When the sun rises Niklaus and Elijah put together a breakfast in the dining room for Kol and Finn. I decided to sit at the end of the table sipping on water to see how this plays out. I, honestly, doubt they can flip Finn to our side, but they want to try. Kol and Finn sit side by side on one side of the table with Elijah across from them. Niklaus, of course, sits at the head of the table, across from me.
We haven't spoken about last night. However if this kiss goes like the last one, then I don't think there will be a conversation. I avoid any eye contact and just listen to them quietly, while fiddling with some purple grapes in front of me.
"We arrived into this world as innocents, wide-eyed, vulnerable. It is the job of our parents to nurture and protect us." Niklaus tells his brothers. "Unfortunately, our own parents failed miserably at even the most basic of parental tasks, but we are not beholden to the past they created for us. Today, a new future awaits. Forget your animosity towards Elijah and myself, and instead join us against she who truly deserves your ire... our mother. Do this and we will welcome you with open arms." Kol reaches for a pastry that is in front of him in the middle of the table. Before he can grab one Elijah moves the plate out of his reach. "But if you continue to oppose us, a denial of pastries will be the least of your concerns."
"If all you wanted was my allegiance against mother dearest, you should have said so, save me a night shackled to the wall." Kol replies looking at Nik.
"This was Niklaus." Elijah says. "My recommendation was to remove your limbs one by one until you comply." I roll my eye. And everyone wonders why I think Elijah is more unhinged and dangerous than Nik.
Nik laughs a bit as he stands and walks behind Kol and Finn. "We've no desire to torture you, provided you vow to stand beside us as brothers." Nik place a hand on each brother's back.
"Brothers?" Finn replies. "Does that word even apply to us after all these centuries of betrayal, and is loyalty to you ever really rewarded?" Niklaus walks back behind his seat and keeps his back to us. "If so, tell me Niklaus, where is our sister Rebekah?" I look up at Finn with narrow eyes as he fishes for information. "She was blindly loyal to you for a thousand years, and now nowhere to be found. Where did our sister go, and how did she escape your vile machinations?"
Nik huffs out another small laugh of amusement as he turns around to face Finn. "You think me vile?" Nik sits down in his chair. "Well, what then, do you make of the one who cursed us?"
"She was trying to make you mortal again, and the three of you refused her." Finn defends Esther, looking at Nik, Elijah, and me. "Only proves how far you've fallen, but I expect Rebekah will have a different response to her proposal. See, unlike the two of you, she always did cling to her humanity."
"Rebekah's off limits, too." Elijah warns him. "You pursue her, and you will suffer."
"Do not let him goad you, Elijah." Nik says. "Neither he nor Esther will find Rebekah unless she wants to be found, and she does not."
"Esther is quite determined." Finn fires back, trying to get a rise. "She's been searching for Rebekah since the day she returned." My heart beat picks up, but I keep calm on the outside. Thank god, Finn and Kol aren't vampires anymore, or they would hear it. "I imagine it's only a matter of time."
Elijah looses his cool and quickly reaches across the table grabbing the collar of Finn's shirt and yanking him over the table. He holds him down on the floor and reveals his vampire face with a hiss, before biting into Finn's neck. Finn let's out a scream of pain, while he attempts to push Elijah off with no luck.
Niklaus quickly pries Elijah off Finn and pulls him into the hallway, leaving me with Kol and Finn. Finn grabs a napkin and starts cleaning the blood from his neck. Kol stands and walks to the doors Nik and Elijah exited through. Both of them are still cuffed by the manacles.
"Elijah's off his bloody rocker." Kol says.
"I've been saying that since I met them." I mutter, but they ignore me.
"We need to get out of here." Kol finishes. "Are you gonna help me or what?"
"If you were a little more clever you would recognize that there's opportunity in our current circumstances." Finn tells him.
"Hey!" I snap at him. "I'm right here and I can hear everything you're saying."
"You're no threat." Finn rolls his eyes.
"How are those chains?" I ask him sarcastically. "Heavy?"
"Opportunity to what, get a beating?" Kol asks before Finn can reply.
"Gentleman, I apologize for keeping you waiting." Nik says as he opens the door. "Good news is I have returned with an old friend, someone who wants to say hello."
