A/N: My apologies for the absence. I am thrilled about the response reviewers have had in regards to Henrik's condition.
Why not review about how you liked the chapter? No flames will be accepted, so thanks for your understanding.
I don't own The Vampire Diaries. All characters (expect for Grace) belong to author L.J. Smith. Grace belongs to me.
Looking forward to hearing from you!
Xx
ADAPTING TO CHANGE
"Life is about trusting your feelings, taking chances, finding happiness, learning from the past, and realising everything changes." ~Unknown.
The look of impatience on Rebekah's face was almost priceless when Henrik and I finally returned to my apartment after making our 'discovery' back at the old caves with Damon and Alaric.
"Took you long enough!" Rebekah snapped at me, looking anxious. I felt almost guilty at the worried expression on her lovely face, but ultimately felt that the anger and stress on Bekah's face would melt away the second she learned that her youngest brother was (on a technicality) back from the dead; still a ghost, but otherwise completely visible to those who weren't mediums and he would be able to physically touch objects and people without fazing through them.
At least I hoped that would be the case. We hadn't been able to put that to the test just yet; but once we filled in Rebekah on what had happened to Henrik, we would definitely have fun testing this out. "Where's Henrik?" Was the next thing to erupt from Rebekah's mouth. When I didn't immediately answer, tears started filling her eyes. "He's gone, isn't he?" She whispered almost brokenly. I gave her a slightly insulted look.
"Has jumping to conclusions become a thing with you now, Bekah?" I asked, feeling amused before I turned and beckoned to Henrik to come inside and put his sister's fears to rest. "Why don't you just ask him yourself?" I suggested, grinning triumphantly from ear to ear as Henrik strode right on in, and bolted straight into his older sister's arms.
"Hi, Bekah!" Henrik smirked, at the astonished expression on Rebekah's face before she recovered and pulled her brother into what looked like a bone crushing hug.
"You're really here? You're alive?!" She immediately started asking, as I rolled my eyes and dead bolted my apartment door. Not technically necessary, due to Rebekah's presence here. But it was better to be safe than sorry. Besides, who would be stupid enough to break in and harm me when I had an Original vampire for a sister-in-law and a roommate? Whoever it was wouldn't last ten seconds.
"Nope. I'm still a ghost." Henrik corrected her, grimacing at the slightly crestfallen look on her face. "But I can touch things, that's a plus." He stated, enthusiastically. I frowned at him, curiously.
"Yeah. By the way, kid, is that something you can control independently or does it come and go?" I asked. Henrik looked at me, dubiously.
"How should I know?" He asked, looking at me like I had just sprouted three heads. "This is just as new for me as it is for you." Henrik felt the need to point out. I placed my hands on my hips and just scowled at him.
"Don't be a little smartass." I scolded him, unamused. "Let's just test this." I glanced around for something obvious to test my theory, with Rebekah watching us curiously with a frown on her face. In the end I settled for the wall opposite to where I was standing at this point. "Try to walk through the wall." I suggested, pointing towards it. Henrik turned and glanced uneasily at it, looking apprehensive.
Reluctantly, he walked over to it.
"I'm not sure if I'm going to regret doing this. If something goes wrong, I'll end up smacking face first into it." He muttered underneath his breath. But just before he walked (or didn't walk) through the wall, he turned and narrowed his eyes at me with warning. "If this doesn't work and you laugh at me, you'll be sorry." He threatened. I smirked, questioning what he could possibly do to me. Then my smirk faded when I remembered the pranks that he, Kol and sometimes Nik played on me a thousand years before and immediately started praying that my theory proved to be correct.
"What exactly is the point to this?" Rebekah was scowling at the both of us with slight irritation.
"If Henrik can faze through walls with ease, it could prove useful when we come across another crisis; like the ones involving Nik or Elena." I told her, and Rebekah nodded slowly and waited for Henrik to get it over with. He drew in a nervous deep breath.
"Here goes nothing." He muttered, and closed his eyes as he took a single step forward and … fazed right through the wall effortlessly. My mouth fell open; and so did Rebekah's. The cliché was factual.
"I can't believe that worked." I blurted out, slightly mystified. Henrik walked back through the wall, and over to the couch as he slumped down on to it.
"Yeah, neither can I. That was a very strange sensation." He mused thoughtfully, scowling at the wall like it had done him a personal wrong.
"Just make sure you knock before doing that." I reminded. Henrik gave me a mock salute before relaxing completely and smiling over at his sister and me.
"My mother raised a gentleman." Henrik reassured me.
"I can't wait to tell Nik about this!" Rebekah gushed excitedly. "This could change everything." I nodded.
"Yeah, but we need to plan how to reveal this to him carefully. You know how he tends to overreact or get overly paranoid, don't you?" I asked, and Rebekah bit her bottom lip fretfully. Then she scowled at me a little.
"I've been with him since he, Elijah and I made a pledge of always and forever when we buried our mother … after she was murdered by Mikael. And in between being daggered for whatever thing we vexed him for." She said. "I believe that I have a fair idea of how Nik ticks." Rebekah was a little snippy, and when she looked away for a split second trying to discreetly wipe away some tears that welled up at the memory of Esther's demise; both Henrik and I cringed and exchanged panicked looks. We both knew who the real culprit behind Esther's death was, and we both knew that none of Nik's siblings were going to be very forgiving when they learned the truth.
