Chapter Fourteen. Witches & Warlocks
ELIJAH
{My Kind Of Perfect by David Archuleta}
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She's anything but typical
A sweet surprise
No matter what, she's looking at the bright side. It's gonna be worth it
Cause that's what love is
I'll keep searching for my kind of perfect
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The following afternoon, Elijah watched Arabella from afar as she made her way through the Quarter with a smile plastered on her face whilst she walked past each tourist with a bounce in her step. That furry dog was right by her side too.
Overall, the image of her so happy brought a smile up to his lips. It was rare. Of course, she smiled, she joked, and she had a sense of humor. But he felt Arabella wasn't happy until now. Was it because she didn't any recollection of their lives together?
Elijah wasn't trying to pry or be creepy, he was being thorough while he kept an eye on her while he waited for Freya to figure something out that might help get her memories back. He needed Freya to find something, anything to help her.
And while he waited, he followed her at the moment she walked in and out of little shops. The one she was currently in, had been the little shop that was run by the town witches. Though he questioned why she chose that one shop in particular. But he let her go about her business.
Twenty minutes later, she walked out with two paper bags. She placed her recently purchased items in the black bag hanging off her shoulders, on the way out the door. The dog appeared next to her again while they joined the rest of the tourists. She was dressed like one too, but Elijah wasn't focused on her outfit as much as the men who walked past her were. Elijah was there to keep an eye on her strictly for her safety. So his eyes trailed with her as she found a distraction and walked toward a lemonade stand. As she waited she pulled out her wallet, just as Niklaus appeared at her side.
What are you up to Niklaus? Elijah sighed. He should have figured his brother was eventually going to step in and make matters worse. But Elijah's eyebrow went up when he watched Arabella smile when she tucked her hair behind her ear. Elijah exhaled deeply at their friendliness toward one another.
This was not supposed to happen.
"Are there any pointers you'd like to give me on surviving a city like this one?" Arabella asked curiously with a raised eyebrow. All while she patiently waited for her drink. She gave a side glance at Niklaus as she waited for his answer.
"Let me think," he chuckled. He placed his arms behind his back and stuck his nose into the air as he thought about it. When he found the words, he turned his head and smiled at her. "I'd say; pick and choose wisely on the company you keep. And also, don't believe everything you hear. Rumors are rather tenacious around here."
Arabella furrowed her eyebrows and tilted her head a bit, but she understood because her smile returned shortly after that. When the man behind the stand held out her drink, she thanked him and tipped him three more dollars before she grabbed her beverage. She turned away with Niklaus walking beside her, and she became quiet as she sipped the chilled substance.
"Now if you don't mind, would it be alright if I asked you a question?" Niklaus kept his smile light while they walked, the dog trotting slowly behind them.
"Mmn," she stopped and swallowed while nodding her head. "Of course, ask away."
"Why did you want to move to New Orleans? What is so special about this place, that pulled you into its ravenous grasp?" He asked. The side grin he gave her, made her smile and look away. As if Niklaus made her...nervous?
Elijah listened closely while wondering what Niklaus was up to. He had no idea if Niklaus was planning to get into Arabella's head, trying to gain her trust and get closer to her. And quite frankly, if that were the case, that was the worst thing he could do.
But he continued to listen and watch Arabella while she thought about it.
"To be honest, I needed to be out of a horrible situation, New Orleans happened to be the furthest I could get. So when I stepped foot into New Orleans, I don't know. I felt a familiarity with the place. A sense of belonging. That alone told me that I was home. Which is sort of weird because I've never been here."
Niklaus nodded in understanding. And Elijah was moved by what he heard. He needed to know what happened to her and he needed to punish whoever was responsible. She might have been home, but she wasn't there. Ara Michaels was there, and it would never feel like home until Arabella Sophia Bonavich-Mikaelson was present.
No one hurts his family and lives. No one.
Elijah flinched, but just barely for anyone to notice. When he thought about the Mikaelson name being on the end of her last name, he had to remember they were no longer married. He wasn't her husband and she didn't know who he was. And that broke him more than Hayley ever could. His chest physically began to hurt. Making him lean against the post right next to him.
