Chapter 16

Niklaus quietly shut the door to Marcel's room after tucking the exhausted boy in. He was asleep before the door even closed. Klaus and Elijah agreed that returning Marcel to his rightful age could wait until after they dealt with Hope.

"She could've killed them," Elijah said furiously as the brothers walked quietly down the hall. They managed to sneak into the Compound without running into Haylee and he was not looking forward to his encounter with her. He knew he would have to tell her what Hope did and she was going to be angrier than he was. "I can't believe she would be so irresponsible."

"She's just a little adventurous," Klaus attempted to defend. "If you were gifted with such powers as a child, wouldn't you want to explore them?"

"I would have," Elijah admitted. "Maybe even more so because when I was thirteen I was naïve and impulsive just like Hope. But it's our job to put a stop to her dangerous behavior before it gets out of control and, Klaus, it's getting out of control. She could've fallen from that Wheel. Marcel could've fallen. Sebastian wouldn't have survived. Imagine the war the Quarter witches would've waged if something happened to that boy."

Niklaus's look of uncertainty frustrated Elijah even more.

"Fine. I'll just tell Haylee and she'll-"

"Don't tell Hayley," Klaus sighed heavily. "She'll overreact."

"And what is the proper reaction to this? Your cavalier approach to parenting is the reason we're having this conversation."

"I'm not cavalier. I'm…I just don't want her to hate me, Elijah. The kids are fine. No one got hurt. Can we just let this one slide? Please."

"She put their safety in danger, Niklaus. You can't possibly be okay with that."

Klaus remembered how afraid he was at watching Marcel plunge to the ground from the top of the Ferris Wheel.

"You're right." He muttered. "She's grounded. For the next two weeks. I mean it," He declared when Elijah stared dubiously at him. "I won't cave this time. I'm punishing her for her own good. Just, do me a favor. Don't tell Haylee before I talk to Hope in the morning. I don't want her lowering the boom before me."

-M-

Hope waited impatiently by Marcel's bedroom door for her brother to finish getting dressed so they could walk down to breakfast together. When Marcel came out he was wearing a pair of skinny jeans that he considered to be still way too tight but they were better than the tights so he didn't complain too much.

"How much trouble were you in last night?" Marcel asked once they made it to the kitchen. The kids had managed to wake up before anyone else and so they had the kitchen to themselves. He sat at the isle and picked the biggest, reddest apple in the fruit bowl while Hope browsed the fridge for a quick breakfast.

"None, I've got a secret weapon. Dad." She said as she shut the fridge, not finding anything she wanted. "There's nothing in the fridge so looks like we're gonna have to go out for breakfast."

Marcel jumped from his seat excited to go explore more of the city. "I'll go get poppa." He said throwing the apple back into the bowl.

"No," Hope shouted. "When he wakes up he's gonna try to turn you back into your old self."

"You don't want me to change back?"

"You were no fun as an adult. You never wanted to hang out with me, or talk to me, or-or….do anything with me. You're way cooler now. Even dad likes you more like this."

"Poppa…didn't like me as a man?"

The carefree look on Marcel's face that Hope had gotten so accustomed to vanished. Feeling guilty for being the reason behind his sorrow, she quickly added, "You two just fought a lot. Not like now. It's so obvious he loves you now. I mean, don't you want to stay like this too?"

Marcel didn't respond because he was indeed having doubts about returning to his old self as well. He couldn't remember anything about his old life as Marcel Gerard – King of New Orleans, the Beast that defeated the Mikaelsons – he couldn't remember any of it and if he couldn't remember it, he wondered if the 'real' Marcel would remember him either. He didn't want to be forgotten, it seemed like dying, but it was obviously what everyone else wanted for him so he took their word that it was what was best. If given the choice, however, he would choose to not change.

"C'mon," Hope grabbed Marcel's arm and started pulling him out of the kitchen. "Let's go before they wake up and try to change you."

