If you recognize it, I don't own it! I own the OCs and not much else, TBH.

TW: Vampire-Werewolf-Witch violence. Also for the Tyler/Jules abusive relationship. Also for threats of rxpe and mentions of the Brady thing that happened a few chapters back… a lot happens in this chapter, guys.

Extra long chapter for you all to make up for the fact that it's been a month since the last update :D

Drop a review! Let me know how you liked the chapter :)


Miriam was firm in her belief that every time she thought the words 'my life can't get any crazier' the universe laughed at her.

The morning after her visit with Jenna and Caroline, Elijah sat her down on her bed and told her that he had found his brother. That hadn't surprised her. She knew that Elijah had been working very hard to find Klaus, and she was glad that Elijah had finally succeeded.

"I invited him here at midday," he said, watching her face closely.

Aware of his eyes on her, Miriam spoke in a voice that she hoped did not seem too nervous, "Do you think that's a good idea?"

"I would do nothing that would threaten your well-being," he said seriously.

"I know. Will Klaus be… antagonistic towards me, since I'm your mate?" Miriam knew the brothers had a strange relationship with each other. It was both extremely toxic and extremely admirable. The forgiveness the two constantly showed each other was inspiring… the frequent use of daggers decidedly less so. Miriam wanted to see their relationship healed, but she didn't necessarily want to be there when it happened. She knew what Klaus did to people who interfered with family business, and she didn't want to become another addition to Elijah's tragic stream of lovers.

"If Niklaus even tries to touch you I will remove the offending hand from his body. However, I sincerely wish it won't come to that. Vorgyðja, I confess, I hope that Niklaus will be one of your mates," Elijah said, looking uncharacteristically nervous.

Miriam blinked slowly.

After a moment of gaining her composer, she calmly said, "Explain."

"You are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I know you are destined for three others, and I pray to the old gods that those three are my brothers," he confessed. "All of us, loving you… that has the potential to unite us all. My warring brothers would have to cease their violence and actually talk through their issues. Finn, Kol, Niklaus, and I have not always seen eye to eye, but with you at the center, I believe we could repair our relationships and dominate the supernatural world if we wanted."

"I will not be a special toy to be taken away when one of you misbehaves," Miriam said, concern for her own future obvious in her tone.

"I wouldn't ask you to be," Elijah insisted, grabbing her hands in his. "All I meant is that, since meeting you, I am slowly becoming a person with different goals. A month ago I was hell-bent on revenge. This month I seek forgiveness and reconciliation with my brother. That is because of you, my lovely mate. I'm not a different person and I don't expect my brothers to be different people if they end up being your mates. But with you in our lives, how could we not change? You are the catalyst for a second chance at a better, healthier relationship with my siblings."

Miriam melted at his words, damn him. He was a smooth-talker, and she was a sucker for compliments.

"We shall see, then, if I am their mate. But we can worry about that another day. Today we have to focus on Klaus," Miriam said, bringing Elijah's hands up to her mouth. She peppered several kisses on his knuckles before releasing his hands. "You'll keep me safe?"

"Of course."

Over breakfast Elijah explained what he had planned to Miriam, June, and August. August was going to spell the property so Klaus couldn't scent Miriam out. Elijah said that when he had first met Miriam her smell had overwhelmed him and drove him to give-in to his baser instincts, hence why he had fed Miriam his blood (it was a vampire thing, apparently). June's job was to protect Miriam while Elijah and Klaus talked. If the worst happened and the two brothers fought, June was to take Miriam to safety. Though they didn't say it, Miriam could tell that June had more orders from Elijah concerning her; she was pretty sure one of those orders involved putting Miriam on a plane that was going somewhere far away.

Finally, a little before noon, Elijah and June heard a car approaching.

"Show time!" August grinned.

June smacked him over the head.

The meeting went well, all things considered. At one point Elijah had been thrown across the yard, but he had bounced back remarkably well. His suit had gotten dusty, and it had several tears in it, but that had been the worst of the destruction. At one point Klaus had rushed towards Miriam, a look of intense need on his face. The look hadn't been sexual; Miriam would relate it to how a man lost in the desert would look at water. That look was one part desperation and one part determination.

(And of course Miriam was Klaus's mate. She could hear the universe laughing.)

When she had met Elijah she had been exhausted from being up all night, in pain from being bit, and scared for her future. She hadn't wanted to watch the scene play out, hadn't wanted to watch him be near Elena. But she was a glutton for pain, so she had looked up. When her eyes connected with his, she had seen his face go intense before he flashed over and greeted her. Nothing in her own body had felt extremely different when she looked at him. At the time she believed that adrenaline had rushed through her, making her feel more awake when she saw him.

But now, meeting her second mate, Miriam could recognize the signs in herself. Elijah said vampires could tell who their mate was by scent and eye-contact. Miriam could tell by eye-contact. Now that she could compare the two meetings, she could point to similarities. Both times, after looking in their eyes, it had felt like someone had doused her with ice water. Every nerve in her body woke up. After the feeling of awake-ness had dulled, something deep inside her clicked into place. The feeling wasn't revolutionary, like some supernatural books she had read (maybe the feelings were dulled because she was human?). But it was real and present.

Klaus had reacted violently to the discovery that Miriam was his mate, but Miriam just gaped at him, wide-eyed. His eyes were blue. They weren't the same blue as Caroline's. Hers were light blue, the color of the sky at midday. They were bright and cheerful. His eyes, on the other hand, were dark blue. They were the color of the ocean. And like the ocean, they had the potential to be extremely dangerous. But despite the violence he heaped upon Elijah, Klaus didn't scream 'danger' to Miriam.

(And Klaus looked different in real life than in the shows, just like every other recognizable character she had met. His face was younger [he was around twenty-three], but just as sharp. His hair was more blond and more curly. He moved with the supernatural grace and precision that Elijah, Caroline, and June all moved with. Klaus moved like them, but was less cat-like and more canine, his movements bigger, firmer. Miriam didn't know if this difference was due to his werewolf nature or because he was less restrained than his brother).

After Elijah had calmed Klaus down, August had lowered the barrier. The resulting hour was decidedly less tense, but still had the undercurrent of violence. Klaus had fed Miriam his blood while Elijah talked (the drinking of blood was getting easier. It helped that it didn't taste completely like blood. It was difficult to describe what it tasted like… maybe concentrated power?). She had tried not to squirm much when she was on his lap. It was an intimate position, and Miriam had been aware of her every movement.

Once Klaus let her up she and Elijah continued to explain Miriam's past and their plans for the future. When they finished, Klaus jumped to his feet, said a fleeting goodbye, then zoomed away.

"Well," Elijah sighed, "that went better than I expected."

Miriam looked at him like he was crazy.

Now, several hours later, their eclectic group was preparing for dinner. It had been August's turn to pick the meal, and he had picked burgers. The witch was on grill duty, June brought out the beers, and Elijah and Miriam prepared the extra stuff people liked to put on burgers. Onions were sliced, cheese, tomatoes, and lettuce were cut. Bags of chips were emptied into bowls which were then put on the patio table. The backyard lights were turned on once the sun went down, giving the area a fun, casual atmosphere. Elijah had even traded his dirty, ruined suit in for a more casual slacks and a sweater.

They were almost ready to eat when Klaus returned.

He still had reservations about Elijah and Miriam's intentions, but the fact that he was trying was a big step. Miriam could see how much Klaus deciding to return meant to Elijah. Klaus was willing to tentatively test out their new relationship, and that was all anyone had the right to ask.

"I hope you like burgers, because that's what's on the menu tonight," August said to the new addition. Introductions had been stilted and awkward, so Miriam commended the witch for trying to break the ice.

"I think I can suffer through it, mate," Klaus said dryly as he took a seat across from Miriam. Elijah was at Miriam's right, at the head of the table. June gracefully lowered herself into the seat next to Miriam, not-so-subtly making menacing eye-contact with the Original Hybrid. Miriam lightly smacked her shoulder to get her to stop.

"Good, cause we're trying to give Miriam the dysfunctional Southern family she never had or wanted, so it's home cooked meals and a strange lack of fast food from here on out," August teased as he placed the tray of burgers in the middle of the table before taking a seat at the other head of the table.

Miriam rolled her eyes and grabbed a burger. As she began to doctor it to her liking she said, "I actually have family in the South, loser. My maternal grandparents were from Georgia. And they were a biracial couple during a time when it was illegal to intermarry, so it can't get much more dysfunctional than that."

"Our parents tried to kill us when they discovered they had turned us into monsters," Klaus said, a sharp smile on his face. Elijah frowned at him.