In the back of Elijah's mind, he wanted to be married to her, but it was impossible to think that when the woman he constantly thought of, didn't acknowledge she was ever married. The woman didn't know anything, and that alone boiled a whole different hatred for the person or people responsible.
Niklaus looked back behind Arabella to see the dog panting, looking in both directions, keeping up with the two of them. Then he noticed the vest he was wearing, where "DOG AT WORK DO NOT PET" was printed in a yellow diamond with big, bold, black letters, and a dog collar that said, "SERVICE DOG" wrapped around his neck.
"Is there someone I need to meet?" Niklaus smiled and a chuckle soon followed behind. He stopped momentarily, which caused Arabella to stop and look down at the furry canine who had been looking up at them at the same moment.
"This is Eli, it's short for Elijah. And ironic enough, I did not name him after your brother. Purely coincidental." She scratched her head, made the joke, and laughed while Niklaus joined her. He waited till Arabella turned her head so Niklaus could eye Elijah, who he knew would be watching and listening.
Elijah straightened his posture while he broke eye contact with his arrogant brother.
"On the contrary, it's not uncommon for people or animals to be named after my brother, who I might say, is known for his nobility. The noble stag."
For what Elijah found confusing, Niklaus made a joke, and once Arabella caught on, they laughed together. Elijah couldn't tell if his brother was complimenting him or insulting him. And when the laughter died down, she looked at Niklaus for a mere second and started walking again.
"Eli is being trained by me. It's normally what I do. I'm given puppies, and I train each and every one of them to be a service dog, to help people who need them. And when it's time, when they're ready, they are adopted. Eli was given to me five months ago, and so far he's being used as my service dog for severe PTSD. But when I'm ready, he'll be sent away to help someone else." Arabella explained. And as much as conversations like that bored someone like Niklaus, he actually listened to her. For someone who despised Arabella as a whole being, listening to her wasn't something that he did. Which made Elijah assume Niklaus had an agenda of his own. As if he had a second chance to get Arabella to choose him rather than Elijah. And Elijah needed to find out what it was so he could stop him if that hadn't been the case.
Little did Elijah know, there was no agenda. Just a sheer inkling that Ara would choose Niklaus over Elijah as if they were in a warped universe. So Elijah would have been right if he could read his brother's mind.
Elijah could go into detail about the million and one possible deviant plans his brother could come up with, but he didn't bother. He wanted to know why that dog was assigned to her, and why she thought she had severe PTSD. If he knew what caused it, then he would be able to help her. For her to look at Elijah as someone who is willing to find answers instead of someone who terrified her.
Niklaus looked her in her eyes, and what he saw scared even him. He saw hurt, and when Niklaus looked at Arabella, hurt never existed. Well, until she and Elijah ended their marriage. That was beyond hurt, that was devastation. But he could see she wouldn't know anything about that. The hurt he saw was completely different from that.
"But how I ended up with PTSD, that's another story for another day, right?" She chuckled nervously as her hand mindlessly touched his bicep. That was another mistake because images came to her again as they did with Elijah, but the images she was seeing were twice as violent.
Arabella had to snatch her hand from Niklaus, she tried to calm her breathing. Niklaus didn't know what he just witnessed but it was something so unfamiliar he had no clue what to do. It felt unfamiliar because it felt like they were reliving the past, and he spent an endless amount of time trying to forget it. He was able to do that to others, and he knew Arabella could do the same. But it was different, it was hard for him to explain. Emotions he thought he got rid of, appeared like she did, out of nowhere. And he wasn't sure what he wanted to do with that information. It was obvious Niklaus knew of those memories, but the look on her face showed him she had no idea what was happening and she was terrified by what she saw. It was a horror film in her mind and she and Niklaus were the main characters and the monsters.
Elijah watched, he recognized the same reaction she gave him the day before. And he realized when Arabella touched them, memories bombarded her. But he didn't think that was what she thought they were. She had no clue they were her memories, she showed she was more scared than anything. And Elijah wished that wasn't the case. There was nothing for her to be scared of.
He wished he could find the right words to describe to her what was happening without her completely freaking out on him. But nothing came to mind.
