Le notes: I honestly never thought that I would root for this triangle because the stelena/delena thing annoys the shit outta me on tvd. But, strangely, the Mikaelson brothers make this dynamic work. I normally dislike sibling rivalry over one girl but TO has really exceeded my expectations. I think it's because it's subtle therefore it has more appeal. And that it's very dark, you know?

Summary: He doesn't know if he wants her, all he knows is that he doesn't want anyone else to have her. —-KlausHayleyElijah

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she slipped down his body and out of his arms

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"you take a lover who looks at you
like maybe you are magic" —Frida Kahlo
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/ / /

He's haunted by the way in which his brother lays his eyes on her. As if she is the world. As if she is a fire, burning and crackling and making his blood boil because when she meets Elijah's gaze, her eyes light up. And Niklaus realizes that perhaps, once in a blue moon, he would want her to look at him with that same starry-eyed expression swirling in her irises as well. And he doesn't know why that is. Perhaps it's because at times, he feels alone. So alone, in fact, that sometimes, he can't even breathe. Since all he has always gets either taken away from him or destroyed to bits by his own two hands. It's not that he wants her. It can't be. For she is not love (unfathomable and pure) but, she is not hate either. She is a wolf, lying somewhere in between the fine line dividing the desirable and the totally unwanted. He doesn't know if he wants her, all he knows is that he doesn't want anyone else to have her.

But it's ridiculous and confusing, so he only keeps these thoughts to himself. The last thought that occurs to him before he falls in to a deep slumber is the fact that she never mentions any of this. It keeps him up at night, sometimes. But never for too long. He keeps thinking about her dark eyes and the way they paid close attention to his brother's journal. The nights she spent, engulfed in Elijah's words, sleepless and tired. Niklaus tries his best to brush these memories aside. Acts like it doesn't bother him, much.

He thinks that she doesn't notice when in reality, she just pretends not to.

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/ / /

She remembers Niklaus's touch; impulsive fingers leaving impulsive marks and bruises on her skin. They bloom, purple and angry, like flowers drenched in ruby-red blood. She recalls the sting of his hands, like cuts and scrapes marking her with his claws sweeping across her cheek, down the side of her neck, between the valley of her breasts, smoothing down the lines over her stomach, and resting on the prominent bone of her hip. She had sucked in a shuddering breath at his touch, cheeks tinting pink, wondering about the last time a man had ever been capable of making her heart stop. She can't help but sink in to visions of him. It's unforgettable, like the way he looks at her. It left an imprint on her mind; he's unaware of this. That she thinks that whenever he sets eyes on her, he resembles a beast, about to devour his helpless prey.

And she hears it, his thoughts, saying I am not aware if, whether or not, I want you. All I know is that I do not want anyone else to have you.

It wasn't good enough, she knew this. In her head, it was crystal clear; that this was not a man but a monster, and he would never care for her in such a loving manner. But her heart, was different. All it heard was I do not want anyone else to have you. And that is what gave birth to her false sense of hope.

She keeps her feelings repressed when Elijah comes to her, arms wide open, vowing to protect her.

Oddly enough, Hayley Marshall isn't immediately swept off her feet.

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/ / /

He is the other end of the red string of fate which is tied to the tip of her little finger. The man made of honor and integrity, tying up loose ends and piecing the puzzling pieces back together. He is the world beneath her eyelids; a dream and made up fantasy which she dares not think about in such a way. Because he's Elijah, the brother of the man who is—

"How much longer do you plan on staying cooped up in here?" Niklaus begins as he steps in to her chamber, completely uninvited. She thinks that maybe, he sounds concerned about her. She guesses that she hates it, hates him, and hates the way in which he gets under her skin.

Hayley squirms in her chair, clutching her hand around her belly before turning her head over shoulder in order to meet his lethal gaze. "You should really learn to knock before you enter someone's bedroom." She advises, carefully avoiding his commentary.

Klaus takes a good look at her before telling her this much: "I find it odd," he says, "that ever since my brother returned to us; you've been keeping yourself captive in your room."

She raises a brow, this time she doesn't look in to his eyes, in fear that perhaps he might see all that she has been trying to hide from him. "What I do with my time is none of your business." She tells him.

At a moment's notice, he is only inches away from her. She realizes that right now there are three hearts beating in this room. "It's no longer just your time, sweetheart."

Hayley slips out of her chair and proceeds towards the door, unable to handle the way in which these close proximities with the hybrid makes her sweat all over. "Can't you just get out of my way?" She questions, rationally.

Klaus smirks. "I think I know why you're concealing yourself from my brother."

She rolls her eyes, crossing her arms around her chest. "Maybe he's just begun to irritate me with all this 'protection' he thinks that I need."

The man before her begins to chuckle. "That's where you're wrong, little wolf." He says, following her out of her room. "I think that you're avoiding Elijah because he makes you anxious." Just like I do.

