Chapter 21

Freya decided to keep her knowledge of Kol running away to herself. She figured if Kol's fears were real then their siblings might well give up on him once they found out he ran off on them. She spent a thousand years promising to keep her family together should she ever have one and now she did and she wasn't going to let Marcel tear them apart again.

"So just got off the phone with my parents." Sebastian groaned as he flopped down on the sofa in the den with Marcel and Hope. "They're on their plane. Your mom told them about the party last night. Between that and us using those rare ingredients, I'm basically grounded forever."

"But they're still going to let you come over here, right?" Hope asked afraid of being without her friend.

"I doubt it. Mom really laid into me on the phone. Dad would've too but he was afraid his voice would carry over the plane and all the passengers would hear that he's going to kill me."

"Now what am I supposed to do," Hope sank back in her cushion. "I'm still grounded for another week and now I won't have you or Marcel."

"I'll still be here," Marcel declared.

"Yeah, but as adult you. Nobody liked adult you."

Marcel sat back, those words lingering in his mind like a haunting refrain.

"Then I don't wanna grow up." He muttered.

"What?" Hope asked.

Marcel repeated louder, "I don't wanna grow up. Hope, you have to help me."

"I...I can't. You heard Aunt Freya. That spell we concocted wouldn't help anyone."

"There has to be some witch around here that could do it."

Hope thought about the witch they'd met the night before. "Vincent. Mom says he's one of the most powerful witches in New Orleans. I'm sure he could do something."

Marcel jumped to his feet. "Then let's go. What are we waiting for."

"Hello," Hope stood up. "Still grounded, remember. We can't leave here without getting in trouble. You'll have to go alone."

Marcel's eyes turned somber remembering his father's warning about him being too far away from Freya. "I can't go alone. If my seal breaks while I'm by myself I could die." Marcel slumped back on the couch devastated.

"Wait," Hope paced the floor thinking. "I have an idea. The problem is that you can't be alone too long, right? Well then, here's what we do. I'll compel a guard to contact Vincent tonight and ask him to do the spell for us tomorrow. When we go to drop of Sebastian, I'll ask mom to stop at the bakery across the street from Vincent's Sanctuary. Then you could run off and get the spell done. We'll be with you the whole time."

"He's not just going to do the spell for us." Sebastian pointed out. "He's gonna want something in return."

"Well, what do we have to trade? I could go get some of my Uncle Kol's dark objects. He doesn't use them anyway."

"He's a witch," Sebastian scoffed. "He has dark objects. We need to trade him something he doesn't have already."

The three teens try to think of what they had of value in the Compound that no one would miss if it were gone.

Suddenly Sebastian jumped up with an idea. "What is the rarest and most valuable commodity in the Quarter these days?" He asked. He waited for a second for the other two to shrug their answers and blurted, "A cure for wolf bites, i.e., your blood. We offer to trade Vincent a vial of your blood for him doing a spell to keep Marcel a kid."

"Vincent's not a vampire." Hope stated the obvious. "Why would he need the cure for a werewolf bite?"

"Because then he'll be the only man that's not a Mikaelson that has the cure so Vampires from all over New Orleans will be at his door trying to trade him anything for it."

"That's brilliant," Hope exclaimed. "I'll go find a guard to set it up right now."

-M-

Klaus gently shook Marcel awake the next morning.

"Good morning," He greeted his son with a smile. "The Dupeauxs plane landed a couple of hours ago. Hope, Haylee, and Freya left a little while to take Sebastian home."

Marcel umped up in a panic. "Why didn't anyone wake me. I was supposed to go with them."

"Well, he's hardly gone forever," Klaus answered thinking that Marcel's panic was because he was going to miss his new friend. "I'm sure he'll find his way back over here before the day is over."

Marcel forced himself to remain calm. He grabbed his phone off his nightstand about to text Hope for an idea on what to do next when he saw he already had a text from her saying, 'Dad wouldn't let me wake you. Change of plans. Don't worry.' Marcel let out a heavy sigh of relief.

"Of course," Klaus said, drawing Marcel's attention back to him. Marcel looked up to see the smile still on his father's face but ambivalence in his eyes. "You won't be quite the same person the next time you see Sebastian."