Marcel walks in with a big smile. I smile and nod at him in greeting. "Hello." He tells the brothers after he sends me a wink. "How's it going, fellas?"
"Ah, you again." Kol sighs. "You ever get bored of getting bullied by my brother?"
"Oh, I volunteered for this." Marcel smirks with Nik.
"Did you?" Kol asks smugly as Marcel take off his jacket.
"Yeah." Marcel smiles. "The way I see it, you have it coming. First, you messed with Davina." He pushes Kol in the chest. "Now I hear you want to drag Rebekah into all this. Uh-uh. Not happening."
"Well, I'd prefer you both to join me against our mother, but I'll happily settle for one or the other." Nik smirks. "Either way, if you continue to defy me, your lives will be reduced to an unending sequence of agonizing torture. So... Which will it be?"
________________________
Nik decide the best way was for them to be spit up. Nik was going to take Finn and Marcel, Kol. I decide to go with Marcel and Kol. Mainly, to make sure another love interest of my sister's doesn't die, but partly so I can avoid being in the same room as Nik.
Marcel drags Kol into the study, with me following behind.
"I've got to say I'm gonna enjoy this." Marcel practically throws him into a chair. "Out of the whole twisted family..." Kol tries to stand, but Marcel grabs his shoulder and pushes him back down. "Sit down... You are the one that I like the least."
"Really?" I ask him scrunching up my nose. "Mine's definitely Finn." Marcel smiles at me.
"Yeah?" Kol taunts. "Well, there's a pretty young lady who disagrees with that opinion."
"You really think using my sister to taunt him will help you?" I deadpan. "Lose the cockiness."
Kol shrugs. Marcel leans down in front of his face taking his attention off me. "Then let me make myself perfectly clear. You go near Davina, and I'm gonna cut off parts of you that you'd rather keep."
"Ahh." Kol muses. "More threats. How bloody inventive. Thing is, Klaus needs me, so that backs you into a bit of a corner, doesn't it?"
"Well, until we get rid of your mom." Marcel says walking in front of him. "I wonder what happens then."
"Well, Klaus might not need me when mother's gone, but you might." Kol tells him. "Come on, Marcel. You were king of the city once. You really think he's just gonna give it back to you?"
I snort out a chuckle and Marcel let's out a laugh. "You always got an angle, don't you?"
"You see, individually, we can't do anything, but together, well, Klaus wouldn't stand a chance." Kol continues to attempt to persuade Marcel.
"Probably not, but then I'd have to trust you, and I don't." Marcel tells him while picking up a scalpel without Kol noticing. Marcel turns and walks back towards Kol concealing the scalpel. "At least with Klaus, I know exactly what I'm getting."
"I thought you had more fortitude, Marcellus." Kol sighs. "You disappoint me." Marcel leans down so he was eye level with him.
"Nobody cares for your opinion." Marcel says. "Klaus just wants to know what you're up to. Tell me everything, maybe you'll get to live. If not..." Marcel suddenly slams the scalpel into Kol's hand that is sitting on the arm on the chair. Kol darts forward and screams in pain. I flinch and look away.
Kol breathes heavily, seething through the pain. Marcel keeps a smile on his face, clearly enjoying Kol's misery. I obviously don't have the stomach for torture, unless it's someone who has deeply crossed me, like Esther, Francesca, or Genevieve.
"We can keep doing this as long as you want." Marcel says, snatching the scalpel out causing Kol to grunt. Then he walks around to the back of Kol's chair and bites his wrist. He forces his blood down Kol's throat, healing the stab wound. "Or I can kill you and turn you into a brand-new baby vampire." Marcel holds the scalpel at Kol's throat, threatening to slice it open.
"Go on. Do it." Kol dares him. "My mother's got plans for me whether I like it or not. If I die, she'll just pop me into another body, not that my family will care that much if the death was permanent." As Kol talks, I'm beginning to understand him more and more. Maybe enough to know how to get him on our side. Marcel removes the scalpel, but continues to look down at him.
"What are you really up to, hmm, and what's it got to do with Davina?" Marcel inquires.
"I'd actually like to know that myself." I finally speak and approach Kol.
