AN: Ah all of these lovely reviews are making my day! Thank you all so much for the feedback, it means a lot. I'm gonna take a second to answer some of your questions:
Caroline comes into the story in Chapter Eight, officially, and I'm rushing my updates to get to that point. It was the soonest time that made sense to the narrative. I'm definitely going to write her as the sassy, badass girl she is! And for the record: You will never read a story of mine that involved Ric's babies in Caroline. I found that storyline disturbing and gross, and I'm sorry, but I will not include it.
I've been anti-Hayley before, but I actually kinda liked her in Season 3, so this story is not going to be anti-Hayley. But, Katherine will not be so fond of her for a while, at least.
However, I do love female friendships, so there will be some development between Katherine/Caroline (especially these two) /Hayley/Freya/Rebekah.
Nikki - I think Elijah's choice was really about love, but should have been on priorities. Katherine was human, hunted by Silas, and alone. She needed him. Klaus is an all-powerful, unkillable being, who had to deal with a few witched (who weren't even allowed to do magic fyi). He definitely should have picked Katherine.
I hope you enjoy! Remember to follow and favourite, and tell me what you think! -Izzy x
Chapter Three – The Originals 3x04
"Thank you for meeting me," Katherine said, smiling and pulling her knees to her chest. It was a cute, spacious little coffee shop with wooden tables and leather couches. Katherine had curled up in the corner of one, keeping her hands warm on her mug. It was too early in the morning to be outside, but she'd somehow made it.
"How could I refuse?" Marcel asked. "Kitty, kitty. I haven't seen you since the fifties. You were running from Klaus as far as you could."
She smirked. "Things change. Enemies swap around. Allies too."
"And species?" He asked. "God, I cannot imagine you human!" He laughed and Katherine joined in after a moment.
"Yeah, it's been a struggle," she agreed, rolling her eyes at herself. "In the first few weeks, I realised how out of shape I was." Her hand reached up to cover her face in embarrassment. "I tried working out," she continued, and Marcel laughed before she could even finish her story. "I swear, I fell on my ass more times than I can count."
Marcel's laughter died down after a minute. "So, what the hell are you doing here?!" He drank his own coffee, stretching slightly in his work-out clothes. Why would a vampire even go out jogging? Oh who cared, he looked good for it.
She shook her head in bewilderment. "I don't even know," she admitted. "I needed an ally, and there isn't a better ally that the Mikaelsons, right?"
Marcel grimaced. "That's debatable," he told her.
She paused before laughing. "Yeah, no this sucks! Seriously, they treat me like some child. Making their sister babysit me like I'm some pregnant werewolf." She and Marcel both laughed at the burn before Katherine waved it off. "No, no offence to Hayley, I mean she's… she's Hayley. There's not much to say there. But really, I can't tell if they're sexist, or… or xenophobic or whatever, because that's got a name now."
"Oh yeah, you're Bulgarian, right?" Marcel remembered, nodding. "Beautiful country. I went there for a week in the seventies. Those eyes of God? Those are creepy as hell. Beautiful, but…"
Katherine laughed, nodding. "I only went to see them the once, but it is eerie."
Marcel nodded before turning back to the Mikaelsons. "So, if you hate them so much, why stay with them?"
She shrugged. "I guess there's just a lot of history with the big brother," she replied, musing. "My rivalry with Junior just isn't worth losing that. But I am tired of being left out of the loop like a child. Not being told anything or invited anywhere. You ever get that?"
"Yeah, I feel you," Marcel said, nodding as he finished his coffee and started on his muffin. Did any men take time to enjoy their food? "But I got some good news. I'm heading to a party tonight, that I don't think they're invited to."
Katherine perked up, sitting straight and putting her coffee down. "Sharing is caring, Marcel," she reminded him. "I'm in desperate need for a club Klaus won't find me at."
"It's not a club," Marcel said, shrugging. "The Strix are in town. I came back from a jog this morning to a tux, laid out for me, and a phone number. I thought it was Aya, some chick I fought a few days ago, but I called Tristan de Martel – an old friend of Elijah's. I'm going to get some answers myself, without their help for once."
Katherine paused, sucking her teeth. "How about I meet you there?"
Elijah stretched in his loose cotton shirt, slamming his fists against one of the thick punching bags with only a fraction of his strength. He wouldn't let the world see him so built up with rage, so he'd made sure nobody came by the ring that morning, as he worked out his emotions.