"What will happen to me?" Marcel asked, no longer worried about becoming a man since he was sure that day wouldn't come just yet. "If his spirit comes back, I mean. What's gonna happen to me?"

Klaus sat on the bed beside the boy. "I talked to Freya about this and she says that since you are a part of Marcel, once she reverses the spell you'll return to being a part of him. When you wake up as an adult you will have all the memories of this past week So you don't need to worry. It'll be just like going to sleep and when you wake up, you'll still be you. Just a little taller, with a bit more memories, and a more...abrasive personality. But you'll still be Marcellus. And I'll be there the whole time. You know I wouldn't let anything bad happen to you."

Marcel nodded still afraid of being a faint memory lost in the mind of the man that tried to kill his family.

"Is it true," Marcel mumbled. "Did you hate me as a man?"

"No," Klaus stated. "We fought. We both did things that we regret. But no matter what happened between us, I could never bring myself to hate my son. Do you remember what I promised you, Marcel?"

Nodding again, Marcel said, "Always and forever."

"Always and forever," Klaus repeated. Hearing a slight noise in the distance, he listened in closer to hear Haylee and Freya talking downstairs. "Seems they're back." Klaus rose from the bed and held out his hand to Marcel. "Shall we go down together?"

"What if...I don't want to grow up."

"You have to Marcel," Klaus stated trying to convince himself of the same. "That seal could break at any moment. Every second you exist how you do is another second that you could just slip into nonexistence and I won't let that happen."

"Would you force me to do it even if I didn't want to?"

Klaus was silent wondering how he should answer then without apprehension, he answered, "Yes. I will always do everything I can to protect you, Marcel, even if you think it makes me the bad guy."

Just then Hope came tearing down the hall stopping at Marcel's bedroom door. "Dad," She smiled brightly. "I know I'm still grounded but I was wondering if, and mom says it's okay with her if it's okay with you, if me and Marcel could take one last walk around the Quarter." Before Klaus could open his mouth she let out a series of 'pleases' that immediately won his heart.

"Fine," He gave in. "Be back in an hour. That's one hour. I mean it Hope."

"Yes sir," She smiled thinking to herself an hour was all they needed. When Klaus left, Hope said, "Get dressed. I'll text Vincent we're on our way."

-M-

Hope and Marcel marched quickly down the busy New Orleans street attempting to 'accidentally' lose the tail Klaus had follow them. Once he was gone, they sped their way to the Sanctuary. Vincent was at the door waiting for the teen. Marcel didn't like the way he looked at him, as if he didn't trust him after their last encounter.

"You brought the blood?" Vincent asked closing the church doors behind them.

Hope reached into the pocket of her vintage denim jacket and pulled out a narrow vial of blood.

"Y'know, if I thought you were actually going to bring me that vial, I might've turned down your offer," Vincent said walking slowly away.

Confused, Hope asked, "What are you talking about?"

Feeling an uneasiness with the strange man, Marcel attempted to open the church doors but they were sealed shut with Vincent's magic.

Hope dropped the vial and it shattered. "What's going on?" She asked, prepared to fight.

"Now I don't fight children," Vincent said calmly. "So put your hands down before I make an exception."

"Did you double-cross us?" She barked.

Vincent looked grimly at Marcel. "There was nothing I could do for you kid. I don't have the spell that can cure you but I knew if I turned you down you'd go looking for another powerful witch who would tell you they could, one who would take all of your blood if they wanted. I couldn't let that happen to a couple of poor, naive kids. Marcel, man, you might not believe this but as an adult, you helped a lot of people. We need you in this world. So yeah, I betrayed you. I called Freya as soon as you texted me you were on your way." Vincent pushed open the church's second set of double doors to reveal a circle drawn in the middle of the aisle and standing beside it was Klaus, Freya, Hayley, and Rebekah.

"Marcel," Klaus said softly. "It's over, son. You have to do this."

Marcel shook his head no. "I don't wanna be forgotten."

"You won't be," Freya insisted. "The older Marcel will remember this you."

"I don't believe you! If he remembered me at all before then he wouldn't have tried to kill you all. You wouldn't have tried to kill him!"

"Marcel, it's not how you think," Klaus said. "Life gets complicated when you're older. People make mistakes, decisions are made that have to be followed through, but it doesn't mean that we hated you."

