Bloodlines
Chapter 26: Dance Back from the Grave
Beta: PrincessOfSilence
Disclaimer: I own nothing of TVD and TO. I only own my characters and my story.
"Oh, I remember this cemetery; hasn't changed a bit." Genevieve recalled with a soft smile. She, Audrey and Sabine were left to wander the cemetery while Bastiana and Papa Tunde went elsewhere. There was a calming air about and it brought a lot of peace to the area.
"I've been coming here over a century, wearing one face or another." Sabine's dark eyes shifted over the names engraved on each tombstone.
"This place even smells the same. Like death." Audrey pointed out with a scowl. "Now, can we please get out of here? I am very eager to see the new world that is outside these walls."
"Must you always be so sentimental?" The redhead's voice was laced with sarcasm.
"Oh, please, Genevieve. We spent a good portion of our lives around death in that hospital. Can't we at least enjoy that we are alive?" She looked to her friend with a grin painting her lips.
"Not even a day out of the grave and you two are already bickering." Sabine remarked, shaking her head.
"Friends bicker," Audrey shrugged.
"So do old married couples."
"I wouldn't know. I was killed before I could even think about getting married." The dark haired girl mumbled. "That reminds me, when can I take my revenge on that wicked blonde?"
Sabine glanced to her and then to Genevieve. "In time, girls. In time."
"Now, you may doubt him, but today, I saw Niklaus demonstrate mercy towards an enemy. Tell me that's not progress." Elijah spoke as he walked beside his sister. The two were out for a nice afternoon walk along the streets of the Quarter while Klaus was introducing Thierry back to the group of night walkers. As per Rebekah's pleading and negotiating, Klaus decided to release him from the Garden, saving him from his rotting prison.
Rebekah gave her older brother a roll of her eyes. "Please, Elijah. Who do you think convinced Klaus to let Thierry out?"
Elijah had stopped walking now and he turned to face his sister. "Why would you do such a thing?"
"Because, despite Klaus' reprieve, Thierry despises him. I like that about Thierry," she explained. "I also like that he used to date a witch, so he knows about French Quarter covens. Maybe he can lead me to whoever stole off with the Harvest magic."
"Rebekah, we are all devastated by the outcome of this ritual." He started.
"That's just it. There was no outcome. We both know that power like that doesn't just vanish. I say someone stole it. I'd like to know who, and then I'd like to make an ally out of them." She told her brother. "I'm tired of being threatened and controlled by our tyrant brother. If you want to stop a bully, you need the power to stand up to them."
"I expect such behavior from Niklaus. It's so very disappointing when it comes from you, Rebekah." He spoke gruffly, a bit peeved by her behavior. "Do you not see that, in his way, he's making an effort here? He's invited us back into our family home. He yearns for our family to be reunited."
"Yes. He's in a brilliant mood now, but for how long? It's his trick, Elijah. He lulls you into a false sense of camaraderie and kinship and then he turns on you like a snake. I fall for it every time and wind up with a dagger in my chest for my trouble." She'd had it with Klaus' constant tricks and shady deals. She refused to deal with it anymore and wished that Elijah would at least back her. "No more."
"I believe that he is approaching some semblance of peace here. Leadership may, in fact, be a good thing for him. Now, sister, please, I ask you, if you cannot support him, then at least do nothing to provoke him." He pleaded with her and she gave a defeated sigh, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Fine."
Elijah smiled warmly at her and kissed her on the forehead. "Thank you."
They had begun to walk again when Rebekah lightly nudged his shoulder. "And where is Giuliana on this beautiful day?"
"She went out early this morning. She mentioned something about shopping." He pocketed his hands.
"My kind of girl." The blonde smiled and then looked to her brother who was trying to fight a smile from infecting him as well. "And by the looks of that smile on your face that you're trying to hide, she seems like your kind of girl too."
"I care for her, yes," he noted, being sure to watch his words.
