AN: trigger warning (abuse) and slight smut.

Chapter 5

Elijah POV

I ran faster than I could ever remember running. Seeing Caroline's torn and bloodied body kept replaying through my head. I broke through the trees immediately calling for my brother. "Niklaus!"

Rebekah came running out.

"Elijah? Was that you yelling? What's going on?"

I reached my sister, trying to regain my breath.

"Caroline. River. Her back. It's bad."

"Elijah you're not making any sense. What's wrong with Caroline?" Rebekah asked, trying to understand the short sentences that I was attempting to put together. I just shook my head, remembering my goal.

"Where is Niklaus?" I asked, finally calming my breathing.

Rebekah hesitated.

"He had a disagreement with father. He left not but 10 minutes ago. Elijah tell me what is happening?"

"I have to find Niklaus. Rebekah, please, gather all of mothers healing supplies and hurry to the river. Do not tell anyone where you are going but please, be quick. I don't….I don't know how bad she is," I begged Rebekah.

Rebekah was understandably confused.

"Who, Elijah?"

I looked at my sister with such sadness.

"Caroline."

I ran in the direction Rebekah pointed him, hoping it wouldn't be far before I found my brother. Were I in a more stable state of mind I would have realized I knew these parts of the woods. Quite well actually.

It took me a moment to figure it out. I was at Tatias. I ran up the steps already talking. "My love, have you seen Nikl-" I couldn't finish the sentence. I couldn't even think straight therefore my mind was having a hard time understanding what I was seeing. Unfortunately, my entrance went unheard by the two others in the home.

Nik had tatia pinned to the wall, pants around his ankles, her skirt around her waist and legs wrapped around his.

"Nik," she moaned. "harder. Please!"

Nik picked up the pace slamming his hips into her with more force.

"God's, Tatia. You feel….I'm so close," nik panted.

Tatia, who's head was thrown back in her throes of passion, brought her head down to kiss Nik. Movement behind him, however, caught her eye and her heart stopped.

"Elijah!" she gasped.

Nik was oblivious, pumping into her as he neared his end.

"Nik, stop!" she said, hitting his shoulder repeatedly, trying to extricate herself from around him.

Nik finally became aware of his surroundings and one look at her horror filled face looking over his shoulder immediately had his attention.

He glanced over his shoulder.

I hadn't moved, too frozen in shock to do much else but stand there, crisis currently forgotten.

Nik rushed to put tatia on her feet and pull up his trousers and that seemed to snap me out of it. I remembered why I had come and, promising myself I'd deal with it later, I turned and left, clearing my mind of all thought except Caroline and her current situation. I ignored my brothers calls for me to stop and made my way back to her.

"Elijah! Elijah please!" nik yelled, running after me.

I ignored him and kept running back to the river. I broke through the trees and rushed to Carolines side.

"Elijah! Just stop and we can talk about……oh my gods," nik came through the trees and stopped dead in his tracks. "Caroline," he whispered and ran to her side, kneeling next to Rebekah.

He looked at the scene before him, at Carolines torn and bloody back. He knew all too well what had happened and what needed to be done. After all, he had scars along his back that mirrored these.

"Elijah, can you help me tur-" Nik started but was interrupted as I turned and punched him right in the face.

Caroline POV

I was in and out of consciousness when Elijah left but became more aware when there was a hand on my arm. I tried to flinch away.

"Caroline, calm down, please. It's me, Rebekah."

I opened my eyes and saw Rebekah laying infront of me so that I could see her.

"Be-bekah? Everything…everything hurts," I whimpered.

Rebekah reached out to stroke the hair out of my face as I laid on my side.

"I know, I know, love. But I'm going to try to help you. Okay? Can you tell me what happened?" She asked softly.

"F-father. Saw me and Nik hugging. Bekah I swear, we-we weren't doing anything. We had bonded and Nik said he th-thought I'd be his bes-best friend. Father s-said he wouldn't raise the village slut. This was his pu-punishment," I managed to get out, but it took a lot out of me and I was exhausted, feeling the pain even more. I began crying. "I need Nik. He knows. He knows. Nik," I sobbed.

Bekah tried to calm me. "Elijah is getting him, Care. He's coming," she soothed. "I just hope Elijah's heart is still in tact when he does," she murmured, believing I was beyond hearing her at this point. "Caroline," she said louder. "I need to clean your wounds to get a proper look. There's, there's too much blood to see properly," she stuttered out, taking another look at my back.

I nodded and closed my eyes tight.

Rebekah ran to the river and dipped some cloths in the water and rushed back to my side. "I'm sorry, Care. This will hurt. I don't have the same skills my mother has to take away the pain," Rebekah apologized.