She wanted him to try. It's not like he had to try to love her, that was… that came to him naturally. But trying to be with her was a lot harder than it seemed.
True, sometimes after a very stressful day in New Orleans, he'd like to imagine a future where he abandoned the city and found his Katerina, living a life somewhere in Europe with her. It had always been wishful thinking but it had also been… almost like a plan. He'd always thought they would be together one day. He didn't know she was human; he thought they had all the time in the world.
Now they had ten years, and he couldn't help but feel cheated. By her? Was she lying to him? Playing him? He couldn't let himself be played.
But all he wanted was to be with her. To hold her. He couldn't stop thinking about her.
Why did that make him so mad?!
He punched the bag particularly hard and it flew across the room, hitting the wall and exploding like a piñata. He sighed at himself.
"Something you want to talk about, Elijah?" Came a voice. Hayley walked into the room, looking expectant, and his face fell. And then there was Hayley.
He'd fallen for her, and had been upset by her marriage. And she was safer and easier to love than Katherine, despite her husband. But did he want safe and easy? No, of course not. The safe loves were the boring ones. The dangerous loves, the ones you had to fight for, those were the good loves. And he'd fought so hard and so long for Katerina. Maybe too long. He was tired.
He blinked, realising that Hayley had asked a question. "Hm?"
"Something like the Strix?" She added, rolling her eyes and pulling out a piece of card. "I do wish you can come old chum. Signed: Tristan. I was picking up Hope when some random vampire dropped it off. Care to fill me in?"
Elijah walked up to Hayley and took the card, inspecting it. "This isn't your concern," he said, absent-mindedly flicking it across the room like garbage.
"Oh, but it is," Hayley snarled. "So, stop with this protective macho crap. I'm part of this family too, and I thought you of all people," she trailed off, flashing towards him and shoving him against the ring, "would act like it."
Elijah turned them around in a split second and held her there. "Hayley, your petty wishes and entitlement theories are not my biggest priority today," he said, becoming annoyed. "You're a mother. Hope is yours. To protect her, and yourself, stay away from the Strix and try to forget about them."
-0-0-0-0-0-
Klaus walked into his living room and instantly growled at what he saw there. Freya was on a mat on the floor, trying to meditate or something. In their household, though, yoga could probably benefit the lot of them. "What are you doing here?" He asked her.
She opened her eyes. "I live here," she reminded him, getting to her feet to change position.
"Oh, evidently," he said, rolling his eyes. "I just wasn't aware you were back from wherever you go when you're not here. Maybe I was put off by the lack of strange men perusing the contents of my refrigerator. I did want this to be a family home, after all."
"Well, if we're taking attendance," Hayley chimed in, joining them with Elijah.
"Oh good, it's my not-so-loving elder brother and my former one-night stand," he grinned, sarcastically. "What a lovely, normal family gathering. Will my arch enemy not be joining us today?"
"She left early this morning for coffee," Elijah explained, sitting down in one of the chairs and looking distant as Freya rolled up her yoga mat.
Hayley exchanged a look with his sister before explaining her mood. "Freya messaged me this morning with everything Elijah didn't want me to know. Apparently, you have no clue which one of your enemies are really friends, and which ones are trying to kill you, yet you graciously let one live with you? In the home you expect to share with my daughter?!"
Klaus blinked. "Temporarily," he explained. "I gave her $500,000 so she can find a place of her own in the quarter. Like I said – family home." He looked between their faces before spitting: "Although, what this situation clearly needs is more opinions. I'm guessing you got the news of that bloody prophecy?"
"I didn't get to that," Freya chimed in.
"Now would be good," Hayley said.
Klaus obliged, still pissed. "My old friend Lucien knows a prophet, who saw – confirmed by Freya – that Elijah, Rebekah and I would all fall. One by family, one my friend and one by foe. But not to worry, her visions are constantly evolving."
Hayley sighed, turning to Elijah before facing Klaus again. "Well, I want to meet this witch. Tonight, at the masquerade ball."
Elijah found Katerina just outside the compound a little while later, in the mid-afternoon. She was on the phone to a real estate agent and talking about a very promising property. When she reached Elijah, she promised to call her back and hung up. "Hey," she greeted, stopping in front of him.
He smiled in response before holding his own invitation to the event up. "I assume, through your network, you already know about tonight?" He guessed.
She nodded. "Yeah, a friend told me," she replied. "And yes, I'm planning to go. And logically, I guess you could stop me, but I'm really hoping you don't."
