Klaus sat on the ground, with Layla's head on his lap. She was drawing a picture in the dirt while Klaus ran his fingers through her lushes locks. Layla looked up and smiled at him, "I never want to leave this place."
Klaus looked around at the trees and dirt, "I would leave to go home."
Layla playfully slapped him, "There is beauty every where you just need to look hard enough," she picked a flower showing Klaus, "There is beauty everywhere."
Klaus smiled down at Layla. He loved the way she saw the world, if only he could see the world in her eyes. He leaned down kissing her deeply, "But the most beautiful thing is in front of me."
She smiled under his kiss, "I love you Niklaus."
******************
Layla woke up, to Klaus' soft snores. She looked at him, he was perfect even when he was asleep. He stayed the night this time, making her smile slightly.
"You know, it is weird to stare," Klaus murmured.
Layla rolled her eyes at her, "When will you be going?"
Klaus' eyes opened, "You didn't want me to leave last night, why now?"
"Because I am a nice person, and it was late. You looked tired," she told him, "Anyway, I know you are leaving to make your hybrids."
"You're, right," Klaus said to her, "I'm off to Portland today. You're kind of place, with your whiney music taste."
Layla glared at him, "You're an ass."
"But you love me,"he smirked.
"I wouldn't be to sure," Layla told him.
Klaus' face dropped, "But you do, the fates made it so."
"Whatever," she mumbled, getting out of bed.
Klaus followed her and collected his things, he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, "I will call you tonight, love."
"Bye," she said to him as he walked out of her bedroom.
***************
Layla sat in her living room, watching an American Horror Story Marathon, nothing was going to posses her to get up and leave her house today. Until, her phone rang.
"What Damon?" she asked annoyed.
"We need you at the old Lockwood cellar if you would," Damon told her.
"Why, I'm done with supernatural shit after yesterday," Layla sighed.
"Please Layla," Damon pleaded.
"Damon, American Horror Story is on, I'm not missing Evan Peters."
Damon groaned, "We only need you for an hour tops. Then you can go back and waste your day away, which to me is not a smart decision, considering you have a death sentence."
Layla pondered his words. He was right, she only had a limited time, "Fine, I'll see you in twenty minutes."
"Thank Layla, I owe you one," Damon said before hanging up.
****************
Layla got out of her car and joined Damon, Elena, and Alaric who were standing at the entryway.
"Good morning sunshine," Damon grinned.
Layla exhaled deeply, "Come on, my TV is calling me."
Alaric chuckled as he descended the stairs. They began to walk down a tunnel, Layla almost fell catching on to Elena for support. She gave Elena a cheeky grin before continuing.
"So, the Lockwoods really have no idea that these tunnels are underneath their property?" Elena asked shining a flashlight onto the wall.
"Careful where you shine that thing," Alaric warned her, "Bats hate the light."
"Wait, what?"
Damon went behind Elena and whispered her name very quietly causing Elena to gasp.
"Ah! God, Damon!" Elena exclaimed.
"Scaredy-cat," Damon said.
"Just ignore him," Alaric told her, "That's what I do."
"So, you really can't get in?" Elena asked Damon.
"No. Seems even the ancient Lockwoods were anti-vampire," Damon said.
"What do you mean, ancient?" Elena asked.
Damon gestured at the wall, "See for yourself."
They continued down the tunnel until Damon stopped, "Well, this is as far as I get to go."
"What is all this?" Elena asked. Layla looked at it in amazement, it was old, older than the founding families.
"Well, as far as I can tell, it's a story. In simple, archaeological terms, it's a really, really old story," Alaric said, he pointed at one part of the wall, "That right there, is the moon cycle," he pointed to another drawing, "A man, a wolf."
"A werewolf," Layla whispered, staring at the wall.
"Yeah, it's the "Lockwood Diaries: Pictionary-Style," Damon said.
"I don't understand. I thought the Lockwoods came here with the Original Founders in the 1860s," Elena said.
"I don't know," Alaric said, "Maybe the Lockwoods did, but according to this wall, these werewolves have been here a lot longer than that."
"How long?" Elena asked.
"Long. It gets better," Damon said, "Show them, Ric."
"Names," Alaric said.
