New Orleans, 6 years ago
The two brothers staggered arm in arm up the stairs of the compound, Klaus pausing intermittently to bolt out lines from an old Norse tavern song.
"Brother, please. The shrieking street cats are enough of a menace to the city's ears."
Klaus came to a dead stop on the stairs, looking comically insulted, "Are you suggesting, brother, that I cannot hold a tune?"
"Or your drink, it would seem," Elijah replied, though not without a grin.
"Nonsense," Klaus waved his arm, nearly hitting Elijah in the face, "I can drink you under the table any day of the week."
"And yet our current situation might suggest otherwise."
"Our current situation is simply me honoring tradition."
"And what tradition would that be Niklaus," Elijah looped an arm around him and continued walking up the stairs, "the tradition of getting thrown out of every establishment within a ten mile radius?"
Klaus threw back his head in laughter. His tousled curly hair and twinkling eyes gave him an air of almost carefree mischief Elijah had not seen since before they were vampires. He felt a twinge in his chest, knowing what he had to say.
"The tradition, Elijah, is getting hammered with one's best man the night before one's wedding."
"Of course. "
They made it to Klaus' bedroom where he swayed against his sibling, "I can't bloody believe I'm getting married."
"A sentiment shared by us all, I assure you." He put his hands on Klaus shoulders and maneuvered him into a chair.
"Don't be jealous, brother. I am sure you can induce a woman into matrimony if you tried hard enough. Perhaps I can introduce -,"
"No. Thank you, Niklaus." He didn't mean to sound so stern, but his love life was the last thing Elijah wanted to discuss, especially when the reason for him being single was so intimately tied to his brother.
"Suit yourself," Klaus stretched out his legs.
"Besides, there's something I wanted to talk to you about," he took a deep breath and forged ahead, "After you and Bonnie are Bonded I plan to...leave for while."
Klaus was immediately alert, "Leave? Where to? Why?"
Elijah sighed, he was hoping the alcohol and his brother's expansive mood would've eased things. "I have some friends in Barcelona that are long overdue for a visit. This city is safely yours now." Yours and Bonnie's.
"That's absurd," Klaus sat up, expressive blue eyes searching Elijah's. His younger brother had always been that way, ever since they were boys: his heart on his sleeve and a world of entreaty on his face. "We're finally a family, all of us. Why would you leave us now?" Klaus voice almost took on a pleading note, even as it left unsaid what they were both thinking. Why would you leave me now?
Because lingering here, being around her, is a torment I have grown too fond of. Because I need you to believe I am better than this.
Elijah sighed, sitting heavily down on the bed. "This is not personal, Niklaus. I simply need a change of air."
"And the family needs you here, we always have."
His hands tightened on his knees. "That may have been the case once, but you and Bonnie are both strong together. I trust in what you two are building." He paused, "I am less indispensable than you imagine."
Klaus frowned, looking so much like a boy denied his favorite food that Elijah almost laughed, "Don't look so put out, Niklaus."
His brother harrumphed. "If you don't visit regularly I'll fly to Spain myself and ruin your reputation at your favorite bars."
Elijah stood, ruffling his brother's hair affectionately. "Do so and I will fly back to personally set your new studio on fire."
Klaus leaned into the touch, nuzzling Elijah's hand and looking up at him with those impish, almost-innocent eyes.
Moments like this Elijah understood how Bonnie could fall in love with his brother. Even as a human there was something about Klaus that drew people to him, a careless golden kind of aura. Mikael had blighted that, and vampirism had twisted it, but every so often the sun came out from behind the clouds and you couldn't abandon him, not just yet, not forever.
"You'll be back once you realize how much you miss my company," Klaus said with quiet triumph as though reading his mind. His warm breath ghosted over Elijah's hand, "You always do."
Elijah smiled indulgently down at him, running his thumb along Klaus' cheekbone while the latter grinned into his caress, knowing he was right.
