A.N.: I'm back! After a long-weekend at a vintage festival, I have conditioned the backcombing and pin-curls out of my hair and am happy to say I have a few chapters to treat you to. I have also fallen in love with an orchestra that plays 1920s and '30s music – look up Alex Mendham and his orchestra, they're amazing!


Dangerous Beauty

41

We Are Gathered Here


"Weddings! I love weddings! Drinks all around!"

Giulia watched on, amused, as a vivacious blonde spilled, with a hiccough, out of the limousine, champagne-glass in-hand, channelling Patsy. Pouring out after her, stepping around her as if she wasn't sprawled face first on the driveway, were Vera, Ashlyn, Aljaž and, finally, Chocolat, his pink eyelashes fluttering in teh breeze.

"'Sup, sugar?" he smirked, kissing both cheeks. "Nice digs."

"Keeps Stefan and Damon off the street," Giulia shrugged. "Far too Wuthering Heights for me." They exchanged greetings and pulled weekend bags and champagne garment-boxes from the trunk. "Thank you for coming."

"Please! Any excuse for a road-trip?!" Cara chirped, giving Giulia a loud, wet kiss on her neck. "What up, luscious?"

"Not much, just pining for you," Giulia said smiling. "Do you guys want to come in? I'll show you where you're sleeping; I'm afraid Cara and Vera, you have to share. Ric's parents arrive from Florida first thing Saturday morning, and they're staying here."

"What do they know?" Chocolat asked.

"That their son's in love," Giulia said. "No clue about the supernatural, no idea their son's a quasi-retired vampire-hunter; they already like Jenna on principal because Ric loves her, and she's not Isobel." Chocolat pulled a thoughtful face.

"So where's my blushin' bride?" he asked.

"School; she has a morning class," Giulia said. "I told her you'd be here and to come over to be fitted. But I've got an exam this afternoon…"

"Don't worry, we'll look after her," Chocolat grinned.

"Come on; I'll give you the tour," Giulia said, gesturing everyone inside. She left the front-door open, the house airy but warmer than usual. She got everyone settled, and Ashlyn came in the car with her to Richmond to look around the university while Giulia took her exam. She had an iced tea lemonade waiting for her in the quad, and they discussed Giulia's exam and what she'd been studying; she stepped by the student-union and some of the dorms to find out if there were any parties or socials she didn't know about, a fuster-cluck of vampires in town, she didntw ant anyone lapping up from the local tap, and end-of-semester, post-exam ragers were the perfect diversion.

Giulia had her chores to complete; and while she traipsed around the Grove Hill mall for accessories and shoes with Caroline, Elena and Meredith, Ashlyn spent some time with Elijah at Giulia's house.

Elijah had some things to tell her.

They had a food-court dinner, finalising plans for Friday-afternoon with Jenna's friends, and when Giulia got home, Ashlyn was in bed; Giulia knew she'd been very upset, because Elijah was, much as he tried not to show it. Giulia curled up in his lap on the sofa, and they sat quietly together while he drank a glass of wine, Giulia absently running her fingers through his hair.

Friday was a hectic day for Giulia, and for Jenna, with multiple deadlines and exams; Giulia gave Jenna a ride home, went home and changed, then drove over to the Boarding House. Cars piled around the circular driveway, a rarity, and Giulia followed the balloons around the house to the sweeping lawn that led to the walled-gardens where, tomorrow, Jenna and Ric would tie the knot.

Jenna's friends had organised a surprise bridal-shower. It was Alice in Wonderland-themed, Jenna's favourite book when she was little – with a naughty lingerie-twist. Tipsy afternoon-tea with an array of custom cocktails provided by bartender Kol, salsa lessons provided by Aljaž, and, of course, games – this was Jenna, after all, and continuing the childhood-favourites theme, every table had one of Jenna's favourite games – Clue!, Hungry Hippos, Life, Candyland and Operation, and as a nod to Jenna's post notoriety, they each decorated shot-glasses as take-home gifts, and played a few rounds of bra-pong. They did DIY mani-pedis, Caroline's idea after remembering her and Giulia's time at the spa with fancy foot-soaks and cocktails in vintage tea-cups and petit-fours. They had all coordinated on some gifts, like the date-night jar; and contributing an easy recipe (with their photograph, and a story when they had made the dish) that had been laminated and bound into a book for notoriously unskilled Jenna, with a white serving-platter all of the girls had signed, and several bottles of wine for each anniversary or holiday until their first anniversary.

