Chapter 6: A Change of Perspective

The moment she walked in to Nik's room Alexinia collapsed in his arms, the tears she had been feeling finally breaking through. She was terrified that she was going to lose Jen when she learned everything. Jen the one who had never cared about anything other then her friendship, the woman who didn't care that Alexinia's best friend was an immortal original vampire. Who didn't care that Alexinia had killed before, who knew Alexinia had a darkness in her, and still saw her as her closest friend. The only one she could truly talk to about her confusion with Nik, and now she could potentially lose her forever.

Normally if she had collapsed on Nik in tears he would have demanded to know who he had to kill, but she knew he could smell Jen on her from the hugs, and knew he had come to his own conclusions. He had warned her it would be hard to deal with the curse breaking considering her ties with Jen, and had said if she needed to stay away she could. However there was no way she would have left Nik to deal with this on his own. She had known from the moment they found out Elena was Jen's niece, that there might come a time where she would lose Jen. But she would do everything in her power to make sure she never lost Nik. Even if it meant betraying other people she cared about. No matter how much it hurt her, it would be worse if she didn't have Nik in her life. Sometimes she wondered if the real reason she came back after the final battle was for him.

A growl had her looking up into Nik's glowing eyes, too late she remembered it was the full moon. Holding her tightly to him Nik moved his head closer, and for a brief moment she thought he was going to kiss her. It had been three years since the moon had made him try to do anything. Her eyes fluttering closed Alexinia felt her lips subconsciously pucker waiting for him to lay claim to them. She was too emotionally drained to fight today. So she was shocked when instead of his lips meeting hers they landed on her face his tongue lightly darting out licking her cheek. He continued doing this and when she opened her eyes and saw the drop disappearing on his tongue she realized he was trying to remove all the tears from her face. Even with the moon messing with his mind he still wanted to comfort her.

"Thank you Nik," she whispered bringing her own lips to his cheek. Ignoring how she lingered for a moment, or that her eyes were drawn to his lips. She wasn't going to make a move on her best friend when neither of them were in the right frame of mind to make that decision. Tomorrow things would go back to normal, and hopefully Nik would never realize she had wanted him to kiss her.

Growling softly he moved both of them back to his bed never allowing her out of the shelter of his arms. His soothing growls eventually lulling her into a deep sleep. Knowing he would protect her.

When he woke up the next morning Niklaus could still taste Xinia's tears on his tongue. He hated it when she cried, and knew she would be inconsolable for days if Jenna didn't understand what they had to do, even if his witch would hide her feelings inside like she tended to do. Knowing how deep their friendship ran, he was hopeful for Xinia's sake that Jenna would react that way he thought she would.

No the only way he could guarantee she didn't break down and hide it again was if he was the one to talk to Jenna. With how emotionally drained Xinia was he doubted she would wake up anytime soon. Giving him enough time to talk to the woman even he saw as a friend, even if it was no where near the level of friendship he and Xinia had. And if Jenna proved him wrong, he would have one of his guards escort her away from town until they were done here. To make sure she couldn't rub salt in the wound for his little witch. Even if she took this badly he wouldn't kill her because he knew that what they were doing was terrible, since even if they tried to keep Elena alive they couldn't completely guarantee she would live.

So he would confront Jenna on his own, even though it risked Xinia finding out he had some of his most trusted guards watching her constantly. Guards Xinia didn't know existed, because their sole duty had always been to protect her. Even when she was in the wizarding world away from him. Xinia had saved their lives when she was younger without realizing, so they would always protect her even if he hadn't asked them to. Although their were other reasons as well. Ones that made them want to stay out of her sight as much as possible.

Kissing Xinia lightly on the forehead he rushed to get ready, not wanting her to wake up until he was gone. He knew she might get mad at him for taking on her roll of talking to Jenna. But he would rather her be mad at him then broken even more.

"Bring me to Jenna Sommers, and then immediately come back to your post," he ordered the scarred man. They rarely ever talked to him, and liked disregarding any orders they wished as long as it didn't put Xinia in danger. He put up with it because there was no one else he could trust to protect her, when he couldn't be around. However they had seen how upset she was yesterday, and even if they didn't completely approve of his unorthodox relationship with Xinia they wanted her to be happy. So they would listen for now, even if they didn't like him that much.

With a pop they were gone and he was looking at a familiar house. He had seen pictures of it even if this was his first actual visit. The loud noise from the apparation brought her attention to him quickly. It seemed she was still the strong hunter he had always known she was.

"Niklaus," she greeted him cheerfully not even bothering to close the door behind her as she ran into his arms.

He was happy to see her again. Although he wished it wasn't for such serious matters. Jenna could be quite fun when she wasn't having to play the responsible adult, and the three of them had gotten into a lot of trouble a few years ago. Trouble that wasn't even illegal, but still fun. Honestly she was like an honorary sister to him.

