Mikael loved to play games.
Klaus's very potent nose had gotten them through the woods and to a clearing where several college students were having a party with a bonfire. Cami's blood was smeared on a nearby tree, and it was obvious the party attendees had witnessed it. The problem was, the students weren't doing anything about it.
They were like zombies, silent and still, watching them walk up.
"Did you honestly think to hold me with a blade forged from pain?" one of the students snapped at Klaus.
"Unlike the weak," said another, "unlike you, I gain strength from pain."
"Soon," the first continued, "you will know the taste of white oak as it pierces your heart."
Klaus was mildly amused. "It's very clever, Mikael! Compelling the locals to say to my face what you dare not? Enjoy the theatrics! They only delay the inevitable."
The first student launched himself at Klaus, but the hybrid easily cut his head clean off. The others followed suit, but this time, Esmeray took control of the situation.
She stomped one foot down and brought her hands upward, parallel to each other. The fire flared up, and when she flicked her fingers, different tongues burst out, creating barriers that the students couldn't pass through.
"Just burn them, would you?" said Klaus, going back to the tree to try and pick up the scent of blood again.
"They've been compelled, Klaus," Esmeray answered. "I'm not going to kill them. You already decapitated one. And dying by fire isn't fun."
"They have been compelled, love, which means they will leap into the flame to attempt to attack me, anyway."
He was right. Several of the students tried to jump through the fire to get to Klaus, and had let out piercing screams as they started to burn, the flames fueled by all the alcohol on and around them.
Gritting her teeth, Esmeray put out the fire entirely. Every attendee turned on her and started to run as if to attack her, but she raised her pointer finger, freezing them in place. One by one, she moved around, tapping their foreheads and knocking them unconscious, simultaneously removing their compulsion.
Klaus was impressed. "Look at you, love," he said, putting his arm around her when the last student collapsed. "Here." He bit into his wrist to help her replenish her strength, and she took it. "Has Elijah answered you?"
"No," she said dejectedly, holding up her phone. "We should keep moving. He can't be too far from here."
Klaus's phone began to ring before they moved. It was Hayley. "I'm a tad busy," answered Klaus, gesturing around at the scene as if she could see it. "What is it?"
"Something has happened to Elijah," she said shakily from the other line. "He was supposed to be our decoy last night, and now he's vanished. There's blood everywhere— werewolf and vampire. There's a trail. I need you to help us track it."
Klaus sighed. "Well, as much as I might like to help you find my brother, I have more pressing matters at the moment."
"What's more important than your own brother?" Hayley demanded.
"My life?" said Klaus, as if it was obvious. "Esmeray's life? Davina had Mikael on a magical leash, and it broke. Now Mikael has Tunde's blade, the white oak stake, and Cami. We're going to get her back, and then, I'm going to end this. Either Mikael or I will be ash by day's end. If you do find my brother, please, tell him we could do with a hand."
He hung up, tucking his phone away, and tilted his head upward, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply. Esmeray grabbed onto his arm before he sped them away. They seemed to move for at least a few minutes before they stopped in front of what looked like a very run-down warehouse.
Esmeray had only seconds to recover from her dizziness before she was being pulled into the warehouse, where Mikael was holding Cami up, a knife pressed to her throat. The poor woman looked so dazed she could barely stand on her own.
The two hybrids shared a look and nodded before lunging forward. Esmeray swept her arms forward, sending the knife flying aside and with another twist of her wrist, pulled Cami toward her, just managing to catch her as Klaus leapt at Mikael.
The two were fighting, but Esmeray's main concern was Cami. She'd lost a lot of blood, and the hybrid quickly got to work healing her.
"It's going to be just fine," Esmeray said, trying to fix her up as soon as possible. She couldn't focus on the yells of pain she was hearing from Klaus. She'd be able to help him as soon as she made sure Cami wasn't going to die.
Then, suddenly, Klaus was in front of her. Esmeray flinched and looked up, seeing that Mikael had thrown Papa Tunde's blade straight at her, and Klaus had jumped to keep it from piercing her. Esmeray put her palms up just before Mikael staked Klaus, letting out a burst of magic that sent him right back where he came from. Klaus dropped the blade at her side and went back to fighting, making the hybrid's hands tremble as she swept them over Cami's body, making sure she was all better.
"Get her out of here!" Klaus bellowed as Esmeray started to help Cami to her feet. She nodded and pulled her out as fast as she could, seeing that now, Davina and Kol were outside the building, chanting something.
