Was anyone waiting for us to see more Elijah/Isolde? I have been. I think we've been a little too preoccupied with Klaus and Kol lately and Elijah's been feeling left out.
-22-
Mystic Falls
Elijah
Elijah hadn't been prepared.
He thought he'd understood the magnitude of his mate's title - of who she was.
Then the Shade were suddenly all around them with only one word from her, bowing in deference. Hundreds of people surrounded them in those woods, stretched out as far as he could see, every one of them on bended knees and facing Isolde.
'I'm wrong to think I understood anything at all,' he thought to himself as he listened to the Shade's response to learning Vera had been taken. His eyes hadn't left Isolde's back whilst she hovered above them, her brother beside her.
Elijah watched in fascination as Isolde commanded the people around her expertly - as she asked them if they would extend their aid to returning Vera to them.
The roar of the crowd, ready and more than willing to fight to the death to get the 'high priestess' back, drowned out the crack of thunder above them as Isolde lowered herself and her brother back to the ground.
Theon said something that made Isolde stop in her tracks with wide eyes. Then she turned to the Hidden who were situated right in front of her and rubbed her hands down her face with a small groan before addressing the one in front of her- the one she had called Nailah. Elijah took a few steps closer, trying to hear what was said and offer his assistance. Niklaus moved with him, seemingly interested in the situation himself.
"... await further instruction. No more than two days. I have to get into contact with Pharaoh before we proceed."
Elijah took a few more steps forward, suddenly feeling quite useless and culpable in the scope of things.
His mind began to spiral.
It was the Mikaelsons fault that Vera had gone to New Orleans. And, if what he overheard of what Bonnie said while he was trying to meet his elder sister, New Orleans and its current state was a product of his family's lack of intervention as well.
"I need to see to the Incubi." Theon was saying as Kol also fell into step with his brothers, coming to a stop beside the two Alexanders. "... and I'll need to speak with TUMAINI, let them know what's going on. They'll want to help. I'll tend to all that - you talk to Emeric."
Isolde rolled her eyes. "Leave me with the harder obligation."
Theon flashed a strained, uncomfortable looking grin as Rebekah appeared by his side, he held out his hand to her and she took it - smoothing a hand down his back. Some of his tension eased, Elijah noted. "I'll deal with logistics if you deal with the big bad older brother who's quite likely spitting fire because no one has answered his calls."
"I'd rather deal with the logistics of mobilizing our combined forces." Isolde waved a hand at him. "Go on, do your thing. I'll call Emeric," she looked back at the Hidden in front of her, "you're all to defer to Emperor Theon's plans until you hear otherwise from me. You're dismissed for now, get some rest but be ready to move at a moment's notice."
The Hidden and the Shade disappeared, completely gone as though they'd never been there, within seconds of Isolde's command.
Theon turned to leave then hesitated, looking at his elder sister. From what Elijah had observed in the last few minutes it seemed like Theon and Isolde didn't want to be apart from one another.
With one sibling currently prisoner to the vampires of New Orleans and another not on this continent it made sense for the two that were together to want to cling to each other. Elijah knew the feeling.
Yet, duty and obligation beckoned them both and Theon looked torn about it. More so than Isolde did. Or perhaps she was simply better at covering it.
Isolde ignored her brother's hesitation and addressed Rebekah instead. "Look after him, will you?"
His sister's hand tightened ever so slightly over her mate's and she nodded with an understanding smile. "I will."
And then they were gone.
"I'm going to take Freya home." Finn spoke hesitantly from behind Elijah, and Elijah startled - he'd almost forgotten Finn and Freya were behind him. He hadn't gotten a chance to introduce himself, either.
That would have to wait, now, he supposed.
Isolde turned to view them all for the first time since she'd addressed the Shade. Elijah was almost convinced she'd forgotten about them. It was as though they'd been deranked on her priority list the moment she heard Vera had been taken.
"Of course," she waved at him, mind clearly occupied elsewhere, "it was a pleasure meeting you Freya."
He couldn't blame her for her reaction. His family had yet to do anything to inspire confidence in their ability to be of aide to her.
