~Klaus POV~
Over a year after she had come back into his life, Klaus and his girlfriend were walking through the French Quarter. There were only a few hours before his time became dedicated to his daughter, so the couple were taking advantage of their time together now. But that didn't stop Klaus' head from running rampant with all the plans he had for him and his daughter.
"Do you think I bought enough beignets?" Klaus asked Amelia, who laughed softly. "She is very small, but she runs through those things like her life depends on it. I don't want to buy too many, or she won't go to sleep, but if I don't buy enough, we'll never hear the end of it."
"Nik honey, you bought enough, so you can stop fussing." Amelia told him.
"But it's her 16th birthday!" Klaus continued. "She's so been looking forward to it and I don't want her to regret deciding to spend it at home with us instead of at school with the Saltzmans."
"Those twins are lovely!" Amelia insisted.
"Oh, I'm sure." Klaus muttered with a roll of his eyes. "And being raised by Alaric certainly won't give them any preconceived notions about me."
"Caroline is their mother too."
"I'm not sure that's any better."
"Nik." Amelia stopped in the middle of the street and cupped her boyfriend's face in her hands. "Grace is going to love her birthday because she is here with you. And I'm sure she'll have a fun time with friends later. But for now...maybe just relax so she has a father to come home to, hm?"
"Fine." The hybrid said with a calm sigh. "At the very least it'll be nice having her here."
"You know it will."
"You are very good at calming me down, are you absolutely certain you're not a witch?" Klaus teased.
"I don't need to magic to cast a spell on you."
Amelia leaned up to kiss him and Klaus reciprocated as a warmth spread through him. "I am so glad you came back to me."
"So am I." She said with a beam. "Speaking of..."
"Here we go."
"Klaus, it has been long enough!" Amelia said with a huff. "You're going to have to tell her at some point."
"I know but I don't want to make her birthday about us." Klaus countered non-commitally.
"You don't have to make a big deal about it." Amelia added. "Just say, Amelia and I are madly in love, and it doesn't seem like that's going to change anytime soon, I hope you are okay with this because I am going to propose to her right now as well."
Klaus instantly found it significantly harder to breathe.
"Jeez Nik, I was joking." Amelia told him with a laugh that didn't quite meet her eyes. "Besides, that would be a terrible proposal."
"I suppose I just didn't realise you were thinking about marriage." He murmured, still reeling from the shock.
"And I'm not." She assured him. "But I am thinking about commitment. And if you can't even tell your daughter about us, then I can't be sure that you are."
"I am." He insisted, taking her hand and pressing a kiss to it. "And to prove it, I will tell Grace about us. I promise."
"Good." Amelia leaned up and pecked his lips before pulling away with a smile.
"But not tonight..." Klaus said as he interlocked their hands and steered her away. "Tonight, I need to focus on having the right number of beignets."
~Elijah POV~
Hayley sat on the sofa, holding a letter in her hand that she wished was addressed to her. Elijah walked out to find her staring and she waved the envelope at him.
"Is that the card?" Elijah asked.
"Like clockwork." She answered. Elijah sighed as he sat down beside her, giving her hand a comforting squeeze. "It's almost annoying how efficient these letters seem to be when he barely responds to my text with more than a word."
"He's...busy." Elijah murmured.
"With what?" Hayley asked incredulously. "Ignoring his mom? Parading about the world with his psycho girlfriend? Fixing timelines like some bad 80s buddy cop movie?"
Elijah couldn't help but laugh at Hayley's ability to find levity even in the midst of her misery. He wished he could just tell her about the truth of the situation and with each passing day, the secret got harder to keep. But he knew that's what Fiore required of him.
"He will come back. In his own time." Elijah reassured her. "They always do."
Hayley sighed but leaned into her boyfriend's embrace and Elijah wrapped an arm around her securely, glad that he could be of some service to her.
"I miss when we were all together." She mused. "Remember when he would just up and disappear and we would guess about where he went?"
"Remember when you guessed correctly?" Elijah added with a laugh.
"To be honest, I still wish I knew how to get the timeline where Finn is a stripper."
"I still don't."
Hayley laughed again but it soon turned into a sad sigh. "Things were easier back then."
"Perhaps."
"And I just know that if I could just talk to him then—"
"Hayley, Elliott is—for most intents and purposes—an adult." Elijah told her, causing her to sigh once more. "And as frustrating as it is, you have to let him make his own decisions. Including his own mistakes."
"Yeah, yeah." A tear streamed down her face and Elijah quickly wiped it away, placing a chaste kiss to her cheek.
"Hayley..."
"It's okay." She said as she mustered a big smile. "I still have one kid that loves me. And her birthday is in a couple days so I gotta make sure we have enough beignets!"
