My phone ringing wakes me up. My heart lurches to my throat, nothing good is going to come from this. It's Caroline.
"Hello?" I say. "Ari-" Care's voice breaks off as she starts. "Care! What's wrong?" I ask, getting out of bed. "It's- it's dad. He's gone." She sobs. I sit on my bed, we haven't talked in a while. Does she want me there? "I'm so sorry. I... should I come over?" I ask her. "Please, I can't- I don't know what happened." Care gets out. "I'll be there in 10. Just... hang on." I say but she doesn't say anything, only cries. I don't bother changing before I head downstairs.
I leave in my car after letting Ares know where I was. I reach Caroline's home to find her sitting on the stairs with Elena. I hesitate only a moment before getting out. Elena turns to stare at me but Care jumps up and comes to hug me. "Hey," I whispered. "He won't turn. He would rather leave me." Care says. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." I say. Her arms tighten as she cries. "What do I do?" She asks. "Spend his last moments with him. That's all you can do." I tell her. She pulls back to stare at me. "What?" She bites out. "Car- Caroline, you can't force him to change. It's not your decision." I explain. "Why? I want him- I need him to stay." Care screams. "Doesn't matter. Care, even if you can convince him, with emotional blackmail or whatever, he'll resent you, resent himself, then what? Either you'll have to kill him or he'll do it himself. Let him go peacefully. Stay with him. Say your goodbyes while you have the chance." I tell her. "That's it? You can't do anything?" She asks, her voice only a whisper. "Even if I could, there's no guarantee it wouldn't affect him. That kind of magic, it comes at a price." I explain. She nods and sits back down beside Elena who is still staring at me like a creep.
Matt and Tyler come up from Matt's car and they hug Caroline as she cries. I don't know what to do. I sit on the porch and Tyler sits next to me. "Hey." I greet him. "Hey, how are you?" He asks. "I'm fine. How have you been doing... you know, with the whole hybrid thing?" I ask. "Alright. It's... well it's easier than turning with so much pain. It's hard to deal with the cravings sometimes but, I'm managing! Caroline said it'll get easier so did Klaus, so I'm hoping it's soon." Tyler says. "And how's things with Klaus? Is he being a dick?" I ask. "No, he's being... fine. He's not a complete dick but he can be pretty... domineering." Tyler says, unsurely. "That's good," I say. "Look, it's just-" He cuts himself off with a frustrated sigh. "What?" I ask, nudging him with my shoulder. "It's Mason, he wants to turn too," Tyler says, his voice a whisper. He keeps glancing at Elena. Ah, I guess my sister doesn't approve. "I'll ask. I'm sure it won't be a problem." I whisper back.
I stay with them until Care decides to go say goodbye, to let her dad have the peace he wants. Matt, Tyler, and Elena head to wherever and I decide to head back too. I meet Liz once before leaving, she doesn't seem sad, just resigned. I can't imagine she'd make a different choice in the same position. No matter how awful it seems, being forced into a life you don't want is not fun. I leave after finding Care sitting with her father.
"So, she's alive?" Natalie asks for the fifth time. "Yes," Ares says. "And she wants to let bygones be bygones?" Adam confirms. "Yup." Ares agrees. "Do we actually believe her?" Arya asks. "Of course not. Even Rebekah is suspicious. Either way, we're meeting them for breakfast." Ares says. "Ugh, why?" Ezra groans. "Come on. Don't make me do this alone." Ares begs. "I'll go with you," I tell him. He stares at me and then turns back towards everyone else. "Who else thinks that Elle will piss off the Original Witch?" He asks. "Pretty sure she'd do it in under a minute," Ezra says. "What? I wouldn't!" I disagree. "You would. You don't like her and you make it pretty obvious when you don't like someone." Adam says.
I would argue but it's true, I'd probably aggravate her just for fun. "Fine, whatever. Let's just go. Who is coming?" I ask. "I will. Gotta make a good first impression." Ezra says sarcastically. "I'll go too," Natalie says. "And me," Adam says. "Great, we'll leave in 5 minutes," Ares says.