"W-wait," Marcel tried to stop by digging his heels in as Hope pulled him but Hope was too strong and just kept dragging him along. "I-I'm not allowed to leave the property without poppa, or Uncle Elijah, or Bex-"

"That was, like, two hundred years ago. People are better now…well, sorta. But now you're a vampire so no one can hurt you. And I'm gonna be with you and I don't mean to brag but I'm pretty damn awesome."

Hope's 21st century vaunting disposition gave Marcel the courage to leave the Compound without a guard for the first time.

-M-

Elijah fidgeted nervously with his tie sitting beside Haylee at the dining room table. He felt guilty for keeping the secret of what Hope did from the woman that he loved but he promised to wait for Klaus to for once accept the negative role that came with being a parent.

"Have any of you seen Hope or Marcellus?" Niklaus asked as soon as he entered the dining room.

"They're not in their rooms?" Haylee asked.

"I've checked the entire Compound," Klaus responded exasperatedly. "They're not here."

"Perhaps they're off exploring the city," Kol said fiddling away on his new phone. He'd become quite fascinated with the latest intelligent innovations since his return. "You know how kids are. Especially Hope."

Klaus knew Kol was probably right in his assumption but that didn't make him any less worried.

"Okay, Klaus," Freya entered the kitchen with a wide smile on her face, ignorant to Klaus's current concern. "The spell is ready. Where is Marcel?"

"Apparently off exploring with Hope."

"What?" Freya's face lost all joy. Suddenly austere, she said, "Klaus, the spell I manufactured was not meant to last this long. Marcel will soon start to feel adverse side effects from it. We have to turn him back. Now."

Freya's warning did little to help with Klaus's worry. He immediately got his phone and called Hope for the third time that morning. Like the two times before, Hope's phone rang until it got to voicemail.

Frustrated, Klaus bellowed, "Why isn't she answering her bloody phone?!"

-M-

Hope muted her ringing phone for a third time as she and Marcel strolled through the busy Quarter streets to the Dupeaux home.

"What's that?" Marcel asked curiously.

"It's my phone." Hope answered but then seeing the still confused look on Marcel's face, she elaborated, "It's a device used to communicate with people far away. You make a 'call' to another phone and you can talk to that person or video chat with them or make a hologram call."

"Really," Marcel took the phone from her hand and began examining it. He didn't understand half of what Hope said but he was curious to find out. His excitement grew when he inadvertently turned on the screen. He was fascinated by Hope's many apps. He was deeply focused on defeating the evil pigs in the latest version of Angry Birds when he was interrupted by another call on Hope's phone.

"Dad?" He read aloud. "Is that poppa?"

"Yeah," Hope said as she casually took the phone out of Marcel's hand and once again muted the call.

"Let me talk to him," Marcel said excitedly. "I want to use the 'phone'."

"We can't talk to him. He's just trying to find us so he can turn you back into an adult."

"Oh. Does that mean…we're running away?"

"Nope," Hope stopped suddenly. Marcel examined the building in front of them and realized it was someone's home.

"I thought we were getting breakfast." He said absentmindedly rubbing his forehead. "I'm so hungry my head's starting to hurt."

"Just a minute. I just need to do one thing first." Hope knocked on the front door and moments later Sebastian came to it.

"Got the stuff?" She asked.

With a wide smile, Sebastian motioned for the two to follow him to the back of the house.

"My parents are out of town 'til the weekend so we've got the place to ourselves," Sebastian said as he led them to the garden where he had the ingredients to what Marcel knew was a spell, though he didn't know enough about magic to know what spell, waiting on an old wooden table for Hope.

"Great," Hope said as she started putting the spell together with Sebastian's help. "We need all the privacy we can get."

"What are you doing?" Marcel asked. Little did he know that while he and Hope were walking to the Dupeaux's, Hope was texting Sebastian with a plan of her own.

"We're creating a spell to keep you young so Aunt Freya can't force you to grow up again."

"But I want to grow up," Marcel said wearily. "Eventually. I don't want to stay a boy forever."

