So, so, so SO sorry for being MIA for like...6 months? Yikes. So much has gone on in my life, I moved to three major cities over the past six months and haven't had time to write until now and now I don't quite remember where I was taking this story (awkward laugh) but I've found another route for it and I'm really going to try to be more consistent with the updates over the next few months.
Chapter 57
"Oh my god, did you see the Fire Juggler?" Sebastian whispered to Hope as they trailed behind the others walking back to the Compound after a long day at the fair. "Muy caliente. I wanted to jump in there so she could throw my hot stick around a little...if you know what I mean."
Hope laughed and gave Sebastian's arm a light punch as she said, "You're so fucking gross."
"I'm serious. Don't tell me you're so hung up on Izzy you can't appreciate the site of a nice pair of-"
"That sentence better not end how I think it ends," Kol's voice rang above the loud New Orleans street back to Sebastian, sending a shiver down the boy's spine and silencing him immediately. Without looking back, his arm still wrapped around Davina's shoulder, Kol continued, "Or I will be informing your father of the type of language his fourteen-year-old son uses."
"S-sorry, Mr. Mikaelson," Sebastian squeaked, his face flushed. Leaning closer to Hope's ear, he muttered, "God, you must hate living with so many fucking vampires."
Kol held three fingers in the air over his shoulder and firmly announced, "Strike three."
The heat grew further down Sebastian's neck. "Strike three? What was strike two?"
Peeking over his shoulder at his niece, Kol said, "The lewd language was strike two. Strike one was the two of you running off and stealing the firecrackers from the fireworks tent and shooting them off at the football players from your school. In case you didn't think I saw."
Hope's cheeks turned pink at finding out her uncle apparently saw what they were sure they'd gotten away with.
"Oh," Rebekah peeped, switching the sleeping Oliver into her other arm so she could look Kol in the eyes as she said, "Was that strike one? I could've sworn strike one would've been when they snuck away with their little friends to drink beer in the alley while we were at the petting zoo with Oliver."
Kol snapped his finger as if he'd just remembered it. "Oh, that's right. That was strike one. So I guess they're on strike four now, eh?"
"I-I didn't drink any beer," Hope objected.
The adults all paused in their gait and turned to face the wide-eyed teens.
"Maybe not," said Kol. He cut his eyes down at Sebastian. "But your little friend here did. I've been alive long enough to know the staggered stroll of a soused boy."
Bending to Rebekah's ear, Marcel muttered, "He means he's been drunk enough to know that walk anywhere."
Kol cut his angry glare at Marcel and Rebekah as they chuckled at his joke.
"Please don't tell my dad," Sebastian blurted breaking up their laughter. "He said that if I got into any trouble today, he would skin me alive. And I don't think he meant it figuratively."
Kol rolled his eyes and turned back in the direction of the Compound, leaning heavily against Davina as he started walking again. "Of course I'm not going to call your dad, lad. You've got me confused with Elijah."
A breath of relief wheezed through Sebastian's nose as fear lifted from his shoulders.
"I prefer texting. I won't have to listen to the old man rant."
And just like that, Sebastian's world came crashing down again.
Marcel nodded ahead, urging Hope and Sebastian to trudge along behind Kol, and with heads hanging low, they slowly obeyed.
With her friend distracted with thoughts of his own impending doom, Hope slinked over to Marcel's other side, carefully tugging his hand to bring his attention from Rebekah snuggling Oliver in her arms down to her big solemn eyes.
"Are you going to tell my mom?"
Marcel sighed, weakened by her puppy dog eyes. "I'm not," he promised. "But Kol might. He seems to be in a mood today."
Hope shuffled over to Kol, walking backward in front of him so he had no choice but to focus on her. "Please don't tell my mom."
Kol couldn't help but smile. He had no intention of getting his niece or her friend in trouble. If he thought what they did warranted punishment he would have spanked them both already himself but the imp in him couldn't fight the desire to let them stew in anticipation a bit.
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't."
Hope looked to Sebastian, hoping he had a reason why because she was drawing a blank.
Still sulking behind, Sebastian simply muttered, "Because it's not fair."
Hope rolled her eyes at her sulking friend but then in the same moment, she realized he was right.
"That's right. It-it wouldn't be fair. Marcel's probably told me at least a hundred stories about how the two of you used to raise hell from here to Jackson. If you tattle on us, that would make you a hypocrite and-and...a sexist."
"Sexist?"
"That right, sexist." Waving her hand in Marcel's direction, she continued. "You run away gladly pulling pranks with your brother's son, but when it comes to his daughter...god forbid she light a couple of firecrackers at two dumb jocks."
Davina smiled as he took out her phone and began texting Josh the little girl's argument. "She's right, Kol." She playfully teased. "Don't be a pig."
"I-I'm not..." Kol stammered flustered.
Enjoying her brother's torment, Rebekah added, "It's the 21st century, dear brother. I know you've spent quite a bit of time in a coffin but do catch up."
"Is that how you want your niece to see you, Kol," Marcel asked, joining in on the fun. "An old chauvinist relic?"
"Fine," Kol bit. "I won't tell your mum. Now enough with the insults, you lot are going to give me a complex."
"Or my dad," Hope quickly added.
"Or your dear ol' dad."
"Or my dad," Sebastian chirped.
Kol let out an exasperated grunt. "Or your dad, or your mum, or Elijah, or the President of these United States or the Governor of the Moon. There, is everyone satisfied? Can you all stop slandering my character because I can do that very well on my own, thank you very much."
Hope dove headfirst into Kol's abdomen, stopping him in his tracks as she hugged him tightly. "Satisfied."
Kol wrapped his arms slowly around Hope, enjoying her warm embrace.
The click of a camera drew Kol from his thoughts. Kol opened his eyes to see Davina standing in front of them with her phone out. She snapped another quick picture of him with his eyes open before he could stop her.
"What are you doing?" he groaned.
"Documenting this moment."
Holding her camera out so they could all see it, Davina began scrolling through all the photographs she'd taken that day.
A photo of Marcel kissing a bit of powdered sugar off Rebekah's cheek.
