Esmeray had been so distracted, she let her guard down.
She had been planning a speech to recite to Damon to have him hear her out, because she didn't want him to walk toward Elena without knowing her thoughts. She'd been going out through the backdoor when Paige yanked her arms behind her back.
"I'm sorry," she said, covering her mouth. "Stay calm. I can't stop myself..."
Esmeray tried to break out of her hold, but Paige was far stronger, and snapped her wrists back, making her whimper in pain, feeling her carpals breaking. She didn't know why Paige was doing this, but it was clear that she was trying to stop her from doing magic. She felt herself be dragged off to the side of the house, and she managed to see a familiar face that struck fear in her.
Mikael. He was waiting at the front door casually. Esmeray supposed Klaus had gone inside not long after she had, perhaps to look for her. She blinked away her tears of pain and tried to listen, hearing footsteps before she saw, from a distance, the door opening and Klaus staring at Mikael.
"Hello, Niklaus," said the brute of an Original that Esmeray despised, after seeing what he'd done to Klaus and his siblings.
"Hello, Mikael," greeted Klaus gruffly, though with a taunting air, as usual. "Why don't you come in? Oh, that's right. I forgot you can't."
Mikael shrugged. "Or you can come outside if you want."
"Or I could watch my hybrids tear you limb from limb." The hybrids, excluding Paige and Mindy, moved behind Mikael, all waiting for Klaus's orders.
The elder Original was unfazed. "They can't kill me."
"True," admitted Klaus, holding up his hand. "But it'll make a hell of a party game. All I have to do is rub these two fingers together and they'll pounce."
"The big bad wolf," said Mikael venomously, glaring at his stepson, who dropped his hand, looking uncomfortable. "You haven't changed. Still hiding behind your playthings like a coward. You only forget. They may be sired by you, but they're still part vampire. And they can be compelled by me."
At this, Paige walked forward with Esmeray, but they were also joined by Mindy, who had Elena in her grasp. Klaus immediately tensed at the sight of the two of them restrained and outside, where Mikael could hurt them.
This was panic as he had never felt it before. Klaus had been scared in the past, yes. But perhaps his fear had never been so bad when Mikael faced his siblings because they were his children, and deep down, he knew Mikael could never hurt them, and if he tried, he might not succeed at killing them. The one he wanted to hurt was Klaus and this... this was the way to do it. Klaus could see that both Elena and Esmeray looked terrified, and he wished to be able to tear Mikael to shreds in that instant, but he knew he couldn't risk it.
He cared far less about Elena in that moment. He could sense every emotion coursing through Esmeray's body. She was rigid and he recalled what she'd told her about her father's friend having been killed by Mikael when he went to help, following the man's ruthless attack on the North East Atlantic Pack to kill Klaus's real father. The last thing he wanted was for Esmeray to get hurt, and Mikael seemed to realize that he'd struck gold in having caught both girls at once.
"Come out and face me, Niklaus," said Mikael as Mindy pushed Elena toward the Original. "Or she dies, and the other hybrid whelp will be next."
"Go ahead," said Klaus, trying to feign indifference. "Kill them."
"No, Klaus!" pleaded Elena, her eyes wide. "He'll do it!"
"If she dies," said Mikael, nodding back at the hybrids, "this lot will be the last of your abominations."
"I don't need them," Klaus sneered, knowing that if Elena did die, he still had some of her blood, and Esmeray had stated she could perform a spell to make more of it. "I just need to be rid of you."
"To what end, Niklaus?" Mikael continued. "So you can live forever, with no one at your side? Nobody cares about you any more, boy! What do you have other than those whose loyalty you forced? No one. No one."
Klaus's eyes had teared up, and his lip trembled, his face breaking into a pained expression. "I'm calling your bluff, father," he said shakily. "Kill them."
Mikael scoffed lightly. "Come outside and face me, you little coward, and I won't have to."
"My whole life, you've underestimated me," Klaus said in a disparaging manner. "If you kill them, you lose your leverage. So go ahead. Go on. Kill them." Hie voice began to rise gradually. "Come on, old man. Kill them." At last, he yelled out, "KILL THEM!"
Mikael laughed mockingly. "Your impulse, Niklaus. It has... and will forever be... the one thing that keeps you from trulybeing great." He stabbed into Elena with a dagger and pulled it out, letting her fall to the floor. Paige shoved Esmeray forward, and the hybrid let out a shrill scream as Mikael bit into her neck, attempting to tear out her throat.