The only time Jenna stopped grinning was to start crying as she unwrapped her gifts, the Date Night jar, the recipe-book, and a scrapbook Caroline had made with handwritten letters and photographs from Jenna's friends and loved-ones. Giulia had had a beautiful photograph of Ric and Jenna together at the Masquerade made into a jigsaw puzzle, and had everyone they knew sign a piece of the puzzle, with important dates for the couple added to the empty ones.

"So, I have to ask, have you actually been sleeping?" Jenna asked, flushed in the cheeks and beaming, her new-favourite rose-gold dress billowing gently in the breeze. "I know those are your petit-fours and fruit-pastilles and bonbons and chocolates!" Giulia laughed. Everyone had been commenting on the delicious food, the canapés and Kol's unusual, pretty cocktails, the afternoon-tea served on tiered stands.

"Actually, I didn't make them," she said, and pulled an envelope out of her purse. She handed it to Jenna, who blinked; she'd had a whole wedge of cards and gifts that she'd already opened, blushing at some, giggling madly at others, grinning mischievously at a few – the naughty dice and some other toys Giulia had tucked into the bag with her puzzle. Giulia took Jenna's cocktail so she could open the envelope, and pulled out a very elegant card, which Jenna grew quiet reading, her eyes watering.

"Oh," she whispered, looking tearful. She glanced up at Giulia. "That's – so sweet."

"Lovely, isn't he?" she said softly. As a gesture, to apologise for putting her family through all his family's drama, Elijah had spent the last couple days preparing the afternoon tea – roast-beef and horseradish sandwiches, smoked salmon, dill and cream-cheese, cucumber, egg-mayo on homemade bread, petit-fours, homemade fruit-pastilles, chocolates, bonbons, mini-cakes and tarts, scones, homemade jam, cupcakes, the tantalising, temperamental and very popular French macarons. He had made it all, perfectly, delivered it all to the Boarding House for Rose and the others to keep cool until the party, before he was whisked away to Atlantic City.

Somehow, he and Chocolat had wrangled invitations to the night of complete debauchery for which Damon and Stefan had kidnapped Ric – and Jeremy. They had taken the limo Thursday-evening, and by the time all of the bridal-shower guests had gone home and probably removed their makeup and tucked themselves into bed, it still hadn't returned.

But Ric was apparently ready, first thing Saturday-morning, to pick his parents up from Richmond airport, and the soon-to-be-joined Somers-Saltzman clan had breakfast at their favourite diner downtown.

They all had their last-minute chores, but it had been decided early on that their friends were doing this for Ric and Jenna; they shouldn't have to stress out or worry about anything but Jenna fitting into her custom-made dress, and Ric not stepping on her toes during the first dance.


It was a team-effort, getting ready. While Jenna was treated to the works at the Boarding House by Vera, the Gilbert was backup Wedding HQ: Caroline had put herself in charge of doing their hair, determined Elena would not be immortalised in Jenna's wedding photos as the only one who had made no effort whatsoever. Giulia had her makeup done at the mall, and she had one last-minute chore before she headed over to the Boarding House: the cake.

A friend of Miranda Gilbert's since childhood, the owner of Filigree Bakery downtown had done a rush-job on a two-tier cake, decorated simply with sugar-paste blushing gardenias and dried pineapple flowers, and a few dozen cupcakes. As the wedding ceremony wasn't until late-afternoon after lunch, Giulia went to go and pick up the cake with her makeup done and her hair pinned up in curls under a cute teal hair-net for Vera to finish later.

The underside of her watch-face burned against her skin as she waited for Desiree to bring the boxed cake out, and as the little bell over the door tinkled, a warm breeze skittering over her skin and enhancing the scent of freshly-made croissants, she sighed softly to herself.

"La Bella Salvatore," a quiet, accented voice said. "We finally meet."

Giulia turned, staring down Klaus.

As his lips parted and he stared, aghast, at her, taking a hasty step backward in shock, she gave him a bored look, taking in his appearance. Unimpressed.

He had nothing to his eldest brother. Nothing even to Kol, who was attractive in an unconventional way.