"Don't worry. I'll find a way to get rid of your vampirism so you can grow up right alongside me. It'll be great. Neither of us will have to be an only child."

"But…poppa said vampirism is permanent."

"They thought the Upgrade Original was permanent too but we found a cure for that."

"The Upgraded Original?" Marcel questioned and Hope remembered that he had no memory of his future-past.

"Don't worry about it. Just know that I will fix everything." She insisted.

Marcel was still very much worried. Living in the Mikaelson household he'd seen quite a bit of magic growing up and he never ceased to be amazed at what a powerful witch could be capable of but he held no confidence in his sister's ability to reverse his vampire ailment. If there was one thing he learned from his father it was that vampirism was permanent, that is why Klaus always refused to turn him.

As Hope and Sebastian worked tirelessly to put the makeshift spell together, Marcel's headache grew.

"Hope," he said breathlessly gripping his head. "I think we should go home. My head…is really starting to hurt."

"Just another minute," Hope said not looking up from the task at hand. If she did she would've seen the agonized look on her brother's face.

Marcel waited for as long as he could before the pain got the better of him. He fell to his knees, his hands tightly grasping his burning head, tears streaming down his face, and screaming and agony.

"Marcel," Hope fell beside him. "What's wrong? What's happening?"

"I don't know," he sobbed. "I need poppa! Call him! Please! Get…poppa…"

As Marcel writhed on the floor, Hope contemplated calling for help. She knew if she called home Marcel would be saved from his pain but they would also return him to his old self and she wasn't ready to let him go just yet.

"Do you know how to do a diagnostic spell?" She asked Sebastian and he nodded tentatively. "Okay, you figure out what's wrong with him and I'll finish this spell. Then we'll-"

"No," Sebastian surprisingly responded. "Look at him! Even if we knew what was wrong, I don't have a spell that can fix that and we don't have time to make one up. We have to get him some help."

Hope stared down at Marcel. Tears came to her eyes as she realized she was willing to let him suffer for a minute longer just so she could finish a spell that might not even work.

Sebastian hurried to Marcel's side and helped the sobbing boy to his feet using himself as a crutch for him to lean on.

Hope quickly got on the other side of Marcel and the three started walking quickly back through the house. "The walk back is too long for him," Hope said. "We'll have to flag a taxi."

When they made it to the front door, Hope released Marcel to open it. Standing in their wake, his hand positioned to knock on the door just before it swung open, was Klaus. He had hoped to find them there.

He was just about to warily scold Hope for not answering her phone when he noticed Marcel's tearful, puffy face.

"P-poppa," Marcel choked out.

Klaus sped past Hope to Marcel, practically snatching the boy from Sebastian's hold.

"Marcel, what's wrong?" He asked fearfully.

"It hurts, poppa," Marcel sobbed still holding on to his head. "I-I-I…" The pain became intolerable and Marcel suddenly began screaming hysterically at the top of his lungs.

Klaus scooped his son into his arms and said, "We have to get him to Freya, now." Holding Marcel with one arm, he grabbed Hope with the other and sped off to the Compound.

-M-

"Put him in the circle," Freya ordered bursting into her workshop followed by the rest of the Mikaelsons. She quickly put on her work apron and started putting together a new spell.

Klaus carried the boy gingerly in his arms. He hesitated at the circle, not wanting to release his crying son as he laid him down but Freya didn't have patience for her brother's sentimentality and quickly pushed him away.

"The spell is failing," She said as she hurriedly replaced the ingredients in the circle for her re-aging spell with other ingredients to a spell the others didn't know. Quickly, she mixed the ingredients to form a thick red paste. She turned to Haylee and muttered, "Get your daughter out of here. She doesn't need to see this."

Her warning incited Haylee's curiosity but she knew if Freya didn't think Hope needed to see what was about to happen, she had to prevent her from doing so.

Hope fought against her mother as Haylee dragged her out of the room. She begged for Klaus to make them let her stay but like Haylee, Klaus knew better.

"We should've finished the spell the night we brought the Ancient Ginseng back," Freya scolded over the sound of Hope beating on the locked door.