"Stay here," said Esmeray, putting Cami near them, in a place where she couldn't be hurt. She locked eyes with Davina, who nodded, but the hybrid couldn't afford to ask her what she was up to. She ran back into the warehouse just as Mikael stabbed the stake into Klaus's heart.
"NO!" she screamed, her body freezing in place as Klaus collapsed, his body beginning to desiccate. She bolted forward, thinking to remove it before he started burning, but Mikael caught her, yanking her arms behind her back so forcefully that a loud snap echoed through the room, followed by a howl of pain from Esmeray. He'd broken her arms to keep her from doing magic.
"Now, you will have to watch him die," Mikael sneered in her ear, forcing her to look as Klaus's entire face turned grey, his eyes closing.
But Klaus's body didn't light itself on fire. The Original sensed this, and let out a growl. "Why aren't you burning?" he roared. "If you were dead, it would burn. BURN!"
And then, Esmeray knew what Davina was doing outside. She hadn't taken the time to listen to the spell, but what else could it be? She had to keep Klaus alive, or Josh and Marcel would be dead. She must have temporarily neutralized the white oak.
"Klaus," Esmeray whimpered loudly, trying to make noise to keep Mikael from hearing what was happening outside. "No... why would you do this to him?!"
"Don't be foolish, idiot girl!" he snarled in her ear, still glaring at the hybrid's body, as if lasers would shoot out of his pupils and light it on fire. "You know exactly why!" He shoved her forward, making her cry out again. "What did you do?" he sneered, thinking she was the culprit. "WHAT DID YOU DO? WHY WON'T HE BURN?"
"I-I don't know!" she wailed as he forced her face right up beside Klaus's. "I didn't do anything!"
"You're just as useless as he is," Mikael said, yanking her back to her feet and whirling her to face him. "You're doing a spell, aren't you? Therefore, I simply need to kill you. The spell will break, and he will burn."
Well, fuck, that wasn't good. She let out a strangled gasp as he gripped her throat. He started to squeeze, and she allowed herself to go limp, looking up at him as a tear slipped out of her eye. There was only the briefest signs of hesitation on his part, and she used this to her advantage.
"P-Please," she begged, shaking her head ever so slightly. "Don't..."
"This is your own fault," he said, chastising her. And still, he didn't squeeze harder. "You had every opportunity to get away, and yet you aligned yourself with a bastard beast."
There was a 'wooshing' noise, and Mikael dropped her, seeing Marcel and Hayley now in the room. As soon as he released her, they lunged at him.
Esmeray knew Davina and Kol probably couldn't keep the spell going much longer, and she lunged at Klaus, letting her body fall onto his and tucking her broken arms in to clutch the stake tightly to her chest before she kicked her legs up and rolled to her knees, succeeding at removing the stake with her own momentum.
His eyes snapped open, and he jumped to his feet, taking the stake from Esmeray. Mikael stepped back just as Davina and Kol entered the room, and Klaus held out his arms. "It's over, Mikael," he said, holding the stake. "You're outnumbered. Are you going to beg for your miserable life?"
Mikael let out a laugh. "You think having people makes you strong? It proves how weak you are. Come find me when you don't have fools, women and children fighting your battles." He sped away, and Klaus immediately dropped to his knees beside Esmeray, who was shivering from the pain, her arms hanging loosely at her sides.
"I've got you, love," said Klaus, cradling her as he offered her his blood. She looked up at him only briefly before closing her eyes and drinking from him, her head relaxing and leaning against his chest.
"He didn't kill me," she whispered as he picked her up, caressing her back. "He could have killed me in seconds, but he hesitated."
Klaus furrowed his brows, brushing some strands of her hair out of her face. "Why?"
"I think... I know why. Finn said... he and Mikael came to my village... when I was little. I think he and my father got along, before the wolves killed... Henrik. He must have respected him... even slightly."
"That must be so," said Klaus gently. "Your father was everything my father wished for us to be. Powerful mentally and physically. Holding high expectations without coddling those beneath us. Merciless in battle. He was loyal as well, and if he gave us supplies... they could have been friends." He kissed her forehead. "Are you alright?"
"I'm going to be sore, but I'll be fine," she said, rubbing her neck. Klaus could still see the dark purple bruises from where Mikael had held her.
"You know," said Klaus, "in a thousand years, that is the first time I have seen him run."
"He knew he couldn't win against all of us," reasoned Esmeray. "Even with me out of commission... a vampire, two hybrids— one of which is an Original— and two witches... he wouldn't have stood a chance."
She opened her eyes, seeing Hayley walking toward them, while Marcel was checking on Cami in the background. "I checked the perimeter, and he's definitely gone," she announced.
