(2/2)
Chapter 42
When Freya made it back to her lab, the first thing she did was run another diagnostic spell on her still sleeping 'little' brother. She knew that until she could find a way to return Finn back to his rightful age, she would be constantly running diagnostic spells on him for safe measure.
She grabbed a piece of parchment from her desk and brought it over to Finn. Taking one of his fingers, she used a small pin to prick the tip of it and dripped a few drops of his blood onto the parchment. Then she began to chant over the parchment until his blood began to move and write out all of Finn's vital signs across the parchment. She relaxed at seeing all of his vitals come up normal.
As Freya went back to her desk to continue studying her grimoires, Finn began to stir. It was subtle at first, his eyelashes slowly batting open, but then he shot up on the sofa all at once, his chest heaving heavily as if he'd been running a hundred miles.
Freya hurried over to his side, afraid that her spell had misdiagnosed him and he was about to be taken from her again.
"Finn," she said placing her hand on his forehead to test his temperature. "Are you okay?"
Seeing Freya sitting in front of him, touching him, reassuring him that she was indeed real and not just an apparition of his desperate lonely mind eased Finn's worry and his heavy breathing began to slow.
"I'm fine," he muttered. Looking around to see that they were alone, he asked, "Where is everyone?"
Freya released a calming sigh at hearing Finn's snippy response indicating that he was still himself. She'd just gotten her little brother back and she was going to do everything she could to keep him.
"They're in bed," she answered him. "It's 5 a.m."
Finn stared down at his hands to see they were still the thin hands of a teenage boy. "You haven't figured out how to change me back yet?"
Freya was a little taken aback by Finn's rudeness but she knew that his feelings were justified. As long as Finn was a child, there was still the imminent fear that his soul would rip from his body and disintegrate into nothing.
"I'm working on it," Freya sighed. "I've read through every grimoire I own but there's really nothing in any of them about this. Hope is quite the creative and powerful little witch. There's no telling what her spell could do."
"That damn girl," Finn bit, remembering the last moments he spent as an adult. Hope had ruined his life by not only returning him to an age he hated and had no fond memories of but by also forcing him to return to the family that never loved him.
"She's just a child," Freya calmly stated. "You can't be angry with her."
"The hell I can't," Finn barked. "This is all her fault. Any second now I could be ripped from this body and return to that hell."
Freya turned troubled eyes to her brother. "You were in hell?"
Finn went silent. He couldn't remember much about his time in the afterlife but he knew he wasn't in hell. He wasn't anywhere. All he could remember was darkness, loneliness, and heartache.
"No," he muttered. "I was nowhere. There is no afterlife. There is nothing. It may have been better to have gone to hell. At least then I wouldn't have been alone."
"What about Mikael? Wasn't he there with you?"
Finn's face contorted into a deep scowl. "He was there," he growled. "In my mind. Constantly. As was Klaus and Elijah. Kol. Our mother. Everyone who had ever hurt or betray me. I was constantly reminded of them. Constantly reminded that my suffering was their fault. Just as it is now."
Despite his angry facade, Finn's eyes gave way to his emotions, tearing up as he was forced to remember the pain he felt while in the Void.
He was a bit surprised when Freya pulled him into a hug, forcefully placing his head against her shoulder as she hugged him tightly but it only took a moment for him to lovingly accept his sister's embrace, wrapping his arms around her and falling into soft tears of comfort. Those twelve years in the Void felt like an eternity and he'd never thought he'd feel the love or warm touch of another person ever again.
"You're going to be okay," Freya whispered reassuringly to him. "I'm never going to let anyone take you from me again."
Finn's arms tightened around Freya as if he were trying to prove to himself that she was real and not just a figment of his imagination in the Void. "Please, sister," he mumbled through tears. "Don't let me go back there. I don't wanna die again."
Freya promised Finn repeatedly that she wouldn't let anything happen to him but she couldn't help but hate herself for not protecting him from the Void. When her family awoke she worked tirelessly on restoring the Otherside so she could use a different resurrection spell to bring Finn and Mikael back but all of her research always ended in a dead end. But luckily in her search, one of her witch contacts had given her an ancient spell used before the time of the Otherside to bring back dead Supernaturals and all she needed was the blood of the dead and something they held of value before their death. Now that she knew that dead Supernaturals would face an eternity in the Void, she made the unconscious promise to herself to find a way to restore the Otherside before she lost anyone else she cared about.
As Finn's crying began to die down, Freya could hear a rumbling coming from his stomach.
"You must be starving," she said as they slowly separated. "Come. Let's go to the kitchen and I'll make you breakfast and have a servant bring you blood."
A disgusted frown came across Finn's face at the thought of drinking human blood.
"I hate this," he grunted. "I hate being forced to survive on human blood." Finn's eyes suddenly brightened with an idea. "You could put me back in a witch's body!"
A bit surprised by Finn's pronouncement, Freya asked, "You don't want to be back in your Original body?"
"No. I hate being a vampire. I've always hated it. The only time I've ever been happy is when I was a witch. That body that I was in before, the one mother put me in, is it still alive?"
"You mean Vincent," Freya stated. "Yes, he is alive and I'm not putting you back in him. He's a friend of mine, not some sort of spare hull you can inhabit whenever you want."
"Why not? Do you know how hard it is to find a body that can house and Original?"
"I do, but we will find one. I swear." Seeing the downtrodden look on her brother's face, Freya walked over to him and cradled a hand around his cheek. "I want you back, Finn, and I want you happy. But not if that happiness is at the expense of someone I care about."
Finn pulled away from Freya's hand and bit, "If you really cared about me you wouldn't force me to stay in this body when there's a perfectly fine vessel out there for me to inhabit."