"So you should be able to help calm him down when we make Henrik's return known." I replied, brusquely. Rebekah looked like was going to object, before she remembered the reason why she was being recruited to calm Nik down and nodded with a tearful and affectionate smile at her baby brother.
"I'll do anything. Henrik is worth being daggered again." Rebekah said.
"Seriously? He would dagger you for something like that?" Henrik looked appalled by the idea. Both Rebekah and I looked pained.
"Nik was practically shredded when he brought you back to the village that day. He blames himself for what happened, and the very idea or possibility that you would be back – albeit still a ghost – would be enough to cause Nik to fly into a rage." I explained to him. Henrik still looked unconvinced, until he saw the expression on Rebekah's face.
"He would think that he was being lied to, or that somebody was trying to trick or blackmail him into getting what they want." Rebekah backed me up.
Henrik frowned. "Even you two?"
We both nodded, and Henrik got up and started pacing the length of the room. It was becoming clear to him that his absence in his brother's life had added to the mental and physical abuse he had suffered at the hands of Mikael, and he wasn't taking it well. "What if I confronted him first?" Henrik suggested.
"Good plan. But I'm going to prepare him first before landing this sort of blow upon him." I agreed. "I mean, tell me how you'd feel if somebody you thought lost to you for over a thousand years suddenly came back without warning?" I asked him, logically.
"If how he reacted when you came back into his life after all these years is anything to go by; I'd say he'd probably take it well." Henrik replied.
"That's different. He'd been searching for me. You died in front of him with no hope of a return." I explained. Henrik paused and rethought his answer.
"In that case, if somebody I loved and lost suddenly came back into my life without warning; I'd probably be frightened." Henrik said.
"Frightened?" Rebekah and I blurted out in unison, surprised by his answer.
"Why on earth would you be frightened?" Rebekah asked, worried.
"More importantly, why would you think that Nik would be frightened?" I asked, curiously.
"His natural instincts would take over and fight or flight would come into play." Henrik stated. "We all know that Nik isn't one to back down, so fight would be his natural reaction, but not as anger but fear." He explained. Both Rebekah and I conceded. I was the first to speak after a pause.
"I can see your point. But all the same, I'd still like to ease him into it … for all our sakes." I told him.
He nodded. "Fair enough."
"For now. I think we should get some rest. There's a lot of things we need to sort out before Bekah and I have to return to school on Monday." I said.
"Why do you have to go?" Henrik asked, frowning.
"Because Stefan is still under Nik's compulsion to keep a sharp eye on both Elena and me while he is away on 'business'." I responded, still feeling supremely annoyed at Nik for forcing Stefan to do this. "This is apparently the only way Stefan can keep an eye on the both of us at the same time." I added.
"But you can take care of yourself." Henrik pointed out.
"Yeah? Tell Nik that." I suggested.
"I'm good." Henrik immediately backed off, earning an uneasy giggle from Rebekah as a result. "May I come too?" Henrik asked randomly, looking a little tentative. I raised an eyebrow.
"Really? You want to come to the high school with us?" I asked him.
"Yeah, is there a reason why not?" He asked.
"No. It's just it's gonna be bloody boring and uncomfortable." I replied. "Besides, you can do whatever the hell you like. You can come and go as you please." I replied, just as tentatively.
"I'm sensing a 'but'." Henrik immediately pointed out. And I nodded, both pleased and slightly irritated by Henrik's perceptiveness.
"But be prepared to possibly be interrogated, big time." I warned him.
"By whom?" He asked.
"The doppelgänger, her nosy friends and most likely Stefan." Rebekah replied, with disgust. Henrik snorted in amusement.
"If that's the best you can come up with, I'm frankly shocked you even bothered to come up with it." Henrik told us, flopping back down on the couch beside Rebekah, and resting his head on her shoulder. She frowned at him, and I shook my head.
"You're not taking this seriously." I told him.
"No, I'm not." He agreed. "It's ridiculous. What's the worst they could do to me exactly? I'm dead, remember? I'm beyond their reach." Henrik stated. I threw my hands into the air, giving in. All the Mikaelson siblings were as stubborn as each other.
"Fine. Be it on your head." I said, resigned. Henrik grinned at me triumphantly, while Rebekah absently played with her little brother's hair. Then she paused; some of the dark brown strands – so alike Elijah's own expertly groomed locks – caught in her fingers as she sat up and started studying Henrik's appearance from head to toe critically.
"What?" Henrik asked his sister, cautiously. Rebekah shook her head.
"We've got to do something about your appearance." She stated, indicating Henrik's 10th Century attire and his long, slightly lank shoulder-length hair. I nodded, drawing the curtains and gathering up loose crockery to be washed in the dishwasher.
"That's what tomorrow is for." I told her, and Rebekah immediately brightened up and grew excited. I shook my head fondly; she always got this way when it came to makeovers, or any opportunity to go out and shop. Henrik's eyes widened in horror.
