angels and demons | kol mikaelson

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Angel woke up to complete darkness, save for the flickering candle on her bedside. She blinked heavily, ignoring the way her head throbbed as she shifted onto her elbows. It only took her a moment to remember what had happened, the memories rushing back as she suppressed a groan as her muscles protested. She must've been passed out for longer than she thought.

Her head turned to the figure in the chair next to her bed, where her father was as sound asleep as a newborn baby. Klaus looked surprisingly peaceful in his slumber despite his unusual sleeping position, his usually stern and stoic expression softened by the flickering glow.

Angel reached out and gently touched Klaus's shoulder, giving it a slight shake.

"Father," she whispered, her voice hoarse and barely audible.

Klaus stirred, slowly waking from his deep slumber. His eyes opened, and he blinked a few times before focusing on Angel. The candlelight danced in his eyes as he took in the sight of his daughter sitting there.

"Angel," he murmured, his voice filled with a mixture of relief and concern. He reached out and placed a hand on her arm. "How are you feeling?"

The question, although not surprising, was not something Angel was ready to answer. Instead, she did what she did best and deflected the question.

"How long have I been out for?" Angel questioned, watching as Klaus sighed softly. The concern was still evident in his eyes as he withdrew his hand from her arm and leaned back in his chair. He was well aware of his daughter's tendency to deflect but decided to indulge her for the moment.

"Only a few hours," Klaus told her, but by the lack of sunlight in her room Angel knew that was a lie. She winced as a searing pain shot through her head.

"You hit your head pretty hard when you fell," Klaus explained as she reached up to massage the soreness in her temple. He handed a cup towards her, one that Angel glanced at wearily as she made no attempt to reach for it.

"I didn't put any blood in it," Klaus sighed as he resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Although if you don't drink the water, I'm sure Rebekah will have no qualms coming in here and forcing it down your throat anyways."

Angel glowered at the subtle threat but grabbed the cup anyways, allowing the cool liquid to soothe her parched throat.

"I feel like a fool," Angel muttered as she lowered the cup down to her lap. "The daughter of Klaus Mikaelson can't even handle the sight of a broken neck."

Klaus leaned forward, his expression softening as he regarded his daughter with understanding.

"Just because you're my daughter doesn't mean you should be able to handle those kinds of things," Klaus sighed as he regarded his daughter in the candlelight. "I've been too laid back about these kinds of things. You're too young to witness such bloodshed, to even be part of..."

He trailed off suddenly, realizing his mistake as Angel took a sharp breath and her heart began beating faster. The waterworks started before Klaus could backtrack, a strangled sound that broke his heart into a million pieces.

"I didn't know," Angel cried as Klaus wrapped his arms around her. She buried her face in his shoulder, her sobs echoing against the walls. "I would have never- I didn't mean to-"

Each sentence was cut off by her own sobs, which only seemed to grow louder by the second.

"I killed him, dad," was the only full sentence Angel managed to choke out.

"I just- I couldn't let him-"

Klaus understood what she meant to say as he shushed her, brushing his fingers through her hair as he felt the regret swirl in his chest. As time passed, the ramblings began to slow down along with the tears until it became deathly silent.

"I murdered him," Angel whispered into his chest. "I murdered the man I loved."

"Angel," Klaus whispered softly, pulling away slightly to look down at her tear-stained face. "You did what was necessary to protect yourself, to protect our family. I'm just sorry I couldn't protect you from it."

Angel hesitated as she looked up at her father's face. She gave a small nod of acknowledgment before falling back into his embrace.

"You can't protect me from everything," Angel mumbled into his chest, but his vampire hearing caught it all. "You always knew that."

I know, Klaus wanted to say, but he wouldn't let himself. Angel was his daughter, his pride and joy of still being alive. His only purpose was to protect her, and he failed. Klaus held his daughter tightly, his heart heavy with guilt. He had always believed his role was to protect his family at all costs, and in this instance, he felt like he had failed his daughter.

He had never felt like such a failure before, not even in regards to his own treatment from his so-called father.

The two remained in silence until Angel's uneven breaths became steady once again, and she returned to a deep sleep. Klaus laid her down in her bed, hoping she could get at least one night of good rest as he made his leave.

He stepped into the hallway, taking one last emotional glance at Angel laying in her bed before shutting the door behind him.

A laugh from the end of the hallway pulled his attention away from his emotional turmoil as he felt anger boil from within. He found the culprit in the study, surrounded by bloodied women no doubt compelled not to scream and run away.

Klaus's anger and frustration found an outlet, and before he could think clearly, he lunged at Kol with supernatural speed and strength. Kol, so immersed with whatever he was doing, barely had time to react before he was thrown again the bookshelf with tremendous force.

"You dare indulge in your twisted desires while our family suffers?" Klaus screamed as he sped over to a daze Kol, dragging him up by his collar in a fit of rage.

"Your family," Kol responded before thinking, a mistake he quickly realized as Klaus' face darkened. The grip on his collar tightened even further as Klaus bared his fangs menacingly with a deadly glare.

"You would do well not to test me at the moment," Klaus hissed through clenched teeth before shoving Kol with a force that sent him stumbling back. Without another moment of hesitation, Klaus sped around the room before stopping right before his younger brother.

The compelled women fell to the floor, their necks bent in odd angles from the sheer force of a vampire snapping their necks.

"Clean this mess up," Klaus ordered as he walked towards the exit, but not before stopping and turning to face Kol one more time. "And if you try messing with Angel again, I'll dagger you and throw you into the ocean where no one will ever find you again."

Klaus sped off before he could see his brother's reaction, one no doubt filled with rage at his orders. Unbeknownst to him, Kol's attention had shifted down the hallway, where the faint flickering of candlelight seeped through the cracks of the door.