#scatteredhope

Well. That’s not entirely accurate. He opened the door, and in his attempt to remain small and non-threatening, forgot to close it. As that would make noise and draw the attention of predators. It never used to be a problem.

But then Bonnie happened. And Bonnie’s kitten, this orange fluffy thing named Butterscotch. 

Josh lost Butterscotch.  

“ She’s going to kill me …” He can’t stop pacing. He can’t slow down his breathing. Can vampires have asthma attacks?

Klaus, however, has never been more amused. “ She certainly is. Have you ever seen her mad?” 

Josh winces as the hybrid gives a low whistle of appreciation. It’s no secret to those that know both of them that Bonnie’s temper is one of the few that Klaus is wary of. He’d tell you it’s because she almost killed him; the closest anyone has ever come to doing so. But Josh doesn’t believe the hype. It’s because Bonnie makes him have emotions.

She could probably get away with touching his tummy. And by ‘get away’ he means without Klaus turning into a bear trap and ripping something off. Or straight up biting like a feral cat. 

Or… you know, a wolf. A big, toxic, normally cranky wolf with yellow eyes, a heavy accent and no patience.

But that would actually be preferable right now. At least he knows what Klaus would do to him. He doesn’t know what Bonnie will do. She could hurt him with her magic and then ask Klaus to do something just as terrible. And he would, without even questioning it because a) he’s never seen Klaus turn down anything Bonnie asks him for, b) hurting people is like his favorite thing, and c) Bonnie being upset is his least favorite thing and thus refer back to b.

The magic part scares him. More than that, he’s worried about upsetting Bonnie. She loves that cat. She has to for Klaus to tolerate it. He hates everything that’s small and cute and friendly and brings joy into lives. Well, except Bonnie. 

But no one should be surprised a half werewolf hates cats. 

Despite that, Klaus has dispatched several other vampires to go out and search for the damnable creature. It’s dumb, he’d explained, and unlikely to be able to find its way back home on its own. Not without falling into a hole or walking into traffic or something equally stupid. 

Whether or not they actually find the kitten isn’t as important as him being able to tell Bonnie that he’s doing something to find him. That it isn’t his fault at all that Butterscotch got out. It’s all Josh. Josh is the bad one. Klaus is the good one. Klaus should be rewarded, Josh should be punished accordingly. 

“ Can’t you just kill me now and save time? Please?” What a mess this is. Being in such a state that he has to ask–no, beg, Klaus Mikaelson for a quick death. “ You can even pick where I leave a stain!”

“ Nonsense!” Look at him. Look at him! Positively giddy at the prospect of violence not even at his hand. “ Bonnie is perfectly capable of killing you herself. Though she’ll probably make you suffer first. That’s what she did to me. Broke every bloody bone in my body.”

No, no. 

“ Probably some of the worst pain I’ve ever been in.”

Don’t do this Klaus.

“ And that wasn’t even using the full extent of her power.”

Somebody make him stop.

“ Besides, I cleared my afternoon for this.”

God, what a dick. He really is a hybrid; half asshole and half more asshole.

Maybe he should just take his daylight ring off and walk into glory. It can’t hurt more than what Klaus just described. “ I should go, you know, help them, outside. With the kitten search and all, since I lost him.”

He gets to take two steps towards the patio doors before Klaus is effectively blocking the way; whipping past him with his stupid hybrid speed. (He could have taken his head off just then, but noooooo, Klaus has to be an ass about it and leave him alive.) 

If possible, he looks even more amused. “ Not a chance, mate. You’re going stay right here and explain to Bonnie exactly how this happened. See, she won’t believe me if I say it. She’ll think I’m just ‘bullying’ you. No, no. You plead your own case.”

This is why Klaus doesn’t have any friends.

Then comes the sound Josh has been dreading: Bonnie entering the compound and calling for the hybrid. Returning from her outing with Elijah, something to keep her busy and safe while Klaus handled Vampire King business. Though, Josh was so sure, that he’d warned his older brother multiple times to keep his hands (and fangs) to himself. Be a gentleman, of course, but not too friendly or he was going back in the box.

Or so Josh imagines the conversation went.

He gives Klaus the most pleading look he can manage. Absolute, kicked puppy with a terminal illness face. And the hybrid actually kind of looks like he feels sorry for him. Then he leans to the side and shouts exactly which room they’re in so Bonnie can find him faster.