Elijah smirked. "Actually, I was hoping to escort you," he contradicted, surprising her. "There's no imaginable chance you could come to be there without a summons, and I would very much appreciate your presence. It would be… quite dull."
Katherine paused, a smile creeping up on her when she least wanted it too. "Yeah, I'd love to," she replied. "But I only have nine hours to find something to wear…"
Elijah rolled her eyes and pulled out his wallet, handing her his credit card and watching her slip it into her bag. "Thank you," she mused, grinning like a child who'd just been given their pocket money. "I can't wait."
-0-0-0-0-0-
"Come on, Rebekah," Hayley moaned, pulling out a collection of clothes from her friend's wardrobe and shoving them onto the bed. She knew Rebekah would be furious at her for the treatment of her clothes, but she was in a hurry. "You've got to have something."
She turned around slightly, and jumped at the looming dark figure. Elijah smiled at her, however, quite friendly. "Might I suggest…" He flicked through some of his sister's stuff before pulling out a poufy red ball gown and holding it up to her.
Hayley rolled her eyes at him, hiding a smile. "Thanks," she said, taking it behind the changing partition. Elijah turned around to give her a little privacy, but she didn't know why. He'd seen her naked before, and she was behind a partition. "So what exactly am I walking into tonight?" She asked.
"Only the most dangerous congregation of vampires the world has ever known," he replied, simply. There was a pause before he asked: "Is your husband okay with tonight's arrangements?"
Hayley waited a moment before replying. "Yeah, Jackson's cool," she replied. "He knows I can take care of myself, so…"
"That's not what I meant," he told her.
"Yeah," Hayley breathed, slipping into the ballgown and zipping it up herself. "I know." She stepped out from behind the partition and Elijah turned to face her. She didn't like it. Elijah had once seemed speechless when he saw her in something pretty, but now he was looking at her like he was studying an old theorem. Like he knew it all, but wanted to find something new.
And she shouldn't be bitter. She was married to one man, and had a child to another. Elijah shouldn't be on her radar, but he was.
She'd seen him look at Katherine the night before. Like she was the most incredible piece of art he'd ever seen. Something new and interesting, with parts he's never seen before and wanted to memorise. "Is Katherine okay with tonight's arrangements?" She contradicted, thoughtfully.
He took a deep breath before responding. "I invited her to accompany us," he informed her. "I feel the night could use some entertainment."
Hayley's eyebrows knitted together, clearly doubting that choice. "Really? She's human now, Elijah, going to a party of the most dangerous congregation of vampires the world has ever known."
Elijah smirked. "She'll be on my arm the entire night," he reminded her. "There's no need to worry."
Hayley blinked slowly, her face falling as she thought to herself. "You like her, don't you?" She guessed. "Do you… love her?"
Elijah paused, leaning against the doorframe and tapping it. "I did," he replied. "When I first met you, I was still with her." He said it matter-of-factly, but her heart kind of sank. She had had a thing for him almost instantly. "Katerina is difficult," he summarised. "Even if I could trust her, I'm not sure I'm in the right state of mind to handle her."
Hayley nodded. "Yeah, she seems like a difficult person to love."
Elijah opened his mouth to speak, but relented and simply nodded.
The party was beautiful, in fairness, and very provocative. There were erotic dancers at every table, putting on unified displays for the guests. Some were being fed on by the guests, but they paid no attention to the pain. Alcohol was everywhere, from century-old scotch to colourful martinis. The music was upbeat and sexual. Aya sort out Marcel the second he arrived.
"Mr Gerard," she greeted with a coy smile. "Welcome. I'm glad you could join us. Allow me to make some introductions." She linked arms with him and lead him through the party, pointing out some of her favourite members.
"Wait, is that-" Marcel started.
"Mm-hm," she said, nodding. "One of our most celebrated faces. Our society hold countless actors, artists, politicians. Of course, most of us prefer to live life outside of the public eye. That doesn't make our talents less impressive."
Everyone turned when Elijah joined the party. Looking back in shock, like they couldn't believe they'd actually seen him in real life. One poor girl dropped her drink.
He was dressed in a smart tuxedo, and had Katherine's arm linked loosely through his. She, of course, looked lazily beautiful. She'd bought a primarily white gown with a stiff skirt and a green leaf design. She paired it with pink stilettos and had styled her brunette curls over one lucky shoulder. She had a dainty silver mask over her face, simply decorating her eyes. She got stares of her own, often out of recognition, but mainly out of awe. Hayley stood about a foot away on his other side, looking annoyed at the displays of wealth.