Sartorially, Klaus the ever-feared was…a trustafarian. And it took one look to know he thought a lot of himself; he wore his arrogance like armour. Bravado, she thought, remembering the sociopathic coward Klaus was not nearly as self-assured as he put so much effort into making other people believe he was.

He had his plans after the sacrifice.

She had hers.

"That was quite a nasty little trick you pulled," he said softly, smiling at her, seemingly recovered from his shock. But she had seen it, too clearly; he was shocked, almost frightened by her. By her appearance: Elijah was right; Klaus had feared Lucrezia, and he remembered her face, so much so that her appearance set him off-guard.

"No nastier than body-snatching someone without their consent," Giulia said lightly. "Wearing Ric like a suit; don't you have any class?"

"I'm afraid after spending so much time with Elijah, you're bound to find me rather…unsophisticated," Klaus said.

"That's not one of the words I'd use," Giulia mused, giving him a disdainful look. He looked younger than she'd seen in Elijah's memories; it was the short hair. She supposed he was attractive, unconventionally, but there was something about him, the way he was pouting evilly, that reminded her of…monkeys. He couldn't hold a candle to Willem, with whom he shared the same biological parents. The runt of Esther's litter, in so many ways. She had seen all of Elijah's siblings in his memories; Klaus, in her opinion, was the least-attractive. That had to add to his myriad issues.

"And here I wanted us to remain civil."

"You breached all laws of civility weeks ago, when you took John Gilbert; when you took over Ric's body; when you kidnapped Jules and Hayley and made them fight for the right to survive; when you compelled a father of four to kill Matt Donovan."

He looked shocked.

She couldn't reveal too much of what she knew of his plans, but she could tell him enough to unsettle him. She had guessed; she had anticipated every permutation, every back-up plan and contingency. She was counting on what he'd do, too in-tune with what he wanted – and why he needed it. And how he could have deluded himself that this was his solution.

"I think there are some things we need to settle," Klaus said, his expression dangerous.

"You're getting what you want," Giulia said, narrowing her eyes. "There's no need to be a brat about it."

"Let me be perfectly clear," Klaus said softly. "I have waited a thousand years to break this curse. I will do so in whatever fashion I choose."

"Let me be perfectly clear," Giulia sighed lightly, "just because you possessed a teacher doesn't make you Lord Voldemort. Nobody's stopping you from breaking the spell, so enough with the lurking and the spies and threats. Just know that if you act out, I will make you wait."

"I think you underestimate how much I want this curse to be broken."

"Then behave yourself," Giulia said, smiling as Desiree appeared with a smaller cake-box full of cupcakes. "I anticipated just what you'd do to get your own way; the moonstone is my insurance that you'll remain on your best behaviour. Speaking of, you will not ruin this weekend; you will not make contact by any means until the twenty-seventh. I have plans for the summer, I'd rather all this was settled before school breaks up – but I'm not above holding the moonstone for that time, if you decided not to mind me."

Her phone beeped with a text from Chocolat: SOS. Veil AWOL. She tucked her phone into her pocket, thanked Desiree for the cakes, and glared pointedly from Klaus to the door as Desiree lifted the wedding-cake from the counter.

"Oh," Klaus blurted, darting forward looking petulant and scolded – the 'smacked arse face' as Cara would call it, to hold the door open for them.

Giulia didn't look back. Desiree helped her load the cakes into her car, and she drove over to the Boarding House. Chocolat met her in the foyer, and she put Klaus out of her mind. Surprisingly easy to do. He was…more intimidating in reputation than in the flesh; she'd found he pouted like a little boy who'd received a just spanking for misbehaviour, knowing he was in the wrong but throwing his dolly out of the pram just to make a scene and make everyone else look bad.

"I don't know how it happened, the veil an' my backup have gone missin'!" Chocolat said desperately.

"It's okay," Giulia said soothingly. "Help me get these into the larder, and I'll dig something out of the attic. How's Jenna?"

"So relaxed she's almost horizontal," Chocolat chuckled. "Wouldn't know she's gettin' hitched in six hours."

"And Ric?"

"Same," Chocolat smiled. "Cute couple; they're suited to each other."

"You wouldn't happen to know if Damon's finished his speech?" Giulia asked. Chocolat shrugged.

"No idea; get Caroline to chase him. She's a force of nature," Chocolat smiled. "We like her. Sweet girl."