"They did!" Marcel yelled. "Uncle Elijah tried to kill me. Kol...Kol..."

"I know, son, and I'm sorry but-"

"No! I'm not doing it." Marcel had worked himself up into a tizzy and was prepared to fight in order to stay a child. Then he felt a splitting headache right where his scar was.

"He's put too much strain on the seal. It's breaking." Freya stated, noting the boy's pain. "Quick get him into the circle."

As Klaus took a step towards Marcel, the boy took one back.

"No," He screamed. "I'm not going in unless you promise I can stay like this."

"Marcellus-"

"Promise!"

The boy fell to his knees in pain.

Freya could see the moment of contemplation in Klaus's eyes and decided to make the choice for him. Using her magic, she pulled Marcel into the circle kicking and screaming.

"Freya, what are you doing?" Klaus demanded.

"I'm saving his life," Freya stated calmly. She locked the boy into place and started the spell. As Freya started chanting Marcel felt his eyes getting heavy. Just before he sleep off to sleep, he heard Klaus's voice say 'It's gonna be alright, Marcellus. Poppa's right here.'

Klaus took Freya's hands to anchor her to the spirit world. As she changed, a candle at the top of the circle lit. Marcel's body began to change in front of their eyes. When the candlelight went out, his eyes opened. He sat up staring around the church with a look of confusion on his face. He looked down at his hands. They were bigger and held the hardship of two hundred years of life.

"Marcel," Klaus got into the circle and bent down to his son sitting on the floor. "Are you okay?"

Marcel turned to Freya standing over him and said, "Thanks. That kid was gonna kill me."

"It was no problem," Freya said but it was in fact a problem. If it were solely up to her she would've preferred the child Marcel over the adult she still very much loathed after what he did to her family.

Marcel saw Hope staring crestfallen at him from the church entrance. His memories from the past week seemed far away but he did remember them. He smiled at her trying to show her that he remembered but she just turned and ran out of the church.

"I'll go talk to her," Hayley said. Before she left she nodded to Marcel and said, "Good to have you back."

-M-

Marcel's bedroom door opened just as he slipped his shirt on. He'd burst out of the clothes the younger Marcel wore before the ceremony but Klaus had brought him a change of clothes expecting that much. Still, wearing clothes that Klaus picked out for him reminded Marcel of a life he could never go back to so when he made it back to the Compound he made an immediate change.

"There you are," Rebekah sang. Marcel turned to her with a debonair smile. "I missed you, y'know. What was it like? Being a trapped spirit? Could you see us?"

"I don't remember." He pulled her into the room and shut the door. "But I remember what it was like before I was a trapped spirit."

He kissed her and she kissed him back. Seconds later she pulled back.

"We mustn't. Klaus is probably on his way up here-"

"What's he going to do? Punish us for being in love?"

"He has before." She pushed him away remembering the many lovers Klaus had taken away from her.

"He punished you for your love by killing your lovers." He said to her. "I think we both know by now he's not going to kill me."

Irritated, she reminded him, "We knew that when he punished me by daggering me for 52 years."

"If he tries again I'll pull it out," Marcel promised, stepping closer to her. "Right then and there. Because I don't want to lose you again, Bex."

Rebekah heard footsteps coming down the hall.

"Let's talk about this later," She said opening the door. "But in the meantime, don't tell Klaus."

She sped off down the hall and moments later Klaus appeared.

"How are you feeling?" Klaus said genially, obviously unaware of what had just happened in there.

"Okay. I'm just happy to be myself again."

Klaus smirked. "Y'know, the young Marcel was determined to not become you. He was afraid he'd be forgotten."

"I remember," Marcel said.

Klaus felt genuine relief. If Marcel remembered the boy-Marcel then Klaus hoped his memories would change Marcel for the better.

Marcel suddenly turned somber. "I remember everything you said to me. Always and forever. I was just wondering...if you still meant it, even with me like this."

"C'mon, mate," Klaus chuckled. "Forever didn't end twenty minutes ago. You will always be my son. But I realized something over the past week. You are not the little boy you were back then. Young, innocent, and naïve. When you became a man and I finally started treating you like one, you did become my brother. And in my return to New Orleans after my hundred-year absence, you became my friend. My son, my brother, my friend." Klaus placed a hand tenderly against Marcel's neck. "I will always cherish our relationships. For as long as I live you never need to question my feelings for you."

