30 | YOU'RE ASKING FOR DEATH

Khalia Mikaelson doesn't think she has ever done something as mind numbingly boring, as what she is currently doing. She, Elijah and Marcel are in the rectory of the church, searching through all of the documents on the supernatural community. They have been at it for hours and they are still not finished. Every now and again, she would sigh loudly or groan as she closed yet another book without finding something. Her lack of patience may have also had an influence on her pissy mood.

"What's the chance of me leaving the pair of you here while I go get a drink and you come and get me when you've figured out what the big riddle is?" Khalia asked when she closed another book.

"Zero." Elijah answered offhandedly, not even glancing at his sister. Marcel, however, raised his eyebrows at the brunette girl and she pretended that she didn't see him.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." She sighed. Khalia knew she could just leave and neither her brother nor Marcel would be able to stop here. Thing is, as much as she's complained, the vampire doesn't want to leave. Khalia likes working with her brother, even if she wouldn't admit it with a white oak stake shoved in her face. Plus, she really wants to find her siblings - the pit of worry dug itself deeper with every passing second.

After a few seconds, Elijah broke the silence that envelope the three supernaturals once again. "Here’s another name from our list: Brynne Deveraux. Says here she drowned herself some twenty years ago. Do you recognize the name?"

"Brynne? Yeah, yeah, we used to hang out." He smirks and Khalia rolled her eyes at the insinuation in his voice. "Knock around a bit."

"You can spare me the details, please." Elijah requested, but it sounded more like a subtle command even to Khalia.

"She used to do some spells for me now and then. Girl had power. Cursed a whole pack of werewolves just because they were pissing me off." At this, Khalia's attention was grabbed. Earlier, when they phoned Hayley, she told them that she thought Brynne - which was actually Celeste in disguise - cursed her pack of werewolves. Looks like she was right. Marcel continued, "Speaking of, what do you think Klaus is gonna do when he finds out that you left him to suffer while you saved Hayley and her wolf friends?"

"Let’s avoid discussing matters that are not your concern, shall we, Marcellus?" Elijah suggested, wanting to redirect the topic of conversation before the sireling could run his mouth about Hayley and end up without his heart. Hayley is a very sensitive subject for his sister and she wouldn't hesitate to eliminate anyone she deems a threat towards the werewolf.

"Oh, come on, Elijah. I got guys all over this city. You honestly think that I don’t know that the Crescent wolves had a little family reunion out at the plantation last night? Thanks for letting the house burn, by the way. Good riddance! But my question is, what’s Hayley doing with that bunch?" Marcel continued his prodding and Elijah began internally panicking when he saw his sister tense. The only time that happened, was right before a fight or right after someone mentioned Kol. Neither of which had particularly good endings.

"Marcel, I’m aware of your history with the city’s wolves, and I assume you understand that if you lay a finger upon Hayley, it will be the last thing you do on this earth." Elijah said, hoping his words is enough to stow his sister's murderous and protective instincts.

"I see I hit a nerve." Marcel smirked. "And just when we were getting along." The next moment Marcel found himself dangling in the air, a hand wrapped tightly around his throat.

"It's not Elijah you need to be worried about." Khalia said, a dangerous glint in her eyes as she stared up at Marcel, gripping his neck tightly. "Hayley is under my protection as well as the rest of my family. And Nik would not mind to endure pain if it mean that Hayley and the baby is safe."

She let him go and Marcel gasped desperately and quickly for breath when he stumbled to regain his balance, chest heaving up and down. The dark skinned man look at the immortal girl with furrowed brows. "How can you be so sure?"

"Because Niklaus and I are very much alike. And I would walk through hell for Hayley." Khalia told him easily, shrugging her shoulders with an indifferent look on her face as Marcel barely restrained himself from gaping open mouthed at the Demon Mikaelson.

