Rebekah is the first to notice that today, Klaus is wearing his favorite jacket.
It’s the one with the navy striped pattern inside - the outside is dark brown. It’s so unlike the usual clothes he’d pick for himself. Ripped jeans, black leather, gray sweaters, he was one step up from his highschool teenage self.
This jacket though was different. It used to belong to Finn, he got it back when he first met the love of his life, Sage. Then, he outgrew it the summer Elijah turned seventeen and it was his turn to inherit the jacket.
Klaus knew that at some point, he’d have to give this jacket to Kol.
It’s a tradition between brothers, one that they all hold dear - so of course, he wears this article of clothing the day Freya, Elijah and Finn are leaving town again.
Rebekah, Klaus and Kol arrive to see them off at the airport.
“Well,” Kol sighs, waving them away as the three of them pass through border security. “There they go, off to who knows where,” he grumpily says.
His sister places a warm hand over his shoulder, realizing that Kol was still mourning Davina’s rejection. And, in turn, he was not ready to say goodbye to the rest of his siblings, as of yet.
“Kol,” she whispers, “they’ll be back soon, they just have some work to do, that’s all,” her attempts to soothe her dear brother fails as he continues to pout.
He then notices the big smile plastered on Klaus’ face.
“And what’s got you so chipper?” He asks.
Klaus raises a brow. “What ever do you mean?”
Kol rolls his eyes. “You’ve been grinning like a damned fool all morning,” he says. “Meanwhile, Bekah and I are heartbroken, betrayed…turned away by people whom we love dearly.”
He reminds him, as he recalls Marcel’s haste behavior at the party last night and who could forget Kol’s embarrassing antic of trying to get engaged.
“Oh my God.” And just then, Rebekah puts the pieces together. “Something happened with Hayley, didn’t it?”
Her brother’s blushing cheeks gives him away.
“I knew it!” She exclaims, throwing her arms around Klaus. “Oh, I’m so glad, I knew you two would patch things up!”
Klaus doesn’t say much else, he rubs his sister’s back as she holds him closer.
Kol doesn’t add a word either - he’s much too busy continuing to sulk and burn a jealous stare into his sibling.
(Although, somewhere, underneath all that envy, he is happy for Klaus).
-
Back at the Marshall residence - time to daydream is rather rare.
Between getting Hope ready for school, packing lunch, and getting herself ready for work - Hayley is almost caught off-guard by the fleeting memories of last night’s kiss with Klaus.
At first, she thought she would regret it.
She was supposed to never forgive him.
But, to her dismay, Klaus had indeed grown as a person since the last time she had seen him. She can’t help but think that she doesn’t want to hold on to her anger anymore.
It’s so…exhausting. Fighting her feelings, her attraction to him, her love for him -
Knock knock!
“Hey there stranger.”
And then, there is Marcel.
She can’t pretend she hasn’t noticed him either. Even though Hayley is swept off her damned feet by Klaus’ affection, Marcel’s presence is…unwavering.
“I wasn’t expecting you this morning,” she tells him. “Donuts again?” she notices.
He nods, raising the box and walking into her home like he lives there. “Fresh from Josh’s Bakery,” he knows where everything is - the place where she puts all the snacks to keep away from Hope, where she hides her cigarettes, where the bananas go -
“We’re just about to leave, Hope is still watching cartoons upstairs,” it sounds like she’s rushing him out, like she knows what’s about to come.
He’s thought about her for so long.
“I wanted to tell you this last night, at the party,” Marcel confesses. “But something else came up - anyway, the point is…” His hands shake and her eyes avert his gaze. She can’t even look at him right now. “After the Mikaelsons left town and we only had each other, I grew really close to you,” he recalls to her. “I remember helping you during your pregnancy, being in the hospital when you gave birth, Hope’s first words-”
“Marcel-”
“Hayley Marshall,” He gets closer, almost too close. “I think…I’m in love with you.”
And she wishes her heart hadn’t wavered, that it hadn’t, for one second, just thought about it.
For if she hadn’t, things would be so clear. Her answer would be Klaus - but, when she looks into Marcel’ eyes…she can’t help but imagine.
She can’t help but dream.
-
After his short trip to the airport, Kol’s mind is still wrapped around Davina’s rejection.
He continues to be cooped up in the same hotel room as Rebekah and Klaus - refusing to be alone for even a second. As long as he has his siblings, he weirdly feels invincible.
Like he can even get through this - as long as his sister’s hand continues to ruffle his curls and his brother’s smile haunts his mind…he is alright.
Better even, he is good.
“Hey. I’m outside your hotel. Let’s talk”
Until he isn’t.
Kol stares at the text from Davina for over a minute, just to check if it’s real. And then, he rushes down to the lobby.
(He has this entire speech prepared - in his mind, he is brave, he is strong, he is smooth with his words and assertive. However, as soon as he sees her and she’s wearing that scrunchie he gave her on their fourth date - he loses it).
“I thought I’d never see you again,” he exhales.
“Kol,” she laughs as he runs into her arms. “You’re so dramatic,” she sighs, patting his hair down while he softly sobs into her touch.
“First, you reject my proposal and now, you’re making fun of me?” he whines.
She wipes his tears away, trying to hold him even closer. “I’m sorry,” Davina finally tells him. “I never meant to hurt you with my decision, you know you have my heart - just marriage, it’s a big deal you know? We’re just kids, are we even ready for something like that? And you never even talked about it with me-”
“I know,” he cuts her off, finally done with the crying, done with moping around. “I just…I was swept up in the passion of it all. You know how we Mikaelsons are?”
Davina smiles widely. “Yes, I’m aware. It’s one of the things I love most about you.”
He breathes easy as she softly places her smooth fingers against his cheeks. She pulls his face close and they are nose to nose. “I guess I could wait…just a little longer for you. Actually, you know I’d wait for you forever, Davina.”
She quietly giggles. “Oh Kol,” Davina sings. “I promise I won’t make you wait that long.”
-
So he wears his brother’s jacket.
The jacket that smells like old pine, wood and faded cologne.
Klaus spends his evening reading poetry books, while Rebekah softly plays her reality shows in the background - it’s a kind of night he hasn’t had in a while.
Between his feelings for Hayley and his dramatic family…and his daughter. Klaus hasn’t had much time for himself.
And that reality is sure to fade the minute Hayley asks him to see her.
With an instant, he is jumping out of bed, grabbing his shoes and running out the door.
“Here to continue what we started?” He says, in the smoothest way possible.
He’s disappointed when he’s met with her frown - she takes a step towards him, her tone is somber.
It’s not long before the ballroom becomes a battlefield.
Well, a few things happen just before then actually.
“I’ve fallen in love,” Kol declares.
His expression is soft - devoid of the boastfulness of his ego (that he gets from Klaus) and the loudness of his pride (that he gets from Rebekah).
His hand is soft too - as he gestures it towards Davina, who is sitting before the stage.
She stares at his open palm, wondering if she should take it.
Then, Kol takes this as his golden opportunity.
He reaches his other hand into his pocket, pulling out a small box as he gets down on one knee.
“Davina Claire,” he begins. “Among my siblings, I’ve always been known as the impatient one,” he admits, a smile forming on his lips. “Even worse than Niklaus, on some days,” the whole room chuckles, “but, the one thing I’ve been able to wait for is you.”
“The truth is, I’ve been wanting to do this since the day we first met - at that old record store.”
She watches as he opens the blue box, revealing a dainty golden ring with a white diamond at the center.
“My love,” he says again. “Will you marry me?”
-
He remembers the day after Davina had stolen his heart much better than the day of, if he’s quite honest.
Finn congratulated him, Klaus teased him.
Rebekah envied him. Elijah supported him.
By the time their second encounter comes around, it’s already summer. She’s at the local occult club meeting, sitting there, looking like something the wind blew in.
“Hello again,” he had said, “is this seat taken?”
She recognizes him, almost immediately. “Nope,” Davina chirps, eventually meeting his longing gaze. “Fancy seeing you here,” she finally addresses.
There is nothing else there, just a boy catching the eye of a girl.
“I’m surprised you remembered me,” Kol adds.
She offers him a kind smile. “A handsome man with impeccable taste in music,” she says. “How could I forget someone like that?”
He’s surprised.
Flirting.
He didn’t think she’d be so bold.
“I could say the same about you - pretty girl and all,” Kol tells, offering the same type of smile back.
Minutes pass, their instructor is still late.
“Why are you interested in witchcraft?” She suddenly asks.
“All things dark and mysterious, they’ve always piqued my curiosity,” he sings, and that’s how they begin.
-
So, where did we leave off?
Will you marry me?
Oh - right.
And then she said:
“No.”
Kol inhales a sharp breath.
No.
No?
No!
Davina furrows her brows, she approaches the man with the box. Softly, she places her fingers around it and slowly closes it shut.
“I’m sorry Kol,” she sobs. “It’s just too soon for me, I love you…so much. But I just need more time,” she watches him as he hangs on her every word.
Jaw dropping at her tone.
“Davina,” he sighs. “I don’t understand, if you know you love me…and I love you…then, why is there a need for more time?”
Eventually, she just gives up.
The man before her is such a romantic, how could he understand the simplicity as well as the complexities of a woman who just wanted to find herself?
“I just can’t do this,” Davina uncomfortably releases. “I have to go.”
-
It’s always odd, the way things go.
Almost as if the fates had something else in store for him.
Marcel has to choose.
Confess to Hayley or comfort Davina.
“Marcel.”
Humbly, he chooses the latter.
“Please don’t scold me right now, this is already hard enough,” the young girl sobs (woman but child in his eyes - as he leans outside the car with her, hand on her shoulder).
“I wasn’t going to,” Marcel whispers. “I came to see if you’re okay.”
“Of course I’m okay!” she shouts, and immediate regret surrounds her when she realizes that she was taking her anger out on him. “Kol is the one who’s heartbroken…I hurt him, I even ran away! God, he’s all alone, he must be feeling so awful-”
“Davina,” he cuts in, locking eyes with her. “He has his family, he’ll be okay,” Marcel assures her.
She finally leans into him, collapsing against his chest.
“I guess,” she cries, feeling his warm hand on her back this time. “I do love him, you know that right?” she reminds him (reminds herself).
He nods, thinking of Hayley. “I know,” he acknowledges. “To be honest, I’m probably the only one…but I’m glad you said no.”
She actually releases a laugh.
“Not ready to lose me yet?”
“Never.”
It’s a touching moment, found family meant more to them that they could say in so many words.
“Don’t worry,” for once, he allows her to comfort him too. “I’ll always be there for you, Marcel.”
He misses his chance to say it back - but she knows he has and he always will give up the world for her.
-
Backstage, Kol is inconsolable.
He goes off on Finn for the flowers again and this time, the older brother just takes it, knowing that maybe this will offer the little one some semblance of relief.
“This is just like that time he wanted to buy that yacht,” Elijah sighs
“Or when he lost those golden golf clubs at that auction we went to in Berlin,” Rebekah comments, as they are both out of reach of Kol’s hearing.
“He’ll get over it,” Freya whispers “He’s a Mikaelson, Mikael made sure we were all put through much worse.”
One by one, they all try their best
Hayley watches as Klaus returns Hope to her and makes his way to his brother’s side.
“Kol.”
“Nik, not now.”
He observes as the other continues to fiddle with the plants - pricking off the dried ends, trimming the sides, placing them in all different kinds of arrangements -
“The flowers look fine,” Klaus breaks the silence.
He feels something warm at the center of his back - his brother’s touch, radiating through his jacket. Unexpectedly, it’s enough to offer him a small sense of relief.
“She said no,” Kol sighs. “I threw this dumb party, and she said no,” he whines, arms crossing and huffing loudly, just like when they were children.
Klaus laughs, he could be such a brat sometimes.
“So what?”
The other drops his jaw. “So what?” He repeats, immediately shoving his brother off of him. “Do you know how much money I spent on these glass swans?”
Klaus tilts his head - thinking of what Elijah would say to him, if he were in this exact predicament.
“You are a Mikaelson,” he reminds Kol. “And we are known for one thing,” he pursues. “Never giving up.”
It takes Kol exactly two seconds before his entire face breaks into laughter.
His other siblings stare in awe - who knew that all it took was some crazy words from their most unexpected brother to do the trick.
“Did you think that would actually work on me?” Kol asks, seriously.
Klaus shakes his head. “You’re smiling, aren’t you?”
His younger sibling exhales in disbelief - was this actually happening right now?
“Well, I can’t help it,” Kol offers. “Seeing you with that weird glimmer in your eyes, dancing around with a toddler,” he loses himself in those images. “It’s so unlike the brother I’ve known, all these years.”
“And,” Klaus says. “The little brother I knew used to have a different girl in his bed every other week,” he recalls. “Now, you want to get married?”
Both brothers smile at each other, in awe.
“Love. It’s a strange thing, isn’t it?”
“And so it is, Nik.”
-
After the party, the Mikaelson siblings squeeze into a limo.
Hayley carries a sleeping Hope as they make their way outside only to find Klaus waving them off.
She silently observes him as he’s making his way back to her. This whole event, that’s all she’s been, quiet and calculating.
Waiting for the right moment.
“You’re not going with them?” she questions him.
He notices her hip swung to one side in order to support their daughter’s sleeping body - her soft hand on her back, carefully lulling Hope to stay dormant.
He bites - she’s a good mother, he thinks.
“They’ll be alright,” Klaus tells her. “You know my siblings, such a handful, but in the end, they have each other,” he reminds her.
“I’ve always been jealous of that,” Hayley quips. “Big happy family,” she cheers.
“Big, sure…happy? Eh,” he chuckles.
She giggles.
Hayley Marshall? Giggle?
What was happening here?
“I was really impressed with the way you cheered Kol up,” she surprises herself with her next words. She wonders why it took her so long to see that he has indeed actually become a family man. “I didn’t think anyone could get him out of that slump,” Hayley says.
“Well, I did what I could,” he shrugs. “The rest is up to him.”
She’s lost in her thoughts again - she looks beyond who he is, who she knew him as. All she sees is a chance, an opportunity before her.
“I never noticed,” she whispers quietly. “The hint of yellow in your eyes.”
He takes a step back as she lunges forward.
“Sweetheart,” Klaus raises a brow. “What is all this about?”
And maybe, it happens because she’s inspired by Kol’s brave confession.
Maybe, those impulsive romantic actions that are just so Mikaelson in nature are rubbing off on her.
a/n: au after AJLT episode 5, or the real reason why Samantha only texts Carrie back is because she’s madly in love with her.
-
It’s like she’s left her with nothing but a series of disconnected love letters -
Flowers at Big’s funeral.
The occasional text back.
That old picture of the two of them, still plastered on her fridge.
There are remnants of Samantha Jones everywhere she looks.
Meanwhile, the name Carrie Bradshaw seems to be completely eradicated from the other’s vocabulary.
-
“So,” Stanford had said, one morning, over coffee. “What really happened between you two?”
Carrie cocks a brow, tilting her head to one side. “What do you mean, Stanny?”
He rolls his eyes. “Oh c’mon, Carrie,” Stanford sighs, with a dramatic hand on the table. “I know Miranda and Charlotte will believe whatever you tell them,” he says, waving his finger around. “But this is me you’re talking to! You can be honest here, this is a safe space.” He smiles.
Carrie shrugs, burying her truth deeper inside of herself. “I was honest,” she tells him. “Samantha doesn’t want anything to do with me,” she continues, taking a big sip from her drink.
She wonders if it’s too early to order a cocktail.
“Liar, liar, liar,” he sings. “You’re keeping something from me, it’s written all over your face!”
“I’m not,” She insists. “I’m just as hurt by this as the rest of us, why would I make any of this worse by lying about it?”
