Previously on ATCL: "Upon my honor and former magic."
Katherine walked back into Elijah's office, where she, Elijah, and Bonnie had been negotiating with allies all morning. "That was Chief Sinclair. He, two of his sons, and thirty more able fighters are on their way. They're currently in Boston or something, waiting for their layover to finish."
"Good." Elijah nodded. "The Sinclair's will be of great assistance in the imminent battle."
"What're their ties?" Bonnie sipped from her mocha latte. If anyone had asked her—even a month and a half ago, when she first made the trip down to New Orleans—if she would enjoy working with Elijah Mikaelson and Katherine Pierce, she probably would have given them an aneurysm. But now that she had learned to co-exist with the most dysfunctional family she had ever met, she was enjoying herself. Bonnie had never pegged herself to be a person who enjoyed politics, but during the past day of trying to garner allies, she was really learning a ton from the political geniuses named Elijah and Katherine. If anyone could charm their way through a war, it would be those two. "Because seriously, your family has the most non-allied allies you can get."
"Clan Sinclair is different, as are a few others." He leaned back in his chair. "They are as close to friends as my family gets, and we have been on good terms for over three centuries." Looking up from his papers, Elijah continued. "We allied with them in the 1700's during a land dispute between theirs and another clan, and in turn they hid us from Mikael for a nearly a year. Though they were werewolves and we were not, both sides recognized the mutual benefits of an alliance. Ever since then we have managed to stay on good terms. Katerina and I requested their assistance in the search for the cure last year, but nothing of use turned up."
"They're fierce, but easily the most amiable pack of werewolves I have ever met." Katherine checked a name off of a list, and scanned it. "Just so you know to pay the proper respect and all: you can tell who's a member of the Alpha family by the red hair. They're like the Weasleys but in werewolf form."
"What is with you ancient vampires and Harry Potter?" Bonnie rolled her eyes. "And what's the difference between an Alpha family or not? Aren't they all just pack members?"
"I stayed in backwoods Montana for a decade or so. There was nothing to do but read and watch movies in that infernal place." The brunette snapped.
Elijah intervened before Katherine could go on a tangent. "Clan Sinclair is an ancient werewolf clan from Scotland. As everyone in the pack has the last name Sinclair, similar to the human version of Clan Sinclair, there is a specified Alpha line in which the Alpha male or female of the pack is descended from. The power dynamics are slightly different over there, because of their cultural and filial history."
"Makes sense." The younger woman shrugged. "Remind me again why your family has an obsession with taking the French Quarter? No offense, but New Orleans isn't Manhattan. Or someplace really awesome like… Rome. Or Dubai. This city just seems really random." Bonnie challenged, genuinely interested.
"It's a symbol, Bon-Bon." Katherine tapped on her phone, looking up briefly. "The city is merely a metaphor for the rest of the supernatural world, which their family already rules. They have strongholds and vassals in every major city in the world. New Orleans is merely a way to show the rest of the world that the Mikaelsons still have their shit together, and they're not to be messed with." She gave Bonnie a 'are you really that stupid or just secretly blonde' look.
Bonnie looked to Elijah as to confirm Katherine's statement, and when she received a nod, she replied. "Well that makes sense. I was starting to wonder what the point of this was." When her phone started buzzing, she checked it and stood. "This is one of the covens I contacted earlier. I'll be back in a second." She nodded to each of her colleagues before walking out, answering the call as she left. "Bonnie Bennett speaking…"
Katherine sashayed over to Elijah, who was sitting on one of the two couches in his office, fiddling around on his phone. Plucking the device out of his hands and setting it on the table beside her, she settled into his lap, her high-heeled feet resting on the rest of the sofa. "You have your 'I'm thinking about something but I don't want to talk about it, so I'll just wallow' face on." She danced her fingers along his lapels.
"I wasn't aware I made such an expression." He countered, playing with her dark brown curls.