"I wonder if she's homophobic," I say after Ares heads to his room. "What?" Felix exclaims. "Just... you know, she's from different millennia altogether, so, just wondering," I explain. "I mean. Probably." Ezra shrugs. "You think she'll try to break them up?" Arya asks. "She's probably going to try and kill them, I don't see why she'd bother trying to break them up," Adam says. "Will she... I mean if she tries to kill them, will we even be able to do anything?" Natalie questions. "If we know her plan, most definitely. Noah is a thousand years old, Ares has a lot of experience too, I know a lot about magic, and Elle, uh, she can..." Ezra trails off. "Thanks." I deadpan. "Uh, I mean. Elle!" He exclaims as I leave.
We drive to Klaus' mansion in utter silence. Everyone seems to be in an awkward tense mood. The house looks... complete and there are already fewer hybrids here. There are a few around the property but they seem to be doing their own thing. We head in and Noah is waiting for us in the foyer. "Hey. Just, we'll eat and leave." Noah says. "Really? No fights?" I ask him jokingly. He gives me a deadpan look and I raise my hands in surrender. "Let's just go." He says and walks away. Ares gives me a look and I just shrug.
We head to the dining area where all the Mikaelsons are already sitting. Esther, their mother sits at the head of the table, Finn, the oldest sits to her right and Elijah to her left. Rebekah and Kol are next to Finn while Klaus is sitting next to Elijah, drinking, undoubtedly, whisky. Noah sits next to Klaus and Ares next to him. Which leaves exactly four seats, one of them the exact opposite of Esther. Fun. I head to the seat opposite of her and I can feel everyone's sigh. Klaus almost looks amused while Rebekah seems a hairbreadth away from killing, who I assume is Kol. The others take their seats and Esther smiles at us. Natalie smiles back and greets her. "Hi Mrs. Mikaelson, thank you for having us over!" She exclaims. Her voice is full of fake cheer, it's pretty obvious to us but Esther seems pleased. "The pleasure is mine. I'm glad Henrik has found people to care for and who care for him." At that, I roll my eyes. That was such an obvious jab. "And here I thought you cared for him before he turned," I say politely. This time I definitely hear Ezra sigh next to me. Esther loses her smile for a few seconds before she fakes a laugh and gestures to the servers. "Let's eat and talk," Esther says.
The food looks alright, though I can't help but think she probably poisoned it. That would be counterproductive to her act though. Everyone takes a bite out of their food, Adam seems disappointed with the taste, which is fair, and so am I. It's quite bland for eggs and bacon. "So, Ares, how did you meet Henrik?" Esther questions. "Ah, uhm, we met when I left New Orleans," Ares says, looking toward Noah and they share a smile. "It's the cutest story ever." Natalie gushes, clearly noticing Ares' discomfort at sharing more. "For Noah, it was definitely love at first sight. It was so cute, Ares definitely fell harder though, we assume. After all, he's still here." She continues. Rebekah seems to be nodding along, she was quite interested in the story too. Esther though seems disappointed, she was hoping for something more or at least different. "You must be quite... determined to have your family back if you've forgiven Klaus and asked Henrik for his forgiveness. I'm sure it was appreciated." I say before Natalie can continue.
I know for a fact she hasn't apologized to Noah and has made it seem like Klaus and Noah were the ones at fault in it all. She stares at me, expression closed off but her grip on her utensils is tight. "My apologies, I think I misheard you. Would you mind repeating that?" Esther asks. "Of course! I said I was impressed by your willingness to apologize and your capacity to forgive. It's very... inspirational. You know what they say, a mother's love knows no bounds." I elaborate. She smiles tightly, her expression as fake as can be, and agrees with me. "I'm happy you forgave her Noah, after all, hatred begets hatred," I say as I stare straight at Esther. Okay, maybe I just want to piss her off. She doesn't even have the decency to try this plan of hers well enough, she's putting in the bare minimum and hoping others will just blindly accept it. Her eyebrows twitch while her frown deepens. "I don't know what you're implying here, but it's quite disrespectful to insult someone in their house," Esther says sternly. "I haven't insulted Klaus at all actually. And I wasn't trying to imply anything, I was outright pointing out that you haven't apologized to my friend, your son, for trying to kill him." I tell her sweetly, mimicking Natalie's tone.