"What's happening to him?" Klaus anxiously questioned.

"The spell was only meant to be temporary. The old Marcel was lying dormant in his mind but it looks like now he wants out. No one's body can contain two spirits and right now the old Marcel and the young Marcel are having a battle of which spirit gets to stay. The problem is that this body is meant for the young spirit; the old Marcel cannot be tethered to it so if he wins…we're going to lose them both."

"And what do you intend to do to save him?" Klaus demanded. Freya ignored his anger knowing that it did not arise because of her but because of his own feelings of helplessness at not being able to help Marcel.

Freya looked down at Marcel's thrashing body. His heart-wrenching screams silenced to breathless sobs.

"I'm going to save him, Klaus," She said as she took the only knob of Ancient Ginseng they had from the old bowl of ingredients. "But I'll have to use this."

Rebekah shook her head 'no' understanding what using the last of the Ginseng would mean. "How will you return him to his original self?" She loved Marcel as a boy but she wanted her lover back.

"As we speak Charlene and Russell Dupeaux are on their way to China to pick up more of the Ginseng. They will be back at the end of the week and then we can restore Marcel. Until then," She took the last of the Ancient Ginseng and ground it as fine as she could. Then she added it to the paste and stirred it until its rusty red coloring magically became a murky yellow. "I'm going to trap the old Marcel's spirit again but this spell is…a bit archaic." She turned to Klaus, her eyes holding both a warning and a plea. "Whatever happens, you mustn't stop me or I can't save him."

"Poppa," Marcel's tiny voice softly broke through his sobs. "It…hurts…. Help …Please."

Turning back to Freya, Klaus ordered, "I don't care what you have to do. Save him!"

Freya nodded. She walked slowly to the circle, slowing even further down as she passed Elijah. "I'm going to have to hurt him to save him," She quickly whispered. "But he will live. If anyone enters the circle before the spell is complete, it will not work. Don't let anyone in."

Klaus was so focused on Marcel that he didn't hear anything Freya said to their brother.

Freya entered the circle and started the spell. As she chanted, she used the paste to draw a strange symbol on Marcel's forehead with her fingers. Marcel's crying began to cease. He took deep, steady breaths. Niklaus's distress withered as his son's did.

His calmness didn't last long though when he saw the dagger Freya pulled out of her apron. His first assumption was that Freya needed the dagger to draw some of her own blood that was possibly needed for the spell but as Freya held the knife over Marcel's head, still chanting while looking as if she was about to plunge the blade into the boy's skull, Klaus's emotions rage.

"What are you doing?" He barked. Elijah quickly sped across the room to his brother, wrapping his arms around Niklaus's shoulders and keeping him in place. "What are you doing, Elijah?" Klaus bellowed. "Let go of me! What is she doing? Freya!"

Freya ignored the screaming and continued chanting. Then she took the blade and pressed it firmly against Marcel's forehead, digging deep into his skin. She began etching over the symbol, carving it into Marcel's forehead. The boy's screams returned tenfold. Freya's magic kept him in place as she finished cutting into his flesh.

Klaus fought hard against Elijah and eventually got the better of him, knocking the older brother to the ground.

"Stop him!" Elijah screamed. Kol and Rebekah tackled Klaus just as he was about to vamp into the circle.

"Let me go!" He begged with tears in his eyes unable to stand the sound of Marcel's screams. "She's killing him! Can't you see she's killing him?!"

Klaus's screams were as loud as Marcel's. He was throwing such a fit that no one knew the spell was over until Freya, now drained of energy and power, stood shakily in front of them all in a tangled mess trying to keep Klaus down.

Elijah, Kol, and Rebekah moved aside so Klaus could run over to the circle where Marcel laid unconscious. The stress of the ritual on his young body was enough to knock him out.

Terrified of the answer, Klaus stuttered, "Is he…is he…"

"Resting," Freya answered the question he couldn't get out. "He'll be fine. You can hold him now if you want."