"All the time." Katherine rolled her eyes. "Just… This may seem really weird and I'm fairly sure that it's caused by the overload of empath emotions I have going on, but you can tell me if something's going on, you know." She shrugged, checking her nails. "I mean, communication was pretty much our biggest issue back in London, and I don't want us to get to that stage again, so I'm trying to be a good partner or whatever the hell we are, and communicate. Especially considering I've never had a real relationship before."
Elijah raised an eyebrow, for it was exceedingly strange to see Katherine awkwardly shifting. "It was truly nothing, Katerina. I was simply wondering about my brother and his relationship with Miss Bennett. There seems to be a certain closeness about them which I have not seen in my brother since our human days." He rested a hand on her waist comfortably. "I do wish for us to not repeat our past mistakes, however, and I appreciate your effort. I promise to do the same."
"Good." She reclined her head on his shoulder, taking in the familiar scent of his cologne. They rested in stillness for a few precious moments, simply enjoying the company of each other.
"Yes, I will see you tomorrow. There will be a representative to pick your coven up at the airport, just email me the flight details, and it will be taken care of. Thank you! Goodbye!" Bonnie walked back into the room, closing her phone. "Alright, the…" She trailed off when she noticed the pair on the couch. "Should I give you two a moment?"
"Nope! Continue on, Bon-Bon." Katherine made no move to get up from her spot, and Elijah looked fine with it, so Bonnie just continued.
"Anyways, the Albright coven will be here first thing tomorrow morning, so we'll need someone to pick them up at the airport." Bonnie took a seat on the couch.
"Good work, Miss Bennett." Elijah complimented. "Albright is a large coven, and powerful. It will do good to have them on our side."
"Honestly, it was my name which did most of the work. They kind of jumped at the chance to help a Bennett." She trailed off awkwardly.
"As they should." He said. "The Bennett family is one of the oldest lines, and well respected. To turn down a plea for help from your family would be social suicide within the witch communities."
Bonnie laughed under her breath. "That's what Kol told me. He said he's worked with more than a few Bennett's over the years."
"Kol always sought the company of powerful witches. He respects your lineage greatly." Elijah sized up the younger woman in front of him, going with his usual blunt approach. "Miss Bennett, what exactly is the nature of your relationship with my brother?"
"Oh, here we go." Katherine muttered when she saw Bonnie's expression.
"Excuse me?" The aforementioned was affronted, though she stayed polite and calm. "I don't exactly see how that's any of your business."
"He is my brother, therefore it becomes my business." The condescension was practically rolling off of the Original in waves, simply furthering Bonnie's irritation.
"Yeah, a brother that you've basically ignored for the past thousand years!" Bonnie fired back, surprising the Original with the venom in her voice. "Excuse me if I'm overstepping boundaries, but I have had many conversations with Kol where he explained to me how he would go decades without speaking to any of you. He's always been the sibling written off; the one left out of the 'Always and Forever" mantra you, Rebekah, and Klaus repeat like it's the only thing holding you three together anymore. And that I've surmised for myself, because when you spend just five minutes with him it's obvious." She explained her point at a normal volume, and yet with such passion, it was obvious how she felt. Bonnie stood, grabbing her sweater off of the couch arm. "If you want details about Kol and I, go ask your brother. I'm sure he would enjoy the interest in his life."
"Miss Bennett, I will have you kn—" Elijah started, though he could not stand as Katherine was still lounging across him. He did not get much farther than halfway into his sentence, however, as Bonnie cut him off.
"First of all, it's Bonnie. We've been living in the same house for nearly two months. You can call me by my first name. Secondly, I ended this conversation, therefore, I am leaving. I thank you, and Katherine," She nodded to each, "for your…guidance in navigating negotiations, and I will see you both at dinner." With that, Bonnie Sheila Bennett, aged nineteen, walked away from one of the most dangerous men on the planet, having soundly beat the shit out of him with her words.
