C.3: The Witching Hour
There's nothing to say here...except that you guys are extraordinarily amazing! Nothing pleases me more than to see everyone's reviews and to know that you all like it! I can only hope I can keep receiving such excellent feedback as this story progresses.
Also, to address a few things some of you asked of me:
There will definitely be some Elijah/Nik interactions as we go and we will look back on some more tender-hearted moments with Nik and Klaus. Even though Klaus could contend with Satan himself, he's gotta give at some point.
Nik will meet Kol in later chapters. My take on the first season is totally warped compared to how it would have followed as a companion to the original.
I hope everyone can enjoy it!
~Nik~
She wakes a few hours later at Elijah's insistence.
The teenager huffs, opening her eyes as she squints at the morning sun. She slept a few hours after their last rest stop somewhere in Alabama, the car having lulled her to sleep as it had when she was a small child.
She scans the area around her, noting that they are in front of a huge house Elijah has only ever referred to as the Plantation House. She learned stories about the house from Elijah and stayed in it a few times when she was little, though she hardly remembers it. The house is pristine white on the outside and has red, brick steps leading up the porch and to the front door. The sidewalk is the same brick all the way out until the driveway, turning into black pavement.
Then, Nik looks over to Elijah who smiles. "Rest well, Sleeping Beauty?"
"Very well," Nik comments, stretching her body out. She yawns and reaches up to rub her eyes, letting out a long sigh. "You're just too boring to put up with, Elijah."
Elijah hits her arm playfully. "You're not a joy to travel with, either. I heard your dreadful pop music coming through your headphones on the trip down here."
"Adam Levine is better than Bach and Mozart," Nik says in an almost sing-song voice.
"Out of my vehicle," Elijah says teasingly. Nik laughs and clambers out of the car and goes to the back where Elijah had already lifted the trunk. She grabs her bag and hangs it over her shoulder, grabbing Elijah's own bag and the garment bag for his suits.
Elijah meets her, taking his bags and Nik closes the trunk. The duo walks inside and Nik frowns slightly at the heat- another bad thing about these ancient houses. No air conditioning.
Nik looks up at her uncle. "With all of the work you put into this place, you don't have air conditioning?" She looks around the house, noting that most everything is covered in a thick layer of dust.
"It keeps up with the integrity of the home," Elijah says. "You know, hundreds of years ago, we had no such thing as air conditioning. We had to tolerate the heat and you can imagine how unbearable it was here in New Orleans."
Nik makes a face. She'd hate to have lived without modern technology- especially indoor plumbing and electricity. "It's sweltering outside. I could not imagine corsets and long sleeves and waist coats… It seems absolutely miserable."
"Right you are," Elijah says, motioning to the stairs. "Now, let's find our rooms so we can get settled. Then, should you want, we can go out for breakfast. Do you remember the restaurant in the Quarter that prepares crêpes?"
"The one where I doused myself in chocolate syrup from my crêpe?"
"That's the one," Elijah laughs, following behind Nik as she pads towards the stairs.
Nik takes the lead up the staircase. She recalls running up and down them as a little girl- and she remembers Elijah scolding her for doing that very thing. At the top, she looks over the several rooms in the house. Her hazy memory leads her down the hall to the very end, to the last room on the left. She opens the door and takes in the sight- a large, four poster bed sits against the farthest wall, positioned in the middle. It has lavender bed sheets and pillows to match. The curtains are open, letting light into the room.
Elijah steps into the room behind Nik. His brown eyes scan the room and he smiles fondly. "When you were little, this room was so big in comparison to you. I feared I'd lose you in here- not that anything has changed. You would play in here for hours."
"I remember I had a doll house and a crib for my toys," Nik replies, smiling softly.
"How things change… I wish you were small again," Elijah says, his eyes seeming to fade years back when Nik was small and relied on him for everything.
"No, you don't. I was a tiny, controlling tyrant," Nik laughs, smiling up at her uncle.
"You were little. You were hardly demanding," Elijah says, nudging Nik teasingly. "Now, get settled. Freshen up after so we may go out for breakfast."
Nik nods. "Yes, Elijah." Then, she watches as Elijah leaves the room in search of his own room. Left to her own devices, Nik begins to place her things away and grabs things from her bag of toiletries to wash her face with and to brush her teeth after the trip down.
Going to the in-suite bathroom, Nik tames her blond hair into a braid and stares at herself in the mirror. She thinks back to what her mother looked like- her mother was brown haired and brown eyed and had tan skin. Her brothers and sister was much the same, except a few of them had their father's grey eyes. Then, there was Nik. She was the spitting image of her father with blond hair and eyes like lightning. There was no denying she was Niklaus Mikaelson's daughter.
Some says it's a blessing- they tell her she's beautiful. To Nik, it's a curse. She favors the man who hates her with everything in his being. Some days, she believes she takes after him personality wise during fits of anger usually directed at Klaus himself.