"Why are they all staring at you?" Hayley asked.
"I'm kind of a big deal around here," Elijah said, looking smug and making Katherine smirk. The three of them walked through the party, looking around at the displays while heading to the bar, naturally.
"They're all part of your sire line," Katherine deduced, noticing the resemblance.
"Tragically yes," Elijah mused. "I wanted to assemble minds, curious about the world and eager to improve it. I created a brotherhood of an elite… supposedly better civilisation. It was naïve. I was forced to abandon it when I realised I created an allegiance of sociopaths."
He bought drinks for the three of them, which they could only enjoy for a second before Hayley spotted Marcel. He had Aya on his arm and was looking around, almost amazed at the beauty of the evening.
"What the hell is he doing here?" Hayley asked.
Elijah began to look worried, and Katherine just looked confused. "What? Is he not supposed to be here?"
Elijah turned to her, looking angry. "You knew about this?" He asked. "You didn't think to tell me?"
"I didn't think it was important," Katherine answered, beginning to look nervous. "He mentioned it to me this morning over coffee. He was invited. I figured you probably already knew, and it didn't cross my mind to tell you-"
"If you told me I could have stopped it," he said, scowling. "You should have told me."
"I didn't think-"
"Well you should have."
"Why?!" She exclaimed. "What's the big deal?"
Before Elijah could answer, the erotic dancers formed a line and held up a glass of champagne and a knife, all clinking them in unison. The crowd quietened, the music ceased and everyone turned to Tristan de Martel.
"Distinguished friends, welcome," he started, stepping forward and grinning rather eerily. "It's so rare that we're able to come together like this, to revel for one night in the company of true equals. Now, I'd like to take a moment to welcome a very special guest: Mr Marcel Gerard." There was a moment of applause, which Marcel waved away. "Of course, before we tell Mr Gerard all our secrets, there is one bit of business to which, we must first attend. We must determine his worth."
There was a pause as Marcel laughed. "Funny. I seem to recall you knocking on my door."
Tristan ignored this, continuing without justifying his invitation. "You'll notice, Marcel, that over the course of the evening, someone has managed to take something quite dear to you. Your daylight ring." As it turns out, Marcel had not noticed. He lifted his naked hand to inspect it, shocked and angered.
"What the hell is going on?" Hayley demanded, getting protective quite fast.
Tristan, again, ignored them and continued. "First you must deduce the identity of the thief, and then you just simply take back what's yours. I doubt it will be easy. Despite our refinement, we're still a rather violent bunch. In victory, you become one of us. In failure, you meet your death. You have a few hours until dawn." Marcel began to look slightly panicked and Elijah was looking very angry, which made Katherine pout. "I wish you the best of luck."
"It's an initiation," Katherine realised, when the crowd began to chatter again. "I'm sorry, Elijah. I didn't know." He turned angrily and she repeated herself before he could chastise her. "I didn't know, Elijah! How could I have possibly guessed?"
"Marcel is family," Elijah told her, snapping. "If he is invited to something big and dangerous, I expect you to tell me." He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. Katherine tried to speak, but he interrupted her. "How do you expect me to try when all you do is hide things from me and lie?"
Katherine tried again to reply, but Elijah shushed her as they were joined by Tristan, smiling politely at the three of them.
"Good evening," he greeted, looking between them. "I hope you're enjoying the night?"
Hayley glared daggers at him. "How the hell do you expect Marcel to survive one of you?"
"He must be clever," Tristan said, taken aback, as if the answer was obvious. "To be quite honest, we're not really expecting anything, but sometimes the new recruits surprise us." He flashed a quick smile to Elijah before turning back to Hayley. "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Tristan de Martel. You must be Hayley Marshall, alpha of the Crescent Pack." He turned quickly to Katherine, and his smile grew wider. "Katerina Petrova. How delighted I am to see you again."
He took Katherine's hand and placed a kiss upon her knuckles. His eyes flicked to Elijah for a reaction, but he was disappointed at the Mikaelson's poker face. Tristan straightened up and let Katherine's hand drop, turning to Elijah. "When I sent your invitation, I didn't dare think you would actually come. Tell me, what do you think of our latest addition?"
Elijah considered it. "Marcellus… Arrogant. Stubborn. Prone to unnecessary grandeur. He should fit in perfectly." He watched as Tristan's face contorted ever so slightly at the insult. But instead of replying, Tristan turned back to Hayley.