Photos of Sebastian and Hope laughing as they squeezed onto one wooden horse on the carousel even though there were plenty of open horses for them to split up.
Photos of Marcel holding a fuzzy white bunny close to his chest as he knelt beside Oliver sitting on Rebekah's knee, his face buried into Rebekah's shoulder as she guided his hand out to pet the bunny and a second photo of the boy jumping for joy after he successfully grazed the bunny's fur without getting bit.
And her favorite of all - a picture of Kol staring up at the sky as he sat at a park bench waiting for Davina to come back from the lady's room. Hope and Sebastian had run off, the others were still at the petting zoo, and Josh and Lora hadn't made it there yet. For a moment, Kol was all alone and while his mind usually ran rampant with thoughts of mischief when he was alone, there was a moment, a magical moment that Davina caught on camera, where he was alone and at peace.
"I noticed that you guys don't have any family photos around the Compound," said Davina. "So...I thought I'd start."
Kol released Hope from his hold to wrap his arms around Davina, kissing her temple as he fell in love with her all over again.
"Those are beautiful, my love. But," he slid her phone from her hand, staring at the picture of himself a bit longer. "There's a reason why there aren't any photos of us around the Compound."
Davina watched in horror as Kol opened the options menu on the phone.
"Stop! No! Kol, what are you doing?!"
Just as his finger slid over the 'Delete' button, Marcel used his vampire speed to snatch the phone from his grasp.
"Give it back, Marcel," Kol growled, holding his hand out to the younger vampire, willing to give him a second to come to his senses before he retaliated with his own supernatural speed. "You know vampires can't have photos of them surfacing throughout history. Isn't that the mistake you lot made with your little pal, Cammie?"
"These are memories," Marcel objected.
"We will remember as we always have. If these pictures resurfaced on the internet in a hundred years, we could be exposed."
"Then we will print them out when we get home, put them in a scrapbook, and tuck them away with Elijah's journals and delete the originals. But we won't destroy them altogether. Trust me," Handing the phone back to Davina, Marcel said, "In a hundred years, you will thank me for stopping you."
Looking down at Davina on one side of him and Hope on the other, both mortal and gone in a hundred years, Kol knew Marcel was right. He didn't want to chance ever forgetting this moment.
Plucking Davina's phone from her hand before she could stop him, Kol flipped back to the camera and held the phone out at arm's length.
"Everyone get in," he demanded.
Realizing his intention, everyone beamed a bright smile as they squeezed in close for a group selfie. Rebekah held Oliver so his sleeping face was towards the camera. Kol moved Davina in front of him so that she was in the center of the photo. Hope waited until she was sure Kol was about to take the picture before throwing two fingers behind Sebastian's head like bunny ears but little did she know he had the exact same idea. Marcel chuckled at the sight from behind, suddenly understanding why they were best friends.
"There," Kol handed Davina back her phone with a look of satisfaction as if he'd just solved a problem she didn't know she had. "Now you're in one too."
-M-
Klaus stood on the balcony of the study overlooking the street below, Elijah standing ever stoic by his side. His heart both rose and fell at the sight of his family in the distance, Marcel cooing at the napping toddler in Rebekah's arms, Kol whispering sweet nothings in Davina's ears, and Hope and Sebastian giggling over something in their phones. They seemed happy enough and he hated ruining their happiness over nothing.
"Are you sure about this," Klaus asked Elijah.
Elijah crossed his arms over his chest. "We made a vow to protect him like any other Mikaelson, brother."
"And what if it turns out that famous traitorous Finn is spinning another of his deceitful fables?"
"It is possible but I doubt it. He was too ashamed to even tell me what they did to him."
"Perhaps because they did nothing and the guilt of his lies was eating away at him."
"Niklaus." The stern edge of Elijah's voice suggested that he was done arguing about the subject and that only irritated Niklaus more.
An inexplicable urge moved Marcel to look up at the balcony. His smile slowly faded when he saw the serious glare on Klaus and Elijah's faces. The others came to a stop when he did, their sights following his to the balcony.
"Uh-oh," Rebekah mumbled. "That can't be good."
"Who do you think the victim is?" Marcel asked no on in particular.
Kol slowly brought his arm from Davina's shoulder, dropping it limply by his side. "I'd wager...me, their favorite whippin' boy."
As if listening in on their conversation, Elijah pointed down at Kol and beckoned for him to come to the study before he disappeared through the balcony doors.
"Told'ja," Kol groaned.
In the same moment, Niklaus looked into Marcel's eyes and nodded for him to come as well before following Elijah into the Compound.
"Both of you," Rebekah tutted. "What did you do this time?"
Kol and Marcel shared a look of confusion. They were both on their best behavior all morning and they'd been out since breakfast so certainly whatever transgression Klaus and Elijah thought they committed was a mistake on their part.
"Don't know," Marcel kissed Rebekah's cheek and lead the way into the Compound. "Guess we'll find out."
He paused at the doors and looked back to Kol, still standing at Davina's side and staring into the Compound like a dark entrance into hell.
Kol just barely heard Marcel call his name through the fog of his own thoughts. Looking up to his friend, he saw Marcel nod back down to Davina.
Kol looked at Davina staring up at him with worry and put a false smile on his face. Davina had only just started trusting Klaus and Elijah again. He couldn't have her worrying about him while he was in there with them when he wasn't even sure what they wanted.
Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to walk into the Compound, following Marcel step by step to the study.
The study door opened to Elijah sitting in a big leather chair, his legs crossed and his fingers drumming steadily across his knee as he waited for the two of them to come in. Niklaus leaned against the windowsill staring out the open window with a glass of bourbon in his hand, about as excited to get it all over with as Kol and Marcel.
"Alright," Marcel started, closing the doors behind them. "What's this about?"
Elijah rose to his feet and motioned to the antique divan sitting against the wall furthest away from the door. "Have a seat."
Turning his attention to Niklaus, Marcel said, "Just tell us what you think we did so we can refute it. We've been out entertaining the kids all day so we're both a little tired of games at this point."