“ Really?” Josh has never, ever (including when he was turned) felt so betrayed. He didn’t even get a running start here.

Klaus just shrugs like he’s an innocent party. Maybe there’s some part of this he can blame on him. Klaus should have been watching the cat, right? Or watching Josh. It’s his house, he’s the responsible one.

Pfft, Josh doesn’t even believe that himself.

He still doesn’t know what he’s going to say when Bonnie comes into the room. The first thing that comes to mind just spills out. “ Wow, don’t you look pretty today? Is that a rose in your hair?”

Yes, she does. And yes it is. And that was the right thing to say to Bonnie, for she smiles and thanks him. But the wrong thing to say in front of Klaus, because he doesn’t smile and will thank him not to flirt with his witch. Especially not in front of him. 

The only reason his hand isn’t sticking through Josh’s chest right now is because he figures Bonnie will kill him anyway. And also, there’s the matter of that rose in her hair and his brother’s obvious amusement. It will take longer to kill Elijah than it will to kill Josh.

“ Brother,” Klaus begins with a smile that is all fangs. “ I’d like a word.”

“ Certainly, Niklaus.” Oh to be so brave and so also immortal. What a dream. “ Please excuse us.”

Josh doesn’t want to excuse Elijah. He’s the only one that could save him. Elijah is the sensible one. Elijah is the calm one. Sometimes the scary calm one, but still the calm one. Bonnie looks cute and curious and harmless now, but he still has to break the news to her. If Elijah were here, he could help console her, assure her that her kitten will surely find his way back and prevent Klaus from skinning him and making him into a hand puppet to cheer the little witch up.

But Klaus won’t allow it. Absolutely no stays of execution. He and his brother walk outside to have their conversation. Josh gets a particularly chilly look from the hybrid before the door closes. One that he interprets to mean stop stalling or stop breathing.

“ Uh, Bonnie,” he begins, and doesn’t know how to continue. “ Maybe you should sit down.”

The little witch frowns and does so. Josh tries to remember her this way and not the rage she’s going to go into shortly. “ What’s wrong?”

“ Scotch got out.” He winces after he says it, but rushes to continue before his head explodes or something. “ It was completely an accident! I didn’t close the door all the way when I came in and I swear I didn’t hear him go out, but we’ll find him. I’ll search all day and night for him if you want me to. I will not rest until your kitten is found.”

Here it comes. Here comes the witch rage that almost killed Klaus. Goodbye cruel world. He’s never even made it to Disneyland. 

There’s no thunder though. No earth shaking. No thick, electrified air. No furious chanting.

Oh, but when he peeks an eye open, what he sees makes him wish for it. He was right. Bonnie would be worse than Klaus.

Because Bonnie is sitting there, clearly upset. But trying not to be. Trying to keep her composure and contain her worry. Klaus wouldn’t look so effected. He’d just crack his rib cage open and feed him his own heart. The only tears would be Josh’s.

“ Oh, Bonnie, I’m sorry.” My God, he’s never felt like such shit. There’s all kinds of things Butterscotch could get into out there. He could wander off into the road, or the woods, or the nearest swamp. He might be as bad as Klaus now. He’s legitimately killed a kitten. “ Please don’t cry.” 

“ No, I’m okay.” She says that but he doesn’t believe it. “ It was an accident. I know you didn’t mean to. I should go look for him.”

Oh no. She’s going to the patio doors. Klaus is out there. If Klaus sees just the hint of tears on his witch’s face, he’ll … he’ll… 

God, his imagination won’t even let him think of the horror. His brain is protecting itself against the trauma.

He puts his hands out to stop her. “ No, no. You don’t have to. You should stay here in case he wanders back in. Besides, Klaus already deployed a bunch of guys to look.”

“ He did?” For a moment, there’s wonder in her eyes. Klaus is actually trying to find her cat? Not himself, obviously, but an effort nonetheless. “ I didn’t think he knew. Or cared. I thought he’d be dancing a jig on the table that my kitten is gone.”

“ He knew. He’s the one that told me. He didn’t hear Butterscotch in your room and thought he might have gotten into his studio again but then he couldn’t hear him anywhere. And he found the door and he found me and I…” What else can he say? It’s still not Klaus’ fault. Klaus is just the ass that’s taking advantage of the situation. “ He–He left me here to tell you. And so you could kill me.”