New Orleans, 2 years ago
"Either I have been misinformed about the auditory capacities of werewolves or you, William, are determined to wilfully antagonize the Council."
"This Council is a pack of lies, pun intended," William sneered, making Bonnie wish she could set him on fire, "my wolves and I have as much right to hybrid blood as you-,"
"And if my brother were here, you could take that matter up with him," Elijah said evenly.
"How are we sure he is not?"
Bonnie interrupted, "Klaus is gone."
All heads turned to her as her words hung in the air. "We aren't hiding him in the catacombs if that's what you're thinking. But if you wanna search the sewers and pipes don't let me stop you."
William gave her an insolent, calculating kind of look. "That won't be necessary. Besides, we don't need the original hybrid."
Bonnie felt Elijah's hand grasp hers under the table and it was the only thing that prevented her from magically peeling the skin off William's face. "I know you're not referring to my children."
"According to the werewolf laws of this city, their blood-,"
"Those laws no longer apply here," Elijah stated flatly.
"Was that the council's decision? Or yours?"
An uncomfortable stirring rippled around table and Bonnie recognized what William was doing. He was trying to make her and the Mikaelsons look like nepotists and despots so he could sway the council in his favor.
Marcel intervened, "We can't vote on changing laws unless there's a majority," he looked knowingly at the others, then back at William, "and you don't have one."
An ugly look came over the werewolf's face, but he composed himself and rose from the table. "This isn't over."
Elijah stood, facing William squarely, "I think it is."
Bonnie watched the council members disperse with a queasy feeling in her stomach. She hurried upstairs to the playroom where Freya was reading to the twins. As soon as they saw their mother their faces lit up. Bonnie felt her chest clench. Elijah came up behind her, rubbing her shoulder and brushing his lips against her hair. "No harm will come to them, I promise you."
She leaned into him, letting his presence comfort her, but the uneasy feeling refused to settle fully. Klaus had promised her things too, a lifetime ago it seemed. If he were here, William's head would be decorating their dining table at this very moment. She almost laughed at the thought. Every so often she felt his presence, like the phantom ache of a missing limb. She wondered if Elijah felt the same.
New Orleans, Present Day
"I'm going after her," Klaus scanned the rain-soaked forest for any sign of the werewolves they were supposedly hunting.
"She wants some time away," Elijah pointed out, stepping gracefully over a fallen log, "from both of us."
"I suppose you're the expert on her feelings," Klaus didn't bother to keep the sarcasm from his voice.
"I do not wish to quarrel with you, Niklaus."
"Oh by all means, let's avoid a quarrel," Klaus threw up his hands, "not like this is a quarreling matter, we've been in this situation before."
Elijah's composure twitched ever so slightly, "This is different. Bonnie is different."
"She chose me first," Klaus interjected, fishing for a rise out of Elijah. He was tired of feeling shut out by the latter's stoicism. "not you, me: the bastard."
"Which is why I've offered to leave. So you two can be together."
Klaus blinked, taken aback. A memory nagged him, and suddenly it was like a lamp coming alive in a dark room. His arm shot out, stopping Elijah in his tracks. "You left once before, after Bonnie and I were Bonded. Why?"
Elijah sighed, rubbing his temples. He didn't just look tired, he looked worn, like he'd been carrying something heavy uphill for a long time. "Niklaus, I said I don't wish to argue-,"
Klaus shoved him against a tree with a hand on his chest. "I don't give a damn what you want. Answer me."
Elijah simply looked at him, dark eyes open and pleading in a way that almost disarmed Klaus. "I tried to do the right thing," he said, quietly. "I tried, brother."
"You were in love with her all along," Klaus gave a bitter smile, "how very Biblical of you."
"It isn't something I am proud of, Niklaus."
Placing his hands on either side of Elijah, Klaus put his face next to the latter's, "Tell me how it felt, being in the wrong."