"And you?" He asked. "I'm guessing the two of you are friends?"
Hayley blinked. "We're friends," she answered. "And I don't much like bullies."
Tristan laughed at the insult that time, as if it was adorable. "Alright," he excepted. "So, Elijah. Which one of your lady escorts would you prefer I lead into a dance? The skilful Katerina, or outspoken Hayley?"
Elijah smirked. "I assure you, Katerina can be quite outspoken," he mused. "When she sees fit. However, I do believe that you, dear Hayley, had somethings to talk about with Tristan. Now would be the perfect opportunity."
Hayley nodded, leading Tristan onto the dancefloor instead of vice versa. Elijah turned back to the bar and downed the rest of his drink. Katherine watched him, but he paid no attention to her, clearly still mad.
"Elijah…" She whispered, reaching up and resting her hand on his shoulder. He didn't shrug her off.
"I'm going to have to kill everyone here," he told her, under his breath so that only she could here. "Marcel won't be able to make this deduction. So, when they attack him… I'll need to step in. Shame, really. This is a century old tuxedo."
"I'm sorry," she said again, clearly tired of it. "I didn't know."
"Yes, you did," he replied, turning to her, angrily. "You know Tristan. Apparently another fact you didn't think was necessary to tell me."
"What can I say?" She mused. "My mind goes all fuzzy around you." She stopped when Elijah glared daggers. She rolled her eyes and snarled. "A few centuries ago, the Strix invited me to a party just like this one. I made the deduction they wanted me to, and I managed to rip them to shreds. But they were too close to you, and by extension, Klaus. So, I refused their offer, and used the stuff I had over them to ensure their silence. Tristan got in touch every few decades with the same offer. They really seemed to want me."
There was a pause before Elijah extended his hand, which Katherine took graciously, letting him lead her onto the dance floor. They gained a number of stairs from passing couples, all able to see the history between them; the chemistry.
But the chit chat was stiff, however.
"So, you summarised this was an initiation, and knew how Marcel was invited," he mused, thoughtfully. "And yet, you still didn't gather that it was important to tell me. Care to explain your sudden idiocy?"
Katherine clicked her tongue, twirling under his arm and colliding back with his chest. "Care to explain why you're purposely looking for reasons to mistrust me?" She contradicted. "I thought this party was in favour of you, living with them in the same city, or whatever. I thought they were trying to impress you, or recruit me. Don't make this out to be something it isn't."
"How can I not when you're playing me for a fool?!" He demanded as a hiss. "I invited you tonight because I wanted to try, but you're not supposed to interpret the masquerade so metaphorically."
There was a pause as Katherine swallowed, pulling away from him. "You're not the fool, Elijah. I am."
Before she could explain, the attention of the party turned towards an unexpected guest. Elijah scowled as Klaus came crashing through the door with Lucien at his side, each with a couple of young women – dressed very inappropriately – on their arms. They were howling with drunkenness and laughing at nothing in particular.
"My God, it's a room full of Elijah's," Lucien examined, looking around at the wealth of the Strix.
"I had the exact same nightmare once," Klaus replied.
Lucien turned to one of his ladies, who was in a hot-pink corset. "Go and fetch us a drink, love," he requested, although he clearly didn't need another. They must have had quite a lot to become as drunk as they were. "And one for yourself."
"And one for me!" Klaus exclaimed, before pointing to the other three women one-by-one. "And one for her, and her, and her. TRISTAN?!"
Instead of getting Tristan, however, Elijah stepped up to him. "You're intoxicated," he deduced, in clear distaste. Klaus nodded, proudly. Elijah remained polite despite his disapproval. "I will have to request you leave the party, to which you were not invited."
While they finished talking, Katherine retreated to the bar and ordered another cocktail. She worked harder than ever to keep her face straight as she sipped her drink.
Elijah had been putting her through hell for centuries. Granted, she's been doing the same, but they both wanted each other. He was so one-sided and blame-shifting. She was the only one working for them, when he'd given up. He was terrified of becoming a fool, when he'd been playing her like one for days.
"Hmm," murmured a voice in her ear. "I didn't think the bar would be serving these kinds of drinks." For a second, Katherine forgot she wasn't a vampire anymore, and it took her a moment to realise what he meant, by which time his fangs were already tracing along her flesh.
Before she could react, his neck snapped, and his body dropped to the floor. Hayley stood behind him and winked at her. Katherine just rolled her eyes.