Meanwhile she had destroyed their enemies, prevented their deaths at least twice, and got rid of the only means to keep them subdued. That's without mentioning the changes that were occurring within his family and how they were becoming closer and getting along better by the day with Isolde's influence and strategic interventions.
So yes, he understood her inclination to handle things without them, to deranking them on her priority list.
At the same time he wanted to ensure that, instead of leaving them out of her plans when things go awry, she utilizes their combined strength and trusts them to help her. Because it grated against something primal inside of him that her first reaction wasn't to start involving them in whatever plans her and Theon began concocting.
That's what he really wanted, Elijah realized. He was a caregiver at heart, something he'd come to terms with centuries ago. He wanted his relationship with Isolde to be carved out and defined, true. But more than that he realized that he wanted to be needed by her.
He wanted to be someone she trusted to come to with her problems, whatever they be. Tedious or monumentous. As needed. He wanted to be that person she could trust completely with absolutely anything and it seemed they had quite a long way to go before they got to that point.
But he wanted that. So he would do what he could to begin establishing their relationship. As Theon had said just an hour ago; 'She won't insert herself into your day to day life unless you make it a habit to insert yourself in hers. Isolde doesn't chase."
Kol had chased. Niklaus had been doing what amounted to a strange cat and mouse sort of chase with Niklaus playing both cat and mouse. Both younger brothers had progressed their relationships with Isolde while Elijah and Finn were stagnating.
So, Elijah decided it was time for him to chase as Finn directed their elder sister and began to leave.
"Nikalus, Kol, please help Finn get Freya home." Elijah said, stepping up to put himself beside Isolde as she pulled her phone from her back pocket, frowning at the shattered screen.
"Finn can get Freya home on his own." Kol shot back, glaring at Elijah.
"I must've missed the moment where we all decided to put you in charge." Niklaus huffed, crossing his arms.
Elijah leveled a look at them both. "Need I remind you that our mother is locked in that house. Our mother, who allowed Freya to be taken by Dahlia? I imagine their reunion will be quite the spectacle, something neither of you would want to miss by any means."
The two younger brothers hesitated a moment.
Isolde started to walk away without glancing back at any of them.
"Where are you heading off too, angel?" Kol called out, falling into step with her. Elijah and Niklaus bringing up the rear.
Isolde was still swiping her fingers over her broken phone screen, grumbling under her breath to herself and utterly ignoring her bonds in the meantime. Niklaus reached over and pulled the rectangle from her hands.
Isolde's arm snapped out and grabbed the object back faster than Niklaus had time to react. By the hybrid's slightly wide eyes Elijah assumed his brother hadn't expected her to react so quickly.
"Excuse you, Klaus, I'm trying to get that wretched contraption to work even though it's now shattered so I can call my brother and get shit worked out so we can rescue Vera. It's a level four emergency - this isn't the time for games."
"You'll have to excuse us for not understanding, sweetheart, you're truly immortal, are you not?" Niklaus asked, his tone was curious - not rude or taunting and Isolde relaxed a fraction.
"Of course," she sighed sliding the phone back in her pocket and giving up on it, "but that doesn't mean torture doesn't hurt. And Vera has no doubt willingly subjected herself to it."
"I don't understand why." Kol began, as they all headed back towards Isolde's home at a human pace. "Push, that's what Theon called it. Why couldn't she also have come through?"
"She could have." Isolde shrugged. At all of their looks she huffed. "She could have but there are several reasons why she would decide not to," Isolde held up one finger, "the vampires of the French Quarter are out of control with power and upsetting the natural balance and/or are behaving unjustly. Ma'at is firmly against injustices and disorder, especially if it's supernatural beings lording themselves over mortals." She held up a second finger. "The witches are practicing some really dark shit. Something that goes against the natural order in such a way that she couldn't turn a blind eye to. Again, Ma'at is firmly against injustices and disorder."
Elijah wondered how in the world his family was going to get along with Vera in the long term with her being so concerned about injustice and disorder.
All their lives had been chaos and injustice. He wasn't sure any of them knew how to operate without it.