Layla looked at the walls, "They're not native. They're written in Runic, a Viking script." She groaned, Alaric really was rubbing off on her.
Elena looked at her and Alaric confused, "Vikings?"
"This name here, I translated it and it reads Niklaus," Alaric said.
"Klaus," Elena mumbled.
"And Elijah, Rebekah..."
Layla cut him off, allowing her hand to graze the fourth name carved in the wall, "Layla."
"These are the names of the Original Family?" Elena asked, "And Layla?"
"Carved into a cave that's been here since way before the founding of Mystic Falls. Or even the entire New World, for that matter," Alaric said.
"Okay, this has gotta be one of Klaus's fakes," Elena told them.
"It's not," Layla told them.
Elena raised an eyebrow, And you know how?"
"Call it a hunch, I don't remember, but I feel like was here," Layla whispered, studying the wall carefully.
"Other then Layla's hunch, the last name up here made us think otherwise," Alaric said.
"What's the name?" Elena asked.
"Mikael," Alaric told them.
Layla didn't know Mikael, well not in this life, but something was telling her he was bad news.
"Mikael..." Elena said, "Mikael, as in, the vampire hunter who knows how to kill Klaus?"
"Yep. I now like to call him, 'Papa Original'," Damon smirked.
*********************
Layla and Alaric sat in his kitchen, trying to decipher the drawings. Damon and Elena stood behind them, playing vampire hunter.
"These images tell a story," Alaric said,"To learn the story, you have to decipher these images."
Layla sighed, "I have a bad feeling about this Mikalel dude."
Damon ignored her and disarmed Elena without effort, "Sloppy!"
"Shut up!" Elena growled, "I'm new at this." She retrieved the stake back from Damon.
"Ghost of Christmas Past" Mason Lockwood set up the cave and lead us to a weapon that can kill Klaus," Damon told Layla and Alaric.
"Yeah, but doesn't Mikael have a weapon?" Elena asked.
"Yes. Which probably means the wall will lead us to Mikael, who we have already found... and lost," Damon said. He overpowered Elena again, "Bang! You're dead!" He went to nibble on Elena's neck but she pushed him away forcefully.
"These images at the very least might tell us what that weapon is," Alaric said, rolling his eyes at Damon.
Elena stepped up to the table, "Then all we have to do is find out what they mean."
"Fine! Fine! If I am being irritatingly optimistic like you three," Damon said, "How do you suppose we do that?"
"Well, if the story is about the Original Family living here, then we go straight to the source!" Elena said.
Layla rolled her eyes, "Why are you going to use Rebekah? Do you really think she is going to talk about this?"
Elena shrugged, "Worth a shot."
Layla moaned, "Fine, I'm meeting her at her cheer practice later, you are welcome to join us."
***************
Layla walked onto the football field, up to Rebekah. She smiled widely when she saw her, "Layla, I haven't seen you in days! Where have you been?"
Layla shrugged, "I've been around."
Rebekah's smile, faded to a scow as she saw Elena walk up behind them, "You! Goody."
"I was hoping we could talk," Elena told her calmly.
"About what? Stefan?" she asked, "Don't worry, I'm off him until he starts treating me better. In fact, you should probably take a page out of my book, if I'm being honest."
"Actually, I'd rather talk about this," Elena said, holding up the pictures of the drawings, "I'm curious why you and Klaus have spent a thousand years running from your father."
Rebekah looked nervously at Elena, "I should get back to the girls. Homecoming's right around the corner." She turned around to leave but Elena stopped he.
"Well then, maybe I'll ask Mikael when we wake him."
Rebekah stopped, and turned back around, "You're bluffing! You don't know where he is. No one does."
"So, then who's rotting in that old cemetery in Charlotte?" Elena asked smugly.
"If you wake Mikael, we are all doomed!"
"So then, tell me," Elena insisted.
Layla felt the awkwardness in the air, "Elena, let's just go."
Rebekah ignored her, "Why do you want to know?"
"Why don't you want me to wake him?"
Rebekah quickly changed the subject, "Need to get back to the girls." She turned and walked away.
"Maybe we should listen to her," Layla said, "I have a feeling, that she is right."
Elena glared at her, "Or maybe it's because you are in love with Klaus."
