instead of slopping together the next part of the story, I decided to give you the best version of this chapter. I wanted you guys to know i didn't forget about this story. Honestly, this was one of my favorite chapters to write because .. le sigh .. what could have been.

Sneak peak on whats to follow, its gunna be Klaro-fied and then a flashback that will (hopefully) segue into what's happening back in New Orleans.

Please let me know what you think !

Cassondra :-)