-0-0-0-0-0-
It was the fourth of January, otherwise known as the day Rebekah celebrated her birthday, and she was spending it on an old military base a few hours outside of New Orleans. Nik had chosen the site to house the multitudes of allies which had been pouring into the area over the past day, as it would not do for Marcel to discover they knew of his plans and were gathering an army. So, naturally, instead of spending her birthday shopping or having a girl's day, she was stuck training the troops with Nik and Kol. Bonnie had been put in charge of directing the incoming witches to their proper places, and Katherine was back in the city, making sure anyone who came to the manor instead of the camp was sent in the right direction. Elijah was off doing some other project, and Caroline was organizing safehouses for the few pregnant werewolves, as well as the children, in Nik's hybrid pack. There had been a marvelous fight that morning when Hayley protested being shipped off to hang out with a bunch of pregnant chicks and little kids, but, well, Caroline won that fight easily. No matter how lovely the verbal match had been that morning, though, this was shaping up to be the lamest birthday ever, and Rebekah was highly disappointed.
She turned her attention back to the crowd below, Niklaus and Kol to her left, as Rebekah waited for her older brother to address his army. Kol had had the brilliant idea to run the troops through a…boot camp of sorts—honestly, she felt as if her brother had been watching too many military movies—and she had been roped into supervising some of the training. On her bloody birthday.
As usual, Nik managed to pull the motivational information speech off in his usual arrogant manner. "Men and women of the supernatural world!" He had begun. "Today is the beginning of what you will eventually name 'Hell on Earth'." Rebekah smirked as her brother paused. When she was through with these fighters, it would seem like hell for them. "You would be correct. For your training, you will report directly to my siblings and I. All groups have been chosen randomly, and the infringement of any rule will result in some of my favorite forms of punishment. Which, I assure you, are not enjoyable for anyone other than myself." Kol shot his sister a wink as Nik proceeded to divide the army into groups, and they led their separate teams off.
Rebekah scanned her group of fighters; it was mixed of both genders, as well between werewolves, vampires, and hybrids. She scoffed internally after noticing the stares some of the men gave her; yes, she was an exceedingly attractive woman, and yes, she was wearing something she would have worn to cheerleading practice back in Mystic Falls. However, she was an Original, damn it, and she would be afforded proper respect.
"Alright everyone! Listen up!" Rebekah let out a sharp whistle when they would not stop talking, commanding their attention. "That's better, don't you think?" She smirked at the annoyed looks shot her way. "As I feel the majority of you are at least somewhat experienced in the art of war, today we're going to just…experiment. We will be running through a variety of scenarios, both against myself and others in this group. Any questions?"
"Are you sure you can handle this, princess? We wouldn't want to get those pretty little hands of yours dirty." Some asshole jeered from the assembled group, earning himself nasty looks from a few women nearby.
"If you want someone to experiment with sweetie, then I'll clear my schedule." Another charming specimen they called a man joined in, setting off a torrent of lewd and lascivious comments from a few more in the group of about seventy-five.
"Excuse me!" Rebekah shouted over the din, fire in her eyes. The level of disrespect was astounding, and today was not a day that she was going to take it. She had had enough. "Let me clarify something. To those of you who are unaware," With this, she made eye contact with each of those who had harassed her, "my name is Rebekah Mikaelson, and I am one of the four Original Vampires. I have walked this earth for over one thousand years, and my hands carry more blood and dirt upon them than this entire group combined." She scanned the masses, mentally making a list of those who just seemed like assholes, and those who looked like they could actually be entrusted with command of a small regiment. "Now, I offer a challenge. To any of you who feel as if you can take me in a fight, please, have at it." With that, the Original sister stepped back, waiting for the first fool to accept.