"Oh, please, Elijah. I see the way you look at her. She makes you smile. I've missed that." Being his little sister, naturally she wanted to make sure that the women he had his eyes on were good eggs because he deserved nothing but the best. Rebekah remembered the first time she met Giuliana back in Italy and she could tell that Elijah had already taken a fancy to her. She remembered his torrid love affairs with Katherine and Celeste and it only made her become more and more protective of him. Naturally she knew that he would do the same for her.
"And she cares about you too." Rebekah added. "Her little heart flutters whenever she is around you."
"Now, Rebekah. We have a strictly platonic relationship." He tried to persuade his little sister that they had more of a friendship than a relationship, but Rebekah was much smarter than that.
"You're just saying that because you know that Niklaus will kill her once you get in over your head." Her words sliced him deep and he was left to look upon her with an open-mouthed expression. "The same thing happened to Celeste. Once he saw your loyalty to him slipping, he went after the one person who made you whole. That's why you're so afraid."
Elijah's jaw tensed harshly and the muscles could be seen shifting under his skin. The hands in his pockets clenched tighter and he swallowed the thick lump in his throat. "I cannot put her in danger, Rebekah. I will not allow myself to make the same mistake again because of love."
"But you're sacrificing your own happiness, Elijah. We all deserve to have some sort of happiness in this world. Even us." She stopped in front of her car and looked her brother right in the eyes. "I want you to be happy."
He gave her a soft smile and for the first time in a long time, he saw the little girl that enjoyed the simple things in life and had not been corrupted by the harshness of an immortal life. Rebekah was right; they all deserved some sort of happiness, but he couldn't see it coming at the risk of losing someone that he really cared for. He'd already lost too many people because of his happiness and he had made a promise to himself to never let his happiness get in the way.
"Take care, little sister. I will see you back at the compound." He bid her goodbye and she climbed into her car, speeding off to meet someone in a secret rendezvous.
"Used to run things down here for Marcel," Thierry pushed the heavy steel door to the warehouse opened and gestured for Rebekah to enter the inside first, which she did. The two had made a little side deal and Thierry agreed to show the Original what he had found before anyone else. "Thought you'd like to see what I found before Klaus did."
Rebekah threw the young vampire a smoldering smirk as they walked further into the warehouse. "Not a day out of the Garden, and you're already proving yourself useful."
"We made a deal and if it screws things for your brother, I'm all for it." He walked through the warehouse and his paces grew slower as they approached the scene of the crime. "Though, to be honest, this stuff makes my skin crawl. I've never seen anything like this."
They had stopped in front of a salt circle on the ground that held two dead vampires on the inside. Their skin was grey and ashy and a symbol was carved into their foreheads. This same crime had been recreated hours earlier for the night walkers to stumble upon. Needless to say, it shook them all to the core. It was clearly the work of a witch and a very powerful witch at that. Thierry shifted nervously, his eyes darting back and forth to try and catch any movements that were unnatural to the warehouse while Rebekah moved a bit closer. While she could not step inside the circle, she stopped just outside to take a closer look at the symbol that was roughly carved into the foreheads of the dead vampires.
"Somebody is copycatting a very dangerous witch. They draw their power from sacrifice." She noted.
"I just don't understand why someone would leave it here for us to find." Thierry wondered.
"Unless they wanted it to be found." Her voice was tinged with a bit of trepidation. What if this was a trap?
"Mademoiselle Mikaelson." A deep, familiar voice from behind them made Rebekah's blood turn ice cold in her veins. She whipped around to see Papa Tunde smiling slyly.
"That's not possible," she hushed.
Papa Tunde's smile grew even wider. "Sure, it is, chére. It's magic."
In an effort to save her and Thierry, she sped towards the warlock to kill him once and for all, but he managed to grip her by the throat tightly. Immobilized, Rebekah could do nothing but gasp for air as Papa Tunde chanted fiercely.
"Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi. Embrace-toi. Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi. Embrace-toi. Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi. Embrace-toi. Symbole du masque et de l'ombre, embrace-toi." As he spoke the ancient words, Rebekah began to desiccate, thick gray veins protruded around her face and neck. Her body tried to fight the spell, but Papa Tunde's magic was very strong. With the vampire incapacitated, Papa Tunde lowered her to the ground, but his eyes lifted seeing Thierry just a few feet away.
The vampire turned to run, but he was stopped by a woman who blocked his path. Her eyes locked with his and he suddenly felt the very life being sucked out of him. He could physically feel the blood leaving his veins; however, there were no wounds were the blood could flow freely from his body. Once he was weak enough, she let his body fall to the ground and she could feel Papa Tunde coming up from behind her.
"You have such power for being so young," he admired and Audrey flashed him a smile. "Blood Magic is something I've seen very rarely in my lifetime."
"It is a rare and dangerous form of magic, but if you play your cards right, you can certainly reap the benefits." She replied and bent down to Thierry. "I am a bit weak, so I'll need more of his blood." She then pressed her hands to Thierry's temples. Her eyes fell closed and she saw some visions flash before her, but one in particular caught her interest. Opening her eyes, she smirked down to the weak vampire.
"Very interesting."
"What did you see?"
"Another one of my kind. Her powers are minuscule compared to mine, but she could still cause a problem." She said and tapped her finger against her chin thoughtfully.
"And what shall we do with him afterwards?" He jerked his head to Thierry who was fighting to stay awake.
"Leave him be." Audrey said and pressed her hands to his temples again. "Perhaps he can be of some use to us."
"Hold still!"
"Your hands are cold!"
"I wanna feel her, so stop moving!"
Hayley Marshall rolled her eyes as she watched Giuliana shift her hands around on her growing belly. The two girls had been put on house arrest shortly after Giuliana had come home from her shopping trip because of the witches that have been attacking vampires. Since there was really nothing to do, Giuliana was annoying Hayley about feeling her baby kick. The young wolf wouldn't admit it, but she did like the attention since normally none was given to her because if it weren't for Giuliana being in New Orleans, she'd be spending a lot of time alone. Her olive hands moved all about her friend's belly and she waited for a few moments.
"I got nothing." Giuliana sighed disappointedly.
"Well, she doesn't kick all of the time." Hayley chuckled.
Giuliana rearranged her hands and gently pat Hayley's stomach. "Hey, you. It's your godmother talking. I would really appreciate it if you gave a little kick for me, okay?"
"You're insane," the wolf was laughing out loud now at her friend.
"I like babies. Is that such a crime? I was around little children all my life when I was growing up in Italy. Even helped to deliver a few and that was before pain meds."
Hayley gulped and her eyes grew a little wider. "What would you do for pain?"
"Scream like a banshee and squeeze someone's hand." She replied and gave out a loud gasp feeling a gentle kick against the palm of her hand. "She kicked! I felt it!"
"Good, now-" Her eyes looked up just as Elijah entered the room. He looked like something was bothering him and he wasn't himself.
"Elijah." Giuliana rose to meet him, her gaze washing over his form. Just seeing him like this made her nervous. "What is it?"
"Come with me. There's something I need you to see." His hand grasped hers and with one last look to Hayley, she was led down the hallway and out of the compound into the courtyard.
"What's wrong, Elijah?" She asked him, but her question was soon answered when she was looking upon the dead bodies of the night walkers that were killed just before she and Hayley were put on house arrest. An odd symbol was carved into their foreheads and their skin was pale and grey.
"My God..." She covered her mouth. "What happened to them?"
"It's the work of a witch, but there is something else. These vampires have no other trauma to their bodies. No bite or stab wounds." He said and took a knife that was resting on one of the tables. Bending down to one of the vampires, he took up their wrist and drew a deep line across the skin with the knife. The skin split evenly, but that was all. No blood left the wound. Not even a drop. Elijah did the same to the other vampire, holding up the cut appendage for Giuliana to see for herself.
"These vampires were completely drained of their blood." She gulped and bent down with Elijah too. Even their head wounds had no blood around where the carvings were made.