Everyone has stopped eating, the siblings mostly look amused, while Finn looks murderous. The others plus Ares look exasperated. Though they most definitely agree with me, they seem to want to ignore the problem until it becomes a Problem. "What happens within my family is no business of yours, but, if you must know, I haven't found the right words quite yet. I was also hoping for more privacy to talk to Henrik." Esther exclaims through gritted teeth and a sodden expression. "Noah is my family too, much more than he is yours, after all, I've never tried to kill him. And I do believe the words you are looking for are 'I'm sorry, I was a terrible mother and it only got worse as you grew. I cursed you with an atrocious father then to eternity only to then decide that it was not what I wanted for you and death would be better, it had nothing to do with you of course! It was all on me.' You could at least start with that." I tell her, my voice reflecting nothing but sweet contempt. It seems to piss her off more and Ares looks amused too. Though Noah looks a little worried.
The tense silence is only broken by Finn who rushes towards me but surprisingly, Klaus intercepts him and throws him on the floor. I smile at Esther who seems to be more pissed off now, at both of them. Well, I'm sure she's pissed at me too, but I don't particularly care. "Niklaus!" Esther shouts, her voice lashing out like an order. Klaus only shrugs and picks his drink from the table. He sits back down while Finn stays pinned to the ground thanks to Ezra, who's not even looking at him. "Let him go," Esther orders, but she's looking at Ares instead of Ezra. Granted, Ares is staring at Finn, but he's not holding the spell. "Once you make sure your son behaves, I will," Ezra tells her. She turns to stare at him and I can see her seething in anger. He just sips his coffee and raises an eyebrow. "Finn, you shouldn't attack our guests, no matter how disrespectful they are," Esther says, staring at me. I just give her a smile and wave. "You will sit back down, and we will talk like civilized people." She continues, this time looking at Finn, who reluctantly nods. Ezra lets him go and eats his food. I take a sip of my coffee and bump my heel against his leg in thanks. He smiles slightly and nods.
The rest of breakfast is filled with conversation as bland as the food, Esther pretends I didn't say anything and after a warning look from both Noah and Elijah, I decide to let it be. I had my fun, but it's counterproductive to piss her off more than necessary. I just wanted to get under her skin, let her know she's not going to have it easy and it's done if the looks she keeps sending at Ezra and me are any indication.
We head back home after breakfast, Noah and Ares staying at the mansion for the morning. Once we're out of the driveway, Adam laughs, "That was great! Did you see her face? Priceless." He says. "I can't believe you angered the Original Witch within five minutes flat. And pissed off the oldest Mikaelson too." Ezra exclaims. "Yeah, what the hell Elle! And don't you dare encourage her Adam?" Natalie exclaims. "Oh please, you know you were amused too. And that I'm right." I say to her. "It doesn't matter. What if she tries to hurt you?" Natalie asks. I shrug, "It's not like I can die, like actually die." I tell her, which just pisses her off. She sets off on an angry rant about being stupid and suicidal. Adam agrees with her on that but Ezra seems to lean towards me. "Alright, jeez. I'm not meeting her again, Nat, chill. I promise not to anger her even if I do." I tell her once I've had enough. She can go on for hours if she's passionate enough, it's cute but I'm definitely not in the mood right now.
