Lover • Klaus Mikaelson

Twenty Four

3rd person POV:

Klaus has set up a dinner table is set up in the courtyard to celebrate his return to leadership over New Orleans and his repossession of the Abattoir compound from Marcel. The vampire army, including Marcel and his closest friends, are seated around the table, and Klaus and Hayley are seated at each end. Amelia was seated next to Hayley, as she adamantly refused to sit next to the hybrid. Klaus calls 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 started. He gestures toward 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 knives, filling the cups with blood for the vampires. Amelia rolled her eyes at his dramatics, but took a long sip of the blood in her cup. Her eyes widened slightly as she took a sip. It was her favorite, AB negative. She looked over at Klaus who was smirking while he watched her. She scowled and rolled her eyes again. Of course, Klaus was going to try to get into her good graces. Unfortunately for him, he wouldn't succeed. "Our victories, and our defeats." He looks at Marcel, who flashes back to a memory from earlier.

Flashback 

Some time before the dinner, Rebekah and Marcel have met in the Garden to discuss Klaus' recent return to power.

"You can't afford your wounded pride. With Klaus in control of your empire, you need to give him what he craves most: loyalty. Or, at least, the illusion of it," Rebekah advised. 

"I ambushed him, tried to bury him alive. He's not gonna trust me," Marcel reminded her. 

"He will, because he wants your allegiance. Speaking from my experience, I know that if you play the part, all is forgiven. But, if you give him any reason to doubt you, he will strike back," Rebekah warned. Rebekah takes Marcel's hand in her own. "Make me a promise, Marcel. You will do whatever it takes to stay alive."

Present

Klaus raises his glass in a toast to the others "...To my city, my home again. May the blood never cease to flow..."

"...and the party never end!" Marcel finishes, lifting his glass up. Marcel looks over at Diego, who has his own flashback.

Flashback

Diego and Marcel were sitting in The Pit, talking about the new arrangements.

"I just don't get it, man. We would've stayed with you to the end," Diego says. 

"Letting you do that would have been letting you die, and you're still my people. Now, just follow my lead. Trust me, it ain't over yet," Marcel promises. 

Present

Diego raises his glass, "To New Orleans."

"To New Orleans!" Klaus repeats. 

"New Orleans," everyone around the table says. Amelia and Hayley just share an exasperated look. The power was already getting to his head, although neither of them could say that they were surprised. 

"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. No, my intentions moving forward are to celebrate what we have. What Marcel, in fact, took and built for this true community of vampires," Klaus said.