"That means there is a witch that is performing Blood Magic," he concluded.
"Do you know who?"
Elijah shook his head in defeat. "No, but I am worried that if this witch knows about you...that he or she will come after you."
Giuliana had read more in Elijah's journals and she'd done research about those who were bestowed with Blood Magic. Say, if two witches could perform Blood Magic, that meant that they could duel for the other's power. Meaning that the witch who won would absorb the powers of the other witch. She was a bit scared of that because she had just discovered more of her powers. If a Blood Magic witch was to attack her, she'd be easily defeated and the other witch would take her powers away no matter how weak they were.
"Well, I guess I should work on my powers then." She stood up to her full height, but her green eyes still rested on the dead vampires. Elijah was now standing before her, a pensive look strewn across his face.
She nodded to him assuredly and palmed the side of her face. "I've read the journals and read some books. I know some basic parlor tricks, but this-" she gestured to the vampires. "This is much greater than anything I can do now."
"I'll keep you and Hayley for the time being. I can't afford either of you getting hurt. There's no telling when there will be another attack and we don't know who exactly is involved from the witch faction."
"You think Sophie did this?"
"I actually think that Rebekah had something to do with this." He said and Giuliana's eyes grew wide.
"Rebekah? Why?"
"She is not answering my calls and I'm worried that she had something to do with this. She's very displeased with Niklaus, perhaps even conspiring with others." Just as she went to reply, her eyes caught something over the Original's shoulder and her heart leapt up into her throat seeing a dagger come down at Elijah.
"Look out!" She shoved him out of the way and caught the arm of Thierry who was struggling against Giuliana. The dagger he was wielding had a long sharp blade that was black as night. Giuliana could see that something was very wrong with Thierry. What on Earth would possess him to try and stab Elijah of all people? They scuffled for a little bit, but Thierry's angry eyes saw that Elijah was getting ready to attack, so he did one better. With one strong thrust, he overpowered Giuliana and buried the blade of the dagger in her stomach.
"NO!" Elijah roared and flew at the vampire. Giuliana gave a whimper of pain and clutched her stomach, putting pressure on the heavily bleeding wound. Elijah held Thierry to the wall, a hand wrapped tightly around his throat that the vampire's lips were turning blue. A look of pure panic washed over the young vampire's face when he saw blood running over Giuliana's hands and he was desperately trying to get some air into his lungs.
"You must have a death wish!" The Original seethed. Thierry tried to talk, but his windpipe and vocal chords were being crushed. Elijah then tossed Thierry to the ground and advanced on him, making him back away.
"I'm sorry! I-I didn't know what I was doing!" He held up his hands in surrender and Elijah gripped him by the collar of his shirt. "Please! Please, don't kill me!"
"You have a tongue." The Original shook him about a bit. "Talk."
"That's the thing...I-I don't remember." He stammered and shied away from Elijah as best as he could. "I was with Rebekah in a warehouse by the docks. That's all I remember. I swear!"
Dissatisfied, Elijah let him go quite roughly and walked back to Giuliana who was huddled against the wall. Her hands were still pressed to the stab wound and he bent down beside her.
"Are you alright?" His worried eyes trailed all over her body, but he finally met her wide eyed gaze. Worried that her wound was fatal, he grasped her wrists and pulled her hands away from the wound to see that there was nothing there. The dagger was gone and so was the wound. Bits of blood stained her clothes and hands, but what should have come out of the wound was not there. Giuliana was just as speechless as Elijah was and the two were left just looking at one another. She struggled to stand, but Elijah immediately slipped a hand around her waist to keep her steady. Once he sat her down, he turned on Thierry who was backing away.
"You can either tell me what you know or I can distribute tiny pieces of you throughout the Quarter." He threatened.
"Alright! Alright!" He held his hands up again as if that would deter Elijah from ripping out his spleen. "I told you before; I don't know anything about that..." He looked at Giuliana who was still in shock. "But Rebekah asked me to keep an eye out on witch stuff. I found something, and when I showed her, we were jumped by some guy. He desiccated her with his touch."