Klaus offered her a smile. "I appreciate your assistance. You and Marcel."
Marcel looked up. "Well, hey— you die, I die. Just call me selfish."
"Yeah, you die, a lot of people die," corrected Hayley. "But Klaus? We have another problem. We still can't find Elijah."
"What the bloody hell do you mean you can't find him?" asked Klaus fiercely.
"I mean, we looked, we tracked, and nothing. It's like he's cloaked with a spell."
Esmeray sat up in Klaus's arms. "I could—"
"No," Klaus cut her off, setting her down gently. "Return to the Compound with Hayley. I will do some searching of my own. You need to rest, my little werewitch."
He sped off, and Esmeray sighed, having no choice but to do what he said.
It was a good thing she rested. Her injuries weren't fully healed yet, and Hayley had to help her get into her bed and lay down in a way that wouldn't hurt her more.
Klaus didn't exactly bring back the best news, either, which meant that Esmeray's time to relax hadn't been a waste.
"What did you do?" inquired Esmeray when he returned to her room covered in blood.
"My mother has Elijah captive," said Klaus, peeling off his shirt and going to where some of his clothes were stored in her drawers. "I need to draw her out."
"What can I do about it?"
"I'd rather you not try to get involved in matters concerning Esther. Instead, I've heard of some information that you may want to address. Oliver is being held captive as well, and is set to be executed. Hayley's just found out, and she asked me to tell you. I imagine she's leaping for joy at the opportunity to rescue him, and she will need your help. The two of you are better off not seeing Esther again."
"Will you be okay?" she asked, getting up slowly and going into her bathroom to get a wet rag that would help clean the blood off of his arms and neck.
Klaus nodded, looking down at her as she started to run the rag over his body. "I'll be perfectly fine, love. My priority is you."
Esmeray bit her lip. "Well, what if I talk to Finn about it? He must know where Elijah is."
Klaus's eyes seemed to darken. "No."
"But Finn won't hurt me! He seems to like me. You can lure Esther out, but I'll go in and speak with Finn. I'll do my best to use all my senses to see if Elijah is in the Lafayette Cemetery."
"Love, I don't like the sound of this..."
"I'll be okay. I can beat Finn if it comes to it. He may be able to do magic, but he can't fight in that body, and one on one, I can take him down if I need to."
Klaus sighed, knowing he couldn't dissuade her once she had an idea. "Fine. But I expect you to be communicating with me if anything goes wrong. If he so much as lays a hand on you..."
"I'll cut his hand off myself and give it to you with a bow on top," she offered, tiptoeing to kiss his cheek before leaving the Compound.
Finn, to her surprise, was at Rousseau's. She'd been passing by when she caught a glimpse of him inside, having a drink. She went in and sat beside him, and he looked at her as if he wasn't taking her seriously.
"I'm twenty-one now, according to my 1991 birth year," she said, pulling out her wallet to show the ID that she'd acquired.
"I assume you didn't come for a drink, Esmeray," he said pointedly. "There are many things I admire about you, and one is your refusal to ingest alcohol like a lunatic."
She propped her head up on her elbow and looked at him intently. "Where's Elijah, Finn?"
He laughed almost bitterly. "Don't tell me you've got feelings for him."
"Never did and never will. But he, like you, is technically family."
Finn was mildly stunned. "You consider me family?"
"Well, you are Klaus and Elijah's brother whether I like that or not. I don't hate you."
"Then what do you feel?"
"Some pity," she said honestly. "I don't think it was fair that Klaus and Elijah left you daggered for so long. And before you ask— Klaus knows that I don't fancy that as a form of punishment. I feel sadness, because you had a lot taken from you. I respect your beliefs, Finn. I respect that you didn't like the idea of turning people into vampires. Do I think maybe you should have tried to get along with your siblings and be honest about your feelings instead of helping your mother kill them? Perhaps. But like I said, I don't hate you, and you're technically family. So I came to ask for Elijah back, because he's your brother, and no matter what you feel, that means something."
Finn had an emotionless expression on his face. "Do you recall, the day my mother cursed you, how my siblings were fighting over you? You saw what happened through Niklaus's memories."
"Nik, don't be mad at her," said Rebekah once they heard the door close upstairs. "She didn't approach me to try and initiate anything. It didn't mean anything. We're both at perfect liberty to be with whoever we want to be with."
Klaus's jaw twitched once more, and he looked at his two brothers, who seemed to be quite concerned about how he'd retaliate against Rebekah for having slept with Esmeray.