"He's not a vessel, he's a person. And my friend."
"Fine, then I'll just find some other witch to do it for me."
Finn knotted his hands tightly in his belt loops and marched towards the door. As he reached out for the door handle, his body froze. He struggled to move it but every muscle felt as if it were being held in place by a thousand pound weight.
"I'm not letting you use my friend as a vessel, Finn," Freya growled, her hand outstretched towards Finn as she used her magic to keep him in place. "And I'm not letting you out of my sight. As long as there's a chance of something happening to you, you're not to go anywhere without me. Clear?"
Finn struggled to move his head to glare at Freya but her spell kept him in place. "How dare you...and Elijah...have the gall to tell me what I can and cannot do? I was once a powerful witch! I am a thousand years old! I do whatever I please and no one can stop me! I'm not going to return to that hell. I need to change bodies and I need to change now! We don't have time to wait for another vessel to appear."
A deep gloom fell over Freya as she listened to her brother's frantic ravings. She knew he was afraid, he had every right to be, But in the past few months she and Vincent had become close and she couldn't imagine betraying him by snatching away his life the same way their mother did.
She walked slowly over to Finn and released the spell once she was standing in front of him. Placing her hand back on his cheek, she looked into his eyes and said, "I promised that I wouldn't let anything happen to you, and I meant it. But you have to trust me. Okay? If you truly want to be in a witch's body again, I will find a vessel that's suitable."
Finn stared down at the floor with a relentless pout on his face. He loved Freya and he wanted to trust her but she was a Mikaelson and if there was one thing he knew, it was that he couldn't trust his family.
-M-
Klaus had trapped himself in his room for hours. Since no one bothered to come check on him, he figured Elijah and Rebekah had told them what he'd done to Kol already and they were as disgusted with him as he was with himself. Still, after hours of forcing himself to stay awake on willpower alone, he realized he would soon pass out if he didn't have something to boost his energy again so he left his studio for the first time that morning to go get a cup of coffee. As he walked down the quiet hall, he saw Kol's bedroom door slightly ajar. He could hear mumbling coming from inside so he knew his brother was inside. He didn't want to pass it, fearing his next encounter with Kol, but that was the only way to the kitchen lest he went out of a window.
He moved slowly and quietly past the door when he heard a second voice coming from Kol's room.
Elijah set the book he was reading down on Kol's desk and sat back in his chair, stretching his arms out wide. "I am starving. Rebekah is taking ages with breakfast," he said looking over to Kol lying in bed. Kol hadn't come up from under his blankets since he finally tore himself out of Rebekah's arms. That was hours ago. "I hope she brings beignets back for making us wait so long."
Kol was silent. He'd been too ashamed to speak to his siblings after being beaten by Klaus and breaking down on Rebekah like a sobbing toddler. Still, Elijah and Rebekah stayed with him all morning, Rebekah leaving only to gather food and blood for the three of them.
Elijah couldn't believe what Klaus had done when he saw Kol lying on the floor, his behind so damaged that if he weren't a vampire he would have needed a doctor immediately. As cruel as Klaus was to Kol, he'd never done anything so horrible to him before. Klaus had spent his entire life trying to avoid becoming anything like their father but after seeing the effects of Klaus's anger across Kol behind, all any of them could picture was Mikael. Now Kol was a silent shell of what he once was and Elijah feared there was nothing he could do to help him.
"Perhaps I should go see what's taking her so long,"
As Elijah stood from his seat, Kol threw his blanket from over him and shot up, fear and tears covering his face. "No," he begged. "Please don't leave, Elijah. What if he comes back?"
Elijah's heart sank at seeing Kol's fearful eyes. "He's not going to hurt you again, Kol."
"Yes, he will," Kol said, a new batch of sobs working their way to his chest. "He's angry that I lied to him about Mikael and now he hates me for putting Marcel in danger. He's gonna dagger me the moment you leave me alone."
"Kol," Elijah hurried over to his brother's side. Pulling Kol into her arms, he said, "He doesn't hate you. And he's not going to dagger you."
"He does," Sobs broke through Kol's chest as he remembered his last encounter with Klaus. "He hates me. I know he does. I begged him to stop. I begged him. But he just kept going...harder. He...he hates me for every wicked thing I've ever done against Marcel. Like...the basement." Kol tightened his hug around Elijah fearing that bringing up his most heinous atrocity against a family member would make Elijah feel as disgusted with him as Klaus did. "I'm sorry, Elijah. I'm so sorry for everything. Please don't let him put a dagger in me."
Elijah held Kol closer when the bedroom door slowly creaked open. He glanced up expecting to see Rebekah with a tray full of treats but instead, there was Klaus. Kol sensed his Hybrid brother without having to look up from the safety of Elijah's shoulder and he squeezed his brother tighter, signaling that he didn't want Elijah to break their hold to confront Klaus. He was safe in Elijah's arms. Klaus rarely had a dagger for Elijah, the physical manifestation of his conscience.
"You shouldn't be here, Klaus," Elijah calmly stated. "He doesn't want to see you right now."
"I just need to speak with him, Elijah," Klaus said softly, weary eyes watching Kol's body tense as he spoke. "Just for a moment. Alone."
"No," Kol muttered, squeezing Elijah tight enough to hurt him. A new set of tears fell from his eyes. "He's gonna dagger me, Elijah...or worse."
"I won't harm him again. I swear." The timid passivity of Klaus's voice urged Elijah to believe him.
Pulling Kol back so they were looking into each other's eyes, Elijah said, "It's alright. He's not going to hurt you."
"He-he will. He'll-"
"He won't." Elijah looked up at Klaus, a threatening calmness in his eyes. "If he truly cares about keeping this family together, he won't."
