No One's POV
"Well darling, I'll leave you and my brother to enjoy the party. Do save me a dance." Niklaus comments, turning to bow to Brooklyn, kissing her knuckles lightly.
"I will, Nik. Have fun. I hope Caroline shows." Brooklyn smiles, squeezing his hand gently.
"Thank you, love." Niklaus replies shortly turning to look at Elijah.
"I trust that you will keep my prized possession safe, brother? Let no harm come to her." Niklaus warns, staring at Elijah meaningfully.
"Of course, Niklaus. Brooklyn will be perfectly safe with me." Elijah assures, giving his brother a slight nod, however, slightly irritated that his brother somehow believed him incompetent or thought he had claim to what was rightfully Elijah's.
"Very well. Do be careful, darling. The Salvatore brothers are here and I don't trust them. They have a habit of sticking their nose where they don't belong." Niklaus warns lightly, giving Brooklyn another formal bow and his brother a nod before walking off.
"So…" Brooklyn asks, turning to look up at Elijah.
"A drink first?" Elijah offers, giving her his rare smile.
Returning to the stair case for introductions, Elijah turns to Brooklyn, leaving her near the first stair, within his eyesight.
"Stay here okay? I will be brief." Elijah assures.
"Nonsense, Elijah. Brooklyn will come with us." Niklaus interrupts, suddenly appearing beside her offering Brooklyn his arm.
"No Nik- It's supposed to be just family. I couldn't- I shouldn't intrude." Brooklyn tries to argue.
"Take my arm, Brooklyn. I'm not leaving you down here." Niklaus hisses into her ear warningly, catching sight of Damon and glaring threateningly from behind her back.
"Very well," Brooklyn sighs, noticing Niklaus' tone and linking arms with him and Elijah, allowing them to escort her upstairs once more.
Hearing Rebekah snort snottily as Brooklyn walks by, Niklaus and Elijah both give her a reproving look before settling Brooklyn strategically between them.
"Don't worry, darling, Rebekah's only jealous that you outshine her tonight." Niklaus whispers into Brooklyn's ear, making Brooklyn stifle a disbelieving laugh.
"Uh, if everyone could gather, please." Elijah announces, his voice echoing over the crowd and commanding attention.
"Welcome, thank you for joining us. You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this, it's tradition for us to commence the evening with a dance." Elijah begins, noticing his mother's dominate figure at the top of the stairs, her gaze calculating, sweeping over the crowd, but disliking the look Esther was giving Brooklyn; it was one of disdain, calculation, and disapproval.
"Tonight's pick is a centuries-old waltz, so if all of you could please find yourself a partner, please join us in the ballroom." Elijah finishes, choosing to push aside the nagging feeling in his mind and sweeping his hand in a welcoming gesture.
"Brooklyn?" Elijah asks politely, turning to Brooklyn as the crowd disperses and his siblings begin to descend the stairs.
"Thank you, Elijah." Brooklyn smiles, looping her arm through his once more, allowing Niklaus and Elijah to escort her back down the stairs.
"Go get your girl, Nik." Brooklyn says softly, touching his arm lightly in encouragement.
"Thank you, darling. Remember, save me a dance." Niklaus reminds, before excusing himself and sweeping onto the dance floor in search for the blonde cheerleader.
"Well, shall we, Miss Brooklyn?" Elijah asks formally, bending into a slight bow and kissing her knuckles.
"Of course, Master Elijah." Brooklyn laughs, taking his outstretched hand and allowing him to lead her to the dance floor as Ed Sheeran's song Give Me Love sets a solid beat to the age old waltz.
"Brother," Elijah tells Kol, capturing the youngest Original brother's attention just off the dance floor as the dance comes to completion. "I need to discuss something with Elena. Stay with Brooklyn until I return, I shall only be a moment." Elijah orders evenly, giving Kol a meaningful look as Elijah sees Elena attempt to slip unobtrusively through the crowd.
"Very well, Elijah." Kol huffs, rolling his eyes dramatically as if what Elijah had asked was some huge inconvenience to him.