Before Elijah could scold Marcel for his attitude, Niklaus lept from his spot on the windowsill and said, "It's not about today, but about last night. Apparently." Finishing off his drink, Niklaus slammed the glass against the nearest end table and said, "And you're right, let's not beat around the bus about it. What did you two do to Finn?"
Without missing a beat, Kol barked, "We never touched Finn! Whatever he said is a lie!"
Niklaus threw his hands up decisively. "Told you, brother. Finn is a liar. Case closed."
"The case is not closed, Niklaus. And if you cannot be bothered to take Finn's accusations seriously, perhaps you should leave us and I will get to the truth alone."
"I assure you, brother, I take any accusation anyone raises against Marcel very seriously. And if given the option to choose between Kol's word and Finn's, I trust Kol. Now, something must be done about Finn's continued deceitfulness. Perhaps a good thrashing is in order."
"That's enough, Niklaus!" The bite of Elijah's voice rose over Niklaus's, silencing the Hybrid immediately. "It is clear that you are not in the right temperament to handle this situation at the moment so I will ask you again, brother, and this will be the last time I ask with a fraction of respect and decorum: Please, leave us."
The moment seemed to drag on for hours as Niklaus and Elijah stared each other down.
"Fine," Niklaus gave in. "I will go downstairs and see if Hayley needs help with dinner. When you finally realize Marcel and Kol are innocent, you know where to find me. I will graciously accept your apology."
As Klaus strutted across the room with his head held high, Elijah said, "And if you're wrong, brother, I will require an apology to you but not for my own sake."
Klaus paused at the door for only a second, irritated at the thought of having to apologize to Finn. Confident that he wouldn't have to, he left the study, fighting the urge to slam the door close as he pulled it shut.
Turning his attention back to Kol and Marcel, Elijah pointed back at the divan and ordered, "Sit. Now."
Without Klaus there to protect them, Marcel didn't hesitate to obey.
As they both took their seat, Elijah grabbed the wooden stool from in front of one of the bookcase and walked it over to them, sitting down in front of them with a look of esteemed intimidation.
"Now then," he said, crossing one leg over his knee and resting his hands on top. "Walk me through the events leading up the dinner yesterday."
"Before or after your Mystic Falls buddies left?" Marcel dared.
Elijah smirked. "After."
Marcel rolled his eyes as he thought back to the previous evening. "Izzy showed up...I rescued Oliver, you refused to free of us from Freya's spell despite there being new members in the household and...asked me to go to my room...which I didn't and you...you and I had a chat about it. That's all."
Elijah smirked at Marcel's rough summation of the day's events. "Between me sending you to your bedroom and our little 'chat', I found you in the kitchen with Davina and Kol. Finn had just run out. Why was he in such a hurry to get away?"
"We don't know what's wrong with Freya's pet," Kol answered. "So if she asked you to confront us to make us admit to something we didn't do, then I'm sorry to say she wasted your time, big brother. Perhaps the boy is just having one of his moments. You know how he gets."
Elijah looked to Marcel, a blank look in his eyes that did little to ease Marcel's worry.
"Is this right, Marcellus?" Elijah sat back in his seat, his eyes studying Marcel's every move. "Is Finn just in a mood?"
Marcel's eyes drifted to the floor in annoyance. He didn't care if Elijah knew they bullied Finn out of the kitchen but he knew if Kol was lying about it, it was because he was afraid of Elijah knowing the truth.
Flashback:
"Are you sure about this, Kol?" Marcel stumbled slowly behind Kol as they trudged through the forest. He could barely see his hand in front of his face but Kol stayed close by to make sure he didn't get lost.
Kol tilted the bottle of bourbon to his mouth and chugged two heaping gulps before passing the bottle back to his friend.
"Of course I'm sure. You want to make a name for yourself other than Klaus's son, don't you? Then you have to start going to events without him."
Marcel took a shallow drink of bourbon, pulling it away before the burn became too strong. A year of drinking with his best friend and he still wasn't used to the burn.
"Do us a favor and don't retch like that when we're drinking with the ladies," Kol chuckled as he took the bottle back from Marcel.
"Do you think they'll have spirits at the party?"
"It's a New Orleans party, innit. Why wouldn't they have spirits?"
Marcel shrugged. "Sometimes they don't on Sundays. Uncle Elijah says some ladies don't like it when their husbands stay out drinking all night on the Lord's day. I think-"
Kol suddenly slapped his hand down over Marcel's chest, stopping him in his place.
"What do you mean, Sunday? Today is Saturday."
"No...it's Sunday. I know because Uncle Elijah cooked a feast for breakfast this morning as he does every Sunday."
"I don't remember a feast."
"That's because you slept through it and then spent the entire day avoiding Uncle Elijah. And a good thing too. He is furious with you. Said something about missing girls in the city and you going on another bender Friday night, whatever that means, but it must've been one hell of a party. You slept for a full day when you finally made it home."
Kol smirked at Marcel's praise. That wasn't the first time he'd slept an entire day after gorging on more blood than he could handle but it was still nice to know he could impress Marcellus so easily.
A rustling in the bushes ahead drew Kol's attention from himself.
A thought suddenly occurred to him. He looked into the sky for confirmation. The big orange eye of the moon stared back at him.
"C'mon," He pushed Marcel back in the direction they came. "We've got to get home. Now."
Marcel stumbled more as Kol guided him roughly through the terrain, his hand firmly on Marcel's shoulder.
"What are you doing?" Marcel tried to shrug Kol's hand off but the Original had a grip that wouldn't budge. "What about the party?"
"Party was last night, mate, keep up. I slept through it and we are not supposed to be out here tonight so let's go. Pick up the pace."
The more Marcel stumbled along, the more anxious Kol became.
As he moved to sweep Marcel off his feet and carry him through the forest, Marcel pushed him away.
"Stop dragging me around like some dumb kid," he barked. "I can walk on my own!"
Kol tightened his grip around Marcel's shoulder and growled, "We don't have time for your vain declarations of manhood, Marcellus. I have to get you out of this forest, now!"
"Why? What's going on?"
Kol could hear the sharp snapping of teeth and disgruntled growls closing in.
"It's a full moon," Kol stated as he forcefully lifted Marcel into his arms. "The wolves are out."