"You're both afraid I'm gonna break her little heart." Kol replies. "That's downright paternal of you both."
I scoff and roll my eyes, but Marcel's eye flash with rage and he hold the scalpel ready to dive it into Kol. My eyes widen and I say. "Marcel, no."
"Easy, Marcel, easy." Nik interjects, entering the room. Marcel stops, but doesn't drop his arm. "Let's give Kol a little longer to decide before we lop off his head, hmm?"
"Comments like that..." Marcel points out. "He already thinks you don't care." Kol looks almost timidly at Nik, like he had been caught.
"Is that so, brother?" Nik asks him.
"You only daggered me a dozen times." Kol defends his feelings. I snort, receiving an offended look from Kol.
"No. I'm sorry. You're totally valid in feeling like that." I tell him with a shrug. "It's just he daggered all his siblings."
"I have." Nik agrees.
"You always cared more for Marcel than you did for me." Kol counters adding to why he believed Nik doesn't care.
"Well, I didn't realize I'd hurt your feelings." Nik tells him.
"Well, that's the thing, isn't it, Nik?" Kol asks rhetorically. "You don't know squat about me."
"Ah, but thanks to Marcel I know all I need to know." Nik smirks as he walks closer to Kol. "You're desperate to be a part of this family, aren't you?" Kol avoids eye contact. "All of your mischief was just attempts for attention. You know, the truth is, Kol, you're right to feel slighted. I mean that. You're right, but perhaps there's still time to make it up to you." Kol looks up at him, finally.
________________________
Nik had to go back to attend to Finn. He had offered Finn freedom to live his life how he chooses. He just has to side with us over Esther and tell us the full extent of her plans. I decided to go with Nik, to allow Kol some time to process Nik's offer to him.
I follow Nik through the doors to the ballroom, where Finn is chained to the banister of the stairs.
"So, brother, ready to embrace your new life of freedom?" Nik asks him holding up the key to the manacles.
"I'm already free, brother." Finn tells him. Nik closes his hand around the key and rolls his eyes in frustration.
"You're aware our mother cares nothing for you?" Nik inquires.
"Niklaus, I assure you, my mother loves me." Finn replies, truly believing what he says. "She loves all of her children. We would not exist without her sacrifice." I scoff.
"She has completely brainwashed him." I mutter to Nik. He raises his eyebrows in agreement and turns back towards the door, gesturing for me to follow him out.
"Do you even know the truth, Niklaus and Kelsey?" We both stop dead in our tracks, but Nik doesn't turn around like I do. I face Finn and cross my arms, waiting for him to continue. "Mother was barren, and she grew so desperate for a family that she begged one of the most powerful witches in history for help, her sister Dahlia." I scrunch my eyebrows, unaware that Esther had a sister. "Of course, Dahlia's price was high. She agreed to make our mother fertile, but in exchange, she sought the firstborn as sacrifice." Nik turns and looks at Finn. "Having no other choice... our mother gave away our beloved Freya."
"Our sister died of the plague." Nik seethes.
"Esther gave her away." Finn reiterates. "Think about that, that pain, the grief." Nik approaches Finn.
"If what you say is true, than death is far too delicate a fate for her." Nik tells him.
"She loves us more than you realize." Finn defends her.
"And is love the reason she wanted my child dead?" Nik questions.
"She was trying to protect you from Dahlia's curse." Finn says, making me walk slightly closer.
"What curse?!" Nik yells in rage.
"Dahlia demanded the firstborn of every generation." Finn explains. My anger rises, finally understanding why Esther came for my babies. "Had your child lived, she would have paid the price, and if anyone had tried to protect her, Dahlia would come and destroy us all."
"And that's your fucking defense for her supposed love." I snap. "She sold her child and grandchild to a witch a thousand years ago. That screams compassion and maternal instinct to you?"
"She was trying to protect us!" He counters.
"At the price of my baby!" I yell. "My innocent baby. My baby's life had more value than yours and your mother's. It wasn't up to her to decide my daughter's fate. That job was for me and Nik."
"And you would have died."
