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THE RIDE back to the mansion wasn't necessarily uncomfortable, but it gave Colby some time to think. Colby wasn't about to leave her car out in the bayou and Klaus reluctantly agreed to riding with her.
"What did you mean that the voices told you where to go?" Klaus asked, breaking the silence. Colby jumped, swerving into the oncoming lane for a moment before righting herself, laughing nervously.
"When I sat down on Hayley's bed, I heard this noise in the head. It was like static at first, but then it got a little clearer. It was like dozens of voices whispering at once, and I just waited for one to tell me where to go. Unfortunately it took a little too long and didn't really matter because you had already found her, but it worked. They told me to go to the bayou." Colby explained, glancing over at Klaus who took this new information in. The young girl made him feel uneasy. Not in the way that he was nervous, but he didn't know exactly what he was dealing with. Banshee's were an entirely new subject to him, and not knowing about what he could possibly be up against made him uneasy. If this girl happened to become an enemy, he wanted to be prepared.
"What about when you threw Agnes in the mausoleum?" He asked, making Colby's hands tighten their grip on the steering wheel.
"Didn't realize every car ride needed an interrogation, Niklaus." She said sharply." But, I don't know what happened. She went to kill me – to slit my throat, by the way – and I screamed. It was like, every single feeling of anger and fear just came out. It was like this sonic boom and suddenly she went flying across the room and everything was shaking. I don't know how I did it, and I doubt I could do it again." Klaus didn't know if he should be more relieved or worried. It would be good if Colby could defend herself, but if he ever found himself on the other side of that scream, he didn't want to know the possible outcomes.
–•–
When the pair got back to the mansion, Klaus retreated to the living room for a drink while Colby ran upstairs to quickly shower and finally change into some clean clothes. By the time she went back down to the living room, Klaus was staring out the window with a drink still in his hand. Colby startled when someone laid a hand on her shoulder, and she looked to find Rebekah stepping into the room behind her.
"I thought you were leaving us." Klaus said, slowly tearing his gaze from the window.
"We both know this family can barely function without me. Where are Elijah and Hayley?" Rebekah asked, eyes gazing over Colby, as if checking her over for any injuries. The scrapes on her face were almost completely healed at this point and the cut on her neck was already scabbing over. She had been offered blood, but with a disgusted scrunch of her nose, declined.
"I left them in the bayou." Klaus said casually, sipping his scotch. Rebekah peeled her eyes away from Colby to looked at Klaus warily.
"Why?" She asked, slowly stepping around Colby to be in front of her.
"Elijah and I had a bit of a row. Hayley's conspired to turn him against me. You know our brother was never one to resist a pretty face! So, one thing led to another, and I bit him, left them both stranded in the swamp." Klaus explained easily, as if it happened all the time. Colby wondered exactly howmany times this had actually happened before.
"Daggering, biting, deserting. Does your wickedness ever end?" The casual amusement dropped from Klaus' face in an instant at Rebekah's remark.
"My 'wickedness' is self-preservation! And I wouldn't have to go to such lengths were I not presented on all sides with ignorance and treachery! Now that Elijah's abandoned me, I'll be needing you in my plot against Marcel." Rebekah glared at her brother, and Colby wanted nothing more than to just melt into the floor and be free from this tension. "Don't expect to be leaving town anytime soon." Klaus stopped to pour himself another drink.
"Why should I help you, after what you did to Elijah?" Rebekah snapped, glaring holes in her brothers head.
"You're my family. Besides, who better to spy on Marcel than the girl he so clearly loves?" Klaus sat down on the coffee table in front of Rebekah, who sat down on the couch, pulling Colby down next to her. "You can tell me all his secrets, like how did he find us here? Any idea about that, little sister?" Rebekah narrowed her eyes at Klaus and Colby fidgeted in her seat.
"How should I know why Marcel does what he does?" Klaus' face swiftly turned to one of anger and Colby quickly spoke up.
"I told him! I saw him in passing and I told him I had a drawing I was working on and that he could stop by whenever he wanted to pick it up once it was done. I didn't know you wanted it to be kept a secret. I'm sorry." Rebekah looked shocked as Colby stared Klaus down. She knew that she should be afraid of what Klaus could do, but she wouldn't back down. Colby refused to believe that Klaus was, once again, a villain. Klaus simply nodded after a moment.
"Well, alright. I guess I didn't specifically tell you that it was to be kept a secret." Both women were surprised at how quickly Klaus' anger vanished, how easily he let the issue go. He turned his attention fully back to his sister.
"You think I don't know about your engineered run-ins all over the Quarter? I know you've had private chats with him! Just tell me what secrets he's confided to you. Is he plotting against me?" Klaus demanded. Rebekah slowly leaned forward to get in his face.
"My poor brother, so paranoid. Marcel knows nothing. He's not plotting against you, he simply thinks you're in a quarrel in need of making up." Rebekah informed him.
"Perhaps we will. After all," He pointed at Rebekah, leaning in. "You know I'm capable of forgiving those who disappoint me! As soon as they've seen the error of their ways, and suffered for them. You'd do well to remember that." Klaus got up and walked away and Rebekah sighed, looking defeated.
"You never let me forget." She muttered, turning to Colby. "Thank you, Colby. You didn't have to do that." Colby shrugged, as if it was no big deal – and to her, it wasn't.
"I did, it's alright, Rebekah. But, there is something you need to know. I know where Hayley and Elijah are, and I assume they're safe for now. I left them and I'm sorry, but you have to understand, I don't believe for a second that what the two of them were accusing Klaus of was true." Colby said, and Rebekah thought for a moment before nodding in understanding. It was surprising for her to see someone defending her brother like this.
"You seem to hold a lot of hope for my brother." Rebekah said after a moment, making Colby smiled.
"I like to see the good in people, Rebekah. Despite what others may think, Klaus is not a monster." With her parting words, Colby left Rebekah alone, venturing back up to her room, ready to sleep for days on end.
Klaus sat in his own room, listening to Colby shuffle around in her room just down the hall. He cared for the girl, there was no doubt about that, but something didn't sit right with him. After several hours, it was nearing midnight, and the shuffling never ceased. His curiosity getting the better of him, Klaus left his room, moving down the hall to Colby's door. He knocked loudly, getting a monotone 'come in' as a response. Opening the door, Klaus walked in but was soon stopped, frozen in his tracks at the sight around him.
Colby's hands were covered in black, smudges of various paints and lead and charcoal covering them. All around the room, the walls were covered in dozens upon dozens of pictures of Klaus, all hand-drawn. The drawings showed Klaus, his hybrid visage showing, looking angry. Colby's hands fell to her sides as she stared at the pictures, standing in the middle of the room. Klaus himself felt extremely uneasy, almost nervous at the words that came out of her mouth next.