And as Elijah watched her walk away from him, he knew keeping his secret was only going to get harder and harder.
~Klaus POV~
"That was not nearly enough beignets." Grace said as her dad walked into her bedroom. She had changed into her pyjamas after eating enough pastries to feed a small village.
"For goodness sake Grace, will you ever be satisfied?" Her father asked with a playful roll of his eyes.
"Careful cuz you know if you get me started on Hamilton, I will never stop." She warned.
"And I bloody well can't have that happen." Klaus muttered.
"Exactly." She said with a cunning smirk. "Now what brings you to my humble abode?"
"Just wanted to see how you were feeling about your upcoming celebration." He explained.
"You mean my Super Sweet 16?" She replied with a grin. "Really good because I am expecting a pony."
"I got you a pony when you turned 13 and you were afraid of it." He countered.
"I wasn't afraid of it, Mom was!" Grace corrected.
"Hayley loves horses." Klaus replied with a confused frown.
"Yeah." Grace murmured; her mind foggy with the memory. "I don't know, doesn't matter. Because I want a whole stable."
"A whole stable?" Klaus said in mock annoyance. "Whoever raised such a spoiled child?"
"Not you."
Klaus clutched at his heart mockingly and the two shared a fond laugh. "Jokes aside, I hope you know how happy I am that you chose to spend your birthday with us."
"It's fine, Dad." Grace said with a roll of her eyes. "Like I'd turn up the chance to miss a whole week of school."
"All of which you will catch up on." Klaus warned, causing his daughter to stick her tongue out at him.
"The point is...I'm happy I'm here too." She said with a smile that they shared. "Now are you going to tuck me in or...?"
"You don't think you're getting too old for that?" Klaus asked hesitantly.
"I've been too old for about half a decade but that hasn't stopped you yet." She replied. "Unless you don't want to..."
"No!" He quickly refuted.
Grace laughed but clambered into bed where her father tucked her snugly inside her bed covers. He smiled down at her and couldn't help but wonder how lucky he got to have someone so beautiful.
"You should take a picture, it lasts longer." His daughter teased.
"Very funny."
"Come on, story time." She said as she made herself comfortable as Klaus began his tale.
"Our story takes place in our very own New Orleans, in a beautiful speakeasy that has since been lost to time." Klaus began. "And Fiore and her King were going on a date."
Fiore was sitting at their table at the back of the speakeasy and watching the dancers with a delighted gaze. She clapped and squealed excitedly when her king arrived with a drink in each hand.
"For you, my love." Fiore looked at him sceptically but still took the drink from him.
"You know, you still haven't told me what you've done to warrant all this." Fiore told him with narrowed eyes.
"Why assume I've done something?" He replied teasingly, but Fiore was still on edge.
"Because you always do something."
"Not this time. Would I lie to you?"
"Yes." She countered definitively, causing her husband to laugh. "If you're lying, I'll find out. I always do."
"Then tell me Fiore, am I lying?" Fiore peered into his blue eyes searchingly but pulled away with a sigh.
"Not that I can see."
"Good." King took her hand and brought it to his lips, laying a chaste kiss on it. "I brought you here for no other reason than wanting to spend time with you."
Fiore smiled before drawing her husband in and kissing him warmly. The two smiled at each other before Fiore pulled away.
"You know for a date; I am hearing very few compliments."
"I shall rectify that immediately." King sat up straighter and donned a serious look. "Your dress is beautiful; you are truly a vision in white. Your hair remains immaculate, your makeup is impeccable."
"All these compliments and my head will swell!" Fiore said with a laugh. "Either I am very pretty, or you are a belligerent liar."
"Belligerent liar for sure." King teased. Fiore rolled her eyes but joined him in his laughter.
Her eyes turned to the stage of the speakeasy where Lizzie Miles was setting up. She clapped giddily and squeezed her husband's arm tightly.
"Oh, I love her! Her voice is so powerful!" She told him, only then noticing the cheeky glimmer in his eyes. "You did this?"
"I may have had a hand in this, yes." Fiore beamed at her husband, unbelievably touched by the gesture.
"This was impossibly sweet of you." Fiore told him.
"What's the point of being King if I can't spoil my queen every now and then?" He was smirking but when he saw the look of admiration on Fiore's face, he was almost brought to tears.
"I love you." She murmured, taking his hand and squeezing it tightly.
"I love you more." He lay a chaste kiss on her lips, only pulling away when Lizzie began to sing. Fiore, held on to the lapel of his suit jacket, refusing to let go of his embrace.
"Absolutely not, I am not done kissing you." She murmured against his lips. They connected once more before King pulled away.