We reach home and the others immediately ask what happened. Natalie, who is still keyed up, starts animatedly retelling the events, her hands gesturing wildly while her expressions relay contempt. Arya shoots me a look when Natalie tells her what I said but Felix seems disinclined to be angry at me or afraid of Esther. I roll my eyes and head to my room. I get straight to working on the grimoires, we'll probably need it soon. Arya finds me in the study again and silently helps me.
"Not going to say anything?" I ask her. "Like what? Everyone already knew what you would do, besides, she had it coming." Arya says. "True." I agree. We work silently and occasionally she shows me a spell she thinks is interesting.
"Do you think this town is cursed? I mean, I practically spent my entire life in shitty situations and then supernatural shit, yet, this is the most adventurous of my years." Arya wonders. "Maybe. It could be an actual curse, they were pissing off people left and right back in the 1800s. And they burned a lot of women during the witch hysteria. Maybe one of them was a witch and she cursed the town. And Mystic Falls has not known peace since." I finish melodramatically with a few sparks. Arya chuckles but seems to consider it might have been true. "It could be true, couldn't it?" She asks. "I guess. Doesn't matter, just bear this year and we're out." I say. "True. Just one more year. Maybe we can finally take a breather after this year." Arya agrees.
It's mid-afternoon when Ares and Noah return. Everyone gathers in the living room to hear what else happened. "So, what happened? Did she do anything? Say anything?" Felix, surprisingly, bursts out. "She had a few comments about Elle," Noah says giving me a disapproving look. "Other than that it was mostly about how she's really looking forward to being a family again. And, she's throwing a ball!" Ares finishes with a fake cheer. "A ball!?" Natalie exclaims. "Yeah, announce our arrival or something," Noah states. "Fun! Really looking forward to it." Ezra says sarcastically. "No one can. It's probably only a distraction." I mutter. "Yeah, probably. I suppose everyone is going, then, keeping an eye on her." Adam says. I hear him mutter something about the dagger, but he leaves before I can question him. I look at Noah and he just sighs. I guess we're all going.
It's an hour before the doorbell rings, everyone is in their rooms trying to see if they need to go shopping. I thankfully don't have to go because my wardrobe is already full of dresses. I head to the door and no one is there. There's a package at the door. I pick it up and bring it to the coffee table. There's no note on top, but the box looks expensive. Maybe it's Ares' or Noah's, those two have all kinds of packages delivered all the time. Ares comes out of Arya's room, "Hey, who was that?" He asks. "Just a package," I say, showing him the box. He looks excited. "Open it." He orders. "Is it not yours?" I ask him confused. "Nope. Just open it." He says impatiently. "Geez, fine," I mutter. I open the box to find a dress. I give Ares a look and he sighs, frustrated. "It's not from me." He enunciates. I roll my eyes but look back at the box. There's a note on top, I pick it up and open it.
Dear Arielle,
I hope you like the dress and will give me the pleasure of joining me for a dance this evening.
Fondly,
Elijah.
I stare at the note speechless. Ares snaps his fingers in front of my face. "Well?" He asks when I look at him. No wonder he didn't say I had to get something new, what a jerk. "I... I don't know." I say, exasperated. "Do you like him?" Ares questions. "I guess? I mean..." I trail off with a sigh. "I mean, he's nice but he's- he's him!" I exclaim. Ares stares at me like I've lost my mind. "I don't know how to explain it!" I rush out. Noah comes through the backdoor and sits down on my other side. "Oh, he sent it." He says, relieved. "Yes, and Elle doesn't know how she feels," Ares tells him. "I know how I feel!" I proclaim. They both stare at me with raised eyebrows.