"OK, first, you aren't monsters. I've already had that talk with Elijah, and I kind of have a feeling I'm going to have that conversation with you later. Second, yeah, and that was awful, no doubt. But that's like comparing apples and oranges," Miriam pointed out mildly, not wanting to get into an argument about racism versus child abuse over burgers. "Third, we have a rule here: no heavy talk at the table."

His eyes sparked at the challenge.

Miriam could see him gearing up to poke at her further, so she asked, "So where are you and your witches bedded down?"

"Nearby," he said enigmatically.

"If you or your witches get hungry, I've got some hole-in-the-wall places if you want to try the local places" Miriam said. She could tell that the fact that she wasn't fighting him was jarring to him, so she continued, "I haven't gotten around to any of the hiking trails, but I've heard those are pretty. The community is small, but it's got that Hallmark charm to it, ya know, if Hallmark had vampires and witches."

"Hallmark wouldn't dare do vampires," August pointed out.

Miriam laughed. "That's true! But it would be fun to see."

None of the vampires had anything to add to that comment. Attention returned to their dinner. Elijah only let the silence sit for a second before he said, "Brother, do you have any questions for Miriam?"

Klaus looked at his brother with sibling exasperation. "I think I'm capable of asking my mate questions."

"Then ask," Miriam prompted kindly. She smiled at him when he looked at her askew. "Honestly. I want to get to know you. I'd prefer not any dark questions right now, but I'm open to those in the future."

He narrowed his eyes at her, like he couldn't believe she was telling the truth. "How did you feel when you found out Elijah was your mate? Ecstatic, I believe?"

Miriam shook her head and ignored the jab. "No, I was actually really confused. In my reality the concept of mates didn't exist. Also, in my knowledge of your world, Elijah didn't have a mate. The change of facts threw me for a loop, to be honest. But we talked about it and decided to take it slow. It's only been less than a month since we met."

"Despite the werewolf hiccup, it's been a lovely month. And I am glad that our reality is different than what you believed it to be," Elijah smiled at her. He picked up her hand and kissed it tenderly. Miriam's heart leaped at the romantic words and gesture, though August made a gagging sound and Klaus rolled his eyes.

"Why did you not try to profit off your knowledge of the future?" Klaus asked, obviously still weary about Miriam's motives.

Miriam didn't blame him. He wasn't trusting by nature. One shared dinner wasn't going to change him.

"Elijah asked a similar question when we talked for the first time. I'll tell you what I told him: I want to save lives. We told you earlier that all the vampires are connected by a sire line to each of you. If you die, Caroline dies. If Elijah or Kol die, my brother Baahir and his mate Philip die. I also want you to free your werewolf side, because no one should have to live with a part of themselves locked up. And I want your family to actually have a successful legacy without your parents hovering over you. You guys could rule the supernatural world, but in the story I know your lives are cut short. I want to stop that.

"We told you that I've been tentatively changing small things, but up until recently I've been too terrified of the butterfly effect to really make any big changes. My knowledge is only as valuable as the results, and if I change too much too early, I lose all worth." Miriam could still remember Damon Salvatore pushing her into a wall and threatening her. 'You need to start pulling your weight, or you become useless' was what he had said to her, and even now those words weighed her down. Those callous words had a nugget of truth in them. If she changed too much too fast she couldn't predict the next event, and she would become a regular human. Regular humans didn't survive a long time in supernatural circumstances.

"Vorgyðja, you will always have worth, even if there comes a time when your knowledge runs out," Elijah promised.

Miriam smiled at him gratefully. She didn't fully believe him, but hearing the words was becoming easier.

"Elijah said you dreamed about us before meeting us?" Klaus asked. His demeanor had softened some, but Miriam was unaware of what caused the subtle change.

"Yes. I can talk to Elijah in my dreams now, but the other two are faceless," Miriam said. She wondered if she would see Klaus in her dreams that night, because it would be her first night after meeting him. "What is it like on your end?"

"It is similar. From what I can remember, you are featureless. All I can remember is a couple of small details," Klaus said, and took a swig of his beer.

"It was the same with me," Elijah agreed. After taking a bite of his burger and swallowing he said to Klaus, "Brother, the dreams become so vivid after the first meeting. It's an incredible experience."

"Do you think the dreams will stop once I meet all four of you?" Miriam asked the brothers.

"I do not believe so," Elijah responded. "Mates have been known to share dreams. I doubt we would be any different."

"I hope they continue," Miriam said, trying not to sound too wishful. She didn't always remember the dreams, or even the men that inhabited them. But every now and then she would remember the feeling that the dreams would produce. These feelings were always good feelings: warmth, a full belly, the feeling of being loved, the feeling of belonging.

"Even if they do not continue, we will do our best to bring your favorite dreams to life," Elijah swore.

Her favorite dreams were never the extravagant ones- though those were fun and exciting. Her favorite dream with Elijah was of him reading her poetry in front of a blazing fire. She had felt safe, protected, and loved. That feeling, more than anything, was what she wanted to replicate.

The conversation turned to the upcoming ritual. Miriam could tell that Klaus was stressed, nervous, and cautiously excited for the ritual to happen. He had lived a thousand years with half of his soul locked away. That would drive anyone insane, but he was (mostly) in control of his actions.

"I checked in on the vampire and werewolf you gifted me," Klaus told Elijah.

"Oh? Do you believe my motives are sincere now?" Elijah said. His tone was mild and non-offending, but Miriam could see the anxious lines around his eyes and mouth. Elijah didn't want to be on the opposing side anymore; he wanted his brother back.

"I would happily believe your sincerity if you produced the moonstone," Klaus said with false cheer.

Elijah shook his head. "As I told you earlier, I have hidden it in plain sight in an effort to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. The last thing we need is Elena's friends finding it."

"Ah, yes, the latest Petrova Doppelganger," Klaus's smile was sharp. "If I'm not allowed to see the moonstone, am I at least allowed to see her? I'd like to confirm her existence with my own eyes, if you please."

"Elena is trapped in her house for the foreseeable future. Here's her address," Miriam accepted the pen and pad of paper June handed her and wrote down the Gilberts' address. "You're welcome to see her, just be nice to her aunt. Poor Jenna is actually on your side, or at least isn't going to fight you, so I'd rather you not make her angry with you."

"I'll play nice, love," Klaus promised, though the mischievous look in his eyes said otherwise. He gratefully accepted the piece of paper she handed him and tucked it into his pocket with a self-satisfied smirk. Miriam made a mental note to text Jenna later and warn her that the Original Hybrid would be stopping by.

The rest of the dinner had gone relatively smoothly. The next bump in the road happened as they were cleaning up. August, the bastard, had grown confident in teasing the Hybrid. As he grabbed a couple of empty plates, he said slyly, "So, Klaus, what are you going to present Miriam with as your courting gift? Elijah already got her a car."

Everyone frowned at the witch, who quickly retreated inside the house for his own safety.

Klaus looked like he had sucked on a sour lemon. He looked at Miriam, and his face smoothed out to a fake smile.

"Well, love, it seems like I need to catch up to my brother," his eyes flashed in envy. "What do you desire? Jewels, clothes, satin sheets?"

"Niklaus," Elijah warned, his eyes darting to Miriam.

"Before this goes any further, I want to show you something," Miriam said to Klaus as she stood up. "August! Invite Klaus into the house."

There was a moment of silence from the witch. He peeked outside and said, "Are we certain that is the best course of action?"

"Just do it," Miriam rolled her eyes.

"Klaus, please come in," August said, the hesitance obvious in his voice.

"Come on," Miriam motioned for him to follow her into the house. She led him to her bedroom. She opened the door and went in. "I want you to see if you notice a theme."

Klaus walked into the room slowly, as if he was expecting an attack. She watched as his eyes roamed around her room.

If there was one word to describe Miriam's room it was 'cozy'. In the two weeks she had lived in the room she had made it completely her own. She had painted the walls a pale yellow and accented the room with oranges and pinks. A white round chair- a papasan- sat in one corner, one of her colorful knitted blankets was thrown over it. Her desk, which she never used, was piled high with colorful yarn and half-finished projects. But the bed, the bed was her haven. It was a canopy bed with billowing pale pink curtains. Miriam had strung fairy lights all around the curtains, making the whole bed radiate warmth. The fluffy down-comforter was orange, and so were some of the many pillows. The bed was just one large array of fuzzy and soft blankets and pillows.

"I'm from southern Arizona. I've never really been anywhere that's super cold like Virginia is," Miriam admitted. "And last fall, when I had to move to that horrible apartment, I didn't get heat. This past winter I was constantly cold."

Miriam pulled a blanket off her bed and started to refold it, just to have something for her hands to do.