Klaus glanced away from Elijah ashamed that he even felt it necessary to make that threat.
Kol hung on to Elijah for as long as he could as he stood up. "I'm going to help Rebekah. I won't be gone long."
As soon as the door closed behind Elijah, Kol jumped from his bed and sped across the room as far away from Klaus as he could get. Klaus sighed. He expected as much. He sat on the edge of Kol's bed with his back to his brother. "I don't hate you," he muttered. "You're my youngest brother and I've loved you for a thousand years."
"Just not as much as you love Marcel," Kol muttered under his breath.
"That's different," Klaus bit. "My first job as a father is to make sure my children survive so yes, I was angry when I found out you lied to me and that lie could've gotten Marcel killed but I didn't hate you for it. Even after everything you've done, you will always be my little brother."
"Then why...why did you do it? Why did you...why did you do that to me?"
Klaus tried to think back to his punishing Kol but he couldn't remember anything about it. All he could remember from his blur of emotions was an overwhelming sense of hatred towards Mikael.
"I didn't mean to," he said quietly. "I would never do that to you intentionally. I would never do anything to make you...fear me like this. I've tried so hard for the past millennia to avoid doing anything to make any of you...think me the same monster as Mikael. I just...I don't know what came over me."
"Hatred," Kol stated. "You thought about how I could've gotten Marcel killed and you hated me because you love him. Because you've always loved him more than you've loved me."
"That's not true," Klaus turned sharply to Kol and the youngest brother flinched, afraid that Klaus was about to vamp over to him but he stayed sitting. "I get angry with you, that's true, but I don't hate you. I've never hated you." Klaus stood and tears began down his cheeks and he didn't have the power nor will to stop them. "But my anger is not an excuse for my actions. I don't know what came over me, brother. If I could have stopped myself, I would have. I never...my entire life, I have never wanted to be an object of fear for you or any of our siblings."
As Klaus moved slowly towards him, Kol's anxiety rose. Klaus paused. He could hear the race of Kol's blood and knew that he had failed. He was no better than Mikael.
"Please...Kol...forgive me."
Kol's fight or flight responses were at their peak when Klaus started walking towards him but the closer Klaus got, the clearer the pain on his face became and Kol couldn't help but wonder if Klaus really was telling the truth and not simply trying to catch him with his guard down.
Daring to believe Klaus could care about him, Kol said, "Destroy the daggers." Klaus stared at him in silent confusion and Kol continued, "If you were telling the truth about never daggering us again then prove it. Destroy the daggers...and I'll believe that you care."
Klaus's jaw tightened with apprehension. It was Elijah's idea to do away with the daggers, not his. He did mean it when he said he wouldn't dagger his siblings anymore but there was always a looming fear that something would happen that would necessitate he dagger them again. What if another of his siblings were cursed like Rebekah. Daggering her until they found a cure was the best course of action. If they destroyed the daggers, what would they do then?
Still, seeing the frightened look on Kol's face was more than Klaus could handle. If an enemy was dumb enough to come after their family with another curse, they would figure out another way to stifle the effects of it without the daggers. Whatever he had to do to keep Kol from fearing him, from hating him, he would do it.
"Okay," Klaus agreed. "The daggers, the last of the white oak ash, I'll destroy them both today. I'll do whatever I have to do to make you believe me, Kol." Klaus started walking towards Kol again, this time slower, fear of Kol recoiling from him flooding his mind.
Kol didn't move as Klaus approached him. An inkling in the back of his mind kept warning him that Klaus was still lying to him, that at any moment his brother would reveal a dagger and put him down for another dozen years or so, but he fought against that little voice, trusting his brother for the first time with the same trust Klaus extended him.
Once he was standing mere inches away from Kol without his brother wincing at his every move, Klaus released a heavy breath of relief. Suddenly, he pulled Kol into a hug and squeezed him as his tears began anew.
"I'm sorry, brother," he muttered. "I'm so sorry. Please forgive me."
Kol's initial reaction to Klaus's unexpected embrace was one of fear. He thought his worse fears were coming to life and he was about to have a dagger shoved into him but it only took a second to realize that he was wrong. Hearing the shiver of Klaus's voice as he spoke shocked Kol. He couldn't imagine what sheer contriteness felt like. Even after it was found out what he had done to Marcel in the basement, he had only apologized because Elijah wouldn't stop blistering his bottom until he did. He never really felt bad for what he did, only for getting caught. He wondered what Klaus must have been feeling to bring him to such heartfelt tears.
Wrapping his arms around Klaus, Kol said, "I forgive you, brother. Always and forever."
-M-
Marcel couldn't help but smirk as he watched Hope through the corner of his eye, skipping along down the sidewalk beside him. Her attention was focused on her phone, texting away, completely unaware of the potted plant in front of her until it was too late. She tripped over the plant and went tumbling face forward to the ground but paused in mid-air before she could hit it. Marcel tightly gripped a handful of Hope's shirt keeping her suspended in the air and safe from marring her face on the unforgiving pavement.
"You should look up from your phone every once and a while," he chuckled as he sat her back to her feet.
Hope huffed. "You could've warned me."
"It wouldn't have been nearly as fun."
Hope laughed mockingly at Marcel before returning to her phone.
"Who are you texting anyway?"
"Sebastian," she answered curtly.
"And..." Marcel could tell by the silly grin Hope wore that she wasn't just talking to Sebastian. That was the grin of someone talking to their crush and he had an idea who she was talking to.
Noticing Marcel glancing over her shoulder at her phone, Hope immediately exited out of her messages and put her phone in her pocket.
"And no one," she retorted.
"Alright," Marcel chuckled at his sister's sudden defensiveness. "Don't tell me. But, if it is that Izzy-girl, be careful."
