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As the swarm if unsired vampires descended upon him to take their revenge, Klaus Mikaelson only had one awful thought: "I won't be able to raise Hope." The words almost brought tears to his eyes. But as the vampires attacked and pain ran through his veins, Klaus forced his eyes to stay dry and his lips sealed. He would give the unsired traitors their revenge, but he would not give them the satisfaction of watching him beg for mercy.

Most of the vampires had brought cursed objects to the fight, weapons meant to bring him as much pain as possible. The wounds those cursed weapons left behind stole his strength slowly–Klaus was sure some of those objects might kill him, if the wounds were left untreated for long enough… He was not sure how much time "long enough" was, but he could tell however long it took for him to die from those wounds, would be a long and so very painful time…

His speech was too short, Klaus realized, far too late. It left too much time for the vampires to have their way with him… Still, Marcel would not kill him. Klaus knew he had talked him out of it… Or at least, he prayed he had…. But even then, Klaus could feel that his siblings' lives were no longer in his hands. Someone or something had saved them before Klaus could do it, before he could redeem himself with his sacrifice… The worst part, however, was that Klaus was so very sure such blessing, salvation, would not be granted to him…

When Marcel stepped forward, with Papa Tunde's blade in his hand, Klaus held his breath. He was sure his destiny was sealed and marked with pain.

Yet, once the swarm of vampires moved back, reading themselves for their final, deadly blow; a familiar presence swept into the fight. At this point, the great Niklaus Mikaelson was on his knees, shivering and grunting, almost choking on his own blood… When Klaus saw the face of someone he believed, and hoped, never to see again. The person who hated Klaus the most and the last person on Hell, Heaven and Earth who would ever want to save Niklaus Mikaelson's life. And yet, there he was. Mikael, the Destroyer, turning vampires inside out to save his bastard son's life.

Just before Marcel carved Papa Tunde's blade into Klaus' heart, Mikael held back his hand. He had killed almost all the vampires who had been stupid enough to stay and fight. He maimed the surviving vampires, leaving the ones who fled for another day, another hunt.

With no one to hold him on his knees, Klaus fell to the ground. The pain and curses in his wounds numbed his senses.

"Don't you dare." Marcel said, moving to stand between Klaus and Mikael. "I won't let you, of all people, be the one to finish him…" he scoffed, his eyes turning red. "I think killing you will be a great prelude to ending him…"

Mikael stood still, holding Marcel's icy gaze. His face was expressionless. With a quick movement, he threw a blue crystal, a sapphire, in Marcel's direction.

"What's this?" Marcel caught the crystal reluctantly, frowning as he glanced at it. "Was this your best weapon? A rock?" he scoffed, still unsure.

"No. This gemstone contains Davina's soul. I put it back together after some effort." He said slowly, watching the violent changes in Marcel's face. "I will bring her back to life, tonight… If you allow my son to go, I shall tell you where to find her when she's back."

Marcel turned the stone in his hand gently, staring at it with wide, tearful eyes. "How can I know you're telling the truth?"

"I suppose… You can't." Mikael sighed softly. "But it might help in your decision if you know this: I mean Niklaus no harm."

"What?" Marcel scoffed, stepping back. "You hate him… That's ridiculous!"

"Let me put it like this then, Marcellus," Mikael said calmly. "I am here to save and protect all my children. Niklaus and Rebekah are both included, of course." With a smile on his lips, he walked slowly, reaching for Klaus, his steps barely noticeable. "To protect my youngest daughter's heart, I shall not harm you. But I will not allow you to hurt my son." He raised his chin, standing just a few feet away from Niklaus before Marcel had even noticed he moved. "Davina's soul was a peace offer…" he smiled, glancing at Klaus, his eyes gleaming with sadness, rage, and a strange determination, fouled by raw love and care. "I had hoped, naively perhaps, you would accept my offer without further troubles… But you should not take my offer as a lack of conviction." he looked back at Marcel now, his tone severe. "I will take my son home with me, no matter what you may say or do, Marcel."

Marcel scoffed, showing his fangs. "I'm not sure if you heard, but I'm not a common vampire anymore…"

"I've heard." Mikael said, smiling kindly. "But I'm afraid your new abilities will not give you much of an advantage against me, young man."

"Do you really wanna bet on it, old man?" Marcel stepped forward, ready to fight.

"Is this your definitive answer, son?" Mikael asked gently, a strange sadness in his voice.

His tone threw Marcel off guard, but he replied, raising his chin and closing his fists.

On the floor, Klaus Mikaelson fought to listen attentively to their conversation. But now, with so much poison, with so many curses acting at once over his body, with so much pain running through his veins, he could barely make out the words.

"Very well." Mikael said, sighing. "I apologize for any hurt I might cause you. I assure you, it'll heal, even if I have to come back and heal it myself. But I will try not to resort to such extreme measures. After all, you are family…"

Those were the last words Klaus heard. He knew Marcel would be enraged. But with his vision blurred, and his mind fluctuating from consciousness and unconsciousness, Niklaus only caught glimpses of their fight. At one point, he was sure the entire ordeal had been a dream, a sweet dream before the awful death awaiting him…

In the next flighting moment of consciousness Klaus' mind could master, he found himself being carried out of the French Compound. Mikael's stern, worried and blood-stained face hovered above him.

"It's alright, my boy." his tender voice rang softly in Klaus's ears. Mikael hugged him close to his chest, like he used to do when Klaus was just a child. "I'll take you home. You're safe now, my son. There is nothing to fear…"

His words confirmed to Klaus that it was all a dream. Yet, he adored it and he wanted to believe it was real… Klaus forced himself to believe. It was foolish. He knew it. But believing Mikael loved him took little effort.

Klaus tried to swallow his tears, but it was no use. He cried on his father's shoulder, sobbing with relief, feeling safe and loved for the first time in a thousand years.

With a quiet shock, Klaus realized the pain of his cursed wounds was quickly vanishing.

"Why?" Klaus muttered weakly, his voice trembling. "Why save me?" his tired eyes stared up at Mikael, the lights of the New Orleans' streets shining behind his father's figure.

"Because, my sweet boy," Mikael said, smiling lovingly, as he gently messed with his son's hair. "You deserve to be happy. You deserved a better father, that's true… But I will make sure you are happy and safe now, my son. I promise you will be happy."

"Thank you…" Klaus whispered, resting his face against his father's chest. He closed his eyes, warm tears dancing on his cheeks as he listened to his father's heart beats.

The next time Klaus opened his eyes, all wounds, all curses, all pain… gone. But he was so exhausted…

As Mikael laid him down on a large mattress, Klaus looked around and found his siblings sleeping peacefully next to him.

"What happen?" he asked weakly, tiredness forcing his eyes shut.

"Rest now, my boy." Mikael said, placing a soft kiss on Klaus' forehead. "I will explain everything once you and your siblings have regained your strength. There will be time for everything. Just rest now, my son…"

"Yes, father…" Klaus whispered, smiling like a child, as darkness took hold of his mind.

In his peaceful dreams, he saw visions… memories of Mikael. The memories he was supposed to forget… All the times Mikael was a good father to him and to his siblings, all the times Mikael saved Klaus from danger…

But Klaus Mikaelson would forget such memories again once he woke up. He knew it. Yet he still hoped… Perhaps Mikael's had the answers to all his questions… Maybe his father could take away all his pain…