"She is," Giulia smiled. She was glad she could introduce Caroline to Elijah's New York friends. There was something to say about people you surrounded yourself with, and if anything showed Elijah's true character, it was his friends. Caring, generous, eccentric, wonderful people; and other people saw that. Those who knew about the sacrifice got to see Elijah with his friends, his family; they saw him enjoying time with Kol, his brother, with Ashlyn, whom he had raised since infancy. And she was a sweet girl people liked instantly. Anyone who thought he was a villain for using Elena realised he was doing what they would…if it was their siblings, their child in jeopardy. The parents – Liz, Carol, Sheila – recognised there wasn't anything they wouldn't do for their families, either.

Elijah was in that horrifying, heart-breaking position no parent ever wanted to be in; his child had been taken.

There was no excusing the sacrifice; Elijah agreed that kind of magic belonged to a bygone age.

But it wasn't the end, not for Elijah, or Elena. Things would happen – things had to happen – to ensure the next millennium would not repeat the last.

The status quo needed to change.

Klaus couldn't know that lifting Esther's spell was exactly what Giulia wanted.

But not yet.

She climbed up to the attic, where she and Caroline had slowly but surely started going through her pack-rat ancestors' junk, and went to the section she had organised purely for clothes that needed sorting through, most of them needing a little TLC to restore them to their former glory, old wardrobes organised by decade – the 1950s represented the best because of Doll, with some fabulous dresses from the 1920s and a handful of gowns from the Thirties.

One box in particular she homed in on, and carried downstairs. Inside were folds of silk-organza and chiffon.

Her mother's wedding-dress and veil.

According to Damon, Giulia's mother had worn the vintage, long-sleeved, drop-waisted gown from the 1920s made in post-war Florence, made for Gianna's own grandmother. Her veil was an utterly romantic floor-length swathe of diaphanous silk-chiffon. Giulia had the diamond clips her dad had given Gianna on their wedding-day to fasten it in place, antiques his relatives had passed down.

Giulia gently lifted the airy veil, handing it to Jenna.

"My mother wore it on her wedding-day. Her grandmother had it made for her wedding in 1921," Giulia told her.

"Are you sure?" Jenna asked, gasping softly.

"If she knew how much you've looked after me, she'd want you to wear it, too," Giulia said. The veil was the last piece of the puzzle, the final touch. Chocolat was truly gifted, adjusting the veil without cutting it, stitches so tiny that he would pick out after Jenna had her photographs taken so it could go back in the box, once more loved but not ruined. In case Giulia ever wore it. Giulia hadn't known about the dress hidden in the attic, but she had seen the photographs of her parents' wedding in a tiny Florentine church, photographs of her mother looking…breathtakingly stunning, elegant. Timeless. Giulia had never taken the gown out of the box.

More and more, Giulia had been thinking about her mother, a woman whose name she knew, and knew had once existed because Giulia did, but knew nothing about. Who her mother was had died with her father; he'd rarely spoken about her, and it had made his ear so sad and guilty that she was the reason he was so heart-sore that she hadn't liked to hear about her.

Giulia had no mother: but she had motherly figures in her life who tried to keep an eye on her, and for that Giulia knew, Gianna would be thankful. So she wouldn't mind Giulia giving her great-grandmother's veil to Jenna to wear on her wedding-day. Something old

Champagne was poured, photographs were taken, Jenna had her hair and makeup done' she held Miranda's rose-gold charm bracelet Elena had given her, reading the letter Jeremy had written her, and before they knew it, it was time to get dressed.

In Damon's airy bedroom, Jenna finally put on her gown for everyone to see; Chocolat hadn't even let Jenna see herself in a mirror. Mrs Saltzman, who'd fallen in love with Jenna during the day, cried: Giulia shared the kind of smile with Chocolat that his dress, and Jenna in it, deserved. She looked divine.


Caroline Forbes was a more formidable general than any Elijah had ever met. He knew she and Giulia had put a lot of hard-work into making the day what it was, but it was another thing to see them in action. While Giulia performed her duties as bridesmaid, Caroline kept everything they had planned running smoothly. There were to be no surprises; every accident had been planned for. Everyone had their part to play, a don Elijah watched Caroline as he escorted guests to their seats.

