Sorry for the super late chapter. Missed a whole month of writing for work.
Warning: Gonna make Landon and Raf a lil' OoC for a while but don't worry, they will be back to the lovable innocent pups we know and love eventually (maybe still a little ooc sometimes).
Chapter 95
Oliver fell fast asleep in the back seat of Marcel's car as he and Rebekah followed the Mikaelson caravan out of the city. Marcel couldn't help but smile as he peered at the boy through the rearview mirror.
"We should wake him," he chuckled. "Or he'll be hell to put down later."
"Let him sleep," Rebekah sighed, her own eyes barely holding open. "I'll stay up with him."
"You?" Marcel glanced over to see his love slumped further in her seat. "You're barely awake yourself."
"Exactly," Rebekah pulled her knees up to her chest as she got comfortable. "Let us both sleep now and I'll stay up with him tonight."
Marcel gave a chuckle as Rebekah fell asleep. He knew she was gone when his phone began to ring and she didn't stir.
"Yeah," he answered through the car speaker.
The line was silent for a moment before Elijah's voice finally came flatly, "I don't believe we've ever had the conversation of phone etiquette, Marcellus, but you should know by now how I feel about being answered...'yeah'."
Marcel rolled his eyes. "What do you want, Elijah?"
Deciding to ignore his nephew's attitude, for now, Elijah continued, "We're taking the long way to the cabin to make sure we're not followed."
"You've only been there once and already you've figured out another route?"
"You do well never to underestimate my intuitiveness."
"Fine. Lead the way, Magellan."
Rebekah and Oliver slept the entire ride to the cabin, enjoying the long route there, but as soon as Marcel brought the car to a stop, Rebekah began to stir.
"We're here already?" she stretched. Staring out the window, she noticed Hope already out of Klaus's car and standing coyly next to Rafael and Landon. She sighed, "I have a premonition that we are going to have to save one of those boys from Nik before these three weeks are up."
Following Rebekah's eyes to Hope, Marcel nodded his agreement. "Take Oliver inside. I'll rescue them."
"Don't just stand there," Klaus growled, slamming a duffel bag against Landon's chest. "Grab a bag."
Rafael snatched the bag from Landon's arms and threw it on the ground. "This ain't our shit. You brought us here with nothing, remember?"
Klaus ignored the boy's anger as he grabbed another suitcase from the trunk. "Tell us where your things are and we will send a wolf to fetch it."
Rafael's jaw tightened. He and Landon had been traveling with just the shirts on their backs and whatever they could carry in a couple of backpacks. Their backpacks were still in the hotel room they were staying in before Klaus picked them up. At least, that's where they hoped they still were. They paid for their room by the night and they'd been gone for three nights now. Surely the hotel manager had their room cleaned out by now, officially leaving them with nothing.
"The two of you look to be about Finn's size," Klaus continued over his shoulder. "So we've done you the liberty of packing two bags for each of you. You're welcome."
Landon waited until Klaus fully disappeared into the cabin before mumbling, "Asshole."
"He's not that bad once you get to know him," Hope finally found the courage to interject.
"He's bad enough," Landon groaned opening the duffle bag to see what clothes Klaus had packed for them. Several t-shirts and jeans of varying colors were folded tightly in the duffle next to about a dozen pairs of socks and underwear so crisp and white he was sure they'd never been worn but it still made him uneasy to wear clothes that these strangers picked for him.
He stood up straight as the looming figure of Marcel appeared suddenly over his shoulder, standing between him, Rafael, and Hope.
"Grab your bags," Marcel stated plainly, knowing his size intimidated the boys enough that he didn't have to do much but stand between them and Hope for them to get a clear understanding of the distance he expected them to keep from her over the next three weeks. "I'll show you to your rooms."
"Room," Rafael corrected brusquely, slinging his duffle over his shoulder as he locked eyes with Marcel. "We're sharing."
Glancing between the two boys, Marcel said, "You sure? There are plenty of rooms for each of us. And...I didn't really think to add bunk beds to any of them."
"Then we'll share a bed," Rafael threw his other arm over Landon's shoulder and they walked step-for-step towards the cabin. "No one's gonna separate us."
-M-
"I think your daughter is crushing hard," Marcel stated as he walked into the study where Klaus, Elijah, and Kol had retired to iron out the rest of the details of the next few weeks.