"I can take care of myself, Marshall," she claimed, sucking her teeth.
Hayley smirked. "No doubt here," she mused. "But you saved my ass the other night, so it's only fair I save yours." She ordered herself a beer, clearly losing the will to try and fit in with these posh boys for the rest of the night.
"You look like your scheming," Katherine mused, noticing the hard facial expression and hidden worry. "What's going on? I haven't been this bored since I took over Elena Gilbert's life."
Hayley sniggered, spluttering slightly on her drink before tossing Katherine a scolding look. "Let's just say, our hope for Marcel might not be as misguided as it was five minutes ago," she answered. She placed her drink down and sighed. "Look, I know you and Elijah have a history. I also know that you know, that him and I used to have a thing. But I'm smart enough to know that your thing is bigger than our thing."
Katherine paused, downing her cocktail. "I think our thing is awkwardly dying," Katherine mused, unhappily.
"Love never dies," Hayley replied, clicking her tongue. "But just so you know – not that you care, I just want to say it – I'm married. And if you and Elijah want to figure this out, then… no hard feelings."
Katherine almost smirked. She had five hundred years of history with Elijah. Pain and pleasure, hurt and comfort. Hayley had pregnancy hormones and entitlement. But nevertheless, she was important in New Orleans. She ran the wolves, and mothered Klaus's daughter. Having Hayley on her side might just be valuable.
"Thanks," she muttered. "But you're not over him. He's a hard person to get over. Believe me, I've tried." She ordered another drink as she tried to phrase what she wanted to say. "He gives all he has to his siblings. Sacrifices everything for him. And they take, and they take, and they take. And then the outsiders, the girls who fall for him… They all want to save him. But none of them can, because they don't know how. And he won't allow himself happiness for long enough for them to figure it out."
"Well you've known him for longer than anyone else," Hayley commentated. "Have you figured it out?"
Katherine waited before nodded. "I know how to make him happy," she said. "But he won't trust me enough to let me try."
-0-0-0-0-0-
Elijah leaned against the bar and circled the rim of his glass with his finger, thinking to himself. How could Katerina lie to him like that? Feign innocence and stupidity… for what? Was it some sort of manipulation? What was the point?
"So many options," came a voice at his ear; a ringing, clear voice. He turned to a man, chiselled in a light suit and a silver masquerade mask, covering the left half of his face contrasting well with his dark olive skin. He studied the menu behind the bar, grinning as he skimmed over the different drinks. "These drinks are hilarious," he claimed, laughing. "Screaming Orgasm? Slippery Nipple?" He laughed to himself, sounding quite jolly, in fact.
"I recommend the Bowmore Scotch," Elijah said, holding up his own glass of alcohol.
The man beamed at him, his eyes glistening. "Thank you for the insight," he said, positively gleaming. He seemed way too grateful for a drink recommendation, but Elijah shrugged it off.
He made to walk away, but the man stopped him with a kind hand. "You must be Mr Mikaelson," he assumed, holding a hand out. "Founder of the Strix. Quite impressive, truly. Such a powerful organisation. Pleasure to meet you. I'm Arc."
Elijah paused before taking his hand and shaking it, appreciating the manners – something members of the Strix usually lacked. "The pleasure's mine," Elijah insisted, managing a smile of his own.
"For the record, I happen to believe the founder is more impressive than the leader," Arc claimed. "So if you ever need an inside man…" He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and slipped it into Elijah's, "give me a call."
Elijah narrowed his eyes, questioning Arc's intentions. Slowly, Elijah pulled the number out of his pocket and handed it back to him. "I'm in no position to be making any new friends," he admitted to him. "I appreciate the offer."
-0-0-0-0-0-
In the early hours of the morning, the Strix gathered to watch Marcel make his decision. He turned around in the centre of the crowd to face Aya, pointing. "Aya took my ring," he deduced. When the older vampire opened her mouth to prove him wrong, he interrupted. "Hold on, hold on. I said you took my ring. I never said you still had it. Because after you took it, you gave it to your pal, Mohinder." He turned to her mentor and grinned.
There was a pause before a light applause. "Congratulations," Tristan mused. "But you'll remember there's another part to the test."
Mohinder stepped forward, straightening his cuffs. "There's no shame in losing to a superior," he claimed, looking Marcel up and down.
"There's not much glory in it, either," he added, looking nervous already.