"I made this blanket," she said as she placed it back on the bed. "I also made the cardigan I'm wearing, that other blanket, that pillowcase, and a bunch of other items. I like making things, and I like being warm. So no, I don't want satin sheets. I want flannel sheets, and a house with a heater or a fireplace and hot water. I want adequate clothing for next winter so I'm not constantly cold like I was this past winter. I want to wake up knowing that the pantry has food. I want to go to bed without the fear that my landlord could use his master key to come into my apartment. I want to live the rest of my life with someone who will support me through hardship. Elijah was able to fulfill some of my wants," Miriam told Klaus. "He got me out of my bad situation and provided me a place to live while I regained my health."

"Oh, how good of the noble Elijah," Klaus mocked, but his words lacked heat.

"Klaus, I'm his mate, just as I am yours. This isn't a competition. Just because he got me a car doesn't mean you need to buy me a plane or something! I refuse to be the rope that you and Elijah play tug-of-war with," she said firmly. "I'm going to end up frayed or broken if you two can't settle your differences. And what happens when my other two mates enter the picture? What if Elijah's hunch is wrong and they aren't your brothers? How are you going to act with two possible strangers also 'competing' for my attention?"

"I don't know!" he snarled. "I just know that I don't want to share my mate with my brother."

"And I don't want to be a toy that you argue over, but here we are," Miriam crossed her arms. "Please, just… just focus on the ritual and repairing your relationship with Elijah. If you want to pursue whatever we might have, then I'm totally willing. But if you are just going to use our bond to show up Elijah or to punish him, then I don't want any part of it."

"I want this, I want our bond," he blurts out, and then his eyes widen, as if he hadn't expected to say those words.

"Good," Miriam smiled gently at him. "Then don't compare our relationship to my relationship with Elijah."

Klaus nodded tightly, then left.

Miriam let out a sigh. The night hadn't gone too bad. There had been no brawls between the two brothers, August had stayed attached to his heart- though Miriam was going to have a talk with him about teasing the Original Hybrid- and the house was still standing.

Miriam realized her standards for a good night were low, but that was life with the Mikaelsons, apparently.

Miriam didn't stay up too long after Klaus had left. She had made sure that the left-overs from dinner had been stored and that everything had been cleaned up before saying goodnight to her housemates and retreating to her room. She changed into a pair of cozy pajamas, grabbed one of her knitting projects, and curled up on her bed. She let the rhythmic motions of knitting calm her down. Relaxation had been sorely needed. The day had been long and emotions had been high.

An hour later there was a gentle knock on Miriam's bedroom door.

"Come in," she said softly, knowing that he would hear her at almost any volume.

Elijah entered and shut the door behind him. Miriam looked up and smiled at him. He was dressed for bed. The casual clothing always made their interactions feel more intimate, and Miriam loved it.

"How are you feeling?" Elijah asked.

"I'm fine," she scooted over and patted the space she had just vacated. He only hesitated for a moment before gracefully climbing into the bed. Miriam, feeling bold, leaned against him. His arm slowly came around her, keeping her flush against him. She sighed happily and continued to knit.

They sat in comfortable silence for a little while.

"You'll continue to try to mend fences with him?" Miriam asked some time later.

"Of course. He is my brother and your soulmate. For better or for worse, we are bound to him," Elijah said.

"The reality of having more than one mate is finally hitting me," Miriam admitted. "It's an amazing fantasy, but reality is much more messy. I want us all to work out, but with more people comes more opportunity for hurt feelings. I don't want Klaus to believe that he has to catch up to you, or whatever, because he doesn't."

"We are all learning, vorgyðja. We'll figure it out together," he reassured her. "And if Klaus can't handle sharing, then that is his loss."

"I'm just hoping that once his werewolf side is released he'll settle down and be ready to tackle this mate thing with us," Miriam said.

"That's a good hope, dear one," Elijah kissed her temple.

Miriam didn't want her hope to be figurative. She didn't love Klaus, but she could feel the potential of love nestled under her skin like a seed. She wasn't going to push him into a relationship, especially if he couldn't manage to share her time and affections with Elijah. But Miriam hoped he at least reconciled with Elijah; their brotherhood was more important.

As Miriam sat in blissful solitude with Elijah, she wondered when Klaus would appear next.


Miriam was in a nursery. It was half-finished; furniture was missing, but scotch tape had been placed on the ground where the crib, changing table, and other baby-centric pieces would go. What looked to be half-assembled shelves were propped up against a blank wall, waiting to be utilized. Miriam was sitting in a rocking chair next to a window. Her socked feet were resting on a stool. The sun was shining through the open window, providing heat and light. A gentle breeze floated through the window. Miriam could hear birds chirping, and somewhere else in the house a piano was being played.

Across from her was Klaus. Dressed in a casual outfit of jeans and a black t-shirt, he was painting the wall with flowers. The colors he used were gentle pinks and peaches. Green vines and leaves connected each flower. He had traced a large oval over where the crib would go, and Miriam knew intrinsically that the blank space was where the baby's name would go.

"You were pregnant, in another dream," Klaus said as he delicately applied pale pink to the wall. "I remember it now."

"Me too," Miriam said softly. Her dream body didn't look pregnant, but when she placed her hands on her stomach she could feel a firmness to it that hinted at a pregnancy. She kept that revelation to herself, though she could feel his eyes on her. She looked up at him. "You are capable of having children, you know. It happens, in the story I know."

His blue eyes widened in shock.

"That was one of the reasons why I wanted to help your family," Miriam admitted. "You die when your child is only fifteen years old, and I wanted a different ending for both of you."

"That is very admirable of you," he said, his demeanor more relaxed in the dream world they were in. His eyes became confused as he looked at her. "You were willing to sacrifice your quality of life to change the fate of a child that wasn't yours, and of a monster who was planning on killing you if you hadn't been my mate?"

She let out a huff of a laugh, because of course his default would be to kill Elijah's mate. "I know you won't fully trust me for a while, but I'm on your side, Klaus. Neither you nor your family has anything to fear from me. Every decision I've made and every decision I will make is for the benefit of your family. And now that I'm mated to both you and Elijah I am forever linked to the Mikaelson family. Where you go, I go. Your enemies are my enemies. Your joy is my joy."

Klaus still looked confused, but he turned back to the wall and continued to paint flowers. Miriam took his lack of opposition as hesitant acceptance of her words. She hadn't completely won him over, but at least he wasn't actively fighting against her efforts. She wondered how much power the mating bond had on him; was it influencing his decisions?

"Do you want children?" Klaus asked after a long period of amicable, piano-filled silence.

"I'm not sure," she replied. "When I was little, having children was expected. My background is conservative Catholic; marrying and having children was a normal, expected dream to have. When I graduated high school my grandmother died, and I became directionless. I didn't go to college because I wanted to stay with my grandfather. But even before she died I didn't have a direction for what I wanted to do in college. And then the accident.. my grandfather hadn't been dead long before I was transported to your world. And then I was too worried about survival to even consider a future, let alone a future with children. My biggest hope for the future, before I met Elijah, was just living long enough to help you and your siblings before being killed by one of your enemies," she revealed. She wasn't super proud of her nihilistic outlook on life, but she knew honesty would go over better with Klaus. She knew he wouldn't appreciate her keeping things from him.

Klaus sped over to her and knelt by her feet. His eyes were intense, but his hands were gentle as he picked up her hands. " This I vow to you: I will protect you with every breath in my undead body. Those who would seek to harm you would meet their deaths screaming."

"I know," Miriam smiled softly and squeezed his hands. It was a surreal feeling, to be the subject of Klaus's intense affections. They were nowhere near being truly bonded, but the fact that he was willing to protect her made her hopeful for their future together.

"I'm waking up," Klaus said reluctantly. He pulled away from her and stood up.

"I am too," Miriam sighed. Time worked differently in dreams. Sometimes entire scenes would play out over what seemed like the course of hours or days. Other times Miriam was only lucky to have a couple of moments with her mates. "The wall is beautiful, by the way."

"It is a weird feeling, knowing that I have the potential to make children," Klaus mused. He pressed a hand to the flower-covered wall, and the look in his eyes was almost wishful. "I'm not sure how I feel about it."

"Let's just worry about getting your werewolf side freed before we worry about any potential babies," Miriam said, a teasing note in her voice.

"Yes, babies will have to wait," Klaus flashed her a smile. His guard had finally lowered, and with the smile on his face he looked handsome and young. He slowly faded from sight.

Miriam looked at the wall Klaus had been working on. The painted flowers were really beautiful, Miriam thought, a touch of yearning in her heart. She didn't know if Klaus wanted babies. Hope had been unplanned, mostly because he hadn't known he could even make children. Now, armed with that knowledge, would he even want children? Miriam didn't know, and she didn't think that conversation would happen for a while. But until then, she would harbor her selfish desire for a baby deep inside her heart. Maybe a baby would happen, maybe it wouldn't. Either way, she would have her mates. A baby would be an addition to their love, not the reason for it.

