December 16, 998
Outskirts of Settlement
Elena's body tensed when a new sound of labored breathing grew closer from somewhere behind her. Fortunately for her, the trunk of the pine tree she had slumped down behind was large enough to hide her presence from whoever was approaching on the other side of the tree. Using the tree as cover, she carefully pulled the dagger out of its new scabbard she'd been given weeks before. She eyed the oily residue coating the blade's surface thanks to the ingenuity of her friend Adric. The scabbard that had replaced the leather sheath now held a reservoir of concentrated wolfsbane oil.
Ever since her first and hopefully last encounter with Jade weeks ago, she wasn't naïve to think otherwise. So she'd been preparing for the inevitable reunion with her werewolf stalker. For, at least in her own time, she'd known where she stood in regard to the Original Hybrid himself. She shuddered at the mental image of what Jade wanted to do with her. Ironically, she was more terrified of the man than Klaus on his worst day and, if she had anything to say about it she had no intention of allowing him to lay a hand on her without a fight.
But it was the sound of a choked sob that now confused her. Curiosity getting the better of her, Elena cautiously stood and after concealing the dagger still clutched in her hand. Elena slowly stepped clear of the tree and froze in mid-step. Her mind, it seemed, was trying to process what she found.
She'd thought that she had seen everything, but the person who'd one day kill her to break a stupid curse right now seemed so vulnerable. A small part of her wanted to relish in spectacle playing out before her eyes, but she wasn't like her predecessor Katherine. Her mind made up and with her dagger once again secure in its scabbard, once more she stepped closer to her nemesis.
"Niklaus?" Elena asked, still feeling dumbfounded by the sight. It felt odd addressing him in that manner.
His body twitched and even though she couldn't see the evidence, she could tell that he'd been crying. In retrospect, so had she not long ago as well.
He turned to leave and Elena stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder but pulled back when he winced with a pinched expression on his already contoured face.
"Niklaus?" she repeated, softening her voice. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine Tatia."
Elena managed not to wince at being confused again with her ancestor or as Tatia's cousin as everyone in the village now believed she was. She didn't want to think about how things might have turned out if Tatia had been working against her presence in her new home.
"Actually it's Elena… Look, Niklaus I know you don't want to hear this but you don't look fine. What's wrong?"
He started to protest, but the look of admonishment she gave him gave him pause. Eventually he sighed, running a trembling hand through his sweat coated blond hair. God, I miss modern shampoo. What they had as a passable substitute smelled nice, too. But I miss my favorite brand.
"It's about my father," he gulped, not sure why is sharing this with a newcomer. "He is never happy with anything I do. I was helping Henrik with his sword practice and he was less than satisfied with my sword parry techniques, so he dismissed my little brother and spent the last hour showing me the proper way."
"Let me guess, he wasn't gentle in his manner of instruction?" she asked gently, not sure he'd respond, but to her surprise he did.
"No… And please don't tell him I said anything about it. He would not be pleased that I was talking to someone outside the family," Klaus pleaded with her.
"My lips are sealed Niklaus," she tried to reassure him, but he seemed upset and she didn't understand why.
"Please don't call me Niklaus, Tatia… Sorry I mean Elena I… I prefer to go by Nik, not the name my father gave me," he coughed. Elena was stunned; she knew thanks to future Rebekah that he preferred the less formal usage of his name, but 'Nik' sounded too familiar for her at the moment.
"I thought only close family or close friends can call you that. Don't get me wrong, I would like to get to that point since you're Bekah's brother, but I just don't think we are at that point yet. I hope that you understand?"
His face crumpled and Elena felt her heart go out to him and she reacted on instinct. Careful not to apply too much pressure to his bruised extremities, she took him into her arms.
"I'm sorry Klaus." He went momentarily stiff, then relaxed into her embrace.