“ It was just an accident.” She touches his arm in what would probably be soothing, but Klaus is too close for that. “ Excuse me.”

Bonnie then walks around him to get to the patio door. And Josh doesn’t know what’s about to happen, if she’s about to summon Klaus to take his head off, or go off on a stubborn search herself. 

Instead, she bangs on the glass with her fist. And he watches the hybrid and his witch have a wordless conversation.

Both Originals turned to look at her when she hit the door. But it’s Klaus that she points and glares at. You, hybrid! What did you do?!

Klaus’ hand goes to his heart and his brows go up in wounded surprise. Who, me? I didn’t do anything. I’m innocent, love.

Josh jumps when her hand flies in his direction. He thought he’d go with it, but she’s just gesturing to him. Not annihilating him. You left Josh in here to get in trouble. You’re not sneaky!

The hybrid scowls at him, and Josh takes a step back. Just in case. You know, a running start. Then he makes some annoyed gesture and folds his arms. It’s his fault, he should get in trouble! I’m helping! 

Bonnie scoffs and looks away. Helping indeed…

Josh can’t see Elijah’s face, since he’s facing the garden and Klaus is facing the house, but he recognizes the body language. The body language of someone pinching the bridge of their nose and being aged significantly by the antics of their sibling. Elijah just turned 1100 in front of his eyes. That’s how done he is.

“ I know I should wait here so he can maybe find his way back to me, but I can’t just do nothing. Butterscotch is out there and he could get hurt or something could hurt him and he could be crying for me right now.” She looks a witch on a mission too. Gathering up her coat and headed for the front door. 

Oh goddammit. He can’t now lose Bonnie too! Too many small, adorable things are going missing around here!

Just as he’s reaching out to call to her, to stop her, a deeper, more powerful voice completely overtakes his. “ BONNIE!”

Both he and the little witch stop and turn to the patio. They recognize that tone of voice. That’s the sound of an angry hybrid. Though rarely does he use that voice in regards to the witch herself.

It has the desired effect, Josh imagines, of making her scurry over to the patio. The door opens this time and she pokes her head out to see what the fuss is. 

Then promptly lets out a shout of joy.

For though Klaus looks extremely put out, Elijah adjacent to him has a familiar orange ball of fluff in the crook of his arm. 

Bonnie rushes right up to him to gather up her kitten herself. “ Oh my God, you found him!”

“ Actually,” he says while dusting his suit off. Nice try. He’ll be finding orange fur for a week. “ Niklaus found him.”

Bonnie turns to the hybrid, readjusting her cat in her arms. “ You did? You found Scotch?”

Klaus only growls in response and heads back inside. Taking care to knock poor Josh out of his way while he does so.

“ Well, I suppose it was really the other way around. I was discussing our outing with him, Ms. Bennett, when your tiny companion decided that he’d had enough of chasing ladybugs and the like under the garden benches. He was ready for bigger prey. Like the laces of Niklaus’ boot.”

“ Oh my God, Scotch.” The little witch holds the cat up over her head to look at him. “ You know better. Klaus doesn’t want to play with you. Don’t attack his shoes.”

Scotch’s only remark is to squeak and wiggle. Be cute enough to get himself out of trouble. Typical cat. Josh needs to learn to do that.

When he takes to batting at the flower in her hair, Bonnie gathers him anew. Then inclines her head to thank Elijah for his part. He’s probably telling her something that it was no trouble at all. Not when it means a smile like that. Charm, charm, flirt, annoy Niklaus, genuinely be nice to Bonnie, but also annoy Niklaus. 

At least that’s what Josh imagines he says.

He is quick to open the door for her when she comes back in the house though. He gets a bright smile that tells him all is well now. No harm done. Everything’s fine. “ Thank you, Josh.”

“ No problem, and I will absolutely make sure to be way more careful. He won’t slip past me again.” He’s betting his life on it. Whether he wants to bet it or not.

“ l believe you.” And she must, because the next thing he knows, his arms are full of kitten. And Bonnie’s off to deal with the cranky hybrid, stewing over his glass of bourbon. He probably would have stomped all the way off if it weren’t for leaving his witch around his himself and Elijah. When he sees her approaching though, he switches his glass to the hand furthermost away from her; so she can’t have it. Bonnie pauses, then purses her lips and comes over anyway. 