"Uh, that's not necessary." He insisted, and made an attempt to escape ghost-style. But the both of us were ready for him.
"Uh, yeah it is. You need to get with the times and blend in like the rest of your siblings had to." I told him, sternly. "But if it makes you feel better, and will help you grieve the loss…" I pulled out my phone and aimed it at him. "Smile you two!" I pulled a playful grin and snapped a spontaneous photo of the two surprised siblings sitting on my couch for a keepsake. Then I turned the camera phone towards them both so they could see. "That'll give me something to sketch on Monday so I'm not completely bored out of my mind." I explained. Rebekah snatched the phone from me and scowled at the image.
"You are not keeping this photo. I look atrocious in it." She bitched. I sighed and took back my phone.
"Really, Bex? It's not that important." I reassured her. But Rebekah was stubborn.
"Yes it is. If you're going to be sketching a picture of the both of us on Monday, I would at least like it to be somewhat decent." She stated, then went back over to the couch and sat down on it, pulling Henrik into a hug. Henrik seemed to understand where Rebekah was going with this and immediately made himself comfortable, smiling at the camera. I sighed.
"If you really insist." I said, secretly chuffed, and held up my phone. "Ready? 3, 2, 1…" I pressed the button and an audible click was heard. Rebekah took the phone back and looked at the picture.
"Much better. Well, good night the both of you. If we're going to be taking Henrik shopping tomorrow I'd better get some sleep." Rebekah sighed before leaning over and pecking her brother on the cheek and standing up to pull me into a rib-crushing hug.
"Night, bekah." I croaked a little. Without a second glance, Rebekah flounces towards her bedroom and disappears behind the door. Both Henrik and I stared at the closed door with dread before I turned back and clapped a sympathetic hand on the nervous ghost's shoulder. "Brace yourself, kid. We're both in for an interesting ride tomorrow." I told him, feeling some dread myself despite the necessity for tomorrow's agenda. Because tomorrow, was also going to be the day Nik was going to learn that his brother had 'returned' from the dead.
So that's how Henrik and I found ourselves stumbling along behind Rebekah Mikaelson in Richmond, Virginia in the middle of her element: shopping and basically looking and acting like a princess, and pissing off shop attendants with her almost impossible demands. I seriously thought I had left that behind back in Chicago at that fancy boutique... guess I was wrong.
"How long is this going to take?" Henrik asked through clenched teeth and looking long-suffering. I shifted the bags I was carrying in my hand to stop it from cramping up. Just exactly how much was Rebekah trying to buy for her brother?
"As long as it has to take, mate. Just persevere for a little while longer." I begged him, as Rebekah hustled us into yet another expensive looking clothing store. Hopefully this was our last stop. We still needed to get Henrik a haircut; and we both dreaded to think how that was going to turn out. Eventually, Rebekah and I settled on an outfit that would project to everybody back in Mystic Falls, that not only was Henrik a teenager from the 21st Century but also a member of the infamous Mikaelson Family.
One of Henrik's new outfits consisted of: dark straight legged denim jeans rolled up at the ankles with a black leather belt, a black button down shirt, a navy blue blazer, and black and white Chuck Taylor converse Hi-Tops.
"Right. Now to fix that hair." Rebekah stated, imperiously.
"Okay." Henrik agreed with a reluctant tone.
We proceeded down the main street towards an exclusive looking hair salon. One look at this place, made me grateful that I wasn't the one paying for all this shit. And also thankful, that I wasn't the one playing 'Barbie' (or 'Ken' in this case) doll. And with that thought, I grabbed a horrified-looking Henrik's arm and shoved him through the door to be greeted by an overly enthusiastic host who beamed at us all with a wall of blinding white teeth in a very fake smile.
"Oh! Welcome! Welcome! Please, come this way!" The host ushered a very reluctant Henrik towards a chair and pushed him into it. "Louise will be with you shortly." The Host drawled, enthusiastically, before disappearing to the back of the salon. Shortly afterwards, a petite little blonde came trotting up to us, all smiles, with a maroon cape in her hand which she flung gracefully around a startled Henrik's neck and fastened it tight.
"There now! What are we doing today?" 'Louise' chirped sweetly at a gobsmacked Henrik. But before he could answer her, Rebekah stepped up and began a tirade of directions to a very startled Louise.
"Right. First…" Rebekah stated, matter-of-factly. "I want his hair to be short, but not too short." This went on for about five minutes before Louise started to look completely confused and murderous, ready to strangle Rebekah within an inch of her life.
"Of course, Miss." Louise simpered. "Now, does sir have an opinion before we start?" She asks Henrik, who looked defeated, mortified and exhausted. Throughout this entire one-sided conversation between Rebekah and Louise, I was feeling extremely sympathetic towards Henrik (and believe it or not, Louise) and rolled my eyes as I reached for a nearby GQ magazine and started flipping through it for a hairstyle that we could all agree on and one that wouldn't embarrass. Just before Louise asked Henrik for his opinion; I thrust the magazine at him and said:
"How about this?" I asked, calmly, grabbing both Rebekah and Louise's attention in mid-sentence. Henrik raised his head from his resigned slump and took the magazine in his hand to look at the hairstyle on the male model. He immediately brightened and said:
"Yeah. I like that." He grinned. The photograph of the male model featured a hairstyle that looked remarkably like Elijah's; only younger. Rebekah scoffed and snatched the magazine from Henrik's hand and studied the photo.
