┏━━━━━━━━━━┓
chapter two:
can't get you to explain it
┗━━━━━━━━━━┛
"THIS IS HOW I KEEP MY GUYS HAPPY, THE OCCASIONAL ALL YOU CAN EAT BUFFET." Marcel cheered. He had asked Belle and Klaus to accompany him to a party he was hosing at their old compound. Red lights flashed around, screaming filled the air along with the scent of fresh blood. "My nightwalkers love it. Got them working hard to earn one of these daylight rings. They deserve to blow off a little steam. My daywalkers, the trusted few, they just like to party."
"It's quite an operation." Klaus stated. "Tell me, what about the victims? Seems like a lot of graves to dig."
"Can't kill them all. Too many people go missing, tourism drops, so we heal them with a little vamp blood, erase their memory, send them on their way, no muss, no fuss."
"Okay. I'll be the one to say it, I'm impressed." Belle chirped, looking around at the vampires healing and compelling the humans.
"Nothing I didn't learn from Klaus back in the day." Marcel shrugged.
"Marcel." Thierry came from the opposite end of the balcony.
"What's up, Thierry?"
"Six of our guys were killed in a bar outside of the quarter, nightwalkers. No one saw who." Thierry answered, sending obvious glares at the two hybrids.
"Please tell me you didn't go out and kill Marcel's men." Klaus whispered to Belle.
"Well, that's easy, I didn't go out and kill his men." She replied. "Who do you think killed them?"
✶
THEY ARRIVED BACK AT THE PLANTATION. Belle was in her room, unpacking the boxes she had compelled someone to send over. She smiled to herself upon hearing a familiar feminine voice. She dropped her clothes on her bed and started speed walking down the halls where she saw Hayley going down the stairs with what looked like thin metal pole.
"It's Hayley, isn't it?" Rebekah asked.
"You have your brother's manners." Hayley pointed out.
"She has his temper, too." Belle spoke from the stairs. "I'd watch it if I were you." She joked.
"Oh, Belle, what have you gotten yourself wrapped up in this time?" Rebekah sighed as Belle happily walked down the stairs and into her sister's arms.
"I thought you would've stayed back in Mystic Falls with that vampire-hating Matthew Donavan." Belle chuckled, pulling away from their embrace
"I'm only here for Elijah." Rebekah said, "as soon as I find him, I'm gone."
"Of course you are." Belle whispered to herself before taking in her sister's words. "Wait. What do you mean 'find him'?"
"He isn't answering is phone. I got worried." She sighed before turning to Hayley. "Where's Elijah?"
"Beats me. He's long gone." Hayley answered.
"What do you mean long gone?"
"Well, one minute he was here making epic promises about protecting me in this predicament that a bottle of scotch and some bad decisions got me into, he was all poetic about he we're family, and then Klaus told me he bailed. Guess that's what I get for trusting a vampire." Hayley glared.
"Elijah is not just any vampire, and he doesn't break promises, which means Niklaus has done something dastardly and Klaus-like." Rebekah said quickly, "Klaus, get out here and tell be what you've done with our brother, you narcissistic, back-stabbing wanker!" She yelled, walking into a living room.
"Did you have to shout?" Belle shouted back with annoyance.
"Enough with all the shouting." Klaus called out, coming out of his study. "Little sister. I should have known. I assume the six dead vampires were your doing."
"They were very rude. Trying to victimize a poor, innocent girl through the Quarter. So sorry, we're they friends of yours? Oh, that's right. You don't have any friends." Rebekah snarked, a triumphant smile on her face once she heard Belle chuckling.
"I do have friends. I have Marcel. You remember him, don't you? Yes, of course you do. He fancies himself the king of the quarter now, and he has these rules about killing vampires. It will be fun to see what sort of punishment he comes up with for you."
"I don't care about Marcel or his rules." Rebekah retorted. "Elijah doesn't welsh deals. What did you do to him?"
"Perhaps he's on holiday," Klaus shrugged, "or taking a long autumn nap upstairs. Well, go on. Take a look around. You remember this house as well as I."