"Never lay a hand on her again," Klaus growled. "None of you. Do I make myself clear?"
"Is this a wolf thing?" asked Kol venomously. "You think you can claim her as yours, or something, merely because you're both hybrids?"
It took every inch of self control in Klaus's body not to attack Kol. "I am not claiming her," he sneered. "I am telling you to back the bloody hell off and let her be. She isn't a toy for people to use." He turned to his sister. "What did you mean by her not initiating anything?"
"It's really none of your business," said Rebekah hotly, not wanting to tell her brothers that she had a threesome. "The point is, she was fine with it, but neither of us want to be with each other. It was a mutual relief exercise that we ought to never speak of again."
"I don't understand why you're the one who gets to decide that she's off limits," said Kol impatiently, staring at his brother. "She should be the one who gets to decide. If Bex can have a one night stand with her, then I should get to—"
Elijah and Rebekah had to hold Klaus back before he could bash Kol's face in. "Niklaus is right, Kol," said Elijah, pulling Klaus off to the side. "That poor girl doesn't need to be torn apart by our family conflict. It's already difficult enough for her to deal with being in a world she doesn't understand. She was awoken after a thousand years to find her entire family dead, in the clutches of a vampire, hearing a language she didn't understand, and up until now, she hasn't had one moment of proper rest, because she's constantly being pulled in different directions. We shall let her be."
"Fine and dandy for Bex, then, she already had her!" snapped Kol.
There was the sound of a dry laugh, and they turned to see Finn had come back downstairs. "No wonder Mother wished to speak with her," he said in a clipped tone. "That girl will end up dead if she resides in this house for longer than a few hours at a time."
"What do you know of what our mother wants with her?" asked Elijah in concern.
"Likely to tell her to watch her back when she's around this pitiful family," scoffed Finn. "She is practically a child, and all of you are being disgusting, fighting over her as if she doesn't have her own free will to choose what path she wants to take in life. I can assure you that she won't survive if she ends up with any of you."
The siblings were clearly not in the mood to be around each other anymore. Kol growled and left the house, Finn returned to his room, Elijah moved off to the side for a drink, and Rebekah walked off to feed on one of the servants. Only Klaus remained in the lounge, wondering if Finn was right.
Esmeray's face felt like it was on fire. "There's nothing going on with Elijah and I, or Rebekah and I, or Kol and I— ugh, especially not him."
"But do you see what I am trying to say? You speak of me being your family. You've embedded yourself too deep into the Mikaelson household and it will get you killed. I remember the little girl you once were, the one time I saw you in my youth. I recall that innocence, and it would be blatant neglect if I let you get hurt. I wish to protect you, Esmeray. It's all I've ever wanted for you. You are from my time and you deserve better than what Niklaus can offer you. There are things I cannot tell you, but—"
"Why can't you tell me, Finn?"
"Certain knowledge would only put you in further danger. What you need to understand is that being with Niklaus will put you in harm's way. If you two were to ever have a child of your own, it would only bring chaos."
Finn couldn't tell her about Dahlia. He still thought Hope was dead, and he felt that it was an unnecessary thing to bring up. But he worried that even if Hope had survived, and even if Dahlia had taken her, she would still wish to take Esmeray and Klaus's child, if they had one. She wanted the firstborns, and though the child wouldn't be Klaus's first, it would be his firstborn with Esmeray, and with it being a tribrid, Dahlia would stop at nothing to gain its power.
He continued despite the confusion on her face. "If you consider me family, then let me ask you this— what kind of person would I be if I didn't try to help you get out of an arrangement that will only hurt you? Klaus could very well kill you one day. Being a Mikaelson is dangerous, and for that reason, I cannot give you Elijah. What I can tell you is that you have an out, and you should take it."
He got up and walked out, leaving her to process everything, her hands shaking slightly. She stood, feeling flustered, smoothing her hair back and shaking her head. She wouldn't consider it. No— Esther had tried to convince Hayley to accept a new life. Finn wouldn't manage to convince her to do the same.
Her phone rang, and it took her a few seconds to react before she answered. "Hayley," she said, holding it up. "No luck. Finn won't give me back Elijah."
"Alright, then I need you to come with me to the Bayou so that we can find Jackson. I arranged for Finn to be kept busy once we find him so that we can get Oliver and get out quickly. With any luck, we'll find Elijah, too, in case Klaus doesn't manage to get him. You in?"
"Yes," said Esmeray, closing her eyes and drawing a deep breath. "I'll meet you at the cabin, and we'll go on from there."