There was a yell, and Esmeray looked at Klaus through watery eyes, seeing Damon rush up behind him, stabbing him with a specially carved stake right in the stomach. Klaus was thrown onto the floor, and Mikael let Esmeray go, allowing her to collapse beside Elena. But the thing was, Elena was no longer on the ground. In fact, it wasn't Elena at all. They all realized at the same time that it had been Katherine when she stood up and with a wicked smirk, said, "Kaboom," before tossing two wolfsbane grenades at the hybrids waiting behind.
Esmeray's vision blurred as she tried to bring a hand to her throat to stop the bleeding, but her wrists were swollen and not yet healed from being broken, which left blood spilling onto the porch. She heard scuffling and another yell— something flew past her, and she smelled something burning just seconds later.
Someone sat her up, pressing blood into her mouth. With a weak moan, she tried to drink, her body slumping back before she was allowed to lay back, trying to catch her breath as her injuries began to reverse themselves. Another person picked her up, and she was sped away. By the time she came to, she was in the Salvatore Boarding House with Damon.
"What the hell happened?" she said, massaging her wrists as she sat up. When she looked to the side, she realized Elena was there, too.
"We thought of everything," muttered Damon, getting himself a drink. "Everything. Klaus having hybrids. Mikael turning on us. We brought in Katherine so Elena was in danger. I tried to get you to leave, Esme, or to help us. Anything that could have gone wrong, we thought of it, and we were prepared!" He took a large swig of his scotch.
"I don't understand," said Elena quietly. "Stefan wanted Klaus dead more than anything. That's what we were counting on."
"You were trying to kill Klaus," said Esmeray quietly. Elena nodded slowly, and Damon rubbed his head, looking frustrated with himself. "But... let me guess. Mikael died instead."
Elena nodded again, and came over with some water for Esmeray, who took it gratefully and drank. "Where's Katherine?" asked Esmeray after she'd taken a sip.
"She ran for the hills like usual, the minute things got bad," spat Damon. "And who blames her?! Klaus would've crushed her. I had him. I had Klaus! This could have all been over!" He threw the bottle of scotch into the fireplace, letting the pieces of it fly all over the place. Out of instinct, Esmeray coiled a few of her fingers to repair it. Elena moved forward and grabbed his face. "Damon, hey, listen to me. We'll survive this. We always survive. Trust me."
Esmeray felt like she was intruding on a moment. Getting up, she made her way back to her room, which had been cleaned since she'd been gone. Damon had repaired all the things that'd been damaged from the last time she'd been there. Retrieving her phone, she reached into her pocket, extracting the small slip where Anya had written her number. Esmeray typed it in as a new contact before messaging her, "Hey! It's Esmeray :)"
It wasn't surprising how quickly Anya replied. "Esmeray! Good to hear from you. Hope all is well."
"Hope all is well for you, too. Everything alright in Portland?"
"Things have been great. The Columbia Pack has almost no members left. We're coming up with a peace pact to integrate them with us. I do want to ask though... why? I know it was Klaus that did it. What happened?"
Esmeray hesitated before typing, "They attacked me after that day that we talked. I'm surprised word didn't get around."
There was a few minutes when Anya didn't text back, and Esmeray felt nervous, until she said, "I'm so sorry, Esmeray. I know who sold you out. I thought he didn't hear us that day, but he did."
She didn't need to be told who it was. Of course Elvis had said something. He was the one who told Klaus about the other Packs in Portland, to save the skin of his own Pack. He sought to get rid of them and he knew that the Columbia River Pack had the strength to take Esmeray down. He disliked and distrusted hybrids, no matter what his children thought. While he respected Esmeray more than Klaus, he would have never really been kind to her after knowing that she was Klaus's witch.
"It's not your fault, Anya," Esmeray told her. "I made it out alive, that's what matters. I started to train to be able to defend myself better. It won't be able to happen again."
"I swear to you, Esmeray, I will help you with your ritual. I won't ask for anything in return anymore, not after what my Pa did."
"Don't say that. His actions aren't going to change my perception of you. I'll still do the spell when you're ready. The only thing is... I think the ritual needs to be performed somewhere that's not Portland. We only need Mystic Falls soil, it doesn't mean we have to do it there. Just anywhere else that it's safe."
"New Orleans. That place is filled with magic for both witches and werewolves alike. Have you heard of it?"
"I saw into Klaus's memories, and I did learn about how the Crescent Wolf Pack has been cursed to remain wolves everyday that's not a full moon. Is that what you mean?"
"Yes. That place is ideal for a spell like this. But please, tell me how else I can make this up to you. There has to be something extra I can do."
"Anya, don't worry about it." Her ears perked up at the sound of Elena leaving. "Got to go," she texted. "Talk to you soon."
Damon came up a short while later, leaning into her doorway. "Elena's gone," he said quietly as she put her phone away. "If... you want to talk."