Kol ran as far as he could with Marcel struggling for freedom until he finally won, causing Kol to trip and throw him across the forest bed.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Kol barked.
Marcel rose to his feet and yelled, "You're treating me just like poppa and Uncle Elijah. I don't need another overprotective paternal figure in my life, Kol. You're supposed to be my friend."
"I am your friend but you are still my brother's son which means I am solely responsible for you when I take you out of his sight and I am to bring you back to him in the exact same condition I took you in, without the jagged bites of a wolf ripping through your soft human belly."
"I am 17," Marcel dug around on the forest floor until he found a large, solid stick. "I can take care of myself."
"Enough, Marcellus," Kol yelled. "You have no idea what you're up against! I lost my brother Henrik to these monsters! If I lose you, Niklaus will never be the same. He'll put me in a box and never let me out again."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Marcel was tackled to the ground by a wild wolf.
"Marcellus!"
Kol sped to Marcel and tackled the wolf off of him. He wrapped his arms around the beast's thick, furry neck and squeezed until it snapped beneath him.
Marcel struggle to sit up as the wounds on his chest blazed. Kol ran to his side, dropping to his knees beside the boy. Marcel stared down at his lap, too ashamed to look at Kol after being so easily taken over by the wolf.
"I-it was a lot bigger than I thought it'd be," he muttered.
Kol chuckled as he bit into his wrist and held it up to Marcel's lips. "Yeah, well, it's a werewolf. Not exactly your garden variety farm dog. Here, drink."
Without a second thought, Marcel drank from Kol's wrist with vigor and as his wounds began to heal, his energy soared.
Kol sighed in relief as Marcel sprang to his feet.
"Alright, you had your fun," Kol swept Marcel back in his arms. "You went up against a wolf-like a man and almost died so forgive me if you think I'm being a little overprotective but..."
Kol carried Marcel cradled in his arm as he bolted through the forest.
They stopped just on the other side of the Mikaelson property line.
"Before we enter the land of hail and brimstone," Kol said as he sat Marcel back on the ground. "Promise me you're going to try your absolute damnedest to not keel off in the next 24 hours."
"But...I thought you wanted me to be a vampire."
"Not like this, mate. If you turn like this it'll be like...those beasts stole another brother from me."
Kol rubbed his hand around the back of his neck, staring off at the sky as he tried to think of how to express himself without seeming too sappy.
"I'll be the first to admit that I didn't much care for you when my brother first brought you about but over the past year...I've kinda taken a liking to you. And over the centuries I can't think of a single friend I've had that wasn't a witch so consider yourself one of the lucky ones. When you become a vampire, you're going to change, they all do. You're not going to be the same rambunctious tike anymore and..." Kol cleared his throat and forced the vulnerability he felt rising in his throat drop. "And Klaus would kill me for taking his Perfect Marcellus away so soon so promise me you won't try to snuff yourself to become a vampire while my blood is still in your system."
Marcel nodded timidly, too afraid to admit that he wouldn't be able to take his own life if he wanted to. He hoped, when the time came, someone else would do it for him.
"Good," Kol slammed his hand down on Marcel's shoulder. "And promise me...you won't tell Klaus and Elijah we ran into a wolf tonight."
Marcel motioned down to his ripped, muddy clothes. "Uncle Elijah is definitely going to have questions. How do I explain this?"
"Uh...tell'em you fell out of a tree. You're a little scamp, they'll believe that."
"Why was I climbing a tree in the middle of the night?"
"Maybe that's why you fell," Kol spat. "I don't really care what you tell'em mate, just don't tell'em the truth."
Marcel smiled at what he perceived to be just another one of his friend's jokes.
"You know I don't lie, Kol."
Kol grabbed Marcel's arm as he started walking towards the Compound.
"You mean to tell me in seventeen years you've never told a single lie?"
"Of course I have. But poppa says that a man who lies has something to be ashamed of and what do I have to be ashamed of? I just faced a werewolf and lived."
"That's not the only reason to lie, mate. Sometimes you have to lie to protect yourself or...the people you care about."
Marcel pulled his arm out of Kol's hold, his eyes narrowing as he stared at him. Klaus warned him the day he undaggered Kol that Kol would try to lie and manipulate him and that he should be always on guard for it.
"What are you really up to, Kol?"
Kol was taken aback by Marcel's question. "What do you mean?"
"It's just a spanking, Kol. I get them all the time. You cry and apologize and then you move on"
Kol scoffed at Marcel's naivete. "My bastard brother's spoiled you so much you've lost sight of reality. You have no idea what it's like to be me. To be...empty and lost without your family but also always on guard when you're with them. Do you have any idea what Poppa Klaus would do to me if he found out I let his precious Marcellus get attacked by a wolf?"
"It wasn't your fault."
"He's not going to see it that way. He isn't going to believe that I simply slept through a day and mistakenly brought his son out during a full moon. I'm not you, Marcellus. I don't get the benefit of innocence in this family. Do you think I enjoy being known as the duplicitous brother? I do what I have to do to survive in this family."
Marcel stared at Kol with sorrowful understanding. He'd witnessed injustice against innocent people his entire childhood but never had it been so common in the Mikaelson household than Klaus's reaction to Kol's mistakes. He knew Kol was right, Klaus always assumed the worst of his youngest brother, especially in regards to Marcel.
"You don't have to lie if you don't want to," Kol continued. "Just...don't say anything if they start asking questions. Let me do all the talking."
"No."
Kol's heart sank at Marcel's statement. He'd never known his friend to be so cold.
But then Marcel continued, "I'll do all the talking. You said so yourself, they always think the worst of you but poppa never suspects me of wrong doings. He...he'll believe me if I lie."
"Marcellus, you don't have to. If it makes your precious little conscience-"
"I'm not a little kid, Kol. I can lie when I want to. I just choose not to. But you're more than just my friend, Kol. You're like...my brother. And now that I know what it's like to...have a brother, I kinda don't want to go back to being alone."
Marcel was stunned as Kol reached over and pulled him into his embrace. "Thank you," he muttered.
