You Don't Know What I'd Do For You (Love you like oxygen)

twenty-four

*A/N* AHHHHHH!!! Okay, I am SO sorry, I know that's what I say, like, every chapter, but this is really bad. THREE WHOLE WEEKS!!! And I literally wrote nothing, not a single word! *deep breath* Alright, we are SO CLOSE to the fluff, I know, it's agonizing, but we are almost there, it's fucking happening. There aren't really any trigger warnings that I could think of for this chapter, maybe some gore (but, like, it's the Mikaelsons so what's new), but, as always, if you see any, let me know and I will put them in. Please enjoy, don't worry, it is extra long to make up for the delay.

IMPORTANT P.S. BECAUSE THIS WILL PROBABLY GET CONFUSING: So, in this chapter, I'm going to do a scene with the Beast and I just wanted to explain some stuff. The Beast and Elijah are basically two separate consciouses who share the same body, so, in Elijah's mind, they will appear as two separate people. Because there are two alters and this is a made-up universe where I can do whatever I want, I chose that the Beast would adopt the vampirism, this is how Elijah is able to keep his magic through his turning. This means that whenever Elijah wants to do vampire-y things, he has to channel the Beast which leaves the body vulnerable for the Beast to overtake, this is why Elijah is reluctant to drink blood because it brings the Beast closer to the surface. Inside Elijah's mind, the Beast always appears vamped out and Elijah appears human. I know that there are a TON of plot holes, don't look too closely. I hope this helps, thank you for reading!

In Elijah's Mind

It felt like an eternity before the door finally opened and they were allowed to leave the room. They all rushed into the hallway, breathing heavily and tears running down their cheeks as they tried to get away from the memory. But there was no escape, the damage was done and the horrible scene replayed in their heads over and over.

Despite the blinding light in the hallway, it didn't help the darkness that resided behind the closed doors. All the strength that they possessed didn't dampen that feeling of being powerless. The spotless, perfect corridor didn't combat the dirty, broken feeling that clawed through their veins. It was all just an illusion, fake and pretend, so that outside eyes didn't look too far in.

And perhaps that was the moment, the one second in all their lifetimes combined when it was all stripped away. That was when they saw their brother, really saw him, really  looked at him. And past all the poise, and straight posture, and squared shoulders, past the elegant words, and manicured appearance, and pristine suits, was an empty, hollow shell of a boy that grew up too fast, but could never grow old.

~~~~~

Klaus POV

Tears ran down my face like the world was ending, like nothing would ever be okay again. There were angry tears that made my blood boil to the surface and made me want to tear through the walls to get to Mikael. There were tears of shock as one atrocity was piled on top of another, and another, and another, seeming to never end, until it all came crashing down onto me. But there were also tears that came from somewhere deep within myself, tears that I had already cried but hadn't known their reason then, tears of lifetimes long forgotten but from a hole that had never quite faded.

Rebekah's words played through my head, "Nik, Mikael's in there," haunted with an ancient pain and hopelessly too late. It repeated through my mind again and again as I continued to cry, mourning for things I hadn't realized I had lost. I grieved for my brother's innocence that was torn from him too young, for the childhood that he never got to have. I cried for traumas that weren't even my own, for all those questions from centuries ago that I finally had answers to. I mourned for all the times that Elijah had been pulled aside by Mikael, for all the times that my brother had emerged from our parent's room, for all the times that I was oblivious to his suffering, for all the times that he had needed help and nobody had bothered. I cried for all the times that we'd been too late, for all the times where nobody had known, for all the times that we sat idly and did nothing.