"Better me than her." I snap. "And if your 'loving' mother had understood that concept than she would have protected her children from Dahlia and Mikael. That's what mother's do. Instead she left Nik at Mikael's mercy and your sister at Dahlia's." I step right up to Finn and look him dead in the eye. "Niklaus is right, death is way too generous for Esther." I turn away from him and storm out of the room, without looking at Nik.
__________________________
I decided to sit at a table in the courtyard and get some air. It's taking everything in me not to hunt down Esther and end her, but I know going at her without a plan is basically suicide. If everything Finn says is true, then we now have to not only worry about Esther finding out about Hope and Bexley, but Dahlia too.
Nik comes into the courtyard phone pressed to his ear.
"I'm done leaving messages, Elijah." Nik says into the phone as he walks closer to me. "To say this is urgent would be a gross understatement. We need to speak immediately." Nik hangs up.
Nik smirks as he senses someone enter the Compound. "I was wondering whether you'd show up." Nik smirks as Davina appears. I stand up and quickly walk in Davina's direction, standing in between the both of them. "I'm afraid I'm not done torturing your darling Kol. You best run along while you still can."
"Davina, please." I beg her. "Now is not the time."
"I'm not going anywhere, Klaus." She ignores me.
"Whoa." Marcel says rushing downstairs. "D, today is not the day." Davina raises her hand and snaps Marcel's neck, before he steps off the stair and onto the ground, making him fall limp.
"Actually, I think it is." Davina replies.
"Davina!" I scold her. "What are you doing?"
"Stay out of this Kelsey." She snaps. "This is between me and him."
"You forget yourself." Nik tells her walking up to her side. "You're not as powerful as you once were, Harvest Girl."
"Doesn't mean I can't still kick your ass." Davina replies, throwing her hand at him and throwing him through a door that leads to the hallway. She turns to him.
"Davina, stop." I warn her. She walks into the hallway and I follow her. However, Nik isn't there.
Suddenly, he appears next to her and grabs her shoulder and flings her down the hallway.
"Nik!" I yell going after Davina. She groans and I help her stand. She has a cut on her forehand.
"Such hubris, and from one who bleeds so easily." Nik taunts with a smirk.
"You talk such a big game, but you couldn't even kill Mikael when you had the chance." Davina smirks. "He was right about you, you know? You're weak."
Nik's snarls and vamps at her pushing me away. "No!" I scream as he sink his teeth into her neck. However, as soon as her blood hits his mouth he yanks himself back. He collapses on the ground and looses consciousness.
"Nik?" I crawl to him. He doesn't move, so I look at Davina. "What did you do?"
"I turned my blood to poison." She answers.
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" I ask her in disbelief. "I do everything I can to keep him from killing you."
"Like he would listen." She scoffs.
"Actually, I've seen Kelsey have quite the pull on Klaus' decisions." Kol replies coming down the stairs. He nods at Nik. "That's impressive. What exactly did you do to him?"
"Channeled dark objects, turned my blood to poison." Davina answers walking closer to him. "How did you get free?"
"Oh, it's a long story." Kol says rubbing his wrist. "Better question is if he's not dead, then what are you gonna do when he recovers?"
"We have an hour, maybe less, enough time to chain him, bleed him, dump him in the river." Davina tells him.
"You're not doing any of that." I snap at her, standing and approaching them.
"Why are you always defending him?" She scoffs at me and then looks at Kol and raises her eyebrows, expecting him to side with her.
"That's a bit harsh, isn't it?" Kol asks.
"Since when do you care what happens to Klaus?" Davina questions in disgusts.
"Kol is with us now." Marcel enters the conversation as he stands and rubs the back of his neck. "We're gonna be going up against Esther, assuming Klaus is upright."
"Esther is a much bigger threat, than Nik." I try to reason with her.
"How?" She narrows her eyes at me.
"She's the reason my baby, your niece is dead." I tell her bluntly. Regret flashes across her eyes as I cross my arms.
"Kelsey..." She goes to say, but Kol cuts her off.
"Look. Nik... he's a pain in the ass, but, well, she's a problem for us all."
"Klaus is the problem." Davina counters.