"Do you want to talk to me, is the question," she said, raising an eyebrow at him. She saw him reach behind him, revealing he'd brought up a plate of cheesecake for her.
He came to sit beside her, and she sighed. "You and Elena made progress, then," she murmured.
"I'm sorry," he started as she dug her fork into the cheesecake to carve herself a smaller slice. "I was harsh earlier. I was worried about you. I thought he'd killed you, Esme. I thought..."
She looked away. "It doesn't matter anymore. I'm alive. And I'll... figure myself out. I guess the last time was the final time."
"I shouldn't have continued it. I should have known that one of us was going to catch feelings. You deserve someone better, someone who will never hurt you."
"No offense to Elena," Esmeray muttered, "but you deserve someone better, too. And look," she added quickly, because she felt him tense, "I don't say it because of jealousy or anything. I genuinely don't think that you and her would be in a healthy relationship. It feels... toxic. And I don't know if it's because I saw into your mind that I understand it different, but I care about you too much to let you get hurt by pursuing someone that... that's incredibly desperate to change you instead of accepting who you are and working with it. I don't think she'll ever fully care about you. Some part of that girl's heart will always belong to Stefan and that's not fair to you. You need someone who loves you and only you. Katherine fooled you and ruined you already, pitting you against your brother, and it's just going to get worse now that you and her are progressing this way. You need someone new. Not another doppelgänger. She's attached to the idea of a human life and a perfect little family and you'd have to change many of your opinions to align with that so that you can want the same things as her. She'll never prioritize your happiness because she's used to being the center of attention. She'll drag you into so many problems..."
Damon shook his head, taking a slice of cheesecake for himself. "Esmeray, with all due respect, you haven't been into her mind. You don't know..."
"I know enough, Damon. Forget for an instant that I have feelings for you. Forget that we ever slept together. I am, first and foremost, your friend. You are one of my closest friends. And I would be a terrible person if I let you go through with something that won't make you happy. That girl won't make sacrifices for you. If she feels pain associated with you, she'll turn it around in a way that'll harm you instead of trying to understand it. It's a waste of time. Even if it's just platonic... Stefan and Elena will always have a connection and it will cause problems. You need someone without complications. She'll never understand you. And to add on, she's still a wonderful person in her own way and I appreciate her selflessness and generosity, but I still need you to know that I don't think she's the best one for you. You need to be with someone else— not her."
"And what'll happen to you?" he asked her quietly. "You're urging me to go for someone else."
"I... I will figure things out. I don't want to ruin our friendship. I did meet someone in Portland... you'd like her, her name is Anya, and she's a wolf." What she didn't say is that despite being interested in Anya, she wouldn't choose her over Damon, someone who she'd already forged a stronger emotional bond with. But she knew that in this case, Anya was the better option. She would love her wholeheartedly in a way that Damon wouldn't be able to do.
Damon swallowed hard and took her hand. "Just listen for a moment, okay?" he mumbled. "You're... not the only one who caught feelings here. I didn't want to tell you, Esme, but I've been feeling this for weeks already. When I realized Klaus had taken you... I've never been that scared and... jealous. I see him and I see myself and I think of all the things I could never provide for you. I'll never be able to help you in the ritual that will grant you control over your wolf side. I'm not a werewolf— I won't be able to understand you in the way you deserve to be understood. But the truth is, I have feelings for you... and I have feelings for Elena. I hate it, because it benefits no one. I'm bad for both of you. You, Esmeray, you deserve so much better than me. Someone who can be devoted to you and only you, not another woman. The last thing I want is to cause a problem with you and Elena. I'm going to ruin things, and you don't need that in your life."
"And what if what I want is you?" she said. "What if I want you, as you are?" She wanted to add, 'That's something Elena will never do.' But the last thing she needed was to ignite a messier conflict.
Damon brought his hand up to her face. "Then you are an idiot," he mumbled, rubbing his thumb over her cheek.
Esmeray gave a weak laugh as he moved to set the cheesecake aside. "If anyone's an idiot... it's you."
His lips met hers, and the feelings from earlier burst back out. Using her wolf speed, she pinned him down, her body pressed fiercely against his. He grabbed her hips, and he gave a gasp of surprise when she tugged hard at his hair. "Damn," he panted against her mouth. "You act like you haven't had sex in a thousand years."
"Shut up and strip," she begged, peeling her own shirt off. "I need you right now and I can't wait. I've been needing you since this morning and if I don't get you, I'm going to die."
He let out a chuckle, deciding to tease her. "If you want something, take it," he prompted, tucking his hands behind his head.
She shrugged, scooting off and ripping through the zipper of his pants. He chose not to complain, and because she was moving so fast, he'd forgotten about it seconds after it happened. He let out a gravelly huff, his neck arching back as she took control of the situation. "Holy shit," he said, pulling her down so he could kiss her neck. "You weren't kidding..."