Huffing, Nik washes her face and brushes her teeth after. She walks downstairs after, waiting on her uncle as she looks quietly around the house she faintly remembers.
Nik is in what resembles Elijah's study at home when there's a knock on the open door, making her turn around. Elijah stands, grinning. "Exploring, I take it?"
"Just taking things in," Nik says, eyeing the room. Most of everything is covered in white sheets from years of unuse. There are a few things exposed- small figurines sitting on the desk and a globe is perched on the shelf with a few dust-covered books.
Elijah chuckles. "Well, let's go get you something to eat. Then, the hunt begins."
Nik raises an eyebrow. "Are you sure Klaus prowls around in broad daylight? Night is usually when he's keen to rip people to shreds and bathe city streets in blood."
Elijah rolls his eyes. "Now you really do sound like your father. You are too morbid."
"Truth hurts," Nik chirps, giving her uncle a teasing smile as he gives her a dark look. "I'm only teasing. Don't look at me that way."
"Alright, Trouble- let's get going," Elijah says, smiling widely at Nik. The teenager falls in step beside her uncle and Elijah winds his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close as they walk out of the house.
…
"Elijah, I'm not five."
Nik stares down Elijah who gives her an equally dirty look, sitting quietly on the couch.
Elijah points his finger at her, brows furrowed as he stares. "I won't care when you are fifty. Repeat what I said back to me." Elijah had laid out rules for Nik to follow, and Nik knows to follow them. She has never been in true trouble with Elijah at any point in life. There has obviously been a few scoldings, but Nik never done anything to make Elijah truly angry.
"I am not to leave this house under any circumstances. I am not allow anyone in the house until you yourself return home," Nik echos, sprawling out on the couch. Elijah wants her to stay holed up in the house why he goes about the Quarter on his Klaus-Hunt.
"Thank you," Elijah says. "Behave while I am away. Read your books or you may wander the house, and be sure to go to bed at a decent hour."
Nik smiles. "Yes, Elijah."
Elijah chuckles. He bends over Nik and kisses her head, smoothing her blond curls. "I will see you later, sweet girl. It may be late before I am home- you know how difficult Klaus is."
"Be safe," Nik whispers.
"Always, little one," Elijah says. Then, Nik watches as he stands and starts for the door. After a final goodbye, Nik is left on her own for what she believes will be most of the night.
The first hour, Nik reads her book- a copy of Frankenstein that is much older than herself. She tolerates it for a little while until sitting still becomes unbearable and she begins to wander the house when her second hour rolls around.
She finds herself in the study where she had been earlier. With the light on, she pulls the white sheets from the covered furniture and finds chairs and a chest dated back way beyond her years.
The chest is mahogany and has a lock on the front of it. She vaguely recalls asking Elijah if there was treasure in this very chest when she was eight years old, but the Original brushed it off and called her to play elsewhere.
Drawing one of the old chairs, Nik sits down and looks at the chest. She takes the lock in her hand, wondering where a key could be. Knowing Elijah, they're probably at the bottom of the ocean where no one can find them, Nik thinks. Her uncle is very secretive and doesn't reveal much to Nik of things happening outside of her very secluded life.
So, the teenager closes her eyes a summons forth a small surge of power. She never used magic often- mostly to keep herself entertained when she was bored and used it under Elijah's supervision.
Nik feels a tingle run through her fingers. She feels the lock give and the thirteen year old lets it fall to the floor, opening the chest to see the inside piled high with trinkets and journals.
"Seems Elijah wasn't lying about there being treasure," Nik says aloud, rummaging through the old chest with care. The items in here are undoubtedly old and needed to be handled with care- inside is jewelry that comes in forms of rings and necklaces. There are necklaces that must have belonged to Rebekah and rings with a golden, intricate KM inscribed into the band of the ring that could have belonged to either her uncle, Kol, or her father.
After sifting through the jewelry, Nik begins to look through the journals and finds several belonging to Elijah. They date back centuries and she excitedly reads them, but takes care with what she reads.
"There are things of my past you are better off not knowing, Nikol. Take care in what you look at."
She finds a journal dating back during the 1820s and she skims the first few pages until she finds a page dating September 20, 1824.
So it seems that my brother may have a heart. Niklaus brought home with him a boy, whom he affectionately calls Marcellus- the son of the Governor of Louisiana, whose eldest son my brother has murdered. The boy idolizes Niklaus, incorporating the man's behavior into his own. I can only hope that Marcellus gives Niklaus his heart back...it has been void of love for many years. Perhaps the joy and laughter of a child can spark something softer in my younger brother- kindness and compassion.
Maybe even love.
Nik frowns deeply. Who was Marcellus to this family? The way Elijah spoke of the boy, he was a son. A nephew. A friend. Growing up, Elijah never spoke of anyone named Marcellus and Rebekah did not mention him during her time with with Nik.