So Elijah watched as Arabella took a safe step back away from Niklaus, she apologized and made an excuse to leave, but before she did, she glanced in Elijah's direction and stared hard at him. She sensed him, which was a good sign. But her expression was agitated. When she realized Elijah was there the entire time, she told Niklaus she would see them on Friday, then took her dog and sped walked in the direction she just walked from.
Before Elijah could see her disappear among the fading crowd, he spotted the four words across the top of her back. And when he made the words out, his heart did something weird. It started to make irregular heart rhythms, and the aching returned. She remembered something.
"Love, Always And Forever"
Elijah knew every inch of Arabella's body as if it were his own, and before she disappeared fifteen months ago, that tattoo was not there. Which meant, something or someone had to release that memory from her mind in order to have it etched on her. Which made Elijah want to get to the bottom of her situation even more.
He wanted to know what caused her to have that memory. To make her want to have those words tattooed on her. He had to know if she had seen him in her memories the day before. He had so many questions but no way of knowing how to ask them when her mind had been a blank canvas on all things Mikaelson.
After Arabella left, Niklaus appeared at Elijah's side where he leaned against a post outside of a voodoo shop where she had just exited from.
"Do you believe me now?" Elijah asked with a straight face. He looked down at his cuff link because he wasn't quite ready to make eye contact with Niklaus, he was just ready to prove a point.
Elijah pulled Niklaus aside the night before and spoke with him about the experience he had with Arabella, and right away Niklaus turned Elijah away and went to go hang out with Lucien. Although Niklaus' encounter with Arabella had nothing to do with his brother, he wanted to test the theory out for himself, and what he came up with had been too similar to Elijah's.
"Say that I do, what are we going to do to help fix it?" Niklaus responded with a question of his own. When he turned his head to his brother, he could sense the concentration, and Elijah couldn't think of anything. And when he did, he only thought of murder, which he knew Niklaus could get behind. The target was what they needed to figure out together.
But Elijah needed suspects first, he needed to find the witch who cast the spell, and he needed to find the people that stripped away every ounce of strength Arabella had, of who she was. Until then, Elijah would become a complete savage for the woman he loved, for the woman he swore to protect, and for the woman he let down. He was going to make it up to Arabella. Even when she didn't know she was being fought for.
"We need to find the witch who cast this horrendous spell and get her to undo it," Elijah stated calmly.
"And if the witch won't comply?" Niklaus looked forward, watching tourists while asking his question.
"We kill her either way." Elijah looked at his brother for a mere second and then walked off in a different direction.
He had to see Davina.
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"I told you, Elijah, I'm not helping you anymore." Davina grimaced while sprinkling herbs into a bowl.
"Even if it meant bringing my brother back?" Elijah stuck a hand into his pocket as his other hand glided along the stone wall.
"What are you talking about?" She asked. She stopped what she was doing and crossed her arms.
"Arabella is back in town," he added as he picked up a bone that belonged to some deceased witch. He examined it before he looked up at Davina.
"That's great," she sighed, relieved at the news. "You're still an awful person for divorcing her."
"That is not the case, and that is none of your business. It seems that Arabella doesn't know who any of us are. It looks like her memories have been erased, and the only way her memories are coming back is if she touches someone she shares them with. Only, she's not seeing the familiarity of these memories, she's seeing them as nightmares. Does that strike you as odd?" He explained briefly.
"Oh, yeah. That's not good."
Davina raced around her little project, she aimed to grab one of the spell books that were passed to her when she became regent. She flipped through pages and pages searching for something, something she had read about, and something Elijah wouldn't know anything about.
He waited until she found what she was looking for, and after three minutes of searching, she approached him with the opened book so that he could see what she was seeing.
"See, I could give someone their memories back if they had been compelled. Like I did with Cami when Klaus compelled her over and over again. With Arabella, who knows how long she's gone without her memories, and who erased them in the first place? She may even be cursed." She explained, and as she did, Elijah understood the severity of Arabella's missing memories, like time was against him and if he didn't get them back in a certain amount of time then they would be lost forever. He was at a dead-end road when it came to where he could even begin to look.
"Is there anything you can do?" He asked calmly, but anyone could see the rush in his eyes.
"I'm saying; I can't be sure until I see her. I need to know how bad this is, and if I'm able to help. I need her with all of her memories of Kol if I want to bring him back."