At the first touch of the cloth to my wounds I gasped and began to black out. I drifted for a few moments, happy to not feel anything, until I heard a rustling come from the trees in front of her. Elijah ran out of the forest and immediately I became hyper vigilant by the look on his face. Elijah looked shattered. He came and knelt at my head, lifting it to place on his lap.

"Elijah?" I asked, looking up at him with a questioning gaze but he just shook his head. I looked to Rebekah who was looking at her brother with tears in her eyes.

Just then, I turned my attention back to the forest as Nik came through and I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Elijah! Just stop and we can talk about……oh my gods," I saw Niks eyes rake over me. Whatever he was about to say to Elijah was forgotten as he rushed to my side. He knelt beside Rebekah and inspected my injuries. He then looked into my eyes with a pained understanding and gave me a sad smile and a nod.

Somewhere in the back of my mind I realized that Elijah, who had stiffened as soon as Nik kneeled by my side, had gently lifted my head and placed it down on the grass once more.

Nik gently touched my cheek, a comforting gesture, and put a hand on my arm. "Elijah can you help me tur-" whatever Nik was about to say was cut off when Elijah's fist connected with his face.

Rebekah gasped and sprung up to run to Nik's side, who was on the ground holding his nose. Elijah was staring at him with utter rage on his face while he shook out his hand.

The move startled me so much that without thinking I jumped to a sitting position and cried out in agony at the sudden movement.

Elijah was quickly at my side. Guiding me back down with hushed apologies.

Nik sat up and gently pushed Rebekah back.

"Bekah don't. I deserved it." He said, holding his nose to stop the bleeding. He looked at Elijah with tears in his eyes. "Brother," Nik started.

"Don't," Elijah said with a quiet rage. "do not call me brother when you've done what you've done."

"Im sorry, Elijah, I'm so-"

"How long?" Elijah quietly asked.

"Elijah-"

"How. Long Niklaus?"

Nik sat quiet for a moment before quietly saying, "full moon before last."

Elijah closed his eyes in despair. I didn't understand what was going on. But I could guess. I reached out and gently touched Elijah's hand. He opened his eyes and looked down. I squeezed his hand. He squeezed it back before sliding over and once again gently placing my head in his lap, still holding my hand.

"Now is not the time to sort out our differences, Niklaus. Caroline needs us and we've wasted enough time."

Nodding his head, Nik was back at my side. Bekah joined him staring back and forth between her brothers.

Nik cleared his throat. "Elijah, please help me turn her on her stomach for better access to her back and turn her head. She will most likely be sick once we start cleaning and packing the wounds."

I reached out with my other hand and grabbed Nik's. He squeezed my hand gently as Elijah did as he asked. I squeezed his hand even harder once I was moving.

"Breathe, sweetheart. Just breathe through it," Nik encouraged. "find something to focus on and breathe. It helps, trust me," he gave me a sad smile and I took a deep breath and focused on that as he began to clean my back with the cloth. "What the hell happened?" he murmured quietly.

Rebekah glanced up from the basket of supplies she took from the hut. "her father. He…..saw you two hugging. Jumped to conclusions and punished her."

I glanced at Nik to see a horrified look on his face. "I caused this?" he whispered.

I squeezed his hand again. "Nik, look at me. My father is a cruel man who's disappointed that the son he wanted turned out to be a daughter," I gasped in pain as Nik got back to work cleaning with a murmured apology. I took a deep breath and continued. "I explained things to him, but he refuses to listen. This isn't the first time this has happened. But it is by far the worst damage he's inflicted. I thought he was going to kill me with that belt," I said quietly.

Nik was quiet as he finished cleaning and began taking the herbs bekah had found and placed them over the wounds. He began wrapping cloth around my torso. "this should help the pain. Now that it's covered and not exposed."

I looked at him with a watery smile. "Thank you," I turned my head and looked at Bekah and Elijah as well. "Thank you all. So so much." Rebekah placed her hand on my leg. Elijah squeezed the hand he still held and carded his hand through my hair. "I just need to rest for a moment before I return. I don't need my father to come looking."

Before anyone could say anything, Elijah spoke. "I will stay with you," he said quietly.

Nik and Rebekah glanced at eachother and nodded, quietly packing up their stuff and making their way back to their home.

All was silent for a moment before I felt something hit my face. I looked up. Elijah had silent tears running down his face, eyes closed with his head down. I removed my hand from his and slowly wrapped my arms around his waist from my position laying in his lap. After a beat, he curled his arms around me as much as he was able, lowered his forehead to the top of my head and sobbed quietly. Accepting the silent comfort I was offering.