Marcel smirked. Klaus's sentimentality made him feel loved for the first time since the Originals retook New Orleans but it also made him blush.

"So we're friends now?" Marcel joked hoping to lighten the mood as he walked out of the room with Klaus by his side.

"Passing acquaintances." Klaus teased.

"Well as your friend I'm asking you for more freedom."

"What do you mean? You're free to go where you want now."

"You think I don't know you have me followed?"

Klaus scoffed. "Well, since I found out that you've managed to ditch your tails to go traipsing about the bayou with Rebekah, I'll stop having you followed. But I want to know where you are every time you leave this Compound."

"Seriously, Klaus? My friend wouldn't ask me to send them location notifications every time I move."

"Then consider this an order from Dear Ol' Dad or Paranoid Big Brother Klaus."

"I can't believe you still don't trust me."

"Did you think a week with my child would erase all the betrayal I was been dealt by my dear friend?"

"Alright, fine," Marcel gave up. "Then since you want to know everything," He thought about telling Klaus that he was seeing Rebekah again. He wanted to just let the words fall from his lips but then he remembered the promise he made to Rebekah. Getting one in on Klaus wasn't worth making her hate him. "I'm going to Josh's." He bit.

"That's the spirit," Klaus teased as the man stomped down the stairs. "Text me when you get there."

When Marcel was gone, Klaus called Elijah.

"He's back to his petulant self," Klaus said. "You can come back home now."

"That's good. Have you seen Kol today?"

"No, I haven't seen him since you left yesterday."

"Neither have I. He never showed up to the hotel."

Klaus marched down the hall to Kol's bedroom. There were clothes thrown across the bed and dresser and the closet was opened and empty of all Kol's dark objects. "His room is ransacked."

"You don't think he ran away?"

"I wouldn't put it past him. But he won't be gone for long if I have anything to say about it."

-M-

Flashback:

New Orleans, 1914

Kol tore his bedroom apart looking for the diamond he planned to use to make a dagger that could take down Klaus. He knew he put the jewel in a box on his dresser but when he went to get it it was gone.

"Looking for this?" Marcel stood in the doorway holding a giant diamond in his hand.

With a half-smirk, Kol said, "Thanks for finding my jewel, mate. Now hand it over."

"I don't think so," Marcel clasped his hand over the diamond. "Not til you tell me what it's for."

Kol groaned. "You don't wanna know."

"Oh, I think I do because I think this little rock has something to do with why you've been going around the city befriending witches."

"You trying to blackmail me?" Kol growled. "You really don't wanna know what I want to do with that diamond. It might insult your delicate sensibilities."

"Just tell me," Marcel said annoyed.

Kol sighed. "I'm going to use it to make a dagger to put Klaus down."

"You want to kill Klaus?" Marcel said suddenly defensive.

"Not kill him," Kol quickly corrected. "Just put him down. Klaus has daggered me dozens of times over the years. I deserve to get him one back."

Marcel stared down at the diamond. "So…you can use this to dagger him? And…you can take it out at any time and he'll just wake back up?"

"Exactly," Kol said smirking. He knew he had him right where he wanted him. He walked slowly over to Marcel. "We could put him to sleep for a few years. I'll be without my wicked brother, you can go wherever you want, be with whoever you want, we could all finally be happy."

Kol put his hand over the diamond in Marcel's hand.

"Just give it to me."

Marcel yanked his hand away from Kol's. "No," he said calmly. "I don't think I will."

Indignant, Kol grabbed Marcel's arm and tried to wrench the diamond from his hand and Marcel fought against him. Growing frustrated, Kol jabbed him in the chin.

Marcel stood stunned. He had never been hit by one of his family members before.

Kol felt instantly remorseful but he refused to show it. "Give me the diamond." He demanded.

After the initial shock of being hit, Marcel was angry. He put the diamond in his pocket. He tackled Kol into the room and wrestled him on the floor. Kol threw Marcel off him into the dresser, breaking it in half. As Marcel staggered to his feet, Kol grabbed him by the collar and slammed him against the wall. He didn't get another chance to get the diamond when, suddenly, he was pulled away from him and thrown into the hall.