Belle pinched the bridge of her nose, "can you answer the damn question?"
"I remember everything." Rebekah said over Belle, "I remember how the drunken fool of a governor hid away all our vampire sins in exchange for gold. I remember the lavish parties the governor threw as if to impress you. I remember finding a moment of affection with the governor's son Emil and I remember that even Elijah was happy. Belle was... she was happy enough."
"He wasn't good for you." Klaus excused, sitting down on a smaller couch
"No one was ever good enough for me, Nik. You made sure of that. Now where's Elijah?" She interrogated. Klaus' cellphone began to vibrate and he abruptly stood up to walk out the door. "Where are you going?"
"It appears the night is not quite over yet." He responded vaguely. "I'm off for another drink with Marcel."
"I thought you wanted to take back Marcel's empire, not drink New Orleans dry." Belle said with unamusement. "Although that does sound appealing..." She muttered to herself.
"What friends do when they get together is they drink, and when they drink they tell secrets." Klaus explained. "Marcel has found a way to control the witches of New Orleans, I'd like to know how so I could take it for myself." He turned to Rebekah, "finding Elijah didn't make my to-do list today. Oh. And welcome home, little sister." With that, Klaus walked out the door.
Rebekah looked to Belle expectantly, but Belle only shook her head, "no. I'm going to try and convince Nik to focus on literally anything other than waging war." She started walking to the door but she spun on her heals and waved to Hayley and Rebekah, "toodles!" She cheered mockingly, walking out the door.
And that's how Belle found herself walking into a dim, slightly depressing bar. "Well, this is a far cry from last night's party." Klaus mused.
They sat down in the wobbly chairs. Belle moved uncomfortably in the chair making both men look at her weirdly, "what's the problem now?" Klaus asked, annoyed.
"For one, these chairs are cheap. Second, this bar is depressing. And thirdly, the fact that we're at a bar in the middle of the day makes us seem like alcoholics." Belle complained, which only made the two laugh in response. "What? Why are you laughing?"
"Ah, you see, sister, you tend to forget that not all establishments can live up to your high expectations." Klaus laughed.
"No I don't." Belle defended, Klaus gave her a deadpan look. "Can we move on? I don't want to sit in this disgusting—" She only stopped complaining when Klaus put his hand over her mouth. She looked him directly in the eyes and slightly bit his hand, making him wince and pull away.
Marcel only laughed at the siblings and motioned with his hands for a waitress when Klaus looked behind him to saw Camille sitting at a table with books and journals. "Are we here because if the bartender from Rousseau's?" Klaus asked. Belle looked to her side to see Cami studying.
"She's a work in progress." Marcel drawled.
"And yet here you are, pining over her when you should be eating her for lunch." Klaus poured himself a drink. "Well, she must be special."
"No one is eating my friend." Belle stated, she decided to explain further when she saw the confused looks she was getting, "I met her yesterday when she was watching someone paint."
"I wasn't aware you had friends." Klaus stated, "you once told me that a friend was nothing more then a means to an end."
"Really? I said that? I should be a poet." Belle said with an innocent smile, knowing she has said that, multiple times.
"As much as I'd like to see that, business first." Marcel stated. "The corner called. He's got my number in case any dead tourist show up." He whispered.
"Let me guess. Dead tourists with a stamp on their hand and vampire blood in their veins." Klaus assumed.
"It happens. Someone takes a drunken tumble off a balcony or into the Mississippi, and today, I got two of them to deal with." He finished just as Cami stood up with her books. Marcel pointed to the door, and Klaus being Klaus, he had to catch her attention.
"Excuse me, love." Klaus abruptly stood up and turned to the door.
"Oh my..." Belle trailed, putting her hand on her forehead in embarrassment.
"What's that you're studying?" Klaus inquired.
"Abnormal psychology." Cami answered simply.
"Abnormal phycology. Well... perhaps you could help me diagnose my friend over here." He led her over to Marcel and Belle, who finally looked up to see Cami standing almost right next to her. "He's been a little bit depressed. Can't keep his mind off a girl. He tells me she's a queen. Fit for a king. I think he should cut his losses and move on. What's your professional opinion?"