The fight itself didn't last too long, and was pretty average for a vampire-on-vampire dispute. Marcel started by going for the face, beating it twice. Mohinder took over from then, decking Marcel, who jumped back up. They went crashing through a wall before Mohinder flipped him again. Marcel tried to kick while he was down, but his efforts were futile.
Mohinder pulled him to his feet, shoving him against a nearby wall and biting into his neck, feeding from him.
From the spectator's crowd, Elijah moved to intervene, but Hayley stopped him, winking slightly.
"You fought with honour," Mohinder announced, almost proud of Marcel. "I hope you embrace your end."
"I will if you will," Marcel retorted, his voice becoming a little croaky. Everyone blinked, confused and Marcel just grinned. "Or do you still not know? I suppose you didn't taste it but," he trailed off as Mohinder began to cough and splutter, "but you're feeling it now, right? Wolf's venom. A little parting gift from me."
There were gasps amongst the crowd, and a number of people turning to Hayley, the only wolf in the room, for an explanation. She just smirked, proudly.
"A little parting gift from me," Marcel finished. "I may not have beaten you, but you lost all the same. So, embrace it. We're two dead men walking."
"A LIE!" Mohinder yelled, clearly hiding his ill-health.
Marcel showed everyone the bubbling bite on his arm, clearly getting woozy himself. "I don't know why they want you dead, but they do," he continued. Then he turned to the Strix, analysing them. "Right? Why else would Aya give me a little taste of your tricks the other day? Or tell me about your feeding habits? All I had to do was be observant. But I'm done picking up their breadcrumbs. You guys want him dead? You do it yourself. As far as I can see, the only thing he's done to deserve it is pick his friends poorly."
There was a pause before Tristan walked forward and stepped around Mohinder. He pulled out his heart and let the body drop to the floor, throwing the heart down with it. Then he turned to Aya.
"You chose well," he told her, turning to Marcel. "But of course, he did deserve it. He's been plotting some unspeakable crimes against his people for months. You couldn't have known, of course." He nodded admiringly to Marcel. "Your restraint, your refusal to kill without cause demonstrates a rare integrity. You see, Mr Gerard… this was the test." He moves forward and hands Marcel his daylight ring. "Welcome to the Strix," he grinned. "Provided of course, that you survive your own injury."
Dawn was just rising over New Orleans when they gathered in the living space of the compound. Elijah refused to get started until Freya and Katherine, who were running late, arrived. Alexis was crying very softly on Lucien's shoulder, mumbling something of an apology.
"I'm sorry, Lucien," she was saying, sniffling. "I really hoped I was wrong. But I wasn't." She turned to Klaus, who was lazing about in an armchair, seeming unconcerned. "I saw him die," Alexis said, sure.
"Did you see the weapon?" Lucien asked, desperately. Alexis nodded. "What is it?"
Alexis turned to Hayley, and then to Elijah. "To understand, it must be seen," she replied.
Hayley and Elijah took a deep breath before moving around the coffee table to sit on either side of Alexis. They both picked up a wrist each and lifted it to their mouths. Freya, Katherine, Lucien and Klaus leaned forward in anticipation.
The first thing they saw was a dining table, laid with expensive crystal and gleaming plates. They saw a book, almost like a grimoire but new. It was filled with shapes and writing. Perhaps a moon cycle? Then they saw hands, soaking in a bowl of blood. Blood splattered across an expensive portrait of Elijah. They saw Katherine, running across concrete as fast as possible, pulling a hood up to protect herself from the rain, as she desperately escaped. Then there were pages of a book, pieces of paper on fire. Freya was in another image, suffering from a difficult spell as Lucien watched over her.
The last image, however, was the one that truly scared Elijah. It had the first time he saw it, and it would the second time.
A huge, looming shadow, growing against a dark wall as the beast approached them.
It was hard to differentiate the vision from their true surroundings, but Elijah couldn't ignore the burning in his throat. Both him and Hayley gasped, pulling away from Alexis, coughing and spluttering, trying to get the poison out of their system.
He felt a comforting hand touch his shoulder and felt the slightest relief. Katerina was with him.
Alexis jerked forward and threw up about a litre of blood, falling onto Lucien's lap. "No," he begged, nothing more than a gasp. "No, no, no! Alexis?!" He cradled his prophet as she died in his lap, completely devastating him.