That was all Klaus needed to hear before falling to his knees and hugging Marcel close to his body.

Exhausted, Freya walked slowly over to the door and opened it. Haylee was standing with her back to the door blocking Hope from it when it opened.

"He's fine," Freya announced. "You can come in now."

Hope dashed between her mother and the door to Klaus still holding Marcel on the floor.

"Careful of his wound," Freya warned.

Klaus looked down at the indelicate abrasion on his son's face and cringed.

"When will it heal?" He asked.

"It won't. Not until I'm ready to release the old spirit. It'll hurt a bit when he wakes but he has the strength of a vampire so I doubt it will bother him much."

"Perhaps," Elijah moved to the circle where father and daughter were both embracing Marcel. "We should bandage the wound and put Marcel to bed. He's had a long morning." As Elijah leaned down to help his brother up, he noticed the shoulder of his jacket got ripped while they were trying to restrain Niklaus. "We've all had a long morning." He groaned.

"I certainly have." Said Freya. She released a loud yawn as she slipped the apron over her head and laid it back on the table. "I think I'm going to take a nap and sleep for a few hours…or days."

"That sounds like a brilliant idea." Elijah agreed. "I think we could all use a nap."

"Way ahead of you," Hope said, her slumped shoulders conveying her exhaustion as she dragged her feet out the room. She'd tired herself out trying to get past Haylee and now that she knew Marcel was safe, she was more than willing to take a nap. "No one wake me 'til lunch."

Niklaus chuckled at the girl's order as he followed behind her carrying Marcel in his arms.

"That nap would be optional, wouldn't it?" Kol asked with an impish grin once they were gone. "Because I sorta already made plans that don't involve me napping."

"What sort of plans," Rebekah teasingly asked.

Kol's face twisted in anger at his sister's pestering inquiry. "Private plans that don't involve you."

"You seem to have a lot of private plans lately," Elijah stated. "We've all been so focused on Marcel that we've seem to let you slip through the cracks. You wouldn't be doing anything I should be concerned with, would you, dear brother?"

Elijah's seemingly innocuous question held a known warning.

Kol grunted in frustration. He longed for the days when Marcel was laid comatose in bed and no one cared what he was up to.

"Twelve years trapped in each other's minds and you lot still don't trust me."

"Twelve years trapped in each other's minds and you still come out untrustworthy." Rebekah sneered.

"Alright, Rebekah," Elijah held up a silencing hand to Rebekah. "That's quite enough. Kol, I trust you. Because I know that you know if you do something remarkably stupid I will make you wish for those twelve years you couldn't feel pain."

-M-

On his way from putting Marcel to bed, Klaus stopped back by Freya's workshop. The destruction he caused trying to break out of his siblings' hold had disappeared. Freya was putting away the last Grimoire when she noticed Klaus.

"I was coming to lend a hand but I can see that you're all done here."

"It's not the first time I've had to clean this place after you destroyed it in a fit of rage."

Klaus blushed. "Listen, I'd just like to apologize for my behavior earlier during the ritual."

"You mean when you accused me of trying to kill your child?" Freya bit.

"Can you blame me all things considered?"

"I may have tried to get rid of Marcel before but I would never hurt an innocent child! That you would accuse me of it…When we first met I accepted your paranoid cynicism because you had no reason to trust me but now we are family, Niklaus. I have killed for this family and wouldn't hesitate to do it again but not even the monster inside of me is cruel enough to hurt a child. Let alone my brother's child who he cares so much for."

Tears of anger pricked Freya's eyes. Niklaus suddenly felt the guilt that he only ever felt after unintentionally hurting one of his siblings.

"Freya, I-"

"I don't need your apology, Klaus. I need you to be a better brother. And a better father. Your selfishness in wanting to keep Marcel a boy nearly lead to you losing him all together. You may be a great leader but when it comes to matters you're too emotionally involved in, you're an idiot. So I'm going to Big Sister you from now on and any time I know a spell needs to be done to save the life of one of our family members, I'm going to do it whether you like it or not."