"Be a nice guy, and maybe the opportunity will present itself someday." Cami replied, turning to walk away, but Marcel stopped her, "how about tonight, nine o'clock? I'll meet you right here."
"I'll take it under consideration." Cami quipped, walking out of the door.
"Hmm. Harsh." Marcel hummed. Belle stood up to follow only for Klaus to pull her back down.
"Where're you going?" He asked.
"I'm going to apologize to Cami for the both of you." She sighed, standing back up to walk out.
"Hey, Cami!" Belle called out, running to the blonde's side.
"Hey, Belle." Cami smiled.
"I just wanted to apologize for my idiot brother and his friend. They can be a bit much." She sighed, walking alongside Cami, "so, are you thinking about going on that date?"
"I don't know, maybe." Cami inhaled before continuing, "he seems nice, I guess. He's charming, confident, sexy. But he's one of the bad ones, right?"
"Maybe, maybe not. He and I haven't seen each other in what feels like centuries. I've only been in town for a few days, and I can already see the difference in him." Belle sighed. "I can't tell you if he's one of the bad ones. You should figure that one out for yourself." She patted Cami on the back and sped away while Cami's head was still looking straight ahead.
✶
"YOU TAKE US TO THE NICEST PLACES." Klaus said sarcastically. After Belle had sped away from Cami, she met them on their way to a parking garage.
Marcel opened the doors of a van to reveal two people that were scared in transition. "Welcome to the land of the newly dead. I won't waste your time. I trust you filled them in." He said to Thierry.
"To be honest, not much in the way of potential here." Thierry replied.
"Yeah? Well, I just lost six nightwalkers. I got holes to fill." Marcel shrugged. "I'll keep this quick. that you have you feel, that's the need to feed coming on strong, a hunger for human blood. Drink it, you're a vampire. Don't, you die again. this time for good. Right here in a body bag." He went next to Klaus, "hey, what do you think? Cute, dorky girl or gay best friend?"
"Dealers choice." Klaus mused.
"Dealers choice. Okay." He repeated, walking back to the two people, pulling a coin from his pocket. "Whoever picks up this coin gets to live forever. The other one dies. Go." The two hesitated for a minute before the blonde girl snatched the coin. Belle wasn't surprised. Over the course of a thousand years she learned humans to be one thing, selfish.
"Damn, girl! I said damn!" Marcel cheered.
"How could you?" The boy asked, betrayed.
"Get over it, Josh! It's not like I had a choice." The blonde girl almost shouted, "you would've done the same thing but you're such a little, measly—" The girl was cut off my Marcel snapping her neck. He zipped the body bag that she was sitting in.
"Let her die in cold storage." He ordered. "Got a thing about people who betray their own friends." He glanced at the hybrids before turning back to Josh. "Come on, let's go for a ride."
Belle and Klaus both shared a look, having a conversation between each other. Klaus' look said, 'I have a plan', while Belle's said, 'don't do anything stupid.'
✶
BELLE WAS BACK HOME, PLANNING TO FINISH UNPACKING WHEN SHE FOUND IT ODDLY QUIET. She suspected Rebekah would be on a quest to find Elijah so she didn't worry about her. But Hayley was under strict orders to stay put and to never leave. They hadn't spoken much since Hayley had arrived, but because she was carrying her brother's child, she was considered family.
And that's how Belle found herself roaming around town, trying to find Hayley. As she walked through the part of the city that was controlled by the supernatural, she kept her vampire hearing on to help with the search.
Thinking she wasn't in the right area, she started walking in a different direction, but before she did she her hearing had picked up the screams of a man. She sped over towards the sound and saw two vampires standing in front of Hayley. She came up behind them and pulled out their hearts.
"That's no way to treat a pregnant lady." Belle sighed, dropping the hearts to the ground, "I do hate bad manners."
"You and me both." Rebekah spoke from behind Belle, snapping the neck of a vampire that was behind the hybrid.