"Elena, I'm not-"
"Don't play stupid, I know, everyone knows," Elena spat, "After all her did to us and you have feelings for him!"
Layla glared at her friend, "You don't know anything, Elena, you don't know about this stupid curse."
Elena was silent, "I'm going to the home," Layla told her, leaving an angry Elena behind.
************
Layla walked into her house, stopping at the Grill.
"I need your help," a voice said coming from the living room.
Layla peaked her head through the doorway to see Rebekah and a few more girls, dressed in dresses. "Rebekah what are you doing?" she asked.
Rebekah sighed, as if it was obvious, "I need help picking a homecoming dress."
"Okay," Layla said before there was a knock at her door, "Hold onto that thought." Layla went to the door and opened it, revealing Elena, "Elena, how can I help you?" Layla asked.
Elena sighed, "I wanted to say sorry, I'm just stressed about everything, including you."
Layla gave her s half smile, "Worry about yourself, not me. If you want to come in you can, Rebekah is in having s fashion show."
Elena's face lit up, "Good I need to speak to her."
Layla let Elena in, she was astonished to see the line of girls in the house.
Rebekah grinned at the models, "Okay, now twirl please."
"You compelled your own private runway show?" Elena asked.
Rebekah nodded, "I need a Homecoming dress, so does Layla. So, what do you think? Pick one."
"I like the green-" Layla said before being cut off by Elena.
"I'm not here to help you shop," Elena said, "I'm here to talk about why you don't want me to wake up Mikael."
Rebekah rushed over to one of the girls and pulled her neck to the side before vamping out, "I said "pick one", Elena."
"The... red one," Elena said.
Rebekah smiled widely, "There. It wasn't so hard, was it?" she asked before turning to the other girls, "Go away. Remember nothing." The girls left and Rebekah turned back to Elena, "You do not threaten me. You'll learn what I allow you to learn. Is that clear?"
Elena nodded as Rebekah walked past her into Layla's liquor cabinet, "What do you want to know?"
Elena sat on the couch and Layla followed her. It was awhile before Elena eventually figured out what she wanted to ask, "Well, Elijah said that your father was a landowner in Europe. How did you guys end up here?"
Rebekah was still going through the cabinet, "My parents had just started a family, when a plague struck their homeland. They lost a child to it. They wanted to escape and protect their future family from the same fate."
"So, how did you end up here?" Layla asked, "This part of the world hadn't even been discovered yet."
Rebekah laughed, "Not by anyone in your history books. But my mother knew the witch Ayana, who heard from the spirits of a mystical land where everyone was healthy... blessed by the gifts of speed and strength; that lead my family here, where we lived amongst those people."
"The werewolves?" Elena asked.
"To us, they were just our neighbors," Rebekah said, "My family lived in peace with them for over 20 years, during which time my family had more children, including me."
"You make it sound so normal."
"It was," Rebekah sighed, "Once a month our family retreated into the caves beneath our village. The wolves would howl through the night and by morning we'd return home..."
Layla looked at the ground, trying to remember this, but nothing was coming to her. She is still the same person she was all of those times ago.
"One full moon, Klaus and my youngest brother Henrik snuck out to watch the men turn into beasts. That was forbidden. Henrik payed the price," Rebekah sighed.
Layla looked over at Rebekah, "Are you alright?"
Rebekah nodded, "Fine, I wish you could remember Henrick, he had the biggest crush on you, it made Nik mad."
Layla smiled slightly, "I wish I could also."
Elena phone began to ring, getting Layla and Rebekah out of there conversation, "You better get that," Rebekah told her, "That'll be Damon checking up on you.
Elena nodded and answered the phone and waked away to give herself privacy.
"Rebekah, do you know anything about the curse?" Layla asked.
Rebekah sighed, "I wish Nik, would just tell you, it' said touchy subject to him. He has lost you some many times, it made him mad.
"Well, I'm going to die, soon, what if I became a vampire?" Layla asked.
Rebekah smiled, "He never tried it, but I think it would be worth the shot."
Layla smiled at her, as Elena walked back into the room, going right up to Elena, "Did you Know?"
"Know what?" Layla asked confused.
"Damon letStefan out of the cell," Elena told her.