It’s her tone - it just seems very off.
“I don’t know,” he finally admits. “Maybe, this is something you’re ashamed of,” Stanford adds on. “So ashamed that you can’t even admit it to yourself,” he could have a point, she thinks.
But she’s too full of self-hated to say so.
-
(Next time, of course, she finds out that he’s the one keeping secrets after all. As Stanford Blatch packs a bag and flies off to Japan).
-
How was she supposed to tell him?
How was she supposed to tell anyone?
Would anyone even believe her?
That, after all this time, Samantha Jones finally realized she’d just been madly in love with Carrie Bradshaw and, after her confession, her best friend just decided that no - in fact - she will not leave her loving husband of many years for her.
She won’t.
She can’t.
She couldn’t.
Until, that is, Big died.
And then, everything changed.
-
“Wait a minute,” Charlotte whines, shaking her head. “You mean to tell me that not only did I miss Miranda going at it with Che in your kitchen while you peed yourself but…Samantha has been texting you back?”
The bar they chose seems oddly fitting for this type of conversation - just a bunch of young people all over each other - Carrie laughs, charmed by how much this place reminded her of her time with all three of her girls.
“You know somehow,” she chuckles. “The latter seems more of a shock to me too.”
Charlotte shakes her head. “What does this mean? Does she wanna be our friend again?”
“I don’t think so,” Carrie responds. “I told her I missed her and that’s when… poof, no more texts back,” she honestly tells her friend.
(It’s the most honest she’s been in a while).
“Oh, she’ll come around,” Charlotte surprisingly takes it a lot better than she thought she would. “You know Samantha, always so afraid of talking about her feelings.” Carrie doesn’t say that she is afraid of talking about hers as well.
That maybe, a small part of her, loves Samantha back.
In the same crazy way that she loves Big.
“What did she say anyway?” Her friend wonders. “Any hints as to if she’s coming back? If we can do anything to get her back?”
“No, nothing like that,” She sighs, staring down at her gin and tonic. “Just regular stuff, the occasional joke here and there,” Carrie stumbles. “Nothing serious-”
Except I love you and I wanna be with you forever and please leave John, he’s not good enough, not for you, he never has been -
“Oh,” Charlotte sighs “Well, I guess that’s that.”
And that was that.
-
Sometimes, she likes to talk as if Big is right there, watching her or by her side.
It’s not so hard to understand - she was with him for so long, after all. She was so deeply in love with him.
Still is.
“John,” she sighs, staring at herself in the mirror, imagining him behind her with his hand on her shoulder. “You’re the only person I told about her, you know.”
He would shake his head, throw it back in laughter - the way he usually does, the way he used to.
“And you kept my secret,” Carrie whispers to him (to herself). “You kept it for so long and so well - I wonder if it was unfair of me to ask that of you.” She goes on to say. “I wonder if shouldn’t have told you at all.”
“You might’ve gone more peacefully, more softly.”
She blames herself, because part of her falls asleep to the thought of being with her husband again - the other, dreams of waking up to a text back from Samantha.
-
So Miranda and Che become a thing - but not like in a I’m-cheating-on-sweet-Steve type of way. More in a we’re-in-an-open-relationship-right-now-and-Steve-is-sort-of-okay-with-it type of way.
Oh, and of course, Carrie and Miranda make up, as usual.
“Well, you outdid us once again,” her girlfriend cheers, over her now sober margarita. “I can’t even come out as queer without you showing me up with these replies from Samantha bullshit,” she seems a bit grumpy.
Must be the lack of alcohol, Carrie presumes.
“Calm down Miranda,” she orders. “It’s not like we had a whole back and forth - it was a few texts over several days, barely enough to make up a whole conversation,” Carrie scoffs, over her sparkling apple juice.
God, it was awful - just not the same as wine at all.
“Yeah well, it’s still more than she gave any of us,” Miranda shrugs. “And we’re not even the ones she’s mad at,” she points out.
Carrie hates lying to Miranda the most - but she does so anyway, to save face. To keep herself from the real questions.
“So,” she whispers. “You’re queer now?” She catches, carefully.
The other woman takes a long pause, scanning the room for any semblance of someone else she might know. “To be honest,” she begins. “I’ve probably always been, just never had the guts to admit it,” Miranda quietly tells her.
Carrie shrugs again, feeling nervous. “How did you know then?” she asks.
“I mean, before I met Che?” her friend questions, and the other offers her a firm nod. “Probably the first time I cut my hair super short and started dressing like a boy - but it’s not like that for everyone of course.”
“Oh,” Carrie says, realizing something about herself. “Right.”
And then, Miranda hits the nail on the head.
“Have you ever felt queer?”
She wants to laugh.
She wants to cry.
“I mean, aren’t we all a little queer, especially nowadays?”
Miranda gives her the solace of her smile and doesn’t pester her about her identity further than that.
It gives Carrie some relief to know that despite the change of relationship status, Miranda Hobbes is still Miranda Hobbes.
-
(As it turns out, Samantha does in fact pick up the phone -
But, to Carrie’s dismay, it’s on a night where she’s very very drunk.
“Hey Sammy.”
She rolls her eyes at the old nicknames they once called each other while getting high one evening.
“Hey Carebear.”
She sends her a longing gaze she wishes the blonde could see.
“Do you remember that time on my 28th birthday?” Carrie hums. “When those guys at the club were pestering us to make out?”
“Yeah,” Samantha calmly says on the other line. “I remember,” she admits. “I was clumsy and awful-”
“You were good,” Carrie interrupts. “I remember thinking that I liked kissing you, and I wondered if it meant something,” she confesses without hesitation.
But, Samantha wants to scream. She wants to sob softly into her arms. “Carrie,” she exhales sharply. “I’ve already been rejected once, I don’t want to have this conversation again,” she insists.
“What if I’m not rejecting you?” Carrie suddenly offers.
“Tough luck kid,” Samantha sings. “You’ve broken my heart, I’ve left the country, it’s too late now,” she sums up - legs crossed, a cigarette in hand.
Just like the way she used to.
“Then,” Carrie stammers. “Why did you pick up?”
“I have no fucking idea,” Samantha finally responds, exasperated. “Look, I miss you too, okay?”
“There,” Carrie grins. “You said it, was that so hard?”
She can practically hear Samantha scowling on the other line.
-
Months pass before she calls again.
Stanford’s death was the straw that broke the camel’s back.
“He told me once,” Carrie replies to Samantha over the phone, “that he always wished to leave New York,” she remembers. “He didn’t wanna die here.”
“I can understand that,” Samantha swiftly offers. “I didn’t want to die there either, maybe that’s why I came here,” she thinks.
“So, it’s not all my fault then?”
Samantha reluctantly admits her next words. “Not entirely,” she supposes. “Do you want to do that?” She wonders. “Die in New York, that is?”
“What a morbid thing to say,” Carrie says instead.
It takes her a few moments to understand that her best friend is avoiding the question.
“We’re getting old, Carebear,” she chuckles. “We have to ask ourselves these things,” it’s a confession to her misery to a life without her - a life without meaning.
“Maybe I do,” Carrie tells her. “Big died here, I should be with him, right?” she shouldn’t be asking that, it should just be as clear as day.
But, for some reason, things are just so hard to read.
“He died there yes,” Samantha says. “Doesn’t mean you have to as well,” she informs.
Her words make her think of a time so fickle, so lost, where their youth had meant something, their time together had meant something.
Their life together had meant something too.
-
(The next day, Carrie outdoes herself once again and buys a one-way ticket to London.
As it turns out, she’s always been one to keep him on his toes -
When they were kids and everyone was asked to bring something interesting about themselves for show and tell, most of the girls brought toys - Rebekah with her pink Barbie doll, Freya with their mother’s favourite set of pearls.
But not Hayley.
She brought an ant farm she stole from her foster father.
Oddly though, that wasn’t when Klaus had first noticed her.
Actually, maybe it was that time they went on their eight grade camping trip and she was the only one who knew how to make a fire.
Or perhaps, it was when she had art class with him in tenth grade - she wore that tiny red dress and got sent to the principal’s office for breaking the dress code...again.
Either, she’s managed to surprise him, time and time again.
Especially tonight, as she walks into the ballroom, hand-in-hand with no one other than Marcel Gerard.
-
“What the bloody hell is going on?”
Klaus thought he’d be the one saying it, heck, or maybe the words would even come out of Rebekah’s mouth -
But, it’s actually Kol who ends up being tonight’s drama queen.
“Niklaus, Bekah,” he calls them, dragging them into a corner. “I don’t know what she’s doing here with him but, I can’t have your whole lovesquare, weird, incestuous highschool drama tonight!”
Klaus and Rebekah looked at eachother with raised brows and shrugged.
“We’ll take care of it,” they decide to say, in unison.
-
The backdrop of the event is grand - Kol sure pulls all the stops.
It’s just like the Mikaelson parties she went to back in highschool.
All perfect, pristine...in every way.
“So,” Marcel finally says, as he finds her and Hope’s spot at the table. “I guess we made quite the entrance,” he says.
Hayley sighs, seating Hope and softly kissing her forehead for comfort. “You should probably go ahead and find out where they placed you. Hopefully we’re not too far from each other,” she smiles.
He finds it so comforting - after all, she agreed to come here with him, that must surely mean something, shouldn’t it?
“Looks like troubles coming our way,” Hayley then sighs, noticing Klaus and Rebekah marching towards them.
“Well,” Marcel shrugs. “Our time together is short-lived then.”
“Ah, that it is.”
And so, the two almost-lovers part ways, once again.
-
“Klaus,” she starts with, “I can explain.”
He crosses his arms around his chest, one foot tapping against the ground, the other is rigid and still.
Strangely, he’s not jealous - not at all, in fact - he’s just…confused.
“I came here for a dance,” he says instead, with an open hand, back slightly bent.
Hayley raises a brow, unable to comprehend the odd man before her.
“I don’t understand,” she says, “you’re not upset?”
She wonders, as just as she’s about to ask him even more questions, he swiftly takes Hope’s hand and pulls her away.
“I was talking to your daughter.”
And with that, they’re both on the dance floor.
-
(Maybe - it’s his way of avoiding the truth - Hayley ponders, as she watches her daughter share her first dance with her father.
Maybe - it’s his way of showing how much he’s grown. He’s not that possessive, jealous, little highschool boy anymore.
Maybe - tonight wouldn’t be a total disaster after all).
-
Or maybe, it totally would be.
Depending on how things between Rebekah and Marcel played out.
“So,” she begins, twirling a finger into her hair.
“So,” he repeats, shoving his hands into his pockets.
They finally share a look - and with just a glance, it’s obvious.
“This is the end of us,” she sighs, “isn’t it?” Rebekah smiles.
He wants to run, so badly, so fast. But, his feet feel glued to the ground.
“Rebekah,” Marcel breathes out. “I know I should’ve been more honest with you - I cared about you, a lot. But all these years with Hayley…I couldn’t help it.” He fumbles with his words, a man with all his armor down, not even a shield stands between them.
“I fell in love with her,” he finally admits to her (to himself).
To his surprise, she doesn’t throw her glass of champagne in his face.
She already knew about this truth - in truth, she’s probably known for a long time now.
“Have you told her yet?” Rebekah asks. “Have you confessed your feelings to Hayley?”
He shrugs. “Not in so many words.”
Yet another surprise comes his way in the form of her laughter.
“Marcel,” she exhales. “You’re better not to wait another few years - after all, you’re up against Niklaus Mikaelson - and goodness knows, my brother’s love is one of the most destructive types there is to exist.”
Her advice is unexpected, he wonders if this means they’re on better terms now then perhaps back when they were together.
“Chin up lover,” she suddenly tells him, noticing his lack of confidence. “No reason to give up before you’ve even tried.”
Afterwards, she’s off -
Still with that small smile plastered on her lips.
-
Hope’s feet are swift on the dance floor.
She’s got such a liveliness to her - all laughter and warmth - everything about her screams Marshall and not Mikaelson. Something about that has Klaus mesmerized.
It’s probably the same reason he fell for Hayley.
They’re both from totally different worlds - his all prim and proper and hers all raw and spontaneous…devoid of anything soiled by the Mikaelson name.
Even his own daughter carries her mother’s title.
Hope Marshall.
“You’re perfect,” he accidentally releases, holding his daughter in his arms, realizing that this is all he wants. To be with her, to be with them, forever.
“I think my mommy wants to dance with you too.”
“Really?”
“She keeps staring at us.”
Klaus’ gaze finally falls on Hayley.
Hope then releases his hand.
-
He’s watched this game of cat and mouse for years -
Marcel knows the jazz he hears coming from the inside of his head is the tune that plays when he sees Klaus and Hayley together.
He wishes he could hear something rougher, something that would anger him, that would cause his jealousy to boil up.
But instead, he just feels defeated.
How could he compete with a love like that?
“Excuse me,” Kol announces, stepping to the stage with a silver spoon and glass in hand, tapping them together. “May I have everyone’s attention, please.”
Everyone in the room turns to him.
“I suppose you’re all wondering why I’ve asked you to come here,” he starts. “Well, besides the fact that I’m back in town, and you all know how much I love to make a fabulous entrance.”
There is laughter in the room, happiness, and even joy.
“The truth is…I have an announcement to make.”
Kol swallows hard, stammering his next words.
“I’ve fallen in love.”
And that’s when things took the most surprising turn.
Can you do something about Klaus despair and sadness after Hayley's death?and how he felt like he truly lost his heart the moment she died?
(a/n: au after Hayley's death - mostly because I can't exactly remember everything that happens after that :')
-
He asks the void -
If she'd like it if he wrote her an ode.
(Can you imagine such a thing?
One night - she's in his home with her feet on the table, ginger cookie crumbs left on his desk, the scent of cinnamon still fresh on his office chair -
She used to love his bedroom - secretly of course.
He had the biggest windows in the Mikaelson manor, obviously, the brightest room was reserved for the king. And, to her surprise, Klaus never shooed her away.
They were family, after all.
His room was her room too).
And then - suddenly, she's gone.
The girl who twirled her finger in her hair, who pouted when mad, who bit her lip -
Was no more.
"So void," he rings again, hand over his heart. "I'll do it, I'll write you a poem."
About death, about sadness, about despair -
About the moment he truly lost his heart.
Klaus writes and writes until he swears he thinks he'll start to bleed out her name.
For no matter how many words he pours out of himself - he still cannot fill the emptiness she left behind.
-
Notably, he has his daughter to answer to.
Hope is supposed to be all grief-stricken, endless rage and chaos and yet - she is silent.
Instead, she looks to her father and asks him:
"Do you know what happens after death?"
Ah, and so there it is, the only question that can strike fear within Niklaus Mikaelson.
She is in a better place - he wants to say - she is away from all the demons that taunt their family, from all the pain, the sense of never-ending danger surrounding this cursed place -
That's what he wishes he could say.
He wonders why the following words slip out of his mouth in its place:
"I don't know," he sighs, not even able to muster up a small tear to roll down his face.
I don't know - the truest words he had ever spoken
-
Sometimes, at night, he hears her laughter.
He dares to say that it's worse than hearing her cries.
Hayley's laugh always sounded so eerie - almost too real - like she was still alive or something.
But, she can't be, right?
She bursted into flames right before him - (he wishes he could forget that, he wishes he could stop replaying that scene, in his memory, over and over, again and again).
Now, he only sees her in his dreams.
(Secretly, he feels relieved, realizing that, at least he is able to see her still).
-
In one dream -
She is in a meadow, wearing a white sundress, lying on the grass.
In the same dream -
He is there too.
They talk. They smile. They even kiss.
There is even a point where Klaus is lifting her dress, hands slowly making their way up her creamy legs, feeling the softness of her skin.