"Stop trying to tell me who I can be with," Hope bit. "You're just like dad."
"We're only trying to look out for you. We've been around for a lot longer than you and we've seen what people like her are like."
"People like her," Hope repeated with irritation.
"Violent criminals," Marcel clarified. "Is it true? Did she really attack a girl with a baseball bat?"
Hope stared guiltily away from Marcel at the passing storefronts. "Yeah," she answered lowly. "But she had it coming. She was making fun of Izzy's family."
"That's always a good reason to resort to violence," Marcel said sarcastically.
"Like anyone in this family has any right to judge," Hope bit. "If what you say about my dad's past is true then he has less of a right to judge her than anyone."
"Hey, Klaus might have done some terrible things in the past but he wants you to have a different future. He doesn't want you to carry on the same violent pattern as the rest of our family."
"Izzy isn't violent. She just had one bad day. You would know that if you tried to get to know her."
"Alright," Marcel stopped walking. "Then set it up. How does next Saturday sound?"
"Wh-what," Hope asked confused by Marcel's sudden interest in meeting Izzy.
"You don't want me to judge her before I get to know her, right? Let's go somewhere to get to know each other. Just the three of us."
Hope began to blush. "I-I don't know. That sounds kinda intimate. What if she thinks I'm just trying to ask her out on a date and just using you as a cover. I'm not ready for that yet."
Marcel's smile widened at the sight of his little sister getting flustered thinking about her first real date. "Then invite Sebastian along. And maybe Davina will come along so it will just seem like a group of teenagers hanging out."
Hope stared contemplatively at the apartment building across the street. She recognized it as Josh's apartment and realized they'd made it to their destination.
"Fine," she agreed, taking the first step off the sidewalk into the street. "But once you get to know her and see that she's not as bad as everyone tries to make her seem, you have to tell dad to leave us alone and stop eavesdropping on our conversations."
"Yeah," Marcel groaned thinking about all of the times Klaus had eavesdropped on his conversations. "He does that from time to time. I'll talk to him about it, but I can't make any promises."
-M-
Flashback
"Kol!" The parlor doors flew open to reveal Marcel standing angrily behind them holding a broken saddle embellished with silver and ornate jewels, the Mikaelson crest predominately displayed both sides of it.
Kol was lounging lazily on the sofa after having a long night out causing mayhem with some of his newly turned vampire friends so he wasn't expecting anyone to come bothering him lest it was Elijah coming to scold him for loafing about. He was especially not expecting Marcel to come bothering him so early in the day. Young Marcel had been out with him and his vampires for the earliest part of the night until his young, human body grew too tired to keep up with their vampire stamina.
Since Marcel was finally eighteen, Klaus allowed him the choice to spend time with Kol in the night with the stipulation that Kol stayed completely sober and made sure that absolutely nothing bad happened to Marcel. Either that or Kol would be allowed to drink but Klaus would tag along on their excursion and play bodyguard for Marcel himself...but they both knew that no one would be having any fun with Poppa Klaus around. So Kol stayed sober while Marcel was with them but the second Marcel was back in bed, he released his inner party animal and took to the streets in search of bourbon and women.
Marcel marched over to Kol and dropped the broken saddle at his feet.
"One of your degenerate vampires broke my saddle last night," Marcel barked.
Kol glanced down at the saddle, nearly split in half, and scoffed. "It's just a saddle, mate. Just ask Klaus for a new one."
"Poppa got me this one for my birthday. He had it made specifically for me. It has my name engraved on it." Marcel pointed to the back of the cantel where the name 'Marcel Mikaelson' was engraved in cursive letters.
"So," Kol turned over away from the light peering into the parlor from the open door. "It's nothing for him to have it made again. If you want, I'll ask him. Later. Now leave so I can sleep."
Frustrated with Kol's callous response to his damaged property, Marcel lifted the saddle high above his head and slammed it down on top of Kol.
As the Original jolted from his peaceful slumber and threw the saddle across the room, Marcel stood back, his hands tightly clenched and ready to fight.
"You're going to regret that," Kol growled.
He jumped from the sofa and grabbed Marcel by the collar of his shirt, speeding him across the parlor until he slammed his back against the wooden bookcase. He knocked the wind from Marcel but it only took a moment for him to regain his composure. Reaching out for something that could hurt Kol, Marcel's hand wrapped around a stone bookend. He slammed the thing against Kol's head but Kol barely flinched.
Marcel hated that Kol was immune to most of his attacks. He would often witness Kol and Klaus in a bout of fisticuffs to settle whatever disagreement they had before Elijah would step in as the voice of reason and he longed to be able to settle his disagreements with Kol the same way but he could never fight Kol. Every punch he threw was like hitting a brick wall and Kol never tried to hit him back. He always just held Marcel until he'd tire himself out and then he'd leave him feeling like a frustrated child in the midst of a tantrum. He just wanted some way to hurt Kol so he could feel some relief from his anger.
Thinking quick, Marcel aimed his attack lower, hitting the man in the most sensitive part of his body. He got exactly the reaction he was expecting as Kol fell to his knees clutching his crotch with tears in his eyes.
It was only after he'd done it that Marcel realized that he might have gone too far. He had never witnessed Klaus or Kol go for such a low blow but the drunk street urchin in the city did. He always thought himself better than them and as he watched Kol writhe in pain, he began to hate himself.
"Are you alright," he asked kneeling down beside Kol. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"
Before Marcel could finish his apology, Kol had tackled him to the ground. He grabbed both of Marcel's hands into one of his and pressed them against his chest as he straddled him, keeping Marcel pinned down.
Acting solely in anger, Kol wrenched his arm back and prepared to bring it down crashing against Marcel's face when he was suddenly lifted into the air and thrown against the wall across the room.