 “ Josh told me everything. And while I may have wanted to kill him when he told me he let my kitten out, I was surprised to learn that you actually sent people to look for him. You don’t like Butterscotch, but you still did that for me.” 

What? No? No, no, no. Is this really happening? Is he actually getting what he wanted?

“  And I wouldn’t have found him without you, you know,” Bonnie continues. Then she leans to wrap her arms around his shoulders; a feat only made possible by Klaus’ sitting, and only allowed because it’s Bonnie. And, well, because Elijah can see it. See Bonnie choosing Klaus over him despite the rose and kitten. Because he’s a jealous dick like that.

Klaus has turned his head; feigning disinterest. But he’s probably physically incapable of ignoring the witch. ” And if I had been willing to kill Josh, well, I guess you made that easier too. You enjoyed it a bit too much, though I appreciate the sentiment.”

Klaus mutters something, likely rude or Klausian because kitten saving and all this “thank you” business would be hell on his reputation. Whatever it is, it makes Bonnie laugh and if he didn’t know better, kiss his cheek.

But Josh does know better because you don’t kiss an immortal hybrid. And he knew better than to stare in that direction anyway. Anything longer than a few courtesy seconds and Klaus would have taken it as interest in his witch. A threat to his possession, and thus cause for violence. Josh can’t risk that after narrowly escaping death so many times today already. What he does notice, however, is a flash of red go across the room, but he hasn’t a clue what that means. 

Bonnie releasing him signals the end of their private conversation. Josh can’t believe it though. He really can’t. It’s all going according to plan. Josh is the bad one for letting the cat out and Klaus is the good one for making an effort. Josh has been terrorized and Klaus has been rewarded. He's not even in trouble for throwing her rose away! That's what the flying red thing was, he realizes, Klaus threw the damn thing. Bonnie has clearly forgiven him, but he didn’t get a hug or a kiss or anything. He’s left holding the trouble making cat; who’s amusing himself chewing on his zipper.

“ Come on, sweetie.” Bonnie saves his jacket from further destruction by taking her cat back. It looks bigger in her arms compared to her relative small size. Not big enough for all the trouble it caused. Certainly big enough to walk on his own, but content to be carried as she goes off to her room. Figures. Her cat is spoiled just like her hybrid is.

Since Elijah has disappeared and Klaus is seemingly ignoring him, and Bonnie has no interest in executing him, Josh figures, hey, why not get the hell out before something else happens? Why not go out the way he came in and avoid attracting the attention of other predators, et cetera, et cetera?

“ Joshua.” 

Goddammit. He just barely got hold of the door handle. Klaus calling his name like that makes him flinch and cower. He realizes just what kind of position he’s in. Bonnie’s gone upstairs and can’t hear him. Elijah is gone and won’t be back in time to wrangle Klaus from unnecessary violence. There’s no one to be a witness to his death. No one to hear him scream except Klaus; who would then cause more screaming.

Yep. This is bad.

But he’s expected to answer. And though he is actively shitting himself, he does manage to keep his voice steady to do so. “ Yes sir?”

“ You seem to have just as many lives as that… creature of hers.” It somehow seems even more threatening because Klaus isn’t looking at him. He has his back to Josh completely, and yet he feels like he’s in even more danger than if Klaus were looking at him. “ Had you actually been the cause of her tears, you wouldn’t be here to have this conversation–well, you would, but all you could add to it would be screaming. So know this, if you ever upset my witch like that again, I will make what she did to me seem like a day at Disneyland. Do you understand?”

He can’t. His brain is protecting him from that kind of horror too. But understanding the concept is plenty. “ Absolutely, a thousand percent clear.”

And Josh goes on to prove it by not only quickly going through the patio door, but shaking the handle after he closes it. Just to make sure it’s not only completely closed, but locked too. The noise might annoy Klaus further, but at least if he comes after him, he’ll have to break through the doors or take the long way first. That’s plenty of time for Josh to run screaming into the night.

Which must be what attracts them to him, she figures. Some of them might know he’s different. The same way an adult recognizes a big alpha dog from a little whipped one. But they don’t really know why he’s different, so a few of them mindlessly get in his space and/or touch him to investigate. Which goes back to the disgusting, getting into places they shouldn’t, touching everything, etc.