"I like him, it's just hard," I explain. I sigh and put the note back. "It's already hard enough, with you and my sister and Klaus! It just feels like I'll always be stuck between a rock and a hard place. You know?" I try to explain. Noah sighs but nods while Ares rolls his eyes. "So? It'll be fine, just like you and Noah are fine. If you like him, go for it. Don't lose yourself to what ifs, that's stupid." Ares exclaims. "Thanks," I say sarcastically but I can admit he's right, it should be fine. It's just one dance, one date? "Is this... like- ugh. Is this a date or?" I ask Noah. "He likes you, he definitely wants a date but I think this is not something he would want as a setting for your first date," Noah tells me. "Oh. Alright." I say. "So? Is that a yes?" Ares asks. I sigh but nod. Ares starts muttering about making sure I take Elijah's breath away and whatnot but I leave him be.
I look carefully at the dress as I feel the soft material between my fingers. It's black which fades into a deep blue, it doesn't feel like the pouffy dresses that come to my mind when a ball is mentioned. I pull it out of the box and realize I'll need heels, great. At least it's fairly simple, not filled with sequins or worse, those huge patches that always itch no matter what. Ares says I'm imagining it but it really feels like the design is digging into my skin. Well, it's mostly real.
Knowing Ares, I'll probably only have an hour before we have to get ready. Unless the others don't have suitable clothes, in which case, Rebekah has offered to share clothes, which Klaus has saved for some reason. Either way, I'm going to use that time to lie down and not worry. Probably.
I do not in fact, lie in bed with no worries, instead, I spend the entire hour wondering how things will go down tonight. And now here I am, seated in Arya's room as Ares and Natalie excitedly chatter about. Arya and I are both sitting, worried like there's no tomorrow. Ezra, of all people, asked Arya to be his date for the ball. Not just as friends, as a date. It was shocking, well to me and Arya at least, apparently, we are clueless.
Even though in the beginning everyone was sure, Adam liked Arya and that the two would date, it seems Ezra was the one who actually caught feelings. And Arya, well according to her, she thinks he's cute but isn't too sure. At least someone is excited tonight, and by someone I mean Natalie and Ares. The rest of us are just nervous, for many, many reasons. Ares soon leaves as Esther has asked both him and Noah to be there early. So, it's just us six tonight. Everyone is in the living room as soon as Ares and Noah are gone.
"I think, we should keep an eye on Finn too," I say after a minute. "Definitely, though, I don't think you should provoke him," Adam says. "Yeah, he looked about ready to kill you." Ezra agrees. "He might help Esther, Rebekah said he was never happy with immortality and probably wants an out," Natalie tells us. "I keep thinking there has to be something big, well bigger, for Esther to have come back," Felix says. "What do you mean?" Ezra asks. "I mean, she's been dead for a thousand years. Why come alive now? Could she just not do that before?" Felix wonders. "Most likely. I mean, Klaus kept the coffins pretty close, maybe no one was able to get it before. But, it might also be that it had to be the Bennetts. At one point they were the most powerful line, maybe she knew one, maybe it was a Bennett who did the original spell to lock her in." Ezra says. Though he seems to be wondering aloud than answering.
"Would we need to know what spell she plans to use? I mean, she's definitely gunning for all of them. It's so obvious in the way she's trying to make amends." I say. "Hmm, it all depends, but yeah, it's better we know the spell she uses or plans to use. If we can get her grimoire, it should be easy enough." Ezra explains. "Easy enough? What does that mean?" Arya asks. "Well, there's a spell that can copy the grimoire onto another book. We just need to cast the spell and whenever Esther accesses it, we'll be able to see what she's reading." Ezra elaborates. "Okay, so, you, me, and Arya keep an eye on Esther while Felix, Elle, and Natalie tail Finn," Adam says. "I thought you wanted me to stay away?" I question. "I said don't provoke him. Just keep an eye. See who he talks to and what he does." Adam elaborates. "And you both can additionally keep an eye on Elle." Ezra continues. "Gee, thanks for having faith. I'll keep away from him. He stares really creepily." I say. "Okay, let's make sure we don't get into unnecessary situations. We should try to enjoy it too. Mostly, Elle." Natalie says. I just groan as the others laugh. "Whatever, let's get ready and reach before Ares decides we'd look better as decor," I say. "Gorey," Adam exclaims.