His eyes narrowed, Klaus said, "On Izzy? Again?"
"No," Marcel grunted. "Worse. On one of the two strays you brought home."
Klaus's frown deepened in anger. "You are the one who begged me not to spare them."
"I said don't kill them, Klaus. Not 'lock them in a secluded cabin with your teenage daughter'."
"Since when did she start liking boys?" Klaus barked. "I thought I had only one gender to focus on, now I have to guard against girls AND boys?"
"Calm down, Nik." Kol's nonchalant response to what Klaus and Marcel considered shocking news irritated them both a bit. "It's nothing new. She told me a few months ago on her birthday. She probably never told either of you because you treat every person she gives heart-eyes to like an enemy."
"One," Marcel bit. "Stop using emojis in sentences. I told you it's annoying. And, two, Klaus treats them like an enemy. I just want to protect her."
"Protect her from what, Marcellus? She can't even talk to people she finds attractive without stuttering and stammering. And she's a good kid. She knows how to come to us for help when she needs it. Being 14 is hard enough without your dad and big brother looming over your every move. Just...give her some space."
Klaus and Marcel glared at Kol in disbelief that of the three of them at the moment, he was being the most level-headed.
"Kol is right," said Elijah. "I think Hope's fascination with boys and girls is nothing more than mere curiosity at the moment. We needn't worry. We have more dire issues at hand."
Elijah walked over to the table in the middle of the room and dropped a stack of papers on top.
"Hayley's had her wolves gather information on all of the suspected supernatural sightings in New Orleans over the past week. I propose-"
"I propose," Klaus quickly interrupted Elijah before he could elaborate on his plan. "We unpack first." Turning to Marcel, he continued, "Take your things to your room. I'll come help you unpack in a bit."
Marcel's eyes narrowed in disgust. "Are you trying to get rid of me, Klaus?"
Klaus's shoulders slumped as Marcel glared at him. "You don't need to be a part of this." He stated calmly, hoping Marcel would see reason without coaxing. "You're responsible for that boy and nothing more."
"New Orleans is my ci-"
"OUR city," Klaus roisterous, Hybrid bark drowned out Marcel's. "We all have our responsibilities. Yours is protecting that boy and whatever other children you bring into this family. Mine is protecting you."
"I can protect them and fight at the same time."
"Can you fight with a sore arse?"
Marcel's eyes widened at the blunt question. He opened his mouth and shut it at the same time, not sure how to respond.
Cocking his head falsely demure, Klaus continued, "Can you fight if I'm dragging you off of the battlefield like the disobedient brat you are?"
"Klaus," Marcel bit, his voice strained with embarrassment.
Hardening his glare so as to emphasize his seriousness, Klaus said, "You've disobeyed me enough this weekend. Get out of here, now."
Marcel's jaw tightened, his shoulders squared challengingly towards his father.
Klaus kept his unwavering glare locked on Marcel, both of them too stubborn to change their minds.
"Come on, mate," Kol threw his arm over Marcel's shoulders and turned him towards the door. "Let these two take care of cleaning up the city. Who cares. Let's go finally break-in that hot tub."
Marcel snarled at Kol's interruption but he allowed his friend to guide him out of the room, silently grateful for his intervention. Whenever he and his father were at an impasse, it always ended one way.
"That's bullshit," Marcel mumbled as he and Kol continued down the hall. "He keeps treating me like a damn child."
"Y'know, after all these years," Kol folded his arms behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling. "I still don't quite get you. Most people would kill to have your life."
Marcel cut his eyes at Kol in disbelief. "They'd kill for constant condescension and overbearing conservatorship?"
Dropping his arms and facing Marcel, a look of disbelief in his eyes, Kol said, "You should sell tickets because this showing of 'Poor Spoiled Prince' is your best yet."
Marcel's nose flared with rage. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"I mean you're complaining about being spoiled and protected and it's annoying as hell. There are people out there whose parents couldn't wait for them to get old enough to get turned out to the wolves. You get bit, here comes daddy Klaus, his wrist a fount for you to drink til your heart's content. Any other vampire in this world gets a wolf bite and that's it for them. My brother wouldn't even shed a tear if the entire species was wiped out by wolves tomorrow, let alone his blood. You're an immortal teenager. You get to live with all of the energy and youth of a 19-year-old, party for days on end without having to worry about a job or hangover the next morning. You can make love to whatever beautiful woman you want without ever-looming fear of an unwanted infant or STD like any other man. You, Marcellus Mikalson Gerard, are the luckiest man on earth and you don't realize it." Turning back down the hall with a huff of indignation, Kol added, "It's really damn annoying."