Plus, he’s big and tall and he sounds funny when he talks. Kids are like cats, if you ignore them instead of trying to give them all your attention, they want to know why. If you’re interesting, they really want to know why.

Or they just love you immediately, which seems to be the case for Klaus; to his eternal frustration.

It works in his favor when he’s charming a parent, and/or threatening one. But outside of that, his hidden talent is useless.

Or she thought, until she found him standing on top of a cement grave with no less than twenty children sitting on the ground around him. At rapt attention. And why wouldn’t they be? Klaus is being incredibly entertaining up there. Talking and charming and moving his hands around and making gestures and being dramatic. All those big eyes on him taking everything in, he must be thrilled.

That’s what she doesn’t get. She remains thoroughly confused (and no small amount of wary) as she ends her conversation with the witches she was summoned specifically to see and wanders over to see what her hybrid is up to now. He was all sorts of cranky when they arrived because of the late hour, but now he’s engrossed in entertaining to leave? 

“ --and so the wicked vampire prince whisked the little magnolia witch off from her useless friends and brought her to his kingdom.”

Oh God.

A little girl with brown ringlets and pink barrettes raises her hand, and very politely waits until the hybrid gestures to her to speak. “ Why did the wicked vampire prince save the girl if he was the bad guy?”

“ Because her useless friends were worse. Much worse. Very selfish, very unkind to the witch who did nothing but help them. She gave up her own birthday and best toys just to make them happy. And do you know what they did for her in return?”

The ringlets swing as she shakes her head. 

“ Nothing. In fact, they broke her toys. They never gave back what they took from her.”

A collective gasp. Not returning toys is one thing, but breaking them too? A cardinal sin among the likes of children. You go straight to heck for that.

This is too much.

A little boy, dark-skinned and missing his two front teeth, tugs on the hybrid’s sleeve. He’s surprisingly tolerant of it. “ Was the little magnolia witch secretly a princess?”

“ Oh, better than that, mate. Even better than a queen.” Gosh, just look at the grin on his face. “ But the wicked vampire prince took the little magnolia witch to his kingdom because he knew he would be KING and could treat her such. It was his home after all. He’d been off fighting for a long time--a very long time--but he was ready to assume his throne.”

Three girls giggle off to the side before one of them is brave enough to voice what’s so funny. “ Does that mean they get maaaaaarried?”

Klaus huffs at that. “ They didn’t have to get married to live ‘happily ever after’ or what have you. That’s a patriarchal construct. Not a single one of you needs to sign a piece of paper in front of God, or a priest, or a judge to be with someone you care about.”

Okay, she’s a little impressed. A valid point, if only the children understood all those big words. 

Klaus seems to realize this and amends his previous statements. “ That means you can get married if you want to, and nothing bad will happen to you. But nothing bad will happen to you if you don’t either. You can be perfectly happy all by yourself and anyone who tells you otherwise is trying to sell you something. I’m not married, and I never will be.”

The little leader of the trio rolls her eyes rather impressively for her age and size. “ Yeah, but you have a giiiiiiirlfriend.”

The witches behind her take to chuckling and Bonnie tries not to blush. Why do little girls have to say everything that has anything to do with love or a relationship in that drawn out tone?

Klaus grunts and frowns. “ I have no such thing.”

“ You do so! She’s right over there,” and of course, she has to point directly at Bonnie so everybody is looking. “ She’s really pretty!”

“ Well. . .” As quick as it came, Klaus’ annoyance disappears. He kind of half shrugs. “ You’re not wrong. She’s much prettier than the witch in this story. A thousand magnolias should wilt at the sight of her. But that’s why she’s mine.”

Now Bonnie really is blushing.

“ Now where was I?” 

“ Oh, oh!” A little boy in the back with curls that could rival her hybrid’s bounces up and down in excitement. “ They were about to live happily ever after because they were king and queen now.”

“ Ah yes.” As if he really forgot. He’s having entirely too much fun up there. “ And so everyone in the wicked vampire king’s land would live happily ever after, et cetera et cetera.” 

You’d think that’d be the end of it.It sounds like the end of a story, right?

“ If-If the king got his happy ending, how c-come he’s still a bad guy?” 

But he has more story to tell yet.

Klaus has to look for that voice though. None of the children near him have spoken. “ Who said that? Stand up, please.”