"Hello Jenna, we should go talk elsewhere." He didn't need Elena's protectors thinking he was trying to break their deal. Although it's not like they knew who he was yet. But he was an honorable man, and would do his bests to stay in the terms he and Xinia had laid out. Plus he really didn't need to have this talk around other people.

The look she gave him was calculated, but she darted to the door and closed it. "I'm guessing Ali doesn't know you are here?" She asked him as they started to walk.

"No. She would have had this conversation with you, but I thought it was better if I explain. You know how loyal she is to me, her loyalty to me is stronger then to anyone else, and if it was between me and someone else she will always choose me. Honestly when we met I had no idea what change I brought onto myself by one simple action."

He kept himself vague not wanting to give too much away until they were in a secure location, of which he knew the Sommers family had many. After all this wasn't his first alliance with a hunter of their family. The Sommers had always been the most accepting of hunters, although the main reason they had always left him alone was because they couldn't kill him and wanted to make sure through alliance's he didn't destroy their homes. He wondered what Jenna's ancestors would think of knowing he was actually friends with her, and that he had softened just from meeting one wand wielding witch.

"Ali's always endeared herself to many people that way. Her loyalty isn't something you see in a lot of people now a days. Although I've always seen the pain she hides from everyone else. I know she hasn't told me everything about her past, but the war affected her harshly."

Nik would allow Jenna to believe it was mainly the war that made her the way she was. It would only hurt Jenna to learn of what had almost happened to Xinia as a child. To hear how much Xinia's own family, her blood hated her, it was something Nik never understood. He did everything he could to protect his siblings, even though he knew they also hated him for the lengths he took at times. Yet his own protective nature wouldn't allow him to do anything less.

Soon enough they came across a tree that was the entrance to one of the Sommers family bunkers. It wasn't the first time he had come to this one either. This one had been designed specifically by the Sommers so they could meet with their various supernatural sources to protect their town. The last time he had been here was when he had first started tracking down that traitorous bitch Katerina, right before she slipped through his fingers.

"So what is it Niklaus, and why does Ali think our friendship will be ruined."

Right down to business, it seemed serious Jenna was out to play. "Do you remember when we told you about the curse my mother put on me?"

"The one with the doppelganger?" her eyes widening Jenna looked at him, "am I the doppelganger? Is that why Ali thinks..."

"No, not you. Elena, we don't need to kill her, we only need her blood."

Honestly he hadn't planned this well at all, but he also hadn't thought Jenna would think she was the doppelganger. That had unbalanced him more then he had expected from Jenna, although he didn't dare let it show. No point to let her gloat about it if she allowed him to finish explaining, and didn't decide to not try to run and take her niece far away.

Yet Jenna's face didn't change at all. No disgust, shock, nor anger. "Has Elena agreed to this?"

"Yes."

"Then why would I be mad?"

"We haven't exactly figured out how to keep her alive through the ritual yet Jenna. I need to drain her of blood completely, but I also need her alive, still human at the end. But there is still the chance that we fail and we can't save her."

"Elena knows the consequences?"

"Yes. But she is under the impression this is the only way to keep her loved ones safe, and this town. Honestly if it wasn't for Xinia I would have just taken her, killed her never learning I needed her alive. Xinia found the truth, and is doing everything she can to get Elena through this alive."

"She really has changed you. Whelp I think we're done here. Don't forget to remind Ali that you two are coming over for supper. I need to go, have fun explaining to her you went behind her back to talk to me."

That woman never seized to surprise him. Even if he refused to allow it to show. He at least thought she would get angry having heard that he had been planning to kill her niece. Jenna was a strange one, it seemed her loyalty to him hadn't changed even with this. He had expected more questions, her trying to hurt him, even knowing he could easily overpower her. Not calm acceptance. Perhaps she knew more then she was telling, something that made her accept what he told her easily. Whatever it was he knew Jenna would never betray Xinia. Their friendship ran too deep, and to betray Xinia would be to betray him in her mind because Xinia would never forgive anyone who hurt him.

Sometimes he hated how their relationship was. That she was so loyal to him, but that she couldn't allow herself to see more. It had shocked him how their relationship had changed from when they first met. He had seen some of himself in her, and wanted to protect her. Give her someone who would never leave her side, something he had always wanted, he never thought it would turn around on him so badly. That he would never want her to leave him either. Never had he imagined that he would fall in love with the girl he rescued so many years ago.

AN: Sorry it's been so long. This chapter was eluding me until I added Nik's POV. Hope you enjoyed it. I haven't watched TVD in ages. Life has been difficult, and I've been suffering from Writer's Block a lot because of it.