If Elijah wasn't angry before, he was really livid now. It was one thing for a young man to leave a woman in danger, but Thierry had left his little sister behind. "Like a coward, you left her."
"What was I supposed to do? Fight some warlock that took out an Original?" He growled. "And there...was someone else there. A woman, but I didn't get her name."
"Where was this, exactly?" He asked him.
"The docks. Warehouse 57. I was just doing what she asked." Thierry said and his nervous gaze jumped from Elijah, to Giuliana, back to Elijah again. "You cannot tell Klaus about this."
The Original pursed his lips as if to give his request some thought, but gave a tilt of the head before smashing his elbow against Thierry's face. He crumpled to the floor, unconscious, and Elijah adjusted his sleeves. "I shall take that into consideration."
"Always the classy one, aren't you?" He turned at the sound of Giuliana's teasing voice just to see her get up. As if out of habit, he rushed right to her, making sure that she was alright.
"I was sure that he had really hurt you." His voice held a hint of guilt.
"Well, it did hurt like a bitch." She chuckled and placed her hands on Elijah's shoulders before moving them up to the sides of his neck. "Hey, look at me. I'm fine." His hands clasped hers and he brought them down to rest between them. His fingers played over hers, some intertwining with one another. As if coming back to herself, she remembered that Rebekah desperately needed their help.
"Rebekah needs us," she said. "I'm coming with you."
"No. Stay here." He firmly commanded. "The compound is safe."
"I'm going. I'm not letting you go by yourself." She shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest defiantly.
He held her strong, unwavering stare for a few long, silent moments before giving a deep sigh and nodding. "Do not leave my sight. Understand?"
Audrey let the last remaining drops of Giuliana's blood fall from her hands and into a little jar that rested on the floor. Once the blood stopped flowing, she capped the vial and held it up to the light, examining it with squinted eyes. Thierry had done his job well and it was nice to see that her powers were returning to her. She was able to take control of Thierry's body and he was completely under her command. The dagger she instructed him to stab Giuliana with was a special dagger that can take blood from another person.
"Hmm, I suppose this much will do." She slipped the vial in her shirt, nestling it safely between her breasts. She then turned to Papa Tunde and Celeste who had just joined them. "Well, I'm off. Not much else I can do around here."
"That's all you needed?" Celeste asked her and she gave a curt nod before disappearing from the warehouse.
Papa Tunde then stood and admired the work he'd done to Rebekah. "It is done. The power of the Original sister flows through me."
"And will that be enough to make Klaus suffer?" Celeste wondered.
"I will hurt Klaus Mikaelson as he hurt me. When I am done, he will wish that he could die." He promised.
"Rebekah!" Elijah's heart jumped up into his throat when he saw his baby sister lying unconscious with a symbol carved into her head. He immediately rushed to kneel beside her, but was stopped by an invisible barrier. He looked down to see a salt circle around his sister and he pushed against the barrier again, but it only pushed back harder on him. Giuliana had finally caught up to the Original only to watch him struggle with himself and pace back and forth in front of the circle.
"What happened?"
"Some kind of boundary spell. Someone is channeling her. Typically it's a lethal process, but because she's an Original, she can't die." Elijah explained and turned to face her. "Instead, she's an endless source of power."
"What can we do?" She asked desperately. The look of pure guilt on his face was enough to make her want to cry, but she held herself together.
"You have to get her out of there." His voice trailed off and he took his phone out of his pocket.
"What? Me?" Her eyes bugged out of their sockets as he dialed a number and held the phone up to his ear. The next few minutes were filled with Elijah explaining to Sophie what had happened to Rebekah and he was beginning to get more annoyed with her as the conversation went on. Giuliana, on the other hand, could do nothing but listen to the ongoing phone conversation. She did try to walk over the circle of salt, but she couldn't get through.