Bonnie can see the dark-skinned girl from her position. In the very back, seated behind a couple of boys who take to shoving each other until they realize Klaus is no longer talking. They attempt to look innocent, but he’s more interested in the stuttering voice he couldn’t see before. “ I-I did, sir.”

Oh gosh. That little girl reminds Bonnie so much of herself. Right down to ducking her head and hiding behind her bangs when Klaus actually makes eye contact. “ No, no, love, that’s a very good question. A very shrewd one I’m glad you asked.”

Her curiosity makes her look up. “ What’s shrewd?”

“ It means very intelligent. Girls usually are; more so than boys.”

Bonnie has to cover her mouth with her hand to keep from disturbing them with her laughter. The witches behind her (who have grown in significant number) are less conservative. 

Not that the children notice because the girls are just eating it up. While the boys make noises of disgust and disappointment. As if Klaus has betrayed them all by siding with those who have “cooties”.

The obviously shy little girl is smiling now, so she supposes that’s a small price to pay.

Klaus shrugs, turning his palms up in the air. “ Hey, I don’t make the rules. I have to follow them just like you lot.”

Now he’s just straight up lying. He does nothing but make the rules and have other people enforce them, and failing that, enforces them himself with extreme violence.

He can’t exactly say that to a child--well, he could--but he has better manners than that. 

“ But to answer your question, love, he isn’t still a bad guy.” He says that, but then he makes this face that means he suddenly remembered an exception. “ Well, not unless he has to be. Other people force him to be wicked again sometimes, but it’s ultimately for the good of the kingdom. You see, those are the rules he must follow. I mean, you wouldn’t want him being nice to somebody who took and broke your toys, now would you? Or smashed your monster truck or broke your doll’s head off or even lost your dog.”

There’s a sea of shaking heads. 

“ But I’ll tell you the one thing that does make him angry. Well and truly angry.” Klaus crouches down to be eye level with them for this. “ And it’s not taking his toys, or calling him names, or breaking his rules, or even his big brother or little sister being such enormous, unrepentant pains in his as--estuary.” That almost turned out bad, he had to save himself there. “ It’s when someone makes his little magnolia witch unhappy.”

. . . oh. Now she gets it. 

The flush returns to her face. And her heart flutters and races hard enough to make the hybrid look over at her. A cursory glance to make sure that he is the only one causing that. 

“ She’s been unhappy long enough, as far as he’s concerned. They both have. They deserve their happy endings after all they’ve been through. The fighting and the betrayal and the ability to trust, understand each other in a way other people can’t. Not even their own families.” 

Suddenly she feels the same as the shy little girl. Wanting to duck her head and hide from the intense gaze of her hybrid. But she doesn’t break his gaze. He isn’t only talking to the children anymore. 

“ They did not ask to be born with these crowns upon their heads, but they must bear the weight all the same. The Spirits, as you would call them, have decided that these two would be strong. Stronger than everyone who could not handle what they could.”

 Her own shyness wins out. She turns her head, but there’s no where to really hide.

“ But, as I said before, they have their happy ending.” Then his attention is back on the children as he stands up and starts to leisurely pace the grave he’s made into a stage. “  And as long as the wicked vampire king is not made to be wicked, so shall everyone else.”

“ Then. . .” This time Klaus doesn’t turn around to see who’s talking. He already hears what he wants to hear in that simple word alone. “ He’s not really a bad guy at all. He just wants to take care of his people and protect the magnolia witch that no one else will protect. So she doesn’t have to fight anymore.” 

Oh yes, that’s exactly what he wants to hear. 

And exactly what he wants the other witches gathered around to hear. 

“ Out of the mouths of babes. So you understand now why your parents have warned you away from the likes of vampires. They are dangerous, it’s true. And not to be taken lightly. But dangerous has its place, boys and girls!” His arms spread out to either side. A thing he does when he’s making a point. “ Because sometimes you have to do something bad to do something good.”

He’s turned to face the witches entirely now. So there is no mistaking his words. The amber of his eyes and the creeping black veins beneath tell the real ending to the story. “ And if it’s for something, someone really good, you’ll do something really bad to keep it safe. So that no one else EVER tries something that stupid that again.”

They aren’t laughing anymore. They’re not so entertained. The air around her feels heavy, but only with tension. Not with angry thunderclouds of an impending storm, or thick with magic in the air; waiting to strike down whatever its wielder pleases. 