"So I'm just supposed to be okay with the way Klaus treats me because there are other people who have it worse?" Marcel barked as he followed his friend.
"So he treats you like a teenager," Kol barked back, throwing his hands up in acceptance. "Then just act like one! I spent a thousand years behaving like an idiot kid and, save for the years I was tormented by my brothers with the daggers, my life was stupendous. Because do you know what people expect of teenagers? Chaos. Disobedience. Recklessness. Teendom is the freedom to do whatever you want without consequence."
Marcel's lip curled in disbelief. "Freedom? Were you not here this weekend after Klaus found out I was 'doing whatever I wanted'?"
"And what would he have done if you weren't his son? What has happened to any vampire, or witch, or wolf that has ever orchestrated with Klaus's enemies behind his back in the past 1000 years?"
"Oh yeah? I'm not the only one he let live this weekend!"
"You talking about Josh? He only let him go because he didn't want to hurt you."
"And what about Tyer?"
Kol smirked as if Marcel had just proven his point. "Another teenager. Despite my brother's 'big bad wolf' facade, he has a weakness for helpless little pups. No one should know that better than you." Seeing the irritation growing on his friend's face, Kol held his hands up in defeat and continued, "I'm just saying, you need to stop looking at this eternal youth thing as a curse and considering it as the blessing it is. So what he locks you out of a few rooms. He murders anyone else he doesn't want to know his plans." Walking closer to Marcel, standing so close to his face he could feel his breathing, Kol said, "Remember how much fun we used to have before you became King? Look me in the eyes and tell me you don't want that again."
Marcel's jaw tightened and Kol knew he was right.
Giving a devilish smirk, Kol said, "I know when I'm right, mate. Do yourself a favor and step down." Seeing Marcel's chest swell with anger at the thought of finally conceding his crown, Kol quickly added, "Just for a little while. Klaus isn't going to step down until he's ready so in the meantime, why not just...let him and Elijah have the boring duties of Kingship and you and I return to the way things used to be. I bring the whiskey and the beautiful women, you bring the charm and that pretty little face of yours."
Marcel caught Kol's hand before he could land a playful slap on his cheek. His youthful face betrayed his anger, making him look more like a temperamental teenager than an irritated man and Kol only chuckled as he walked away.
Marcel couldn't help but consider it. The constant back and forth with Klaus was exhausting. What he wouldn't do for the simplicity of his life a hundred years ago. Staying out all night with Kol, spending all day training with his epee, networking with beautiful people simply because they were beautiful and loved to have fun, not because he needed to secure some alliance. He really did miss it.
Marcel stayed silent as he followed Kol to the cars and they unloaded the rest of the bags together.
"Where are those damn kids," Kol grumbled as he was forced to balance four suitcases on his shoulders.
Marcel focused his hearing until he found the sound of Hope, Izzy, Rafael, and Landon in the den talking about upcoming movies.
"Sounds like Hope is still trying to make new friends," Marcel bit as he grabbed the rest of the bags from his car.
"You are definitely Klaus's son," Kol chuckled. "What are you going to do when that boy becomes a teenager? Stalk every crush he has and until they 'mysteriously disappear'?"
"I'm not as bad as Klaus," Marcel grunted. "I don't care if Hope dates. Or Oliver, once he's old enough. As long as they're both supervised."
"And how many supervised dates did you go on when you were Hope's age?"
"None," Marcel stated plainly. "I didn't even gain the courage to kiss a girl until I was sixteen and..." Marcel's eyes fell to Kol.
Knowing what he meant, Kol chuckled, "Oh, right. Little Marcellus didn't become a man until ol' Kol was able to introduce him to the magic of women."
Marcel rolled his eyes at Kol's taunting.
-M-
"What is there even to do all the way out here in the middle of nowhere," Landon grumbled as he slumped into the sofa next to Rafael.
"They say there's a lake," Hope suggested, a bit too eager for her liking.