Elijah thought about it, and if he could somehow find the witch, he wouldn't be one hundred percent on whether he would let the witch live the second he would see her. That was the only solution he was seeing at the moment. His other problem would be finding her at all since Arabella wouldn't know who she was either. He wouldn't need a minute to get the witch to tell him how to undo the spell, all he had to do was kill her, and then Arabella would be back to her normal self. At least he thought. She would know who he was, and who her family was, and she would be able to get rid of the dog.
He felt he wasn't giving the canine a chance, that he was being somewhat unfair. But he needed Arabella's attention more than ever. He was well aware once she got her memories back, she would go back to hating him. And he was fine with that, he was fine with her hating him. He just wanted her to know him, without that feeling, nothing else would be worth it. He would rather flip his humanity switch than continue to see Arabella look at him like he was a stranger.
Elijah grew to know Arabella, every quirk, every flaw, her beauty, her smarts. The tenth century was a different time then. He didn't want that all to go to waste, he didn't want someone he knew for sure over a millennium to vanish even while she was flesh and bone. He mentioned she was there, but she wasn't there. He yearned for that more than anything.
"So, what is it you need from me?" He asked. Elijah was willing to help if it were beneficial to Arabella. He would do anything for her, together or apart. He was standing by that.
"I'm going to need you to bring her here, I'll see what I could do on my end, but Elijah you'll have to find the witch." She closed the book, and then started gathering the bones and herbs she had lying around, and sat them aside since she needed to make room for someone else.
"I'll see what I can do."
With that, Elijah sped off. He needed to find Arabella, but he knew it would be harder to talk to her since their last encounter. He was sure she wouldn't want to see him, but he was absolutely positive he needed to see her.
Elijah wasn't a man to show his feelings to the world, he had preferred to stay confined in his own mind. But he knew it was different with Arabella; the beauty who stole his heart, made him smile, made him cry. She knew who he was from the inside out. And it was rare. Elijah would do anything to protect her, which was why he was going to find the witch and fix this mess once and for all.
He didn't feel right; he was the only one left with their memories, and that was why he was hell-bent on having them returned to her. He wouldn't know who in their right mind would want to steal something so precious from her, but the world was a cruel place. A lot of people would do a whole lot worse, for a whole lot less.
So Elijah had to think. Arabella was a weapon, and without her memories, she wouldn't know that she was an Original. She didn't know what power she contained inside of herself, which made her vulnerable. Without those memories, she wouldn't know the Mikaelson family- her family. She would be alone. Elijah knew Arabella would have never wanted that.
So the witch behind it had to be someone who was an obvious enemy of his family. Had to be. Someone who had a fixated agenda against them, someone who needed Arabella out of the way. But that list grew longer the more he thought about it. He thought maybe the witch wasn't the mastermind behind it, maybe she was taking orders from someone else, but Elijah couldn't begin to think of who. Which made it even harder for him to figure out.
Who wanted to get rid of the Mikaelson family, more than his obvious enemies? Who showed the most hatred towards them? Who was hurt and affected most by the Mikaelsons?
Or perhaps it wasn't someone who showed their hatred, maybe it was someone who expected the Mikaelsons to trust them. Maybe he wasn't looking for someone outside of New Orleans when they might have been in New Orleans the entire time.
Elijah was going to get to the bottom of it. And if heads were to roll in the process, then let them roll. He would burn the whole city to the ground if he knew it would keep her safe from further harm.
He was going to call Niklaus and Rebekah and tell them to meet him at the compound, but he decided against it, obviously because he wanted to see Arabella first. He needed to be sure she was safe, away from harm. He had to be sure she would remain unbothered now that she was home. Because once someone knew of her homecoming, they'll be wanting blood, and Elijah needed to be around when it happened. He needed to protect her. Until she was able to protect herself, then he would stand beside her.
So, as much as he didn't want to bother her, he had to dig into her mind in order to help.
He was already watching her when she walked into a small business owned by a couple that lived above the restaurant. The intoxicated scent of jerk chicken and jambalaya floated through the air as he walked in exactly fifty seconds after her.
She didn't turn to the sound of the bell ringing in the doorway, she casually kept her back to him and waited for someone behind the counter to pay attention to her.
