Chapter Twenty-Five
ʀᴇsᴇᴛᴛʟᴇ
Klaus had a flair for the dramatics, something she learned very early on. At every turn he would stealthily appear in the corner of a room, announcing his presence with a voice. Once or twice he had gotten a knife thrown in his direction, catching it with an amused smirk.
This passion of his is why Nora was currently sitting in the foyer of the Lockwood mansion.
The door opened, allowing the boy and his mom to enter. Tyler's eyes immediately flew to Nora and how she was perched comfortably on the stairs. Hybrids stood idly around the room, the second thing the boy noticed.
"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked, eying Nora.
"Relax Tyler," his mom said. "They're for your protection."
"Not me, though. Just the two mindless hybrids. Can't you smell that they're werewolves?"
"I don't think he can, love," Klaus said, making his dramatic entrance. "Being a baby hybrid and all, one of the many reasons our protection is required."
"Nice to know you care," Tyler mumbled sarcastically.
"I don't," Klaus corrected, walking closer to the boy. "I should have killed you for the stunt you and your friends pulled— stopping my heart, leaving me in a coffin to rot."
"You used my body as an escape hatch then kissed my girlfriend, so maybe we're even."
Ignoring the pang of pain that thinking of that brought, Nora stood, and walked over so she could intertwine her fingers with Klaus'. "Not even close. Hybrids are a dying breed- however little I care about them." Klaus squeezed her hand in warning, putting a tiny smile on her face. "But he does, and doesn't want you all dying. However inevitable that is."
"Nora," Klaus chided.
"Yeah, yeah, insensitive or whatever. Consider these guys; Chad, over there in the back and Oliver in the blue, to be your new bodyguards," Nora said, gesturing to the two men. She found how they gave no acknowledgment slightly unnerving.
Nora removed her hand from Klaus' and left the room, grinning slightly at how he immediately followed, reconnecting their hands.
"You're still mad at me, beautiful?"
"No. I just wanted to leave the room and you were having that stare-off you love so much."
| Reputation |
"Who are you?" Nora asked.
A random girl was sitting in Tyler's dad's office, looking extremely comfortable. The girl turned her head at Nora's voice, brows furrowing in confusion before recognition lit up her gaze. "You're an old one, too. Rebekah, right?"
How this girl knew of Rebekah or even got her and Nora confused, she didn't know.
"No, I'm Nora Taylor. Not an original. You are..."
"Hayley, a friend of Tyler's. Are you the one dating Klaus?"
Nora headed for the liquor cabinet, frowning when she found it was only bourbon. Scotch was her preference, but it'd have to do.
"I smell like him, don't I?" Nora questioned, giving a weak smile when Hayley nodded. "Which means you met him already." Hayley nodded again, the motion loosening her curls. "Bourbon?"
The werewolf looked skeptical but nodded anyway, "Sure." Nora poured two glasses, handing one.to her. "Thanks."
Nora drank hers all in one go, and Hayley slightly grimaced at it. "If Tyler throws a fit tell him it was me who opened his dad's stuff," Nora said, earning a laugh from Hayley. Her phone beeped, signaling a text message.
Klaus:
meet me at home? I could use your help.
"I've got to go, Hayley, it seems. I'll be seeing you around, yeah?" Nora started heading for the door.
"Yeah," Hayley agreed.
"And, Hayley? You reek of Tyler."
Nora managed to see an annoyed eye roll as she left the office.
| Reputation |
Turns out Nora couldn't help. Well, no. She definitely could, but didn't want to. Klaus and Rebekah had an argument (that no one told Nora about) that resulted in him disowning her... She wasn't sure, but Klaus wanted information from Rebekah but didn't want to apologize.
Solution? Manipulation.
And Nora was barely in her good graces to begin with and lying to her wouldn't help. After trying to talk him out of that—and failing because he wasn't very stubborn— she agreed to let him do whatever he pleased. However self destructive that would need up.
And he planned on using Stefan to do so. And this dinner that was mandatory for people who didn't want to go. She fell into that category.
Basically, the hunter(who Nora had just learned about) has some creepy backstory, which Klaus had assumed she knew about because of Breech, which wasn't completely false. She knew they had their strength, that curse of hallucinations, and that they were supposed to be extinct.
"Welcome home sister," Klaus greeted Rebekah and Stefan as they entered.
"Is this a trick?" Rebekah asked, looking at the hunter. "How do you know he's one of the five? Where's his bloody tattoo?"
"Oh, they aren't visible on this lot like they were on the last. Come. Let's eat." Klaus rested his hand on Nora's lower back, leading her to the dining room.
A compelled waitress came and brought Klaus his food, and the gesture of Klaus pulling out Nora's chair almost made up for his following comment. "Thank you, my lovely," he whispered up at her.
His girlfriend kicked his shin under the table with a glare on her face. He smiled, looking down in apology.
"I could kiss the council for burning up all the vervain in town. They made my life so much easier. Rebekah, love, eat your veggies."
Nora turned to look at Rebekah who sat there with a pout on her face. "I'm not eating till you apologize."
"For which indiscretion?" Klaus teased with a smile. "There have been so many."
"You broke my neck!"
"You threw away Elena's blood so I can't make any more hybrids," he defended.
"Because you took me for granted."
"That's what big brothers do, sweetheart!"
Nora sighed, sharing a look of discomfort with Stefan. "Let me just name the million other people I'd rather be having dinner with right now," he said.
"Fine," Klaus stated. "I'm sorry. I often forget how delicate you are."
"I wouldn't listen to that Rebekah," Nora said, earning a glare from the hybrid. She feigned disappointment with a frown. "An insult and apology in the same sentence. Counterproductive, no?"
"I'll take it under consideration," Rebekah sighed.
NOTES
Soo, it's been three weeks. Sorry. I'm not quitting, it's just my month of school and tests galore.
Updates will be more frequent, I swear. (Check out my other book, Chains. I like that one better)
Anyways, this chapter was split into two.
Thanks for reading.