Marcel wrapped his arms around his friend and held him tighter. "I'm sorry...for the way everyone else acts around you. But I'm not going to let anyone dagger you again. I promise. We're family. Always and forever."
End Flashback
Elijah rose smoothy from his seat and walked over to the desk in the middle of the room. He grabbed the meter stick sitting on the edge and turned back to them with a cold look in his eyes.
"Please stand, Kol."
A shiver suddenly shot through Kol's body.
"Why?" He squeaked.
"You lied to me. I know you know why Finn was in such a hurry to get away from you and yet you lied to me without a moment's hesitation and if I have told you once, brother, I have told you plenty. I have had enough of your lies. Stand up and drop your pants, now."
As Kol rose to his feet, he gave his hand a slight pinch. The pain grew...and grew.
With wide, fearful eyes, he said, "When did you nullify our healing ability?"
"About twenty minutes before you got here," Elijah answered calmly. "I had Freya complete the spell before she proceeded with Finn's daily diagnostic check because I had a feeling we would end here eventually." He tapped the meter stick against the surface of the stool. "Do not make me repeat myself again, brother. You have three seconds to comply before I take matters into my own hands."
Marcel watched as Kol's trembling fingers fumbled to release his button as Elijah slowly continued down to three.
Before the three left his lips, Marcel spat, "It was me."
Kol and Elijah stood silent at Marcel's admission.
With a heavy sigh, he said, "Finn can be so damn annoying sometimes. I was drinking one of his blood bags from the freezer and he started being all...Finn so I gave it to him...but it splattered over his face. He became emotional, as he does, and ran out just as you were coming in. No one did anything heinous to him. He's just...emotional."
Elijah's eyes narrowed as Marcel looked up to Kol and the two of them shared another knowing look.
"Is that true, Kol?" Elijah asked.
With a smirk, Kol proudly answered, "That's about how I remembered it."
Elijah stood in front of the two of them, his steadied glare edging their guilt closer to the forefront but they fought to stay calm.
"Then I must ask, why were you so willing to take a thrashing when you were so obviously innocent?"
Kol shrugged. "Would you have believed me if I said I was innocent."
"I am nothing if not just to you, brother. I only want the truth. Do not lie to me because you think it's what I want to hear."
"Well here's the truth, Elijah," Marcel stood beside Kol with a cold look in his eyes. "Finn may be your blood but he is not our family. I wouldn't kill for him, I wouldn't die for him...hell, if you weren't forcing me, I won't even be civil with him."
"You call dosing him in blood civil?"
Marcel rolled his eyes. "Are we done here, Elijah?"
Elijah walked slowly back to the meter stick resting against the desk. "No. We're not. Relieve yourself of everything below the waist and come here."
Kol barked, "So now he's being punished for telling the truth?"
"Marcel is being punished for his attitude as well as his actions yesterday. I have warned you both about torturing Finn."
"It's was hardly torture rather than a little harmless bullying."
"Never has such a contradictory phrase been spoken with such ignorance. Bullying is not harmless, little brother, and we will not have it in this household."
Kol slapped his hand down on Marcel's shoulder and guided him towards the exit. With an impish grin, he said, "If you were opposed to bullying you should've just said so. Glad we cleared that up. I've certainly learned my lesson from this very stern talk brother and I'm sure little Marcellus here has too, isn't that right?"
As they got closer to the door, Elijah calmly stated, "If you attempt to leave this room before we've finished our conversation, Marcellus, I can assure you, the results will not be pleasant."
Kol's body shook with guilt. He couldn't let Marcel be punished for something he'd done.
Suddenly, the door opened from the other side.
"Elijah?" Finn's voice squeaked as he peaked his head inside. "Freya said you wanted to see me?"
"Yes, Finn. Come in and shut the door, please."
Finn didn't see Marcel and Kol past the door until it was closed. His breath hitched in his chest at the sight of him. Then turning back to Elijah, he noticed the stick in his hand and tears began to weld in the corners of his eyes.
Shaking his head, he whined, "Whatever they said, they're lying. I-I haven't done anything, Elijah, I-I swear. I've been in Freya's workshop all day."
Elijah set the meter stick back on the desk and said, "You're not in trouble, Finn. Come here."
Finn was more than happy to move away from Kol and Marcel as they both laced him with looks of pure hate. Once standing in front of Elijah, his eyes widened in shock of being pulled into his hold.
Elijah held him longer than Finn could ever remember his brothers hugging him.
"Wh-what are you doing?" He asked as he tried to pull out of Elijah's hold.
Elijah's arms tightened around him. He brought his hand up to Finn's head and held him firmly against his chest. "I'm giving you a hug."
"Wh-why?" Finn muttered against his shirt.
Elijah moved his gentle strokes from Finn's arm to the center of his back, massaging away the tension in his body. "It seemed as though you could use one. Do you want me to stop?"
Finn relaxed into Elijah's hold, the tears that once hid in the corners of his eyes now wetting his brother's shirt. He shook his head 'no' against Elijah's chest. Elijah held him until Finn was out of tears. Then he pulled him back to look into his eyes. Finn was too ashamed to look at Elijah.
Elijah lifted Finn's head with the tip of his finger. He reached over to the desk and grabbed a book.
"I returned from Vincent's sanctuary today to find Freya waiting for me at the Compound entrance with this."
Finn read the cover of the book aloud, "Love, Discipline, and the Teenage Brain."
"There's a section in here about the benefits of hugging your teenager to help reduce stress and increase feelings of security."
Finn's cheeks turned red at the implication that he needed Elijah to hug him. He wanted to object but the tears still drying on his face was all the proof Elijah needed.
"She seems to think...the current dynamic you and I share is harmful to you in your current...condition. She thinks that I should...put your past behind us and see you for the person you are now. And, if in the future we return you back to your Original state, we can reaccess our past feelings. What do you think?"
Finn shrugged. "I don't want you to treat me like a child. I'm your older brother."
"You were. A thousand years ago you were, nine hundred years ago you were, even fourteen years ago you were. But now, you reside back in the body of a boy with the same underdeveloped brain which, according to this book, causes you to struggle with emotional control. There are many ways to help with that."
