Chapter Sixteen: Stand By Me

The sounds of screams ripped through the Quarter, which was empty, save for a werewolf and a Hybrid.

Shuddering against the full moon's pull, Hayley stood over Tyler Lockwood, her posture dominant as he knelt on the ground. When he screamed again, the bones in his arm broke, twisting at a grotesque angle.

Tyler's gold and black eyes seemed to beg Hayley to end his pain, but the Alpha merely snarled down at him. "One more!" she yelled.

With a final snap, Tyler's body finished shifting into a large, dark wolf. He shook out his coat, then looked up at Hayley.

Hayley closed her eyes, and let the change come over her. Then she stood next to Tyler, a timber wolf once more.

They both looked up at the moon, which was large and yellow in the sky.

Then the pack emerged, eyes gleaming like coins in the moonlight. They were lead by another dark wolf, whose eyes were trained on the young Hybrid standing next to Hayley.

Tyler glanced at Hayley, his gaze uncertain, almost as if he was waiting for an order.

Hayley inclined her head, silently telling him to go to his uncle. She knew he didn't need to take her orders, and now he didn't need to take Klaus'. After many tries, Tyler had finally broken free from his sire bond.

Hayley lingered back as the young wolf approached his uncle. The two wolves sniffed at each other, clearly unsure of how to handle themselves.

Hayley then looked to her right, where a white wolf stood next to her.

Eve's eyes seemed to gleam with laughter and pride.

Once the moon's pull lost its hold, the entire pack shifted back. Tyler and Mason embraced, and Hayley finally released a breath she figured she had been holding ever since she started her work with Tyler.

"You did good, Hayley," Eve told her, with a small nod.

"I just gave him his free will back," Hayley said, crossing her arms.

"And what are you going to do about Klaus?"

"I asked him if he trusts me, and he said he did. If he truly does, he won't do anything." Hayley rolled her shoulders.

"And if he does?" Eve pressed, arching a pale brow.

"I won't let him take it out on Tyler. He's my responsibility until he's returned to his pack." Hayley didn't miss the look in the older wolf's eyes. "I want him to go home, Eve. This place…" Hayley exhaled, looking around. "Well, it's not very welcoming."

"Perhaps it needs to be… cleansed, so to speak."

"With fire?" Hayley asked mildly.

"Rebuilt then," Eve amended. "With more than tyrant ruling over it all."

Hayley's brows furrowed.

Eve smiled. "Where there is a King, a Queen rules," she said, before walking away.

Hayley watched her go suspiciously. She never liked when Eve spoke like that, like she could see something that no one else could. It was unnerving.

Ooo0ooO

Hayley was not surprised when she found Klaus waiting for her when she returned from running with her pack. Tyler had returned as well, per Hayley's request, until they were certain he would have safe passage home. There were two obstacles, one being the Hunters, and the other being Klaus.

Hayley told Tyler she didn't want the Hunters to hunt them, and in turn the other wolves. She knew the loyalty of packs, and she could barely stomach the idea of losing more wolves due to the Hunters single minded mission.

But as she approached Klaus, any argument or excuse she had practiced seemed to disappear from her mind like smoke. He didn't look angry nor surprised, merely calm, like one would look while waiting for someone.

So Hayley leaned against the railing of the balcony beside him, her eyes drifting up towards the moon again. "Did you shift?" she asked, turning her still gold eyes towards him. The effects of the moon might have slighted, giving her the ability to remain in human form, but the lasting touch would leave her eyes gold until sunrise.

"Yes."

"Were you alone?"

"Yes."

Hayley frowned. Even though Klaus was a Hybrid he was still a born werewolf, and wolves tended to seek out packs. Even walking as humans, werewolves sought the company of others more times than the sought solitude. But Klaus… all he had was his solitude. She wondered if this was because of the years he spent living in between a wolf and a vampire, the former having been dormant for so long that he forgot what it was like to be in touch with his wolf. She then wondered if, once he became a Hybrid, he ever had someone to guide him through that change.

"Maybe next full moon you can join me," Hayley quietly offered, a proverbial olive branch.

Klaus glanced at her. "Wouldn't you rather be with your pack?"

Hayley tilted her head at him. "I told you you should build your own pack."

"Are you volunteering to be the first member?" Klaus asked, his tone now bitter.

"No," Hayley said honestly. "But, instead, perhaps you'd want to be a part of mine."

Klaus' eyes widened for the briefest of moments. "Yours?"

"Mine," she repeated, giving him a half smile.

His gaze held a kind of hopeful reluctance, as if he wanted to say yes, but he couldn't find the way to say it. But then the shutters came down, and Hayley could all but see him pull away from her. He did so physically by backing up a step.

"I'm not some stray you can fix," he growled. "You betrayed my trust. You tampered with something that wasn't yours to touch."

Hayley recognized the guise, and didn't shy away from the glare aimed towards her. "Neither was he. He was ours long before you made him yours. Tyler belongs to our pack, my pack."

Klaus bared his teeth.