By the time every chair had been taken, someone turned on the music, gently filling the warm air fragrant with flowers. The sun was low in the sky, casting a rich golden glow to everything, and the groom appeared with his best-man. Dr Fell – tonight Meredith, in a burgundy dress and lipstick – stood beneath an arbour swaying with honeysuckle.

It was a perfect place for a ceremony, Giulia's walled gardens. Roses of every colour and clematis climbed the old red brick walls, peonies of every colour, more roses filling the flowerbeds, old apple- and fig-trees entwined with flowering clematis and honeysuckle; lupins and foxgloves, dahlias, many pretty, unnameable flowering plants and bushes showed off their petals, unusual purple poppies and gladioli, fragrant herbs, pretty grasses, fruit trees hinting at a large crop of peaches and plums, oranges and limes peeking through delicate flowers. It was perfect. One of Giulia's ancestors had obviously been inspired by English gardens of stately homes, some of the finest in the world, in Elijah's opinion, and Giulia took a lot of enjoyment from them; he knew Rosemary did, and in between her tasks arranging gifts on a table, ensuring guests had signed the guest-book and making sure everything in the gazebo was ready for the food when it arrived, Elijah smiled and watched her pluck a few obstinate weeds and flowers that had gone over, rubbing fresh herbs between her fingers to smell them, plucking a ripe orange for the young daughter of one of Jenna's friends.

There was no bride's side, no groom's side; the only people who had designated seats were Alaric Saltzman's parents. As Jenna's niece and nephew were in the ceremony, everyone else could sit where they wanted; Elijah had claimed the second row aisle-seat, with Ashlyn between him and Kol, and Chocolat making sure Cara behaved at the other end.

Suddenly it was time.

One tiny flower-girl toddled down the aisle, stopping to flirt and have a gurgled chat with someone she knew, before her mother coaxed her to the end, where she promptly upturned her cone of flower-petals with a devilish little sweet grin.

Then it was Giulia, and Elijah barely registered anything after her. The sun split through the trees as she strolled down the aisle, a relaxed bouquet of dahlias and peonies in her hands.

He had rarely seen her in anything but blacks, charcoal, red and purple, she looked divine in them.

In blushing peachy-pink, she looked fresh, feminine, exquisite. A floor-length A-line dress of floaty chiffon, with an artfully-pleated bust that flowed into a single strap over one shoulder and across her back, the colour brought out the flush to her cheeks, highlighting her fair skin and the dramatic contrast to her dark hair, falling to her waist in relaxed curls, a half up 'do braided back and pinned with delicate golden-leaves combs.

The flush to her cheeks, her subtle makeup, the cut and movement of the fabric against her lovely hips, accentuating her tiny waist, her bust high in that dress, her hair curling to her waist, fragrant in the breeze, the sun behind her, hair glinting gold and lava and copper in the sun, the way she was beaming with excitement and joy…

He would remember her like this forever.

Young, beautiful, happy.

She gave him a subtle wink as she passed, playful, foxy, and he sighed and watched her pass, the way the fabric caressed her behind.

His attention was on her even as the bride made her way down the aisle, on her nephew's arm. Chocolat had turned her into a dream. Her gown was a very romantic, relaxed creation of subtle champagne-lace décolleté and long sleeves, and water-coloured chiffon in a hazy pattern of delicate sage-greens and subtle pastel-peach. Her veil flickered in the breeze, glowing around her to the ground, trailing after her, held in place by a delicate laurel of dainty white flowers, her strawberry-blonde hair shining and loosely-curled, her face alight with happiness.

He was there for Giulia, though, and after admiring the bride, his eyes never strayed from her. A rarity, she allowed emotion to show, absorbed by the ceremony, tearful at the personalised vows, her cheeks flushing with delight – and relief – as the tearful Jenna and Ric were finally allowed their first kiss as man and wife.

He had been spending as much time as he could with Ashlyn, trying to tell Kol as much as he could remember, organising things. Kol knew Giulia had two silver-daggers, and was glad she, who was doing everything in her power to help Elijah reunite his family though Kol didn't know it, had them. Kol didn't want to paint a target on his back by taking possession of them: Klaus would want them back, or, the legions of enemies he had created would make a play for them, not realising they would never work.

Chocolat, Vera and Cara wouldn't know until after. They knew better than most the civil warfare of the Original family, and enjoyed their lives, and Elijah's friendship, too much to risk everything by seeking vengeance for him.