Sebastian's hand on her shoulder calmed her back down immediately. She couldn't help herself, she just got so nervous in front of her crushes. Being a Tribrid and the daughter of Klaus Mikaelson, everyone assumed that she would be a natural at talking to her crushes, but everyone often forgets all the years she spent on the road with her mom, rarely ever seeing any kids her own age. Socializing with other kids became easy after she met Sebastian. The only time he gets nervous is when he's in trouble.
Taking a deep breath to calm down, Hope continued, "We could go there. I mean, if you want. It's just...y'know...a big puddle of water in the ground. No big deal."
Rafael scoffed. "And do what?"
Arching her eyebrow, Hope answered, "Swim."
Rafael and Landon made nervous eye contact.
"See, that would be great and all," Landon started softly, trying not to squirm in embarrassment. "But uh..." His voice grew softer as he spoke. "We can't really...swim."
"Neither can I," Izzy shrugged. "But hanging out by the lake has to be better than hanging out around all of these old bastards."
Hope cringed as Izzy called her family old bastards but she didn't want to seem like the kiss-up in the group so she let it pass.
Staring nervously at the older teen, Landon stated anxiously, "You're not...you're not just trying to get us alone so...y'know...we can make out or whatever?"
Hope's entire body flushed as she instinctively glanced over to Rafael, curious about his response to Landon's proposal. Rafael's wide eyes held just as much nervous anxiety as her's.
"Gross," said Izzy, obviously the calmest and most level-headed of the four of them. "You're like...twelve. Pretty sure that would be illegal."
"We're fourteen, actually," Landon quickly corrected, as if hoping it would make a difference.
Rafael jostled his elbow against Landon's. "Stop being weird."
"What?" Landon stammered, his embarrassment growing. "I-I'm not being weird, I'm just asking if...y'know, if she wanted to...I mean, not that we have to, but...if that was her plan, I would...I mean..."
Izzy rolled her eyes. Landon wasn't the first boy to propose she make out with him and she was sure he wouldn't be the last. She was beautiful. She knew it and she was sure no one would deny it. She had silky black curls that were almost effortless to manage and surprisingly easy to straighten if she wanted; her lips were as plump as any of the women that graced the covers of current magazines, with the added benefit of being free of charge; and she had enough fat in the right places to make most boys weak in the knees and most girls hate her.
But, her bad reputation mixed with her laisĀ·sez-faire attitude often lead people to the assumption that she was always DTF, or in Landon's case, DTK. Which was simply not true. It had gotten worse over the past few months. She saw the way strangers followed her longingly with their gaze as she walked through the Quarter and she heard the elders whisper that she was 'fast' just because she'd broken more hearts before she was sixteen than most people did in a lifetime.
But she didn't want to hate Landon for thinking the same thing everyone thought of her. He was just an idiot kid. He'd probably never even kissed a girl before and thought he was going to make a significant memory down by the lake with the pretty, hot, older chick in the leather jacket.
"Hate to burst your bubble, kid," Izzy sighed. "But you're not really my type. And, even if you were, no girl would make out with you if you just...awkwardly stammer around like that. It makes you seem a little...what's a polite way of saying this?" Izzy cocked her head to the side as if actually contemplating a reply when really she knew exactly what she was going to say. "Desperate."
The room was silent for the longest, most uncomfortable moments Hope had ever experienced.
And then a soft, snorting laugh came from the doorway.
All eyes shot across the room to Finn and the boy immediately went silent.
Her eyes narrowing in anger, Hope bit, "What do you want?"
Finn's nose flared in irritation of the girl's curt remark.
"Elijah sent me to fetch Izzy," he answered. Turning his sight to Izzy, he was surprised to see that her glare was less menacing than Hope's. "He wants your help with brunch."
There was a brief spark of joy in Izzy's eyes that was quickly overshadowed by Hope's sharp bite. "Okay, she heard you." Hope shooed Finn away with a wave of her fingers. "Go away now, dog."
"Don't call me a dog," Finn bit.
"You're the one fetching us," Sebastian mocked. "You called yourself a dog."
Finn opened his mouth to bite a spiteful reply but then he noticed Izzy moving across the room.
"Leave him alone," said Izzy, annoyance dripping from every word. "God, you're such brats."
Hope's blanched with shame. She wanted to call behind Izzy that she wasn't a brat but she knew that would make her seem more childish.