And then, just before he can slip his fingers inside of her -
He wakes up.
He feels faint, knowing that he had just dreamt of making love to a dead woman.
Without a doubt, Klaus feels sick.
-
In another dream -
Things are softer.
They hold hands. Talk about Hope's future. Fight over the dishes.
This version of events - he thinks he prefers.
For it is one that lies untouched by his evil.
-
(Much to his dismay - he experiences more nightmares than dreams.
roommates au or the one where Sang-Woo and Gi-Hun are fighting like an old married couple and collecting strays along the way (featuring Saebyuk, Ji-yeong, Ali, Mi-Nyeo and even that slimy old man - Il-Nam)
-
When Sang-Woo signed up to live with his childhood friend Gi-Hun, his goal was always this: saving money.
Sure, this guy was, at times, unreliable, a total flake and even absentminded but - he had good intentions. Gi-Hun somehow made just enough every month through picking up a couple customers to chauffeur around and that dreaded gambling scheme while Sang-Woo did things like help his mom at her stall, do odd cleaning jobs, maybe even sell some of his old paintings -
And yeah - they weren’t in the nicest of areas or in the nicest of apartments but, one thing was for sure, they had each other.
If anything could raise Sang-Woo’s spirits, it would always be Gi-Hun’s wide toothy smile (though he’d never admit that). So, it’s no surprise that that’s exactly the sweet expression his friend has on his face when he comes home from driving around his last customer…only for a strange curly haired man to appear behind him.
“Gi-Hun,” Sang-Woo sighs, opening the door and staring in shock. “Who is this?”
“My last customer, Ali,” Gi-Hun responds. “He couldn’t pay me and has no place to stay, so I told him he can stay with us.”
“Hi there!” Ali excitedly sings, offering his hand towards Sang-Woo.
And, expectedly, the other man avoids him and instead, takes his roommate aside.
“Why didn’t you ask me about this beforehand?” He whispers. “This man is a stranger, he could rob us!” Sang-Woo goes on to say.
“I didn’t ask you because I know a heartless fool like you would say no,” Gi-Hun offers. “Besides, he’s a total softie, couldn’t hurt a fly - when I picked him up, he was hiding from a mouse!” He laughs.
Sang-Woo takes another look at Ali - he’s not sure what it is but, perhaps something about his shy, mild-manner appearance somehow persuades him.
At least it be an extra helping hand around the house, he thinks.
“Fine,” Sang-Woo breathes. “But only for tonight and - he’s staying in your room.”
“But then, where will I stay?” Gi-Hun wonders, moments before his friend points to their living room couch.
-
(In a faithful twist of events, Sang-Woo begins to grow fond of Ali.
He has to admit that, his cooking is divine and that it sure is nice to have someone to make all their meals for them.
Another great thing about Ali is that he is hardworking and, as it stands, splitting your rent three ways is a lot cheaper than splitting it two ways.
A deal this good is something Sang-Woo definitely could not and would not pass up on.
And so, he lets Ali stay).
-
The next poor unfortunate souls Gi-Hun brings home are two young girls named Sae-Byuk and Ji-Yeong.
Sang-Woo takes one look at them and begs to differ.
“Absolutely not,” he scoffs.
“Sang-Woo,”Gi-Hun pleads. “I found them out on the streets, on their own,” he explains. “They’re girls, it’s dangerous for them!”
“Gi-Hun,” The other sighs, with a hand on his shoulder. “We already have Ali staying in your room and you’re in the living room - even if I let them, where will they stay? You can’t possibly expect them to share a room with a man!”
The two girls stammer behind him, one like a lost puppy and the other, like a wild mutt ready for the attack.
“They don’t have to,” Gi-Hun says. “Ali can move into the living room that way, the girls can have my room!” He smiles, feeling like he has it all figured out.
Of course, there is one crucial detail that he has yet to discuss with Sang-Woo.
“And then,” he sighs. “Where will you sleep?” He wonders.
“Well,” Gi-Hun shrugs. “Remember when we used to have sleepovers as children? It could be like that, but every night!”
Sang-Woo can’t believe what he’s hearing.
But, once again, one more look towards the two girls and he couldn’t help it. They are so young and vulnerable - easy targets for any poachers or traffickers. He’d hate to be part of something like that.
Plus, they seem able-bodied, energetic, maybe they could contribute to the household as well.
“I swear to God,” Sang-Woo exhales. “If you still have that bad habit of sleep talking, I’m tossing you out into the streets!”
“Oh Sang-Woo,” Gi-Hun whines, following him into his room. “Underneath all that hard-armour, you’re just a teddy bear, aren’t you?”
-
(The girls stay prove to be short, after all.
Sae-Byuk is quiet and Ji Yeong is resourceful.
They quickly find work, save up just enough to run off to Jeju island to drink margaritas.
Their next destination remains unknown).
-
Later that night, his mother hands him bags filled with fresh vegetables.
“Here,” she chides. “Give them to Ali, he’ll make something good for you,” she nods as her son eagerly wraps his fingers around the bags.
“Thank you, mom,” Sang-Woo replies. “I really appreciate it,” he honestly says, the most honest he’s been lately anyway.
“And how’s Gi-Hun doing?” She asks. “When his mother passed, he seemed so down in his spirits, I know he’s a slacker but, I think after the shock of losing her, he really tried to turn things around, you know?”
“I guess so,” Sang-Woo realizes, feeling so much fondness in his heart for his good friend. “He still a handful though,” he shrugs.
“You tell him that I said to give you a break,” she scolds.
-
And, as predicted, Sang-Woo comes home to yet another visitor.
“You won’t believe it!”
“That’s enough! We can’t do this anymore!”
“But wait! Just listen to me.”
“Look-”
Finally, Sang-Woo puts his foot down.
“I appreciate your good-hearted nature, Gi-Hun, in fact, it’s what I admire most about you. But, an old man? Really? At least with Ali, and even the girls, they were young, they were able to get jobs and help out a bit. What good is this old man to us?”
Gi-Hun looks at his friend - really looks at him.
Sadly, he fails to recognize him.
“You’re so awful Sang-Woo,” he says. “You judge everyone around you, before you even meet them,” he insists. “Can’t you just trust someone, for once in your life?”
His finger is pointed at the other man’s chest and, if Sang-Woo weren’t such a fool, wasn’t such a damn coward, he would be able to take just a few steps forward and close the short gap between them.
“Excuse me,” the old man suddenly says. “I’m sorry, I seem to be interrupting your evening,” he apologizes softly, with a voice so faint that both men decide to end their quarrelling.
“No old man,” Gi-Hun starts. “It’s okay, I wanted you to stay for dinner - especially after such an amazing tip,” He pulls out the huge wads of cash the old man had left him as a thanks for keeping him company and playing a few childhood games with him.
“C’mon, Ali made us an unforgettable feast.”
Sang-Woo stares at all the money in awe - it look like enough to pay rent for the rest of the year.
-
(And for the rest of the week, Gi-Hun’s words never leave his mind.
He can’t trust anyone - was that true? Was that really what he was like? What everyone saw him as?
“Hey there handsome, you looking for some fun tonight?”
He figured that, if he was going to prove his friend wrong, he’s gotta take a risk).
-
“Ga-yong,” Gi-Hun excitedly leads his daughter down the sidewalk. “Did you enjoy our time with Sae-byuk and her little brother?” He asks.
“Yes,” the little girl nods. “I liked it when we flied paper airplanes together, and my plane won,” she cheers.
“That’s right,” he says. “Because my little girl is a winner,” he believes, with a huge grin plastered on his face.
His daughter can’t help but smile too. “I’m really happy I can have dinner with you and your friends, dad,” she tells him. “You seem…better now,” she comments, looking relieved.
“I am better now,” he offers.
Sang-Woo will be glad, he thinks, for once the visitor he brings is someone his friend already knows very well.
“Well, what do you know? This place is a total sausage fest.”
Gi-Hun confusedly walks passed the strange woman opening his door.
“What is going on here?” He asks Sang-Woo.
“I picked her up on my way home,” he sings, sounding so unlike himself. “She was hitting on me - I think she wanted me to sleep with her for money.”
“I did,” the long, wild haired woman says, eyes-wide and round. “But who would’ve thought a hot guy like you - ended up playing for the other team,” she rolls her eyes and both men.
“So anyway,” Sang-Woo begins again. “I said no - but I told her that if she wanted, she could have dinner with us.”
“What?” Gi-Hun exclaims. “Why in the world would you do that?”
“To prove you wrong,” the other man insists. “You said I can’t trust anyone - so, here I am, trusting a totally stupid and annoying stranger."
“Hey!” The woman shouts. “I’m right here, you know?”
Then, Ga-Yeoung tugs at her father’s sleeve.
“Dad, can we eat now? I’m starving!”
She pulls him out of shock, like always.
“Sure sweetie,” he says. “Sang-Woo, we will discuss this later.”
Sure enough, Sang-Woo gets to have the last laugh that night.
-
And that woman, Han Minyeo, actually ends up staying in Gi-Hun’s room, as predicted.
“At this rate, we should just make your room into a guest room.” Sang-Woo mentions, turning to his side to lock eyes with his friend, who was also sharing his bed.
“Or move into a three bedroom, we can finally afford it now. Hopefully this woman doesn’t continue to stay with us, until then.” He responds with, hands clutching his sheets close.
“Gi-Hun - well I never thought, your benevolent soul would turn away a stray!” The other man begins to laugh, in disbelief no less.
“God, she’s just so annoying, why does she keep flirting with us? We’re fucking gay!” Gi-Hun admits.
“Eh well, you know people in this town, so uneducated,” his friend rings.
And then, both their hands are under the covers, slowly they begin to hold hands.
It’s so warm, too warm even.
“I was thinking,” Gi-Hun breathes. “You and I, we could just share this room, give Ali my room, get our living room back…”
“I guess that could work,” Sang-Woo squeezes his fingers tighter. “You’re here most of the time now anyway - I suppose it’s no different really,” he recalls.
Finally, they tilt their heads, quickly their lips meet like two starved hearts.
“Wow,” Gi-Hun sighs, pulling away. “I finally got-through it, that steal fortress you built around your heart - I’ve finally broken it down.”
Sang-Woo offers him an eye-roll. “Just, get some sleep, would ya?”
Love, they say, is as tragic as it gets. The pain he feels from letting her go tonight, is the same measure as the love he feels from getting to see her earlier. It’s made him a better man, this thing called love. It’s made him a father, a potential good one at that, or so he believes.
“Nik,” and just like that, all his relief and peacefulness is crushed.
Elijah Mikaelson opens the door to his hotel room, a big grin plastered on his lips and a glass of wine in hand.
Passed him, Klaus can see Rebekah and their eldest sister Freya, painting their nails while sitting on his bed. As Finn, their eldest brother as well as their youngest brother Henrik, sitting on the ground, playing video games.
There’s loud music, and laughter, and all the Mikaelson siblings stuffed together in one tiny room.
And it’s like it never was.
“You know,” Klaus chimes, walking passed Elijah and heading inside. “What I don’t get is,” he sighs, “why are all of you in my room when you sure as hell can afford to not only rent your own separate rooms, but buy this entire estate while you’re at it?”
Elijah simply smiles, shaking his head. “Well,” he says, “we could, rent our own rooms that is but, this is much more fun, isn’t it?”
Klaus sighs, his brother was clearly drunk, otherwise, he’d never use the word ‘fun’ so casually.
“Why are you all here anyway?” He wonders.
Elijah follows him inside, carefully closing the door behind him. “Kol invited us,” he sings. “He’s throwing a party, which calls for a sibling reunion, so it must be something important,” he informs Klaus - making him wonder what other surprises lie in store for him.
-
The invitation to Kol’s party travel’s throughout the town - from close family and friends, to even acquaintances, everyone seems to be hearing about this auspicious event.
Hayley Marshall looks through all her clothes - leather jackets, worn jeans, a revealing red dress or two…and that’s it.
She swears she must own something that is Mikaelson ball worthy.
And money is so tight this month that buying a new dress for herself, let alone for Hope, was almost impossible. Unless she gets lucky at the thrift store.
The thought of asking Marcel for help suddenly crosses her mind - he’s been there for her through it all. Through Hope’s terrible twos, last minute babysitting requests, even helping with late night laundry shifts.
She knows he feels strongly about her and spending more time with him might give him the wrong idea but, he’s her best friend. He’s the one she calls when she needs anything.
It’s so hard realizing that he can no longer be that person.
-
The theme is blue, pink and silver - blue for the way she looks when she finishes her favourite record and the emptiness that overcomes her. Pink for the way her cheeks tint when she sees a dog on the street. Silver for the small hints of it in her eyes - for that thin line down her back that shines in the light.
“C’mon Finn!” Kol exclaims, angrily glaring at the flower arrangements his older brother had just brought in. “I asked for carnations, these are begonias! Now everything is ruined!” He shouts, storming off.
Finn sighs, in disbelief. The dining hall Kol had rented out was large enough to accommodate half the town - and just everything from the satin table cloths, to the ice sculptured swans, heck, even the carefully written down name tags were just perfect.
But, Kol couldn’t see any of that.
Not when Freya was messing with the food table, again, and Rebekah was flirting with one of the waiters - Henrik being Henrik, was sneaking a peek at the cake and Klaus…was nowhere to be found.
“Brother,” he hears, as he stands outside the hall, exasperated.
“Elijah,” Kol said. “I can’t take another stressful situation so please, if this is about tonight’s event, do me a favour and -”
“It’s not about that,” Elijah confirms, which allows his brother to breathe easy for a moment. “Well, maybe a little bit,” he smirks, “I just want to know about…Davina.”
Kol bites his lip, suddenly feeling a bit nervous. “What about her?”
“Just,” he shakes his head, taking another long look at his dearest younger brother. How much he’s changed, how much he’s grown. “Are you sure about this?”
He shakes his head, leaning his back against the brick wall behind them. “Of course I am,” he tells him, “I wouldn’t do all this if I wasn’t.” He assures Elijah.
And, truthfully, that’s all the resolve he needs. Elijah may be the overprotective type but, the one thing he will always be sure of, is that he trusts his family.
He trusts Kol.
-
“Sparkly,” Marcel says - catching her as she’s stepping into her new shoes, Jimmy Choo Cinderella heels in rose gold.
“Thanks,” she shrugs, feelings so unlike herself. “Kol picked everything out.”
“Right,” he nods, “about that, do you know why Kol is throwing this party?”
“No idea,” she says. “Maybe he’s trying to impress you?”
“Me?”
“Well, you are like the closest thing I have to a parent,” she reminds him. “And he never got your approval while we were dating - ”
“My approval?” Marcel scoffs. “What era are we in? Davina, you’re an adult, you don’t need my approval,” he releases but, something tells him that he might end up eating his words by the end of the night.
It takes Davina a moment to notice Marcel’s get up - a fitted light grey suit, a red tie, gold cuffs.
“Do you have a date for tonight?” She wonders.
Marcel is caught off guard. “Why do you ask that?” He questions.
“I-I just,” she knows…she’s known for years.
He’s been in love and tonight, he was finally going to tell her.
Hayley Marshall was sure in for a long night.
-
His timing is impeccable - just when Hayley is about to call to cancel on her appearance tonight, there is a knock at her door.
She hears Hope running to it, and she swears, this child will be the end of her. She still hasn’t learned never to answer the door to strangers.
But, she had an instinct - she knows when her father is at the door. Even though she didn’t even know he is her father in the first place.
“Klaus!” She shouts, as he then places a finger in front of his lips, shushing her.
“I brought you and your mommy a present,” he simply says, “give to her for me, will you?” He requests as she nods and he makes his way back to his car before Hayley appears.