Finn rolled his eyes. "Careful, Elijah. Better patent that novel 'hugging' treatment of yours before some up and coming psycho-analysis steals it."
Elijah smirked. "Afraid I can't take credit for that idea myself." He held the child-rearing book up and said, "It seems someone else already thought of it, I was just testing it. You know my preferred method of emotional correction tends to be a bit... warmer."
Kol leaned over to Marcel and whispered, "It should be a little more stake-ier if you ask me."
Finn cringed at hearing Kol's comment. "Are we done, Elijah? You hugged me, now can I go?"
"Not yet." Elijah walked over to the door and stood between Kol and Marcel and their only exit. Without a word, he motioned for them to go take a seat back on the sofa.
Kol looked back to Marcel. Despite his false bravado, Marcel's unwavering grip on his forearm proved to Kol just how nervous he was.
"C'mon, Elijah," Kol groaned. "We...we're sorry. We pushed a limit and it won't happen again."
"I do believe that that is Marcel's speech to make AFTER our talk. If you don't think you can handle watching your friend face the consequences of his actions, you are free to go, brother."
Marcel's hand tightened around Kol's arm.
"I-I can't go," Kol muttered. "I mean...I shouldn't."
Elijah took a quick assessment of the situation: Marcel's nervous hold on Kol's arm, his brother's reluctance to leave his supposedly guilty friend, Kol's inability to look either of them in the eyes. He knew, without either of them saying a word, the truth.
Flashback:
Marcel woke bright and early as always despite coming home late with Kol. Thanks to the sleeping potion Kol acquired from a witch friend, Klaus and Elijah were still asleep when they returned so they were able to slip back into bed without anyone noticing. He hid his torn clothes in the space between his mattress and headboard, hoping Elijah wouldn't find it before he had a chance to burn them and put all evidence of the wolf attack behind them for good.
He left his room in search of Kol, hoping to bask in the glory of their semi-successful outing with his friend but Kol was not in his room.
He went downstairs, assuming Kol had beaten him to breakfast when he heard arguing coming from the great room.
"I swear I don't know what you're talking about, Elijah." Kol's voice rang as Marcel drew closer to the great room. He entered to see Kol sitting stiffly in a chair as Elijah and Klaus hovered above him.
"Enough of your lies," Klaus bellowed. "There is a dead wolf prince lying within a hundred yards of our property. Who else but one of us could have killed him? It wasn't Elijah, Rebekah, or I, so it could have been no one else but you."
"You'd believe Rebekah but you won't believe me?"
"Rebekah has no reason to lie to us."
"And what reason do I have?"
"Curiosity. Boredom. Depravity. Take your pick."
"Kol."
Marcel's soft voice coming from the doorway drew their attention away from Kol.
Marcel looked into Kol's eyes and said, "Let's just tell them the truth."
Kol's eyes widened. He trusted Marcel, he didn't expect to be betrayed by him so soon.
Marcel looked up to Klaus and with a straight face, he said, "I snuck out last night. To meet a girl."
"You did what?" Klaus left Kol's side to walk over to Marcel, his mouth slack with shock that his son had managed to sneak out of the Compound without him knowing.
"I'm sorry, poppa. I know I'm not supposed to leave the property without you or Uncle Elijah but I wanted her to think I was brave. But then that wolf showed up. I...I'm just lucky that Kol showed up to when he did. H-he saved me."
Niklaus pulled Marcel into a hug, squeezing him as his heart gave to fear. "Marcellus, my boy...do you have any idea what could have happened to you last night?"
"I'm sorry, poppa," Marcel hugged Klaus back. "Am...am I in trouble?"
Klaus pulled away from Marcel, staring at him with furrowed brows. "You should be," he answered. "But..." Klaus brushed his hand against Marcel's cheek, caressing his soft face. "I'm simply happy you're okay. Please, Marcellus, do not leave the property without one of us again, especially at night."
"I won't, poppa." Marcel glanced over to Kol as Klaus draped his arm around his shoulder and guided him out of the room without so much as an apology to his younger brother.
"Niklaus," Elijah called, pausing Klaus at the doorway. "We still have the issue of the dead werewolf prince to deal with."
Niklaus waved off Elijah's worry and pressed forward towards the kitchen. "Tell them the truth. He attacked a Mikaelson and so he had to die. That is a universal truth every wolf, witch, and man on this planet should know."
Marcel chanced one more glance at Kol to see his friend smiling as broad as ever. He couldn't help but smile back, proud that they'd gotten away with his first major lie.
End Flashback
Elijah grabbed Kol's chin and forced him to look him in the eyes.
"Look me in the eyes and know that if you lie to me again, I will not take pity on you." Elijah's gruff monotone brought a quiver to Kol's lip. "Which of you threw the blood bag?"
Fear boiled in Kol's belly. "I-I did, brother. Marcellus was just covering for me because...because I-I..."
"You were too cowardly to own up to your own mistake." Elijah released Kol's chin and cut his eyes back at Marcel. "Because, in your shared idiocy, you both thought I would let Marcellus get away with torturing Finn before you."
"It's Finn," Kol exclaimed, shoving a finger in Finn's direction. "Why are you all pretending like he matters when he shouldn't. We got rid of him for nine hundred years for a reason. Even when we brought him back, he refused to accept his part in this family. He refused to protect this family. We should trust him no more than we should trust our mother or Mikael for that matter."
The more Kol yelled the tenser Finn became. "Elijah, I-I should go," he said, his jaw tight with restrained anger.
Elijah couldn't hear him over Kol's ranting.
"Marcel hates him, I hate him, Davina hates him, Hope hates him. Be honest, brother, even you and the bastard struggle with accepting this traitor back into the ranks. The number of Mikaelsons who hate him outnumber the ones who are blind to his faults."
Elijah opened his mouth to speak but Finn's rage roared over his voice.
"Shut! Up! Kol!"
All eyes turned to Finn, wide with shock of his sudden outburst
"If you hate me so much," said Finn. "Then leave."
Taking calculated steps towards Finn, Kol growled, "This is my family. You leave."
"I'm not going anywhere without my sister."