This was exactly what she'd been needing. Him. His gentle kisses and his body, all while he whispered in her ear, making her tingle all over. He was still at her side in the morning, cuddling with her closer than usual, his arms around her front and massaging over her tummy. His head rested on her shoulder, and he listened to her murmur in her sleep, though he wasn't sure what she was dreaming. He could have easily found out, but he wasn't about to go into her mind when she was vulnerable like this.
"What was last night?" she asked him once they got into the shower together. "Was that 'goodbye' or a, 'let's do this more often,' or...?"
"I was honest with you, Esme," he said quietly. "I have feelings for the both of you. I don't want to get serious with either you or Elena right now."
"But... do you think...?"
He slid his hand up her side. "Getting to call you my girl sounds like a dream come true. But I still need time to figure all this out. If you'll wait for me..."
"Of course I will. I get it. I need to sort out stuff on my end with Anya, too. Let her down easy. Hopefully she'll still want to help me with the ritual."
"I'm sure she will. She sounds nice enough from the one thing you told me about her."
"Damon, I just have one question. What are you going to tell Elena about all this?"
He paused, and winced. "I don't know, Esme. I talked to her about it already. I admitted to her that I have feelings for you. She was supportive, but sad. I don't want to hurt either of you. Especially not you. She has Stefan, she has all her friends who have been there for her for years. You..."
"I'm not a fragile doll," she reminded him. "If things don't work out between us, I'm going to be okay. I want you to know that I would rather we remain friends and not enter a relationship, compared to ending a relationship and never speaking again. If we try for something and it ends up being different from what we wanted, and we decide it's not healthy for us, then like I said, I want us to remain friends and end on good terms. That's just me being honest. I don't want to ruin this friendship. I value it too much."
He cupped her face. "How about this. We work on sorting out our feelings for the other people. We talk about it whenever we want to. We don't have to do anything in the meantime if you don't want to, just so it doesn't get complicated. Whichever one of us is ready first, can initiate. We'll wait just until the next person is ready, and we'll see where this goes. And I pinkie swear, if it doesn't go the way we want it to, there will be no bitterness. We'll still be BFFs and we'll support each other in whatever comes after that."
Esmeray smiled and held out her pinkie for him to shake. "Deal. I like the sound of that. But I have to say, I don't think I can abstain from you for very long, just to keep it honest. Where do the boundaries go for that?"
"Well, do you think you're going to want to sleep with other people while we also hook up every now and then?"
"I mean... I might, out of curiosity. But just an actual one night stand, maybe, to explore. Nothing more than that. We can say..." she pursed her lips and thought about the proper wording. "We can sleep with whoever we want as long as we let the other know that we'll be unavailable just so no one is waiting up expecting a stress relief session."
"Well, I don't know about unavailable," said Damon with a smirk, wiggling his eyebrows. "You can always join in."
Her face heated up. "Don't tempt me, because I'll steal whatever girl you bring here. I bet she'd rather with me than with you."
"I'll take that as a challenge. We'll see who's bold enough." He then furrowed his brows. "You're sure about all this, though?"
"I was taught to not have so much restriction on unofficial relationships. As long as we remain loyal to each other if and when we actually get together... in the meantime we're free to have fun, since we're still figuring things out. What matters is communication. Being honest about what we feel when we feel it and not leading the other on or lying or pretending things are fine when they're not. We're not boyfriend and girlfriend, so we're free to explore and learn and eventually, we can see how things work out between us."
"One rule, then," he offered. "We can sleep with whoever we want for a one night stand, as long as it's not Elena or Anya, because they're the other contenders. Deal?"
"Deal."
At least on the first day, this seemed to be working well. They each appreciated how understanding the other was. As much as they wanted it to work out between them, they needed to go little by little.
Because what mattered to them was that, at the end of the day, they could keep their friendship for years to come.
A/N: Hi guys, so I've already heard several people's thoughts about whether they want Esmeray to be Hope's mom, and I really appreciate it— please keep your comments coming about that. I admit, I wasn't planning on it because I have several ideas for events that would require the original plot to happen (y'all already know I don't like changing cannon that much, especially not this early in the story). I also am not sure I want to do it since I already had it happen with Hilda in Forever Original. I'm open to suggestions, because I still really want Hayley to be a part of it, I want her and Esmeray to be friends, and if anything, I think the important thing in Klaus's case is to show how healthy a stepparent/stepchild relationship can be, as opposed to what he had with Mikael. Hope could benefit greatly from Esmeray's involvement even if she isn't her mother. Again, please continue telling me your wonderful ideas!! I adore them. Thank you for all your support!