Hayley Marshall walks away before Niklaus gets to remind her that every time Elijah's name is mentioned, her heart tends to beat a little faster. Unmistakably, she hardly makes an escape. She only digs herself a hole; it felt like she was running in to a cage, with the keys thrown out.

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/ / /

He had noticed this, long before, he thinks. The night where he questioned her about the impression his brother had left on her never ceased to plague his mind. It's as if she is a disease, an infection running through his organs, cancerous and fiery. Ever-burning and a constant reminder that he has now become dependent on her safety. His mind is occupied with thoughts about her, and sometimes —most of the times— he can't even control it. He thinks of it, every other day or so. That moment where she—

He was kind to me.

Niklaus finds that his brother has unintentionally become her white knight.

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/ / /

The aspect she fears the most is the way in which the truths she tells herself never seem to stick to her. Like the fact that she said to herself that she would never see Klaus again after she told him about this child (which she was certain that he would want nothing to do with). Yet, Klaus had surprised her, over and over again. She also managed to convince herself that, even though she was living under Klaus's roof, she wouldn't need him. But she does, she really does. She comes to this conclusion the night she falls and he catches her instead of letting her go. Hayley captures his gaze and she sees it; the small hint of light in his dark blue eyes. It's as if she's addicted to the lies, the fact that perhaps he does care. And maybe, he does want—

This is the sickest part, she thinks, that she drives herself insane with these endless spirals of thoughts about a man who is as complicated as a spider's web. He's intricate and a deadly trap, and gosh…she's really lost it. She had seen him at his darkest, heartlessly burning corpses right before her eyes, and still, she dared to think that he was capable of being saved. He hadn't even noticed her watching his every move.

The worst part is that she can't stop thinking about a man who is completely and utterly in love with somebody else.

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/ / /

"I've got you love," he had told her, as he caught her before she fell and carried her home. She's a little hazy at the memory of it, but he remembers like he won't ever forget. It's the way she breathes, so soothingly and freely, right in his arms. It's the way her heart beats simultaneously with his own. It's the way she shivers against him, urging him to wrap his arms tighter around her body in order to keep her warm. He holds her so carefully, as if the slightest movement from his part might break her. Although, Rebekah is the real witness to her brother's transformation. He really isn't the same man he once was. He cares. A lot more than he should. Rebekah is afraid for him. Things have a habit of getting taken away from him. And this girl and her child—

"I will protect you; you have my word on that."

—they're not his to keep. Nothing is ever his to keep, it seems. He's never had anything of his own, either. Not really. He's not surprised that he didn't get to keep her.

Rebekah places her hand on her brother's shoulder. "It's not going to be easy, you know?" She tells him. Niklaus raises a brow. "Looking after…her." His sister takes a pause in order to observe the wolf girl for a moment. She looks delicate and soft, nothing like the tough cookie she pretends to be.

Klaus also lays his eyes on her. Rebekah realizes that her brother's willing to work hard for Hayley. He's fighting for her. It's really quite surprising.

"I know." It's all he tells his sister. After that, Rebekah is much too quiet as she watches this new man she dares to call her brother. He continues to carry Hayley up the stairs and softly places her on her mattress. Just as he's about to leave her room, she grabs his arm.

Stay.

She doesn't tell him. Niklaus only stands, watching her as she opens her eyes. He wonders if she thinks about him as much as he thinks about her.

"What are you doing here?" She questions him, half awake.

He chuckles because he wishes he knew the answer to her question. Instead, he only chooses to ignore her true intention. "I'm putting you to bed."

Hayley furrows her brows. "That's not what I meant." She takes her hand off of his when she sees the lack of light in his bright blue eyes. "You're not supposed to be here, you know?" She tells him, as confused as ever. What she means is that she's not supposed to feel weak in the knees for him. She's not supposed to look at him as if he is her savior. She's not supposed to think about him so God damn much.

Because he doesn't care.

Right?

"Where else would I be, sweetheart?"

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/ / /

After all of that, Elijah is the one who descended in to the waters with her. Elijah is the one who held her hand in his own. Elijah is the one who saved her from herself. And Elijah is the one who gets to keep her, too.

She places her hand over his because he looks at her as if she is magic, made of starlight and diamonds. Elijah spots her thin fingers connecting with his own, eyes lighting up and a smile pulling at the corner of his lips.

Niklaus watches from the sidelines, unable to utter a single word.

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/ / /

End

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Le more notes: Ah, poor Klaus, he's never the one. And apparently, after 1x05, it appears that Camille hates him too. Oh well. I still adore the man (it's so strange, it's as if the crueler he becomes, the more I obsess over him). Leave me a review telling me what you thought about this fic! I also have a tumblr (link on my profile) so make sure to follow me for pretty graphics and I take requests too!

—Xoxo Carter