Struggling back to his feet, Kol was not surprised to see Klaus standing above Marcel with a look of pure anger on his face.
"Have you lost what little wit I presumed you have," Klaus growled. "It would be detrimental to your continued existence for you to even thought about laying a hand on my son."
"He started it," Kol yelled back. "That little wretch hit me with a saddle and then he clocked me in the family jewels with a bookend."
Klaus looked back at Marcel, now standing on his feet but too ashamed to look his father in the eyes, and asked, "Is this true, Marcellus?"
Marcel's silence was answer enough.
Klaus's jaw tightened in irritation of both his son and his brother. "I don't know what's gotten into you two," he said moving swiftly across the room to Kol. "But if you two want to throw blows, then allow me to join in."
Klaus grabbed Kol by the wrist and dragged him back to the sofa. Kol struggled against Klaus's hold knowing what his brother had planned for him and dreading the thought of having his humiliation performed in front of Marcel.
"No, Klaus, don't," Kol pleaded, attempting to pull his wrist from Klaus's grip but his brother was just too strong.
Klaus sat on the edge of the sofa and pulled Kol across his lap in one swift motion. Kol's face burned even more when he felt Klaus's hands go into the waistband of his pants and pull them down to his knees. He hid his shame by burying his face into the crook of his arm so Marcel wouldn't see his tears as Klaus began raining down painful smacks to his sensitive bottom.
Marcel watched with growing nervousness as Klaus laid relentlessly into Kol. He could hear Kol's pitiful crying even though the man was attempting to hide it behind his folded arms and knew that if his father could bring an Original Vampire to tears, he wouldn't stand a chance at keeping his dignity.
It wasn't the first time Marcel had witnessed Kol being taken to task but only by Elijah and Elijah had a way of making even the most demeaning task look elegant. Klaus had the total opposite effect.
Kol's legs flailed about with every harsh smack to his bottom but Klaus didn't care. As Kol began rocking his hips from side to side in hopes of avoiding another spank, Klaus wrapped a hand around his waist to keep him in place and continued spanking.
Marcel was always amazed by Kol's ability to take a spanking without begging for an immediate end. He envied his resolve and he tried to emulate it with every spanking he got but he could never stand more than thirty seconds over Klaus or Elijah's knee before he started pleading for them to stop.
Once Kol's bottom was a balming red, Klaus lifted him from his lap and walked over to Marcel, taking his son's hand and pulling him back over to the sofa. As Klaus expected, Marcel put up much less of a fight than Kol had, mostly because Marcel was still too shocked by witnessing his father spank his best friend to put up a fight.
It wasn't until he was face down over Klaus's lap with his nake bottom pointed up to the room that Marcel began to struggle.
Klaus brought his hand down a dozen times in rapid succession, careful to use much less strength on him than he did on Kol but still enough to bring Marcel to tears. Marcel's hands shot back over his bottom and Klaus immediately caught it. He held Marcel's hand to the side and landed three harsh smacks to the curve of Marcel's already sore bottom.
Releasing Marcel's hand, Klaus said, "Try to cover your bottom again and this will only get worse. Understood?"
"Y-yes p-poppa," Marcel stammered out in tears.
As Klaus restarted the onslaught on Marcel's tender mounds, Marcel fell into heavy sobs.
"Stop, poppa, please," he cried, wriggling his body hoping to avoid another stinging smack. "I won't do it again, I swear!"
At hearing Marcel's pleas for a quick end, Klaus landed three more smacks to his sit-spot and brought Marcel's punishment to an end. Klaus grabbed Marcel's arm and sat him up straight on his lap. Marcel tried to stand but Klaus pulled him into a hug and held him as he sobbed until his crying had become soft sniffles.
Kol watched enviously as Klaus dotted on Marcel. His brother had never treated him so affectionately after a spanking. On the rare occasion that Klaus spanked Rebekah, he treated her with just as much tenderness but Kol always assumed that was because Rebekah would wail so wholeheartedly during the spanking that she needed the extra attention. She was their little sister after all. Now, as he looked on to Klaus being just as loving with Marcel, he wondered what it was about him that made Klaus unable to treat him with the same compassion.
Klaus didn't notice the spiteful look in his brother's eyes as he continued to hold his son. It had never even occurred to him that maybe Kol would need extra attention. His brother took his spankings so well Klaus always thought that he would be too headstrong to be coddled afterward.
Standing Marcel up next to Kol, Klaus stood in front of them both, waiting for their collective hitches to quiet down before he spoke.
"Let this be the last time I ever catch you two fighting again or I will unleash a hell upon your backsides that will reign for a week."
"That wasn't hell?" Kol muttered under his breath. When Klaus cut his eyes at him, Kol unconsciously reached back to protect his behind from any more smacks.
"Marcel is my son and you will never raise a hand to hurt him ever again," Klaus growled at Kol. Then turning his attention to Marcel, he said, "If you have any disagreements with Kol or any other vampire, you come to me. The fighting ends here. Do I make myself clear to both of you?"
"Yes, poppa," Marcel answered immediately.
Kol gave a curt shrug of acceptance, still trying to rub the heat from his sore behind.
Standing directly in front of his younger brother, Klaus said, "I am not opposed to taking you over my knee a second time, brother." The firmness of his voice made Kol shiver. "I said, do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Klaus," Kol grunted shamefully.
"Good. Now both of you go wash up for supper. This little fiasco has earned you an early bedtime so off to bed right after."
Marcel and Kol began to protest, both feeling they were too old to be sent to bed early but Klaus lifted his hand in a gesture to silence them both.
"Any further argument will not be met with anything less than another dozen licks across my lap. Perhaps this time with the slipper to truly drive my point home."