"Klaus…" he drawled as if testing it out. "I think I like it," he said, pulling away and looking into Elena's brown eyes. He could see the resemblance to Tatia; it was uncanny. But the girl he'd fallen for was spoken for now, and he had his heart crushed when he first learned that Tatia was betrothed to someone else. Her older cousin was just as beautiful and had several years of maturity over the girl he'd fallen for but lost.
"How about a compromise of some sort? You can call me Klaus for now and after you get to know me better, you can switch to Nik. How does that sound?" he offered..
"Well I like it too. Klaus just sounds better to me." Elena agreed instantly.
"As do I, brother. I'll try to switch using Klaus if you wish, but I should warn you old habits are hard to break," Elijah added from behind them. While his intrusion had startled both Klaus and she, his voice held an odd resonance that sent a thrill of electricity down her spine.
"Brother. That won't be necessary."
"Elijah," Elena greeted. It was then that she noticed that his clothes looked fresh, more like newly made. His leather tunic gleamed in the light that made it through the branches of the surrounding trees. She couldn't help wondering why he looked so dressed up. Granted, his clothing had nothing on the Armani suits he'd worn almost constantly in the future. Still, she had to admit that they looked superb on him.
"Elena," he returned.
"What are you doing out here?" Elena asked, trying to distract herself from staring at him. She was only partially successful.
"I was on my way to see Ayana, but then I heard you and my brother talking. I was naturally curious, so I came over to investigate. I only caught the part about your name preference, brother. I will leave now," he made to turn away when Elena stopped him with her hand touching his forearm.
"No Please don't go Klaus and I were just talking about his sword practice with you, little brother Henrik." Elena explained. But through the corner of her eye she watched Klaus's worried expression morph into one of betrayal. Did Klaus think she was going to tell Elijah that their father had been less than pleased with their brother's training?
She didn't like the monster he'd become in the future, but he wasn't that person yet and with her mind made up she looked for something positive to say that she'd witnessed on the few times she caught the two brothers sparing. An idea clicked in her head, and she knew what she had to say.
"I've never seen anyone so patient with teaching something so complicated and demanding as swordsmanship to an eager but still relatively inexperienced student. Henrik wants to get into the harder moves, but Klaus keeps trying to tell him to learn the basic moves to the point they become instinctual. What was the one thing you said to Henrik once during your training sessions?" she asked Klaus, hoping that he'd take the hint and follow her lead.
"I'm not sure. I've told him a lot of things, perhaps you'd care to share whatever I'd said that impressed you so much," he said quickly. One thing she had to give him he was good at picking up on was subtlety.
"Oh… Klaus I couldn't do it justice, but I believe you said something along the lines of 'it doesn't matter if you say that you know over a dozen sword yielding techniques; if you can't perform them accurately without thinking about it then you haven't learned a thing,'" she looked back at Klaus, pulling a faux frown she'd didn't think she had it in her, and asked.
"Did I get it right? I'm sure that I missed something?"
Klaus grinned back at her and nodded. "It's close enough. My little brother is a little too eager to learn everything he can. I'm just concerned that he keeps trying to press for new things before he has the basics down first," he added.
"Klaus I find myself asking if it might be beneficial for Henrik's training if Elijah occasionally made an appearance during one of your sparring sessions. It might help perhaps curb your younger brother's desire to try new things if he knows that someone else in the family is watching," Elena suggested to Klaus, but more for the benefit of Elijah.
"How would that help, lovely Elena?" Elijah asked, and once again she felt an odd thrill go up and down her spine.
"Ah… Well, call it performance anxiety. He would only want to show off the skills he knows well, right? He would feel embarrassed to try something he only has a passing familiarity with," Elena explained. Watching Klaus's expression darken, she quickly added. "Mind you, this is your brother's training session. You might make it obvious when you 'accidentally' wander by that you're only there to observe, not to teach. Sometimes a silent observer can be more effective on the sidelines versus an active participant."