Predictably, the first to rush her was man who called her 'princess'. God, he was pathetic. She could hear him coming behind her from the moment he took a step, and when the man moved to grasp her in a headlock, Rebekah quickly turned and flipped him over her shoulder. It was as easy as blinking, and the sight of the asshole eating dust was a very pleasant one, to be honest. "Is that enough, or do I, your instructor, need to prove myself and my abilities to those of you who are considered to be children in comparison with me, simply on the basis of my being a woman?" When Rebekah received no answer, she simply nodded. "Good. In that case, run five laps around the main building, and when you all finish, come back here and do one hundred pushups." At the delay in reaction, she waved them off. "Go, before I end up showing you all my favorite torture techniques." With that, the entire group took off.
"I must say, you can command a crowd." Rebekah turned around to find a man she had not noticed before standing about fifteen feet away, and he was approaching her. He was easily a good six inches or taller than herself, with red hair that fell over his forehead a little bit, and hazel eyes which radiated laughter. He spoke with a pronounced Scottish accent, and Rebekah could tell instantly that he was an easygoing person. The way he stepped and carried himself belied the personality of confident, but calm, man. And god, he was hot.
"It's a family trait." She shrugged, crossing her arms. "And you are?"
By now he was much closer to her, and he reached out his hand for her to shake. "Lachlan Sinclair. It is a pleasure to meet you officially."
Rebekah took his hand and shook it. "Well, you already know who I am, so we can dispense with formalities. As you are clearly a werewolf, and quite obviously from the Alpha line of your Clan, as the excessive ginger-ness of your hair indicates" When he laughed, she rolled her eyes and continued, though a slight smile played upon her lips, as an indication she was teasing. "I'm simply wondering why you are watching me train a bunch of louts, and not doing something more interesting."
The fact that this Lachlan smiled even when she was being a complete bitch to him was baffling. "I received a text message from one of the pack members about another one of us harassing a woman. Judging by your actions, I can assume the woman was you."
"You would be correct. However, I am in no need of a white knight, thank you very much." Rebekah retorted, though not as harshly as she might have. "Besides, it was really more about five men shouting out less than amusing comments, and I could have taken the entire group if need be."
"I know you don't need a savior." The accent and that stupid grin of his were driving something crazy in Rebekah. "You're more than capable of taking care of yourself. However, I do need to discipline any of those who were from my Clan, therefore I would appreciate your assistance in identifying them." Lachlan smirked.
"Fine. I can do that." She placed her hands on her hips, scrutinizing the werewolf in front of her. "As soon as you tell me the real reason you came over here."
"You think I have ulterior motives."
"I'm an attractive woman in shorts and a figure-hugging tank-top. And I've already been harassed by quite a few lowlifes today. So the idea of someone actually being nice enough to not have an ulterior motive is kind of not a reality right now." Rebekah started to say more, but she was cut off by the group of trainees coming back. When they didn't drop to the ground immediately, she clapped her hands. "To the ground, the whole lot of you!" Unfortunately, as she was distracted, she missed the tall Scotsman coming up behind her.
"Unlike your cynical view seems to surmise, I had no ulterior motive. Though I certainly see the appeal." Lachlan spoke lowly in her ear, causing the Original to breathe in sharply and take a step forward.
"Let's just get to identifying your men." She whispered harshly. The rush of whatever this was she was experiencing was not what she wished for, nor needed, right now.
-0-0-0-0-0-
"I thought you all had forgotten about my birthday!" Was the first thing out of Rebekah's mouth when she walked into the manor. She had been the last to leave the training camp, and now the reasoning for Nik and Kol taking off an hour before her was apparent. The lounge was decorated for a birthday, with a banner that said 'Happy Birthday Rebekah!' on it. There was a stand full of cupcakes one table, and a small mountain of birthday presents on another, and it appeared someone—totally Caroline—had managed to get everyone to wear those cheesy paper party hats. Her brothers and her friends were gathered together, smiling at her. Or, at least as much as they smiled. Some people in this manor were awfully grumpy.
Caroline laughed. "Please. As if we could actually forget about you. Normally I would go really over the top, but I couldn't plan a ball within three days, and with this whole war campaign going on, it wasn't going to happen. So, for your next birthday, have an expectation of over-the-topness." She grasped her blonde friend in a hug.