Elijah paid attention, he watched her posture, he watched as she turned her head slowly while she scanned the menu before her. Her hair covered her tattoo, so he couldn't marvel at the familial pact he and his siblings created. The same pact he swore to her. Always and Forever was etched on her skin, and she didn't even know what it really meant.
He wasn't aware Arabella was completely occupied with everything around her but him, but Elijah knew better. Arabella was the first-ever Werewolf, she already knew he was following her. She just didn't want to know it. And Arabella was incredibly observant when she did know, she wasn't afraid to let that part of her show.
"Twice in one day; either I'm someone special or you're horrible at stalking." She turned her head a little more to the right, keeping her eyes on the menu. Elijah was clearly not expecting those words to come from her mouth.
"Excuse me?" Narrowing his eyes, he thought the gesture would make him look somewhat offended, and naturally, Arabella was able to see right through him.
"You're excused." Arabella squinted, she turned around far enough so she was glancing at him from the side. Her lips twitched before she looked him up and down before she opened her mouth again. "Suits must be a... thing."
Elijah paused for a moment. He wondered what changed since he wasn't keeping an eye on her. Her demeanor was anything but sweet like the one she had the day before. Or even hours prior to her seeing him. Her attitude flipped a complete one-eighty, and he hoped he wasn't the cause for it.
"Arabella, I'm sorry if I have upset you in any way. I'm sure it wa-."
"It's Ara. And I don't know who you think I am, but I am not this person. But yes, you did upset me, Elijah." She turned around completely by then. Her shoulders were high, and her stance was defensive. Elijah was every bit confused when anger flashed in her eyes. The orange and pink had been noticed. Which sparked a match inside of him. "And as much as I want to be kind, I won't. You make me uncomfortable."
"I beg your pardon?" Elijah blinked hard. He seemed so confused by her hostility, he kind of never expected it from her since her memories were gone. But he didn't want her to seem like she couldn't be around him. Asking her again wasn't only because of his confusion, it was due to her rudeness. He was going to let her slide just once because she didn't know who Elijah was at that moment, but he was going to make it clear he didn't tolerate it. The old Arabella knew that.
"You don't know me, and I don't know you." She approached him slowly until she was only a couple of inches away. When she stopped he did a once-over to make sure she was unable to touch him. "So that does not give you the right to follow me. I don't know what it is about you or your family bu-."
"I'm not following you, I'm around for your safety." Elijah had to cut her off. But that didn't ease her mind at all.
"My safety? How many times do I have to say this? You don't know me, Elijah. Who are you to claim you're protecting me? When it's your very family I should be steering clear from?" She explained just as anger grew in her bones. Elijah didn't want her to cause a scene, but he was confused by her words. Steer clear?
"And what is that supposed to mean?" He asked, clearly insulted. It was quite hard for Elijah to ever feel that way, but when it came to her, it struck a nerve.
"I only wanted to meet you, because I believe in seeing how people are for myself. And I thought you were decent, until..." Her voice shook. She looked like she wanted to cry, but she held it in. "Maybe I should have listened to that man when he told me to stay away from all of you."
"Arabella, I-I—." Elijah held out his hand, and just before he was to touch her. She took a harsh step to the side. His heart sank to his stomach at that motion. Until it clicked in his head what she meant. "...What man?"
"With all due respect, that is enough." Her hand shook violently at her side. "So do us both a favor and don't ever touch me again."
Elijah so badly wanted to grab her by the hand and not let go until every memory returned to her. He didn't like what she said, because that meant Arabella didn't like being around him, even while her memories were vacant. And if that were true, then his first impression had been a failure, and he couldn't stand idly by and continue to let it happen.
She walked around him and stopped in front of the door. Turned out, she most likely lost her appetite. Or she was going to find her dinner somewhere Elijah wouldn't be. It would be Elijah's best guess anyway.
"Who did you buy your land from?" He turned so she would stop before she left out of the door. And she did. She stopped and she listened. "Please, it's extremely important."
She turned her head and furrowed her eyebrows as she thought of the name. When she remembered she blinked up at Elijah and met his gaze.
"Lucien Castle."
She seemed confused by his question and by the way Elijah's eyes lit up and then darkened to the sound of the scum of the earth's name. She knew it couldn't have been good.