"Hmmm. Yes, that'll do. I like it." Rebekah agreed and thrust the magazine at Louise, who takes it gratefully and smiles.
"Very good, sir." Louise remarked, and then when Rebekah's back was to her mouthed 'thank you' at me and then disappears off to retrieve her hairdressing kit and to instruct an assistant to wash Henrik's hair. Rebekah and I retreated back to the couch I had momentarily vacated and were approached by another assistant, who smiled warmly at us.
"May I bring you some refreshment?" The girl asked politely.
"Two champagnes, please." Rebekah requested without looking up from her magazine. I smiled warmly at the girl.
"Actually, I'll have a tea, please. I'm driving." I explained, and reminded Rebekah who looked at me.
"Oh, right. I nearly forgot." She said.
Clearly… I thought as I resumed flipping through another magazine.
An hour later, a well-groomed Henrik was presented to us looking like a spliced version of Elijah and Niklaus. My mouth fell open in surprise.
"Wow." I beamed, as Rebekah did an appreciatively eye-flick over her brother.
"Yes. Better, much better." Rebekah squealed, happily. Much to Henrik's embarrassment. Rebekah paid the bill, and we made our way back to my car. "Now what are we going to do?" Rebekah asked, bored. I hesitated before replying.
"Well, I don't know about you. But I think it's time that we let Nik know." I suggested, firmly.
"What?! Now?" Rebekah exclaimed, fearfully. I glowered at her in annoyance.
"Yes now." I repeated, firmly. "Because if we don't, Stefan will. And we will be worse off for it. And I don't fancy suffering Nik's wrath. Do you?" I asked her, pointedly. Rebekah looked like she wanted to do anything but what I suggested; but reluctantly got into the car. Henrik followed, looking at me with trepidation.
We drove home in silence.
On our arrival back to Mystic Falls, after what seemed like a record breaking trip; I set up my laptop for the face-to-face video conversation. I glanced up at a nervous Henrik who was staring out of the window, and at Rebekah who was sitting on the couch looking like a scolded child and biting her bottom lip. I located Nik's profile picture and double clicked on it. As the conversation was being dialled, I glanced up at Henrik and gave him some last minute instructions.
"Don't come over here until I give you the signal, okay?" I requested, and Henrik nodded without saying a word. Rebekah looked at me fearfully as the conversation was answered. Almost immediately, I saw Nik's handsome puzzled face frowning at me questioningly. In the background it looked like he was standing in some sort of wood.
"Hello, Darling. To what do I owe this pleasant surprise?" Nik asked me, curiously. I smiled warmly at him.
"Hey, Nik. Uh, something happened here the other day." I said, and almost immediately Nik's puzzled frown became serious.
"What's happened? Are you alright?" He demanded, immediately. "Do I need to come back?" He asked, getting more anxious by the second. I glanced up in surprise to see Rebekah sliding up next to me with a long-suffering expression on her beautiful face.
"No, Nik. You don't have to come back yet. The incident in question has been and gone. There was just an unexpected, but highly welcomed result." Rebekah reassures him, and crosses her legs. Nik relaxed, but only for a split second.
"I see. Well, are you going to tell me or do I have to guess?" Nik was getting a little impatient and I could see Rebekah bristling. I quickly moved to intervene.
"This is mostly a courtesy call, Nik. So you don't get caught unawares by somebody with unscrupulous intentions towards you and the family." I explained. Nik raised an eyebrow.
"It's that serious?" He asked, looking both intrigued and annoyed.
"If you like." I responded, casually. Then I smiled at him. "But I do know that you'll eventually like it." I said.
"Tell me." Nik demanded. Rebekah and I exchanged a simultaneous deep breath before I glanced over at Henrik and beckoned him over. Henrik nodded and came over to stand behind the couch and crouched down within view of the camera.
"Hi, Big Brother." Henrik greeted a stunned looking Nik. There was a long silence as Nik collected himself. Rebekah and I gulped, and braced ourselves for Nik to explode.
"Is this a cruel joke?!" Nik spat. Henrik shook his head solemnly.
"No. This is very real, brother. I'm back; in a manner of speaking." Henrik reassures him. Nik's eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Explain. NOW!" He roared. Henrik jumped over the back of the couch and sat between Rebekah and me, preparing to help the both of us explain what went down the night before.
"Well, I'm technically still a ghost. I'm corporeal and I can touch things and walk through walls. But I'm back, permanently it seems. We still haven't figured out how this is possible though." Henrik explained, a little uneasily. I took over the conversation.
"Yesterday, the entire town was revisited by the ghosts of those who had been supernaturally killed in Mystic Falls. Henrik became corporeal, but at the time; it was a race against time to figure out what went pear-shaped and brought them back." I said.
