Terrible love - The National
"Niklaus." Elijah calls as his brother continues to stomp his feet on the ground, walking to nowhere in particular.
"It's a trick, Elijah." Klaus states, his denial eating away at him.
"No, brother, it's a gift." Elijah chimes, Klaus' feet coming a to a holt. "It's your chance. It's our chance-"
"To what?"
"To start over." He steps forward, wanting nothing more then for his brother to listen to him. "To take back everything we've lost, that was taken from us. Niklaus, our own parents came to despise us. Our family was ruined, we were ruined. Since then, all that you have ever wanted, all that we have ever wanted was a family."
Elijah had always dreamt of them being a real family, to stand together united. The moment he found out about Faith's child, he knew he would do anything in his power to protect her. Nothing would hurt the child. Nothing would take this chance away from them. He would love the child like they were his own.
"I will not be manipulated." Klaus growls, his body turning to his brother.
"So they're manipulating you. So what? You think that gives you the right to treat Faith like you did? Like every moment you sent with her, meant nothing to you?"
"She left me Elijah!" Klaus pointed out his arm, as if pointing at Faith. He was fuming. "She's been alive this entire time and she didn't think for one second that she should come back to me."
"You're not the only one we lied to Niklaus." Elijah replies, his voice soft. Klaus' hard look fell, as his brother stepped forward.
"Rebekah and I knew Faith would never find a life of her own if she knew you were alive. We never told her you came back."
Klaus is silent. He knew that if he opened his mouth, he'd say something he'd regret.
"Come back to you Niklaus?" Elijah asks confused, bringing up Klaus' last statement. "You just told the witches to kill her. What would she have come back to?"
"She knows I would never let them hurt her." Klaus says strongly, not liking the way he was being spoken to.
"Does she? The way I see it, you're here, and she's with them."
Klaus shakes his head, refusing to hear anything more his brother had to say.
"With them, Faith and her child, your child, live."
Klaus ignores him, turning his back on Elijah.
"I'm gonna kill every last one of them." His first instinct has always been to turn to violence. To kill his demons, to kill those who threaten him and his family. Although now, the list is extending. Even if he won't admit it.
"Then what? Return to Mystic Falls to resume your life as the hated one, the evil hybrid? Is it so important people quake with fear at the sound of your name?"
"People quake with fear because I have the power to make them afraid. What will this child offer? Will it guarantee me power?"
Elijah was thankful Faith wasn't there to hear this. It would crush her if she knew what he was saying. The way he talked about the child like an object, without a benefit.
"Family is power, Niklaus." He couldn't make it clearer. "Love, loyalty, that's power.This is what we swore before life tore away what humanity you had. Before anger, before paranoia created this person before me, someone I can barely even recognize as my own brother."
The memories of what once filled Elijah's mind. He wanted that again. He wanted them to be happy and themselves again.
"This is us, the Original family. And we remain together, always and forever. I am asking you to stay here. I will help you and I will stand by you. I will be your brother. We will build a home here together. So save Faith, save the woman you love. Save your child."
Klaus moves forward until he is face to face with his brother. He grabs the back of his neck and pulls him forward, his mouth at Elijah's ear.
"No." He growls, basically pushing him away.
Klaus goes off on his own, and Elijah can't help think he needs time for this to settle.
Or at least, he hopes that's all he needs.
_______
"Well, he's doing what he does. Given a chance at happiness, Klaus runs in the opposite direction." Elijah says into his phone, filling Rebekah in on what has been found out.
"Let him run. Faith and the child are better off without him." His sister replies.
"He's not better off without Faith or that child, and neither are we."
"Darling, kind Elijah, our brother rarely brings us anything but pain. At what point in your life will you stop searching for his redemption?"
For over a thousand years, Elijah had done everything in his power to bring back the person he once knew, his brother. Once he realized that person may no longer exist, all he's tried to do is pull back the layers of the monster.
"I'll stop searching for his redemption when I believe there is none left to be found." He states, pulling the phone away from his ear and hanging up.
He had to find Klaus. He had to convince him, that this is what he needs. This is everything he's ever wanted.
No matter how much he wished Faith had gotten what she deserved, a life without the originals, he was thankful. He was thankful it was Faith who brought his family together.
He continues his walk to the cemetery, finally reaching the tomb he and his brother once stood in. Only to hear the witches talking of their plans.
"Marcel and his vampires are out of control. Something had to be done." Sophie exclaims, the witches having never agreed to this.
"And the solution is to bring in more vampires?" One of the elders, Agnes questions. Having met Klaus earlier that day, had scared her.