She only catches a glimpse of him as he leaves.
“Hope!” She shouts. “How many times have I told you not to -”
“Oh wow!” And, before her mother could even finish scolding her, Hope had already torn into the mysterious box and pulled out two gorgeous red gowns. “It’s dresses! And matching shoes and purses!”
She giggles, smiling widely from ear to ear - which, much to her mother’s dismay, allows her to put aside her anger for the time being.
Hayley admires Hope as she jumps around, trying on hew new slippers - holding the gown up against herself…she just looked so happy.
“They’re lovely,” she realizes. “We better hurry and get dressed up, Hope. Or we’re gunna be late.” She smiles.
-
“Hey Hayley, it’s Marcel - well, you already knew that. Anyway, so this Mikaelson party tonight is probably gunna a total eye roll. I was wondering if you, and Hope, wanted to make things a little more bearable tonight by being my dates? Let me know, call me back, please. I miss you.”
His breath is heavy as he puts down his phone.
Now all he has to do is wait - the anticipation might just kill him.
a/n: well i had another mental breakdown :/ so here's another sporadic update for you all :) thanks for sticking through with this story!
-
Rebekah runs around, from store to store, touching and feeling every item of clothing that catches her eye.
Sparkles, sequins, furs, silks -
Kol quickly realizes how grave of a mistake this shopping trip with his sister has suddenly become.
The length of his stay in his hometown still remain indefinite - last night was a surprise, seeing his niece and not to mention his brother’s infamous Hayley Marshall was certainly something he wasn’t expecting.
If anything, their interactions serve as inspiration for his next move.
Hence the dress shopping, of course.
“So tell me, brother,” Rebekah hums, fingers grasping at a white dress, holding it against her body as she stares at herself in the mirror. “Why are we here anyway? Are we shopping for a special someone? A girl, perhaps?” She stammers on.
“Bekah,” Kol chides. “Such curiosity will bite you in the arse,” he remarks, snatching the dress away from her and placing it back on the shopping rack.
She rolls her eyes, sighing as she follows him down towards the aisle of more colourful textures and fabrics. “Oh c’mon,” she breathes. “You know how starved I am for some hot gossip.”
He doesn’t answer her until she grabs his sleeve and starts whining.
Tell meeeee!!
“Fine-” Kol huffs, shrugging her hand away.
Then suddenly, the perfect dress catches his attention.
It’s a gorgeous purple gown with a mermaid tail flair at the bottom, the sleeves are adorned with pink pearls and with dark lace details.
“It is for a girl,” he confirms, grabbing a hold of the garment. “I like her, I wanna show her how much she means to me, there, satisfied?” He holds the dress up to show it to his sister.
Rebekah smiles, admiring the beauty of the outfit. “Very much,” she nods.
After that, he takes her through even more stores - a purse, jewelry and shoes is a must for a girl so special.
“Okay,” he sighs, grabbing a matching set of pearl earrings and a necklace. “Now it’s your turn,” he comments. “You and Marcel, is this thing happening again?”
She takes her time, taking a deep breath before proceeding to offer him an answer. “I don’t know,” Rebekah tells him. “I care for him, deeply, I always have. I’m just not sure he feels the same for me.”
The look on his sister’s face brings him no joy - he’s used to teasing her about her crushes, even embarrassing her about them. But, this time, Kol feels sorry for her, she loved so honestly and so carelessly.
It filled him with both admiration and pity.
“So, you’re looking for closure?” He wonders.
She raises a brow, thinking of his words carefully. “I am not sure,” Rebekah admits. “Maybe,” she whispers softly.
Kol doesn’t say anything else for a bit - he picks out a pair of heels, a small clutch to complete the outfit. His sister approves of his every choice, it comes so easily to him, almost as if he didn’t need her guidance anymore.
“If you ask me,” he finally says. “I always thought you deserved much better than a man who is too afraid to love you.”
His sentence hits deeper than she can ever imagine.
She finds herself asking when exactly did her troublesome little brother decide to become all grown up.
-
Hayley’s weekends are often spent alone with her daughter.
Normally, other girls her age are busy studying for college exams, hitting up a club or party, going on dates -
Being with Hope Marshall beats all of that, she thinks.
Even when she wants to hang out with Klaus Mikaelson.
“Ready to go, sweetheart?” He smiles widely as he’s at the door - reaching over to pick up his daughter.
“Yep!” Hope cheers.
Now, her weekends are spent with him. Sandalwood scented cologne, old books in the backseat, a picture of his siblings hanging from the rear view mirror of his car -
“So this gallery,” Hayley says, sitting beside him as he begins to drive them towards their destination. Hope is all settled in her car seat, distracted by her toys. “Is this the type of date the old Klaus would take me out on?” Hayley adds on.
Klaus offers her a confused look. “Old Klaus? A date?” He asks.
She doesn’t offer him much - she simply presses her lips together until they become a thin white line. “C’mon,” she shrugs. “Don’t beat around the bush. Old Klaus did that a lot, I wanna know what this new Klaus is like.”
He hasn’t heard this allegory from her before - he supposes that it’s how she’s rationalizing their whole relationship.
You see, in Hayley’s head, there are two Klaus’.
Old Klaus was aloof, a rule-breaker, the type to get high with her on her couch, to cut class on the school rooftop, to leave without a kiss goodbye in the morning.
And then, there’s new Klaus. New Klaus is…different. He’s more determined, more direct about what he wants.
He’s kind - kinder than she last remembers him.
“Well,” at last, he stops the car, arriving at the gallery. “New Klaus likes to keep you on your toes,” he smirks, leading Hope and Hayley inside the paintings section.
“Ah,” she hums, looking around the large room. “So not much has changed,” she realizes, looking back and seeing the strangest smile on his face.
They both follow Hope into another inter-connected room where only one single portrait is hung up on the wall.
It’s a forest of wolves, tall trees, greenery - and a young Hayley Marshall sitting amongst them.
She stares at it awe, Hope freaks out, screaming and jumping up and down.
Mommy! It’s you! You’re in the painting!!
“New Klaus still likes to surprise you,” he reveals, allowing her to take it all in.
-
By the time Kol finishes his shopping, it’s basically evening.
Rebekah had gone home for a rest while he still continued his way down the street.
The trip there is quiet - his head is filled with thoughts, how he’s gunna see the girl of his dreams again, how she’s probably just eagerly waiting for him.
So eager in fact, that she opens the door for him before he can even knock on it.
“You,” Davina releases, with her hair in a messy bun, bunny pyjamas and slippers still on. “Came back,” she completes.
“That I did, darling,” Kol tells her, smiling. “Just as I had promised you, all those years ago,” he offers.
Davina thought she’d be more upset at him.
Their relationship had been a strange one - meeting per chance at the local occult club, unexpected encounters at the music store, catching each other reading Edgar Allan Poe by the marina -
They started dating soon after, and connected on every single level.
For the longest time, their relationship felt like fate.
Until, that is, Kol Mikaelson, along with all the other Mikaelsons, mysteriously left town.
(Although, granted, he did still keep contact with his lover, unlike the rest of his siblings, who were so far deep in self-hatred that they denied themselves of this).
“What do you have there?” Davina asks, noticing the large shopping bag in Kol’s hands.
He pulls out the gorgeous gown he had gotten. “It’s for you,” he informs her. “A present, if you will,” Kol specifies.
She admires the shimmering fabric, in awe of the very romance of this gesture. “It’s beautiful,” Davina releases. “Thank you,” she smiles, grabbing a hold of the garment.
“Don’t thank me just yet,” he says, as fireworks go up in the sky.
They spell out the words
Will you have this dance with me?
-
The painting itself displays incredible technique - the composition, the brushstrokes, everything is so crisp and clear. Klaus’s talent has always been undeniable but, Hayley’s opinion of it has been…
“What do you think?”
A mystery.
“I’m guessing,” she starts, once she realizes exactly what she’s looking at. “This was made by old Klaus?” She presumes, looking at the date inscribed at the corner of the painting.
She stares at herself, immersed in the perfect image he had created of her.
“So it seems,” Klaus says. “However, new Klaus is the one who is brave enough to put it up in a gallery,” he informs her, taking a step closer so that he is right next to her.
Hayley looks and looks - passed the greenery of the scene, the tracks of dirt he had carefully painted on her arms and legs, big brown eyes burning a stare into her own.
“I always knew your work would go far,” she finally releases, realizing how carefully he had captured her loneliness in this painting.
And almost immediately, Klaus begins to laugh uncontrollably. “You said it was hideous,” he recalls, shaking his head.
She wonders why he made her look so sad in this piece - as if she had lost everything. And maybe, that’s how he saw it all, his betrayal and departure was written all over her face.
It’s the most honest thing she’s ever seen.
“Except this one,” she notes. “This piece is…”
“Nothing,” he intercepts, bravely placing a hand on her shoulder, catching her off guard. “Nothing, compared to the real thing.”
-
The drive home is quiet.
Hope is fast asleep in the backseat, little snores and soft breaths escaping her lips. Hayley looks back with a caring and loving gaze. Her daughter truly is an angel, she thinks.
“So then,” he whispers. “This new Klaus, is he up to your standards, as of yet?”
She pauses, catching his eye from the corner of hers. “Maybe,” Hayley remarks. “He certainly became a better driver, over the passed years,” she smiles.
He doesn’t push her any further, he knows he can get more out of her if he did but, this smile of hers was enough for now. He can deal with it - he can deal with her taking her time.
“Well, you’re home now,” he tells her, pulling over by her apartment complex.
She reaches over to shake Hope awake, she refuses though, still deep in slumber. “Looks like it,” Hayley shrugs, pulling away from her daughter. She strangely feels safer now, having the chance to speak more intimately with Klaus. “What do you think new Klaus would do if I tried to ask him to come upstairs?”
He thought that this moment would never come and, that, if it ever did - he would be in disbelief.
But oddly enough, Klaus isn’t in shock at all.
This is expected - he is, after all, charming as hell.
“I think he’d say,” he starts, and right then, he notices little Hope in the rear view mirror, opening one eye to sneak a peek. “You’ve got a restless little girl still listening in on our conversation,” he smirks.
Hayley turns to catch her daughter spying on them and pretending to go back sleep. “Hope,” she scolds. “C’mon, let’s get you to bed,” she sighs, finally exiting the car and taking her daughter into her arms.
Well, no use acting now, Hope thinks.
“Goodnight, little one,” Klaus tells her, ruffling her hair. “And you too, Hayley,” he lets her know, before he begins to drive off.
She watches him disappear into the night - her heart feels heavy and sinking as she notices how much she longs to see him again.
But, she is a mother first, and as much as the old Hayley would leave all her responsibilities behind and run after that speeding car - she’s not that girl anymore. The new Hayley takes her daughter, and all her old love and passion, and she walks back up to their room.
Of course, right before she enters her home, she notices a carefully placed envelope on her door.
It reads the words - Invitation for Hayley and Hope Marshall.
“Year number 3443,” Kol laughs, leaning over a brooding Klaus who keeps staring at his phone. “And she still hasn’t called me back.” He laughs. “Oh if only I had enough balls to call her, or text her first…s’not like I know her number or her address, for that matter -“
“I’m not a stalker, Kol,” Klaus interrupts, tearing his eyes off his screen in order to glare at his younger brother.
He’s rolled on to the bed, right beside him, charming little smile never leaving his lips.
“Not anymore,” Kol winks.
Rebekah can see the hot fumes coming out of Klaus’ ears from the kitchen. She rolls her eyes, bringing over breakfast for the three of them.
“Are you two at it again?” She whines, huffing while taking a seat between her brothers. “Can’t we just have this one peaceful moment between us?”
Klaus stares at Kol, who was scarfing down the eggs and toast all in one swallow, like an animal.
“Not bloody likely,” he sighs and, just as his brother is about to protest -
There is a knock at the door.
-
He always thought that if treachery could be a colour - it would be red. Not bright like the strawberries, or as dark as cherries…but sort of like an in-between - like crimson? No, scarlet…vermillion?
“Hey,” she interrupts his trail of thinking, cocking her head to one side as he opens the door.
“Hayley,” Klaus realizes, as she walks passed him to enter his room.
“Don’t forget me!” Hope exclaims, trailing closely behind. “Mommy said we could hang out today,” she cheers, grabbing his leg again.
Klaus wobbles, taken aback by their sudden visit. He knows he’s happy to see them, he must be because there’s this weird bubbly feeling inside his chest.
“I’m surprised to see you here,” he settles on, noticing how her hair is perfectly curled and her make-up looks flawless.
He’s even more surprised - she got dressed up for him.
“I was in the neighbourhood,” she whispers, hoping he doesn’t catch her obvious lie.
“Well I uh-” And just before he’s able to make a move, his siblings chime in.
“Oh my God,” Rebekah cheers, picking up his daughter. “Is that my darling nie- err- I mean my sweet little Hope?”
-
The last time they had all been together like this was back in high school.
Back when Kol was a shy and nervous sophomore, and Rebekah tried dying her hair brown. Klaus and Hayley were in a full-blown relationship.
And now, it’s well, something else.
It’s his estranged daughter running around and chasing his siblings, making them feel like they’re kids again. And the woman he's hopelessly still in love with, wearing red -
“She seems to be having a good time,” Hayley smiles as Klaus leads her to his balcony. He closes the door behind them, allowing them some privacy.
“I believe so,” he nods. “It’s hard to ever have a dull moment with these two,” he points to his brother and sister, hiding behind furniture and laughing their lungs out, loving every moment they get to feel young again.
“When did Kol get in town anyway?” Hayley asks.
Klaus rolls his eyes. “Don’t get me started on him,” he sighs. They both share a laugh and it’s bittersweet. It makes him realize how much he really missed her. “I’m glad you’re speaking to me again,” Klaus says.
“Yeah well,” she shrugs, thinking of their kiss. “Despite how upset I was that night, I was still serious when I said I want you in Hope’s life.”
Just then, Hope smushes her face against the glass door of his balcony, sticking her tongue out and snickering away.
It is only after she’s run-off that he notices the hear shaped locket loosely hanging around her neck.
“You gave her my necklace,” he realizes.
She blushes, refusing to offer him the upper hand. “That,” she breathes. “Doesn’t mean anything,” Hayley settles on.
(She wants him to believe her but, the resolve in her face is so obvious).
“Sure,” Klaus hums. “You keep telling yourself that,” he smirks. “Whatever helps you sleep at night, love. I suppose, I’m more of a pass-out-from-an-alcoholic-stupor kind of lad -“
“Klaus,” she says, looking upset. “I’m serious, just because I might be willing to brush off that kiss of yours doesn’t mean that you can just say whatever you want to me.”
He takes this chance to get closer to her, daring himself to kiss her again.
“You’re wrong about that, love,” Klaus tells her. “I can say whatever I want, I always have and I always will. And for the record, I don’t care if it upset you, I don’t regret kissing you. I never will.”
This is him, she thinks, this is the old Klaus, the one she fell for, the one who stole her heart.
The one who’s lips are inches away from hers - if she could just close that small gap between them…if she could just be brave.
“Mommy!” It’s expected that her daughter chooses this moment to burst into the scene. “Look what Kol taught me!” Hope yells, as she flips into a handstand.
And before she can even react to the fact that her child is doing stunts on a balcony, “Hope,” Klaus has grabbed her and taken her inside. “Stop that, you’re going to hurt yourself!” He shouts, sounding upset.
Hayley is caught off-guard, this is the first time she’s seen daddy-Klaus in action. Oh God, she did not just call him that -
“It’s so fun having brothers and sisters,” Hope snaps, forgetting all about the man yelling at her for being reckless. “Mommy, can you give me one?”
