Summary: When Clara defends Elias to his brother, Klaus becomes unreasonably jealous. Klaus x MC.

"I'm terribly jealous," he'd warned her on the day she was accepted to the academy, while she was sitting in his lap peering up at him. Knowing Clara, it was no surprise to Klaus that she hadn't quite gotten it the first time around.

A few weeks later she was in the courtyard with him, working on controlling a fire spell, while Klaus drilled Elias on a higher-level version. As Klaus criticized his brother, harping repeatedly on the generic quality of Elias' spell, the fireball that had been hovering precariously on the edge of Clara's wand swirled out of control and shot into the sky, scattering like fireworks.

Clara let out a yelp, and Klaus barely had time to grab her and pull her close, before he cast a protective water barrier above the three of them. The fireball rained ember droplets, which sizzled harmlessly into smoke as they hit the water.

"Are you all right?" he asked in a low voice, checking her over to make sure she hadn't been singed. He let out a breath of relief when she nodded, shakily.

With the danger over, his voice grew stern and disappointed. "Clara. You haven't lost control over something that basic in a while. I thought we were well beyond that stage."

"Aww…I-I know," she muttered, not meeting his gaze. "I'm s-sorry."

By now, he knew her well enough that he could detect the petulant thread of steel behind the usual meek apology. He saw her fists clench and sighs inwardly. "What is it?"

"N-nothing!" she exclaimed. Her voice trembled and her hands twitched.

"Clara." Klaus tilted her chin upwards and forced her to meet his gaze, studiously ignoring Elias' intrigued observation. Clara always looked this way when she thought she was about to upset him. "Tell me what's wrong."

Her eyebrows furrowed, and her gaze flickered between Klaus and Elias. "You shouldn't say those things about Elias!" she shouted suddenly, clearly unable to control herself any longer. "You shouldn't call him a second-rate wizard! Elias is the best in our class!"

Elias jerked, startled, his cheeks rapidly turning pink. "Um…Hart," his brother began. "You don't have to –"

"I do!" Clara declared, now red-faced with indignation. Klaus was suddenly reminded of a very angry kitten, swiping its tiny claws ineffectually at a much larger threat. The thought was charming until she spoke again. "I look up to Elias a lot. He's so efficient with his magic. It's…beautiful." She frowned at Klaus. "So you shouldn't say those mean things to him because they aren't true!"

Beautiful? Elias' magic? Jealousy overtook Klaus like a storm. Behind him Elias blushed and flinched simultaneously. Even Clara, as dense as she is, seemed to understand that she'd gone a little too far. She looked up at Klaus, and he saw her swallow nervously.

Klaus whirled around. "Elias," he managed. "Go." Needing no other explanation, Elias grabbed his books and headed off back in the direction of the boys' dorm, shooting Clara an apologetic glance.

Klaus towered over the small, frustrating woman that he had claimed as his girlfriend. Clara was clearly wavering, trying to figure out what to say to him. After a long moment of taut silence, she sighed. "Elias is my friend," she began weakly. "You weren't being fair to him."

At once Klaus' anger washed away. It was the purity of her heart, and the strength of her loyalty, which had provoked her to speak out in defense of his brother. Klaus was deeply proud of Clara's strength of heart, and his superficial jealousy faded in light of that realization.

"I know," he said, his voice gentle. Clara peered up at him, her eyes wide, clearly having expected some amount of vitriol rather than this unexpected amnesty. "Elias…" Klaus hesitated. "My brother doesn't have the strongest innate magical ability. He hasn't ever shown any of the rarer abilities." Klaus traced his finger down Clara's neck, along the chain of the pendant he'd given her to keep her safe, and which had enabled her time travel ability to manifest so unexpectedly. "Unlike you," he added

"But…" Clara blinked in surprise. "He's so good at magic."

"My brother works and practices harder than anyone," Klaus said, a hint of pride creeping into his voice. "That's the reason he has reached his current level of mastery."

Clara nodded. "He's always studying hard," she mused.

"But he can't get complacent," Klaus muttered. "If I don't say things like that…he'll never push himself quite as hard as he does."