Miriam felt the pull of awake-ness become stronger. She stood up and began to walk around. She wanted one last look around the room. It would be lovely, once finished. The furniture needed to be brought in, the shelves needed to be hung, and the wall across from the floral one was bare.

She noticed a sticky note inside an outline for a piece of furniture on the ground at the base of the bare wall. She knelt down and read it; it said: crib 2 goes here.

Miriam felt like someone had poured ice down her shirt. She hurried to the floral side, and noticed a sticky note there that read: crib 1 here.

"Two?!" she gasped, but could ignore the pull no longer.

Miriam woke up feeling fully rested. Just like her secret longing for a baby, she hid her potential revelation deep inside. She smiled at Elijah over breakfast and hoped that he wouldn't notice her knitting a pair of green booties.


TYLER'S POV

It felt weird, being back in his hometown. He had only been gone for two weeks, but the time away had felt longer. He had gained so much knowledge and experience in such a short amount of time that he felt like a different person. But returning home, especially without telling his mom, was weird. The pack, along with the three hillbilly witches, were camped in the woods in secret. Jules said they had to stay in the woods so they wouldn't be detected by the vampires that lived in town.

They had hit a snag, though. The witch mother, Bethel, couldn't do a locator spell because they didn't have anything that belonged to Elijah's mate. They would have to find a different way to get to her.

"Tyler!" Jules called. She and the three witches were standing over a fold-up table that held a map of Mystic Falls and some witchy objects. She was smiling at him, but her eyes were cold. Now that they were so close to breaking their curse Jules was tense. Tyler knew that the last time she had come to Mystic Falls she had lost her entire pack, and that she was just stressed about protecting the new pack.

"Yep!" He jogged over to her. He was glad for the distraction; the male wolves kept making Tyler set up the septic tanks. It was a demeaning job that he wasn't really good at, but Jules said it made him more well-rounded and less rich-kid.

"Go talk to the doppelganger and your witch friend. See if they're willing to help us. Take Sally, Kay, and Ron," Jules ordered.

"Okay," Tyler pulled out his phone and texted Bonnie and Elena to meet him at Elena's house. "Umm, what should I do if I run into any of the vampires?"

Jules rolled her eyes. "Kill them. Remember, just because they look human doesn't mean they feel emotions. Vampires are cruel, vicious monsters that prey on the weak, like your female friends. Now go! We got a lot of work to do."

She turned back to the witches.

Young Sally was ready to go. She was standing by the one car the group had brought: a beat-up minivan. Kay was in the driver's seat. She was mixed, with curly black hair always up in a bun. Her mate was Ron, who was fully black. The two were in their late-twenties. They were the only mated pair in the pack. They, along with Sally, were the newest members of the Florida pack.

"C'mon, pup," Ron slapped his back, accidentally touching the wounds on Tyler's back.

Tyler winced, but climbed into the backseat, next to Sally.

Once they were driving toward town Kay cleared her throat and looked pointedly at Ron.

"Do ya have anything to say to the pup?" She prompted.

Ron nodded and twisted in his seat to look at Tyler. "Kid, your relationship to that woman ain't healthy."

Tyler became instantly defensive. "How would you know?"

"Kid, Kay and me are mates," Ron said slowly, as if Tyler were a child. "We've been mates since we were your age. We know what sex between mates, between two consenting adults should look like, and the sex you're havin' with that wolf ain't normal or right. You're still a kid, and she's a full-grown adult. She makes you bleed, every night."

"We're just concerned for you, pup," Kay added. "Sex shouldn't hurt, unless both partners want it to. But smellin' the blood that is always on you, and the scent of your fear and pain… what you two are doing isn't sex, it's rape."

Tyler shook his head, his face pale and his heart beating too fast. "Girls can't rape boys."

The older couple exchanged a sad look, and next to him Sally let out a pained whine.

"Girls can rape boys," Ron said gently. "The act of sexual assault can be carried out through physical force, or by coercion, abuse of authority, or if it's against a person unable to give consent. Pup, did Jules threaten to abandon you, or something similar, if you didn't have sex with her?"

Throat closed, all Tyler could do was nod.

"Caving to a threat isn't consent. I know you admire her, but she isn't a good person."

"You're wrong," Tyler croaked. Tears burned his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. Men didn't cry. His father taught him that, and Jules was reinforcing the idea.

"You know I'm not," Ron's voice was soft, but the words still felt like knives.

"Whatever," Tyler turned to face the window. Their words couldn't be right, because if they were, that meant everything Jules was telling him was wrong. And if that was the case, Tyler would have no one to teach him about being a wolf. The swamp wolves were too disgusting and hick to be good role models, his uncle was dead, and he didn't know any other werewolf to help him.

The rest of the long drive was silent.

Finally they pulled into town. Kay and Ron got out and Tyler took the driver's seat.

"We'll meet up with you later," Kay promised. "We just have to get something first."

"Okay," Tyler shrugged. After the uncomfortable talk, he just wanted them gone. Sally was still in the car, but she had been quiet, so he tolerated her.

Sally didn't speak on the drive to Elena's, luckily. When they arrived at Elena's house he was happy to see that Bonnie was already there.

"Tyler!" Elena exclaimed happily. She opened the door wider to let Tyler and Sally in. "Where have you been? Who's this?"

"Florida, mostly," Tyler looked around the house, spotting Bonnie and Jeremy sitting together on the couch. "This is Sally, one of the members in my new pack. Where's Jenna and your corpse bodyguards?"

"Jenna's meeting friends and Damon and Stefan are at their place, trying to figure out a loophole to the ritual. I'm not keen on dying," Elena shivered at the mention of her impending death.

"I was told that the sun and the moon curse only needed a vial of your blood," Tyler said, brow furrowed.

"That's not what Elijah told us," Bonnie said sullenly. "He said that Klaus must drink the blood of the doppelganger to break the curse."

"Jules said otherwise," Tyler rebutted.

"Who told her that?" Jeremy asked, obviously skeptic.

"I don't know, but she would lie to me."

"She already had her goons attempt to kidnap Elena," Jeremy pointed out.

Tyler's temper rose to the surface. "Just shut your punk mouth, Gilbert! The adults are talking!"

"Don't speak to him that way!" Bonnie jumped to her feet. "He's right. The last time the werewolves were in town Elena was almost kidnapped and Caroline was tortured. Remember Caroline, Tyler? Your friend?"

Tyler swallowed and looked away. "This time is different. Our plan is different this time."

"What are you planning?" Elena asked suspiciously.

"We want to kidnap Elijah's mate. We will leverage her for the moonstone and the spell to break the curse. Once we have those items, we will return Elijah's mate back to him," Tyler promised.

His friends didn't look convinced.

"Tyler, Klaus has already arrived in Mystic Falls," Jeremy told him. "He met Elena a couple of days ago and explained her options for survival. He said he will honor Elijah's wishes and not kill Elena."

"We don't trust him, but we do believe him," Bonnie said begrudgingly. "His witches showed me the spell, and it has nothing to do with breaking a curse on the vampires or werewolves, but on breaking a curse that had been placed on Klaus a thousand years ago. Damon and Stefan are trying to find any information on this curse, but so far nothing has turned up."

Tyler turned away from them in disgust. They were just going to let this Original vampire lie to them?! Did they have any sense at all? All vampires did was lie and kill!

"Are you sure?" Sally spoke for the first time.

"Yes," Bonnie replied.

Sally just sighed, as if she had been expecting that answer. "Tyler, we should tell Jules that we are wrong about this whole thing."

"No!" snapped Tyler. "Are you crazy? Do you want to be chained to the moon every month? I don't want to be a slave to the moon any longer!"

He punched a hole in the wall and reveled in the pain as it traveled up his arm. He followed his punch with a kick to a couch, sending it sailing over the heads of his friends.

"Tyler!" shouted Elena. "Stop it!"

"Hey!" Bonnie used her magic to throw Tyler across the room. "Calm down! You're not helping anyone by destroying the Gilberts' house!"

"You don't understand, Bonnie!" Tyler hissed as he got to his feet.

Her green eyes flashed. "I don't understand? I suddenly have these magical powers and this heritage that scares me, and friends I need to protect. You get super strength and super speed and all you do is turn into a dog once a month. I have to deal with my powers all the time. Get over yourself!"

The words hurt. She was belittling everything he was going through! "I see I don't have any sympathetic friends here," Tyler sneered. "If you aren't going to help me break this curse, then I'll just have to do it myself!"

He marched to the door and yanked it open.

"Wait, Tyler!" Elena followed him. She bit her lip and looked at Bonnie and Jeremy for a second before facing him again. "Jenna's at lunch with Caroline and Miriam, Elijah's mate. They're at Jamie's, that American place in town, and they're gonna be there for another hour or so."