Elijah studied them both and she didn't understand why but her heart's beating increased in intensity. It triggered Elena's memories back to the first time she met him in that musty mansion in what now felt like another life. Why do his brown eyes always seem to do that to me at the most unpredictable times?
"I believe I could find some time to stop by and offer any support I can, but wouldn't it perhaps be better if you suggested that our father did the same?" Elijah suggested, still watching her rather intently. Which only started to make her knees weaken. Damn that man, how does he do this to me?
She didn't need to see his brother's expression to realize that would be the worst possible outcome, so she made a show of considering his suggestion before shaking her head in disagreement. Not surprisingly, it elicited a frown to mar his handsome features. Dammit now!
"Elijah, it's a good idea but I really don't think that would be in Henrik's best interest," Elena said firmly, doing her best to ignore the slight increase in her own heart tempo.
"Why not? Our father has more experience with using a sword in combat than all of my brothers and I combined. Wouldn't that be in the best interest of my little brother too?" Elijah asked, his frown only deepening.
"Jarl Mikaelson, if the stories I've heard both here in this new land and back in the old country are true and I don't have a reason to doubt them, is indeed a formidable swordsman. But in Henrik's case, along with the fact he is also his father, could prove counterproductive. Maybe after he's mastered many of the basics and a few of the more advanced sword techniques, Jarl Mikaelson would be a better mentor. For the time being Klaus is the better choice."
"I still don't fully understand? And how do you know so much about such things?" Elijah asked.
"Yes I would like to know as well," Klaus chimed in an all too familiar Klaus-like, demanding tone. For a brief instant she felt as if the apparition of the Original Hybrid manifested itself inside the still human Klaus.
Mentally shaking herself free of the memories that imagery elicited, she took in a deep breath and started to explain. Having two sets of memories, one real and the other magically created, were still hard to fathom, but it did help with diminishing the odd feeling she was lying, because in all practically she wasn't. Which was probably a good thing since Caroline and Bonnie both had stated more than once that Elena Gilbert was a terrible liar.
"It's a long story, but I need to lay a little groundwork first. What have both of you heard about the reason I felt it best to immigrate to this new world?" Elena started. She knew these memories were implanted, but they still felt real to her, and a voice in the back of her head asked a terrifying question. Now that she is essentially stranded in the past, will her real memories of her home be supplanted with these supposedly false ones?
"I know that you were married before coming here and that with the blessing of your Jarl, your union with your then husband was dissolved. But-" Elijah started but was interrupted by his brother.
"I heard that he was a traitor, and you'd turned him in before he could betray your village to your enemies." Klaus added nonplussed by the stern glare his older sibling was giving him.
"Yes, my former husband, whose name I will never utter ever again, was a traitor to my then village. The bastard was going to betray us and when I found out that he was only doing this for two things. The first was simple: he wanted the sum of gold they'd offered him and the second was to replace me with a child bearing harlot! I accidentally discovered his plot when I found them in a compromised position on our wedding bed, discussing their plans. So I turned him in!" Elena spat.
Elijah was stunned and wanted to ask more, but didn't quite know how to put his words together into a coherent question. Klaus was quicker in his recovery, and so asked for the pair of them.
"That sounds tragic, love, but what does this have to do with my brother and such?" Klaus asked.
"Now I need to tell you about my little brother, Jeremy. When he was born there was a large age gap between him and I. Just over six years. My father had always wanted a son but at the time didn't disparage me being his first born. He started to teach me all manner of weaponry usage, including swordsmanship. His claim was that he wanted to keep his skills keen, and I didn't have any reason to doubt him. For me at least, he was a stern and sometimes harsh taskmaster but I thrived under his tutelage. My brother didn't, he was more like your little brother Henrik."
Elena watched as slow realization dawned on Elijah's features and she nodded when he looked at her with a better understanding. She knew he didn't quite know everything, but he was starting to. His brother, on the other hand, wasn't.
"Elena, love I'm still not following you?" Klaus pressed.