Layla rolled her eyes, "No I didn't, so get out of my face. He's not my boyfriend, he is yours."
Elena glared at her before sitting down again, Rebekah glared at her, "Honestly, I don't get you two as a couple."
"Why would you?" Elena asked, "You don't know anything about who he really is."
Rebekah smirked, "I know exactly who he is. He's a vampire. We're a predatory species," she leaned close to Elena's face, "We don't have time to care about humans and their silly little lives."
"Is that why you did that runway show earlier?" Elena asked, "'Cause you don't care about the Homecoming Dance...You know what, I'm just gonna go."
"You haven't even heard half the story," Rebekah said, stopping Elena in her tracks.
Elena turned around, "And you are not going to tell it. You're just bored and looking for someone to push around. Find someone else to play with, maybe you can compel yourself a friend."
Elena started to leave once more, "The necklace wasn't Stefan's to give. It belonged to the Original Witch," Rebekah said.
Elena turned around, "The one who put the hybrid curse on Klaus?"
"Not just the hybrid curse," she said, "She's the one who turned us into vampires."
Rebekah went back into story telling mode. She began with to tell about what she over heard when her parents were talking with the witch Ayana. They wanted to turn them, protect them from the werewolves.
"So, vampirism was a form of protection?" Elena asked.
"What else would it be?"
"A curse?"
Rebekah shook her head, "My parents only saw a way of keeping their children alive."
"Yeah, but why stay, if they were so afraid of the werewolves?" Elena asked, "Why not... leave?"
"Pride..." Rebekah sighed, "My father didn't want to run anymore. He wanted to fight and be superior to the wolves. Where they could bite, we had to bite harder. Where they had speed, we had to be faster. Agility, strength, senses..." Rebekah sighed, "Ayanna refused, so my father placed it into my mother's hands."
Elena looked confused, "In her hands? How could she do anything?"
"Because my mother was also a witch," Rebekah told them.
"What?"
Rebekah stood up, "The witch of the Original Family. The Original Witch?"
"But if your mother was a witch, then..." Elena began.
"Am I? No, a witch is nature's servant; a vampire is an abomination of nature. You can either be one or the other, never both. My mother did this for us. She did not turn," Rebekah informed her.
"How did you turn?" Layla asked.
Rebekah sighed, " She called upon the sun for life, and the ancient white oak tree, one of nature's eternal objects, for immortality. That night, my father offered us wine laced with blood. And then he drove his sword through our hearts."
Elena and Layla were stunned, "He killed you?"
"And he wasn't delicate about it either," Rebekah said, "It was euphoric! The feeling of power was indescribable... but the witch Ayana was right about the consequences. The spirits turned on us, and nature fought back... For every strength there would be a weakness...the sun became our enemy. It kept us indoors for weeks...and though my mother found a solution, there were other problems...neighbors who had opened their homes to us could now keep us out. Flowers at the base of the white oak burned, and prevented compulsion. And the spell decreed that the tree that gave us life could also take it away... so we burned it to the ground. But the darkest consequence was something my parents never anticipated...the hunger. Blood... had made us reborn and it was blood that we craved above all else. We could not control it...and with that, the predatory species was born."
"Why did Mikael start hunting Klaus?" Elena asked.
Rebekah sighed and looked at Layla, "When Nik made his first human kill, it triggered his werewolf gene. With that, he became my father's greatest shame."
"Yeah... Elijah told me this part of the story," Elena said, "Your mother had had an affair with one of the werewolf villagers. Klaus wasn't his son."
"She tried to make it right. She put the hybrid curse on Nik to suppress his werewolf side, and then she turned her back on him. But Mikael's greatest weakness as a human was his pride. As a vampire, that was magnified. He went on a rampage and killed half the village," Rebekah said, "Then he came home and killed her."
Elena was stunned, "Mikael killed your mother?"
"He said she broke his heart so he would break hers," her voice broke slightly,"He tore it from her chest as Nik watched. Afterwards, my father took off in a rage, and the rest of my family scattered. Nik stayed, so he could help me bury her. He knew I had to say goodbye to my mother," she looked at Layla, "Nik was broken, he never got a proper goodbye, there was never a body."
"After my mother created the hybrid curse, she placed the curse on you," Rebekah said quietly.