Finn hurried out behind Izzy before Hope could take her frustration out on him.
"So now she likes Finn?" Sebastian muttered.
"No, I think she's still mad that I told mom she left the compound."
From the corner of her eye, Hope spotted Rafael jabbing a sharp elbow into Landon's side. Curious about what the two were mumbling about, she focused her supernatural hearing on them.
"I can't believe you thought you were about to make out with her."
"She's hot. I had to give it a shot."
Rafael nodded and Hope could tell that he was thinking about Izzy. "Yeah, she is savage. Maybe I should-"
Rafael jumped as Hope flopped down on the sofa next to him. "It won't work," the girl said calmly attempting to ease herself into their conversation. "She doesn't like boys."
"Oh." Rafael gave a resigned shrug. "Oh well. What's that thing old folks say. 'There's plenty of fish in the sea'."
Hope wanted to say she was one of the fish that liked boys but fear of rejection silenced her.
-M-
Kol and Marcel took each suitcase to their respective rooms, stopping finally at the room Marcel was to share with Rebekah.
As Marcel began to unload his suitcase, a chime sounded from Kol's pocket, bringing a smile to his old friend's face.
"That's Davina," Kol stated proudly fishing his phone from his pocket. "Gave her a special tone."
"How cute," Marcel sarcastically grumbled as he dropped a stack of white t-shirts into his dresser.
Turning back to Kol, he watched the smile slowly fade from his face as he read the message.
"Everything okay?" Marcel asked, barely hiding the concern in his voice.
"They're having a party," Kol spit. "Tonight. And I'm only now hearing of it."
"What?" Marcel barked, quickly fishing his phone from his pocket. He had exactly zero messages from Davina or Josh.
"Exactly," Kol continued. "Here I am, in the middle of bloody nowhere, attempting to prove my maturity to my brothers, and my girl is off in the best city in the world, throwing a party without me."
"The city has been compromised," Marcel harshly reminded him.
Kol shrugged and gave a dismissive wave of his hand. "I've fought some of the filth that managed to sneak their way in while the barrier was down. Davina could take on the lot of them with one hand. The true problem here is that I, Kol Mikaelson - the life of any party, am missing what I'm sure will be the most raucous party of the year. And you wanna know why I know it will be so madcap? Because my arsehole brothers will not be there to stop it."
"They won't have to," Marcel unlocked his phone and started searching through his recent call list. "Because I'm going to put a stop to it right now."
As Marcel lifted his thumb to dial Davina's number, a hand covered the face of his phone.
He cut his eyes up at Kol.
"Mate, I know you're jealous but don't be a wet blanket about it."
"I'm not jealous," Marcel growled. "We are here right not because we don't know what sort of monsters snuck their way into the city. I only agreed to let her stay at Josh's because I assumed she was going to stay under the radar while we were gone. A wild house party is not under the radar. What if an older vampire snuck its way in. Or a rogue wolf. Or something worse."
Marcel gave his phone at tug, attempting to pull it from Kol's hold, but his friend kept a firm grip on it.
"She'll be fine," Kol insisted almost pleadingly. "Josh is there. He's the most cautious man I know. If he didn't think it would be safe, he would've called you by now."
Attempting to free his phone from Kol's grip, and failing, Marcel growled, "I can't be sure until I talk to one of them."
Pulling the phone completely from Marcel's hand and holding it out of his reach, Kol sighed, "I thought I was confiding in you as a friend, not as Davina's father."
"Well, you were wrong," Marcel barked, his hands clenched at his side in tight fists, irritated at the older vampire's game of keep away. "I'm always her father. Give me my phone, Kol."
"No," Kol said politely. "Because you're being unreasonable."
The word 'unreasonable' hit MArcel like a shovel. "Give me my phone." He said each word with such fierceness, Kol almost considered. "Now."
"You want it?" Kol brought his hand slowly back down between them. "Fine. Here."
As MArcel reached for the phone, Kol suddenly moved with such vampiric speed, Marcel didn't even see it coming as he snapped the phone in half.
"Oops." Kol dropped the remnants of the phone at their feet.
-M-
Oliver muttered and squirmed in Rebekah's arms as she carried him into the dining room for brunch. The boy was still tired and a bit irritable at being woken but Rebekah knew that Marcel was right about letting the boy sleep too long. With everything happening in the city, she knew there was still a chance that some powerful being would appear and Klaus would have her and Kol back out patrolling the streets 'til sunrise, leaving Marcel to stay up all night with a temperamental toddler.