"My brother's over eagerness to learn new things was like an addictive potion to our father and he ended up teaching him things he didn't quite have the necessary skills to handle. So on that fateful day I'd caught my traitorous husband, my little brother came to my rescue and died in the brief battle that followed. Fortunately the struggle inside my then home didn't go unnoticed by many in my village and help was sent, but not before my former husband then turned his rage subsequently on me," Elena whispered, her body aching from fathom memories of pain. Damn, Ayana's magic was just too good. I honestly don't know if I should be thoroughly impressed or horrified by the sheer level of detail these memories are to me.
"Lovely Elena I-" Elijah finally spoke, but she stopped him with a raised trembling hand.
"Elijah, wait! I'm almost finished," Elena spoke firmly, mentally preparing herself to do as she'd just indicated. She was only partially successful. Her chest felt tight, and she honestly didn't know if it was from the fake memories or the revelation Ayana had given her only a short time ago.
"Fortunately our village's witch was able to heal me, but the worst part was finding out that I was with child at the time. While my injuries were healed, my unborn child succumbed to his own," Elena said in a clipped voice.
She tried to hold in her emotions but the implanted memories were just too real and learning she would never see her loved ones again finally broke down her walls. She did what any sane person would do by sobbing uncontrollably.
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Elijah reacted before he took the time to consider how his actions might be interpreted by his younger brother or the girl he'd grown to desire from the moment she had collapsed into his arms. He carefully gathered her into his embrace and allowed her to come apart in the safety of his arms. He didn't miss the look of jealousy his brother was giving him afterwards, either. He closed his eyes and just waited, giving her what comfort he could. Although he didn't doubt that her emotions were genuine, he had the most uncanny feeling that something else was there; but for the life of him he didn't have an inkling to what it might be.
He stayed with her as she allowed her body to be pulled by gravity downward and they stayed in that awkward position for some time. He honestly didn't care to be fair, he'd been in tougher positions while hunting in the forest. But for him in just the scant span of time he had grown to want to be with this woman, and despite whatever her history he felt in the marrow of his bones that they were meant to be together.
"Elijah?" Elena's muffled voice broke the shared silence, and he opened his eyes to look down at the girl that so entranced his dreams as of late. She pulled away to peer up at him.
"Yes Lovely Elena?" he spoke gently, wishing to take her back into his arms and to take in her sweet smelling hair. He'd come to adore that pleasant lavender smell.
"I'm good now. It's been a rather trying day for me," she sniffed. It was a partial lie, but he didn't seem to take notice.
"I can only imagine. I'm just thankful that I was here for you now. But I feel guilty for having you relive such a horrendous experience."
"Please don't… If I could I would wish to forget it in its entirety." Elena said, and she took a moment to collect herself when she looked about.
"Where did your brother go?" she asked.
"He left a short while ago Elena. He is not really comfortable with others showing such raw emotion," he answered.
"I'm sorry."
"You have a very compassionate soul, Elena Petrova," he stated after a brief pause to consider what she was apologizing for. It hadn't occurred to him that Elena might have thought she had made his brother uncomfortable.
"You said that you were on your way to talk with Ayana. I need to go find Bekah. She mentioned needing help with something concerning the Yule preparations. I don't want her to think I'd forgotten," she said, moving away from him.
Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yes, Elijah, and thank you for being concerned. I… I like it," she said shyly. Nodding his head, he watched in silence as she departed in the direction of their village. He had only heard parts of her troubling history from others who'd only joined their growing community. For some, her past would perhaps deter them from what he was intent on pursuing, but he was not like most men. He'd been called a noble stag by his younger brother Kol more than once. Elijah would never admit to anyone, but he did like the comparison.
He inspected his clothing, brushing away any dirt or other that marred his appearance. He wanted to look his best when speaking with Ayana. Squaring his shoulders, he set off on the path to the cave entrance.
Some time later.