We go our separate ways, well, I go with Nat, she's helping me. Apparently, Arya listens to and learns everything Ares or Natalie spout when helping us get ready, so she's trying on her own. Nat is thankfully, unlike Ares not too persistent. She helps me put on minimal makeup but insists on red lipstick and earrings. She tells me to straighten my hair but leave them down and I agree, mostly because I have no patience to painstakingly style my hair. I change into my dress as Nat finishes her makeup and hair. I grab a small clutch to keep my phone and keys safe.
Within 15 minutes everyone is ready to leave and we pile into two cars. Ezra and Arya in one and the rest of us in the other. Natalie was wearing a beautiful white and gold, strapless gown, whose highlight, in her opinion was that it had pockets. It suited her well, she also has her hair loose and has on light makeup while Arya has chosen a red backless gown and light makeup with red lipstick. The boys are all wearing black suits and have their hair gelled back. We soon arrive at the mansion and see that people are already there. If there's one thing you can trust the people in Mystic Falls to do is be nosey and extremely curious. Mayor Lockwood was probably one of the first to arrive with most of the council, I assume. We park our cars at the back, where they should be fine, and head in.
Two people open the door as we arrive, Arya and Ezra step in first while Felix and I go last. The living room? whatever it is supposed to be is sparsely decorated but filled with people. There's light twinkling on the handrails of the stairs and serves walking around with trays of champagne, I assume. Felix leaves my side just as Elijah approaches. I can't believe this. I can already feel my nerves rising and my heart beating in my ear. Can everyone hear that? That would be embarrassing.
"Hello. You look... You look beautiful." Elijah says as he comes to a stop in front of me. "Thank you. You look your normal self." I say before mentally bashing my head into a wall. "That was rude. I'm sorry. You look great Elijah. I just meant-" I explain but he chuckles and offers me his arm. "Sorry," I mutter as I hook my arm through his. "It's quite alright. I understood your sentiment." Elijah says, grinning. I allow myself a nervous chuckle even as I feel my embarrassment rise. "Can I get you a drink?" Elijah asks. "Ah, sure. Thank you." I say as he grabs two glasses from a server. He hands me one and I take a sip instead of gulping it down. Not going to help anyway. "I wasn't sure you would accept my invitation. Though Henrik and Ares seemed to believe otherwise." Elijah says. "Yeah, they do that a lot," I say. Elijah raises an eyebrow in question and I realize I've noticed him do these things one too many times. "Ah, they meddle a lot. I was glad though. That you felt something as well." I rush out in a murmur before taking a huge sip. I feel like everyone is eavesdropping, which they probably are. The perks of siblings and meddlesome friends.
When Elijah doesn't say anything, I look up, already embarrassed to have said anything, but I find him staring at me with a smile I can only describe as dorky. It's cute. I clear my throat and look away, just in time to see Elena and Damon staring at me, at us. I raise my eyebrow in question and Damon smirks. I roll my eyes and turn back towards Elijah. "So am I." He says. I look at him in confusion. "I'm glad we can give this a chance. That there are no... unrequited feelings." He explains. I smile and purse my lips to hide my giddiness. Finn comes towards us and gives me an angry look before whispering something to Elijah. "I have to give the welcome speech. I hope you will save me this dance." He says. "Of course. I'll be right here." I assure him and he gives me a smile before leaving with Finn. I can feel myself breathe easier and I roll my eyes at my own dramatics. Ares comes to stand next to me as Noah heads to the stairs with the rest of the Mikaelsons. "You alright?" I ask him. He seems pissed actually. "Yeah. Don't worry about it." He says, his voice a lower octave than usual. I just nod my head and look up at Noah. He looks at me and shakes his head, just a tiny movement.