"I know, I died, but how?" Layla asked quietly.
Rebekah now had tear forming at the corner of her eyes, she shook her head, "I promised Nik I would never tell you, he has to be the one."
Layla nodded slowly, this was the question that ate her alive at night, how did she die?
"Once me made our peace, we promised each other, always and forever."
"Always and forever," Elena repeated, "Even though he locked you in a coffin for 90 years?"
"We're vampires. Our emotions are heightened. I'm stubborn, Elijah moral, and Nik... Nik has no tolerance for those who disappoint him. Over a thousand years as a family we've all made that mistake at least once. I've made it several times," Rebekah said.
"But you still love him?" Elena asked.
"He's my brother. And I'm immortal. Should I spend an eternity alone instead?" she glared at her, "You've heard the story, it's time to go. I said leave, Elena! I don't know what you're up to, but I'm no longer playing along."
Elena shrugged, "I'm just looking for one good reason why we shouldn't wake Mikael."
"And I've given you a thousand! But you will anyway," Rebekah said, "I know you want him to help you kill my brother, I'm not stupid."
"It's no secret that I want Klaus dead," Elena said making Layla slightly cringe, "He has a hold over Stefan's life, and over mine."
"Do what you need. Wake Mikael at your own peril. But make no mistake, if you come after my brother, I will rip you apart. And I get my temper from my father," Rebekah stated, "Now leave!"
Elena sat there staring at Rebekah. Layla could tell Rebekah was getting angry, "Elena just go, Layla said.
Elena got upland left her house.
****************
Layla sat in her living room, finishing up her TV marathon. Rebekah was still here, Layla invited her over for the night, because she could tell she was upset. Layla was settled when Elena came barging into her house, Layla sighed, knowing something was going to go down.
"Come in Elena," Layla sighed.
Elena rolled her eyes, "Where's Rebekah?"
Rebekah walked into the room with a glass of bourbon, "I thought I told you to leave. Twice."
"How do you know that Mikael killed your mother?" Elena asked.
"Nik was there," Rebekah said, "He told me."
Layla got up in confusion and walked over to the two girls, "He lied to you."
Rebekah smirked, "And how do you know that?"
"The cave where you carved your family's names is covered in symbols," Elena said, showing her the pictures, "The story of your family: how your parents arrived, how they made peace, the spell that turned them into vampires, and this. This is the symbol for hybrid. It's a combination of the werewolf and the vampire symbol. And this is the one for your mother."
Rebekah gasped, "Her necklace."
"And this is the story of her death," Elena said laying the oictures out, "The hybrid killed the Original Witch. Not Mikael. Klaus."
"No! No, he wouldn't," Rebekah said shaking her head.
"She put the curse on him, made it so that he would be the only one of his kind, and then she rejected him. With the werewolf gene comes aggression and violence," Elena said, "When he turned, all of that was heightened. He killed her, Rebekah. And then he made up this entire lie about your father, so that he wouldn't lose you."
"These mean nothing! They're just stupid drawings, done by stupid people who had no idea who my family was!" Rebekah yelled throwing them into the fire place.
"Then why are you so upset?" Elena asked.
"Why are you doing this to me?" Rebekah asked, ""I've done nothing to you!"
"Klaus killed your mother. He has a hold on you, on me, on everyone. He has for a thousand years," Elena said, "We have to make it stop!"
Rebekah grabbed Elena by the throat and vamped out, "Shut up! Shut up! Don't talk anymore! Nothing!"
"Rebekah stop," Layla told her.
Rebekah looked down slightly and let go of Elena. She began to gasp and fall onto her knees and began to sob. Elena looked at her sadly and guilty.
"Get out Elena!" Layla yelled at her.
"But Layla-"
"No get out!"
"Here," Elena said handing her a file, "Your death story we figured it out, Ric and I."
Layla took the folder before Elena left and carelessly threw it on the table. Layla sat beside Rebekah, comforting her, until she stopped crying.
*************
After Rebekah went to sleep, Layla went downstairs, curiously getting the best of her, she opened the file that Elena gave her. There were the pictures from the cave. Layla recognized the hybrid symbol and her own. She studied the picture carefully before putting two and two together.
Klaus was the one to kill her.