"You're not listening. We cannot enter the circle. There's some kind of confinement spell. If I can't remove her, we can't break the link." Elijah repeated himself to Sophie for the third tiresome time.
"It's a convoluted spell. It's like a witch's recipe. You can spoil the balance by adding a more potent ingredient. A mystical binding agent." Sophie told him.
"And that would be?" Giuliana questioned.
The pair could hear Sophie sighing on the other line. "I don't know;volcanic ash, rock salt, anything up to and including eye of newt."
"Well, we literally have none of those things." The brunette shook her head irritably which gained Elijah's attention. From his experience with witches, he concluded that a mystical binding agent could also be blood.
"What about the blood of a witch?" Elijah's question made Sophie pause for a moment or two.
"Do you have the blood of a witch?"
The Original looked to Giuliana who held his gaze. He knew that she was a witch and he had to try to get his sister freed at all costs. "I need a favor."
"Of course." She didn't even hesitate, nor did he have to explain himself to her. He'd hung up the phone and they both stood at the edge of the circle. She pushed up her sleeve, exposing her wrist to him and she let him take it in his hands. He let his fangs extend and he very gingerly bit into her wrist. The skin crunched quietly and she gave a little wince, but she wouldn't let him see it. Once some blood was drawn, he held out her bleeding wrist over the salt. As some drops dripped onto it, the circle began to sizzle and Giuliana continued to follow the curve of the circle to make more of it deteriorate. Elijah took his chance to step through, the boundary had been broken and he swooped up his little sister. He stepped out of the circle and he moved to place Rebekah down on the floor. He tapped her cheeks and waited for her to revive herself.
Just as Giuliana moved to step in and help, the edge of her foot nudged the hilt of a dagger that was resting on the floor. Upon closer inspection, she realized that she was now holding the very dagger that she had been stabbed with earlier in the day. Nothing about it stood out except for the blade. It was so opaque and dark, that it held no reflection, only a dim glimmer from the lights that hung above them in the warehouse. As she held the hilt of the dagger, she could feel it begin to soften and melt in her grip. It was the most unnatural experience she'd ever had and she watched in horror as the dagger liquefied into blood before her eyes. Elijah was now enraptured by the crimson liquid dribbling off her hands and onto the floor. When it was a puddle, it seeped into the concrete, leaving no stain or residue and the pair parted their lips to speak, but a chillingly familiar voice to the Original brother stopped them in their tracks.
"Fascinating, isn't it?" It was a female; that much Giuliana knew as her eyes searched for the owner of the new voice. "It's amazing what you can do with such magic." Giuliana could now hear the voice behind her and it wasn't too far away. She whipped around to see a tall woman with striking blue eyes standing just a few feet away from them. She was dressed quite modernly, but her clothes weren't what caught Giuliana's attention. It was the pendent that hung around the woman's neck which was a twin to hers.
"Audrey Montgomery." Elijah's own voice came across as a bit of a hiss and it made the now identified woman crack a smile.
"Elijah Mikaelson." She purred. "It's been far too long."
"Did you do this?" He had placed down Rebekah's body outside of the salt circle, but stepped protectively in front of her.
"No, I didn't have a hand in that," the woman jerked her head to Rebekah as her hands held the dagger that had disappeared from Giuliana just moments before. "But I do remember that other vampire...what was his name?" She thought to herself coyly, tapping the blade of the knife thoughtfully against her chin.
"Thierry." Giuliana spoke up now and at the mention of the vampire's name, Audrey gave a sound of approval.
"Ah, yes! Thierry!"
"What did you do to him?" She asked.
"Oh, nothing special. Just a little trick of mine. Bet I gave your boyfriend quite the scare when Thierry stabbed you." Audrey jeered, but her playful manner was making Elijah growl low in his chest. Her eyes shifted to his form and she tsked. "I seem to have ruffled someone's feathers."
Elijah surged forward and wrapped his hand tightly around Audrey's throat, squeezing so hard that he could feel her skin bruising under his fingers. "Stay away from her. Do you understand me?"