Klaus smirked as their protests came to an abrupt end.
"Now make haste or I will revoke your dessert privileges as well."
As Marcel and Kol walked briskly toward the door, Marcel mumbled, "This was your fault."
"You started it," Kol bit back.
"You didn't have to retaliate."
"What, and let you get away with smacking me with a saddle. Not even in your dreams."
"Oh yeah, well-"
"I said no fighting," Klaus roared. His commanding voice caused them both to pause in fear.
"Sorry, poppa," "Sorry, Klaus," they said in unison, both too afraid to look back, and then they hurried out of the parlor away from terrifying Mikaelson.
End Flashback
When Hope and Marcel entered Josh's apartment, the first thing they noticed was the overwhelming aroma of hot, homemade food. There was a variety of different food lined up on every surface in the kitchen and living room. The dining table was covered with desserts.
"You're here," Josh greeted them with a wide smile.
"What's with all the food, Josh," Marcel asked.
Josh looked around as if he was surprised by how much food he'd cooked himself.
"He's been at it all night," Lora groaned from the couch, the only place besides the floor that didn't have a serving tray on it.
"I'm just taking precautions," Josh defended. "I didn't know what Davina would want for breakfast after being dead for twelve years so...I made her everything."
Marcel chuckled at his friend's excitement. Just like him and Kol, Josh had been devastated by Davina's loss and now that she was back, he was going to go above and beyond to make sure she was happy.
"I sure she will love it, Josh," Marcel commended. "Where is she, by the way?"
"Still in bed. I was just about to see if she was ready to wake up."
"Good. I'm right on time. I'll go check on her."
Just as Marcel was walking towards Josh's bedroom where Davina had fallen asleep the night before, they all heard a terrible cry come from the room. "Marcel," Davina shrieked.
All of the vampires vamped into the bedroom without a second thought to see the teenage girl lying in the middle of the bed, perfectly safe, though you wouldn't have known it by the abject terror in her eyes and the breathless heave of her chest.
"Hey," Marcel hurried over to her, climbing into the bed beside her. "Are you alright?"
Davina pulled him into her arms and squeezed him like he was the first solid thing she'd touching in twelve years.
Marcel allowed her to hug him in silence for a while, rubbing gentle circles against her back, before saying, "It's alright. It was just a bad dream. You're okay now."
Davina knew that he was right, that her dream of being back in the Void was indeed just a dream, but she couldn't help but want to hold on to him for just a little while longer.
The feeling of all the eyes in the room lingering on her made Davina suddenly self-conscious and she forced herself away from Marcel as she said, "Sorry. I guess...it just felt so real." She reached down to the collar of the large black t-shirt Josh loaned her to sleep in and wiped the tears from her face.
"You don't need to apologize," Marcel uttered. Seeing the pain still in her eyes, Marcel looked to Lora and said, "Lora, could you take Hope to the kitchen and make her some breakfast, please."
"There's food all over the apartment," Lora scoffed. "She can just go take her pick."
Cutting his eyes at his youngest vampire, Marcel said, "That wasn't a request. Take Hope into the other room. Please."
Moved by her sirebond, and a slight fear of disobeying Marcel, Lora nodded for Hope to follow her out of the room. Hope left willingly but only because she wanted the moment away from Marcel to continue texting Izzy without him looking over her shoulder.
When the door closed behind them, leaving only Marcel, Josh, and Davina, Marcel asked her, "How are you doing?"
"I'm fine," Davina answered softly.
"Are you sure," Josh questioned. "Because, I'm not expert, but judging by that scream that brought us all in here, you're probably the least-fine 'fine' person I've ever seen."
"It was just a bad dream," Davina insisted.
Marcel didn't know how to respond. He wanted to help her but he couldn't if he didn't' know what the problem was and right now Davina was being too suborn to tell him anything. He made a mental note to ask Rebekah to talk to her. She had always been fond of Davina and he had hoped that she would be more open with a girl who had spent her fair share of time 'dead'.
"Well, why don't you get dressed," Marcel said glancing over to the clothes Rebekah had lent Davina the night before folded neatly on Josh's dresser. "And after breakfast, I'll take you and Hope shopping."
The thought of going shopping finally put a smile on Davina's face.
Marcel and Josh went back out to the living room where Hope was sitting on the couch texting Izzy and Lora was in the kitchen scrambling the girl up some eggs at her sire's direction.
"Do you really think she'll be okay," Josh asked.
"I think she will be," Marcel answered honestly. "Eventually. It'll take some time. We just have to be gentle with her. But not too gentle. She hates being babied."
Josh chuckled. "Yeah, I haven't forgotten that."
When Davina finally stepped out of the room fully dressed, the first thing she noticed was Kol wasn't there. She had hoped that when he didn't come running into the room at her scream it was just because he was running late but she thought that he had had plenty of time to get to the apartment by then.
"Where's Kol," she asked.
Josh immediately looked to Marcel.
Unsure of how to explain the new Mikaelson-regime, Marcel cleared his throat and said, "He's...at the Compound. And...I'm afraid that you won't be seeing him again for a little while."
"Why not," Davina asked, her eyes widening with fear that something bad had happened to Kol.
Marcel noted the look on Davina's face and knew that there was no way to tell her the truth without telling her the absolute truth, or as much of it as he could without revealing the Mikaelsons' number one secret.
"Do you remember what I told you last night about the Mikaelsons being back in charge," Marcel asked.
Davina's eyes grew dark with a sudden anger. "You mean how Klaus came back and stole your throne from you? Yeah, I remember."
Hearing the bite in Davina's voice as she spoke about Klaus brought Hope's attention from her phone. She may have been made at her father for the moment but that didn't mean that she was willing to sit idly by while someone disrespected him.