"That sounds fantastic." Rebekah replied, grinning. The day may have started out terribly, but really, it ended on a more-than-perfect note. "You know Kol, we're the same age now!" She teased.
"Only for a few more months, Bekah." Kol mussed up her hair, earning him a smack on the back of his head.
Caroline watched as Rebekah greeted everyone, and got back to bickering with Kol about something else. She turned when she felt Klaus behind her; she could feel his presence as if they were magnets, simply avoiding the inevitable union. "Do you approve? I seem to remember you having a fondness for birthdays." She smiled. They had officially met on her birthday, after all. From the moment the Big Bad Wolf had walked into her room that night, and saved her, Caroline's life had been changed forever. She did not regret a moment of it.
"I do quite like birthdays, yes." He nodded, realizing what she was hinting at. "I see you are wearing a certain birthday present." Klaus nodded towards the diamond bracelet which rested upon her delicate wrist. "I prefer it to the other one you wore, if you must know."
Caroline shot him a dirty look, though a smile played upon her lips. "Your game isn't fooling me." She pointed at him. "You know very well that I almost always wear this bracelet and that I threw away Tyler's a long time ago. It's not my fault it suits me better." She put her hands on her hips and huffed, though when he started laughing the lady could barely contain the secondhand happiness she was receiving from Klaus. "Seriously? I wasn't being funny."
"You, love, are remarkable." Klaus smiled. "Somewhat oblivious as to what you just said, but entirely remarkable nonetheless."
Caroline considered her words before she realized the meaning. Fiercely containing the blush making its way to her cheeks, she crossed her arms. "And you are remarkably annoying." With that, she stomped off to straighten the cupcakes again, though Klaus never left her thoughts for a moment.
She had struggled for so long, attempting to kill her feelings. Caroline had squashed the feelings of attraction—and more—into dust, simply because they couldn't happen. Not back in Mystic Falls. But here, in New Orleans, it was like she was living a different life. Caroline was more than aware at how much she had grown in the time since she had left her hometown. The Mystic Falls Caroline would have balked at the idea of being as close of friends with any of the Mikaelsons as she was, was dedicated to Tyler in a way that was unfair to herself, and had been unnecessarily cruel to a man who—excepting the one time after Kol died—was nothing but utterly charming towards her. New Orleans had set her free. She was free from herself, her past, and everything in-between. And now, after two months of living with the Mikaelson family, and spending time with Klaus, furthering their friendship, Caroline felt as if she was ready.
She had seen the dark sides, experienced the light sides, and overall, was just awestruck by the complex being that was Niklaus Mikaelson. The monster was known by her, the man was dear to her, and the king himself had never left her side. They were one and the same, and all of him was important to her. To Caroline, there had not been a defining moment. Not one that stuck out to her particularly, at least. But now, at Rebekah's birthday party, of all places, Caroline realized something.
She was in love with Klaus. Maybe she had loved him for a very long time, and did not just realize or acknowledge it, but she was definitely and totally in love with him. It both scared and delighted her, all at once.
It seems she had not taken a century, as he had predicted, after all.
AN: Soooo... Thoughts? I would love to hear anything you all have to say.
The Caroline revelation was like, 22 chapters in the making, and this entire story has been building up to the Klaroline moment. And it is swiftly approaching. Seriously guys, I can't even wait for it. I get feels at just what I have planned.
The Kalijah in this chapter was just...Kalijah-like. They're happy and in love, so nothing can really get much better for them. I know there was a lack of Kennett, but I really wanted to show Bonnie in scenes with people other than Kol, and after the big Kennett scene from last chapter, I felt a focus on Rebekah was important for this chapter. As was a certain scene with her and a Scottish werewolf... *avoids spoiling anymore*
Anyways, next chapter is the penultimate one, and war breaks out in New Orleans.
Thank you all so much for your unending support! I truly enjoy all of your reviews, and I smile everytime I see an email from FF in my inbox.
Have a fantastic week dears!
-Abi