"It transpires that your doppelgänger's brother had died and Bonnie Bennett used magic to bring him back; but in the process temporarily weakened the veil between the Other Side and the living world which permitted access through." Rebekah added her two cents in.
"And what does that have to do with Henrik?" Nik had calmed down a little bit during our explanation. To which we were grateful, but it didn't mean that he was no less suspicious and mistrustful.
"As it turns out, nothing whatsoever." I admitted. "But because Henrik had been killed by a werewolf, this meant that he was able to solidify himself. However, Bonnie had used Rebekah's necklace to bring back Jeremy and in order to close the Other Side off; she had to destroy the necklace in a spell. Which is what I assumed happened since Henrik immediately started acting strangely." I told him. Nik looked at his brother with concern, before he immediately remembered that he was supposed to be mistrustful of him and went back to being closed off.
"I'm not convinced. Where is the proof that Henrik is who he says he is?" Nik demanded. Henrik rolled his eyes and sat back onto the couch, before giving a very Klaus-like smirk and deliberately materialised through the backrest of the couch and did a backflip. I somehow managed to keep a straight face when I noticed the stupefied expression on Nik's. Although, Rebekah was less successful and giggled.
"Is that proof enough for you, brother?" Henrik asked Nik, smugly as he stood back up and slouched over the backrest. Nik didn't respond at first, but eventually it seemed like he was beginning to gradually accept that his beloved baby brother had returned.
"How is this possible? Are you really here?" Nik sounded like a lost little boy, and my heart went out to him. Henrik nodded, smiling at his brother reassuringly.
"He will be here when you come back, Nik. This is a good thing." I told him. Nik swallowed hard and turned his face away from the camera as he attempted to save face, and I turned to look at Rebekah and was astonished to see a tender expression on her face directed towards her older brother and his obvious joy and pain.
"I'm almost through with everything over here. I should be back in Mystic Falls within a day or two." Nik reported to us, and I nodded smiling warmly at him.
"I'll be counting the days, Nik. I miss you." I responded. Nik smiled happily back at me, and it took a moment to realise that both Rebekah and Henrik had disappeared; presumably to give us some privacy since neither of them had spoken.
"The feeling is very mutual, sweetheart." He murmurs, tenderly; his blue-green eyes were full of love and gratitude. "I've got to go, but thank you for letting me know about this new development." He told me, before reaching up to switch off the conversation.
The next morning, the three of us travelled to school so Rebekah could continue experiencing her life as a high school student that she never got to experience when she was human. I noted Elena's suspicious look when Rebekah and I walked into Alaric's classroom, but was surprised when Stefan was nowhere to be seen. I frowned in annoyance.
You mean I didn't have to show up today after all?! But then another thing occurred to me. Where's Stefan, I wonder? All the students ignored me, but went silent when Henrik walked in.
Alaric paused in the middle of what he was writing on the blackboard to see what had caused his students to suddenly go quiet and turned towards the door where Henrik and I were standing. Alaric smiled politely and eyed Henrik with curiosity.
"Morning, Grace. Who's your friend?" He asked me. I raised an eyebrow, as did Henrik. Had he seriously changed that much that Alaric was unable to recognise him? Luckily, Rebekah piped up.
"Mr. Saltzman, that's my little brother Henrik, if you can remember?" Rebekah stated, and Alaric's eyes widened slightly; while the three of us all heard three audible gasps coming from the direction of Elena and her friends. Alaric recovered easily from his obvious shock at seeing a thousand year old ghost standing in his classroom of all places; and corporeal to boot.
"That's great. But what is he doing here?" Alaric asked, frowning a little. Rebekah, Henrik and I had put our heads together this morning to decide on an acceptable excuse to give to any of the teachers to explain Henrik's presence at the school, when it was obvious that the youngest Mikaelson sibling was old enough to be attending high school himself. I just hoped that Alaric caught on quickly.
"Henrik has just moved to town over the weekend, and his older brothers haven't been able to enrol him just yet." I improvised, hoping that my eyes translated the urgency to Alaric.
Alaric nodded slightly, indicating that he understood what I was getting at and smiled politely at the little 'Elijah' clone and stuck out his hand for Henrik to shake.
"Welcome, Henrik!" He greeted him, a little warily. "Now as you are just observing today, I'd like you to just sit with Grace for now." Alaric automatically moved into 'teacher mode' and Henrik smiled back, pleasantly, taking Alaric's hand – earning more soft gasps from Elena and her friends – and pumping it up and down a couple of times.
"Pleasure, sir. Thank you for your hospitality." Henrik told him, cordially. It was also obvious that he was thoroughly enjoying the astonishment that was written on Alaric's face when his hand didn't faze through his during their handshake. "I'm sure this is going to be fun." Henrik also hinted before letting go of Alaric's hand and sauntering over to where the chair I had sat on the last time stood, and grabbed another vacant one for himself.