"Behave, Kol." Elijah warns once before moving into the crowd.
"I always behave!" Kol huffs vainly in protest.
"I'm pretty sure no one believes that, Kol. And you don't have to stay with me. Really, I don't know why Nik and Elijah are so insistent. It's not like I'm going to trip and fall and die." Brooklyn comments, rolling her eyes at the over protectiveness of her best friend, and now her best friend's brother.
"No, really. I do. As if I want to give my brothers any more reason to try and stake me. Normally I'm all for pissing off my older brothers. But I don't fancy a dagger in the back or spending any more time in a coffin. Which is exactly what will happen if I leave you alone. My dear big brothers will have a conniption fit and ruin this wonderful ball we're hosting. Besides, I've got plenty of time to piss them off. Eternity really." Kol snorts, looking less than pleased.
"Thank you, Kol. You can leave now." Elijah's voice interrupts, tone unreadable, quickly dismissing his brother and grabbing Brooklyn's attention.
"Whatever, Elijah. Farewell, Brooklyn." Kol bids goodbye, giving Brooklyn a flourished, over dramatic, bow, and a light kiss to her knuckles before once more flouncing off.
"I hope my brother didn't bother you too much." Elijah comments mildly, offering his arm once more to Brooklyn like the gentleman he is.
"No, Kol was fine. I really don't see what's Nik is always ranting about." Brooklyn offers.
"Very well… Now, would you care to join me for a walk through our gardens?" Elijah inquires, a small smile playing at his lips.
"Sure. Air would be lovely." Brooklyn replies, smiling brightly in return.
Her smile was radiant, it lit up the entire room and pulled on emotions long since buried and made his dead heart want to beat again. Elijah suddenly couldn't picture a life without her smile. And he knew that he would do anything, move the sun and the stars if needed, to assure her happiness and to see that smile grace her angelic features.
"It's beautiful tonight," Brooklyn comments, looking up to gaze at the stars, trusting Elijah to guide her alone the pathway.
"Yes, it is," Elijah responds, though he definitely wasn't starring at the stars.
"You didn't even look!" Brooklyn accuses, a teasing smile appearing on her lips.
"I didn't need to," Elijah replies.
Smiling faintly Brooklyn looks around, her gaze landing on Niklaus, and who she assumed was Caroline. Niklaus was leading the blonde off to the side of the manor where in the distance a carriage and horse waited.
Feeling a pang of jealousy and sadness, Brooklyn quickly brushes it off and moves her attention elsewhere. She was happy for Niklaus. Really, she was. If he was happy she would be content. She was glad he had found someone to adore, even if it wasn't her. And, perhaps it was her fault for never telling him how she felt. But he had never showed any other indications otherwise and she would never push being a mate onto him.
"How long have you been in love with Niklaus?" Elijah suddenly asks, Brooklyn barely noticing that they had stopped and now sat by a water feature that dominated the back patio, Elijah's gaze burning into the side of her face with unfathomable emotions.
"What!? I- No- I'm not in love with Nik. He's my best friend." Brooklyn scoffs, going for complete denial; seriously, it wasn't that obvious to everyone, was it she wondered? That would just be pathetic, she didn't need everyone else to know it; it was a secret, just for her, well and her most trusted family and friends within her pack.
"Please, Brooklyn. It's obvious, I've seen the way you look at him. He doesn't know does he?" Elijah persists, looking at Brooklyn with unreadable expression.
It bothered Elijah's inner vampire greatly how Brooklyn looked at his brother. Of course it would, how could it not? She was his. Not his brothers. And he wanted her to look at him that way. To gaze at him with love and affection and give him all her attention.
The feelings and emotions he had for her were deep, passionate, overwhelming, and all consuming; they were emotions and feelings he thought were long since gone.
Elijah had long since given up on finding his mate; at one time he had believed it was Katerina, at one point perhaps even Celeste, but in the end all those who he had believed he loved, had never been the ones, only distractions.