"Tell you what, leave New Orleans today and you can have joint custody of Freya. How does every other week sound?"
Finn slammed his hand down on the desk beside him and everything on top jumped at his strength, the oak top splintering beneath his fist. "Why is everything a joke to you?"
"Because I know how to enjoy life, Finn. Something you would know nothing about. You prefer to live in misery and shame and you spent a century boring us with your 'moral dilemma' of life and that's why we left you daggered in a box for nine hundred years and not one of us ever missed a single moment of your simpering."
A fountain pen rolled to the edge of the desk and Elijah saw the moment Finn's mad eyes made the decision to shove it into Kol's throat but the boy used his supernatural speed to complete the task before Elijah could stop him.
Elijah and Marcel stood wide-eyed as Kol's body dropped to the floor, blood and ink spurting from the hole in his throat.
The blood of his brother coating his face cooled Finn's anger and he realized too late the mistake he'd made.
Elijah stood between Marcel and Finn, noting the anger rising in the younger vampire and deciding to intervene before he'd done something in retaliation.
"Take Kol's body to his bedroom and wait for me in yours until I've finished here."
Marcel knew by the fire in Elijah's eyes that now was not the time to argue about his punishment. He walked past Elijah to Kol, refusing to take his eyes off Finn for a second. He yanked the pen out of Kol's throat and the wound slowly healed. He thought about putting the pen in Finn's neck but he was sure whatever Elijah was going to do to him would be much worse.
Lifting Kol into his arms, Marcel carried Kol out of the study.
Elijah held the door open for Marcel as he left and shut it behind him.
Silence engulfed the room for several moments once Elijah and Finn were alone. Finn didn't know what to say. There was nothing he could say.
"You killed...your baby brother again." Elijah finally spoke.
"H-he's going to be okay. He'll heal."
"That's not the point, Finn," Elijah snapped. "You killed him in anger just now. And when he was a witch, you hexed him to death. We have, all of us, committed countless acts of horror against each other but none, I fear, so cold and cruel you. Do you even feel any remorse when you take his life?"
"E-Elijah. I-I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me, I was just-"
"Angry?" Elijah blew a breath of frustration through his nose and shook his head. "I don't know what to do with you. Freya has tried, I have tried, but there seems to be no helping you."
Finn wrang his hands sore. "Please, Elijah. It was one time."
"All it takes it one time, Finn! One time for you to get irrationally angry in front of Hope or Davina. Or Izzy and Oliver. One time for you to lose your temper and kill someone in this family who won't simply wake up again a few minutes later."
Tears dripped down Finn's cheeks. "If-if you make me leave...I'll have no one. Everyone I love is-is...here."
Elijah looked away, unable to watch the sorrowful boy as he contemplated his next move. "I don't believe you've loved anyone under this roof other than Freya in a thousand years, brother. And that's simply not enough."
Finn's tears flowed harder, drenching his cheeks and rolling down his chin to his neck. He wiped his arm across his face and Kol's blood wiped away too. His stomach twisted at the sight of the red sin staining his white shirt.
He looked up to Elijah, his lip trembling. "S-spank me."
Elijah's eyes narrowed at the surprising request.
"Please," Finn continued through broken sobs. "I-I know you want to punish me but please don't make me leave. Sp-spank me, please."
In a thousand years, Elijah never thought he'd hear one of his siblings beg for a spanking.
"I'm afraid that won't suffice this time, Finn. It is my duty as patriarch to protect this family."
Finn vamped over to Elijah, wrapping his arms around his body as he buried his face against his chest.
"Please," the boy sobbed. "Please, Elijah, please. I don't want to be alone again. I'll stay away from Hope and the others. I'll stay away from Kol and Marcel. I-I'll lock myself in Freya's workshop and I'll never leave, please, brother...don't exile me. I only have you...and Mikael. Don't make me go back to him."
Elijah placed his hand on Finn's head feeling every hysterical shudder break through the boy's body.
Taking Finn by the arm, he vamped over to the stool he had reserved for Kol and Marcel.
Finn's breath caught in his chest as Elijah stripped him of his bloody clothes, baring him completely before throwing him over one knee and pinning down his legs with the other.
Elijah rained hellish smacks upon Finn's pale bottom, alternating from cheek to cheek as he ignited a fire on his behind. The boy tried to accept his punishment with dignity but as Elijah released the power of a thousand-year-old vampire across his behind, his sobs grew more uncontrollable. He squirmed from side to side but he couldn't break free of Elijah's hold. He wanted to beg for it to end but he feared a quick end would mean resulting back to banishment.
Finn's cheeks went from pink to red in a matter of seconds but Elijah didn't stop there. Since Finn would start healing again as soon as the spanking was over, Elijah resolved to give him something he would remember.
Finn gripped the bottom rung of the stool and tried to pull himself free of Elijah's hold as the spanking became unbearable but the rung had more give than Elijah and snapped in his hands.
"Please, Elijah!" Finn tried kicking himself loose but all he could free from Elijah's hold were his feet. They flapped wildly between Elijah's legs. "Mercy!"
"Mercy?" Elijah slowed the rhythm of his spanks. "I deal in justice, brother, not mercy."
Realizing that he didn't need to press his hands against the floor to keep his body from tipping over since Elijah had such a firm grip on his legs, Finn shot both of his hands back to his behind.
"Move your hands," Elijah ordered.
"I'm sorry! Please...it's hurts, Elijah. I'm sorry!"
Finn's cries fell on deaf ears.
"I have a goal I am trying to reach and as we speak you are beginning to heal. So move your hands or we will be here all day and trust me, brother, I am an unwaveringly patient man."
Finn hesitated to place his hands back on the floor, flinching with every new spank.
As the last swat landed on his cherry red behind, Elijah stood him to his feet. He held Finn's arms in his hands and gave him a firm shake until the boy was focused on him and not the pain radiating on his bottom.
"You are never to be alone with Hope or the others, do you understand me?"
Snot dripped from Finn's nose as he nodded his agreement.
"And you will never raise a hand to Kol or Marcel again, even if it is for a temporary death."
"O-okay, whatever you say."