"Why are you helping me?" Tyler said suspiciously.

"Because I think the Originals are brainwashing Jenna. She had Bonnie put Jeremy and I under house arrest and she always hangs out with Miriam now. It's not natural. Maybe, if you leverage Miriam, Elijah will flip sides against Klaus," Elena said, a tentative hope in her expression. "Just, promise me that Jenna won't get hurt."

"I'll try to keep her out of it," Tyler promised, before he and Sally left.

They picked up Kay and Ron, who both looked a little shaken. They pulled Sally to the side and began to talk to her in hushed tones. Tyler ignored them all as he called Jules. He explained the situation to her and she told him to stay put while she gathered the pack and the witches. His job was to find and watch Elijah's mate. He left to do just that; he didn't care if the others weren't following him. He wasn't going to let anything get in his way of getting rid of his curse. He wouldn't listen to the vampires' blatant lie that Elena had to die. He wouldn't listen to Ron and Kay and their hurtful notion that Jules was abusing him.

And Tyler was especially going to ignore his inner voice telling him that he was wrong about everything.


MIRIAM'S POV

It had been a week since Miriam had met Klaus. She hadn't really seen him since. When she went to the grocery store with June she had spotted him across the street, but only for a moment. Once, when she was getting ready for bed, she had seen him through her window, watching her from the property line. She had waved, said goodnight (he was a vampire with super hearing, she was pretty positive he had heard her through the closed window), then closed the curtain. As much as her life was like a YA novel, she wasn't going to let either of her mates pull an Edward Cullen and watch her sleep without her knowledge.

There were only six more days until the full moon. Miriam knew that Klaus had gone to see Elena. Luckily Elijah had gone with him.

The interaction, Miriam had been told later, hadn't been as bad as everyone thought it was going to go. Miriam had warned Jenna in advance that the Originals were going to show up. Jenna had managed to get rid of the Salvatores and Bonnie before the Originals showed up, so it had just been the Gilbert family. Elijah and Klaus had been cordial to scared teens and a nervous Jenna. The two had reiterated the plan for the ritual, and what they expected of Elena.

Elena had acted… Elena about the whole thing. According to Elijah's account, Elena tried several times to make a deal with him. She swore she would go willingly, if only the vampire and werewolf that needed for the ritual not be the Salvatores, Caroline, or Tyler. Klaus had played with her for a little while, taunting her and threatening to use Jeremy as the vampire to point out the flaw in her bargaining skills. Elijah had finally stepped in and said they had already found their vampire and werewolf. Miriam had learned from August (as a just-in-case precaution against the Bennett witch), who had gone with the Originals, that Elijah had also threatened to use an innocent human; he had just been more circumspect about it. Miriam had rolled her eyes when she heard that. Her mates were ridiculous.

They were in the homestretch with the curse being broken. Tensions were slowly rising in the house. The witches (the Martin men, August, and Greta and Maddox) had all gotten together. Greta had explained to her family that she was happy working for Klaus, and that she was in love with Maddox. There was no love lost between the Martin men and Maddox, but at least they weren't outright fighting. Regardless of personal feelings, they had all worked together to cast spells to fortify the house that Miriam was currently staying in, as well as the house that housed the captive vampire and werewolf. The witches had also given Miriam a myriad of charmed items to use as a defense against those who wished to hurt her. The items: a ring, a charm bracelet where each charm held a spell, a necklace, and an anklet, had abilities that were both offensive and defensive. They were to be used as an extreme last defense.

Miriam still had June or August accompany her places. It wasn't as invasive or annoying as she thought it was going to be. The sense that someone was always watching her wasn't the best feeling, but it was negated by the fact that there would be someone available to help her with any problem she might face. That type of security was oddly comforting.

Miriam didn't know how June and August decided who would watch her what day, but today August accompanied her to a late lunch with Jenna and Caroline. She invited him to sit with them, but he waved off her offers and disappeared down the street. She knew he would return if she so much as shouted, so she wasn't worried. Also Caroline was there. The baby vampire might not be able to do much against a fierce opponent, but at least her heightened senses could alert them of trouble before it reached them.

Jenna was already at the restaurant- despite what the TV show said, there were actually several restaurants in Mystic Falls - when Miriam arrived. The older woman had already ordered drinks for the table and a basket of fries covered in cheese and bacon bits. She was sipping her soda furiously.

"Hi," Miriam greeted, and sat down across from her.

Jenna gave her a tired smile. "Hi. I ordered drinks and fries to start us off."

"I can see that. Busy week?"

She sighed. "Not really. It's just, Elena isn't speaking to me, and Jeremy doesn't really know what to think. He wants to be mad at me, I can tell, but after Klaus and Elijah visited he's been mostly ignoring me and hiding in his room."

"In a week this will all be over," Miriam tried to sooth.

"I know. I just hope the kids don't do something stupid."

Caroline, her school backpack over her shoulder, dropped into the seat next to Miriam.

"Hello!" she said cheerfully as she deposited her backpack on the floor and grabbed her lemonade in one fluid motion. "Thanks for waiting for me. School went kind of long. Everyone's buzzing about Elena and Jeremy not being there, by the way."

"They're going to have to re-do their respective grades," Jenna moaned. "Jeremy's grades are shit and while Elena's are better, she keeps missing class to deal with supernatural stuff! I'm failing as a parent."

"No, your kids just suck," Caroline said, frowning slightly. "Bonnie and Elena are ignoring me because I hang out with Miriam, which is super hypocritical, because Elena hangs out with Damon, who fed on me and mind-controlled me for months and he also killed people. I think I win, morally."

Miriam and Jenna laughed.

They ordered their food and talked and joked and ate. Miriam was slowly gaining weight. She was a long way off from where she wanted her weight to be, but every day she ate was a victory. She had noticed that everyone around her seemed to know about her problems with food, and they were always offering her snacks. The other day June had barged into Miriam's room while she was knitting the green baby booties, deposited a plate of cheese, apple slices, peanut butter, and crackers in front of her, before wordlessly leaving. Once Miriam had overcome her shock, she had yelled her thanks at the vampire's retreating back.

"That was good," Jenna complimented as she finished the last bite of her burger.

"I'm glad I am a vampire now; no guilt over eating lots of food!" Caroline joked. She had ordered the most food out of the group, with Miriam and Jenna stealing bites here and there.

"Maybe next time we can meet up on a Friday? That way we won't be rushed for time," Miriam commented. She took her last bite of her salad and washed it down with her water.

"Miri, we could stay out later, but it was you who decided we end this early," Caroline pointed out.

"Yeah, cause you need to go home and do your homework," Miriam laughed as the teen rolled her eyes.

"I support Miriam; you need to get good grades and finish high school," Jenna said when Caroline turned her gaze to the older woman.

"Traitor," Caroline muttered, to the amusement of the other women.

They had paid the bill and were exiting the building when Caroline paused. She cocked her head to the side, a look of confusion on her face. "Tyler?"

"What?" Miriam looked up and down the street but couldn't see the teenage werewolf.

"Over here," Caroline turned to the left and walked around the side of the building.

Tyler (Miriam had never met the kid, though she had seen him around town with other characters from the show that she recognized) was arguing with a black couple and a redheaded girl. Tyler seemed agitated, the older couple looked nervous, and the girl paced warily. She was the first one to spot Miriam, Jenna, and Caroline.

"Ron, Kay!" She alerted, and took a step back. Her eyes weren't on Caroline, her natural enemy, but on Miriam.

The couple and Tyler turned to fully face the approaching women.

"Tyler? I didn't know you were back," Caroline said cautiously. She had repeatedly told Miriam and Jenna that she was done with Tyler, and the two older women had approved. Miriam didn't want the teen to enter into a relationship with the volatile werewolf. As Romeo and Juliet as their star crossed love was, Miriam had never liked them together. She had always liked Caroline with Klaus, but now that was out of the picture. And Miriam saw Caroline as a little sister, not a character in a TV show or a pawn she could move around. She was going to protect the young vampire any way she could, whether it be physical protection or the protection of her heart.

"Caroline," Tyler looked guarded. "You need to get out of here."

"Why?" The blonde looked at Miriam for help, but for once Miriam was in the dark. According to her memory, Tyler and Jules came back after Klaus's witch hurt Tyler's mom. But that didn't happen until the full moon, and that was a week away. She also didn't recognize the people with him.

Miriam's skin crawled with dread. Her worst fears had finally been realized. She didn't know what was about to happen.

"Are you Elijah's mate?" the redheaded girl interrupted.

Miriam was instantly cautious. "Who wants to know?"

"My name is Sally, and this is Kay and Ron. We were a part of Jules' pack," the girl said.