"No." I deny. "Nik is the byproduct of the problem. Esther and Mikael are responsible for the way he is. All his issues stem from them, just like Elijah's, Rebekah's, Kol's. They were horrible parents and because of that Nik is paranoid and violent. Elijah hides behind a suit and thrives to help Nik, when he should focus on his own happiness. Rebekah yearns to be loved and to be normal. Kol wants to be accepted by his family." I sigh keeping my eyes on her. "Yes, your right. Nik has done awful things, especially to you. They have all done horrible things, but if we don't give them the chance to change and be better, if we keep condemning them, they will continue on the same path. I'm not saying you need to forgive him. I'm asking you to try to understand. Esther is the bigger bad guy."
"You don't get it." She snaps at me. "I'm asking you to be on my side just this once."
"I'm ALWAYS on your side." I counter. "I've protected you more than you could ever know."
"I didn't ask you to do that."
"You don't have to." I tell her sternly. "I'm your big sister, it's my job."
"Klaus needs to be gone." She sneers. "I don't give a damn what happens to Esther."
"Yeah?" Cami inquires coming into the Compound. "Well, I sure do." She looks over at Nik laying on the floor, before looking at Marcel. "Should I even ask?"
"Cami, you should go." Davina says. "It's not safe."
"No kidding." She chuckles sarcastically. "I woke up with puncture wounds all up and down my spine and no idea how they got there." I scrunch my eyebrows in concern. "According to my uncle's files, they're apart of this ancient spell, and I don't know about you guys, but when I see 'ancient' and 'spell' in the same sentence, I think Esther."
I turn back to Davina. "Is that enough to convince you that she's the greater threat?"
_________________________
We all gathered around the couch in the middle of the Courtyard. Davina is examining Cami's puncture wounds. Kol had gotten Cami some water, before taking a seat on the coffee table by them. Marcel takes a seat in the chair next to the couch and I settle on the couch beside Cami.
"Yeah, that's my mum's work all right." Kol informs us looking at Cami's back with Davina. "She must have wiped your memory."
"Not the first time that's been done by a member of this family." Cami points out, referring to Nik's compulsion. "What does it mean?"
"It's a byproduct of a preparation spell." Kol explains.
"Preparation for what?" Davina inquires.
"To make her a vessel."
"He means Esther prepared your body for someone to jump into." Marcel tells Cami.
"Likely herself." Kol shrugs. "I mean, knowing mother."
"Where's Vincent?" Cami asks.
"The ballroom. Shackled to the stairs." I tell her.
Cami stands and storms in Finn's direction. When she's gone, I look at Kol and Davina, since Marcel followed Cami to make sure she's alright.
"Esther's whole deal has been to get me, Hayley, Elijah, and Nik into new bodies." Davina looks at me in surprise. "I think Cami is being prepared for Rebekah, since Hayley and I turned her down."
"She wants to put you into someone else too?"
"Yeah." I nod. "She thinks that Nik and Elijah have ruined my life and that everything that has happened to me is their fault. She thinks her offer makes up for that some how."
"She's not wrong. They have destroyed your life." Davina mutters and I scoff.
"What makes you think that?"
"You wouldn't have gotten pregnant or lost the baby and you wouldn't be a hybrid if it wasn't for them." Davina throws at me.
"I had a beautiful daughter and she may be gone, but I would never regret having her." I defend. "And Nik isn't to blame for her dying, Davina. Esther sent Genevieve and the other Harvest Girls after me, she gave the order to kill my baby. Nik lost his daughter, too. Can't you see that?"
"I don't understand why you continue to defend him to me." She snaps. "Why are you so hellbent on getting me to see him differently?"
"Well, isn't it obvious?" Kol cuts in, making my scrunch my eyebrows in confusion.
"What are you talking about?" I inquire.
"You clearly care about Davina a whole lot." He shrugs nonchalantly with a smirk. "Of course you want her to be on decent terms with the man you're in love with." I choke on some spit and Davina's mouth falls open.
"You're delusional." I tell him.
"Just because you haven't admitted it to yourself, sweetheart, doesn't make it not true." Kol smirks.
"You're in love with him?" Davina asks dumbfounded.
Before, I could protest and deny his accusation, Cami and Marcel returned. Cami looking more stressed than she did when she left. Marcel begins to pace and Cami stays standing.
"How long do I have?" Cami asks Kol.
