Eloise lets out a content sigh as she looks on at the children who were running around, screaming elatedly.
It was currently recess and the familiarity of this event grounded her a little, it was nice to do something that she had also done before the Mikaelsons came into her life. It made her able to almost ignore the looming feeling that put her stomach into knots.
Eloise shakes her head to rid herself of her pondering. Tomorrow she would meet with Elijah but until then, she had promised herself this day for her normal routine. Which meant playing with the kids, doing some preparation for tomorrow's classes, cuddle with Bowie and make herself some mediocre dinner.
She had also finally bought herself a bike and has regretfully said her goodbyes to her car, which had served her loyally since moving here to Mystic Falls.
"What are you pondering about? Your wedding vows to Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome?" Alex pokes Eloise's side to gain her attention. She had once again decided to bother her friend during work.
Eloise manages a small smile. She hadn't told Alex about the unstable situation and recent happenings. It wasn't as if she could. Alex simply believed her to be in love. No vampires, no complex family, and no mixed signals from said family.
"No, I am simply-" Eloise stops mid-sentence as she sees a familiar figure looming near the school gate. "You've got to be kidding me." Eloise mutters a sense of panic rises in Eloise's chest, and she quickly looks around, hoping no children would approach the man. Her eyes land on Matthew, who was staring at the clouds with another kid. He had been the reason she had met Elijah in the first place, despite the train wreck of a situation she was in, she was grateful nonetheless.
"Eloise?" Alex's brow furrows when she sees Eloise tense up. She grabs onto Eloise's arm to give her a reassuring squeeze.
"I'll be right back." Eloise forces a smile at her friend before hurriedly striding towards the unwanted visitor.
"You don't seem happy to see me, love." Niklaus grins broadly at the approaching Eloise, she seemed almost agonized upon discovering him.
His gaze travels from her tired face to her clothes. He believed her to be dressed ridiculously formal for dealing with some five-year-olds, but who was he to judge?
"What are you doing here?" Eloise replies rather shortly after catching her breath. Without her permission, her mind goes to Kol, him telling her she was a 'straight to business person'. She liked the idea of being such a person but she simply wasn't. It had taken her an entire day, a lot of caffeine, and all of her courage to finally reach out to Elijah last night.
"Visiting you, of course."
"Fantastic." Eloise wasn't too happy with seeing Niklaus. This was supposed to be her day off, one ordinary day before getting thrown back into the Mikaelson drama.
She also hadn't forgotten his contribution to the drama during the dinner. Eloise, however, was well aware that the man could bite her head off in a second, she decides to take on a kinder tone. "How did you know I wasn't at the high school?"
"I went there and the very kind lady at the desk told me of your whereabouts." Niklaus's smile fades a little. He had a little run-in with Stefan and Alaric, which could be called awkward at best. Both didn't seem too thrilled when Niklaus had casually mentioned he was searching for Eloise.
In the end, Niklaus had felt the need to break Stefan's back for the awfully rude assumptions the vampire made about him and his family regarding their acquaintance with Eloise.
"Why are you visiting, Klaus?" Eloise asks, finally daring to meet Niklaus's eye. She couldn't quite read his expression, it seemed to be a mixture of mischief, mock and something else.
"You don't like me."
Niklaus's statement sounded like a question, and Eloise told herself that the swift crestfallen expression of the hybrid was part of her vivid imagination.
"I didn't say that. But the display of your voyeuristic tendencies when Kol fed on me didn't exactly make a good impression. It was a little creepy." Eloise hesitates, not sure how to feel about having possibly hurt Niklaus's feelings, even if he would never admit that she had.
"Are you always this eloquent?" Niklaus teases, covering up all traces of his own unsureness from a second ago.
"Only when near vampires." Eloise replies smoothly, letting herself lean slightly back against the fence. Despite catching some more hours of sleep this night, she still felt emotionally exhausted by the events that had happened two nights ago. Elijah's texts had stopped after her phone call. She was grateful he gave her the space she requested.
"It's a good thing I'm a hybrid then." Niklaus smiles sincerely at the woman. His smile became more earnest when he saw Eloise's lips form a small smile.
"Miss. Ellie! Is that your boyfriend? Where is the other man?" Jenny runs up to the fence, brightly grinning at Niklaus.
"Jenny, please go to Alex, honey." There was a hint of urgency in Eloise's voice, she hoped dearly that the hybrid hadn't noticed. She lets out a small sigh of relief when Jenny darts off towards Alex.
"I'm somewhat offended you believe me to be capable of killing children in broad daylight." Niklaus deadpans. He had heard Eloise's increased heartbeat and seen the way she stiffened ever so slightly when Jenny approached them. He understood her concern, but it stung nonetheless.
"Sorry. It's just- Elijah was capable of killing his own brother, I don't know what you're capable of." Eloise mumbles bashfully.
"You will find out soon enough." Niklaus hums.
"What can I help you with?" Eloise offers, completely disregarding Niklaus's last comment.
"I just wanted to have a little chat."
"If this is the whole, 'what are your plans with my brother' talk, I think I will skip it." Eloise mumbles, not certain of which brother she was speaking herself.
"No, this is the whole 'don't try to hurt my family' and 'what are your real motives' chat." Niklaus retorts sarcastically.
"Even worse."
"I'm not joking. What are your motives?"
"Rebekah asked me the same thing. I told her I don't have any, which is the truth." Eloise shrugs, internally complimenting herself for her response.
"That can't be it." Niklaus shakes his head. It couldn't be that simple. He had known enough humans to know they always had bigger ambitions, greater plans, and dreams. It was rather foolish of Eloise to try to have him believe she really wanted so little in life.
He is reminded of their meeting in the alley. Niklaus had promised her she would get time to figure out what it is she wanted in her life, he had thought she would have already made up her mind after the almost-death experience. No matter, he would keep to his promise. Eloise would not die by his hand, and she would get to figure out what she truly desired, perhaps he could assist her on this journey.
"Finn told me of your paranoid nature, I see it wasn't a lie." Eloise remarks dryly.
Niklaus's eyes narrow for a second before a grin makes its way to his face again. "You guys talked about me? How complimentary."
"That's not the usual response one gives after hearing they were talked about behind their back." Eloise blinks, the Mikaelsons were quite good at jumping from one topic to the next. Perhaps it was a side effect of being alive for so long. Her head simply hurt at the idea of having to cherish a thousand years of memories.
"All exposure is good exposure." Niklaus shrugs before casually leaning against the gate as well, his shoulder grazing Eloise's.
"I don't believe that's the saying." Eloise deadpans whilst lifting an eyebrow.
"I crossed your mind, that thought alone strokes my ego and is, therefore, good exposure." Niklaus jokes.
"Now I see your connection to Kol." Eloise retorts.
"Don't go insulting me, Ellie." Niklaus takes on an affronted expression.
"It wasn't meant as an insult."
Niklaus looks interestedly at Eloise, she seemed timid but not because of his proximity. He couldn't put his finger on it, but he was certain the girl didn't fear him as much as she should. Strangely enough, he quite liked it. "I'm teasing you, pretty love."
Eloise allows herself to blush at the affectionate term. Almost all the Mikaelsons had made her blush already, she blamed their charm and good looks. Must be nice to be a gorgeous immortal.
"Now, do you need me to threaten you into not trying to harm my family?" Niklaus's tone was slightly mocking, but his expression was grave. If needed, he would give her a fair warning. It didn't matter how much Elijah, Kol, or even he fancied her, he wouldn't let her harm them.
Eloise shakes her head in response.
"Smart girl." Niklaus smiles, satisfied.