Isolde was oblivious to Elijah's internal struggle and held up a third finger. "She found her soul bond, who was vulnerable after however long she was trapped and asleep. Vera wouldn't want to jeopardize Freya's safety, especially when your sister is already not at full capacity. Even if they weren't bonded, Vera would send the vulnerable away and subject herself to whatever lay ahead first," Isolde held up a fourth finger, "or perhaps she wanted to do more reconnaissance, because something is up in NOLA and she hadn't had enough time to figure out exactly what it was before she found Freya, so she had to send her newfound soul bond away to safety before exploring. Of course, it could be any combination of these."
"I see," Kol said, moving in front of Isolde and walking backwards, "by the way, I thought you said you'd not experienced shared physical reactions with any bond before."
Her eyebrows knit together for a moment at the change in subject before she seemed to realize what Kol was referring too.
"Oh- that. How did we all know one of us was hurt? I was talking about soul bonds before." She replied. "What my brothers and I just felt had nothing to do with the soul."
"What was it, then?" Elijah interjected, reminding everyone that he was still there.
They'd been ignoring him quite a lot lately. It was beginning to grate.
"Our blood bond." Isolde smiled at him, and he felt marginally better with her attention on him. He'd think over the implications of that later on. "Mother linked us by the blood when we were young immortals. I suspect that was around the time she decided she would return to Geb and reabsorb herself back into the Consciousness."
"Your mother did what?" Niklaus asked with raised brows.
"Which part is throwing you?" Isolde asked, and just like that her attention was on Niklaus. Elijah was getting dangerously close to losing his temper.
He'd given them both their alone time with their mate and yet they are blatantly impeding on his time.
"Both." Niklaus responded, the same time Kol said, "Reabsorbed herself."
"The blood link is exactly what it sounds like. She linked us to each other, kind of the same way Esther had planned for you, but for less sinister purposes. She wanted us to be connected so we knew if one of us was in trouble. That's all." She waved her hand, nearly tripping on a large fallen branch and it was Elijah's hand that snapped out to catch her.
She smiled at him as he helped her right herself and he didn't release her hand as they continued walking. At least this way he had something to connect himself to her.
"So a few years after the blood bond was created, before Apophis returned and we defeated him ourselves for the first time, mother returned to The Consciousness. Her mortal body died as her soul left it and we laid her to rest. At that point, Father had long since taken Anubis to the underworld with him and Aunt Isis had followed them. Mother left and Set was the only one among us. Still today Set is the only one left of the original four who walks the earth."
This seemed to bother Niklaus and the hybrid's voice was dangerously low when he spoke. "Set still exists?" He asked, and Isolde threw a look over her shoulder at him that Elijah couldn't begin to decipher.
"He doesn't come around unless there are warning signs of Apophis' imminent arrival." She squeezed Elijah's hand and he wondered if that was her way of reassuring herself of something or if she was asking for his help. He decided it was the latter when next she spoke: "Anyway, shouldn't you two be going?"
"I'm having far more fun here, thank you." Kol said with a sly grin, still walking backwards and narrowly avoiding trees as Isolde's house came into view.
Elijah threw his brothers a look over the top of Isolde's head. One that promised all kinds of retribution.
"Well I, for one, would like to see the drama that will unfold when our eldest sibling is reunited with our mother." Niklaus said after a moment, meeting Elijah's threatening look with an arrogant half grin of his own. Like leaving Elijah with Isolde was a favor the hybrid was extending to his elder brother. "Wouldn't you, Kol?"
Kol looked like he honestly didn't care. But one more glance at Elijah and he rolled his eyes and stopped walking backwards as everyone else stopped walking, too. "I suppose it will be quite the spectacle." He stepped forward and cupped Isolde's face with his hands, leaning forward with assurance and confidence that had Elijah gritting his teeth in jealousy he was trying valiantly to supress, and brushed his lips over Isolde's. "Call me if I'm needed."
"Phone's broken," she mumbled as he pulled away.
"Hand it over, then." Klaus said, extending his hand. "We'll get it repaired for you and bring it by when things get settled at the manor."
