Vulnerable / Klaus Mikaelson {Book 1} (EDITING)

Chapter 7: Bloodlust

"Excuse me?"

Marcel stood before Scarlett, seeing the red specks glow in her eyes. He knew this news would anger her but he needed to let her know before anyone else. "I know it's a lot-"

"A lot?" Scarlett repeated Marcel's words. "It's like giving a key to the prisoner in his own cell."

"Klaus has agreed to let us stay in charge as well. He actually wants you to be there." Marcel confessed. "He thinks you'd provide... sanity to any situation."

Scarlett didn't mind Klaus now. She did hate him for using her but he did learn his lesson. For the past weeks, he's been a kind gentleman, it's just been hard to forget about the things he did. "Fine. But if things go south, I want main control over the city. Deal?"

Marcel smirked at the girl's response. "I'd prefer that over anything else."

...

Scarlett sat at the long dining table beside Klaus on his left side. He sat at the end of the table with Hayley sitting at the other end, feeling awkward about the whole situation. The vampire army, including Marcel and his closest friends, are seated around the table. Klaus called for everyone's attention to give a speech by tapping his glass with his fork. "Let us begin with a toast to our shared gift: immortality."

"After a thousand years, one might expect life to be less keenly felt, for its beauties and its sorrows do diminish with time. But, as vampires, we feel more deeply than humans could possibly imagine."

Klaus gestured towards a group of waiters and waitresses to have them join them at the table, one for each guest. "Insatiable need, exquisite pain..." The servants slit their wrists with the knives provided to them, filling the cups with blood for the vampires. "Our victories, and our defeats. To my city, my home again. May the blood never cease to flow."

"And the party never end." Marcel chimed in, raising his glass.

Diego, one of Marcel's nightwalkers, raised his glass. "To New Orleans."

"To New Orleans!"

Everyone at the table raised their champagne glasses before they chugged down their drinks.

"I understand that some of you may have questions regarding the recent change in leadership, and I invited you here tonight to assure you that you are not defeated." Klaus started, addressing the elephant in the room. "No, my intentions moving forward are to celebrate what we have. What Marcel and Scarlett, in fact, took and built for this true community of vampires."

"What about her?" Diego pointed to Hayley at the far end of the table. "The wolf."

"Had you'd let me finish, Diego, you would know that there is, of course, one further matter I would like to address." Klaus strolled over to the other end of the table where Hayley sat. "As many of you know, the girl is carrying my child. Consequently, I trust you will all pay her the appropriate respect. However, I understand that some of you are concerned by this vicious rumor that I intend to use the blood of our child to create hybrids. I assure you I do not."