Hayley’s cheeks grow beet red - Klaus’ laughter rings through her ears and she swears she hears him hum a soft ‘maybe’ under his breath.
-
It’s late in the evening when they finally start heading home.
Kol watches his brother stammer around - he’s anxious, hesitating to ask Hayley if he should drive her home, if he should see her again.
Just go for it, he hears Rebekah whisper as they both watch from the sidelines.
She’s hopeless, he thinks, realizing how hard she roots for love - how much she believes in it.
It makes him believe in it too, so he picks up the phone and dials her number.
“Hello Davina darling - how are you doing this evening?”
a/n: au after s3 ep 8 or Tohru kills Akito, Kyo leads her to the end of world - kyoru road trip au, angst
-
Kyo hates the silence - he’s so used to Shigure’s antics, fighting with Yuki, Tohru’s freak-outs, even Uo and Hana’s scolding. He’s hardly ever noticed how sometimes, the girl beside him can be incredibly quiet.
She’s observant, the way she can pick up on his moods, how her words are always careful and calculated. Sometimes, he thinks he doesn’t know her at all.
“Tohru,” he calls her, but she’s not listening. Her eyes are glued to the floor, staring at it blankly.
It’s the first time he notices a change in her - he can’t name it exactly, just feels like something cold and hard against his spine, like goosebumps on the back of his neck, fingers tugging at his hair -
He’s surprised, he’s never been scared of her before.
“Tohru,” he says again but, she still fails to reply.
(It’s a shitty feeling, he thinks, being ignored).
-
She doesn’t say a word until it’s the evening and they’re in a stolen car, with his hands on the wheel and her head in the clouds.
Tohru doesn’t comment on the fact that he actually committed theft - she doesn’t even ask him where he learned to do that. It’s almost like nothing can shock her anymore, even sitting around in this old pick up that barely worked -
“I didn’t know you could drive,” she catches him off-guard again.
Kyo sighs, just when he thinks he has her all figured out, Tohru corners him.
“I don’t,” he admits, foot pressed against the gas pedal, going faster and faster. “Shishou only showed me a handful of times, when I managed to convince him anyways,” he shrugs, half smiling, looking at her in that usual way that he does.
The type of look that makes her squirm. “Had to learn to do it before Yuki did, you know?”
“Right,” she nods, thinking of all the people they’ve left behind.
She didn’t expect to forget about them so quickly.
“Get some sleep while you can,” Kyo suggests. “I wanna be in the next town by morning and who knows if this hunk of junk will make it until then,” he scoffs, hands firmly squeezing the wheel, unable to let go.
The car shakes, Tohru goes back to being quiet.
She doesn’t feel tired at all, not when the highway lights are beaming down her face, not while her chest is still filled with guilt.
(But, eventually, Kyo’s grunting at the traffic and his fingers tapping at one side are like a melody and they do somehow manage to lull her to sleep).
-
When the car finally breaks down, Kyo has just enough money to rent one motel room, with one bed.
They both stare at it and it’s like a scene in some cheesy romance movie.
“You can take it,” he tells her, settling himself on the couch, arms behind his head and eyelids already feeling heavier and heavier.
Tohru follows him, finding herself sitting at his feet. “Kyo-kun,” she says. “You’ve been driving all night, you should take the bed,” she explains, being insistent.
“I’m fine,” he offers, sounding frustrated.
She’s stubborn though, too stubborn for her own good. Tohru stays put, her fingers folding together on her thighs as she scrunches her nose.
Kyo wonders if she knows how much he notices these little things about her.
“I slept the whole way here - I’m not tired,” she finally tells him - still not meeting his gaze.
He hears her swallow hard and remembers how her hands haven’t stopped shaking since.
“Not tired or,” he trails off, lips pressing into a thin line “Can’t sleep?” Kyo asks.
She pauses before realizing how her heart felt as though it had fallen inside her stomach.
“Both,” Tohru responds, with her shoulders sinking in.
-
That night, she lies awake, staring up at the ceiling.
Kyo snores, softly though, like a small child who had taken a nap after playing outside all day. He sleeps soundly, even the noise of the night doesn’t interrupt him. He looks peaceful, which Tohru doesn’t really understand because she’s never seen him this calm before.
If anything, he should be running far from her, he should be disgusted with her, for what she did.
But instead, he looks like he feels safe around her.
(She spends the rest of the night memorizing his features, trying her best to remember this moment forever - because, for the first time, Kyo had let his guard down around her).
-
In the morning, they’re on a bus to nowhere and everywhere.
“It’s not your fault,” he releases, yawning between his words. “Akito was going to kill me, if you hadn’t stepped in, I’d be dead,” Kyo manages to remind her, just as she’s only begun to put it behind her.
“I know,” Tohru nods, recalling the blood on her hands and the sharpness of that knife. “I don’t regret what I did,” she informs him.
Akito came at Kyo and if Tohru hadn’t taken the weapon from her and twisted it into her chest, she wouldn’t have stopped. Akito would’ve continued until Kyo was dead - and Kyo’s death, in Tohru’s book, was not an option.
Kyo was going to be free, even if she had to kill someone for it.
“You saved me,” he absentmindedly reveals. “I’ll never forget that,” Kyo promises her - hand reaching for hers, almost holding it, almost.
“I-I didn’t do anything remarkable,” Tohru convinces. “I killed someone, Kyo-kun, I killed Akito-san,” the words fall out of her mouth as if they are a testament, as though she is not telling him but herself too. “It’s not admirable,” she croaks.
He wants to say something but that’s before he hears the cracking in her voice.
She’s desperate to be treated normally by him, she doesn’t want to be special.
So he does just that.
-
(Kyo remembers seeing it all - Akito’s dead body on the ground, limp and lifeless. Tohru’s fingers around that knife, the look of murder still fresh in her eyes. But, that’s not the girl he knows, that’s not the one he fell in love with, right?
Tohru Honda is pure of heart, innocent, caring and incapable of causing anyone any harm -
And yet, this was still her. The same girl who got nervous from his temper tantrums had just killed someone for him. So he had to do it, he had to reach for her hand because she was just standing there like her feet had been bolted to the ground. Kyo had to grab her arm and say, c’mon, let’s run.
Let’s runaway and never look back).
-
In a few hours, they are in a nameless place with people who look almost faceless.
He can see the remnants of the old Tohru - when she apologizes for bumping into trees and spends all her money on the kids in the park whining about ice-cream. She’s still there, somewhere deep inside.
Kyo doesn’t know if he prefers her the other way though, all cold and disturbed, because, and he hates to admit this, that that version of Tohru is someone who reminds him of himself.
And he somehow finds that thought rather comforting.
-
She ends up raising money helping out for some carnival game - where they make her wear some ridiculous outfit and he wants to complain but instead he just blushes.
He wants her, he’s wanted her for so long.
Anyway, she makes just enough to get them a pair of train tickets.
“Kyo-kun,” she calls him, wind in her hair, debris from the leaves blowing in her face. “Do you have any idea where we’re going?”
“Away,” he notes. “As far as we can get,” Kyo reassures her, hands on her shoulders, fingers squeezing them tighter.
(It’s only after that she realizes how his hands are shaking too).
“We can’t keep runn-”
“We’re not running,” he interrupts, looking passed her and off into the distance, where the horizon is slowly meeting the sun.
It’s this wonderful time between the planets, where the moon is out too and he turns Tohru around so she can watch it all happen as well.
“We’re not running,” he believes, pointing to the sky.
She wants to trust him, desperately so.
That’s why she looks at what’s before them too. It feels almost endless.
-
They hitch a ride with a friendly local.
She counts the stars, hums unfamiliar tunes, falls as asleep on his shoulder.
The truck owner calls them a lovely couple, says they remind him of himself and his wife when he was younger, gives Kyo some awful tips on love.
He wants to get angry, he wants to get annoyed, however, he finds himself smiling along.
It’s the only time he’s ever felt like a normal teenage boy and not some monster.
-
“How long do you think it’s been?” She’ll question him, like she always does, with that head full of thoughts (and thoughts about everyone except for herself).
“Hard to say,” Kyo murmurs, lying on the grass for tonight. They’ll find real shelter tomorrow, he decides. “I stopped keeping track after the first two sunsets,” he points out.
“Do you ever think of them?” Tohru regrets this already.
She should’ve just kept her mouth shut.
“I should be asking you that,” Kyo expresses.
“My answer is obvious,” she quips, tilting her head to one side. “Uo-chan, Hana-chan, Yuki-kun, Shigure-san, Momiji-kun… even Akito-san,” she counts them on her fingers, like they’re petals on a flower.
“Tohru-”
“I know you’re trying to be kind to me, but please, I beg you to stop absolving me from blame,” she cuts him off, sobbing, raising her hands so she can cower behind them. “I’m a murderer, a killer - you still treat me as though I’m still good but I’m not - I’ve never been good you know? I’ve been so selfish, first with my love for you and now this -”
“Stop,” and, in a moment, he’s looming over her, tearing her arms off her face and wiping her tears away. “Stop saying things like that about yourself, you know they’re not true,” his touch is soft and smooth, like nothing she’s ever felt.
“My love for you,” he finally reveals to her. “It made me selfish too, that’s why I took you, that’s why I ran, because I like having you to myself, because despite these awful circumstances, part of me, is so fucking happy,” he can’t help it, she’s right there, under him, and he just can’t help it.
He leans in to kiss her.
“I’m here with you and it feels like, that’s all that matters,” Kyo confesses, feeling her pull him into another round.
They make out for, what feels like, hours, without embracing, without transforming.
So yeah, fuck it, he’s glad Akito is dead.
-
(Soon enough, this town disappears into the next.
His hand slips into hers more times than he would like to admit).
-
His curse breaks the night they barn hop and end up spending the night on stacks of hay. Usually, when the zodiac members lose their connection to the Sohmas, they’re corresponding animals stop coming to them.
So, it’s more than a bit of a shock that, the night Kyo breaks his curse, there are cats all around them.
Tohru smiles, she always knew that he was different.
That he was special.
-
(And, despite everything, it feels although their next adventure is waiting for them, just around the corner. With his backpack filled to the brim with snacks and drinks, with her sunhat and summer dress on - they get to live the life they never had.
They get to survive. Together.
And that’s the only thing they’ve ever wished for).
maybe you were the ocean, when i was just a stone (7/?)
-
xix: i waste my time, friday nights, getting ready
-
Another Tuesday comes and goes -
Hayley appreciates being on land more and more. Rebekah introduces her to music - the sounds please her ears, make her body do this weird thing uncontrollably. Dancing, Rebekah calls it, one of the greatest joys of being human.
Elijah and Finn introduce her to dairy products - cheese, milk, yogurt, Hayley adores it all. She thought she’d be more disgusted by the idea of digesting another animal’s milk but, god, chocolate caramel pudding was just too darn good to pass up.
Kol catches her - mouth covered in sweets. She observes him looking at her lips, she recalls their almost kiss and notices how quickly he shifts his gaze away from her.
She wanted to kiss him, as weird as it sounds. She blames Ursula’s spell, one lousy kiss was all she needed and this damned spell would break and her voice would come back. Even if it’s not the most honest kiss, it could still count right?
If she weren’t so shy and meek, she’d plant one on him herself.
-
Kol curses himself for watching her while she ate dessert. What a creepy thing to do, he thinks. He’s supposed to only pretend to like her, not actually like her! And to think he tried to kiss her the other day - she’s the one who smiles like the sun. Who swims like a mermaid. Who looks at Niklaus with stars in her eyes.
Right.
She’s not interested in him.
Why would she be anyway?
For the first time, Kol doesn’t feel too confident in himself.
-
-
-
xx: and try recreate the first date that you met me
-
It’s been a while since Mikael has come home this early from work.
Esther is eagerly waiting for him in their bedroom - she watches him stammer around and sometimes, in the smallest moments, she swears she sees hints of the man he used to be.
The one she fell in love with.
“Will you stay, tonight?” She asks - noting that they have not slept in the same bed in years.
He looks over his shoulder, preparing his things for the guest room. “I can’t stand it,” Mikael spits. “Lying next to you, I just think of how another man has touched you, how another man has been with you.”
Esther flinches, putting her head down as she thinks of Ansel. “That was a long time ago,” she notes. “I’ve apologized endlessly for my transgressions, and you haven’t forgiven me since. You even take your anger out on the children - they haven’t done a thing.” She insists as she reaches for his arm.
Still upset, Mikael jerks her hand away. “If you hadn’t brought that boy,” he starts again, remembering how Esther had tried to pass along Klaus as one of Mikael’s children. “It wouldn’t be so hard to forget,” He adds on. “His face, every time I see it, I just think of your betrayal - “
“Niklaus has done nothing wrong-“
“Do not speak his name,” Mikael warns, looming over his wife. “As long as I live, rest assured, you and that boy will never know any peace.”
He grabs the rest of his belongings and disappears, leaving Esther to sob quietly into the night.
-
Klaus’ been feeling a bit lonely lately.
When he was younger, if he was ever sad, Elijah would play him songs on the piano. He loved watching his brother tangle his fingers the notes, tap his foot, even hum along. Their father, however, had never been a huge fan of the arts and he had made Elijah quit music for good and study business to be next in line for the family shares.
After Finn, of course.
Klaus lazily taps a finger over a note on the living room piano - he thinks of his brother and then he tries to play a song.
“Sounds bloody awful,” Mikael chimes in, suddenly appearing behind him.
“What do you want?” Klaus asks, refusing to turn around.
He can feel his breath on the back of his neck, the way it sinks into his skin like hot sputters of lava. “You know,” Mikael says. “You truly are the last person I wanted to see, at the moment.”
Klaus doesn’t miss a beat. “You’re not exactly all that pleasant to be around either.”
He never speaks of this but sometimes, Klaus swears, his father could be slightly afraid of him - the way he’s so threatened by any little action of his must mean something.
“Your tongue has been getting sharper lately,” Mikael grits, grabbing his shoulders and forcing him to turn around. “You’d do well to keep your comments to yourself,” he advises, now face to face with his son.
“And allow you to berate me?” Klaus spits.
Mikael grabs him by the collar and pushes him against a wall. “This is my house!” He shouts. “Don’t you forget that,” his grip doesn’t loosen until Klaus looks away from him, like a scared dog.
Satisfied, Mikael lets him go. He takes his leave, disappearing for the rest of the night.
-
-
-
xxi: and you come around from the town of complacence
-
(Klaus feels a cold sweat run all the way down his back.
He swears that it’s pooling around his feet, rising and rising almost as if he’s drowning. His knees are weak, he collapses on the floor, shaking.
Just then -
Ansel’s name appears on his phone again.
He manages to nervously grab a hold of the device, clumsily opening up his messages.
“Hi son - haven’t heard back from you in a while - just wanted to see how you were doing! I’m on my way back from my shift at the bar, came across this gorgeous mural painting of a bird, thought you might enjoy seeing it”.
“[Ansel has sent a Picture Message]”
And funny enough, Klaus suddenly feels like he can breathe again).
-
Her dreams - they’re supposed to be pink.
Rosy clouds, pomegranate juice, cotton candy on her tongue. But instead, tonight she dreams in black.
Hayley had woken up to loud noise from downstairs. She rushes towards the front door, spotting Klaus with a large backpack on, heading out.
“So, I’ve been caught, it seems,” he whispers, noticing her presence. “Are you going to tattle on me?”
She shakes her head. Hayley grabs his sleeve, pulling on it in order for him to understand.
He laughs, turning around to take her hand in his. “I understand, you want me to stay, love,” he acknowledges. “But I assume you know how dire my circumstances are in this place, the Mikaelson mansion isn’t as cookie-cutter as it may seem,” Klaus sighs sadly.