"You can kiss me anywhere; your favourite singer is only here for tonight." King told her. He got to his feet and held out a hand to her. "One of the places you can kiss me is on the dancefloor."
Fiore grinned and took his hand, allowing him to lead her to the dancefloor. The two began their dance, effortlessly switching from slow to fast and from fast to slow, determined to enjoy every second of it.
The set was coming to a close and a Lizzie sang a slow blues song, the couple softly swayed to the music like they had done before. Only this time, there was a hurt look in Fiore's eyes.
"Her voice is amazing." She murmured. "Imagine being able to sing like that."
"You have a beautiful voice." King told her, frowning as a realisation slowly dawned on him. "You used to sing all the time. Why did you stop?"
"I used to want to be a singer." Fiore confessed. "It looks so incredibly fun."
"Fiore, you still can." King replied with a confused look. "I don't know why you think you can't."
"This is a young girl's game."
"Which shouldn't be a problem for an immortal."
"She doesn't age because of genetics." Fiore countered. "I don't age because I'm dead."
"Blossom—"
"It's alright King." She said with a sad smile. "I've made my peace with it."
King nodded but unbeknownst to Fiore, an idea was brewing. The crowd began to clap as Lizzie finished her set and went backstage. Fiore was still grinning, high off the energy of the night when her husband pressed a soft kiss to her cheek.
"Wait here, I'll be right back."
Fiore nodded and watched as King went to the stage and whispered something to a stagehand. The next thing she knew, her head was centre stage with a microphone in his hand and mischievous glimmer in his eye.
"Hello all and thank you for coming to support the lovely Lizzie Miles." He began. "When I organised this, I did so as a gift for my beautiful wife Fiore, who just so happens to be Lizzie's number one fan. And though I didn't intend this part, I am just as excited to give her the chance. So please give a warm welcome to Fiore!"
Fiore's eyes widened in alarm as all eyes turned to her. She shook her head in protest, but the crowd was undeterred as they led her to the stage. She took the microphone from her husband, shooting him a deadly glare, but he simply walked off the stage and sat on a table at the front.
Fiore's hands were shaking as she gazed out at the large audience and as her heart began to beat quickly in fear, King wondered if he had pushed her too hard. But then he realised, she only needed a little push.
"You can do this Blossom." He said quietly, knowing she would hear.
"I can't." She murmured in response. "I'm not that good and there are so many people and—"
"You are phenomenal." Her husband corrected. "Forget everyone else, it's just you and me."
"That isn't true."
"Make it true."
Fiore nodded and took in a deep breath before turning to the crowd with an enormous grin. She stepped forward and she could tell they were getting antsy so she knew the performance she gave would have to be one of a lifetime.
"Okay, in spite of my husband's damn near ambushing, I am going to sing for you tonight." She told them, causing the crowd to laugh light-heartedly. "I would like to dedicate this to the love of my life, the King not only of New Orleans, but also of my heart."
The crowd cooed at the display, with King going as far as to blow a kiss her way. She counted herself in and as the intro began to play, King laughed knowing exactly what song she had chosen to sing.
"A good man is hard to find
Well, you always get the other kind
And just when you think he's your one best pal
You look around you find him loving another gal
You rave, yes, you crave
To see that man laying in his grave"
Fiore was only halfway through the first verse and the crowd was adoring her. As the cheers grew in volume, so did her confidence. She walked down the stairs and stopped at her husband's side as she continued the next part.
"So if your man is nice
Take my advice
And hug him in the morning
Hug him every night
Give him plenty loving
Be sure you love him right
Cause a good man nowadays is hard to find."
She was sitting on his lap as she belted out the final bar to a chorus of hoots and hollers. The crowd clapped as she finished, planting a kiss on her husband's lips. When he pulled away, he looked the proudest Fiore had ever seen him.
"I knew you could do it."
"Jeez Dad, that was so unbelievably cute." Grace murmured in awe.
"I suppose it is." Klaus murmured wistfully.
"I want a love like that." Grace told him with a sigh of wanderlust.
"Me too." Klaus replied with a laugh. "But you, you won't have a love like that."
"What?" Grace asked in alarm.
"You'll have better."
"You're killing me here, dude." He laughed and rolled his eyes.
"Don't call me dude." He lay a chaste kiss on her forehead and smiled at her. "Goodnight sweetheart."
"Goodnight Dad."
He left his daughter's room and caught a glimpse of Amelia talking to Hayley. And he wondered if he was really okay with settling for the love he had with Amelia when what he really wanted was a love like Fiore.
But as Amelia grinned up at him, he steeled himself and recognised the truth of his reality: Fiore wasn't real. Amelia, and the love he genuinely did feel for her, was.