"Jules?" Jenna looked confused.

"A pack?" Miriam shot a look at Tyler. Jules hadn't formed a second pack after leaving with Tyler…

"Jules picked up a dozen of us in Florida," the man, Ron, said. "She killed our alpha, picked up a trio of witches, and brought us here."

"She didn't kill your alpha!" Tyler snarled. Sally rolled her eyes.

"She wants to break the curse," Kay told Miriam. Kay slowly approached Miriam, who tracked her movements. Caroline not so subtly stepped in front of her. "Ron, Sally, and I mean no harm to ya'll. We believed that the curse was real until Sally told us that the Bennett witch and the doppelganger confirmed that it was a hoax."

"You were at my house?" Jenna was now concerned.

"They didn't know what they were talking about!" Tyler insisted. "They believe the lie that the vampires told them!"

"We believed Jules, but we ain't willing to risk it any more," Kay ignored Tyler's outburst. "I'm pregnant. We just found out today. Ron and I, we can't hitch a ride with Jules's crazy train no longer. We got this baby to worry about. Please, believe us," Kay implored. Despite not knowing what was happening, Miriam nodded at Kay. The desperate look in Kay's eyes couldn't be faked. Kay was instantly relieved, and smiled.

"We are here to warn you," Ron said.

"Ron!" Tyler protested, rushing forward as if to attack the older man.

In one fluid motion, Ron pulled his arm back and then sprung it forward, hitting Tyler at his temple. Tyler fell to the ground, knocked out cold. Miriam, Jenna, and Caroline gaped at the scene.

Ron continued speaking, as if he hadn't just done what he did, "Jules wants to use you to force Elijah's hand for the moonstone and the spell to break the supposed curse. She doesn't care who she hurts. She's been hurtin' the boy sexually for a while now."

Caroline whined in the back of her throat, and Jenna's face went from frighteningly guarded to sad. Miriam just frowned. This was all off

"Tyler has the potential to be a strong alpha, and Jules was trying to get him to be devoted to her. If she was willing to do that to this innocent pup, and kill our previous alpha, she won't have any problem killin' you," Ron said to Miriam.

"Tyler already called Jules," Sally added. "She and the rest of the pack will be here any minute."

"Fuck," August appeared out of thin air.

"What the hell!" Jenna jumped back into Miriam. Caroline and the werewolves instinctively growled at the witch.

"We need to get you out of here," August grabbed Miriam's arm.

"Wait! What direction is the pack coming from?" Miriam asked Kay.

"East," she answered.

"The house is that direction," Miriam noted, her fear rising. She tamped it down. Now was not the time to get emotional. She had to keep them all safe. "We can't go back. The Salvatore place is the other direction. We'll go there. Jenna, you and Caroline take Tyler back to your house. Kay, Sally, Ron, you guys should go with them."

"No way! I'm going with you," Caroline protested.

"We'll drop the pup off, but then we're coming back," Ron promised.

"Miriam," August snapped and tugged on her arm.

She ignored August's tugging on her arm and looked at Kay. "Get Tyler and Jenna back to the Gilbert house. Stay safe."

"We will," Kay said as Ron lifted Tyler's limp body onto his shoulders.

"I'll call Elijah and tell him what's happening, and to meet you at the Salvatores'," Jenna promised as she hugged Miriam.

"Thanks, now go!" Miriam hugged her back tightly, then let her go. Jenna and the werewolves left. Miriam turned to glare at Caroline.

"I'm going with you," Caroline repeated stubbornly.

"We don't have time to argue!" August insisted.

"You're not coming, it's too dangerous," Miriam told Caroline.

"Miriam!"

"I don't care! I can help!" Caroline was firm.

Miriam was about to argue, but Caroline twitched and looked around.

"The wolves are coming!" she gasped.

"Come on!" August pulled Miriam out of the alley and towards the car.

A group of maybe five werewolves were walking down the street. They stood out for two reasons: one, they looked dirty and unkept compared to the citizens of Mystic Falls. Two, they were actively sniffing the air and doing other canine-like movements. One of them sniffed the air and whipped his head towards Miriam.

"There!" he shouted, and began to run towards her.

"In the car!" August unlocked the vehicle and jumped into the front seat. Miriam dove for the passenger's seat as Caroline vamp-sped into the back seat. In a couple of seconds they were peeling away from the curb, leaving a group of frustrated werewolves behind.

"I'm calling Klaus," Miriam pulled her phone out of her purse with shaking hands.

"Hello, Love. Miss me?" Klaus flirted when he picked up.

Miriam smiled weakly. "Yeah. Um, I've got a little bit of an issue."

"Little?!" exclaimed August.

"There's a van following us!" Caroline reported from the backseat.

Klaus had heard both comments. "What's happening?" his voice had switched from its playful tone to a no-nonsense one.

"The Reader's Digest version is that there's a pack of werewolves following us with the intent to kidnap me to force Elijah's hand for the moonstone to break the curse of the sun and the moon," Miriam said as she turned around in her seat to look behind her. Sure enough, a van was pursuing them. Shit.

"Where are you?"

"We can't get back home so we're going to the Salvatore Boarding House. It's the closest place that's fortifiable. They've got weapons in the house that we can use."

"I'm on my way," Klaus said, and Miriam could hear him barking orders to his witches.

"Klaus, we were told they have a pack of about twelve-"

"Add Tyler and Jules, but then minus Tyler and those other three, so more like ten," Caroline said helpfully.

"Yeah, plus three witches, so thirteen," August said absentmindedly as he took a turn sharply.

"There's a lot of wolves and three witches on our tail," Miriam summarized. "I'm not sure how long we can protect ourselves against them. August isn't trained in aggressive magic."

The line went silent for a moment. Then: "You will not be taken from me. I don't care if they have one hundred witches; you are not leaving me this day. Stay on the phone."

"I will," Miriam answered meekly in the face of his intensity.

A couple of minutes went by in tense silence. Their car was faster than the van, and they had a head start. They were almost to the Salvatores', and Miriam was feeling cautiously optimistic.

"There's a second car," Caroline said grimly. Miriam's optimism flew out the window.

"Ten bucks it's the witches," August tightened his grip on the steering wheel. "Miriam, which protection charms are you wearing?"

"Right now, the ring, charm bracelet, and anklet."

"Okay, take one of the charms that has Elijah and Klaus's blood in it," August instructed. Miriam could hear Klaus draw a ragged breath before bellowing at his witches to hurry, goddammit!

The blood was only supposed to be taken in extreme life-or-death instances. She hadn't drank from Elijah in a couple of days due to how busy he had been. He had promised that tonight they would spend some time together, which always included her drinking his blood. But at the moment she did not have his blood in her system. She was vulnerable to true death.

Miriam twisted off the charm, cracked it open, and drank the small amount of blood that was held within.

"Your ring will only work once, so only use it if you think you have to," August instructed. The ring made her temporarily invisible if she broke the opal stone. That, paired with her anklet (if she broke the stone on the anklet she was temporarily silent to every creature), would hopefully allow her to escape.

There was a loud, deep sound, like a cord of a bass guitar, and then the car flipped over.

Miriam felt a body wrap itself around her, and smelled Caroline's favorite body spray, and then all she heard was the sound of metal scraping against the pavement and the sound of glass breaking.

She didn't pass out, but she did get disoriented. When Miriam regained her senses, she was lying on the ground outside the car. Caroline was kneeling over her, face furrowed in concern.

"Oh, thank god!" Caroline exclaimed when Miriam opened her eyes. The teenager helped Miriam sit up. "I know you weren't hurt much, but it was still scary, seeing you so still."

"What's happening?" Miriam's head was fuzzy. It felt like the beginnings of a concussion.

"Drink," Caroline bit her wrist and held it to Miriam, who drank gratefully. "We flipped over, by magic, probably. Get up and go invisible, the werewolves and vampires just parked."

"Fuck," Miriam detached from Caroline's wrist and reached towards her ankle. She motioned towards the stone, and Caroline helpfully broke it for her. Now her movements were completely silent. She twisted her hand and smacked the ring against the pavement, smashing the stone and becoming invisible. She also twisted off one of the charms on her bracelet that activated a tracking device that Elijah and Klaus could follow (she had lost her phone in the crash and didn't have the time to look for it). Fully invisible and silent, Miriam stood up.

The werewolves rushed the car. Caroline snarled, but before she could fight, one of the werewolves shot her in the head. She fell to the ground, temporarily dead.

August had crawled out from under the car and was chanting a spell. Three werewolves fell down, clutching their heads.

The second car, the one with the witches, had parked closest to the overturned car. Three witches came out of the car, also chanting. Jules climbed out of the same car and raced over to August and snapped his neck.