They got the message.

Content that he has made his warning clear, Klaus’ eyes follow suit. Back to charming blue as he smiles at his younger audience. “ Vampires are quite good for that. Bad guys have more fun anyway. That’s why they’re always laughing like that and the good guys look so bloody cranky.”

By the time he’s finished, practically converted a whole generation of witches to his side. 

She cannot, will not condone his influencing small children in such a way. When they leave the cemetery, it’s to the sounds of those small children running around being the ‘bad guys’ and getting their ‘vampire buddies’ to beat their enemies up for pulling their pigtails and upsetting ‘magnolia witches’. 

But her hybrid--the wicked vampire king in her story--is more than willing to weather her disapproval when it comes to his obsession with her safety. That none will steal his witch away for fear or for fortune or ignorance. “ The Wicked Vampire King and His Magnolia Witch? Is that what you call that performance, Klaus Mikaelson?”

“ Such an accusation.” She’s not going to look at him. He has that “who, me?” look on his face that he always does when she accuses him of something he’s actually already done. “ I was just telling a bedtime story while you handled your witch business. That you apparently had to be called to attend to. In the middle of the bloody night. As if at the beck and call of all and sundry.”

Those children will be up all night now. What Klaus likely considers a fitting punishment for all this because it called for his witch to be up in the first place.

The possessive hand at her lower back curves a bit at her waist as he practically growls out the words. She wouldn’t put it past him to grab her up and hybrid her back to the compound before they walk to the gate. And break a neck or two on his way. His irritation is far too close to the surface.

“ I handled it,” she says softly, but firmly; with a hand on his chest that is the same way. Soft in her understanding, but firm in its intent to put his wrath away. “ Though if I hadn’t, that story certainly did, wicked hybrid king.”

She almost never calls him a king directly, and he doesn’t ask her to. But given the roguish, dare she say boyish, smile it puts on his face when she calls him that in particular, well, perhaps she ought to start.

“ I did that,” huffs the witch as she gathers up her book and house keys. “ I got a month when I rented it. When I renewed it, I only got ten days. I asked why it couldn’t be extended and they just wouldn’t let me.”

In hindsight, these are the words that galvanize him: they just wouldn’t let me.

The problem is anybody telling Bonnie no is tantamount to telling Klaus no. And people who do that don’t tend to live very long.

Klaus denies her nothing. Even the bourbon from his own hand. And he will see that no one else denies her anything either. “ Well, shall we away to the library then?”

It speaks to her mood that Bonnie isn’t immediately suspicious or trying to talk her hybrid down from what he rather obviously has planned. A murderous hybrid is the last thing on her mind. Klaus wouldn’t really hurt anybody over a book, surely. It isn’t even magical. It’s a mass produced piece of popular fiction, and it just wouldn’t be fair for her to hog it when someone else wants it, would it?

Maybe he just intends to cheer her up after she has to relinquish her loving companion for the past month. “ Yeah, okay, let’s go.”

But not so fast. There’s a very strong arm barring her way, curling around her waist and turning her about face. “ Forgetting something, aren’t you love?”

Bonnie doesn’t know what that would be. She has the book. She has her keys. She has her hybrid now. What could she be missing?

She doesn’t have to wait long to find out what she means. As Klaus drops one of his heavy black coats over her shoulders, and then his insistent hand is guiding her out of the house.

She still doesn’t think her hybrid is going to do much, even as they enter the library and approach the front desk. In fact, Klaus looks largely bored standing beside her. There just isn’t much for him to do in a matter that’s really the furthest from supernatural.

The man behind the front desk is barely that. A college student with a patch of the ROTC on his sweatshirt. “ How may I help you?”

Bonnie clears her throat and goes about the business of returning the book. But then asking, again, about the process of renewal. Or how long she’ll have to wait to rent the book again.

But, unlike her attempts online, this time, there really isn’t any information to be gained from the attendant. He knows nothing but where the office of loans is. Bonnie feels a bit bad for asking to begin with.

“ I’ve a question, mate.” Klaus does not share this sentiment. “ Are you completely worthless?”

“ Klaus!” But it’s too late. Bonnie might nudge him and hiss his name but the hybrid is out for blood. Maybe not literally (yet) but his metaphorical fangs are out. 