Elijah finishes skimming the records and changes the subject, he did not want to explain to his brother why Marcel is without his heart when they eventually found him. "We were right! Every name upon my flesh signifies a witch who died by her own hand. All but one. Clara Summerlin."

"Ring any bells?" Marvel asked, clearing his throat and casting a glance at the male Mikaelson.

"None." Elijah shook his head and Khalia flicked her tongue over her teeth in annoyance.

"Okay, well, if she didn’t off herself, then how did she die?" Marvel questioned as even Khalia looked mildly interested.

"Influenza Epidemic of 1919." Elijah answered and suddenly, the names tattooed on the eldest living Mikaelson body vanish, and the three vampires look shocked, the female Mikaelson's jaw dropped.

"You can't be serious!" The twin girl boomed. "The flu? All of this trouble because of a witch that died because of the fucking flu?" Khalia glared darkly at the two males, already imagining very creative ways to kill Celeste.

Marcel looks as though he's feeling anxious and guilty about where this investigation seems to be heading but neither Khalia or Elijah noticed. "I suppose we have our answer, though I have no idea what it means."

"Witches and their fucking riddles." Khalia scoffed, having no clue what it meant either.

***

Having no other option or clue as to who Clara Summerlin is, the three supernatural's went back to the Compound to see what the pregnant werewolf had discovered. Marcel made a stop by the bathroom when the got there and the two siblings find Hayley, where she is typing on the laptop in the study.

"Hey, look, I found-" Elijah stops her with a gesture to indicate he has news. Hayley looks between the two siblings with interest.

"You were right about the Deveraux witch." Elijah told her and excitement flared in the werewolf's eyes and she gave Khalia a smile.

"Apparently, she and Marcel knocked boots and when they pissed him off, she cursed them." Khalia shrugged, smiling back slightly and glancing around the room in search of some alcohol. She frowned when she didn't see any but didn't leave the room to go and find some.

Before they can say anything more, Marcel joins them. "Find anything about Clara, the mystery witch?" He asked, looking inquisitively at the trio.

"Not much. She was a nurse at the Fleur-de-Lis Sanitarium." Marcel freezes and visibly begins to panic. "Recognize her?" She clicks on a picture and points to her so Marcel and Elijah can see what she looked like. "Top row, second from the right."

"No, I don’t." Elijah denied and looked at his sister. "Khalia?"

"Kol and I were daggered in 1914 and then only woken up in Mystic Falls. Why would I know something that happened in 1919?" Khalia asked with a pointed look, raising one of her perfect brows.

Elijah rolled his eyes at her. "Marcel?" The Mikaelson siblings turns to look at Marcel to hear what he has to say, and notices how alarmed and worried he looks. "Marcel? Do I need to remind you that Niklaus and Rebekah are somewhere suffering horribly? If you know something, talk."

"The Sanitarium. That’s where you’ll find them." He answered shortly and Khalia narrowed her eyes at him.

"Are you sure? How do you know?" Hayley questioned him.

"I just know." Marcel insisted.

"How do you know?" Elijah pressed, sensing that Marcel wasn't entirely truthful with them.

"If I’m right, you need to know exactly what we’re walking into. We did something, Rebekah and I... I think the witches are trying to use it against her. It was, uh... something that you’re not gonna like." Marcel hesitantly told them, looking and feeling guilty down to his bones.

"What? Broke one of Niklaus' precious paintings?" Khalia snapped when Marcel didn't talk anymore. He just stared at them like he wished that they gave mind reading powers so that he didn't have to say it out loud.

"In 1919, Rebekah and I, we uh, we summoned Mikael to New Orleans." Marcel confessed, wincing as he did so and the Demon Mikaelson's expression darkened.

"You did what!?" Khalia snarled, her voice raising to a shout and Hayley jumped at the sound. She has heard Khalia threaten and be sarcastic, seen her fight and protect, but never has she raised her voice.