Miriam pressed her knuckles into her mouth to keep from crying out. The more noise she made, the faster the silence charm wore off. She knew she had limited time, so she tore off down the road to the Salvatores' house. The werewolves would check the car and the surrounding areas first, if Miriam had any luck. But she had to get far, far away from the car crash.

She ran down the road. She was only a couple minutes away from the Salvatore house, and the proximity made her run faster. By the time she reached the driveway her silencing charm had worn off, as had the invisibility charm.

"DAMON!" She screamed as she threw open the front door. She placed her hands on her knees and gasped in air. Her legs were burning, there was a large stitch in her side, and her lungs felt like she had breathed in glass. After this is all over, Miriam thought to herself, I'm going to start exercising.

"Miriam?" Damon came out of the library, and Stefan walked down the stairs.

"Werewolves!" she gasped out, still gulping down air. "And witches. After me. Arm yourselves."

"Fuck!" Damon slammed the front door shut and locked it. He and Stefan sped around the house, closing and locking the doors and the windows and covering them with curtains. The brothers retrieved an arsenal of weapons, including several hunting rifles. Stefan handed Miriam a bottle of water, which she drank gratefully. Once she could breathe easier, she explained the situation further.

"Jules has returned with a new wolf pack, and allied herself with a coven of witches," Miriam said.

Damon paused in loading his rifle. "What? I thought Elijah had hunted her down and killed her."

"He didn't. She got away with Tyler, but now she's back. She wants to break the curse, even though Bonnie and Elena told Tyler that the curse is fake!" Miriam growled, frustrated at the stupidity of the teenagers. "Jules refuses to see the truth, and people are going to die today because of it," Miriam's eyes went misty. "They killed August."

"Let's just hope we're not next," Damon said grimly. He passed a shotgun to Miriam, who loaded it with the shells.

There was a tense moment of silence, and then the front door was blasted into a thousand pieces. The Salvatore brothers didn't hesitate to begin shooting. There was a groan, as if someone had been hit, but then seven werewolves rushed into the house. They might not be in their wolf form, but they were still wickedly fast. Damon managed to hit one, and the man slumped to the floor, dead. Another male wolf rushed Damon, and knocked the gun away. Damon jumped to the side and pulled out his sword and stabbed the man through the chest.

Stefan wasn't faring as well. Three wolves had rushed him at once, and pushed him to the ground. One woman had a stake in hand and stabbed Stefan non-fatally in the lower stomach. He groaned in pain.

Miriam cocked the shotgun and fired, hitting the woman who had staked Stefan. The other two looked up and growled at her, but she just fired again. One was able to duck, but the other was hit in the chest.

Motion at the door distracted Miriam. Jules and the three witches entered the house. The eldest witch, a sickly, elderly woman, waved her hand and two loud snaps filled the air. Damon and Stefan slumped to the ground, their necks broken.

"So you're Elijah's mate," Jules said, looking Miriam up and down. "I'm not impressed."

"I'm not here to impress you," Miriam snarked.

"No, you're not. What you are here for is to act as a pressure point for Elijah," Jules grinned maliciously. "Carl, Justin, grab her."

Carl and Justin were as gaunt as the rest of the Florida wolves and they had the same desperate look in their eyes. They rushed her, and Carl yanked the shotgun from her hands. Miriam yelped as Justin tried to pull her by her arm and punched him in the nose.

"Bitch!" he howled. He slapped her across the face, sending her to the ground. Miriam moaned in pain as she tasted blood. He had split her lip.

"For Christ's sake!" Jules snapped. "She's a fucking human! How hard can it be to contain her?!" She marched over to Miriam and grabbed her by her hair. Miriam hissed at the pain, but continued to struggle. She kicked at Jules' knee and managed to connect, dislodging the knee cap. Jules screamed in pain and released Miriam. Miriam took the opportunity to run towards the back of the house.

All Miriam was thinking about was not letting the wolves move her out of the Salvatore house. If that happened, it would take the Mikaelsons too long to find her. Klaus and Elijah and their witches were on their way, Miriam just needed to stall.

"Ah, where do you think you're going?" the werewolf she had punched sped in front of her, cutting off her route. She tried to turn around, but the other wolves had flooded into the house.

Multiple pairs of hands grabbed her arms. Miriam screamed and kicked and swore, but she was no match against desperate werewolves. She was dragged past the temporarily dead bodies of the Salvatores and the real dead bodies of the werewolves they had managed to kill.

Once outside on the driveway of the Salvatore Boarding House, Miriam was shoved to her knees in front of Jules and her witches. Jules looked furious and in pain, but after the witches chanted, her knee popped back into place.

"You little bitch," she hissed, and smacked Miriam across the face.

Miriam spat out blood, then smirked up at the werewolf. "Brady hit harder."

Jules' face turned red. Favoring her knee, she knelt down to Miriam's level and grabbed her by the throat. The pressure caused Miriam to gasp for breath and claw at the hand that was constricting her airway.

"I can see why Brady wanted to have his fun with you," she mused darkly. "I'm not as patient as he was, unfortunately for you. So here's how it's going to go. We're going to go back to the camp, and you're going to call your mate. Your demands will be Tyler's return, the moonstone, and the spell to break the curse. Once your mate hands those things over, we're going to leave and bring you with us. And I am going to finish what Brady started," with her other hand Jules harshly grasped Miriam between her legs. "When I am done with you, this will be barely recognizable. After, the others will have a go at you. I know the wolves I picked up in Florida won't fuck you, but Tyler will if I tell him to. Maybe he'll finally stop his bitching if he gets to stick his prick into something that's lying beneath him for a change."

Miriam just glared at her, refusing to be cowed.

"We need to leave," the eldest witch interrupted. She looked around nervously. "Something's coming."

"Something's already here," Klaus appeared behind the old witch and grinned ferally. Before she could react, he tore her head off her body.

Jules dropped Miriam in shock. Before she or the remaining four werewolves could react, they were clutching their heads in pain. Miriam looked up from her crumpled position to see Dr. Martin walking towards them, chanting. His kids and Maddox followed.

Elijah sped into the area and zoomed up to the other two witches. He shoved his hands into their chests and pulled out their hearts. He dropped the hearts carelessly on the gravel.

June appeared and rounded up all the screaming werewolves. Jules was thrown at Klaus's feet.

"So you are the wolf bitch that has been causing so much trouble," Klaus mused. He grabbed Jules by her throat, like she had done to Miriam. "What do you say, brother? Should I pop her head open like a balloon, or should I just yank the heart out of her worthless body?"

"Wait!" Miriam rasped. She struggled to her feet.

Elijah rushed to her side and supported her. He bit his wrist and thrust it into her mouth. "Drink, vorgyðja, please."

She did as he asked, grateful that the blood healed her lip and her sore throat. When she could stand on her feet without wobbling, Elijah let her go. Miriam still stumbled when she walked over to Klaus, and Elijah hovered at her elbow.

"Don't kill her yet," Miriam said to Klaus.

"Why?" Klaus demanded, his grip on Jules' throat tightening. The werewolf's face was turning an interesting shade of purple. "She was going to kidnap you!"

"Because a quick death is too good for her!" Miriam spat.

Klaus blinked at her, obviously not expecting those words to come out of her mouth.

"Look around us, Klaus! She refused to believe that the curse was false, and now Tyler is traumatized, August is dead, possibly Caroline too, and half of the Florida pack. This is her fault," Miriam sneered at the female werewolf. Klaus loosened his grip, allowing her to breathe.

"What do you suggest we do?" Elijah asked.

"Make her death a spectacle," Miriam said. "Film it, and send it out to all the major covens, packs, and vampire groups. They all need to hear the truth about the curse, and they need to see what happens to people who lead others astray."

Klaus's face lit up in malevolent glee. "That sounds like a wonderful idea, love!"

"Are you sure?" Elijah looked Miriam in the eye. "This is an extreme measure that we can't back away from."

"Will you let any of them go?" Miriam rebutted.

Elijah shook his head. "No. Misled or not, they tried to kidnap you."

"All I ask is that the death of the wolves is quick and painless. They were led astray by an evil person. She is the creator of this mess, not the pack," Miriam said.

"As you wish," Elijah bent to her will.

Plans were made quickly. The wolves were tied up with magical chains. The Salvatore brothers were revived. Both wanted to witness the execution, and Damon provided a video recorder for them to use. Ron, Kay, and Sally arrived. Kay explained that Bonnie had spelled Tyler to sleep until she woke him up, letting the rest of the werewolves return. Miriam had to convince her mates not to kill them, which had taken some time, but eventually it was agreed that the three innocent members of the Florida pack would witness the execution. As the wolves were loaded up into the van they had arrived in, June approached Miriam.