"Such a temper." She pouted and that received a threatening squeeze of Elijah's hand around her neck.
"If you touch her again, I-" his threat was suddenly cut off but a loud groan of pain and that only made Audrey chuckle to herself.
"You'll what? Bite me? You forget that I quite enjoy that." She challenged him, but all he could do was hiss and double over until he let her go. He was sweating profusely now, his face screwed up in such an expression that conveyed pure agony. His entire body was burning from the inside out.
"Stop!" Giuliana tried to call out, but Audrey didn't cease her torture. "Leave him alone!"
Audrey watched as the Original fell to his knees before her and she held his gaze, making him unable to look away. He knew what she was going to do to him. He could feel hot blood rising in his throat and he desperately tried to keep it down, but her magic was much too strong to fight off. Just as the witch was to make Elijah really suffer, she felt the subtle heat of her own blood against her veins. She halted her magic on Elijah and looked to see Giuliana concentrating hard on her.
"What a brave little protector you have, Elijah." She mocked. Giuliana pushed her magic harder onto Audrey, anything to stop her from going back and hurting Elijah, but the woman seemed somewhat pleased and amused by her little display.
With Audrey distracted, Elijah was able to jump up and grasp her from behind, but as soon as his arms closed around her body, she had already thrust the black dagger into his gut. He let go of her once again and in Giuliana's rush to go to him, Audrey was able to slip away. When she got to Elijah, she could see that the dagger had gone and so had the wound. There was no blood to be seen either.
"Are you alright?" She asked him worriedly and wiped his forehead of the sweat that was dribbling over his skin.
"Y-Yes," he stammered quite clumsily and slowly sat up. "Her magic is beginning to dissipate."
"Who was that? A friend of yours?"
"A witch that Klaus and I knew back in the nineteen-twenties." Giuliana looked around to see that Audrey had vanished from the warehouse and that Rebekah was beginning to stir. She looped an arm around his middle and helped to hoist him up to his feet.
"Well, she's gone now and we should—"
"Thank you." His own arm tightened around her body to keep himself up and she smiled softly, a light blush flushing in her cheeks. "If you weren't here—"
Giuliana placed a finger over his lips to silence him. "You saved my life, I saved yours. We're square."
His grin soon matched hers and for the first time, she actually noticed that he had dimples on his cheeks. Sure, she'd known him for quite some time, but she'd never seen them. Elijah was always a serious man who held his entire being together with all of his noble morals firmly in place, so it was rare to see a smile from him, but when it came out, it was like the sun was peeking out from behind clouds. Giuliana loved seeing him smile. She loved seeing him happy and she wanted nothing less for him.
"Well, if you two are finished." Rebekah grumbled as she came too and rose to her feet, making her brother and Giuliana distance themselves quite a bit. "I'm hungry."
"I'll go out to the streets and find someone." Giuliana offered. Anything to make Rebekah not see the blush on my cheeks, she thought before quickly turning on her heel and rushing out of the warehouse. Once the human was gone and out of earshot, Elijah turned on his little sister.
"You were working with Thierry when I asked you, no, implored you to cease these petty moves against our family. Is this what it's come to? Making moves against your own blood?" He growled at her, but she rounder right back on him.
"Don't you try and shame me." She seethed dangerously. "Nik grows more powerful by the day and you do nothing but encourage him."
"I offer him my counsel because it's clear to me that he needs to make the city our home." He gritted. "Now, perhaps leading these derelicts will curb some of these impulses; grant him some degree of happiness."
"You always talk of Nik's happiness. Over 1,000 years, he has robbed me of any chance at my own." Her voice was beginning to waver now as she spoke. She wanted so badly to be happy, but Klaus would never let it be. "What about me, Elijah? Am I not a concern for you?"
At his little sister's distress, Elijah calmed himself and took a few steps back. "We all make sacrifices in the name of this family, Rebekah, but know this. I will never stand against you or Niklaus."
