for Leila

TWENTY EIGHT

"So this is what you do the first time we're back together as a family, a vampire book club?" Rebekah scoffed from where she stood. 

Veronica averted her gaze away from Klaus', she was strung across Elijah's lap as the three of them poured over grimoires, Klaus had been blatantly staring at the couple sat across from him.

"Reading edifies the mind, sister, Isn't that right, Elijah?" Klaus said, his eyes never leaving Veronica's sculpted face.

Elijah squeezed one of her calves affectionately before responding to his brother. 

"Yes that's quite right, Niklaus" He looked at his siblings briefly before looking back down at the book in Veronica's hands. 

Annoyance etched it's way onto Rebekah's face, "and what's this business?" she asked, referring to the dead girl that lay atop the coffee table.

"She is Klaus' peace offering" Veronica smiled in delight as Rebekah shook her head. 

"As if letting him have Veronica wasn't enough" Klaus grumbled. "I presumed after so much time desiccating in a coffin that my big brother might be a bit peckish" 

The space between Elijah and Klaus was tense. 

"So I explained to my little brother that forgiveness cannot be bought, I'd simply prefer to see a change in behaviour that indicates contrition and personal growth," he said nonchalantly flipping to the next page. 

"Not this nonsense" Elijah continued motioning to the mess in front of them. 

"Well, I couldn't very well let her go to waste, could I?" Klaus asked with a wicked grin. 

They were no longer talking about the dead girl in the living room. 

Elijah shot his brother an unamused glare, "well I suppose I'll fetch the rubbish bin, because she's staining a 200 year old carpet" Rebekah hissed before leaving the room. 

Both Veronica and Elijah tilted their heads to the side trying to get a better look at the carpet, both grimaced at the maroon puddle on the Persian carpet. 

"Oh, yes"

Elijah went back to his book, Veronica pushed her face into the crook of his neck letting her eyelids flutter before shutting. 

The couple was blissfully unaware of the envious glare concentrated on their intertwined bodies. 

 A few minutes went by until Hayley walked through the lounge area and into the kitchen. 

Elijah watched her before deciding to follow, gently he shifted Veronica off his lap leaving her to curl up into the arm chair searching for his warmth. 

Cracking her stiff neck Veronica got out of the arm chair, eyeing the corpse on the coffee table she sighed, she grabbed the woman's golden hair and tugged until a dull thud could be heard from behind her. 

Klaus chuckled silently to himself, he followed her every move until the Salvatore made her way out of the lounge, corpse in hand. 

-

"Poetry about poisoned apples from dead trees, looks like someone is worried about impending daddyhood, or is someone heartbroken because their ex lover has her true lover back?" Rebekah asked sarcastically as she scrubbed blood out of the carpet. 

Klaus eyed the Salvatore next to him, her feet were in his lap as she continued rifling through old books. 

His fingers traced invisible patterns into her ankle.