"Right. Now today we're going to review what we learned last week…" Alaric began his lesson, and I immediately flipped to a clean page in my sketchbook and pulled out my phone to access the photo I had taken of Rebekah and Henrik, Saturday night. I was taken aback when I felt Henrik fidget, uncomfortably, and I glanced up to see that he was narrowing his eyes warningly at Elena and now Bonnie who was still eyeballing us. Eventually, they pulled their gaze away and focused on the lesson; but I knew that they were going to be demanding answers. The rest of the day continued without a hitch, and mysteriously Elena seemed to be giving us a wide berth.
Of which, we were extremely grateful.
However, we had spoken too soon. Henrik and I were sitting on the bleachers, observing the cheerleaders practicing on the grass with the footballers also practicing not too far away with their coach keeping a watchful eye on them. Rebekah was doing a series of gymnastic moves, when suddenly Elena walks up to her. Rebekah immediately frowns when she sees her.
"You! Goody." She greets Elena, sarcastically. Elena doesn't seem to react to Rebekah's words. She seemed very determined to say something to her.
"I was hoping we could talk." Elena asked, cautiously. Rebekah started stretching.
"About what? Stefan?" Rebekah scoffs dismissively. "Don't worry, I'm off him until he starts treating me better." Then she eyes Elena slyly. "In fact, you should probably take a page out of my book, if I'm being honest." She suggests. Elena appears to ignore the advice.
"Actually, I'd rather talk about this." Elena held up something in her hand to Rebekah, whose eyes widen in shock and alarm. Immediately, Henrik and I get up and approach them, sensing a shit storm approaching.
"Hey, what's going on?" I asked, aiming for casual. Elena glares at me for the interruption and looks wary at Henrik's presence.
"Do you mind? This is a private conversation." Elena snaps at me, and Rebekah scowls at her.
"Actually, I'd rather Grace and my brother stayed if you don't mind." Rebekah interjects. Elena bristles.
"I do mind. This has nothing to do with them." Elena insists, as I take a closer look at the photo she has in her hand. It was a picture of Rebekah's name written in Runic from the cave wall. I knew it was too good to be true and that somehow Elena would get involved in all this. Damon seriously needed to pick a side and stay there.
"I think you'll find that it has a lot to do with us, Gilbert. I recognise this photo and exactly what it says." I stated.
"Besides, what does my sister's name have to do with anything anyhow?" Henrik wanted to know, frowning at Elena. She ignores us, focusing on Rebekah.
"I'm just curious about why you and Klaus have spent a thousand years running from your father." Elena pressed the issue, even going as far as mentioning Mikael. Rebekah looks afraid.
"I should get back to the girls. Homecoming's right around the corner." Rebekah tries to flee from a very persistent Elena.
"I suggest you leave her alone, Elena. You're entering very dangerous territory." I warned her. She once again ignored me, like I wasn't even there. Henrik started to get angry.
"Hey! Don't ignore us!" He yells at her. Elena glowers at him, then smirks maliciously; which immediately puts us on guard.
"Well then, maybe I'll ask Mikael when we wake him." Elena moves in for the kill and I instantly froze out of fear.
"What?" I whispered, which grabs Rebekah's attention. My sister swore underneath her breath and she and Henrik rushed over to my side.
"You're okay, Grace. Mikael isn't here, you're safe." Rebekah reassures me, before turning on Elena who seemed surprised by my reaction. "You're bluffing! You don't know where he is. No one does." She insists, wrapping an arm around my shoulders when I started to panic, as unwanted nightmares began to come flooding back. Elena stubbornly continues, unaware of my turmoil.
"So, then who's rotting in that old cemetery in Charlotte?" Elena 'innocently' asks. This time it's not only me who panics; both Henrik and Rebekah stare at Elena with absolute horror.
"Are you insane?!" Henrik yells at her, horrified. Rebekah stares at Elena angrily.
"If you wake Mikael, we are all doomed!" Rebekah insists, looking at Elena like she was the ultimate fool. Elena shrugs, unconcerned by the fear on our faces.
"So then, tell me." She demanded.
Oh, that's really low.
She's going to resort to blackmail to get her own way now?!
"Why in the hell do you want to know?" I demanded, finally finding my voice despite the immense fear I was feeling.
"Why don't you want me to wake him?" Elena retorted. This was apparently all Rebekah could take out of this conversation and she immediately steps away from Henrik and me when she realises that I had recovered from my panic.
"I need to get back to the girls." She insists, and manages to turn and walk back towards the cheerleaders. It is obvious that she, like Henrik and I, was shaken by what Elena had just told us. I turned to Henrik.
"Go after her, mate. I'll be along in a sec." I muttered to him. He nodded and turned to run after a visibly upset Rebekah. I glanced at Elena, beyond furious with her at this point.
"Let's just pretend that you actually have a brain, Elena, and try to think back to what I told you when I first moved in, huh?" I suggested. "Because if you had bothered to actually listen and remember what was said, then you would have your answer as to why none of us want Mikael to be woken up and brought down here to Mystic Falls." I growled at her, before turning and walking away before Elena could say another word.
That conversation the three of us had had with Elena caused me to remember that same memory Damon had rudely eavesdropped on in my dreams, the first night I had stayed over at the Boarding House.
