Sinners and Saints
Chapter 6
Giselle
"I come bearing coffee!" Cami said happily as she offered me a warm coffee cup.
"My hero!" I declared dramatically.
"Yeah, well, you are just lucky you have an easy coffee order."
"What can I say? I love my coffee black!"
"You are so weird. It's disgusting."
My phone began to ring. I reached into my purse to fetch it.
"Hello?"
"Hello, love! What are you up to today?"
"I am actually out getting coffee with Cami."
"Sounds delightful. I call with in invitation for you and Camille."
"You do? What kind of invitation?" I asked curiously.
"Freya, has requested we do a proper dinner this evening... a dinner party if you will. What big sister wants, she gets! So what'll it be? Can we count you in?" he asked.
"You can count us in."
"Perfect. We'll see you around 8 then."
"We'll see you then, Nik."
I hung up.
"Nik? You mean Niklaus?" Cami asked curiously.
"The one and only. We are invited over to the Mikaelson's for dinner tonight, so wear something pretty!"
"You are getting very chummy with the Mikaelson's very quickly," she observed.
"Well besides you, they are the only people I know here!" I said laughing.
"Fair enough. Can you just be careful?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you see being around their family...you grow to care about them. Inevitably you'll get involved in their 'activities' and then your life is in danger more times than you can count. We're only human, we can get hurt, Giselle." I debated telling her the truth about me being a witch at that moment but just couldn't form the words.
"I'll be careful, Cam, I promise! Besides, if you can handle it, so can I!"
"We're both so going to get murdered," she joked.
"So, so murdered," I giggled.
"So, our impending doom aside, what else is new?"
"Not too much...I was over at the Mikealson's again last night. Hayley is such a bitch!"
"She can be a little much."
"Can I ask what her freaking deal is?" I asked carefully.
"Well why the curiosity?" Cami asked with a sly smile.
"She showed up to the compound up last night and was incredibly rude to me. I was kind of wondering exactly what her problem was with me. I seriously hadn't even uttered a single word to her ever."
"What were you doing when she saw you guys?"
"Well it was just a bunch of us drinking..."
"As in?"
"As in Marcel, Elijah, Nik, and myself. That's all. Well, Elijah and I were dancing a bit too..."
"Ahhh. That makes sense now," she said shaking her head.
"What?"
"Hayley may have reproduced with Niklaus but he isn't the Mikaelson brother that she fell for. She loves Elijah. When she was pregnant with Hope, she moved in with them all so they could protect her and the baby. Elijah in particular was very invested in the idea of the family's newest addition being a new start for all of them. With his compassion and emotional support, he really got her through her pregnancy. After Hope was born, they sent her away for her safety. Being away from her daughter really destroyed her. She pushed everybody away, including Elijah. They both cared about each other a lot but hadn't really ever acted on it."
"Why didn't they get together?"
"They kind of were, for a weekend. It couldn't last though. Hayley decided to marry Jackson, another werewolf in order to help preserve their packs and species. So she did her duty and got married. Elijah, being a man of honor, didn't stop the wedding."
"So the grumpy hybrid was shooting daggers at me because she's still in love with Elijah...interesting," I mused.
"Please, don't press the issue with her. Hayley has a short fuse and is dangerous. I don't want anything to happen to you."
"Don't worry, Cam. I'll be nice," I promised.
Night fell and I got dressed for dinner. I'd purchased the little red dress months ago and had yet to have an occasion to wear it. It was quite a showstopper, although I might be a little biased in the matter. Cami hadn't wanted to get ready together which I found disappointing. I'd spent many years wishing we had grown up together more so that we'd have those moments getting ready for silly things like parties and school dances. Maybe it was silly to think she might want to get ready together now. We were adults after all. I adjusted my dress and put on a layer of lipstick. I was ready.
I headed out into the slightly cool New Orleans night. I had a smile on my face as I traveled the short distance. Never in a million years did I think that returning to the Quarter would bring me so much happiness. That feeling only grew as I walked up the sidewalk to the Mikaelson compound, bottle of wine in hand. As a rule, I never showed up to a party empty handed. I could hear laughter rolling out as I neared. I headed into the courtyard almost nervously. Niklaus was the first to notice my presence. A smile crossed his lips and he headed towards me.
"Giselle, love, you look positively ravishing," he said sweetly.
"Thank you, Nik. You sure clean up nice," I replied. He grinned and extended his arm to me like a gentleman. I linked my arm through his and he led me over to the rest of the group over by the bar. I took a quick survey of the people are me: Marcel, Niklaus, Elijah, Cami...then Hayley came around the corner with a handsome man, who I presumed was her husband.