"Uh, if everyone could gather, please," Elijah says and the chatter dies down. "Welcome, thank you for joining us. You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this, it's tradition for us to commence the evening with a dance. Tonight's pick is a centuries-old waltz, so if all of you could please find yourselves a partner, please join us in the ballroom." Elijah continues. He gestures towards a room off to the right and they all start walking down the stairs while Esther moves up. I turn to look at Felix who nods. Noah and Elijah walk toward us and offer their arms. I hook mine through Elijah's and he leads me to the ballroom. "Nervous?" He asks. "A little, can't say I've done a proper waltz before," I reply. He grins, "Just follow my lead." I smile back and will my nerves to fade. I try to remember all I can about waltz as we come to a stop in the ballroom. Everyone lines up. Noah and Ares are in front of us while behind us, Kol is with Mayor Lockwood. On the other side, I see Arya and Ezra, both looking nervous, and behind them Klaus and Natalie.
A song starts playing on the speakers and Elijah starts walking. I breathe in and try to focus on him. He leads us and seems to realize that I'm really losing my mind. "You're doing well," Elijah says as I concentrate. I remember most of the dance lessons and the waltz isn't hard, this is just nerve-wracking. "Thank you. I guess I'm just..." I trail off and chuckle. "I'm not nervous about the dance. Just, just you." I say. "Me?" Elijah wonders. "Yeah, it's kind of-" I sigh. "You're a thousand years old Elijah, and you're, you're you. Always calm and composed. I feel like I'll make a fool of myself. You make me nervous." I explain. "Ah! I don't see why. I've always found you... stunning. I have you to thank for everything I have-" He says. "That's absurd. I didn't do anything." I cut him off. "You've always given me sound advice. You believed in my brother when I couldn't and you've saved me from a dull existence." He finishes with a grin. I laugh but roll my eyes. "If you say so. I highly doubt you've had a full moment with Klaus around." I comment. I glance at Klaus who gives me a grin. Nosey jerks. Elijah chuckles but doesn't reply. He twirls me and I find myself with Noah.
"Enjoying yourself?" He asks. "I was." I grin. He smirks and I glare at him before he can say whatever shit he was going to. He laughs but doesn't say anything. I look around to see Elena dancing with Stefan while Damon is with Rebekah and Arya with Klaus. "Elijah seems to be having fun," Noah whispers and I turn a little to find him dancing with Ares. Which is odd. "Seems like it. Jealous?" I ask and Noah scoffs. "Hardly. Better him than anyone else though. Especially Nik." He says. I can almost imagine Klaus smirking at him and roll my eyes. The dance finishes and Noah bows dramatically before kissing my hand. I laugh and swat him away. I notice Elena coming from outside and frown, I was sure she was dancing. She walks towards a room and Stefan follows not too far behind. What are they up to now?
"What?" Noah questions. "Something's up with Elena," I say as Elijah and Ares join us. "Mother has asked to see her," Elijah tells us. Noah and Ares share a look, that's not good at all. Elijah takes me to the bar while Noah and Ares head out. I keep an eye out for Elena as she walks out of the room and upstairs. She keeps looking around superstitiously like a child trying to sneak out. It's so stupid. Felix appears on top of the stairs and gestures to Ezra. They both walk out of view and I turn my attention to Elijah. "Sorry, I'm a little distracted," I say. "It's alright. I'm quite distracted as well." Elijah says. This must be stressful for him too but when I look at him, he's looking at me and not anywhere else. I realize the implication and take a sip of the drink he offered me. "Flattery will get you nowhere," I say instead of commenting. "Ah, shame. I was hoping for a date." Elijah says, his eyes focused only on me. I bite my lip to stop myself from grinning stupidly and take another sip. "I suppose that's alright. A date sounds... fun." Perfect. It sounds perfect.