Another great mystery of the Mikaelson family, Nik decides as she continues to read on. Aside from the enigma of Marcellus, Nik learns of many more family secrets by way of reading Elijah's journals.
The sky is just beginning to darken as Nik finishes the journal. Her blue hues drift towards the window to see that the sky is slowly turning black from blue, suspending the Quarter into darkness. Then, Nik begins to silently go through the house to turn the lights on, hating to sit in the dark. The darkness has been one of her greatest fears all her life and she still struggles with it, even though she doesn't want to admit it.
As she nears the living room to turn the light on, Nik begins to feel uneasy. The feeling rises in her stomach and spreads through her body. Her hair stands on end and goosebumps rise on her arms. She feels as though she's being watched- as if someone is following her. She's even paranoid to the point of seeing shadows crossing from her peripherals.
Stop scaring yourself, Nik scowls as she reaches to turn the light on. She looks around the room in bated breath as if something might attack her. Releasing a breath of relief, the teen turns around to go back to the study to resume her reading.
Then, something covers her mouth and there's a sharp pain in her head.
The last thing she remembers is darkness.
…
Nik feels someone prodding her gently.
"Hey, kid! Oh, God- you're dead, aren't you? Hey!"
Nik opens her eyes, her vision hazy as she begins to come to. Her head hurts and something sticky costs her face and hair. A low grown escapes her and she hears a sigh of relief from someone she doesn't recognize.
Kneeling over top of her is a young woman- she might be around her Aunt Bex's age. All Nik can make out is brown hair and green eyes staring down at her, the woman's face a mask of worry.
Nik frowns. "What the hell happened?"
"Well, you've been laying here for forty minutes. Those two bitches- I'm sorry, witches- dumped you in here like a sack of potatoes. You're bleeding a little, but not too bad like you were earlier." The woman gives her a sad smile and Nik muster the courtesy to return the gesture. Instead, she sits up and she immediately regrets the action because her stomach falls and she feels sick. "I'm Hayley, by the way."
"Nice to meet you, I guess. I'm Nik," Nik says, her eyes adjusting to the dimness of wherever she has been thrown. Candles are lit, providing a little light to her. "So, where are we? I feel like we're trapped in a serial killer movie."
"It's a graveyard. They've had me stuck in this mausoleum for what feels like an eternity now," Hayley says, looking around the tiny space they've been enclosed in.
Nik snorts inelegantly. "Yep, this definitely sends off serial killer vibes." She massages her aching temples and groans.
Moments later, Nik sees a woman walk through the mausoleum entrance. She has dark skin with dark, curly hair tied back from her eyes with a hair band. She looks to be at least in her forties or fifties judging by her feathers. Nik staggers to her feet, not wishing to look weak in front of her captors.
"You hardly look like a serial killer," Nik says, using her sleeve to dry the blood tricking into her eye. "You're too old be be hauling axes and dead bodies."
The woman gives Nik a pointed look. "I'd keep my mouth shut if I were you, little girl. You have no room to speak out of turn here."
"Instead of all this chit-chat, I implore to know why I am here," Nik retorts, staring the woman down.
"You're here to give Klaus Mikaelson some extra incentive to help my Coven." She gives Nik a twisted smile and Nik frowns. "Hayley over there is pregnant, but Klaus won't care about her or the baby. We figured you might be the leverage we need."
From next to Nik, there's an outburst from Hayley. "You're meaning to tell me that Klaus has another kid? She belongs to him?"
Nik huffs. "It's unfortunate, I know. I'll explain to you later. However, what makes you think my father will do anything to help me or that woman and her baby? He's wished me dead for years."
"Well, he better have a sudden change of heart or you're well on your way to a dirt nap," the elder witch chirps. "I'm Agnes, by the way. Nice to meet you."
Nik grits her teeth. "I'm not in the mood, lady. Wait until my uncle finds you guys. Your coven will be in ruin."
Agnes just grins and begins to exit the mausoleum. "We'll see about that. You'd better get comfortable- you'll be here a while." Then, she's gone and Nik is left shaking in anger, her blood boiling in her veins.
Nik feels a hand on her shoulders and she whirls around to see Hayley staring at her with wide eyes. "Umm..kid- your hands are glowing. And is it normal for your eyes to turn yellow? Hell, what are you?"
Nik looks to Hayley and turns her head towards the around again. She counts in her head silently, willing herself to calm down because she knows that her temper will only make the situation worse.
"I apologize," Nik says. "I take on Klaus' temper, it seems. I'll...I'll answer any question you have to the best of my ability."
"Okay. Just...come over here and sit down so you don't pass out."
With that, Nik lets Hayley walk her back to a small tomb that once held a coffin inside. The two girls sit side by side, falling silent a moment until Hayley breaks the silence.
"You said anything, right?" Hayley asks worriedly.
Nik nods, drawing her knees to her chest. "Anything you want, Hayley."
"Good. Can you tell me a little about Klaus first?"
"I really don't want to, but whatever floats your boat."