"Giselle, what a pleasure to see you again!" Elijah cooed.
"Nice to see you as well. Here, I brought wine," I said handing it to him. "I wasn't sure what was on the menu tonight so hopefully it pairs well."
"I wouldn't worry about that...my goodness, this is very nice wine. Are you sure you want to share this with the lot of us?" he said with a wink. It really was a pricey wine but money didn't mean a whole lot to me any more. The Mikealson's seemed to appreciate the finer things, a fact we seemed to have in common.
"I'm positive."
"You're too kind."
"Dinner is served!" A woman's voice announced. If I was a gambling woman, I'd put my money on the fact that she was Freya Mikealson, the oldest and only non-vampire of the Mikaelson clan. We all began to saunter over to the large and beautifully set table. Tiny little, white name cards adorned each plate, assigning our seats. While Freya sat at one head of the table, my card put me in the opposite one. Nik sat on my right, Elijah on my left.
"Hmm, looks like I've got the best seat in the house!" I joked, putting one hand on each of their arms. Both of the brothers laughed.
"I can assure you that we are the lucky ones," Nik said genuinely.
"Oh Jesus Christ," I heard Hayley say in a huff under her breath.
"Is something the matter, Hayley?" Cami asked softly.
"I just don't that Blondie over there, belongs here. Klaus' flavor of the week bimbos aren't usually invited to family events around here."
"Hayley-" Elijah began. I put my hand on his.
"I've got this, Elijah, thank you. Hayley, I can assure you that I am no bimbo. It is indeed possible for people to be attractive and intelligent at the same time. I'll have you know, I just received my masters degree in Chemistry in which I graduated with honors. I speak three languages, and at the age of 24 am a self made millionaire. I'm very educated so I don't appreciate the derogatory labels. Evidently, my presence here seems to upset you and to be frank, I don't care. I am an invited guest, just like everybody else here," I said carefully. Hayley narrowed her eyes in anger.
"Please excuse me, everybody. I'm going to go check on my daughter," She said quietly as she got up and headed upstairs. Jackson, shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He shot me a very apologetic look. I looked over at Cami who gave me a subtle thumbs up. I sighed as a server began pouring wine into all of our glasses.
"Can I just say something before we eat? I asked politely. Freya smiled at me.
"Yes, of course, Giselle. The floor is all yours."
"I just wanted to say thank you to you all. Freya, thank you for inviting me tonight and throwing this dinner. It smells fantastic. To the rest of you, this past week, you all have accepted me into your lives without question and I really appreciate it. I haven't felt like I had a home in a long time and you all have made my transition back to my hometown amazing. So...thanks."
"It's our pleasure, G," Nik said speaking for everybody as dinner began to be brought out. Hayley returned to the group.
"So, Giselle, what do you do for a living?" Freya asked curiously.
"I am a pharmacologist...I work in the pharmaceutical industry on a freelance basis. It's a very um..lucrative industry," I admitted.
"She's basically in the most evil of professions in the science industry," Cami joked. We all laughed.
"Well how fitting that you have befriended Klaus, the most evil person on the planet!" Hayley snarked.
"Evil is all relative to your perspective, isn't it?" I asked with a grin.
"I agree. One's stance will be determined by their perspective. An act that is evil to one person is a godsend to another. Lots of grey area," Elijah said calmly. He was trying hard to redirect the conversation as to not allow Hayley to ruin the evening.
"Evil is evil. Didn't Klaus murder your Uncle...Kieran, wasn't it?" she asked rudely. Cami's eyes grew wide in horror. I took a deep breath in an attempt to keep my cool. The lights flickered for a mere second.
"Don't Hayley," Nik warned with a seething anger brewing in his voice.
"What? It's not a secret that the big, bad, Original Hybrid murdered him," she replied with a twisted smile. Nik made eye contact with me for a brief second before looking away sadly.
"Babe, ease up," Jackson urged with a whisper.
"No, its something that should be acknowledged! Giselle should know what a monster she is associating with. She should know that her beloved uncle had the life taken from him in Klaus' hands!"
"It was a mercy killing!" Cami spat, a tear running down her cheek.
"Right. 'Mercy!'. He took your hexed uncle and turned him into a monster. Then he broke his neck and put a stake through his heart. Quite a showing of mercy!"
"Enough!" Elijah yelled abruptly. Everybody froze because he was known for his composure. "Hayley, that is enough!"
"You've got two choices: shut your mouth and enjoy dinner or go home," Nik growled. Silently, she stood up and left the table. Jackson followed her right on out of the courtyard. I looked over at Cami, whose tear streaked face broke my heart. I always had a hard time watching her cry...