"Ayana, may I speak with you?" he asked, standing at the entry of her Spellchamber. The one thing he'd learned early on with being raised by a witch was the importance of showing respect to a magic yielder in their place of power. His mother was powerful, yes, but their village was fortunate with having a member of Bennett witches counted among their community.
He'd noted the faint hint of burnt sage as he made his way through the cave passageways, which was not too surprising. He had an odd impression that Elena and Ayana must have been discussing a private matter. It had been the same when his own mother had finally had the talk with him about where babies came from, but he didn't think they were discussing such matters.
"Hello Elijah, how can I help you?" she asked, smiling at him. He'd found her sitting at her work bench staring off to the side; he was tempted to ask if he'd interrupted something, but other than two now empty mugs on the table top nothing else stood out. Taking the seat closest to her, he asked a question that he'd hope would change his and her life forever.
"I would like to talk to you about the lovely Elena Petrova?" he asked and as much as he hated the mask he'd developed over the years dealing with the abuse his father inflicted on his children, especially when it involved his brother Niklaus. He was no coward, but even he was intimidated by his volatile temper.
"Oh!? What do you need to talk to me about in regard to Elena Petrova?" Ayana asked, and the slightest flicker of her eyes was so subtle he would have missed if he'd not been conditioned to observe such things. He couldn't fathom what seemed so interesting with the seat on the other side of him.
"I would like your permission to start a courtship with her. If she is amenable to one, of course," Elijah spoke purposefully.
"I see… Elijah, have you discussed this matter with your parents?" Ayana asked, not giving any visible sign of granting his request.
"Yes, and they are both agreeable with the match. Elena's friendship with my sister is helping my sister emerge from herself. Rebekah, I think, has problems making friends with other girls near her age and it doesn't help that our mother is a witch," he answered truthfully. It had never bothered him and despite all the good things his mother and Ayana did for the village, some of their fellow neighbors were hesitant to become too friendly with members of his family.
"I see… You are aware that she was previously married? So the need to ask for my permission is somewhat redundant, don't you think?"
"No, I don't think so. Ayana, she is living under your roof and it would be improper to assume that she doesn't seek your council on such matters. As to the fact that she was previously married that union was dissolved but regardless I'll love and honor her. Always and forever."
She smiled at his response. He knew that his mother had told her mentor the significance of those three words held such importance within their family.
"I need to ask. Are you prepared to be a husband as well as eventually a father?"
"I'm prepared to be a husband, and although I would be lying if I said I didn't want to have children, I'm nervous that I might not be a good father. I did mention this to my parents. While my father wants grandchildren as soon as possible my mother agrees with me and believes we should take it slow," he answered honestly.
He felt a measure of guilt for withholding the additional discussion he had with his mother in private about her providing a monthly potion to help prevent an unplanned pregnancy. His mother had reassured him it didn't have any harmful after effects. Apparently, it was only effective if consumed on a regular basis. He had the oddest feeling that she was concerned about the wellbeing of her grandchildren, but why any doting grandmother wouldn't, he wondered.
"I find no reason to take issue with allowing a courtship, so long as Elena agrees I assume that by our customs you both will have either a late summer or late fall wedding?"
Elijah's heart swelled, but his mask hid his inner elation he was experiencing at that very moment. He'd been heartbroken when he learned about Tatia's being betrothed. He wasn't going to allow her cousin, Elena Petrova, to slip away.
"Thank you… Ayana, I don't know what to say," he trailed off. The witch smiled at him and patted his arm with a motherly touch.
"You're welcome Elijah, however I really think you should be talking to Elena instead of me. Don't you?" Ayana asked, giving him a knowing smile.
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December 16, 998
The Settlement
Elena stopped just short of the dwelling which she shared with Ayana. Anger swelled from within a dark corner somewhere inside of her. She didn't know if she'd wanted to be angry at Ayana or herself for building up hope of ever seeing her brother and friends again. How would Jer handle this? He's already lost so much, and now, for all intents and purposes, I'm lost to him as well.