"August is alive and well, by the way," the female vampire said.

"How?!" Miriam gasped. "I saw Jules snap his neck!"

"There is a spell that reverses a supernatural death. It protects the witch only once, but August was wise enough to cast it today. He called me; he's bringing Caroline with him and will meet us at the site," June said, and smiled slightly at Miriam's obvious happiness.

"Oh, thank God they're both alive," Miriam sagged slightly with relief.

"Caroline was lucky the wolves were more interested in finding you than staking her."

Miriam blanched at that.

As the final touches on the trip were made, Elijah convinced Miriam to use a bathroom in the Salvatore house to clean up. She had dried blood on her face and clothes, and her clothes had been torn over the course of the day. He produced a spare set of her clothes- she wondered how and why he had a spare set of her clothes in his car- and encouraged her to go inside. Damon and Stefan didn't resist when Elijah led her to the nearest guest bedroom and bathroom, though Damon looked like he wanted to say something. Miriam took the fastest shower in her life and changed just as quick. She stepped out of the room with hair that was still dripping wet, but she didn't care.

"I'm taking this with me," Miriam lifted the fluffy towel that she was holding.

Damon rolled his eyes. "As if I could stop you."

Miriam towel-dried her hair to the best of her ability on the way to the site Klaus had chosen for the execution. She drove with Klaus and Elijah, who refused to be parted from her for long. On the way there the three mates talked about how they were going to kill the wolves. Klaus was all for ripping out hearts or spines, but Elijah and Miriam talked him down. Miriam argued that they were killing the remaining Florida wolves because of their misguided actions, and that, if Klaus wanted to have any goodwill with the werewolf communities in North America, he would show them mercy by granting them a quick death. Jules was another story.

They drove deep into the forest, then hiked off the trail until they hit a clearing.

Jules and the four remaining Florida wolves were forced to kneel in a row. The camera was set up. Everyone but the marked-for-death wolves and the two Mikaelsons were out of view from the camera.

"Greetings, family, friends, and foes," Klaus began, a wide grin on his face. "My name is Klaus Mikaelson; I am an Original and the world's only Hybrid. Today we gather to witness the death of these five werewolves. Their crimes are great indeed: child abuse, murder, and the attempted kidnapping of my mate. This one," he laid a heavy hand on Jules' shoulder, "was aware that the curse of the sun and the moon is fake, but she still led a pack of werewolves against my mate."

"The curse is fake," Elijah continued. "It was created as a fabrication by myself and Klaus centuries ago. However, elements of it are true. There is a curse, but it is on Klaus, not on vampires or werewolves. We have gathered the necessary elements to break the curse placed on Klaus a millennia ago. As an act of goodwill, we encourage leaders of supernatural communities to come to Mystic Falls, Virginia this full moon to witness the curse breaking."

"Back to the main event," Klaus smiled. He faced the werewolves. "For the attempted kidnapping of my mate, of Elijah's mate, you have been sentenced to death."

Klaus snapped the necks of two of the werewolves, and Elijah snapped the necks of the other two.

All that was left was Jules.

She had been spitting profanity the entire trip to the clearing, so June had gagged her. No one had been particularly gentle with her, so her face was bruised and cut badly. But she still found a way to glare at everyone who made eye contact with her.

"And you," Klaus grabbed her head roughly and pulled it back, forcing her to look at him. "Your crimes are numerous. You killed the alpha of the pack you took over. You involved a coven of innocent witches, who we had to kill for their involvement. You sexually abused a boy who was too young and too new at being a werewolf to know what you were teaching him was wrong. You led a pack of starving, desperate wolves into a plot that was riddled with failing points. You ignored the truth when it was presented to you. You attempted to kill a witch, and you attempted to kidnap my innocent mate. You are the instigator of this folly, and as such your death will be spectacular."

"For your crimes and the resulting loss of nine werewolves and three witches, your punishment is peine forte et dure," Elijah continued. "Large stones will be placed on your body until you die from the pressure. Your body, unlike the bodies of your fallen pack members, will stay in this forest, abandoned and unmourned."

The witches moved Jules' body with magic until she was laying on her back. Before they had set up the camera, the entire group had gone around the surrounding area and found rocks to crush Jules with. The large pile sat off to the side. Elijah and Klaus took turns placing the stones on Jules' body.

Finally, after many rocks, she died.

Klaus and Elijah addressed the camera again.

"These four," Klaus motioned to the Florida pack, "will be returned to their loved ones. They will be buried according to their customs. We seek no quarrel with their family members or any werewolf pack. We understand that this attack was an isolated one."

"As I said earlier, those who do not believe that the curse of the sun and the moon is fake are welcome to witness the real curse be broken this upcoming full moon," Elijah said. "We welcome witnesses, but we will not tolerate anymore attempts on the safety of our mate."

"As you can see," Klaus motioned to the dead werewolves, "we take the safety of our mate very seriously."

They stopped filming.

Ron, Kay, and Sally began to gather the bodies of their fallen pack members. They were going to take the bodies back to their human loved ones in Florida. Ron promised he would try to take Tyler with him, so he could teach the young werewolf how to actually be a werewolf.

Klaus's witches began to spell Jules' body to be unnoticeable to non-supernatural creatures. Klaus wanted the evidence to remain, just not found by humans.

As the groups began working, Caroline and August arrived.

"Ohmygod, I'm so glad you're safe!" the blonde girl said as she hugged Miriam fiercely.

"Me too," tears pricked Miriam's eyes as she returned the hug. She saw August, and pulled away from Caroline to hug him. "Thank goodness you did that spell!"

"Yeah, I'm glad I was smart today," August chuckled and awkwardly patted her back. "Now let go of me… your mates are glaring."

"Let them glare," Miriam said, but pulled away regardless.

Finally they were all able to leave. The Salvatores were returning to their house, which still had the bodies of several of the Florida pack, the werewolves were heading to the Salvatore house to retrieve the bodies, then going to the Gilbert house after they dropped Caroline off at her house, the Martins and Maddox were going back to Klaus's house, and June, August, Elijah, Klaus, and Miriam were going back to the farm house. They all agreed to work on the video of the execution the next day and leave that night as a night of rest.

Once back home, Miriam changed into the comfiest pajamas she owned. Elijah had also changed into sleepwear, and Klaus had somehow procured a pair of sweats and a t-shirt. Though it was only early evening, Miriam climbed into her bed gratefully.

"Elijah, Klaus, would you like to join me?" she asked, knowing that they were hovering just outside her door.

They entered her room, Klaus more hesitant than Elijah for once.

"Come on," Miriam patted her bed as an invitation.

Elijah took the spot to her right and Klaus claimed the spot on her right. They all settled in, and Miriam felt the bond sigh in contentment. Finally safe, she allowed herself to cry. Her mates held her close and murmured sweet nothings to calm her down.

"I was scared today," Miriam said some time later. "When the car overturned and Caroline and August were seemingly murdered right in front of me, all I could think of was that it was my fault. If I hadn't meddled with the storyline, Caroline would be alive. I got really lucky that they didn't actually kill her, or August."

"You are not responsible for the well-being of every life on this planet," Elijah chided gently. "That is a burden only the gods should bear. As lovely as you are, vorgyðja, you are not one of the gods."

Miriam didn't fully believe him about her not being responsible, but she squeezed his hand in gratitude regardless. He was trying to make her feel better, and she appreciated the effort.

"Thank you, both of you, for rescuing me," she said, leaning her head on Klaus's shoulder.

"I require no thanks for saving your life, dearest," Klaus said quietly. Though obviously uncomfortable being in the bed with Miriam and Elijah, he was slowly softening next to her. "I am just glad that we arrived in time."

"I am, too."

They stayed like that, Klaus on one side, Elijah on her other side, for the rest of the night. Miriam hoped Klaus's willingness to be near her and Elijah meant that he was willing to mend bridges, but she was too tired to analyze it further.

They had less than a week until the full moon. Miriam just hoped nothing else happened during the next six days...


A/N:

Ya'll, this chapter was a trial to write, I'm not even kidding. But we got through it!

Questions:

Who do you picture Miriam as? (I know I asked this question before, but I was just wondering if anyone has any new ideas)

Am I giving Miriam enough agency in the story?

How am I doing with writing Klaus and Elijah? Am I making them too OOC?

(Whitney's house update: So the floors for my house were chosen, but there's a backlog at the docks, so the tile is sitting on a cargo ship in the Pacific ocean. We demo-ed half the kitchen the other day, and also took out our gas fireplace. So the house is even more of a construction zone. A lot of things are being removed or bought, and not a lot of stuff is getting put in.

ALSO, it's been a year since the pandemic shut down my school and life, which is such a weird anniversary to have, but that's life, I guess)

Please review and stay safe, ya'll!