They would see him again.

Jenna and Alaric's wedding was a wonderful excuse to dance with Vera and Cara; to laugh and drink with his brother and Chocolat; to enjoy his time with them, give them, especially Ashlyn, some wonderful last memories of him.

But Giulia…

Apart from gorging on ribs, cowboy baked-beans, fresh corn and coleslaw, peaches and cocktails, Giulia never sat down. Aside from Ric and Jenna, she was the first on the dance-floor, and the last to be carried off by Elijah himself. She danced with everyone, and Elijah enjoyed seeing another side to her. She was a natural with children. They flocked to her like moths to a flame, teaching them how to dance, making up games, kissing grazed knees, cuddling on the tree-swing; they loved her. Caroline said it was the same at every party: though the idea of pregnancy and childbirth made her physically sick with dread, comically incapable of understanding the basic human drive to procreate, or think of the process as anything but unnatural, Giulia was gifted with children. He had never seen her with any before, few people did; she was an only-child and had no cousins, and so was Caroline; they weren't yet old enough for their friends to start having babies, but she had a natural, easy way with children. Elijah watched her, and imagined he was seeing how Zachary Salvatore had raised his daughter; as a little equal, treating her with respect, delight, admiration.

He danced with her as often as he could; she was in high-demand! But his gaze strayed to her often enough to know her eyes sought him out, as well…

They had a handful of days left, and fairness dictated she share him with Ashlyn, for all intents and purposes his daughter.

But as guests trickled home, and Ric and Jenna were ushered into a limousine to the pop of a Cristal cork, the music stopped, lights extinguished and he retreated to her bedroom, still magically protected.

They ruined her dress.

It was a night Elijah would never forget, her pretty hair, the flush to her cheeks, her bright eyes and sun-warmed skin, and their mutual understanding…

This was their goodbye.

It was the only way he could say it. How long would it be? A year? Twenty? Two months? They had no way of knowing: this was Giulia's long-con and she would take as much time as she needed, not a second less. Not for anyone; he had her vow on that.

He couldn't put into words everything he was feeling; so he showed her. And he didn't stop until she collapsed beneath him, her legs shaking, tears in her eyes, raw welts clawed over his backside, her heartbeat irregular against his ear as he collapsed above her with a choked, agonised groan.

Too much. Too irreplaceable. He hadn't experienced this in centuries. Who would Giulia be when she woke him? He was excited to find out. To him, it would seem a heartbeat; for her, it may have taken forty years.

He rolled to his side, so as not to crush her, groaning and collapsing, but he dragged her to him, legs still shaking violently, her expression almost pained, eyes wild, and she gasped dawn writhed away as he hooked one trembling thigh over his waist, his hand delving between her thighs; her fingernails bit into his shoulder, she whimpered and gave him a pleading look as he gathered her head into the curve of his elbow, dusting tender kisses all over her face, her lips, his hand slow and soothing as he gentler her, though inside he was still just as emotionally riled as she was physically overwhelmed.

He thrust his fingers gently, until her legs stopped shaking and she was sighing as she gently rolled her hips to meet him, his thumb delicately building an orgasm to gentle her.

"I want you…to remember something," he panted softly, as her hand teased him, she licked her lips and nipped his jaw, bit his earlobe; she mewled, preening and writhing to keep his hand working on her, holding himself back; she needed this. He needed her to hear this. "I'm very excited to meet you, Giulia Salvatore, no matter who you'll be."

She came, one last time, her eyes on his, and sighed, gentler; he drew her to him for a distracted kiss, and drew the covers over them, Giulia draped over him, exactly where he wanted her to be.

They fell asleep, finally, just kissing, curled up in each other's arms.

He could have happily been daggered then and there, no Niklaus, no farce – nothing to ruin waking from this moment, showering away the night and buttoning on a fresh suit to face what the world – and his brother – had in store for him.

He wasn't on borrowed time, yet, but he did have a handful of days left. To spend with Kol, extracting promises that he wouldn't go off the deep end or risk hunting Klaus down; reassuring Ashlyn; discussing business with Chocolat. Enjoying Giulia, soaking up every last second with her that he could.


A.N.: I had to add a little bit – it's a wedding, after all! And, like you all, I'm getting antsy about Giulijah's separation – just remember, Elijah won't feel it.