"These aren't just any vampires, Agnes. They're the Originals."
"What makes you think you can control the hybrid?" This catches Elijah's attention, causing his feet to wonder into the tomb.
"She can't." He announces his presence, all of the witches turning to look at him. "I'm not entirely certain that I can, either, but now that your coven has drawn his ire, I have a question. What prevents my brother from murdering you instead of cooperating?"
He thought being honest, and blunt would be the easiest and fastest way to get the answers he wanted.
Sophie doesn't answer, she simply walks over to the bricks of the tomb and pulls out a weed.
Elijah was confused as he watches her hold up the weed, as if showing it off to him. Then everything falls into place as she pricks herself in the hand, and Faith cries out.
"Ow!" she yells, looking down at her hand. A spot of blood is seen and she doesn't understand why.
"The spell my sister performed, the one that got her killed, it didn't just confirm the pregnancy. It linked me to Faith. So anything that happens to me happens to her, which means her life is in my hands."
Faith wanted nothing more than to destroy the witch.
How dare she, she has no right. This is my life and I'm sick of witches ruining it.
"Klaus may not care about his own child, but it's very clear what it already means to you. If I have to hurt Faith or worse to ensure that I have your attention, I will."
Faith's head snaps to Elijah, the look on his face telling her everything she needed to know. He'd do anything for her and her baby's safety, even if Klaus won't.
"You dare threaten an Original?" Elijah retorted.
"I have nothing to lose." Sophie scolded. "You have until midnight to get Klaus to change his mind."
- - - - - - - - - -
"Are you here to give me another pep talk on the joys of fatherhood?" Klaus exclaimed, feeling his brother's presence beside him without having looked.
Elijah got comfortable on the park bench next to his brother, staring straight ahead. "I've said all I needed to say."
A short silence falls on them, until Klaus breaks it.
"I forgot how much I liked this town" he comments, staring at the beautiful empty street, the street lights lighting the road perfectly.
"I didn't forget." Elijah smiled to himself. "All the centuries we've spent together, and yet, I can count on one hand the number of times that our family has been truly happy. I hated leaving here."
Klaus' lips form a straight line. "As did I."
Re-positioning himself on the bench, Elijah turns to Klaus. "What is on your mind, brother?"
"For a thousand years I lived in fear. Anytime I settled anywhere our father would hunt me down and chase me off. He made me feel powerless, and I hated it. This town was my home once. And in my absence, Marcel has got everything I ever wanted."
The bitterness is evident in his voice.
"Power, loyalty, family. I made him in my image and he has bettered me. I want what he has. I want to be king."
King. King of New Orleans. It seems ridiculous, because the only people who would know of his so called title would be the supernatural of the town. Elijah thought.
"And what of Faith and the baby?" He had to ask.
Klaus turns to his brother, a cheeky smile finding his lips. "Every king needs an heir."
Hearing him talk of Faith in such a term upset Elijah, although he couldn't show it.
"So is that all this child means to you, a grab for power?"
"What does it mean to you?"
Elijah takes a moment, to really think through his answer. This child means everything.
"I think this child can offer you the one thing that you've never believed you had."
"And what's that?"
"The unconditional love of family."
Although Elijah and Rebekah had loved their brother all these years, Klaus never believed they could. Elijah saw this as a way for Klaus to understand, that family is in fact, unconditional love.
Always and forever.
"Tell Sophie Deveraux we have a deal."
- - - The next morning - - -
"So how do you propose this will work?" Elijah asks Sophie, once again finding himself strolling through the cemetery of New Orleans.
"Your brother needs to cement his place in Marcel's world." Sophie begins. "His inner circle, the day-walkers, that's where we begin. They're his friends, his family. We'll be hitting him where it hurts."
Elijah comes to a holt, not wanting to go any further without getting what he is here for.
Sophie notices his hesitation and turns towards him, giving him a questioning look.
"Although I'm sure you would love to think I am here for you and only you. I am here for a much more important purpose."
Sophie raises her eyebrows at him, knowing exactly where he is going with this.
"You want the girl." She states, crossing her arms over her chest.
"The girl has a name and I'd much prefer you use it when you are addressing her."
Sophie lifts her hands in the air in surrender. "You want Faith, and you shall have her. As long as we're clear."
"As I am sure you are aware, I am a man of my word. My brother and I will stay in New Orleans and help you defeat Marcel. That is, if you allow Faith to leave with me."
"Come with me." She gestures for Elijah to follow her. He does, only for the reason being he had to find Faith and assure her she is safe.