-0-0-0-0-0-
Only an hour later or so, the sun had arisen entirely over Louisiana, and yet, Elijah still hadn't managed to change or rest. He opened the door to the balcony, just outside of his own bedroom and leaned against the railing. On the other side of the street, Hayley was mirroring his actions, their supernatural hearing allowing them to hear above the nose of the street.
"I finally put her to sleep," Hayley informed him, looking particularly beat. He had heard motherhood did that to people. Then she sighed. "I'll have to explain this family to Hope someday," she mused, looking off into the distance and thinking only of the future. "I think about that sometimes. I won't lie to her. I'll never lie to her. But you know what I'll start with?"
Elijah perked up, interested in how to begin explaining his family. Something he'd been trying to do for centuries.
"Always and forever," Hayley answered, sighing.
If they all fall, then Hayley would raise Hope by herself. And telling the girl of her father's family would be completely her responsibility. But Elijah couldn't imagine a world without his siblings. Should they all fall, the world would be without vampires entirely, and that was even less imaginable. Hayley would be the only immortal being in the world.
In 1000 years, she'd still be there, in a whole new world, with all new people. All alone. Always and forever.
He wondered if she had thought about that yet.
"I'm sorry," he claimed, wanting to remove his mind from the subject. "I should have told you what was happening."
"You were busy with Katherine," she excused, shrugging. "What's the deal with you two, anyway?"
Elijah paused, clicking his tongue. "I've been asking myself the same question for too long," he admitted. "And now, the answer seems more complex than ever before."
Hayley blinked, slowly. "Look, I'm not gonna say that I'm a hundred percent happy with it," she told him, sighing. "Because I'm not. And I have no right to say that, I know. But I'm not going to lie to you, either." There was a pause as Hayley waved away any guilt was residing inside of her. "The thing is… It seems like at least one of you have limited time left on this earth. Maybe you'd be more of a fool to let that slide."
Elijah nodded a goodbye to her and turned back into his bedroom, closing the door behind him. Katherine was lying on his bed, waiting to talk to him about their little spat. She was flicking through an old journal of Tristan's, which Elijah had managed to acquire, learning all about their history before it was told to her. She had managed to changed, a full-length kimono covering her nightgown and long legs. She had made her plans to sleep the whole day very clear, and was very fair. She was only human, and had been up for almost twenty-four hours, after all.
"Does she know I'm in here?" Katherine mused, probably just able to hear his side of the conversation with Hayley. "How much does she know about our history, anyway?"
"Our history is our own," he replied, simply. "That's all that matters."
He walked over to the side of his bed and pulled Katerina gently to her feet, running his hands along her sides and resting them on her hips. She reached up and caressed his face, looking almost sadly into his eyes. "Elijah…"
He sighed. "I want to trust you," he admitted. "I want to be with you. But I don't know how. There's always something giving me reason to doubt you."
Katherine took a deep breath and Elijah watched her chest rise and fall, her eyes darting upwards. "Compel me," she answered.
He blinked. "Sorry?"
"Compel me," she said again, this time a little clearer. "Do it. Just compel me to tell you the truth. I'm not on vervain, I promise. Just do it."
Elijah shook his head and turned away. "How is controlling your thoughts a step towards progress?" He asked.
"It's not controlling my thoughts, because I'm giving you consent," she insisted, pulling his face towards her, to force him to face her. "And I'm only going to tell you the same thing I've been telling you for days."
Elijah paused slightly, considering it. But he finally shook his head.
Katherine scoffed, disappointed. "Well, I don't know what else we can do," she exclaimed, angrily.
Elijah took a deep breath before letting his eyes drift down, admiring the curves of her body, under her rose gold kimono. He hooked his fingers in the knot around her waist and pulling it gently apart. She didn't react as he flicked the side of the gown away, revealing her short, silk nightgown. She was completely unbashful of her body, and of the fact that her breasts almost entirely arose from above the lacy trim.
"Is having sex really a better idea?" She whispered, finally moving her own hands under the tuxedo jacket of his, resting on his chest.
"Perhaps," he mused, his hand trailing down and touching the bare skin of her thigh for half a second before retreating entirely. "But we're not having sex."
"We're not?" She asked, confused.
He reached up and took her hands from his chest and placing them back to her sides. "You're tired and tipsy," he explained. "And I have a lot to do this morning." He kissed her forehead, just as he did when he told her goodbye, and walked out of the room to start his morning.
Chapter Eight and Caroline are coming as fast as they can.
Please, please leave an opinion in the box below. Not to beg, but I love reviews. -Izzy x