Her heart breaks into a thousand tiny pieces - she feels so close to this man before her, she can’t imagine being in this big lonely house without him.
Hayley reaches into her pocket and pulls out a small object for him.
“What’s this? A shell?” Klaus asks as she places in his palm and closes his fingers around him. He can’t help but smile at this small action. “I’ll keep it with me wherever I go,” he assures her.
His hand is in her hair, wrapping around the back of her head and pulling her flush against his chest.
“In exchange, I promise you that we will see each other again,” he whispers softly and she clutches the fabric of his shirt. Hayley inhales his scent. “What do you think? Will you wait for me, until then?” Klaus murmurs.
She nods, finally finding the strength to smile again.
“That’s a good girl.” He hums.
He hears her small sobs into his chest, and he can’t help it, he wants to cry too.
He finally has a moment with her, and it just had to be now. He swears, he has such bad luck.
“Nik-”
And just then, his brother chimes in, allowing the bad luck to resume.
-
“Nik,” Kol releases, looking worried as he rushes down the stairs in order to be by his brother’s side.
(It is only later that he realizes that Hayley is in his arms).
“What’s happening? Where are you going?” He asks, voice caught in his throat.
Klaus lets go of Hayley, allowing her to return to Kol’s side as the older brother starts to step away.
“Kol,” he says, now standing a few steps from their doorway, outside their house. “It’s a bit of a shame that I couldn’t offer you a proper goodbye,” Klaus continues, taking one last look at his little brother (one last look at his home). “Or any of our other siblings, for that matter,” he takes more steps backwards, getting further and further away.
“What are you talking about?” Kol shouts, lunging towards the door.
Hayley is close to him, almost in his arms - but he doesn’t event notice.
Not when his brother is -
His brother is -
“Let them know I will be safe,” Klaus promises. “And rest assured that I will keep in touch.”
“Klaus,” Kol tries to run after him. “Wait, don’t do this-“ Hayley holds him back and he realizes that she’s much stronger than he thought. He looks into her eyes, he sees how much she trusts his brother and it almost baffles him.
“Hayley,” he calls her. “You have to let me stop him,” Kol orders.
She shakes her head. She can’t do that, no matter how much she wants to. She’s seen the scar on his face, the way Mikael hurts him.
She couldn’t live with herself if she allowed him to do this to Klaus any longer.
“Brother,” Klaus interrupts. “Hayley, she’s strong but, she’ll need someone to lean on, someone to be there for her,” he says, noticing how tender Kol is towards her. “Do take care of her while I’m gone, make sure she doesn’t get too lonely.”
His cab arrives, Klaus ducks inside and he can see his brother fighting Hayley’s strength with all his might.
“Nik!” When Hayley finally weakens, Kol pushes her aside and runs after the car as it drives away. “Please, we can work this out!” He keeps shouting - running until he is out of breath.
Running until he is chocking.
Klaus looks back until he sees his brother collapse and Hayley run to his safety. She holds him in her arms, a soft glow coming from her fingers as she hovers over him.
“Goodbye Kol,” Klaus whispers to himself, fingers tightly clasped around his chest.
The sky is orange today - looking almost as if someone set it on fire.
Kol Mikaelson watches from his balcony as the war rumbles on. Destruction, chaos, violence -
“Did you see that?” Rebekah whispers, hair in her face, mouth slightly open. “It’s wolf, isn’t it?” She croaks, eyes peering over the horizon.
Kol follows her gaze, he sees the grassy fields, the lavenders his sister planted in the meadows, the tall trees -
And then, a pair of bright yellow eyes watch him from a far.
“If it’s that little one from the other night again, I swear I’m not going to be able to spare its life again - tell Nik’s little strumpet that -“
“Kol,” Rebekah interrupts, watching the wolves surround their property, appearing all along the edges of their home. “It’s not just one wolf.”
He recognizes Jackson from the other night, but the others - they’re new.
“What are they all doing here?” Rebekah wonders, counting tens, twenties…no…hundreds of them.
The eyes multiply like insects, Kol feels as if his heart drops inside his stomach.
“I have no bloody idea.”
-
Orange - Hayley decides - is her least favourite colour.
It almost feels cruel, being safe inside this barrier spell inside Klaus Mikaelson’s mansion while the war outside rages on.
The other hybrids don’t seem bother by it at all. They still follow her around like lost puppies though, which is still pretty weird.
She tracks Tyler down in the evening, huddled up by a fire.
“Do you know what this is all about?” Hayley asks, as a few hybrids trail behind her.
“What do you mean?” He wonders.
She points them out, annoyed.
“Earlier,” Hayley sighs. “These guys wouldn’t share as much as a glance my way, now, they’re all googly-eyed like I’m sort of alien or something -”
“I don’t know,” he’s quick to answer her, all shifty and a bit nervous about what he’s about to say next. “It’s like…like they’re drawn to you,” Tyler says.
Hayley is quiet, taking a seat beside him as he seems to be coming to his own conclusion. She wanted to hear what he had to say.
“Wolves have a lot of history - as a species,” he explains. “A lot of it unfortunately, has been erased thanks to our weakness compared to the witches and vampires. We didn’t manage to survive as long, have as much to share from our past,” Tyler gathers, thinking of how little he knows about his own family.
She looks back at the wolves still looming around her, somehow, Hayley starts to think of them as lost children - the look in their eyes is so lonely and distant.
So much like another hybrid she knows.
“And,” Hayley breathes. “You think this is about my past? My family?”
Tyler takes a step back, side-eyeing her.
“I think,” he releases. “There’s something from your past that no one knows about, that’s probably why all the wolves are following you,” he reveals, sounding just a bit sinister.
She still can’t tell if he is a friend or a foe.
-
“Brother-”
Klaus bursts through the long mahogany coloured door with a swift kick, making his entrance as crude and loud as usual (walking right passed Elijah’s open arms).
“Niklaus,” he repeats, settling into the unfamiliarity in his brother’s scent.
Every time he sees him, he feels as though he is getting further and further away from him - Elijah wonders if Klaus even wants to see him, at this point.
“Cut the chit chat ‘Lijah,” he says, taking a quick look around his brother’s manor and spotting the array of wines he keeps stocked up on his dinner table. “Tell me, why did you want to see me?” Klaus continues, grabbing an old bottle of Bordeaux and opening it up.
Elijah sighs, taking a seat across from his brother, in their father’s old chair - like the patriarch that he is.
Then, Freya shows up, taking his mother’s seat beside Elijah - looking more and more like her, each and every day.
“I think you know why,” she whispers.
He observes her as she mimics Esther’s stature, from the length of her long ivory dress to the way she ties her hair. “Sister,” Klaus reminds himself. “What a lovely surprise,” he smirks.
Elijah notices the tension in the air - his wish for his family to get along seems for far gone at this point, he wonders if it’s even worth saving. “Take a seat, dear brother,” he advises. “We have much to discuss.”
Klaus scoffs, popping the bottle open, taking a large swig. “I’d like to make this visit brief, if you don’t mind,” he tells him, in the nicest way that he can. “I have something rather pressing to get back to,” a pair of wolf eyes flash in his mind’s eye and he swear it almost feels like home.
His brother is perceptive, he can tell something is different about Niklaus. “Your wolves, I presume?” He offers, studying the other’s expression for any semblance of redemption. “We’ve noticed quite a large amount of missing ones reported within the area,” Elijah explains.
“What exactly are you accusing me of?” Klaus chides, sounding a bit aggravated.
Freya’s hand slips into his as a form of support. Elijah closes his eyes, squeezes it tightly. “Nothing,” he sighs, breathing in. “I simply would like to propose an alliance,” he offers, breathing out.
Klaus hates this - how close these two are, it’s insufferable. He hates how close Rebekah and Kol are too, he doesn’t have that type of bond with any of his siblings. “An alliance?” He laughs.
“My witches, Elijah’s vampires, your wolves,” Freya steps in, noticing Elijah’s depleting state. “We could start a peace treaty, set an example for everyone else,” she suggests, eyes kind and soft.
Klaus can’t stand it - it’s like Esther’s ghost was looking right at him. “You actually think that’s going to work?” He jerks. “Ridiculous,” Klaus shakes his head, looking away from his sister.
Their mother had passed - long ago - when their father had been hunting them down for centuries on end. He called them abominations, monsters even. The first vampires created by their own witch mother who, in the end, was killed by her own creations.
Klaus still can’t forget the sight of Mikael setting Esther’s body aflame - none of them can.
“You have to at least try -”
“Might I remind you, dear sister,” he shouts this time, angered by the memory of it all. He wants to call her mother - to hold her close - to cry into her warm embrace. But instead, he resigns. “We are in the middle of a war, there is so such thing as peace in these times, only bloodshed.”
Klaus takes this as his cue to go, heading towards the door as he feels his sadness bubbling up from inside.
“Stop,” and suddenly, he can’t move. He looks back to see his older sister’s outstretched hand, casting a spell holding him locked in place. “I’m not letting you leave unless you agree to our deal,” she informs him, walking closer to him.
“Freya-” Elijah runs between them, standing in front of Niklaus, almost as if to protect him.
He’s surprised that his brother still cares so much for him and yet, Freya’s fiery spirit betrays him.
“If it’s a fight you want,” Klaus grits, pushing off the spell, eyes glowing like ambers. “I won’t hold back, being my sister won’t offer you any mercy-”
He lunges, going for her throat.
She stops him again, but he’s fast, one more attempt and she knows she won’t be able to fight him off.
“Let him go,” Elijah advises. “Please-”
Her brother’s tender voice is what gets to her. She knows how kind he is, how noble. She can’t say no to Elijah.
Freya releases Klaus and he quickly vanishes from their sight.
(The house seems oddly colder without him).
-
His sister is well matched, he thinks as he travels back home.
A strong witch - much more powerful than the last time he had seen her. Klaus knows that, if they were to ever spar again, one of them might have to die before the battle would end.
Mikael was the only member of the family they had all ever gotten together to kill - he never thought that it would come to this again. Being pitted against each other thanks to their differences.
The very nature of his birth is something his siblings should hate him for. But instead, Elijah just tries to get closer to him, at any cost.
Klaus’ desire for power is much greater than his love for his family.
It makes him wonder about their offer - if he’ll ever be able to trust his own blood.
-
(She counts the stars as she falls asleep -
Hayley slips in to her bed, surrounded by the hybrids, all scattered on her floor. Two stand guard outside her room, almost as if they’re protecting her.
She only notices that they are distracted when a certain someone enters the area.
“Klaus,” she realizes, as he stands by her doorway, looking all dimmed and quiet. “You’re back,” Hayley notices, stepping out of bed and making her way towards him.
He smiles for the first time today - suddenly forgetting all about the stressful journey he’s just had. He sees nothing but the girl standing before him. “That I am, love,” he muses. “Come with me,” Klaus offers her his hand.
She hesitates. “Where?” Hayley asks.
“To my chamber,” he shrugs. “You’ll be staying with me tonight.”
She wants to ask him where he’s been, what he’s been doing, if he’s ever going to leave her again - all these questions loom inside her mind. She’s never been with a man like him before, so full of secrets.
But, she sees the tired look in his eyes and decides that she can’t fight him anymore.
She’s exhausted too.
“Okay,” Hayley finally says, slipping her hand into his).
She knows - her daughter gets her sense of observance from her.
It’s definitely not from her father (he can be daft, at times, so carried away by his passions that he forgets all that is happening around him).
But not Hayley - she’s always quiet, lurking even, picking up on things before they even make their way towards her.
So when Marcel passes out from his fifth beer on her couch, she hesitates before placing a blanket over him to keep him warm as he slept.
She knows the feeling of painfully wanting someone who could never be yours.
She recognizes the way he looks at her because she’s looked at others like that too - that same riddling sense of yearning reminds her of her teenage years. When she so desperately wanted Klaus to love her enough to stay.
Funny how the tables have turned now.
-
When he wakes up, naturally, she’s gone.
Marcel finds a crumpled note by the emptied bottles of beers. He unfolds it and reads it.
Hey sleepy head-
Left your hangover cure by the fridge,
I dropped Hope off at school and I’m at work for the rest of the day,
Make sure to eat breakfast before you head out.
Hayley
He holds the note close to his heart before gathering the rest of his things and cleaning up.
Breakfast consists on drive-thru food and extras he picks up for Davina, who must be back at home totally furious at him. He’s too busy thinking of Hayley the whole way back to give a damn.
She must know by now - he realizes - how he’s so head over heels for her. She must want him to move on from her. Even if he’s not sure how.
“Hey,” to his biggest surprise, Davina doesn’t seem the least bit upset once he arrives home. “Got my favourite,” she says, grabbing the bag of take-out and scarfing it down in their dinning room.
Marcel takes a seat beside her, opening up his meal.
The relationship between these two was a bit difficult to explain to outsiders. It’s a father-daughter dynamic except that, neither of them of blood-related. But, Marcel had been raising Davina since she was a baby - since her parents died in a car crash and she had been the sole survivor.
“You seem oddly chipper,” he remarks, noticing the glow in her cheeks. “I thought for sure you’d be mad at me,” Marcel adds on.
“For what?” She sings, head tilting to one side. “Finally taking a break from work and acting like a real person?” Davina laughs.
Marcel sighs, tearing his gaze off of her smile. “I don’t like the idea of you being so alone here,” he admits. “I know it must be hard when you only have me, you must want a larger family -“
“Stop,” she orders with a hand up in front of his face. “Marcel, you know you’ve always been more than enough for me,” she reminds him.
A pause ensues - and for a moment, things are nice.
It’s her finger tapping on the table, his feet kicking against her seat, a genuine moment between the both of them.
“Can I ask you something?” Davina interrupts. “What do you do if someone who used to be your friend decides to come back in your life after being M.I.A for a while?” She goes on with, watching as he leans back into his seat with a finger on his chin, wondering.
“Who is this?” Marcel asks, curious.
She scowls. “Just,” Davina insists, with a pout. “Answer the question.”
He thinks of Rebekah.
Of Klaus.
“A true friend,” he decides. “Wouldn’t leave without saying goodbye in the first place,” he confesses catching the disappointment on her face.
-
He can’t bring himself to look that goofy grinned boy straight in the face.
Feet on the table, crumbs on his face, coffee stained shirt -
One thing was for sure, Kol was not like the rest of the Mikaelson siblings.
“So,” he chirps, swinging an arm around Klaus’ shoulder and pulling him close. “How’s my favourite brother doing?” Kol smirks.
Klaus immediately pushes him away. “Kol,” he says, sounding serious. “Why are you here?” He asks.
His younger brother rolls his eyes at him. “Oh never mind that Nik,” he scoffs, this time reaching an arm around his sister’s shoulder instead. “Tell me, Bekah, have you taken a stroll by our old high school yet? I’d love to reminisce the good ol’ days with you.”
“I haven’t as of yet!” She cheers, learning into him. “We could relive the Mikaelsons horrors where we terrorized the whole school,” she giggles, incessantly.
Klaus can’t believe what he’s seeing - Rebekah and Kol were inseparable. Ever since they were children, they had been close. Still, this surprise visit from his little brother really made Klaus suspicious of his sudden appearance.
“What’s with you two?” He jerks, standing up. “Making plans to hang out when we haven’t even figured out what he’s doing here?” Klaus points to Kol - looking upset.
Kol still seems unbothered by all of it, he’s quite used to his mood swings, sometimes, he thinks he even misses them. “Brother,” he chides, with a hand on his shoulder. “Can I not just be here to pay my darling niece a charming little visit?”
Klaus bites back his instinct to grab his brother by the throat.
“How do you know about her?” He questions, eyes shifting towards Rebekah who is silently looking at the floor. “You told him?” Klaus concludes.