"What the bloody hell do you think you're doing?" Klaus barked at Kol.

Kol jumped to his feet and glared at Marcel.

"Just got into a little tif." He muttered.

"How dare you put your hands on him." Klaus continued angrily. "You do not hit my son!"

"Klaus, stop," Marcel demanded.

Klaus turned to him and grew even angrier with Kol at the sight of the cut on Marcel's cheek.

"He does this to you and you want me to stop?"

"I can take care of myself."

"Evidently not." Klaus grabbed Kol by the shirt. "If you ever hurt him again I'll dagger you for a century."

He pushed him away and marched out of the room.

"You're lucky daddy came to your rescue." Kol mocked. He was surprised when Marcel suddenly tossed the diamond over to him.

"Do it," Marcel said. "I'm tired of .him treating me like a child."

End Flashback

Since Josh's door was unlocked, Marcel walked into the loft without knocking.

He saw a shoe attached to a foot hanging off the back of the couch and assumed it was Josh fallen asleep on the couch again after a long night. "Hey Josh," He hit the shoe and the person sat up straight.

Kol's fangs shot out immediately assuming he was going to have to defend himself. They retracted when he saw it was Marcel but he didn't calm down.

"What are you doing here?" Kol growled.

"I was just about to ask you the same thing," Marcel said just as defensive. "Where's Josh?"

Josh came stumbling out of his bedroom with a bedsheet wrapped around his waist. "Marcel," He laughed embarrassed. "You're back to you. That's...awesome. Um, so...um, you already know Kol. Uh...I'm just...gonna go get dressed. Please don't kill each other while I'm gone. Also, my boyfriend is in here and he's just a mere mortal so, uh, remember that if you start throwing tables or whatever."

"What are you doing here?" Marcel said as soon as Josh was gone.

"What's it look like? I fell asleep here."

Marcel noticed the half-empty bottle of whiskey sitting on the coffee table next to three glasses. He realized that Kol fell asleep after spending the evening drinking with Josh and his boyfriend and that only made him more irritated to think that his enemy shared a drink with his closest friend.

"So, what? You two are friends now?"

"The best." Kol mocked.

"I doubt it since your family killed his last friend."

"No fighting, no fighting, no fighting," Josh came running out of the room pulling a dark-haired man behind him. He dragged his boyfriend to the front door and said, "Um, neither of these are my ex's, by the way, and I'll explain everything to you later. Promise." His boyfriend nodded, keeping his eyes on the two men staring each other down. Josh shut the door behind him and turned back to the danger radiating in the next room. "Can everyone please just calm down? Marcel, Kol is my friend." Knowing that Marcel was about to make another comment about Davina, Josh said, "I know what you're thinking but he had nothing to do with Davina's death. He was fighting to save her."

"Josh, you can't him. He uses people, just like his family used Davina."

Enraged, Kol tackled Marcel. The two fought around the room until Josh stood between them.

"You two are really ruining the 20th-century French décor." Josh barked. "Can we please talk like civilized adults?"

"I loved Davina!" Kol yelled, tears breaching his eyes. "I loved her…more than I love myself."

"Then you should've left the city," Marcel said in anger. "And let the ancestors kill you to protect her."

Kol cringed. He thought about that every day. He felt that Davina was the only person who ever truly cared about him and it broke his heart that he couldn't save her.

"Marcel, man, give him a break," Josh said softly. "Davina loved us all. She wouldn't want us fighting over who loved her the most."

"Fine," Marcel said. "But what about the weeks you had me down in the Compound basement torturing me for your own amusement."

Josh stood dumbfounded. No one had told him about that.

"I'm sorry," Kol said. "I was angry. I hated you for blaming me for Davina's death."

"You whipped me with a leather belt." Marcel bit. "You're no better than the monsters that thought they owned me."

"Don't you dare compare me to them!"

"What's the difference?"

Kol said nothing.

"That's what I thought. Get out of here. Stay away from Josh, I don't care how much you claimed to have loved Davina. You are nothing."

Kol looked to Josh but his new friend couldn't even look at him. Ashamed and angry at himself and Marcel for exposing him, Kol left.