"And as long as you are in this body," Elijah released Finn's arms, folding his own over his chest as he glared down at his brother. "You will be treated like the boy that you are. You react with the same myopic impulsiveness of a child so you will be treated as one."
Finn puffed his cheeks and stayed silent. That was the hardest stipulation to agree with.
Elijah grabbed his arm and spun him to the side so that he had a clear view of the boy's behind before landing five heavy swats to his still sore backside. Finn danced from foot to foot but he couldn't break free of Elijah's grasp until Elijah finished.
"Do I make myself clear to you, Finn?"
"Yes!" Finn screamed as he grabbed his behind and ran his hands quickly across them attempting to knock away as much pain as possible.
He quivered as Elijah pulled one of his hands away from his behind to land another swat.
"Enough of that. You do not get the privilege of rubbing away pain you so justly deserve."
Finn nodded his agreement. He believed he deserved his current pain and so much more though he wouldn't dare admit it aloud.
Elijah picked up Finn's blood speckled clothes as he stood, folding them neatly.
"Find a corner and stay there, Finn. Do not move until I come back for you."
"Wh-What about my clothes?"
"I will bring you clothes that are not drenched with your little brother's blood when I return."
"H-how long will you be gone?"
Elijah cut his eyes down at Finn. "Do you have pressing matters waiting for you elsewhere?"
Finn blushed and shook his head no.
"Then corner, now."
"C-can I at least do it in Freya's workshop?"
"Am I not being clear as to which of us is in charge of setting the conditions of your punishment or is this just your way of asking for another go-about? Perhaps with the meter stick."
"N-no, no." Finn took two large steps away from Elijah, covering his behind with sweaty palms.
"Then go, Finn. Do not make me repeat myself again."
Finn walked slowly towards the closest corner. And then suddenly, he turned back to Elijah and sped to him wrapping his arms around his body. Elijah tensed at the unexpected attack for a moment before realizing that it wasn't an attack, but a hug.
He placed his hand on top of Finn's soft brown hair as the boy cried wholeheartedly against his chest.
"P-please don't hate me," Finn muttered.
Elijah allowed himself to succumb to his emotions, hugging Finn until it hurt.
"I don't hate you, brother."
"You don't like me. Fr-Freya is the only reason you keep me around and one day she is going to be...gone. And then...you're going to put me back in that coffin."
"No, we won't, Finn. We made a promise when we returned, no more daggers."
The tension gripping Finn's body unwound at Elijah's proclamation.
"I'm trying to be better," he said in a whisper. "It's hard. But I'm trying, brother. Believe me. I am trying."
Finn didn't fight it when Elijah broke their hug even though it hurt. He swept the back of his hands across his wet face to give himself some semblance of dignity but he couldn't stop himself from crying.
Elijah lifted Finn's chin so that they were looking eye to eye.
"I know it's hard, brother. It's going to be a long and painful journey but I'm going to be here for you every step of the way and I promise you, I won't give up."
Finn allowed Elijah to guide him to the nearest corner and watched as he set a timer on his phone for 30 minutes.
"I am going to check on Kol and then I'm going to check on how Hayley's doing with dinner but I will be back periodically to check on you. If I find you outside of this corner before the timer goes off, we start over from the first smack. Do you understand?"
Staring down at his feet, Finn nodded.
"I require a verbal 'Yes, Elijah'."
Groaning with growing embarrassment, Finn said, "Yes, Elijah."
Time in the corner passed slower to Finn than anything, even the nine hundred years he spent locked in the coffin. Every few seconds he chanced a glance up at the clock above the door only to find not even a minute had passed since the last time he checked.
When he heard the door creak open, he assumed it was Elijah coming to check on him so he kept his face pressed against the wall.
"I think I left it in here," Hope said to Sebastian as they entered the study.
She paused at the sight of Finn standing in the corner, naked for the world to see.
Finn peeked over his shoulder at the sound of the two teens giggling behind him.
His face turned beet red at their taunting, his hands immediately shooting to his privates to cover himself from the girl's sight.
"Why is he naked?" Sebastian asked.
Hope pointed at the splotches of pink still shining on Finn's behind. "Looks like he's done something to piss off Uncle Elijah."
"I'd hate to be him right now."
"Who wouldn't hate to be him," Hope chuckled. "He probably hates being him. Do you Finn? You starting to hate it here yet? Ready to run away? No one will stop you if you did."
Finn pushed his face further in the corner attempting to hide the tears of frustration running down his cheeks.
"Oh, Sebastian...I think I'm making him cry," she mocked.
"I didn't realize someone heartless enough to hex their own brother could feel embarrassed by anything."
"Go away!" Finn barked.
"Or what," Hope continued to taunt. "We're not afraid of you, Finn."
With his back to her, Finn didn't see Hope raise her hand to him so he couldn't react quickly enough when she started her spell.
His blood grew hotter than it'd been since he was human. And it kept rising.
He spun around to Hope to see Hope muttering an incantation under her breath but before he could move, Sebastian immobilized him with his magic. He fell to the ground, his body overheating and useless to his own control.
Neither teen released their spells until they were sure Finn wouldn't get back to his feet after.
"For some reason, my Aunty Freya loves you," Hope said as she strolled over to the desk and grabbed the grimoire she came in for. "But if the stories my brother told me about you are true, I'm sure it's only a matter of time before you betray her like you did the rest of this family and when she turns on you, they're finally going to get rid of you for good."
Sebastian stood on guard as Hope turned her back to Finn to come back to the door, ready to hit him with another immobilizing spell if he tried to attack her.
"But if you really love her, you would leave her with good memories of you so you don't break her heart like you've done everyone else."
As the door closed behind Hope and Sebastian, Finn laid crying on the floor a bit longer.
He looked up to the clock on the wall to see 10 minutes had passed since Elijah left.
Pulling himself together, he crawled back to the corner, forced himself back to his feet, pressed his forehead against the wall and cried, waiting for the moment he could disappear back into Freya's workshop and hide from his hateful family again.
Sorry for ending on such a sad note but this chapter was getting longer than I expected and would've gone on forever if I didn't pick a place to stop it lol