"Couldn't hear anything. Some kind of a spell." Ezra whispers urgently before Elijah can reply. "Hm?" I wonder. "What?" I ask him. "Esther! She's with Elena, but I can't hear her." He explains impatiently. "Oh, okay. She'll come down, right?" I ask Elijah, and he nods. "She will give a closing speech." He says. "You and Arya should head up, and hide. And then see what you can find." I say. He nods but seems worried. "Hey. It'll be fine." I assure him and squeeze his arm. He exhales and nods again. "Yeah, okay." He agrees. I see them both head upstairs and after a minute Esther walks towards the top stair. She had a glass with red liquid and I can immediately tell this is it. Whatever it is, it starts with this.
What should I do? I could make the glasses burst, would take a lot of energy, but I could. But then what? Won't she try again? Is it better to let this happen? Shit. "Good Evening, Ladies and Gentlemen. Waiters are coming around with champagne. I invite you all to join me in raising a glass. It provides me with no greater joy than to see my family back together as one. I'd like to thank you all for being part of this spectacular evening. Cheers!" Esther says and my brain screams at me but I decide this is the best option, let her think she has succeeded and then we can go from there. I take a sip from my glass while Elijah drains his and gives me a smile. I can't muster one in response but try the same.
All linking spells need blood, if that's the root she's going to go, then we need Finn's blood. I look around and spot him with Kol. I excuse myself and find Adam. I gesture towards Finn and tap his wrist. He nods and we start walking towards him. Adam still has his glass and as we get closer his hand tightens around it. We switch sides and I stop in front of Finn. "Long time no see," I say. Finn looks at me irritated and I smile. Adam sighs beside me and pushes me away from Finn, his arm goes around my shoulder. "Sorry about her, she's very opinionated and makes it a habit to annoy people. I don't think we've met formally. I'm Adam." He introduces himself and extends his hand. Finn takes his hand and shakes it. "No need for apologies. It's a pleasure to meet you." Finn says. I seriously don't know where Adam is going with this. Finn grimaces and looks toward his hand. I look down too and see that Adam is squeezing it hard. "Adam," I whisper angrily, though I'm more focused on making a small cut on Finn's wrist. Kol catches on and hurries between Adam and Finn. The spell works and Adam's glass is underneath Finn's hand as Kol mutters empty threats and 'tries' to pry Adam's hand off.
I take Adam's glass and make a show of pushing him. He finally looks at me and huffs before storming off. I huff as well and head towards the backdoor. Well... That was tactless, and kind of suspicious. Well, we have his blood, nothing else matters. I set towards the garden and sit down on a bench. Ezra joins me a minute later and then Adam and Natalie. Arya is the last. I help Ezra transform the glass into a vile which is very stressful and energy consuming. Everyone keeps an eye out as Natalie and Adam put on a pretense of a fight. Well, I hope they are pretending.
Once it's done, I put the vile in my clutch and Ezra relaxes a bit. Since I didn't know the spell, Ezra did most of the heavy lifting and is more tired than I am. Arya goes back inside and comes back with a server and some appetizers. Ezra eats the entire plate and then we head in. Well, Ezra and Arya go first, both of them blushing. For no reason! Whatever. Adam and Nat go next while I stay sitting. Felix joins me and we enjoy the nice breeze for a minute. "Ready to go in?" He asks. I take a deep breath and nod. "Yeah, let's go," I say. He stands up and offers his arm. I put my arm through his and we start walking back. "Sorry, you didn't get to enjoy yourself," I say as we reach the door. "Please, I had a lot of fun. Playing a spy was much more enjoyable than dancing a waltz would have been." He replies. "If you say so," I say with a chuckle.
We stay another 15 minutes or so, laughing and joking. Pretending we don't know anything before we head out. Everyone changes and quickly gathers in the living room. Well, Adam and I decide to make some noodles since no one ate at the mansion, too nervous and jumpy to keep anything down. We cook in silence, still anxious and worried but nevertheless keeping ourselves busy. Once the food is ready, everyone eats silently and occasionally looks at the door or the clock. It's only after midnight that Noah and Ares join us. Another half an hour before the rest of them do. Everyone looks at each other before Ezra pulls out a book. He opens it to reveal a linking spell.