"I thought you were on a quest to find Elijah." Belle stated, crouching down to the ground to wipe her bloodied hands on one of the vampire's shirt.
"I was, but then I caught wind of one of Marcel's disciples talking about werewolf heads." Rebekah replied nonchalantly.
"Which begs the question," Belle began, standing up to face Hayley. "What the hell were you even doing out here?"
✶
"THIS IS WHY I TOLD YOU TO NEVER LEAVE THE HOUSE." Klaus ranted, putting the dead bodies in front of the plantation. "Werewolves are banned in the quarter. I had a plan, and your little nighttime stroll out it all in peril." One of the vampires was still alive and moving, so Rebekah moved to finish him off.
"Leave him!" Klaus shouted. "You've done enough, don't you think? Leaving a trail of bodies like a roadmap to my door?"
"If I hadn't heard this lot bragging about werewolf heads, everyone here would be screwed," Rebekah exclaimed, "and don't give me that crap about having a plan. You've had all the time in the world to execute a plan, and no one's seen you do a damn thing!
Belle silently disagreed with Rebekah's remark. If she had listened to him, she would know about his plans and would understand that he was doing everything he could to gain control over the city to protect the baby. And while Belle didn't want power, she would help her brother get it, no matter the cost.
"Elijah made a deal to protect your child so that he could save you from your selfish, rotten self. You obviously don't give a damn about the child or Elijah because what have you done to honor it?"
"I have done everything." Klaus growled. "Let me spell it out for you, shall I? From the day we arrived, Marcel hasn't trusted us. From day one, he's had is vampires ingest toxic vervain, which as you know, little sister, protects them from my mind control."
"I needed a spy, someone on the inside with me who Marcel would never suspect, so I created a day zero and got there first. Marcel had just lost six vampires thanks to yours and Belle's murder spree, and he needed new recruits, so I made the new one mine before he'd had even a drop of vervain. But we all know the real way to a man is through his heart, so I compelled Belle's new human friend."
"And this one, I'm going to drain him of vervain, compel him to believe his mates found religion and moved to Utah so that he can explain to Marcel why he lost three more vampires tonight." Klaus explained, dragging the vampire into the house with the women following close behind. "Does anyone have anymore questions? No? Good. Because I have a question, Hayley. What were you doing in the bloody French quarter in the first place?" He asked, and Hayley's silence only angered him further.
"Answer me!" He yelled.
"Leave her be." Rebekah chimed in.
"You want to do what I was doing?" Hayley asked, walking closer to Klaus. "I was buying poison so I could put your little baby out of its misery."
Out of anger, Klaus sped to Hayley and used one of his hands to lift her slightly above the ground by her neck, making it harder for her to breathe.
"Nik!" Belle called out, attempting to make him let go, only to be ignored. The more Hayley gasped for air, the more worried Belle became. "Nik!" She yelled, he kept a grip on her neck. She grabbed his shoulders and sped him to the railing, his back hitting it harshly. "Keep your hands off her. She is pregnant for God's sake!" She slightly shoved him and backed away.
"All of this bluster about not wanting the child, and the second she tells you she's to get rid of it..." Rebekah trailed, slightly in shock by her sister protecting someone she barely knew. "It's okay to care. It's okay to want something. That's all Elijah was trying to do, all he's ever wanted for you, all we've ever wanted."
Klaus sat down on a bench at the bottom of the stairs, Belle and Rebekah sitting on either side of him.
"I gave Elijah to Marcel." Klaus spoke after a few seconds of silence.
"What?" The sisters questioned in sync. Rebekah's tone was quiet while Belle's was demanding.
"Marcel was nervous. It was bad enough two originals returned to town, but three? His crew was getting antsy. He wanted Elijah gone, so I gave him a peace offering." Klaus explained.
"You bartered our brother?" Rebekah asked incredulously.
"I have a plan. Gain Marcel's trust, dismantle his empire, honor Elijah's wish that that baby be born. I am executing that plan the only way I know how. If you don't like it, there's the door. See if I care." With that, Klaus walked away from the women, leaving them to untie whatever knot he had tied.