Hayley Marshall groaned as another insistent kick from within her womb had her brought forth from her sleep and staring with bleary eyes at the alarm clock on her bedside table. 4:01, great, Hayley thought with a wince.

"I don't suppose you could wait until, I don't know, maybe 12:00 in the afternoon..?" She mumbled into her pillow, directing her question at her unborn baby girl in her growing belly. Another harder kick at her ribs had her moaning with drowsiness into the fabric.

Lately during the day Hayley was left mostly to her own devices. The Mikaelson siblings were often out of the house and, due to the short leash Klaus had on her what with the uneasiness with the witches, Hayley was usually left behind, despite Elijah's protests.

"I'm fine being alone, really." Hayley would say, forcing a reassuring smile to oldest Mikaelson brother. But when the Originals would leave, the smile would drop from her face and Hayley would plop onto the nearest piece of furniture and stare up at the ceiling vacantly until she could feel her little girl, the miracle baby, move around inside her. This would bring a sense of peace and companionship to the little wolf, knowledge that she was never truly alone, and despite how she had felt about the baby in the beginning, excitement would well up inside of her. But at times like this, when all she wanted was to sleep, the kicks were unwelcome.

Hayley sighed and threw back the comforter, slipping on her housecoat. She padded down the dark hall and down the stairs, a new feeling in her stomach. She was suddenly craving food. Damn hormones, she thought, her feet seeming to not move fast enough to the grand kitchen.

She threw the door open and almost moaned with satisfaction when she realized that one of the vampires, probably Elijah, had picked up food. Her eyes ran hungrily along the selection until she settled on the Thai noodles she had leftover from this morning.

It was when she was eagerly shoving food into her mouth, and probably looking like a pig, that she heard a low chuckle come from behind her. "My, you are a hungry little wolf, aren't you?"

With a gasp, Hayley's food fell from her grip and spilled onto the fresh white tile floor, making a giant mess. "Dammit Klaus-" Hayley began haughtily, about to go on about the many reason to not startle a pregnant woman, when another kick broke her off, her eyes going wide.

Klaus was at her side in an instant, the mess on the floor forgotten, his hands on her hips, leaving her skin prickling with goosebumps at his touch. His eyes were wide as well. "What's wrong? Are you injured?"

Hayley swallowed and shook her head, albeit shy at his sudden closeness. His breath was right on her lips. "N-no, the baby, she's just wide awake. She likes to kick around this time."

Klaus's eyes filled with relief and...something else. Wonder. Excitement. "She's...kicking?" Hayley nodded slowly. "Um..do you want to feel?" The words came out in a rush.

Despite the fact that Hayley was in her third trimester, Klaus had never actually touched, felt or listened to her tummy before. Until now, Hayley hadn't really noticed or cared, but, with the father of her child so close, something in her wanted some sort of unity between the three of them. Some kind of family. She chalked those stupid feelings up to hormones again.

Her one night stand with Klaus was pretty much meaningless. It was based off of rebellion and curiosity –Is he really as good as they say?- fueled by alcohol. But it had created something that meant a great deal more than Hayley had originally thought. A baby.

Klaus didn't answer with his mouth, but his eyes warned her as his hands slowly brushed the fabric of her slim nightgown, lightly placing his hands around the swollen basketball that was her belly. She prayed to whatever God or Gods there may be, that he couldn't hear her rapid heartbeat or see the rise of blood in her cheeks. As if on cue, the baby kicked at Klaus's palms, making her little presence known. Both parents smiled at eachother.

Klaus held his hands there for a long moment and then threw his head back and laughed. "What a little fighter she is already."

"Oh great," Hayley scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Another Klaus."

Klaus, noting the joking tone, did not take offence. His azure eyes continued to twinkle, the dimple in his cheek still present. "Perhaps 'another Hayley' would be more accurate. I do hope the little princess is like her mother."

Hayley opened her mouth to respond but Klaus was already backing away. "Goodnight little wolf. Oh, and don't forget to clean that up." He nodded to the mess on the ground and she shut her eyes willing herself not to piss off the most dangerous vampire in the world.

When she opened her eyes, the snappy comeback died on her lips as Klaus had already disappeared down the hallway.

Glancing down at her bare feet, Hayley realized that the mess had already been cleaned up.