Izzy and Elijah were already in the kitchen setting the table when Rebekah came in. Klaus's figure could be seen just outside the dining room window as he chopped wood for the fireplace.
Oliver whined as Rebekah moved his resting head from her shoulder and sat him down in his chair. Elijah paused in the middle of setting down a dish to glare at Rebekah, shooting her a silent warning.
Rebekah blushed but ignored his glare as she sat beside Oliver.
"Is the food ready," she asked, brushing a stray curl from Oliver's forehead.
"Nearly," Elijah answered. "Just a few more minutes for the biscuits."
Staring into Oliver's sleepy brown eyes, Rebekah was about to ask if the boy wanted strawberry jam on his biscuit when she heard the distinct sound of a bone breaking in half followed by an ear-piercing screech.
All three Originals sped to the living room in an instant, not sure where in the huge cabin the sound came from exactly.
"Hope," Klaus called out, fearing he'd made a mistake by leaving his daughter alone with the strange boys after all.
Hope hurried out of the library. She'd heard the scream and bone break just as well as the rest of her family so she knew exactly what was going through her father's mind.
"I'm fine, daddy," she reassured him.
Satisfied with seeing his daughter in one piece, Klaus turned to the stairway and yelled, "Marcel!"
No answer came.
The silence was all Klaus needed.
He sped up the staircase followed closely by Elijah and Rebekah until he found Marcel pinned beneath Kol on the bedroom floor. One of Kol's hands flopped limply at his side as he wrapped the other one around Marcel's neck.
Before Klaus could react, Elijah sped past him and grabbed Kol by the collar, slamming his back against the wall.
Klaus hurried to Marcel, lifting him off the ground as he prodded his body in search of broken bones. The blood on Marcel's shirt stemming from his split bottom lip didn't help to ease Klaus's worries.
"Are you alright?"
Marcel shrugged as he wiped the trickle of blood from his chin, his icy glare focused on Kol. Klaus pinched his son's chin between his fingers and forced him to look away from Kol.
"What the hell happened?"
Marcel prepared to shrug against but the intense look on his father's face warned him that anything other than a verbal answer would be met with a fiery sting.
His gaze dropped shamefully to the floor. "We...had a disagreement."
"What sort of disagreement?"
"I disagreed with him breaking my arm," Kol barked.
Marcel immediately retaliated, "You broke my phone!"
"Enough!" Elijah snapped, silencing both young vampires before another brawl could break out.
He took a deep breath to calm himself as he turned to Rebekah still standing in the doorway, surprised at the situation but not at all shocked.
"Rebekah, can you finish brunch with the children without us?"
She hesitated. She knew whatever the reason for the fight was, it was Kol's fault and she was afraid her lover's nobility and his steadily growing love for Kol would lead him into taking the fall in order to keep her brother out of trouble. The thought sickened her.
But then, she heard a tiny voice coming from the dining room. "Mommy?" She could hear the confusion on Oliver's voice. He had no idea why she and Elijah vamped out of the room so quickly without a word to him or Izzy. She was sure they were both worried and she had to be the one to go calm them down.
"Sure," she answered despondently.
Marcel's eyes drifted slowly over to her, catching just a glimpse of her doleful eyes.
Kol recoiled in pain as Elijah reached for his broken har.
"Let me set it," Elijah said calmly. "It'll heal faster."
Kol bit his lip and turned his head away as he allowed Elijah to set his broken arm. He stayed silent even though the pain of having it set was almost as bad as the break, but he didn't want to give Marcel the satisfaction of hearing him scream twice.
"There," Elijah sighed. "Now. Which one of you wants to explain what happened."
Kol and Marcel made eye contact. As angry as they were with each other, they knew they couldn't tell Klaus or Elijah about Davina's party or they would for sure shut it down...perhaps in the worst way possible.
Klaus clasped Marcel's chin in his fingers and stared into his eyes with enough intensity to remind Marcel how easy it would be to compel him if he wanted. But he refrained. He wanted to give his on at least one chance to tell him the truth before he forced him into honesty.
"Explain what happened. Right now."
Resigningly closing his eyes, Marcel said, "I texted Tyler again."
