Forever

Late night revelations

"Answer me"

I made my way toward the library as quietly as I could, blanket wrapped around my shoulders and a cool glass of water in hand.

It was still dark outside, hours away from sunrise and while I'd gone to bed shortly after the ball, I was wide awake now.

Elijah was sitting in his favorite arm chair, reading by the fireplace. "What are you doing up so late?" He hadn't even looked up.

"Couldn't sleep." I sat on the edge of the sofa, tugging the blanket around me. "Technically speaking, we're both up early."

"You usually don't appear until long after the sun has risen."

True.

"So, what are you reading?"

"Is there something you ne-" He glanced at me. "You're shaking."

"Maybe I'm just cold."

"I thought we agreed you weren't going to lie to me again."

"Not to fact check you or anything." I took a sip of my water and it did help some. "But I'm pretty sure that never happened."

His head tilted, eyes narrowed.

"Why are you avoiding my question."

"Why are you asking non questions?"

Elijah's jaw did that weird thing when he was getting annoyed. "Must you turn every conversation into a battle?"

I had a childish urge to mimic him, just to prod at him one last time. "I had a nightmare."

"About your most recent kidnapping?"

"The fact that you have to differentiate it from all my other kidnappings is concerning." I joked, drawing my knees to my chest.

He shot me a look. "It won't happen again."

And yet...

The woman from the woods made it very clear she'd be able to get to me anywhere at any time she wanted.

"Well, we've had a successful couple of weeks then. No attempts." Not that any Mikaelson would let me out of their sight. Jeremy and I had texted but I hadn't seen anyone, bar the ball, since the sleepover.

And now he was distracted.

Elijah's head tilted. "You know who took you."

"What? No."

"After Finn returned you to your siblings, we searched the woods. There was no sign of where you'd been. Niklaus followed your scent but it'd been too long to find the origin."

"Why tell me?"

"Because, dear sister." He set his book on the table beside him. "You were stolen, tortured, and yet you refuse to give us any information. We know it has something to do with Niklaus' hybrids and despite his best efforts, no one seems to want to be the one to break it to him. Whatever 'it' is."

"It's my burden to bear."

"No, it's not. You don't have to carry things alone."

"Elijah. I love that you want to help, and I'm grateful for everything you guys have done." But when Klaus found out, I was going to be the only one in the family he could blame. "Please just let this go. I can handle it on my own."

Now that I knew Klaus had the daggers, I wasn't about to put any Mikaelson in danger of going in a coffin, not for me.

Especially poor Finn. He was having a hard enough time adjusting to the modern age as it was.

He sighed. "Must you be so difficult?"

"Must you and Klaus drag this out? Obviously I'm not going to say, so just give up. Please. I don't want to talk about it anymore."

Elijah's lips pursed. "Alright."

I took a breath. Now was not the time to snap at originals. "Why are you awake?" At least I had an excuse.

"I believe the last time you were left unattended, you bolted." He picked up his book again, and it actually was relieving I wouldn't have his full attention.

"Wait. You've been staying awake since that happened?!"

"Once I was undaggered, yes. We have all been alternating. Tomorrow is Kol's shift, I believe." Elijah found his page and leaned back. "We told you that we would protect you. And we will continue to do so, even if you don't believe we can."

"How did you-" Because of course he did.

"You're not that difficult to read, dear sister."

I felt like I should take offense to that. "I don't even know how to respond to that."

"If you're going to sit there, you might as well pick up a book, unless you'd rather go to bed." He didn't look up, merely flipped to the next page. "Fantasy books are on the fourth shelf to your left."

"Elijah, are you a secret fantasy reader?" I placed a hand on my chest as I got up to investigate. They had a copy of nearly every fantasy title I could think of and more that I couldn't. "I would've thought you'd be a nonfiction kind of guy."

"I have read all kinds of books, depending on my mood. I wouldn't say I'm into one specific genre."

"I mean I knew you liked to read, but damn. You do this for fun?" It wasn't that I hated reading, it was that I hadn't picked up a book since I was on the road with Klaus, and even then, I did it because I was bored.

Which, I'm still kind of mad that all this drama stopped me from going to my senior year, but it wouldn't be worth it to try.

"You'll find in your eternity, there are small hobbies that keep you going. Niklaus paints, Kol listens to musicians, Rebekah designs things. Finn and even you will find your enjoyment."

"Why did Klaus keep Finn daggered for so long?"

"He endangered our family. At the time we were on the run from Father, as we both very well know, Niklaus doesn't forgive easily."

"Yeah I get that, but nine hundred years seems a little excessive to me."

"You've never met Father."

I mean, I knew he hunted his children, but to what end? To kill them? "What ever happened to him?"

"My siblings and I lured him into a trap some two hundred years ago and Niklaus took his immobilized body somewhere only he knows the location."

"And what about your mom?"

"She died not long after we were turned, killed in a fit of rage by my Father's hand. He was always a violent man."

Elijah wasn't reading anymore, simply staring at the page. "On that happy note, where are your siblings?"

That seemed to snap him out of it. "They're on the hunt. Niklaus said one of his hybrids finally cracked."

I froze. "What?"

"That and you mumble in your sleep." Why was he so fucking calm?! "We finally pieced it together. The woman in the woods will be found."

"No, Elijah. You don't understand. She's going to tell him about my involvement in her scheme. I can't let him hurt Jeremy and Elena."

"If only you had told us sooner. We could have avoided Niklaus' rage."