Hayley stepped forward. "I know I didn't tell you what I was doing, but I won't apologize for it. Taking away someone's free will isn't something we are meant to do. If we want someone to follow us, to love us, we have to ask, and prove ourselves worthy."

Klaus snarled. "Pretty words. Does your old Beta always whisper nonsense in your ears?"

"All I'm saying, Klaus, is that I can prove to you that I'm worthy of your trust," Hayley said softly. "But in turn, I have to ask you to give me a chance."

"I already did, and you threw it in my face!"

"Then a second chance. I hear those happen often."

Klaus seemed to be at war with himself. His eyes flickered between blue and gold, and his fists were clenched.

"I'll give you one if you consider my offer."

Klaus laughed, and it was bitter and hollow. "I'll don't believe a second chance will atone for all the sins I've committed."

Hayley shrugged. "But it's a start." She stepped closer to him, then rested a hand on his arm. It quivered beneath her touch. She looked at him, her eyes calm. Then she leaned up, pressing a gentle kiss to his lips. "Think about it," she requested.

Then she let him be, leaving him alone with his thoughts on her balcony as she slipped back inside.

Ooo0ooO

Hayley woke from a deep sleep when she felt the bed next to her shift and sink down. She blinked, turning over slightly.

Then she rolled over, tucking a hand beneath her cheek. "Have you slept at all?"

Klaus stared back at her, his eyes searching hers. "No."

"Did you just leave the balcony?"

"Yes."

Hayley arched a brow. "Are you capable of giving more than one word answers?"

Klaus' eyes flickered. "Yes."

Hayley shivered, realizing he left the door open. She sighed, slipping from the covers, standing up to go close them. When she did, she crawled back into bed.

"Did you mean what you said?"

Hayley glanced at Klaus. "What?"

"What you said," he repeated.

Hayley gave him a curious look. "Yes, of course," she said firmly.

"Why?"

She sighed, tucking back under the covers, still facing him. "Because I want to."

"Hayley."

"Shh," she scolded. She moved closer to him, pressing herself against his side. "Too tired. Sleep now, cryptic questions later, okay?"

Klaus stared down at her as she burrowed into his side, then, without thinking, lifted his arm so she could rest her cheek against his chest. He gently wrapped his arm around her, unblinking, watching as she curled up against him almost trustingly.

He laid there, completely still. He thought about how he had never- never- shared a bed with another, not a friend, nor a lover. But there she was, snuggled against him like they were both, acting as though he wasn't a monster.

But she never called you one, did she? She's never treated you like one, a small voice in his head pointed out.

No. Perhaps with an air of caution at first, and now there was this stubborn defiance, as though she had made up her mind that they were going to get along even if he didn't exactly agree to her plan.

But was that all she wanted- friendship? The more heated moments between them suggested otherwise…

"I can hear you thinking," Hayley grumbled, drawing him from his thoughts.

"Go to sleep, little wolf."

Hayley looked up at him. "Only if you hush."

Klaus felt himself smile. "All right."

Her eyes crinkled a bit when she smiled too, then she dropped her head back on his chest.

Klaus ran his fingers through her hair slowly, then settled back against the pillows.

Perhaps, just for tonight, he would stay with her.

Ooo0ooO

When dawn broke, it found Klaus sleeping soundly in Hayley's bed. He breathed in her scent when his eyes opened, before realizing she was no longer next to him.

The door to the bathroom opened, and she emerged in a cloud of steam. Dressed, while using a towel to dry her hair, Hayley gave him a look of mock disapproval. "Still in bed at this hour? You're such a lazy King."

Klaus laughed. "Being a King has its merits, such as sleeping in-," he shot a glance at the clock, "until six. Do you always rise with the sun?"

Hayley shrugged. "Sometimes."

He eyed her wet hair. "And to think, we could have shared a shower-," He was cut off by a towel being thrown in his face. He smirked.

Hayley rolled her eyes at him. "Get up. We have places to be."

"Oh?"

"Yes, oh. We're going to go meet up with the pack."

Klaus stilled, uncertainty flickering across his features.

Hayley saw the look, then sighed. She sat back down on the bed, giving him a firm look. "We have to start somewhere, right?"

"I didn't agree to your plan," Klaus reminded her.

"Being Alpha has its merits, such as bossing people around."

"You mean bossing me around."

Hayley's teeth flashed brightly. "Oh, yeah. You're my favorite to boss around."

Klaus' eyes narrowed at that. "I see."

In a span of a heartbeat, he had her pinned to the wall. His eyes looked down at her hungrily. "Do I look like the type who can be bossed around?"

Hayley didn't even blink before she had their position reversed. She smiled sweetly at him. "I guess we'll have to find out who's the boss, hm?" Then she leaned up, her lips ghosting over his.

Klaus leaned down, eager to take her lips with his.

Suddenly, Hayley leaned back, giving him a rather evil grin. "Later, of course. We have an appointment."

Klaus growled in frustration, which only made Hayley laugh.

Ooo0ooO

Disclaimer: I do not own the Originals.

Author's Note: Please review!