"What is the point of this? If you wish to dredge up pieces of the past for your amusement, be my guest, but-"
He made to move but Klaus shoved him back against the tree. "We're not finished, brother."
"Remove your hand, Niklaus," Elijah said coolly. Only Elijah could say his name with that particular inflection of familiarity and command.
"Make me," Klaus challenged. For as long as he could remember he'd craved his brother's attention, but that was just the tip of the iceberg. Elijah was like a mirror he hated looking into and couldn't look away from, a torture so familiar it felt like home.
"I am not doing this," Elijah lowered his voice to a steely tenor that Klaus recognized as a mask his brother only wore when he was particularly perturbed. Good. I'm tired of your armor. I want you to see me, see how I can love Bonnie, how I can be as good as you. See me Elijah. She does.
"Oh I think you are. You don't get to walk away unscathed. Not from this."
Elijah gripped his wrist, steel on steel, and Klaus felt a thrill of triumph. Finally.
"As always, Niklaus, you mistake restraint for coldness. If we all threw our emotions around like you we'd have been dead centuries ago."
Klaus felt his lip curl in a sneer, "And as always you blame me for our family's sins. I, the bastard child, am to carry the weight of every evil deed, every mistake, every terrible choice-,"
"You think you're the only one that's had to carry these burdens?" Elijah shook him off so suddenly Klaus almost stumbled backwards. "As soon as you were free from our parents clutches you did exactly as you pleased, with no thought for any of us. And yet you've always had my protection, and my love, even when you least deserved it!"
Klaus gave a slow, humorless laugh, "That's what all this is about. What you think I deserve. You've always been the arbiter of that, haven't you?"
Elijah ran an exasperated hand through his hair, "Your obtuseness has truly outdone itself this time."
Klaus opened his mouth to respond when he felt a prickle at the base of his scalp.
William Grant stood in front of them surrounded by a pack of twelve or more wolves. "Sorry to intrude, boys. I'm sure you have plenty more to talk about."
Elijah stepped in front of Klaus, buttoning his suit jacket, "Ah, William. I thought I recognized your foul stench."
The smarmy werewolf cracked his neck, "Good to see you too, Mikaelson. You ready to negotiate some hybrid blood?"
Elijah chuckled, "So you're even more foolish than I first imagined. Truly remarkable."
Klaus eyed the pack of upstarts. So these were the wolves trying to mount a coup against the Mikaelson family. He could make swift work of them, but Elijah seemed to have other plans.
"C'mon mate. You can keep the children," William drawled, "why not just hand him over? Have that saucy little witch all to yourself again?"
Klaus saw red. That this derelict son of a bitch would dare to even think about putting Bonnie's name in his mouth-
"Don't, Niklaus," Elijah's hand barred him from tearing into the werewolf's face.
"From what I heard just now," William continued, "she's got both of your cocks on her little leash-,"
Klaus saw a dark-haired blur, then a spray of blood. Elijah stood behind William Grant's headless body, an almost elegant splatter of crimson decorating his blue shirt. There was a thud as the latter's severed head fell to the floor.
A slow grin was spreading across Klaus' face.
"Anyone else?" Elijah asked casually.
Any other pack of wolves would've fled, but Grant had these idiots all riled up. So instead they attacked.
Klaus had to admit, they were a ferocious lot. He almost felt sorry for them, but they'd threatened his family, and there was no other recourse. He pulled out heart after heart, tossing them on the ground like rotting apples. He glanced over at his brother who was handling business with his characteristic brand of ruthless finesse. This was the Elijah he knew and loved, the smoldering embers beneath a calm surface.
"Behind you!" his brother cried out a warning and Klaus moved just in time to avoid the wolf barreling towards him with a wooden stake. He was dead before he hit the ground.
That moment cost Elijah. Klaus saw another desperate wolf fling himself onto Elijah's back, sinking his teeth into the Original's arm.
In a flash, Klaus had the wolf's heart in his hand. The pack lay dead around them.