Clara was quiet. Klaus watched the emotions pass over her face like clouds – consideration, then confusion, then a moment of hesitation, as she prepared to voice something she thinks he won't like. As usual, she forged on ahead, propelled by her conscience rather than her better judgment. "So…do you think the only reason he tries so hard is because of you? His family?"

Klaus pulled her close, unexpectedly. "Hey!" she squeaked, tumbling into his lap, squirming a bit in his hold.

"Relax," he ordered, his voice deep and rough with the pleasure of having her close, and soon she quieted, tucking her head shyly against his collar, like a cat.

Klaus shut his eyes. During their training sessions together, it was often difficult to deny himself these moments, limited himself to the instructive touches and a pat on the head at the end of each day. Now, he let himself enjoy the feeling of her, relishing her warmth and the soft slide of her hair along his cheek. She was always so small and sweet, a soft place for him to rest.

"There's a lot of family pressure, yes," he replied vaguely. It was difficult for Elias. Klaus understood, because he had felt that pressure himself, from his father and elder brother. But Klaus' natural confidence and single-mindedness had largely insulated him from being bothered by it. Elias was more sensitive. It was why Klaus had always, in his own brusque way, cared for Elias, trying to make his younger brother stronger.

Idly, Klaus' mind wandered, and he found himself considering when he might take Clara home with him, and introduce her to his family, and how they might react to the charming little simpleton that had stolen his heart. Ultimately it didn't matter what they think. Clara belonged to him; that would never change.

Clara sighed, her breathy exhalation ghosting against his neck. "Elias needs to do it for himself," she declared resolutely.

"Hmm?"

"He needs to find his own reasons to work hard. Like me," she grinned cheerfully. "I'm studying because I want to help the people in my village, and give back to them for taking care of me."

At that logic, Klaus couldn't help but smirk. "And how's that motivation working out for you? Can't cast a fireball without it exploding? Can't go one day without bunny ears magically sprouting out of your head?" He tugged at a pigtail.

"H-hey!" Clara protested.

"Judging from your grades, seems like my brother is doing much better for himself than you are."

"Awww…you're so mean!" Clara complained. She looked slightly miffed by his teasing, but no more so than usual. Klaus was always careful to watch for signs of real hurt, but one of the strangest things about Clara was that it was surprisingly difficult to really faze her by insulting her. She was just unnaturally good-humored. On the other hand, when it came to anything approaching intimate behavior…

"It's a good thing you have me to train you then, hmm?" Klaus smirked wickedly, watching her struggle against him for a moment before he lowered his mouth to her ear and gave it a little nip.

Clara stiffened, eyes wide in disbelief. "…D-did you just BITE me?!"

She was so unbelievably adorable, Klaus could not resist. "Don't tell me that was your first love bite?"

Clara flushed, torn between confusion and embarrassment. Klaus could feel the heat radiating off of her face like a furnace – a very adorable furnace. "L-love bite?"

He laughed at the expression on her face, and then leaned over to kiss away the bite. "That's not a real love bite," he whispered.

"Oh," she replied, and he heard disappointment in her tone.

"When you're ready," he promised, suddenly serious.

She flushed again, but her eyes went dark, and he felt a bolt of heat at her shy, expectant expression. But the sky was growing darker, and it was almost time to take her back. He told her as much, and they gathered their books and begin walking back.

Outside the girls' dorm, she turned to him expectantly, waiting for him to give her his customary farewell – a hand on her head, a caress of her hair. He did so, gazing down into her wide eyes.

"Thank you for being my brother's friend," he said. Clara blinked, clearly not expecting this. "But," he continued, leaning down so his mouth was at her ear, "never forget that you belong to me."

Clara flushed red again. But there was a smile on her face, a sweet expression just for him. "Don't worry!" she giggled. "You're the one I think about when I go to sleep," she added innocently, before waving goodbye and heading into the girls' dorm.

Klaus stood there, shaking his head. If only she knew what she was saying…but he smiled to himself before beginning to walk over to the boys' dorm alone. He'd be thinking of her too…just as he did every night.