Ignoring Davina's bubbling anger, Marcel continued, "Well...he's not just in charge of the city. The Mikaelsons...have this...way of life, different from most people's. Klaus and Elijah kinda...run things. For the city and for the family."
"What are you talking about, Marcel," Davina demanded, wanting Marcel to stop beating around the bush and just say what he meant.
"What I'm trying to say is, the way the Mikaelsons have been able to stay together for as long as they have is by following a certain order. Kol broke that order when he kept secrets about Mikael's resurrection from Klaus and so...Klaus's punishment for him is a week without you."
Davina's mouth dropped in surprise that the love of her life had been 'punished' by her enemy. "What do you mean 'punished'? Kol's an Original. Klaus can't make him do anything he doesn't want to do."
"That's not the way things work in the Mikaelson household, D. What Klaus says goes or-"
"Or what? He'll dagger him? If he does I'll break into that Compound and undagger Kol myself and then I'll stick that dagger into Klaus's cold, dead heart."
Having heard enough of Davina disrespecting Klaus, Hope jumped up and said, "Like a tiny, little pathetic witch like you could ever hurt my dad."
Davina was shocked by the girl's outburst. Marcel and Kol were bragging to her the night before about how much of an exceptionally strong witch Hope had grown into but strong witch or not, to Davina she was still just a fourteen-year-old girl.
"How about you sit down and let the adults talk," Davina bit condescendingly. "Little girl."
Once again angered by Davina's disrespect, Hope acted without thinking. Holding her hand out to Davina, she sent the older teen flying into the wall, slamming her back into the hard concrete accent. Davina let out a small scream from the shock of it but then her anger revived ten-fold. With a flick of her finger, she sent Hope soaring into the air and then released her letting the girl fall helplessly onto the couch beneath her. The sudden shock of being lifted into the air was enough to force Hope to release her spell on Davina and she fell down to her knees.
"Stop it," Marcel barked, terrified by the girls' apparent lack of care for the other's safety. "Both of you."
Davina rose from the floor, prepared to let their little skirmish come to an end but Hope wasn't finished with her yet. The young Mikaelson jumped off the couch with her hands pointing towards the table of food sitting off to the side. Using her magic, she picked up the table and sent it flying at Davina. Seeing the table coming, Davina deflected it with her own magic and sent it flying towards the kitchen. Lora sped away from the kitchen, just barely dodging the incoming table as he slammed against the stove. Her anger getting the best of her, Davina used her magic to pick up the skillet Lora was frying Hope's eggs in and sent it flying across the room aimed directly at Hope's head.
Hope flinched, not expecting a skillet to come flying towards her, and she was too late to stop it. Then Marcel sped in front of her, catching the skillet just before it could hit her.
"That's enough!" His deep, bellowing voice caused them both to jump in fear.
Marcel threw the skillet on the floor with the rest of broken dishes scattered about from their fight and grabbed Hope by one ear and Davina by the other as he dragged them both back into Josh's room.
He pushed them both toward the bed and slammed the door closed behind him.
"You two should be ashamed of yourselves," Marcel lectured. "Someone could've gotten seriously hurt."
"It wouldn't have been me," Davina muttered under her breath.
"I'm a tribrid," Hope said just as cockily. "I would've healed."
"I said enough," Marcel barked, catching both of their attention once again.
He eyed them both angrily. He never thought he would have to break up a magical bout between his adoptive daughter and little sister and yet here he was. And neither of them seemed the least bit remorseful about it. They cut their eyes at each other as if they were silently daring the other one to make a move against them again.
"You know what Klaus would've done to me and Kol if he caught us fighting the way you two just were?"
"Threatened to kill everyone you love," Davina replied sarcastically.
"Davina," Marcel bit her name with a ferocity that startled Davina.
"What," she said nervously. "It's not like that isn't his M.O."
"Not anymore. I told you, he's changed."
"Not that much, I'm sure. He's been a monster for a thousand years and he'll be the same monster in a thousand more."
Growing agitated by Davina's continuously badmouthing her father, Hope quietly moved her hand and Josh's deodorant went flying from the dresser and hit Davina in the back of the head.
"You little brat," she screamed.
Before Davina could retaliate, Marcel grabbed Hope by the arm and dragged her to the bed. Before Hope could realize what was going on, Marcel had her over his knee. Her face burned with the humiliation of being put in that position in front of a stranger but Marcel ignored his sister's embarrassment and began laying down stinging smacks across her backside.
Hope didn't know how to react. She never thought she would be put in that position by Marcel of all people but now that she was, she wasn't sure how to feel. But her mind was quickly distracted by the build-up of stinging smacks to her tender behind.
"Marcel," she screamed reaching back to cover her behind. "No, what are you doing? Stop!"
Marcel grabbed Hope's hand and held it away from her butt as he lifted his knee to aim more spanks to her sensitive sit-spot. "Keep your hands to her side," he punctuated each word with a harsh slap to her undercurve.
Hope's legs began to kick wildly and she wriggled fiercely from side to side, doing her absolute best to escape Marcel's relentless palm. Marcel suddenly understood why Klaus and Hayley found it necessary to lock the girl's legs between theirs and he didn't hesitate to do the same. Once she was trapped between Marcel's legs with no discernible way free, Hope began to wail.
"I'm sorry," she finally cried. "Please stop, Marcy! I'm sorry! I'll stop, I promise."
Feeling that he had finally gotten through to his little sister, Marcel stopped spanking her and sat her up on his lap. As he pulled her into his arms, he whispered soft shushes into her ear.