Elijah staggered to his feet, blood pouring from the poisoned wound on his arm.
The brothers stared at each other, breathing hard.
Elijah didn't say a word, waiting for Klaus with a peculiar look on his face. Klaus realized with shock that his brother half-expected him to deny him his blood, to let him perish right here in these woods.
"I envy you," Elijah blurted, "Always have."
Klaus opened and closed his mouth, stunned.
"You were brave, Niklaus. In a way I never tried to be."
Brave. No one had ever called him that, he'd never even tried the word on for size. Klaus had always seen himself as doing what was necessary to survive, to take for himself those things that others deemed unfit for a bastard hybrid abomination. But brave... the word conjured a tremulous warmth in his chest, a feeling that took him back to the night he and Bonnie were Bonded, when she'd looked up at him with those sweet glowing eyes and promised to be his forever.
"She was the first time it all felt worth it," Klaus heard himself say, "everything I'd done, everything I was. She gave me purpose, more than that she...gave me meaning." He paused and looked at Elijah again.
Elijah gave him a knowing look, "Loving her...it was never a choice."
Their eyes locked in a sense of understanding that had eluded them for centuries before a spasm of pain passed over Elijah's face. Klaus swiftly rolled up the sleeve of his Henley and offered his brother his bleeding wrist.
Elijah grasped his hand and a wicked glint entered his eyes. Before Klaus could think, his brother had him pressed up against a tree, his back to Elijah's chest. Klaus laughed, a sound that quickly turned into something else entirely when he felt his brother's teeth pierce his neck.
Elijah drank the way he did everything else, with precision and powerful determination. He simply took what he wanted; it was a kind of refined and imperturbable control that Klaus only struggled against half-heartedly, something so beautiful it demanded nothing less than surrender. He felt his whole body shudder as Elijah's arm tightened around his waist, not letting him fall, holding him firm, and his brother's thoughts flooded his consciousness just as his blood was flowing over Elijah's tongue.
And you. Loving you was a choice I made too many times to count.
New Orleans, a few months later
Bonnie glanced in the mirror one last time, adjusting the dark-green sequin bordered dress over her hips. Christmas Eve was upon them and truth be told she was somewhat worried about whatever was waiting for her downstairs.
The only sounds that floated upstairs were the faint strains of Silent Night. In other words, it was far too quiet.
There was a knock at the bedroom door and she opened it to find Mirah and Mateo in their matching holiday sweaters.
"Momma, you're taking a long time," Mateo said so simply that Bonnie had to laugh.
"Pretty!" Mirah exclaimed, her round eyes fascinated by the sequins.
Bonnie took their hands and walked towards the stairwell, "Let's see what daddy and pappa are up to. Have they burned down the kitchen yet?"
"No," Mateo skipped along, "chef lady brought a whole a bunch of food. And pappa gave me cookies!"
"Matiiiii! it was a secret," his sister glared at him. Bonnie rolled her eyes, of course Klaus would order food instead of cooking and then try to buy the kids' silence with cookies.
"What's daddy doing?"
"He's making a fire!" Mirah said proudly.
Bonnie came downstairs to find a beautifully decorated dining room. Klaus was laying the table (she rolled her eyes again) while Elijah was proudly surveying the roaring fire in their hearth.
Both brothers looked up as she appeared. Mirah rushed to Elijah's side, exclaiming about roasting marshmellows (Elijah gave Bonnie a look that said "what on earth does she mean" and Bonnie giggled). She picked up Mateo and strolled over to where Klaus was folding napkins.
"Hungry, love?"
"Starving. I assume the caterers used the back door?" she said archly.
Klaus glanced from Mateo to her then back to his son, "I thought we had a deal, mate."
"Stop trying to conspire against me with my own child!"
The hybrid grinned and stole a kiss anyway. Bonnie grumbled (but kissed him back).