"What about Giuliana?" She suddenly snapped, leaving her brother without a retort. "Nothing I conspire to do, none of my treachery will harm this family as much as your feelings for her. You're a hypocrite, Elijah. You would choose love over family and then condemn me for doing the same."
"Was it not earlier today that you were condemning me for giving up my own happiness?" He gritted through his teeth. "Because of this family, I have lost people who I will never get back. I am keeping Giuliana as far away from all of this as I can."
Rebekah's blue eyes hardened. "I was saying all of that before to make it seem like I had stopped conspiring against our family. Giuliana can make you happy and make you feel human, but I wonder, brother, what will happen when you have to choose between her and your family? Who will you choose?"
Again, Elijah was at a loss for words as Rebekah's question hung in the air. He would always be loyal to his family, there was no doubt about that, but Giuliana being in the equation complicated things. He would be lying if he told anyone that he didn't feel something for her. It was too obvious for people not to see, even his little sister could see that he was smitten and he was sure that Klaus could see it too. His confident demeanor was slowly coming down before his sister and she knew that if he had to make the choice, that it would be one hell of a difficult choice for him to make. She wasn't sure who he would choose, but she wasn't going to stand around and watch everything fall to pieces. After making her point, she sidestepped her brother, knocking against his shoulder as she went and scoffed about how she should have just gone to get her own meal instead of having someone go and get it for her.
Giuliana let out a sad sigh when Rebekah passed the crates she had ducked behind. She came back to tell the siblings that she couldn't find anyone on the streets for Rebekah, but when she heard World War III breaking out, she took cover behind a set of wooden crates to listen. She scolded herself for eavesdropping, but as the conversation grew closer to home, she found herself listening more intently. Her name being dropped made her want to jump out from where she was hiding, but she decided against it. When she heard Rebekah's final question, she held her breath as if to wait for Elijah to answer, but he never did. In his silence, she found herself wondering who Elijah would show his allegiance to. Would it be to his family who he'd been loyal to for over a century? Or would it be to this silly little human/witch who had managed to capture his attention? Whatever his choice, she didn't want him to forgo his loyalty to his family and she had a feeling that he never would. She couldn't exactly blame him. Why choose something as insignificant as a woman's affection rather than family? For someone like Elijah, family did seem like the most logical option. But secretly she did wish that he would choose her. Deep down, of course, and she swore that she would never reveal that wish to anyone. Not even Hayley, no matter how strong their friendship was.
Shaking her head of all thoughts, she stepped out from behind the crates, acting as if she had been looking for Elijah. He turned at the sound of her footsteps and his deflated form changed to that of the vampire she knew and lov—
"Hi." She greeted softly and he walked to meet her, adjusting the lapels of his jacket.
"I was beginning to worry that you had gotten lost." He noted nonchalantly.
"I came back to tell Rebekah that I couldn't find anyone." Playing dumb, she looked around the warehouse and scrunched up her nose. "I guess she didn't want to wait around."
Elijah shook his head. "No, I'm afraid not. You know how Rebekah is."
"I do." She nodded and inclined her head towards the exit. "How about we get out of here? This place is giving me the creeps."
A lopsided smile graced his lips and he chuckled softly. "Yes, let's go."
AN: Hello all! Here is another chapter to hold you guys over! What did you think? Of Audrey? Of Rebekah asking Elijah who he would choose? Of Giuliana's new use of magic? Of Elijah's and Giuliana's budding romance? Let me know in the reviews! They give me life and I LOVE hearing from all of you :)
AN2: I would like to apologize to the reviewers for the last two chapters for not replying to your reviews. I been in rehearsals/performances for a show that I am in, so that is taking up most of my time. It really came down to the fact that I just wanted to post the chapter quickly because I hate making you wait. Please know that I did not forget about your amazing comments and thoughtful questions. I read every single one of them and I thank you from the bottom of my heart! My last show is tonight, so once that is done, I will get get back to replying to reviews :)