"For the better part of a century, I have wondered how Father found us, what foolish mistake that we had made to destroy our time in the one place that we could finally call home. Did you know, I even blamed myself for a time, Marcellus?" He took a step closer to his brother's sireling. "Niklaus treated you like a son."

"Rebekah. I loved her. I still love her. All we ever wanted was to be together, but as long as Klaus was around, that was never gonna happen. But hey, I guess you wouldn't know anything about that, huh?" Marcel asked, the last part somewhat sarcastically.

"Oh, no, no, no, no. You don't get to put all of this on Niklaus. As unreasonable and merciless as he could be, he would have given you his blessing in time." Khalia sneered, rage bubbling hotly underneath her skin, her veins igniting with a blazing fire that wanted destruction and death in order to be put out.

"And how could you possibly know that? You were always following where Kol went or he was following you. Neither of you cared about anything unless it directly involved the two of you." Marcel spat at Khalia, seeming to forget who he was talking to. While in New Orleans, she has become much less explosive than she once was and helped her family out more. She would never admit it out loud, but ever since Kol's death, she's developed a fear of losing the rest of her siblings as see. And this, Klaus and Rebekah's kidnapping, made that fear surface and grow bigger, which in turn, caused Khalia's temper to be shorter than usual.

Elijah saw his sister snap. Then he saw her roundhouse kick Marcel in his chest and he flew threw the air. She sped forward and grabbed his neck, slamming him against the nearest wall so hard that the wall rattled.

"You're asking for death, aren't you?" She snarled. "You seem to forget who I am, what I can do. You also forget that my weaknesses does not extend just to Kol, but to my entire family. And you put them in danger." Her grip tightened around his throat. "And as to how I know that Nik would have given you his blessing, well, let's just say that in one of my rare sober moments back in the day, Nik asked my advice on what to do with the pair of you. At first I didn't want to answer him, I have never had a lover, but then I told them to put you through hell and if you still want to be together, then he should leave you be."

Marcel's face fell. He wondered, for years, why Klaus put them through everything that he did. He also wondered why, out of nowhere, Klaus accepted his and Rebekah's relationship. Then he shrugged it off. "What about Rebekah, doesn't she deserve your protection as well?"

"Rebekah made her choice between family and love the moment she let Mikael come to town." Khalia moved her hands to his arms and ripped them. A crunch sound echoed in the room as Khalia dislocated both his shoulders. "Be glad that's all you get."

"When Klaus learns the truth, there will be no end to his rage. I will not let my sister suffer that wrath." Elijah intervened, clearly worried and afraid for his little sister.

"Maybe you should." Khalia suggested, shrugging slightly.  Elijah and Marcel turned to her, both of them looking appalled. "She did, after all, bring Mikael to your doorstep."

"Never." Elijah glared at his sister while she gave him a deadly look back.

Marcel looked panicked to the point of nausea, "We need to get to them before he learns the truth."

"We need a plan first." Elijah told the two vampires, both of whom were younger than him. He looked at Marcel, seeing the desperate look in them and knew that he would do anything to save Rebekah. Then he looked at Khalia, saw the murderous glint in her eyes and knew that she would follow Klaus into whatever he decides. Straightening out his jacket, Elijah made a difficult decision. One that made his stomach churn. He glanced from his sister to Marcel. "You two wait down here. I need to acquire something from my room."

The two waited, with Khalia glaring at Marcel. The younger vampire fidgeted under the gaze of the original vampire. A smug feeling bloomed in her chest. Hopefully Marcel wouldn't forget who she really is anytime soon.

Elijah sped back into the room, stopping infront of his sister. He gave her a sorrow filled look, "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Khalia frowned. She never got her answer because something suddenly stabbed through her head. Consciousness faded from her system and her body went limp. Elijah caught her and sped his sister up to her room. Marcel stood with wide eyes as he struggled to process what just happened, because it seemed a little unbelievable, because Elijah daggered Khalia.

***

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Who saw that coming?