Niklaus stared at Freya in awe. Freya's method of performing as an older sibling was much different than Elijah who would always offer Niklaus the option of doing things his way first. Freya was more demanding and Klaus hated it.

-M-

Kol walked into the dark, desolate Tremé bar looking curiously around for his friend. He spotted him sitting at a booth at the very back of the bar before the young vampire could notice the presence of the Original.

"Sorry about the wait," Kol greeted cordially as he sat across from Joshua Rosza. "Family problems."

With a meek smile, Josh said, "That seems to come par with being a Mikaelson."

Unbeknown to anyone, since Niklaus lifted Josh's ban from the city Kol had been keeping a secret friendship with him. It wasn't something Kol ever thought he'd consider before but one day when he was missing Davina more than ever he decided to contact Josh. One brief conversation about Davina led to a conversation about broken hearts and past regrets. The two soon realized they had more in common than they thought and without realizing it, a friendship had formed. Fearing someone would find a way to exploit this new friendship, Kol compelled Josh to keep their relationship a secret and they only ever met outside of the Quarter to avoid his family.

"Speaking of your family, how's Marcel?"

Kol sighed deeply. "I am fine, thanks for asking. Got a little lost finding this place even though it is the only bar open at 10 am on a Monday."

"You wanted seclusion, can't get any more secluded than the Witch Lounge. This place is where all the baddies go to do their business. And you can't get mad about me asking about Marcel. I can't talk to him now, what with him being a child and not even remembering who I am or what we've been through together. Also, have I mentioned how against this whole 'meeting in secret' crap I am? Even when I was in the closet I didn't have to be this cagey. And another thing, this compulsion thing, total BS. 'Friends Don't Compel Friends' should not be something I have to remind you of every day."

Kol rolled his eyes and curtly replied, "God, you're a talker. I pity the chap that has to listen to you whine all day."

"That's it," Josh rose from his seat. "I knew this was a bad idea. I'm out."

"Wait, sit down," Kol said coolly but much like his brother, Klaus, his eyes revealed his sincerity. "I was only messing around. Truth is…I value our friendship. That's why we have to keep it a secret. You were an enemy of our family. What would it look like for us to be seen in together?"

Josh sat back down with an angry scowl on his face. "It was fine when I was seen together with Marcel. Y'know, before 'the incident'."

"That's because Marcel still didn't hold any power in my paranoid brother's kingdom. I, on the other hand, am one-fifth of the Mikaelson monarchy but if Klaus knew about us I would be nothing. And he would probably kill us both."

I'd be dead for sure, Josh thought, You'd probably get away with a few swats on the bottom. Josh laughed to himself wondering if Kol really did receive the same punishment from Klaus that Marcel confessed to him of getting.

"What was that?" Kol asked feeling insecure about Joshua's private joke.

"Nothing," Josh chuckled. "Inside joke…with myself."

"Maybe I should compel it out of you so we can both share in a laugh."

"You compel anything else out of me and this friendship is over for good."

When the Mikaelsons returned they destroyed every bit of Vervain in the city and Klaus had his sentries on the lookout for any new Vervain shipments. They were under strict orders to dispose of all Vervain they came in contact with and anyone who dared distribute it. The Dupeaux family were the only people allowed to grow the plant and only in very limited supply. This led to an entire city of people, witches, and vampires now vulnerable to the Mikaelson control and, like everyone else, Josh hated it.

"Alright," Kol agreed reluctantly. "No more Compulsion. I swear."

"Good. Now, I'm about to go catch a matinee with my boyfriend. You can come along if you want."

"No thanks. I'm no third wheel. I'll just go back home and watch as my family continues to ignore and distrust me."

"C'mon," Josh grabbed Kol's arm and pulled him to his feet with little resistance. "I'll buy you the big popcorn and listen to you complain all about your family on the way."

"The big popcorn and the large soda," Kol stated as if it were a demand before leading the way out of the bar.

Josh sighed, once again rethinking his newfound friendship for the hundredth time.