Both Elijah's younger brothers were gone after Isolde slid her phone into Niklaus' waiting hand and they were finally - finally - alone.
"I still need to call Emeric but I don't have a landline anymore and the longer it takes to call him back the more worried he's going to be…"
Elijah cut her off as he felt her anxieties about her elder brother rising. "You're welcome to use mine."
She glanced over at him as he slid her back door open and gestured for her to enter, dropping her hand. "Are you sure about that? He'll have your number - don't think for a second he won't use it."
"Should I be concerned?" Elijah raised his brow as he followed her into the kitchen.
"Probably." Isolde admitted, pulling the coffee pot forward and beginning to get things together to brew a pot.
Elijah smiled at the sight. One thing he was already quite certain of with all the Alexanders. Their first reaction to anything was to get a pot of fresh coffee brewing. In this, they were consistent.
"Enlighten me. What should I look out for?" He leaned past Isolde to slide his phone onto the counter beside her and closed the distance between him and the refrigerator, looking for anything he could make for Isolde. He wasn't sure she'd eaten anything and her anxieties were starting to give him anxieties he hadn't previously had.
He had known he should be concerned about the inevitable meeting between his brothers and Isolde's eldest sibling. And he had been, marginally.
Elijah had been more angry over how much he'd learned about how the eldest Alexander treated Isolde, and the conversation that he'd like to have with Emeric when they met, than he'd been concerned over actually meeting the man.
Isolde hummed, leaning back against the counter and watching him put together a bowl of assorted fruit and cheeses while the pot began to drip and the smell of coffee filled the room.
. "It's hard to look out for anything with Emeric, really. He can be literally anyone at any moment. He can be a random person sitting near you eavesdropping in a bar - or the person you decide to take as your next meal. He's almost as good at spying as I am."
Elijah slid the bowl down the countertops to Isolde and began putting away all the things he'd retrieved from the fridge as she began snacking absentmindedly with a mumbled 'thank you.' "And?" He pressed.
"When he is himself… that's an entirely different game. Half the things he says will have double meanings and he just wants to see what your response will be. He's doing it to test you. Regardless of the response, he'll probably make you feel it was the wrong one even if he approves of it."
Elijah pulled two mugs out of the cupboard, making a non committal noise so she would continue on.
"I'm fairly certain he won't try to kill you." She said as Elijah came to stand right in front of Isolde, placing the mugs down on either side of her. "Not with Theon and Vera also bound to your family."
"I'm not afraid of him." He stated simply, lowering his tone into a more sultry baritone, bracing his hands on either side of her against the counter. Effectively boxing her in and he watched her eyes dilate as she took in the position they were now in. "Nor are my brothers. Emeric won't get between us and you, we will not allow it."
She swallowed, hard, and if he'd had any question that she was attracted to him it would be answered now - as she looked up at him with so much desire written in those impossibly green eyes.
He let himself lean forward until his chest just lightly brushed against hers and leaned forward until their noses were almost touching. He let his eyes travel down to her lips and back up. He heard and felt her heartbeat increase. Her hand wrapped around his tie and her grape-sweetened breath ghost over his face.
Elijah, recognizing that Isolde would get a stiff neck in this position, leaned down to grab her thighs - a move that pulled her flush to his body in the most delicious way. "If I may," he whispered and her body trembled in a way that lit his insides on fire as he easily lifted her so she could sit on the counter, now level with him. "I'd like to declare my intentions."
Isolde moved backwards slightly, creating a small amount of distance between them that Elijah did not appreciate. He tutted quietly and wrapped a hand around her back, the one at her thigh sliding up to her hip and pulling her forward so she was once again flush with him. His hand at her back slid into her hair and began dismantling the floral braid that was there.
Elijah much preferred Isolde's hair wild and free like the woman herself.
"Declare away, then." Isolde whispered, eyes roving over his face as his fingers carded through her hair and little wildflowers spilled over the counter and onto the floor.
"It has come to my attention that I haven't given you the indication that I want any more from this bond than the most basic of friendship." He managed to shake the last of the flowers from her hair and let his fingers ghost over the back of her neck. He slid them around to her cheek, delighted in the shiver that ran through her body and the way she leaned into his touch. "I aim to rectify that now."
