"So Klaus," Careful I remind myself, Klaus is like a bird. Move too fast and you will spook it. "You say you are experiencing guilt, in the past what have you done with these...feelings. Klaus takes a sip of his sauvignon blanc and pauses, pondering.
"It seems that even the oldest people alive don't know everything Camille," He opens his mouth and then touches his lips together before finishing his sentence. " I have never had these... feelings to deal with, I am as you were when you were first introduced to the supernatural - blissfully ignorant." I'm not surprised. "Camille the thing I am most perplexed with is why? I have done worse things to more people than just two, yet I have never experienced this feeling of..wrongdoing." I have an Idea of why.
"If I may hazard a guess?" I wait for his permission, the last thing I want is to be the victim of an outrage. He nods his head waiting. "Klaus I think the reason you feel this way is because you actually believe you did wrong. You see every time you have hurt someone you have truly believed that they deserved it, that you were actually doing things for the better."
"But with Gia, it was the only way to prove to Dhalia my commitment."
"Was it Klaus? Was it the only way you could prove yourself?" He looks up at me. " You see I think that deep down you actually believe that there was another way. I believe that what you are feeling is not all guilt, it is also anger. At yourself." He opens parts his mouth to butt in. "With Hayley however..." He flinches. "...What you did what an outburst of anger. A petty outburst, what Hayley did was wrong yes. But even you realise that was you do what unjust. Banishing her to the fate she fears all because she tried to protect her daughter and keep her safe."
"But with me, that is where Hope is most safe."
"Is it Klaus? Your family is entangled in a web so thick there is no escaping. Hayley saw an opportunity to free her daughter from it and she took it. Can you honestly say if the roles were reversed and it was her tangled in the web you wouldn't do as she did?" He makes a non-committable grunt.
"How do I - how do I fix this then?" He looks lost.
"Klaus, it could have been on the mend months ago all you needed to do it ask for Elijahs forgiveness-unless...unless you don't think you deserve it?" Oh, I can see that I've hit home. I stare at him, his eyes have clouded up.
"What if I don't? Camille, what then?" He stands up and paces around the bar. "Am I supposed to just accept that my brother will not talk to me for eternity? Am I suppose to be okay with that? Because I am not."
"Klaus," I stand up so that I am facing him. "That is what everyone fears when it comes to owning up to your mistakes, but the only way that you will ever truly have a chance at forgiveness-" I place my hand on this shoulders. "-Is if you let yourself be vulnerable. You need to ask him for his forgiveness Klaus." He looks down at me.
"When?" he pauses. "What if it's not enough?"
"Klaus what you did, it was messed up. Like catastrophically messed up, but I wouldn't have told you to ask him if I didn't think he would forgive you. You did two terrible things Klaus, and only one of them is reversible."
"You want me to- you want me to free Hayley from her curse?"
"Yes that is what I want you to do Klaus," He bites back a retort. "Elijah loves Hayley until she is free he won't be able to forgive you."
"But you said that he would?"
"These things take time to heal Klaus, they are not small mistakes reversible by a simple sorry! You need to act quickly, if you had removed Hayley's curse earlier you and Elijah would already be healing your relationship." He smiles down at me, the smile doesn't quite reach his eyes.
"My dear Camille, thank you." He kissed the top of my head and stays there for a second. The bell rings and it takes me a while to realise he left. I press my hand to my hair and feel the warmth of where his lips were.