Brooklyn was different. Brooklyn called to him, in a way he had never felt before. In a greater depth than Tatia, than Katerina, than Celeste, or all the other women before her. Brooklyn enticed his inner beast, and calmed the monsters that threatened to overtake him. Elijah knew she was the one he had waited for thousands of years. She was the one destined for him, made for him; his other half, his light, his redemption, his treasure.
"I- No- He doesn't. I never told him. You know sometimes I wish I wasn't, but I don't really have a choice." Brooklyn confides, starring at her hands as she twists them together.
"Perhaps you haven't found another person who you love as much. You are young." Elijah comments gently, hoping to ease into the topic of his affection for her.
"No, really. I don't have a choice, Elijah. It's not something I chose. I mean, of course it had to be thee Niklaus Mikaelson. The irony is not lost. He hunted my brother and I, he hunted our pack, we were threats, to him, and to you, his family, the Originals, and for years we evaded him until one day he found us. But, of course, fate had a different plan and I fall for the arrogant, powerful, Original Hybrid." Brooklyn snorts sarcastically.
"You- you're an-" Elijah begins, surprise evident in his expression and his thoughts completely derailed.
"An Alpha Wolf. Yes. I am. And the last of the Emrys line." Brooklyn replies, starring at Elijah evenly, her expression calculating and even, portraying no emotion.
"Incredible. I didn't- They were legends. Said to be myth. Long since extinct. And, an Emrys Descendent, the most powerful witches and warlocks to walk the earth, descendants from Merlin Emrys himself, Court Warlock to King Arthur." Elijah breaths, still staring at Brooklyn.
Pride began to fill him, pride at the thought that this magnificent, powerful, wonderful, beautiful creature was his.
"Yeah, well ta-da! Surprise! Here I am. Two powerful supernatural beings for the price of one. Yay me!" Brooklyn snort sarcastically. "Why do you think Niklaus didn't kill me or my pack? He couldn't. I'm more powerful than him and he knows it. Besides, as the most powerful person on the earth besides your family, the Originals, it was best for both of us to come to a truce. But apparently fate just had to have an ironic sense of humor and a twist of plans."
"Niklaus is your mate." Elijah states, though his tone is questioning.
He remained undeterred, however. Elijah was confident that he could win Brooklyn's affections. And if not, Elijah also knew he could never not love her, never not be there for her, and never stop trying to be what she wanted and needed.
"Yes," Brooklyn sighs.
Why she was spilling her life story and inner conflicts to Elijah, an Original who she just met half a day ago, she would never know. Elijah was easy to talk to and made her feel like he was actually interested and was actually listening to her.
"My brother doesn't see what he's missing then. He doesn't see that the best thing that could ever happen to him is already right in front of him." Elijah whispers tenderly, his hand ghosting across Brooklyn's cheek.
"Elijah." Brooklyn warns, beginning to pull away, finally catching onto Elijah's tone and noticing his expression for the first time.
"I understand that I may never be able to take the place of my brother. And I would never try to. But I can provide for you, I can protect to you, care for you, be there for you, I can love you, adore you, Brooklyn. If you give me the chance." Elijah pleads, grabbing Brooklyn's hands gently and placing them in his own.
"Elijah, I can't okay? It doesn't work that way. Niklaus will always come first. You're sweet, you're chivalrous, you're thoughtful, and considerate and god, you're perfect. But I can't. Even though it'd be nice, I could love you. But I can't do that to you. Because you would always know. It's not fair." Brooklyn explains, shaking her head and quickly standing up, smoothing out her dress and turning away.
She would not fucking cry. This was not happening to her. No, her life didn't need to get more complicated and messed up than it already was. Fate must be really laughing at her now.
"I understand, Brooklyn. I apologize for upsetting you. Think no more of it. Come, let's walk back. You're getting cold. I think my mother wants to do a toast." Elijah responds softly, quickly changing topics, respectfully understanding and acknowledging the topic was no longer appropriate, placing his coat around her shoulders and leading her towards the mansion once more.