During dinner she took a moment to glance around the candle-lit table and her heart grew so full of happiness it almost hurt.
Elijah caught her eye and they shared a knowing look. Involuntarily, her hand strayed to Klaus' ring hanging from a chain of white-gold around her neck.
Later that night
"A plague on Santa and his little minions, may he ride that ridiculous "one horse sleigh" straight to the gates of Hades."
"I take it the kids didn't wanna go to sleep," Bonnie said wryly, getting up from her window chair and putting her book away.
Elijah gave an exaggerated sigh and started unbuttoning his shirt, "And they will most likely wake at the first crack of dawn. Why are we perpetuating this absurd American holiday myth-,"
He turned around and saw her properly.
Bonnie savored the way his eyes trailed up and down her body. She was wearing a luxurious red silk robe that was an early Christmas gift from Klaus. Elijah's lip curled slightly as he took her in and she felt her nipples hardening underneath the bright silk.
"You were saying?" she teased.
There was a whoosh of air and suddenly she was lying on the bed, Elijah's hands on either side of her and the robe falling open across her thighs. "Perhaps" he murmured, kissing her throat, her shoulder, between her breasts, skimming his fingers up her leg, "I need to rethink my opinions of Christmas". Despite her best intentions Bonnie felt herself arching into him.
"Starting the festivities without me? Tsk tsk tsk."
Klaus appeared in the bathroom doorway, naked and dripping wet, using a towel to dry his messy blond hair. He flashed them a dimpled smile, clearly appreciating the view.
Elijah propped himself up on an elbow, "Come now brother, we would never exclude you from Yuletide customs," he said slyly.
Bonnie used Elijah's momentary distraction to slip from his grasp and drag out the boxes and bags from Macy's and Toys R Us she'd hidden under the bed. Ignoring their incredulous looks, she dropped the haul triumphantly atop the covers. "Speaking of Yuletide customs..."
"You've got to be joking," Klaus stared from the boxes to her, "when did you even procure all this?"
"Nevermind that. We have to get these wrapped up and under the tree before the babies wake up in say-," she checked the clock, "- four or five hours."
Both Originals groaned.
"Can't we have some fun first, love" Klaus sidled up to her and traced her hip, "'tis the season of merriment."
Bonnie swatted his hand away and swept to the closet where she unloaded a box of wrapping supplies. Another set of groans followed.
She twirled the sash of her robe flirtatiously, "Can't unwrap this, until we wrap these,"
The brothers exchanged a look, then leaped into action. Klaus was dressed in a flash. Elijah started opening bags.
"Unhand the scissors, Niklaus."
"Over my cold, dead corpse. You lack the artistic skills for this endeavor."
"Perhaps if I artistically hang you above the fireplace-,"
"Less chatting, more wrapping brother-,"
Bonnie stifled a laugh, watching the gifts get wrapped in record time. It was almost too easy.
She knew there would be other fights they'd face, other Williams and Tristan's who'd wish them and their children harm, other forces that would try to tear them apart and from the city they'd claimed as their own. But for the first time since she'd set foot in New Orleans she no longer felt like promises were her only defense against the worst that could happen.
"You are wasting yards of paper-,"
"I am making art."
"Niklaus, you are wrapping children's gifts, not painting the Sistine Chapel."
"Bonnie, love, could you please explain to this dullard that I have a process-,"
"Oh for God's sake-,"
Instead, she had something much more tangible.
Chuckling, Bonnie curled back up in her chair and picked up her book. Maybe next year she'd pay for gift wrapping.
~The End~
A/N: If anyone's interested, my face claim for William is Martin Freeman. I hope y'all had as much fun reading this as I did writing it. This my first ever OT3 fic and I'm so happy I get to share it with the lovely family that is the Bonnie Bennett fandom. Please let me know your thoughts in the reviews! I'm also working on a fanmix for this story that'll be up on Tumblr. Thanks for reading, and season's blessings to you and yours! xoxoxox