𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐂𝐇 ━━ KLAUS MIKAELSON

82

EMERY DECIDED TO RETURN home from college, seeing as it was more boring than doing nothing. She'd rather help Klaus with whatever he was planning on doing with Connor.

However, the moment she stepped inside the house, she was met with the sight of Jeremy being held by one of the hybrids and Klaus standing in front of him.

"I'm not helping you with anything," Jeremy said as Klaus glanced at his hybrid who quickly removed Jeremy's ring and tossed it to Klaus, none of them having noticed Emery's presence yet.

That was, until Jeremy's ring flew from Klaus's fingers and landed in the witch's hand. Klaus ran his tongue along his teeth, smiling as he dragged his eyes to her. He clicked his tongue, "really?"

"How many times do I have to tell you not to mess with my brother?" Emery asked instead as she approached them. She handed Jeremy back his ring which he took before giving Klaus a smug smile.

The original hybrid rolled his eyes at him, then looked back at Emery, "I asked him first. He refused, but maybe now he will. Willingly." He shot the teenager a smile, "for his dearest sister. Won't you, Jeremy?"

Jeremy glanced at Emery the back at the hybrid. Finally, he let out a loud sigh and gave them a small nod. "Fine. For Em. Not you."

"We are practically family at this point, sweetheart," Rebekah spoke up from behind them, her eyes twinkling with amusement as she stared at the youngest Gilbert. "You might as well get used to his insufferable existence."

"I'd rather just ignore his existence entirely," Jeremy muttered with a roll of his eyes before he was led to the room where Klaus had tied Connor in chains. They left him alone there and went to have dinner.

As they sat down, Klaus began telling them more about the tattoo. He lifted his glass of wine in his hand, his eyes fixed on Rebekah as he said, "My sister's suitor was unwilling to tell us anything. Rebekah was more than willing to investigate. Isn't that right?"

Rebekah swallowed, not looking at her brother in the eyes as he spoke, "'my sister's boyfriend threw a slumber party that night. He and his brothers put us all down in our sleep. Elijah, Kol, Finn and me."

"How was I supposed to know?" Rebekah asked upon noticing the disapproving look Klaus was sending her.

"Cheers," the hybrid let out sarcastically, raising his glass in the air as it to toast, "to my sister's uncanny ability to choose men."

"Something Emery and I have in common," the blonde vampire muttered, glancing at the witch whose lips twitched up.

"He's the only man I've ever really been with," Emery corrected making Klaus smugly smile behind his glass, his eyes flickering over to her. She met his gaze, "also, people make mistakes. No need to be a dick to her about it."

"You would've done the same if you were daggered in your sleep, love," Klaus shrugged, "also, it's not the first time one of Rebekah's foolish crushes have messed with us."

"I thought the daggers didn't work on you because of your werewolf side," Stefan muttered, furrowing his brows.

"They don't," Klaus mumbled and began telling them how he murdered Alexander in cold blood after having ripped out his tongue. Then he looked at Rebekah, "tell him what the hunter told you the tattoo leads to. What's this great weapon that could bring about the end of the vampire species?"

"A cure," Rebekah blew out, "he said there was a cure."

"There is no cure for vampirism," Stefan said, standing up at the same time as Klaus did. He stalked over to a table where there were several drinks.

"He's telling the truth, Stefan," Rebekah also stood up, looking at Emery who only leaned back in her seat and crossed her legs.

"Then why wouldn't you have searched for it?" Stefan questioned, "found it?"

Klaus grabbed two glasses and began filling them both as he responded, "because when the hunters drew their final breath that night, the marks disappeared from their body, the map was gone, the brotherhood of the Five extinct. For nine hundred years, there was not a whisper of another hunter, until our friend in there showed up in town."

"Well, now we have the map," Rebekah said, "what do we do next?"

"We don't do anything," the hybrid looked at her, "you can't be trusted, little sister. You'll be blabbing this secret to the first boy who calls you pretty." He walked over to where Emery was still seated and handed her one of the glasses. She took it from him as he turned back to look at the blonde vampire, "I mean, it's pathetic, really, isn't it? How she continues to hand her heart to any man who shows her a hint of affection. You'd think she would have learned by now from the endless cycle of disappointment and deception."

"But, I haven't," Rebekah clenched her jaw, "instead I stayed with you and let you leech every moment of happiness from my life! You know, at least I fared better then Finn, Klaus left him daggered because he was tired of his judgment."

"No, Finn was a dullard," the hybrid retorted, "he was more interesting lying in a box."

"You want the cure for Elena, don't you?" Rebekah asked, scoffing as realisation hit her, "so you can go back to mass producing your hybrids. That's why you brought Stefan here, because you knew that he'd help you even though he hates your guts! You know what? You can shove your cure." She then walked over to Emery who was now looking at her. "See? He's never going to be able to let go. It doesn't matter what he's promised you, sweetheart. Best leave him while you still can." She then stormed out of the house.

Klaus glanced at Emery who decided that the glass she had in her hand was more interesting than him. He smirked before he turned to face Stefan who clicked his tongue, "well, I hope you got what you wanted out of her before you chased her off."

"She never would have told me what I needed to know. But she'll tell you."

"What do you need me to find out?" At Stefan's question, he took a sip of his own drink, then replied, "the map is useless without the tool to decipher it."

"The sword."

"She knows where it is," the hybrid nodded, "and you're gonna get her to tell you. You have a chance to save Elena from the very thing that is going to destroy her. You can call it a deal with the devil, if you like. But you know you won't walk away from it."