"Well, now that Esther knows where Rebekah's hiding, not long." A shiver went down my spine at the thought of my twins being in danger, again. "The only way to stop it is to stop her."
"And we have to stop her." I stress, trying to keep the desperation out of my voice. However, Davina noticed something because she shoots me a confused look, that I ignore.
"Then let's do this." Cami says. "Marcel's a vampire. Kelsey's a Hybrid. You both are powerful witches."
"Esther's stronger than anything I've ever seen." Marcel replies. "We go up against her, we're gonna need Klaus."
Davina stands immediately. "No. No. We can do this without him."
"Davina, we can't go on a suicide mission. We need all the help we can get, and Nik is the Original Hybrid." I try to get her to see reason.
"I'm never gonna say this again, but Marcel's right." Kol agrees. "We do need the bastard."
Cami walks to Davina and takes her hands. "Davina... I know this is asking a lot, but please." Cami pleads.
Davina sighs and walks over to where Nik still lays unconscious in the hallway. I quickly stand and walk towards them about halfway, just in case. Davina kneels by his head and glances at us, before looking back down at him. Davina mutters a spell, before she stands. Nik's eye shoot open with a grasp of air and he looks around slightly confused as he stands up.
"What did you do to me?" Nik inquires.
"All you need to know is I beat you, again." Davina sasses without fear. I smirk at her as pride swells in my chest at her bravery.
"And yet you relented, which means you need me." Nik replies cockily. "Did I really lose?"
I scoff at him. "Stop being arrogant. She beat you. Now get cleaned up, because we have a problem." I tell him, receiving a smile from Davina and an eyeroll from Nik.
_________________________
Davina and Kol went to the study, while Nik got himself cleaned up. When, Nik was done he went to talk with Kol. Davina exited the study and made her way over to me. I was sitting at a table with a couple of chairs, still in the Courtyard. Davina sit across from me and sighs.
"Thank you for sticking up for me with Klaus." She says.
"Not that you needed it." I shrug with a small smile.
"Still." She comments. "It can't be easy being caught in the middle of the two of us."
"I would never let him hurt you." I tell her.
"I know." She nods. "Besides, I don't think he would kill me."
"Why do you say that?"
"Because, rather I like it or not, I see the way he looks at you." She sighs. "He won't hurt me because it would hurt you."
"I'm pretty sure that doesn't have much pull with him. I think he just doesn't want to hear me lay into him." I shrug.
"No." She denies. "It's more than that. You mean something to him and I've seen it for a while. But, Kelsey, I hate him and I don't think that's going to change." A tear falls down her face.
"Hey." I say softly wiping my thumb across her check. "I know. Don't cry."
"I don't want to lose you, but I just can't get past all he's done."
"Davina." I say sternly. "You will never ever lose me. Do you understand? I don't blame you for your feelings towards him. I understand why you hate him." I sigh and scoot my chair closer to her. "I, honestly, don't know what is going on between me and Nik. But, what I do know is you're my sister and that will never change. I will always be by your side and I will always do my best to protect you, even if we're fighting."
"Promise?" She asks and I pull her into a hug.
"I promise." I tell her.
Nik storms down the stairs and through the Courtyard and into the ballroom to Finn. Davina and I pull away in confusion.
"What now?" I mutter standing with Davina.
"I'm gonna go home, and let you deal with that." Davina says.
I nod and quickly hug her again. "I love you." I tell her.
"I love you." She replies exiting the Compound.
"MARCEL!" Nik yells and Marcel pushes a coffin into the ballroom.
Hayley arrives and approaches me looking confused about all the commotion. I shrug as Marcel and Nik force Finn into the coffin and Nik rushes out and towards the exit.
"Klaus, have you seen Elijah?" Hayley asks as we follow him to the door. "There's something I need to tell all of you."
"You can tell Kelsey and me on the way." He replies.
"Wait?! Nik, where are we going?" I question him in confusion.
He stops walking and turns and looks at me. "To see our daughters."
His words hit my like a truck. So many emotions begin to tangle inside me. Confusion, fear, anxiety, excitement. Hayley has to grab my wrist and pulls to get me to snap back to reality. Nik turns and continues to head to the car as Hayley and I quickly trail after him.