She flashes him her irresistible pout. “C’mon now Nik,” Rebekah whines. “You can’t expect to keep a secret like this, especially from Kol,”
He truly can’t be angry with her - not when she’s got that look on her face, all while knowing her painful situation with Marcel
Klaus sighs, dropping his head into his hands.
“Don’t worry so much,” Kol advises. “Rest assured, I’m back in town for a much different matter,” he laments, smirk still firmly plastered on his lips.
Klaus wondered what he could be up to.
-
Her sheets remain cold -
Hayley is used to sleeping alone. Being a single parent and all.
But tonight, she suddenly felt a bit lonely.
She looks out the window - the winds are stronger than usual, taking the leaves and dust along with them. They rattle against the door, making the walls rumble.
“Mommy,” she hears a whisper at the foot of her bed.
Hope blinks up at her, stuffed bunny in hand.
“Hey sweetie,” Hayley hums. “What’s the matter? Can’t sleep?” She wonders, as she reaches over to pick up her daughter.
Hope huddles under the sheets like it’s a habit. “No,” she says. “I had a bad dream,” she tells her.
“Aw, it’s okay,” her mother offers, holding her close. Her hands are warm as they rub Hope’s back. “S’not real, you know? Just your imagination.”
“I know,” she replies, feeling safer.
Hope’s eyelids start growing heavier with sleep - she’s taken aback by how quickly she’s gotten tired again.
“You know what I do when I have a nightmare?” Her mother questions.
“What?” Hope yawns.
She watches as Hayley pulls out the locket around her neck, half a heart with a chain looped around it.
“I hold on to this necklace and I think of all the good times I spent with the person who gave it to me,” she smiles, thinking of her younger years with Klaus. “And then, I sleep like a baby,” she quips.
Hope recognized the locket, watching intently as her mother seems rather fond of it.
That is, until, she pulls it over her head and places it around Hope’s neck. “You’re giving it to me?” Her daughter asks, looking confused.
Hayley thinks about it for a moment - she’s had this necklace for so long it almost felt as though it was apart of her. But, this was her - err - their daughter after all.
If anyone should have it, it should be her.
“Yeah,” Hayley whispers. “So from now on, whenever you have a bad dream, just hold this locket close to your heart and think of me,” she offers with a hand wrapped around her daughter’s shoulder.
“I will,” Hope nods, sinking deeper in to the bed. She looks at the locket again, finding it familiar. “Someone very important to you must have given you this necklace,” she gathers.
Hayley takes a deep breath.
“Yeah, right,” she releases. “Very important,” her heart still flutters when she thinks back to that night.
She swears that it was just as cold and windy this one.
Hope is a very perceptive child - a bit too smart for her own good, at times.
She recalls her observance getting her into mischief quite a few times, like when she made a passing comment on her babysitter, Davina, having one too many sweets. When Marcel spends too much time on his phone, Hope points it out without much restraint.
She remembers when her mother got upset at her for saying something about her sneaking out to have a smoke -
And now, there was this strange man hanging around her and her mother. One who she had oddly grown close to.
“It’s you,” she says, grabbing on to her backpack in the school field. He rolls in with his fancy car, window rolled down, smiling.
“Your mother sent me,” Klaus says, grinning, flashing her the text from his phone as if Hope can read all that well at her age. “She’s working a bit late today, so does Marcel - I was her last chance in terms of a chauffeur.” He explains.
Hope shrugs and gets in the car. She gets comfortable, admiring all the bits and pieces of shiny decor hung up on his car.
My sister’s doing, Klaus comments as he begins to drive. He seems oddly chipper, probably because Hayley actually started talking to him again, well texting him again - when she needed something anyway.
“You have a sister?” Hope asks, head tilted to one side.
“Yes,” Klaus nods. “I have lots of siblings, actually.”
She widens her eyes and her mouth drops open, just a little. “Wow,” she exhales, loudly. “That must be so fun!”
Klaus shrugs, feeling a bit guilty for this moment. But, he tries to remind himself how much this situation is beyond his control. “Eh,” he sighs, rolling his eyes. “It gets old after the second one, you know? My sister, Rebekah, she’s fine. But then mother had Kol, and even Henrik…it can easily get very overwhelming, you know?”
Hope stays a bit quiet after that. She’s never met someone like Klaus before - such a big family, such a huge car…everything is so grand and extravagant.
Like something out of a story book.
-
Well, he stops by their door, rolling into the parking space.
“You’re home,” Klaus claims, opening the car door for her.
She wiggles out, stubby and short legs hopping onto the ground. “That I am,” she cheers. “Thanks for the ride, Klaus,” Dad, he thinks, but doesn’t say it. What else was she supposed to call him?
“You’re welcome,” he simply says, taking her hand and guiding her up the front steps.
She, unexpectedly, runs into his leg. Hope throws her arms around him. Klaus places a hand on her back. “I missed you,” she whispers softly.
“I missed you too, little Hope,” he says, deciding to bend down so that he may pick her up.
This moment means so much to him - he has to bite his tongue to keep himself from crying. Right - crying. That’s something he does now.
“Have you always had this locket?” Hope suddenly quips, as she’s still in his arms, chubby little hand wrapped around the half heart shaped silver locket around his neck.
He always wears it, sometimes he almost forgets it’s there.
“For a long time,” he tells her, putting her down. “Why do you ask?” He wonders, watching her pull out her keys and begin to unlock her door.
“It’s funny,” Hope fumbles. Klaus helps her push the door open as she walks inside her home. “My mom has the same one,” she reveals, before closing the door behind her.
-
(Hope is sharp - far too sharp.
Klaus remembers that necklace from years ago - Hayley’s fourteenth birthday, to be exact.
He had another fight with his father, as per usual. He had ran off, as per usual. He ended up at Hayley’s place, as per usual.
(Not before stopping by a bakery though - he has her gift all prepared, shoved into his pocket. He picks a cake for her, caramel chocolate with an array of fruits on top).
He had shown up at her door, dangling the chain in front of her face when she had showed up to answer his call.
“Happy birthday, Hayley,” he told her, catching her deer-in-headlights expression.
She steps aside, letting him in.“A necklace?” Hayley says, getting a hold of the chain and observing the odd shape of the locket. “What’s it supposed to be?” She wonders.
Klaus sits on her couch and pulls out his matching one. “Half a heart,” he says. “I have the other half, when we’re close, we can put them together to form a full one.” He connects the heart locket to hers and offers her a big goofy smile.
“It’s kind of,” Hayley exhales. “Cheesy,” she settles on, offering him a small laugh.
He rolls his eyes, leaning over to kiss her.
“It’s so you’ll think of me, when you wear it,” Klaus offers, pulling away.
“I’ll wear it,” she decides. “Always.”
And it’s promise she hasn’t broken, ’til this day).
-
The donut box is emptied.
Crumbs all over her lips, half cups of coffee left on the table, chocolate milk box crumpled and left in the trash can.
Hayley cherishes her gifts from Marcel - food really is the best present, she thinks.
Hope agrees, as she had finished the rest of the donuts after Klaus had dropped her home from school, and gone for a nap.
Normally, Hayley would urge her to get on her homework and not mess up her sleep schedule in such a way but, her daughter looked exhausted from the day. She wonders if maybe, Klaus had one of his intense talks with her that wore her out.
Klaus.
She thinks - remembering their kiss.
“Hayley,” she hears, turning around to see that Marcel had slipped into her home, once again. “Sorry, I left my coat here last night, thought I’d just use my spare keys.” He explains, grabbing his jacket from the closet.
She notices how something seems a bit off about him tonight.
“How was work today?” She says, attempting to lighten his mood.
“Ah,” he sighs, taking a seat on her couch. “The usual, no surprise visits from the Mikaelsons today though,” Marcel eyes her reaction.
She looks…disappointed. “Right,” Hayley bites. “The Mikaelsons, they’ve been quiet lately,” she notes.
“That’s good, isn’t it?” He chimes.
She doesn’t answer him. Hayley takes a seat beside him, looking exasperated.
“We never got to talk about it, you know?” Marcel admits.
“About?” She asks.
He takes a pause, glancing at the unopened beers in her cooler. Hayley notices this and takes them out, realizing that they were going to need to be a little less sober for this conversation.
“Klaus,” he admits. “Being in love with you.”
Hayley takes a big sip of her drink. “And,” she shrugs. “What about Rebekah? She’s in love with you.”
“So-” he drawls, picking up his beer. “What are we supposed to do? Marry them? Become in-laws?” Marcel teases, softly hitting her shoulder.
“Me? Married?” She giggles. “Can you imagine?”
(Of course he can -
He can imagine her in an ivory dress with lace details, a veil because she’s traditional like that, even if most people might not think that of her. Her 'something blue’ is that friendship bracelet Hope made for her. Her ‘something borrowed’, a satin ribbon from Davina.
Right - this was going to be a long night).
-
Left turn -
Klaus’ mind is elsewhere.
Hope’s words never leave his mind - his fingers wrap around that old locket sometimes and he thinks of Hayley. She still wears this necklace…after all this time.
“I said left, Nik,” Rebekah says, shoving his shoulder as she sits in the passenger seat. Klaus doesn’t make eye contact with her, mind still occupied with thoughts of his daughter and her mother.
“Right,” he absentmindedly releases, turning the wheel.
No! Left! Rebekah shouts, reaching over and turning the wheel back.
Klaus widens his eyes and lets out a long sigh, realizing how this was all affecting his driving - his sister looks exasperated, panting frustratedly and sweating.
“Where are we going exactly?” He asks, as his memory fails him.
His sister looks frazzled. She bites her lip, looking away. “Just keep driving,” she orders. “It’s a surprise,” she says, as the arrive in front of the airport.
And, low and behold - standing right there, by the sidewalk, suitcases in each hand - was Kol fucking Mikaelson.
“Bloody hell,” Klaus breathes as his younger brother starts running towards their car.
maybe you were the ocean, when i was just a stone (6/?)
a/n: I can't believe I'm revamping this fic but I'm revamping this fic - it will be uploaded on ao3 as well, I will not be updating it on ffn.
-
xvi: we could open windows -
-
Klaus isn't one for love triangles - he's not even one for love.
He's counted less than a handful of times where he has allowed himself to feel close enough to someone outside of his siblings to even call it that.
At most, this was just an infatuation of sorts, it must be.
Because he just couldn't fathom liking the same girl as his younger brother.
"Nik," Kol releases, as soon as he sees him. "Where have you been?" He wonders, realizing how he hadn't seen his brother for quite a few hours.
Klaus stammers, being uncomfortable with the memory of his biological father and his offer to stay with him. "I had a few errands to run," he nervously says.
Errands? Kol thinks, unable to remember the last time Klaus had been this responsible about his chores.
He observes them both carefully - how well Kol is dressed and how pretty Hayley's dress is. "I take it you both just came back from dinner with mother and father," Klaus concludes.
Kol and Hayley share a look, feeling a bit awkward about the whole situation.
"Yes," Kol nods. "I was just about to ask Hayley how she was feeling about everything," he says, shyly.
Klaus places a finger on his chin, pondering. "That's strangely considerate of you," he realizes just how much his brother is changing in the short amount of time that he's known Hayley.
It's unexpected, but he feels a smidge of jealousy.
"Hayley," Kol goes on, interrupting Klaus' thoughts. The girl looks at him while playing with a strand of her hair. "Did our parents say or do anything to make you uncomfortable?" he asks.
She thinks back to Esther's kindness, how close she felt to her just in the short time she had known her. Hayley shakes her head.
"Really?" Klaus notes, wide-eyed. "That's...surprising," he sighs, turning to his younger brother.
Kol senses an even bigger change, one deep inside himself. "Perhaps," he shrugs. "They've actually taken a liking to her?" he wonders, meeting Klaus' gaze.
The other brother focuses his vision on Hayley - how close she stands next to Kol, how comfortable she seems around him. "Maybe so," Klaus notes. "I suppose stranger things have happened," he softly says, thinking of how easily these two seem to fit together.
And how quickly their charade seemed to have become reality.
-
The beach calls her name - like a love song.
Hayley is restless that night, rolling around in her bed, staring at the ceiling, sweating.
Being human is still strange - it's nice not being alone or exiled by her own kind, being accepted by a lively family, having siblings - sort of anyway. But it's still all so new.
"You're awake," Henrik pops out from under her bed and scares her.
She was so busy being stressed out by her thoughts, she didn't even notice him sneaking in.
"What's wrong? Have a nightmare?" Henrik asks again, as Hayley offers him a nod of the head. He hops into bed with her, looking a little sad. "I have trouble sleeping too, bad dreams are all too common in this house, I'm afraid," he sounds so broken, all of a sudden.
Hayley knows the Mikaelson household is a lot colder than people think - despite their riches, their fame, how close the siblings seem to be, there is still so much loneliness in everyone's eyes.
She appreciates how easily Henrik bonds with her though - she's never had a younger sibling before, though she's always wanted one.
"Henrik," Cami bursts through the open door. "There you are, why are you out of bed?" she sings, joining the two.
Hayley motions for Cami to hop in but patting her hand on the sheets. She slips in beside Henrik, wrapping an arm around him.
"Cami," he whispers, "I didn't know you were still here," he adds.
"Rebekah asked me to spend the night - I'm just staying in her room," she continues. "I came out because I heard all the ruckus this little one was making," she smiles, teasing Henrik.
Hayley appreciates both their warmth - it can be quite scary sleeping in this big room, all by herself.
"I've always found this house so eerily quiet at night, you know?" Cami suddenly says.
Henrik looks at Hayley who also looks a bit scared. "We agree," he grins.
And that's the thing about the Mikaelson mansion, from the outside, it looks like this perfect palace - and once you're inside, you realize it's just feels so haunting.
(The three of them hold hands, walking together towards the balcony. They sit there for a bit, just looking out towards the beach.
"The water looks so calm tonight," Henrik comments.
"It's so strange isn't it?" Cami tells them. "Just the other day, it was raging on like a storm, now it's like a summer sea," she realizes.
Hayley looks there too, remembers her old home - the deep blue ocean, the fishes, the coral and seaweed.
Sometimes, she feels like it never really existed.
"I wonder what it's like," Henrik quips. "Way out there," he exhales, thinking more and more about the vast waters before them.
"I do too," Cami agrees - noticing how disconnected Hayley seems.
Almost as if she's been there before).
-
-
-
xvii: fix the fridge light and replace the phone
-
The sun invades Rebekah's room like an invited guest.
She finds a note on her bed, carefully written.
Such pretty hand-writing, she knows it's Cami's - so delicate and careful. Somehow, it almost makes her angrier about her early departure.
The fact that it's just so beautiful.
(Hey Rebekah, I know I know - you hate me right now but, before you send me an angry text I'll never get, just hear me out. I left something for you under your pillow, it's something I brought back from my last research trip, I hope you think of me when you wear it.
Rebekah holds back her tongue - she knows how important Cami's research is and how much value it has.
She shoves her hand under her pillow and finds a gorgeous piece of seaglass strung across a chain. It's green mixed with a bit of yellow - like Cami's eyes).
"Sister," Klaus walks in to her room with a shiny tray of freshly made pancakes, syrup, whip cream, strawberries and a warm cup of coffee. "I've brought you breakfast," he says, taking weird looks around her room.
Rebekah raises a brow as she takes the hot drink in hand. "What brings about such kindness, dear brother?" she laments.
Klaus keeps avoiding her eyes. "Can't you just thank me?" he offers.
She notices how disappointed he looks and connect the dots quite easily. This food wasn't intentionally made for her, after all. "If you're looking for Hayley," she concludes. "She woke up quite early and already had breakfast with Henrik and Kol," Rebekah tells him, recalling hearing their voices while she was half asleep, shortly after Cami had already left.