~:MEMORY/FLASHBACK:~
Rebekah and I came across a group of young men and boys practicing their sword fighting. She grinned brightly and immediately tugged me over to them, obviously intending on observing. My eyes widened when I realised Henrik was standing there at a distance, watching the mock sword fighting. Rebekah approached her little brother and I caught his attention, curious to know if this was a 'memory' Henrik, or my 'ghostly companion' Henrik; presumably remembering this along with me. But when I looked into his eyes, I noted that they were very innocent and young. Not a hint of anything ancient in them. This was definitely a memory version of him; nothing more. The swordfight behind us was growing intense. I glanced over at the two competitors.
"C'mon. You can do better than that!"
It was Niklaus!
He didn't look older than perhaps twenty-one or twenty-two; and his face was STILL blurred to me. He was taunting his older brother – a dark-haired man in his mid to late twenties – playfully. I grinned happily. It was Elijah! Niklaus gave an overly cocky grin and sliced down abruptly with his sword, managing to slice off Elijah's leather belt. This earned him a look of fond exasperation from Elijah, before he got back into his stance.
Then I realised what was going on. This was a memory that I held close to my heart because it had all the people I loved the most in the world in it.
"Come on, Henrik, Gráinne; they're about to start fighting again. Let's get a closer look." Rebekah suggested excitedly. Henrik only smiled shyly and nodded, following his sister. I laughed and ran to catch up. Elijah was starting to get a little nervous, and kept glancing around for something or someone.
"Careful, Niklaus. You're getting a little too cocky. You don't want to suffer father's wrath." He warned.
I casually observed Niklaus with a keen eye, and grinned. He really was handsome guy; tall, lean and muscular, with shoulder-length dirty blonde hair. He was dressed in a dark grey tunic and wore a simple, white cotton shirt with leather wrist cuffs. Elijah was muscular also – due to the hard life we all endured back then - and wore a tan coloured tunic, dark loose trousers and was sleeveless. His long dark brown hair hung freely behind him.
I watched Niklaus wave a dismissive hand in the air.
"You're just saying that because you know you're gonna lose." He taunted, and got into his stance.
Typical, cocky male. But I love him…
Elijah merely sighed and waited for the signal to begin before both of them immediately started whaling on each other with some very impressive swordsmanship skills. Niklaus won. He crowed loudly, acting like a typical young man high on adrenaline and gestured for the accolades while both Rebekah and I rolled our eyes and giggled drawing both of their attention.
I blushed. I remembered this.
Niklaus instantly brightened and abandoned Elijah, who had an equally warm smile on his face when he saw Rebekah and me, and made his way over to us. I scowled in annoyance at my sister who elbowed me playfully in the ribs as Niklaus finally came to a stop and gave Rebekah a brilliant smile.
"Hello, Rebekah." He greeted her with a sweet kiss on her cheek. "Did you have a pleasant walk?" He inquired warmly.
"Yes, and I found your intended along the way." Rebekah reported, brightly. She draped an arm around Henrik's shoulders. Niklaus fixed me with a loving look that made my cheeks flame out. He speared the sword into the dirt and circled his strong arms around my waist, pulling me towards him. I received a tender kiss on the forehead in greeting as he buried his nose into my hair. I instantly relaxed into his arms, tucking my head underneath his chin.
"If you are quite finished, Niklaus. I know that your intended is very distracting." We both glanced over at Elijah with different reactions: Niklaus was possessive, and I was amused. "But we are still in the middle of practice." Elijah stated, feigning impatience. He winked at me, and I grinned back causing Niklaus narrowed his eyes warningly at his brother and tightened his grip around my waist, before he eventually gave a much exaggerated sigh and released me from our hug, only holding my hand instead.
"If I must." Niklaus teased and kissed my hand before walking back over to Elijah. "Who's next? Who shall challenge me next?" He announced, loudly. His voice echoing like a bullhorn.
"I will!" All the men froze, and turned to look at me with shock. Rebekah tugged insistently on my arm.
"What are you doing, Gráinne?"
Henrik had paled at the mere idea.
Fucking 11th century rules…
"You know women aren't allow to wield swords. Besides, you could get hurt!" She whisper-shouted at me. I definitely agree, of course. I was probably likely to accidentally chop off my own leg before I even got started. But still, at the time I didn't see the harm in having a go, even if it was just once. I glanced over at Elijah and Niklaus, and saw their equally concerned expressions on their faces mirroring Rebekah's. I wonder if Gráinne felt as annoyed as I feel right now.
"I don't think that's a good idea, love." Niklaus eventually responded. Elijah agreed, nodding and approaching me.
"Sword fighting can be very dangerous at the best of times." He insisted. I snorted and walked over to the large pile of swords and picked one up, staggering underneath its weight. Niklaus rushed over to assist me.
"You see?" He pointed out, smiling warmly at me. I took a step back from him, adjusting my grip on the sword and smirked at him.
"You're just saying that because you don't want to be beaten by a woman." I teased, offering him a flirty smile and Niklaus scowled warningly at me.
"Love…"
"Come on, Niklaus. Where's the harm?" I asked, beseechingly. Niklaus glanced over at Elijah, who shrugged, before he sighed and reluctantly got into position. I squealed in excitement and moved to stand opposite him, holding my sword in the defensive position.