He wanted to kiss her.
He'd thought about it every day that week. Since the night they met. Every waking moment and, to his endless torment, whilst he slept.
So now he leaned forward and tilted her head just enough and he couldn't tell if he lowered to her or if she surged up to meet him.
Their lips connected and he felt possessed by a ravenous hunger so unlike anything he'd yet experienced in a thousand years.
Her kiss sent a jolt of adrenaline through his body that made him close whatever miniscule distance was left between them. He pushed the bowls and the coffee mugs away from them as her tongue darted out and he relented immediately, desperate to taste her and he groaned when he learned how exquisite she was.
Not that he had any doubts.
He pulled away, leaning his forehead against hers. Both of them breathing heavily with racing hearts. It was Isolde who broke the silence. "Quite a way with words."
Elijah chuckled, pulling back and tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. His thumb stroked her cheek. Still, he felt one kiss wasn't declaration enough and he needed to make his point abundantly clear. So there was no misinterpreting him. "I intend for us to develop our bond to its fullest extent. I intend to court you."
He was rewarded with an impossibly bright smile, her hands sliding into his hair and dragging him back to her for another kiss that was just long enough to excite him once more before she cut it short. "I want to develop our bond as well. Might want to consider 'dating' instead of courting, though. Courting implies antiquated ideals that mean having to negotiate my dowry with my brother. We don't exactly do that anymore and even if we did I don't think you'd like how he negotiates." She pushed one hand against his chest lightly with a laugh and he stepped away, reaching down to grasp her hand and help her down. "And I definitely want to continue this," She gestured between them, "But speaking of my brother, I really do have to call him before he does something rash."
"Of course," Elijah lifted her hand to his lips, "my phone is right beside you. Feel free to use it, I'll get you your coffee."
Clearly emboldened by his declarations, Isolde leaned up and pressed a kiss to him that he returned eagerly.
It surprised him how easily she fell into accepting his pursuit. Every person he'd ever gotten romantically entangled with had been far more complex. He'd prepared for a much longer journey to get to this point.
Elijah supposed he should have expected this. Thus far everything with Isolde was very little effort. Easy. Like breathing.
That begged the question. Was it because of the bond? Or was it just because Isolde herself was uncomplicated?
Perhaps uncomplicated was the wrong word, because she came with many complexities. More so than any other he'd been involved in. But Isolde made those things not matter. Or at least not matter as much as they could.
He was deeply immersed in his line of thought while Isolde had turned away from him and seated herself at the kitchen table, dialing a number on his phone.
The line only rang once before a deep voice, quite incensed, came over the line.
'Yes?'
"It's me." Isolde said, pulling a napkin out of the holder on the table and unfolding it.
A deep sign was released on the other end of the phone as Elijah brought a steaming mug to Isolde and set it down beside the napkin she was now folding into a complex pattern.
'I'm glad you're alright.' Emeric said on the end of an exhale, and he sounded sincere. Elijah had to restrain himself from quirking a brow at that. That wasn't at all the impression he'd gotten of how the eldest Alexander treated his siblings. Elijah was expecting more of a Niklaus type response. Anger and accusation. 'What happened?'
Isolde had just finished a crease in the napkin and she frowned deeply, causing a little V to crinkle between her eyebrows. "How much do you already know of what's been going on over here? I'm not asking to start a fight, I just need to know where to start my explanation."
'I was just recently informed that you and Theon have somehow gotten yourselves entangled with the Mikaelsons.' Elijah could hear the judgment in the man's voice and he clenched his jaw. Clearly, Emeric had ideas about Elijah's family. Not all of them unwarranted, he imagined, but he would have to work very hard to change the elder's perspective. If it were at all possible, and if Niklaus and Kol didn't undermine all his efforts right away. 'To what degree remains a mystery.'
"Soul bonds." Isolde said, meeting Elijah's eyes with an encouraging smile even as Emeric growled over the line. "Theon and Vera as well."
The growling stopped. 'All of you?'
