A/N: I randomly found this on my computer today, a fic I started in August (!) before The Originals premiered, when all we had to go off of were the backdoor pilot and the director's cut with Hayley/Elijah scenes. I enjoyed their chemistry then, though I am still ultimately an Elejah shipper. But I thought it would be an interesting Drabble to post, especially with some subtle plot similarities that I had no idea about then. It takes place after he takes Hayley from the witches in the cemetery in those last scenes of the director's cut. Sorry if they seem OOC!

The car came to a stop, and Hayley stretched her legs. Elijah was out within seconds and she watched him, her anxiety ramping up under the surface. She raised her chin, though, as she was intent on not showing any weakness. She stepped out and followed him up the cobblestone path to the small secluded cottage on the other side of the bayou, a little further from New Orleans' city limits.

She pulled his jacket tighter, against the shiver she felt, despite the muggy swamp air. He stopped in front of the doorway and turned to look at her. He wasn't as volatile as Klaus, but his calm was still frightening. Calculating. Assessing the situation before he struck. She only agreed to come with him because he appeared to be remotely on her side.

"Go ahead," he said, gesturing toward the door.

She stared at the arched portico over the small landing, hesitating before setting foot on a step, the porch, finally resting her hand on the handle. Then she paused in the doorway.

"Why should I go in first?" she asked.

"Because," he began, pausing in a manner that she found frustrating. She was impatient. She wanted to know what she wanted to know when she asked, sans dramatic pauses. No need for that effect.

"Yes?" she prodded.

"It's your new home," he said as he sauntered forward, stopping just short of her. "In your name. Protected from any vampire you choose not to invite in."

"So you can't enter," she murmured, biting her lip on the smirk spreading over her face.

"Not at the moment, but if you desire my protection I suggest you do invite me in."

He looked at her expectantly, as though his request should be automatically honored. That assumption irked her, and she crossed her arms.

"Maybe," she said. "But I want to have a look around first. Be sure it's up to my standards, since you didn't ask for my input beforehand."

She turned on her heel, passing over the threshold into the house, and she glanced to see him leaning against the doorway in exasperation. "It was up to your family's standards," he called, and she froze in the interior archway.

She'd been here for months, searching, and yet he found a clue to her past in a matter of days?

"How do you know that?" she asked, rounding back.

"Invite me in, and I'll tell you what you need to know."

She hated the way his eyebrow arched, but she craved the information. It was what first drew her to Klaus, what basically led to her current predicament. She hoped this wasn't a moment she would regret.

"And why should I trust you?" she asked, still wary. "Your brother promised to protect me the night that *this* happened-" she gestured to her abdomen - "and yet he was ready to hang me out to dry with those witches."

"But I didn't," he replied, all trace of amusement gone from his gaze. "Regardless of my brother's shortcomings, I am a man of my word. You will come to no harm, just as I told Sophie. Your safety is my highest concern."

"Because of this magical messiah baby I'm hosting." Her jaw set. "What if I chose not to go through with any of this?"

He sighed, catching the undercurrent of what she meant. "I believe in family above all else, Hayley. Even as dysfunctional as we are. But I realize that it's ultimately your choice, regardless of how disappointing it would be." He stopped again. "Still, you must realize that while I wouldn't stop you, the witches probably have some sort of fail safe in place to prevent you from terminating."

She felt her cheeks redden deeply. "I'm barely a month along and already I'm being treated like some sort of prized cattle. I'm just tired of it. Something that should be my decision already has everyone else's input, including several people I'd never had the misfortune of knowing before. Do you see how it could be testing my judgement? It's a glimpse of what the rest of my life will be, completely beyond my control. I wish..." She shook her head now. "It doesn't matter."