Elijah knew something was wrong with the whole ordeal, so now he had a reason to question and blame who was responsible for Arabella's disappearance. More or so her attitude toward the family too.
"Thank you Arab-, Ms. Michaels," Elijah smirked. His hurt seeped into his pores. It hurt to know he was hurting her. But if only she knew who he was to her, then she would know why he was around, why he was protecting someone such as her. Why he couldn't ignore the simplicity of what she assumed was her existence?
The Strix never left New Orleans after she disappeared. They lurked around every corner, they killed anyone who defied them, and they had control over the vampires of the Quarter. Next, they would try to overthrow Elijah. It was only a matter of time. Besides Lucien, the Strix was suspect also. They had to know something was up. Especially if Lucien had been conspiring with the De Martels.
Arabella raised her chin before she stepped her foot through the door, but before she disappeared beyond it, she stared into Elijah's eyes. And what she saw there saddened her. She saw loneliness.
"I'll see you Friday for lunch, Mr. Mikaelson." Her last words weren't hard. Her last words to him until then gave him a glimmer of hope for redemption of his first impression. Then she was gone.
He could follow her, he thought. But he had another engagement to see to. He couldn't decide whether or not he was going to wring out Lucien's neck, or simply tear out his heart.
He would decide once he got there.
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Champagne glasses smashed against the nearby wall as Lucien was yanked up by his throat, by Elijah's hand. His face might have seemed stale but deep down he was seething with a rage that wouldn't be coherent on paper.
"Elijah, what do I owe this occasion?" Lucien choked out a hard chuckle. But Elijah's facial expression had been along the lines of frustration and anger. He was in no mood for Lucien's snide remarks.
Niklaus casually continued to sit in a chair, sipping on his drink. He was completely unmoved by his so-called friend being manhandled by his older brother. He knew it was just a matter of time before it happened, so he smiled at the altercation.
"Niklaus, a little help?" Another four words choked out from his lips and all Niklaus did was grin while looking elsewhere.
"On the contrary Lucien, if Elijah had to come all the way across town to string you up like a puppet then surely you've done something distasteful. Do you care to share what that may be?" Asked Niklaus, before he sipped from the champagne flute in his hand again.
"I have no idea why he's here, I have no idea why you're here." He assured Elijah. But Elijah didn't loosen his grip. Anyone could tell his anger was getting the best of him. It was the frustration of continuously hitting dead-ended trails that infuriated him.
"It goes along the lines of selling land to a woman named Arabella Bonavich, so that she may build her house there. What do you know of her?" Elijah urged as his hand squeezed Lucien's jugular. But before Lucien began to hear the cracking of his own windpipe, he buckled under pressure.
"Arabella? I know Ara. She came to New Orleans shortly after I did. She was looking to build a house after coming across a large sum of money. I thought I'd help her out." He struggled and it said a lot about who he was as a vampire, weak. As he'd always been.
"And why? Why would you do that?" Elijah pushed harder. Clearly unsatisfied with his answer. He needed one reason to tear his heart out.
"She paid cash. Fifty thousand for the land, well over nine hundred thousand for the house itself!" He explained in a rush. Elijah felt it wasn't of any use to compel Lucien due to him and the De Martel's ingesting vervain almost regularly, so he had to result to violence, which he never minded. He knew their time would be saved if only everyone complied with answering his questions the first time they were asked.
And so, Elijah released him. He adjusted his suit, looked toward Niklaus, then turned to head for the elevator doors.
"What's so special about the woman anyway? She's so plain." Lucien shrugged. He adjusted his freshly wrinkled tee shirt just before Niklaus sped behind him and instantly snapped his neck. With a twist and then a turn, Lucien fell to the floor with a hard thud.
"That's where you're wrong. That woman is any and everything under the sun, but plain isn't one." Niklaus smiled up at his brother. Which caused Elijah to smirk back at him.
They then walked out of Lucien's place of residence together. When they reached the elevator, one question remained on Elijah's mind. And he wasn't going to hesitate to ask Niklaus.
"Why would you help me, I thought Lucien was a friend of yours?" Elijah asked. They both stepped into the elevator and turned till they were both facing the opened doors. Niklaus kept his face straight for a moment, then his smug expression made an appearance just before answering him.