"Kol? Waking up early?" Klaus retorts. "I never thought I'd see the day," he huffs, with his hands on his hips.
His sister smiles as she starts digging in to the pancakes. "He's a changed man," she comments."Hmm, these pancakes are to die for, Nik!" She cheers, smiling.
Klaus feels that tinge of jealousy he felt earlier suddenly grow bigger. "Glad you like them," he quietly says, attempting to hide his real emotions.
-
Kol spends more and more time with Hayley.
He doesn't like to think that he's gotten close to her or that, somehow, she gets under his skin - it's just that, he needs to make this whole she's his girlfriend act convincing, you know? Whether that means having meals together, standing a bit closer to her than he usually does, even maybe looking deep into her eyes -
The truth is, he just really likes being around her.
She waves to Henrik as he runs off to play with some other kids he spots by the beach.
"He's very fond of you," Kol observes. "My little brother, I mean, he's usually quite shy around anyone but our family. I suppose you're part of ours now," he babbles on and he almost bites his tongue.
God, what the hell was he saying right now? He sounded like a fool - calling her his family, really? He's only known her for a little over a month!
What was wrong with him?
"Would you like to go for a swim with me?" Kol requests instead, trying to change the subject and how flustered he felt at the moment.
She offers him a bright smile, running head first into the water.
He feels a continuing flutter in his heart as he watches her shiver from the coldness of the water. Right, it was November after all - maybe not the best time for a swim but, she almost seemed like she was weirdly used to it.
Hayley warms up quickly and swishes around the water almost as if it's part of her.
"You're quite the talented swimmer, my darling," Kol compliments, joining her.
The water pushes them closer and closer to each other and his hand instinctively grazes against her cheek - her hair is wet and covering her eyes but, she can see just enough to understand that he's going for it.
He wants to kiss her.
"KOLLLL!!!"
Just then, they hear Henrik's scream.
-
He's afraid of water, Kol whispers, as he and Hayley swim towards him. "I'm such an idiot," he curses himself, swimming quicker. "I should've kept a better eye on him," he shouts, seeing the top of his brother's head peeking out of the waves.
Hayley swims faster than him, getting to Henrik first and lifting him up from his waist. She gives him a look, indicating that he was safe now, she was here, after all.
"Henrik!" Kol scolds, when he catches up to them. "What were you thinking? You know you could've drowned!" he shakes him back and forth, worriedly.
Hayley takes him back to the shore, covering him in a dry towel.
"I'm sorry brother," Henrik replies to Kol. "I just thought I could finally face my fear, ever since the incident that happened to Nik I -"
Kol furrows his brow - he remembers that day too, when Klaus almost drowned to death, how he was saved by some miracle. Or a mermaid, which is what Henrik claims.
He hates how his little brother still blames himself for that incident.
"Do you know how much you scared me?" Kol responds, still with a stressed out tone. Hayley is taken aback, she's never seen Kol like this. "Promise me you'll never go to the water alone, ever again?" He tells him
"But Kol -"
"Promise me!"
Henrik bites his lip, he looks at Hayley who also seemed worried about his well-being. "I-" he starts. "I promise," he finally agrees as a sense of relief washes over Kol's face.
Hayley is touched by how close both the youngest Mikaelson brothers seem to be.
-
-
-
xviii: maybe it will fix us
if we spend our lives on country roads
-
Klaus' balcony is filled with his old paintings. He barely uses the space there for anything else but, it does offer him a good view of the beach. He pushes the painting aside, making his way towards the edge. He notices Hayley, Kol and Henrik right away. He keeps an eye on them.
He shouldn't feel this way, he shouldn't be so angry at the fact that they're friends. At the fact that their parents accept them.
At the fact that Mikael would never scold Kol for having a girl but Klaus, he's not even allowed to smile around him.
He feels frightened - Mikael's abuse scares him. He thinks of their fight, of the scar on his cheek, where Hayley had last touched him.
Mikael had mentioned how the scar had disappeared, he wonders how it happened so quickly.
Then.
Klaus' ringtone interrupts his thoughts.
Ansel.
He thinks about his offer once again.
Is leaving truly the best option for him? His family was his everything, he can't imagine living without Elijah's laugh, or Finn's smile, Kol's shenanigans, Rebekah's kindness, Henrik's clinginess, and now, Hayley's warmth -
a/n: i really am looking forward to picking this story back up! The previous chapters are up ao3! I have the same username on there so make sure to read my fics there too!!
.
eight: whispers in the dark
.
The hybrids are not what she expects, at all.
She thought them to be this group of friends - odd souls that came together through these mysterious powers and bonded over their shared pain. Maybe even a merry band of misfits - like something out of a teen movie.
But instead, the hybrids seemed more like a strong and intense group of warriors, trained in to submission.
"They all look," Hayley sighs, as Tyler shows her around the vast field. She sees all their eyes from a distance - the ones fighting on the grass, the ones practicing their running, the ones working out. "So sad," she says.
Tyler shrugs at her as if he's used to it all by now. "That's because they're all stuck here," he reveals. "This place has a barrier around it, I'm the only one who can freely come and go," Tyler explains.
Hayley tilts her head to one side and raises a brow. "Why?" She wonders.
And unexpectedly, Tyler laughs. "Klaus really didn't tell you much did he?" he asks, jokingly. Hayley looks away, feeling ashamed. "We're his secret weapon in the war, no one else really knows about the hybrids," Tyler adds on.
The she-wolf takes another careful look around the field all of the hybrids seem to be trapped in. Other than a few entry ways into small cabins, she can't see much else for them - no place to do their hobbies, no books, no instruments, or anything else to pass the time with really.
It's as if they were robots.
"So, what exactly do all of you do all day then?" Hayley questions
"Mostly training," Tyler offers. "We have access to pretty much everything we need here, bathrooms, food, showers are all in the cabins - some of Klaus' compelled vampires minions shows up every two weeks or so to clean and replenish anything we need," he tells her, while bringing her to one of the cabins where she assumes that she will be staying in.
It doesn't look like anything special, just a large room with a bunch of bunk beds, a seemingly reasonable sized kitchen, a bathroom. "Wow, sounds like a pretty sweet deal," Hayley comments, thinking of the free lodging.
She regrets her words as soon as she sees the broken look on Tyler's face.
"Hardly," he whispers. "When we agreed to do this, we didn't realize this meant becoming Klaus' pack of bitches," he spits, with anger.
She feels as clueless as ever.
"What do you mean?" Hayley says.
Tyler walks closer to her, looking her straight in the eyes. "We're sired to him - we have to do whatever he says," he confesses and her face is nothing short of surprised. "And Klaus isn't exactly known to be a kind man."
She feels a smidge of betrayal by this information, and even more confusion due to the fact that she doesn't feel so sired to Klaus in the same way that Tyler seems to be.
"He never told me any of that," Hayley softly releases.
Her expression reminds him of when he first became a hybrid. He felt so strong and powerful - the thought of not being forced to turn at every full moon was no longer a worry.
Tyler pities her.
"Yeah," he says. "We didn't know about it either."
-
(Klaus is gone for longer this time.
Days, maybe even weeks.
It's hard to say - time passes by so slowly in this place.
She spends her days training with Tyler, he's so impressed by how strong she becomes in such a short amount of time that he almost compliments her on it.
The other hybrids are a bit cold towards her at first - they test her, looking her up and down and judging her.
When she does ask about Klaus, she's met with a lot of silences. Almost as if they aren't allowed to speak his name.
It makes her wonder what else he's hiding from her).
-
A few towns away - the vampire and witch factions seem to be gathering close. The bloody species war has only just begun and the rumbling from each side has torn apart so many.
The original family has always been a group of rulers, leaders - creatures who were both the hunters and hunted.
Elijah and Freya, being the eldest, took it upon themselves to attempt to unite their family as well as the different species they incorporated.
"Brother," Freya, the leader of the witch faction, enters the scene. "Have you gotten in touch with Kol and Rebekah?" she asks, placing a hand on Elijah's shoulder.
He looks out the window of their manor - one of the many Mikaelson mansions located around the country. "Yes," he nods, staring into the night sky. "They won't be joining us, I'm afraid," he admits.
"I see," Freya sings, flipping her long hair. "And Niklaus?" she wonders, as she carefully watches Elijah's reaction.
"He, surprisingly, is on his way as we speak," he smiles, sounding rather cheerful. Well, as cheerful as an original vampire can be anyway. "I'm hoping we can get him to cooperate and join forces with us," Elijah considered.
His sister doesn't seem as enthusiastic. "He's going to be hard to convince," she points out. "He's not exactly fond of teamwork," she asserted, with a finger on her chin, pondering.
He turns to her, his face fills with hope. "It's the only way to bring peace amongst the species, " Elijah claims - he passes his hands along the folds of his blazer, pressing them down and maintaining his perfect posture. "This war is going to get worse and worse if we don't find a way to bring it to an end," he believes.
"I have my witches in alliance with your vampires," Freya repeats. "They aren't fond of the idea of welcoming in Klaus and whatever band of wolves he's been rumoured to gather," she recalls.
Elijah's heard them too - the stories of the missing wolves, the ones who suddenly, overnight, vanished without a trace. The assumption is that it's Klaus' doing, he's the only one known to seek such companionship.
The wolves were a minority of a species, the weakest of the three. It's only natural for them to be desperate enough to team up with even the unbearable likes of Niklaus Mikaelson.
"My brother is," Elijah laments. He could say a million and one things about him, but he settles on this. "Misunderstood," Elijah concludes. "He's not all bad - I assure you."
He thinks of not the monstrous hybrid who makes everyone quake in fear but, of the painter, the dreamer, the sensitive soul who lurks deep inside his brother's body.
"I've never seen that man care for anyone but himself," Freya finally says.
She truly won't believe it until she sees it - the true nature of her mysterious younger brother.
-
Klaus makes his way towards Elijah's manor.
He hasn't seen his brother since they all got together to celebrate Kol's birthday - their relationship had become somewhat estranged. They have a bad habit of stealing each other's lovers. First Tatia, then Katherina - now well, no one really.
Elijah had occupied himself with his families matters for quite some time. Starting with bringing their elder sister Freya back from alienation. Then, mourning the loss of their brother, Finn.
Afterwards, their mother.
Klaus wonders how his visit will go.
-
(The wolves are stirring that night -
Hayley feels connected to them, all of them, strangely.
Almost as if she can hear all their hearts beating, the blood coursing through their veins, how they all sink together - like a symphony.
The hybrids suddenly begin having a weird attraction towards her, they start to follow her around like lost puppies, it even confuses Tyler.
He swears he's never seen them act this way.
She's never spent a whole lot of time around other wolves - it was almost as if she was kept away from most of them on purpose. Hayley often thinks about all the things she doesn't know about her past, how she barely remembers her childhood.
Somewhere, in her locked away memories, holds the answers to all her questions.
She hopes that she will be able to recollect them soon).
a/n: au after the end of the series or just a fluffy little glitra drabble :) with a dash of catradora and glimmatradora.
-
She burst out laughing.
Adora can’t help but react this way when she sees Catra enter their bedroom, with, what looks like, glitter in her hair.
Her girlfriend had disappeared for, what felt like, a few hours. Adora assumed maybe she was just spending some time sparring with Frosta, or in the garden with Scorpia, or even doing a bit of archery practice with Bow.
But, it looks like she was very wrong about that.
Adora picks at the glittery strands of Catra’s hair and smiles.
“What the hell happened?” She asks, still laughing.
Catra glares at her coldly. “Sparkles did it,” she complains, rolling her eyes. “I can’t believe I let her try this out on me,” Catra goes on to say, sighing loudly.
Adora watches her plop down beside her in their bed. She can’t help but keep smiling. “You two sure have been spending a lot of time together,” she notes, with a tone that could be perceived as jealousy but was really just intrigue, at this point. “Not that I mind, you know, I’m more than happy to share,” she smirks, making Catra blush.
“It’s not,” the cat-girl stammers, looking flustered. “It’s not like that,” she rephrases.
And, at this point, Adora thinks that she rarely sees this side of Catra. The Catra who’s shy, who gets socially anxious, who develops crushes on glittery and shimmery girls.
“We just...she’s nice to talk to, I guess,” Catra adds on as her lips form a small smile.
Adora picks up on this reaction right away.
“You know what she told me, don’t you?” She teases.
“What?” the cat-girl sings, confused.
Adora laughs in a way that makes Catra nervous.
“She thinks you’re cute,” she reveals.
Catra wiggles away from her girlfriend, refusing the make eye-contact with her after her statement.
“Adora,” she whines. “Stop this,” she orders.
“Aw c’mon,” the blonde giggles. “Just ask her out, see what she says,” she sings.
Catra stays silent for a moment.
“I don’t even know if her and Bow are...you know,” she mumbles softly, “like us,” she finally offers.
Adora blinks twice, tilting her head to one side.“I’m not sure either, to be quite honest,” she shrugs, not giving Catra much hope. “Doesn’t mean I can’t find out though,” she quips.
Adora and Catra had agreed for a while that non-monogamy was always their relationship style. Adora had always been fluid, mingling with all kinds of people and attracting them to her with her charm. Catra had always been open about her relationships as well, wanting to connect with more people, especially since she turned a new leaf and left the horde.
“Please don’t meddle,” Catra tells Adora. “The last thing I need right now is your meddling,” she repeats.
And with that, Adora swiftly runs out of their bedroom.
“Too late, Catra,” she whispers, sinisterly.
-
For the next few days, Glimmer starts to behave very weirdly.
She stares at Catra, well no less than usual, but lately, her stares seem more intense. She watches her carefully during their double dates with Bow and Adora. And, whenever Catra makes eye-contact with her, Glimmer looks away very very nervously.
So yeah, it was weird.
It didn’t take Catra too long to put two and two together.
-
Catra corners her one day while she’s on her way to water the flowers in the garden.
The lilies look particularly happy to see her, well, as happy as flowers can look anyway.
It takes Glimmer a moment to notice Catra looming over her.
“Adora spoke to you, didn’t she?” She blurts out, without even a simple friendly greeting or salutation.
Glimmer shakes her head, guess the cat-girl still had a lot left to learn.
“What do you mean?” The sparkling princess asks, sounding lost.
Catra crosses her arms around her chest and purses her lips. “You know Sparkles,” she teases. “You’ve always been a terrible liar,” she confirms, as Glimmer avoids her gaze.
“Okay fine,” she admits. “She did, Adora I mean,” she goes on to say.
Glimmer knows that Adora is an expert at meddling and messing with them both. She thinks Catra and Glimmer’s interactions are quite cute and intriguing. Of course she’s been telling her things about Catra.
“What did she say?” Adora’s girlfriend asks, looking curious.
Glimmer blushes, still looking away. “She said that it’s okay,” she whispers quietly. “If I like you,” she adds on.
Catra’s eyes widen with intrigue. “And,” she sighs, slowly. “What about Bow? What does he think of you...and your feelings for me,” she wonders.
Glimmer smiles at the thought of her faithful and supportive partner.
There was no one who believed in her more than he did.
And he would not stop her from going after someone she liked.
“He supports me,” Glimmer smiles. “Bow supports me in everything I do,” she continues with.
Catra takes a moment and decides she will get to eye-level with Glimmer. She places her hand out for her to take.
“Glimmer,” she says. “Would you like to get dinner with me, sometime?” she questions, with extreme softness in her tone.
Softer than anything Glimmer has ever heard.
“Yeah,” the princess nods, as the sparkles in her hair grow bigger in size. “I would love to,” Glimmer smiles, slipping her fingers into Catra’s hand.
-
cassiopeia @dark-hearted-wolves - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