Davina was stunned. The last time she witnessed a spanking was when she was nine and she and her best friend, Monique, had gotten caught by their parents sneaking out to the bayou after school to catch a glimpse of the wolves. It turned out their coded letters weren't very hard to figure out and when they made it out there, their parents were out there waiting for them. Her mom didn't spank her but Monique's dad didn't even wait to get the girl home before he laid into her right there in the bayou. She never dreamed that she would witness another spanking and certainly not one being performed by Marcel.
Once Hope's crying had subsided, Marcel stood her up and turned his attention to Davina. The intense look in his eyes as he stared at her made Davina's palms begin to sweat.
Marcel thought hard about his next decision. He made Klaus promise to treat Davina like a Mikaelson, like her life was worth as much as anyone else he cared about, but he knew that if he expected Klaus to treat her like a Mikaelson, he would have to too.
He lifted his hand and beckoned Davina over with one finger. "Come here," he ordered.
"Wh-what are you gonna do," she stuttered.
"You're not blameless," Marcel stated. "You engaged in that fight just as much as Hope did."
"Y-you're not going to...to...to do that to me too, are you?"
"I am," Marcel answered plainly. "And you can come over here and it will be quick and easy or you can put up a fight and get a dose of what Hope just got."
"You can't spank me, Marcel," Davina exclaimed in shock. "I-I'm eighteen, I'm a woman."
Marcel scoffed as he rose to his feet. "You will soon learn that in this family, that means very little."
Before Davina knew what was happening, Marcel had her face down over his lap. She stared at the floor, her eyes wide with shock, and remained absolutely silent until the first smack came ringing across her bottom.
"Marcel," she screamed. "Stop! What are you doing?"
Marcel continued to spank her, his pace quickening after each smack, giving the girl no time to prepare for the next.
"Marcel," he voice soon became less demanding and more pleading. "St-stop. It hurts!"
"That means I'm doing my job right," Marcel said calmly as he began landing a dozen smacks across the girl's tender undercurve. Davina's instinct was to reach back and cover her bottom but she couldn't find the strength to cover anything but her face as she fell into heartwrenching sobs.
Feeling Davina's body go limp on his lap, Marcel knew that it was time to draw the spanking to a close. He gave her a few more harsh smacks to each cheek and then sat her up. Her tears covered his shirt as he held her against his shoulder, squeezing her tightly in his arms.
"It's okay," he mumbled against the top of her head. "You're okay. Your poppa's right here."
Marcel immediately tensed as the word 'poppa'' slipped from his mouth. As natural as it felt, he didn't expect himself to say it and he was afraid of how Davina would react to it.
Suddenly the girl wrapped her arms around his abdomen and held him tighter as she cried and Marcel felt a wave of relief wash over him. He held her against him and continued whispering softly to her until her crying died down.
Once she had her hitches under control, Marcel stood her up next to Hope. Standing in front of the two sniffling teens, he began, "That deplorable act of senseless violence you two just displayed in the living room will never happen again. Do I make myself clear?"
"Y-yes," Davina sniffled.
Hope gave a hesitant nod. Marcel knew that if she were dealing with Elijah or one of the others they would've demanded she answer them verbally but he was not that strict. As long as Hope acknowledged his order that was good enough for him.
"Good, now you two apologize to each other."
Feeling that it was her place to apologize first since she was the oldest and should've known better than to engage Hope in a fight, Davina turned to the younger girl and said, "Hope, I'm sorry for fighting with you and trying to throw a pan at your face."
With a dry huff, Hope responded, "And I'm sorry for throwing a table at you...and the deodorant."
Marcel almost wanted to smile as his first attempt at corporal punishment ended in success but he fought it.
"Now," he started, forcing his face stoic. "Since you destroyed the kitchen and everything Josh cooked, we're going to have to go out for breakfast. But first, we have to help Josh clean his apartment." Nodding to the adjoining bathroom in Josh's room, Marcel said, "You two clean yourselves up and meet us in the living room."
Hope and Davina marched solemnly to the bathroom, both too ashamed of being punished in front of the other to say anything else.
Marcel left Josh's room expecting to see Josh and Lora hard at work cleaning up Davina and Hope's mess but he was instead greeted with wide, surprised eyes.
"What," he asked.
Josh walked slowly over to Marcel on unsteady legs. "Did you just..." he couldn't get the words out but by the shocked looked on his face, Marcel knew exactly what he was going to ask.
Marcel had forgotten that the vampires would be able to hear everything that went on in the bedroom and suddenly felt shame burn across his face even though he wasn't the one being punished.
"I did," he answered honestly. "And I'd do it again if they ever acted so recklessly."
Josh gave a slight chuckle, surprising both Marcel and Lora. "What," he asked looking to both of them as if they were the ones acting out of character. "It's just, super ironic. I guess the apple really doesn't fall far, huh."
Please don't hate me for taking this long to upload and only getting out two chapters!
Also, can I just say how much I am loving Season 5 rn you guys! Klaus and Marcel = Perfect. Hope = Perfect. Elijah! My heart is broken but I love him still. And I, 100%, need more Rebekah and Kol in this season or I'm protesting.
P.S., I know I'm probably gonna catch some slack for making Kol seem kinda emotionally detached from feelings of remorse and guilt but that's kinda how I always saw him on the show (like an adorable psychopath lol) so I wanted to explore that a little more in this story. But he's not really a psychopath, being a bloodsucking vampire just kinda made him callous to the feelings of others except for with his siblings (the people he's loved for a thousand years) and he's never really had a reason to change until he met Davina (somebody who made him want to change for the better) so now that she's back he's kinda struggling with being a decent, non-murderous, normal person.
(p.s.s. i know like every cp scene has a part where someone tries to cover their bottom to stop the spanking but i just love that so much i cant help it, pls dont hate me for it)