"He was never a friend, Elijah. He thinks I don't know about him and Aurora going behind my back, conspiring against me. I know. Besides, what's a friend; Arabella is family."
Elijah turned his head to his brother. And for the first time in fifteen months, he felt like he was in a forgiving mood. That was all he wanted from his brother. He wanted a helping hand, and he got it. It was obviously better late than never. But it happened nonetheless.
Elijah didn't act on that gesture alone, he wanted to wait until he saw Niklaus help Ara, he wanted to see action. Until then, he would wait and see if his brother was still worth redeeming.
The elevator doors soon closed after that.
Arabella settled on Chinese food from a little restaurant not too far from the one she ran into Elijah in. After roaming the streets she figured that she'd go back there the following day and order there as she had originally planned. But she let the idea drift to the back of her mind as she quietly walked in little zig-zagged lines while digging in her little box of lo mien, with chopsticks she specifically and kindly asked for.
It was already a little past nine when she noticed the streets dying down from the crowd of tourists. As the Quarter got quieter, her eyes roamed to the little balls of light that hung from cables, which illuminated the streets with a homey feel. She sensed familiarity. She felt she had been in a place similar to New Orleans but it was ridiculous, she knew she'd never been to New Orleans. She practically swore she hadn't. But the sense never left her bones.
After a moment of silence as she thought it over, she never expected someone to sneak up behind her, she learned to be more alert than that.
"You know, it's not safe to roam the streets alone. Especially for someone like you." A man, who Arabella had never seen, appeared out of nowhere behind her. And all she did was turn around and raise her right eyebrow.
"Do I know you?" She asked. She stuck her chopsticks inside her noodles and she tilted her head a bit to the left. She was sure if she knew who that man was, she'd remember. But it was clear she hadn't.
"No, but I know you. And it's time for you to pay for all the pain you caused."
His hands flew up, and the lights above Arabella's head flickered, and some of the bulbs busted. But nothing happened to her. The wind rustled around her, and fallen leaves glided past. But overall she was profoundly confused about what was supposed to happen.
The man froze at Arabella not being affected by his magic, and he kind of stood there as Arabella reached into her back pocket and pulled out a twenty-dollar bill, then approached him slowly. The money in one hand, her dinner in the other. She was clearly amused.
"Don't get me wrong, I don't really believe in the whole witches and warlocks thing. But I'm impressed. That was a cool trick you did there with the lights." She placed the money in his open hand and waited for it to close as he watched her in shock. She didn't understand his expression, but she was still going to be polite. But she also felt it was time to head home. "I hope you have a good night."
She patted the man on his bicep and immediately she was drawn into a state where the images were pounding at the locked door inside of her head. She put up that barrier hours earlier because of Niklaus and Elijah, but the images were new to her. They were flooding her mind too fast and she couldn't see who it was. After a moment, she inhaled deeply trying to get them to stop, and the images slowed until one image clouded her mind, and when it did. A name sailed past her lips as it matched the stranger's face.
When the name was said out loud, she was staring at Vincent, but he knew who she was talking about all too well.
"Finn?" She whispered.
Vincent knew that name, because Finn had once resided in his body, and his name was impossible to forget.
Vincent saw what was going on inside of her head, and to him, that explained why she was so confused, as to why she thought his magic was nothing but a little show to receive money. She didn't believe in the supernatural because she didn't know she herself was a supernatural creature. Her memories were gone, but they were coming back in the worst way possible. Her head was a ticking time bomb, and her memories were counting down to the right moment when she would explode.
Arabella had dropped her food as she backed away. She looked as if she didn't mean to be rude, but the little source of information she just received scared her to death. She needed to get home, to get behind closed and locked doors. She needed to be with Eli so she could feel safe. The moment she would find him by her side, helping her calm what would turn into a panic attack, only then would she feel better.
But as she continued to back away from Vincent. She tried to make sense of just who Finn was. But Finn's face didn't ring any bells. And she knew she was going to lose sleep over it like she did the night before. Trying to figure out who Elijah was to her.
She knew she was a ticking bomb, but she didn't know why.
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Word Count: 6,689