"Please, who or whatever you Spirits of Nature are? Don't let Jer waste his life trying to get me back. I'm lost to him forever," she uttered in anguish. For that instant, the world faded into the background when her vision cleared.
Elena found herself clutching the side of Ayana's and what now had become her new home as she labored to control her frantic breathing. Great, I'm having a panic attack!
The last time that happened she was after feeding Katherine bare mouthfuls of blood from a Dixie Cup, all the while pumping her Doppelgänger for information about Klaus and why he obsessed with going after herself and not her predecessor. She lowered her head to her chest, pressing her palms in to her eyes.
"Ella?"
Elena mentally kicked herself for letting her guard down. Based on Ayana's explanation about Ansel's werewolf pack, they'd chosen to migrate to different hunting grounds for the coming winter. At first she'd been relieved, but Ayana reminded her that when they change into their wolf's form, they have incredible speed and endurance. So unless they move hundreds of miles away they are still a threat.
Fortunately for now, she had become quite familiar to the individual who found her during her moment of weakness. Still, she didn't feel up to talking after the bomb Ayana had dropped on her earlier.
"Ella? Are you okay? My sister sent me to come find you."
Right at that moment she didn't really want any company, but like many things going on in her miserable life lately, nothing seemed to care about what she wanted. Removing her hand from her face, still keeping her eyes closed, she sighed.
"I'm fine, Henrik, just dealing with some unsettling news from Ayana. I was on my way to find Bekah when-" she broke off, not wanting to say more.
"Are you sure?" he asked. Despite how she was feeling before, his concern actually brought a faint smile before she covered it. Henrik had turned out to be an interesting child. He seemed to care about everyone and had a curiosity streak that seemed boundless.
"Honestly I'm fine, I just need to clean myself up before-" she broke off again but this time not because she didn't want to say anything. It was that fact that she was now thoroughly drenched from damn near head to toe. The only added benefit of the ordeal was the fact that the water had been icy cold and had temporarily shocked her out of her personal pity party for the time being. Spluttering in indignation, she brushed her wet locks of hair from her face and fastened the youngest Mikaelson with an icy stare.
It was then she noticed the horrified expression on his youthful face. His worried eyes were busy darting from her to the space somewhere above her. The snicker of laughter told her two things. First, she had been pranked and the second, Henrik had been an unwitting accomplice. Hazarding a glance upwards, she discovered what she'd expected. A now empty wooden bucket hung in the air with its bottom upended. There were only a few magic users in their village, she knew. While she didn't know all of them, she knew only one of them liked to use their gift for entertainment purposes.
"KOL! You little shit!" she thundered, wheeling on her heels, but she only caught a glimpse of the fifteen-year-old prankster fleeing the scene of the crime. Maybe it was the blow she'd been dealt with earlier, the rational side of her brain considered, but she wanted to pummel the hapless teen and tore off after him in hot pursuit.
"Dammit, Kol, when I get my hands on you!"
"You'll have to catch me first, Ella, before that!" Kol laughed maniacally and darted to the left, nearly colliding with a pair of villagers, but his youthful speed allowed him to dance around them before continuing onward.
They continued this impromptu game of chase for several minutes before Kol came to a tearing halt, almost narrowly colliding with a familiar blonde.
"Oh! Hey Bekah, I found her!" Kol smirked.
Rebekah looked first at her older brother than at her drenched, still seething friend and her eyes narrowed on her brother, her visible skin turning a shade of vermilion.
"Dammit, KOL you Bacraut! What have you been up to now!?" Rebekah thundered, stepping protectively closer to her only friend in the village.
NOTE: Bacraut is Old Norse for Asshole or Dickface. As much as I love Rebekah's use of 'wanker' it would not fit the time period of the TVD timeline and I have already triggered one too many Cloister Bells with this story. Crap got to go!