The rest of the meal went rather uneventfully. We changed the subject and after a little while, the mood was lifted back to a better place- with the help of some wine of course. After the food was gone, we continued to drink in the courtyard. Finally, I got some face time with Freya.
"Thank you so much for dinner! I appreciated the invitation."
"Thanks for coming. My brothers kept talk about you and I like Camille a lot. I figured you were somebody I'd like to get to know," she said with a smile.
"If you ever need any time away from all the testosterone and fangs around here, you let me know!"
"That would be nice! I may have waited over one thousand years to finally find my family, but some days I can't wait for some time apart!" She joked.
"We should do a girls day soon! You, me, and Cami! We can go to lunch, shop, go dancing, whatever you want..."
"I would really love that!" Nik made his way over to us.
"Giselle, can borrow you for a moment?" he asked me with a sly smile. I looked over to Freya.
"Go, we'll talk later!" She encouraged.
"Alright, I guess you can borrow me!" I said setting down my glass.
"Come along then," he said walking off. I followed him up the stairs.
"Where are we going?"
"You'll see, love..."
"So mysterious. You aren't going to kill me are you? People know i'm here!" I joked. He laughed heartily.
"I wouldn't think if it! I hate most people, but you I actually happen to enjoy...ah here we are."
"We're here?"
"Yes, there is somebody behind this door that I'd like you to meet." He opened the door, revealing a child's room. I was a little shocked at this sudden exposure to vulnerability. He didn't strike me as a man who opened up easily. Nik walked over to the playpen and picked the little girl up. "Hope, I want you to meet Giselle. Giselle, meet Hope, my daughter."
"She is beautiful," I exclaimed as I got closer to her. She wore a big, goofy grin. "She takes after her mother!"
"I take offense!"
"Oh you know I'm kidding. You are quite a handsome devil!" I conceded. His pout turned into a very playful smile. I grabbed Hope's tiny little hand. I felt a little charge. "Whoa, you are going to have your hands full with this one!"
"And why is that?"
"She has a little magic coming in, I think."
"Witches can tell that sort of thing?"
"Strong ones can. Obviously she's not gotten full blown witch powers yet but they are there. Other witches might sense it. Her possibly immense power might draw enemies to her as she gets a little older. Children can be manipulated," I warned. He looked concerned like any parent would.
"What can I do to stop that?"
"I can cast a spell on an item for her to wear like a necklace or bracelet. It could cloak her magic without binding them. So she could access the magic but it would make it hard for others to see she has them."
"Does that really work?" He asked skeptically.
"Most of the time. I'm wearing one right now," I said shaking the bracelet on my wrist. "Freya is incredibly powerful and hasn't let on about my powers. I don't think she knows."
"I think that would be best to do then. Are you sure you are okay doing this?"
"Nik, it is no problem at all. I'm happy to help. Children should be able to live safe and happy lives without being fodder to adult problems." He pulled me close and gave me a kiss on the temple.
"Thank you."
"Anytime." He turned and set Hope in her crib for bed. He stayed with his back towards me, looking at his daughter.
"Giselle?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm really sorry about Hayley. She was way out of line...she shouldn't have brought up Kieran."
"Nik, it-"
"No, its not okay. She went too far. She knows better than to go there."
"She's trying to stir up trouble. She wants me to hate you guys for the things you've done in the past," I said putting a hand on his shoulder. He turned to face me. His face was grief stricken.
"Kieran was a great man. He deserved so much better than he got in the end. I feel horrible about what I had to do to him. I'm so sorry."
"You did what you thought was best. You did right by Kieran and Cami. I know you did," I said getting teary eyed.
"There are just no words that I can say...to express how guilty I feel."
"Dont feel guilty..."
"Did you know, when you met me that I had done that to your Uncle?" He asked softly.
"Yes, I did."
"And that didn't bother or scare you?"
"No. You know, I spoke to Uncle Kieran after he passed. He died a vampire so he was still on the other side for me to seonce. He told me everything. He had no anger over how he went. He appreciated how much you tried to help him and how much you were there for Cam."
"There is a lot of darkness in me, Giselle."
"I know. I've got a lot in me too. I find solace in the darkness." He smiled.
"We should get back." I nodded and followed him back out to the party.
Thank you all for take the time to read Sinners and Saints! I hope you'll stick with me and keep reading to see what shenanigans Giselle brings forth to The Originals! Comments and feedback are appreciated! This is my first Originals Fanfic so take it easy on me :)