Klaus's hold became a sharp pinch.
"You did what?" he growled.
"I texted Tyler," Marcel repeated, slowly opening his eyes and focusing them down on the floor, steeling himself from looking at Klaus so that his father wouldn't see the dishonesty in his eyes and know he was lying. "I wanted to know if he'd heard anything from those old bastards again. Y'know, in case any of them came back to the city while the barrier was down. Kol found out and...lost his damn mind," Marcel cut his eyes over at Kol. "And broke my phone. And then..."
"And then you overreacted and broke my arm," Kol finished with a bite.
"An overreaction would've been me cracking your fucking skull."
"That's enough of that," Elijah interjected, sauntering between the two of them like an overworked referee. "I gave you that phone back because I thought you might need it if things took a turn for the worst while we were out here. But perhaps my impetuous little brother was right in this case. I should've broken your phone the first time we found you colluding with our enemies."
Quickly turning back to Klaus, Marcel said, "It wasn't colluding with Tyler. I was just...thinking about our family, Klaus. I swear."
Klaus stared into Marcel's eyes and couldn't find an ounce of deceit in them.
"I'm going to let your broken phone serve as punishment for now," Klaus said sternly. Then, firmly cupping the back of Marcel's neck, he said, "But I want to see you before you turn in tonight. Do you understand me?"
Marcel's jaw tightened as he nodded his understanding.
As Klaus released his neck, Marcel glared over at Kol. The Wily-Original held no sense of mischief in his eyes as he stared back. In fact, to Marcel's surprise, his old friend seemed angry at him for doing the same thing he'd always done for him for over a century - protecting him from his brother's rage.
Kol didn't say a word to him as the four of them made their way to their way to the dining room. He sat between Elijah and Finn in silence, never making eye contact with Marcel. The fact that his friend could sit mere inches away from Finn, his most hated brother, and not make even one snide remark only confirmed Marcel's theory that something was wrong.
After brunch, he caught Kol in the back foyer on his way out to the jacuzzi and stopped him far from any prying ears.
"What the hell is your problem," he growled lowly. "You're sulking around here like you're the one...meeting Klaus tonight."
Kol simply shrugged Marcel's hand off his shoulder and said, "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Keep playing with me and I'll break your other arm."
Kol scowled as he turned back to Marcel. "You got the jump on me earlier because I didn't expect you to be so brazen. It won't happen a second time."
Marcel took a threatening step closer to Kol. "Wanna bet."
His jaw tightening, Kol growled, "I'm trying to turn over a new leaf and your arrogance is making it very hard, Marcellus."
Irritated at the weaponization of his name, Marcel shoved Kol and growled, "Then tell me what the hell is your problem."
"You really want to know?" Kol closed the distance between the two of them in an instance. "You lied to them," he said in a harsh whisper. "And threw yourself to the wolves on my behalf. Again!"
"So? Thought you'd be glad to get from under their radar."
"How am I supposed to prove to my brothers that I'm mature enough to teach at the damn school if I can't even take accountability for a fight that I initiated."
"Would you rather I tell them the truth? And put Davina in the middle of this?"
"No. But you could've at least made me the subject of Klaus's wrath tonight."
"Fine! Next time I will."
"Good! But this new, healthy personality I'm trying on won't let me rest easy knowing that you're gonna get thrashed on my behalf so at some point today...I'm gonna have to figure out a way to get you out of that situation and put myself in it without anyone finding out about Davina's party."
"And how do you expect to do that?"
Kol spun around on his heels, headed back to the jacuzzi. "I haven't the foggiest. But I've got until your bedtime to figure it out."
Marcel let out a heavy sigh and then followed his friend outside, deciding to help his friend in his crusade towards redemption. If only to save his own behind.
They were both so focused on their own problems, neither of them sensed the boy sitting in the corner of the foyer with a book in his hand, listening to everything they said. Yet Finn found their little predicament especially interesting.
Also, I started rewatching Legacies again and decided to add a few more characters to the list of Legacies characters I'm bringing to New Orleans. I updated it on the Informative AN 6 for future reference. The new characters are Penelope, Emma, and Alyssa. I also made Bonnie a little older because my math was wrong when I first aged her. I might bring Dorian in later, after the time jump, but idk. I gotta see where he fits into the plot.