"Yep," Isolde popped the 'p' and looked back down at her origami napkin, "Me and the four brothers. Theon to the youngest sister. And now Vera to the oldest sister."
There was silence for an uncomfortable length of time before Emeric spoke again. 'Alright.' Elijah was under no impression that anything was indeed alright, even if the man said the word. It had more of a 'we'll talk about this later' undertone. 'So tell me what happened?'
With that, Isolde launched into a retelling of the last few days. Emeric added a scathing comment here and there that had Isolde folding the napkin even more slowly and precisely. Elijah was starting to realize that the napkin was how she was managing the conversation with Emeric. Like a coping mechanism, a distraction. Something that was keeping her calm.
"... and then the pain we all felt? Vera sent her new soul bond, Freya Mikaelson, and her newest understudy directly to me and gave herself up to the vampires of New Orleans. She called for level four code green. We've all read those reports…" she trailed off.
'Where's Theon?' Emeric practically growled.
"Logistics. Moving the Shade, Incubi, and Vera's people so we can make our move. I didn't ask him but the way he's acting he wants to exercise a show of force. This is the first time someone's overstepped with one of us in more than a millenia. I'm sure he wants to ensure it doesn't happen again anytime soon."
'And it's time for the Vampires to learn.' Emeric said, and Elijah pursed his lips.
It was becoming increasingly bothersome to him that he and his family had been kept out of the loop and deemed as untrustworthy without having been given the opportunity to prove that themselves. They couldn't make proper decisions without all the variables, after all, and life changing information had been withheld from them for a thousand years.
Elijah thought it unfair to hold his race to a standard and expect them to meet it without having had the tools to do so. Another topic of discussion to be had when he was finally able to meet Emeric Alexander in person.
"It's not just the vampires, Em. It's the ancestral witches and most of the shifter packs, especially the wolves." Isolde bit her lip at Emeric's utter silence and unraveled the napkin she just folded, accidentally tearing it. She grimaced and pulled a new one out of the holder, unfolding it. "I've been on vacation for decades, I understand my lack of involvement has created a strain on our system. I'm returning home soon and I'll get the Shade back on track. But it seems to me as though other parts of the system are becoming brittle. We need to reinforce those areas or we're going to have problems, and soon."
'We'll schedule a round table as soon as possible. For now, since this is an emergency situation. Call Missy and Paul - they're currently located in Texas. Ask them to meet us outside of the city in two days.'
"Do we need them?" Isolde asked, eyebrows raising and her fingers tearing into the new napkin.
No longer able to stand the sight of Isolde unraveling right in front of him, Elijah reached over and grasped her hand in between his and she looked up at him with wide eyes that softened almost immediately. She tightened her grip on his hand.
'No, but it'll be a far grander display if we use them. If that's what Theon wants. More than showing the world that just because we've been quiet lately doesn't mean it is permissible to take liberties, there's also the Mikaelsons to consider. Because they have made more enemies in a thousand years than we could make in a million we're going to need the show of force to send a message to their enemies as well as our own.'
Elijah raised his brow at that.
So Emeric was already planning to accommodate Elijah's family's entrance into the Alexanders lives, just like that?
He didn't quite buy that. Not from everything he'd learned about the man. Emeric Alexander was a tactician. If anything, the elder immortal just wanted his sister to think he was accepting.
Isolde narrowed her eyes just slightly, which made Elijah think that she might have seen right through it. "I can see your point. Calling them is on Theon then. You know Paul won't agree to help if I'm the one asking."
'Shouldn't have set him on fire that time in Athens.' Emeric taunted, the conversation taking a slightly lighter tone now.
"Deserved it." Isolde scoffed with an eye roll and her hand started to relax in his grip. Elijah's brow quirked, interested in the story behind that.
'In any case,' Emeric started, 'they'll help so long as you're not the one asking. And I'm about to be in the air - headed to D.C.'
"Going from there to New Orleans or do you want us to meet you?"
'Meet me, we'll take the jet from D.C. to New Orleans,' Emeric's voice took on an airy quality, much like Niklaus does when he wants everyone to think he's innocent, 'and bring your bonds with you. I'd like to have a word with them.'