“ Uh, well, sir, I--” The boy stutters; clearly caught off guard. “ It’s just not my department. There’s an office dedicated to that, and I just handle check ins and check outs.”

“ Frankly I think that’s a bit too much responsibility for you.” Klaus is intimidating on his own, he doesn’t necessarily have to do anything else. But he does intentionally urge his witch to the side so that he may lean over the desk and essentially corner the attendant. “ Surely there’s a button you can push, or a door you can open for someone. Seems more your speed, mate.”

Bonnie wants to sink into the floor. There are people waiting behind them to handle their own library business. Klaus doesn’t care. He’s just waiting for the boy behind the desk to squirm and bleed out. “ Do you want to speak to my supervisor, sir?”

“ No, I don’t.”

Bonnie breathes a sigh of relief. There’s some mercy in him yet.

“ But you’re going to.”

Uh oh. 

Klaus isn’t looking at her, but she recognizes the look on the attendant’s face. The slightly glazed over, but rapt attention face of compulsion. “ You’re the one that works here for whatever charitable reason that might be, so you’re the one that’s going to do it. You’re going to go back there and find whoever it is that can fix this. I’m not going to any office, mate, it’s not my job. It’s not hers either. So on your way.”

With his literal marching orders, the attendant gets up and goes to the office he directed Bonnie to. The diminutive Bennett witch swats her troublesome hybrid in the arm; not something that he truly feels. It wouldn’t stop him even if he did. “ What the hell are you doing? This is a library, you can’t just bully people in a library because you’re the immortal hybrid.”

“ Of course I can, love.” He’s quite pleased with himself. “ Doesn’t mean anything that it’s a library. Just means you’ve got to be a bit more quiet while you do it. Suits me fine, it’s not my style to go shoutin’ about to all and sundry about the pain and misery I intend to visit upon them.”

Not his style indeed.

Unfortunately, the sight of another individual coming up to the desk doesn’t bring the relief Bonnie wants it to. The slightly better dressed female comes and asks the same question. “ I’m from interlibrary loan. How can I help you?” 

Klaus directs her to the book in his witch’s arms. “ Renew this.”

She takes one look at the date stamped on the inside, then looks back to him rather cluelessly. “ I can’t, it’s due back today.”

“ Congratulations, you can read. You’re a step up from that one over there,” ‘that one’ being the previous attendant he’s already traumatized. “ But your hearing concerns me. I did not say read the due date, I said renew it.”

This time the woman does take some action and move to a computer. Not long enough to get anything done though. She starts typing, and then she stops. “ It’s already been renewed once.”

This time Klaus looks obviously bored with her incompetence. He makes no effort to hide it. “ Then renew it a second time.”

“ I can’t.”

“ Why?”

The woman from interlibrary loan looks immediately uncomfortable. She probably doesn’t realize this has become a matter of life and death. “ Um. Let me go get my supervisor.”

The people in line behind them are a mix of annoyed and curious. One or two seem to be just as interested in this renewal issue as Klaus is. “ Yes, why can’t the book be renewed again? Is this not a library? I can renew other books twice, but not this one book in particular? Why?”

The library worker that approaches this time is clearly not a student of some kind. Her style of dress is business casual, and she has a golden name tag with ‘supervisor’at the bottom. Someone in a higher position, and hopefully, more capable of answering questions.

Bonnie beats her troublesome hybrid to it, repeating everything first. The supervisor nods her head patiently and asks for the book in question and her library card. Something on the screen makes her frown, to which she responds to it with a, “ well that’s just silly.”

Then the book is handed back to Bonnie with her library card on top. “ Um. Thank you.”

“ It should have given you the same period of time when you renewed it the first time, though for some reason it didn’t. I petitioned the place it came from, and they can say yes or no. But we’ll just ignore that. It’s still checked out in your name. You’ve got it for another month.”

She can guess what Klaus intends to say next. Just a month? Suppose she wants longer than that? Suppose my witch has gotten attached to this book in particular? I think you really ought to just let her have it. Free of charge, of course.

No, no, no. He’s helped enough.

She distracts her hybrid by taking his hand in her own. Which causes him to stiffen and break his stare. Instead looking down at their joined hands as if he hasn’t seen such a thing before. Who holds hands with the immortal hybrid?

Bonnie Bennett does, that’s who.