"Just be careful." Niklaus pleaded, and waited for me to make the first move. Elijah walked over to where Rebekah and Henrik were standing, watching both of us with worry and concern. The fight began, and after a few tense minutes; both Niklaus and I were actually having fun.
"See, Niklaus? There's nothing to be worried about." I reassured him, and he grinned happily at me.
These were my famous last words.
"NIKLAUS!" We all flinched violently and turned towards the loud, angry voice and I felt the anger rise as an intimidating, older blonde-haired man with large muscles advanced towards us.
It was Mikael.
Son of a bitch!
I obviously couldn't see, because his face was blurred to me like the rest of the siblings, but I could tell that his eyes were flashing menacingly when he saw the sword in my hands. Part of me wished that I could move my arms, so I could run him through with the sword like he did to me; or in this case would do to me. But because I was just observing my memories, this was impossible.
"What is the meaning of this, boy!?" Mikael growled, practically spitting in Niklaus' face.
"We were just practicing our sword-fighting, Father." Niklaus replied, nervously, trying to shield me from his aggressive father.
"Is that so? So why is this young woman holding a sword?" He demanded, violently snatching the sword from my hands and causing me to jerk back in fright and stumble backwards onto my arse. Niklaus immediately moved to help me to my feet. Elijah waded in to assist with the explanation.
"Please, Father. We were just having a bit of fun." Elijah insisted, trying to placate him. Mikael turned and looked at them all, before levelling his gaze upon Niklaus, who looked back with what I recognised as dread.
Uh oh…
My eyes darted back and forth between the two of them. This was the part of my memory that I hated so very much. Even more so that I couldn't change what I was about to relive. It was like watching an American Pitbull taking down a Chihuahua, without remorse, and without the ability to pull them apart.
"Fun, Niklaus? Is that what you were having?" He asked, surprisingly calm. But I knew better. Mikael wasn't at all calm, there was a cold fury radiating from him and I knew that nothing good could come of it. My suspicions were confirmed when he turned and walked over to stand across from Niklaus and executed some fancy sword-twirling techniques with his hand. "Well, come on, boy. Show me this 'fun' you've been having." He demanded harshly, before charging over to Niklaus and attacking without warning. My fiancé barely had time to shove me out of the way into Rebekah's awaiting arms, to block his father's attack.
But it didn't stop there.
Oh, no. The attacks continued coming without pause, and they grew increasingly violent with every blow.
"Tell me, Niklaus. Are we having fun yet!?" Mikael snarled. Rebekah shook from fear and worry for her brother.
"Father, please!" Niklaus begged, completely terrified. Elijah went to his brother's aid.
"Stop this, Father!" Elijah yelled, attempting to grab the sword from Mikael, but he was deliberately blocked.
"Stay out of this, boy!" Mikael roared.
Elijah persisted, defying Mikael to help Niklaus, while Rebekah and I watched helplessly from the sidelines. Rebekah was clutching me and Henrik fearfully, while I glared at Mikael with cold fury. I was both surprised and glad that Gráinne apparently felt the same emotion as I am just reliving this. Tears were streaming down Rebekah's flawless face.
"Stop it, please!" She yelled, desperately. Niklaus was just barely hanging on, already showing signs of fatigue and bleeding a little from where his father had managed to cut him with his blows.
"Enough, Mikael!"
I turned and saw an older woman with long light brown hair and a slightly careworn face approach. My heart clenched. It was Esther, whose face was all blurred from my sight. She had a stern, 'don't-mess-with-me' expression on her face that caused Mikael to pause, glaring at his wife, who stood her ground glaring back. Then he snarled angrily and tossed away the sword in his hand aside, storming off. Niklaus sighed with relief, and almost collapsed to the ground.
Alarmed, both Rebekah and I rushed to his side to assist him.
"Niklaus, are you alright?" I asked with concern. He didn't respond, except to roughly jerk his arm out of my grip and got to his feet. He then turned and left without a word, presumably off to 'lick his wounds'. Hurt, I turned to Esther and was surprised to see a look of pity in her eyes, directed towards me.
She turned towards Rebekah.
"Come, Rebekah. There's chores to be done." Esther requested, firmly. Rebekah nodded, sadly.
"Yes, mother." She responded before turning and giving me a quick hug and moving to follow her. I watched as Rebekah and her mother disappeared around a corner before turning to where Niklaus had fled. I went to follow him, but a hand descended onto my shoulder, stopping me from moving and I didn't have to turn to see Elijah standing behind me with sorrow and deep concern on his face, due to the amount of pain, embarrassment and shame we had seen on Niklaus' face as he hastily departed from the scene.
~:REALITY:~
I hated the fact that I was once again forced to relive a painful memory, because if what Elena had said before was true; then not only would it be Nik's worst fears coming to life, but also mine. Because it would mean that I would be once again staring into the face of my murderer.
And that filled me with dread.
A/N: And that's a wrap. Stay tuned for the next chapter. It'll be out soon. Till then, please review :)