consequence | at leaving messages ] [ for ophi

[ Niklaus has been here for some time already, it seems -- and Rebekah even longer than that. Whether they are indeed gods or not, their captors must still possess a significant amount of power to keep them contained the way they have. Otherwise, Elijah is certain that his brother and sister would have escaped at the first possible opportunity to do so.

Thus the realization that they may be well and truly trapped here is one that weighs heavily upon his conscience. It is why he cannot promise Hayley any more than he does in the moment. But what he can promise is to try -- to search, tirelessly, however long it takes.

Her lips graze over his open palm then and Elijah's breath catches audibly in his throat. The reaffirmation of her trust is not insignificant. It gives him strength here in this place where he feels so weak and impotent. She rests her head back against his chest and his thumb continues to idly stroke her cheek for a moment before his arm lowers once more to encircle her. ]

[Standing there in his embrace is enough to center her. To make her remember that all they've done thus far is survive. She's had countless enemies thrown upon her and she's still standing. This place is not nearly as dire as the French Quarter on a bad day and even more importantly is that she knows her daughter is safe. Above all else, even if this world crumbles, she knows that is as an absolute. Nothing can touch that.

Elijah's hand is warm at her back and every so often she can feel the weight of it shift against her spine. She could be content to rest here, like this, for a while. Her breathing steadies and the concerns she had over Klaus and his violent response to her answers slip away. The worry she has over the strained relationship between Klaus and Rebekah moves to the distance.

Hayley isn't sure how long they stand there in that embrace. Maybe those that pass by have a curiosity as to why or who they are, but she's not concerned with them. As she pulls away, her hand moves from his back to along his jaw. It's a soft touch, one with compassion and honesty, because he told her once that she always had a choice.]

I hadn't realized how much I missed you, until you were right here.

[It's her choice as she leans up and kisses him. Her fingers brushing along his jawline until she can feel the softness of his hair at the nape of his neck. If she's only had the chance to kiss him twice before, she wants to make sure that it matters as much as it had those other times.]

[ In time, perhaps he will find it peaceful enough in its own strange way. This place, despite its countless other faults and shortcomings, is at least somewhere they can all be together -- seemingly without the constant threat of their enemies conspiring to ruin them. If nothing else, they can survive here. (It is the Mikaelson way).

It's a luxury that he's not yet entirely acclimated to, to allow himself this incredible degree of closeness with her. But it's one that he relishes presently all the same, content in the moment to hold and to be held by her in return. He inhales the scent of her more deeply this time, letting its comfortable familiarity wash over him. With just the one little touch, she pulls out some of the stress that's been gradually building up over the course of the day. His posture grows less tense by degrees and the line of his jaw relaxes some.

Her words are like the sweetest music to his ears, to think that she relies upon him still for comfort even when he is not perhaps her best option. But he doesn't have the chance to respond before she's closing that last bit of distance and oh -- she's kissing him. So warm and sweet and sure. Things have never been more complicated for them but he doesn't deny her his reciprocation, lips molding to hers with tender care. ]

[This is simple. This is something that has kept her grounded through cravings and bloodlust that she hasn't really admitted to anyone. The thought of connection, of being able to lose herself in someone else. It's a baser instinct, but it's one that she's content relying on.

Hayley wants the kiss to continue, she wants to let it build and fill up all the empty places that she still feels, but right now she knows that it's not exactly the ideal situation and suddenly rushing this, even if it's being reciprocated, might not be the wisest thing. There's a slight bit of hesitation, but Hayley still pulls away from the kiss. Her forehead rests lightly to Elijah's eyes still closed as she exhales softly.]

I really did miss you.

[ Everything is still so tentative and new between them as it is -- and then having also just had a run-in with Katerina certainly provides him with a whole slew of complicated feelings even though he realizes quite clearly now that he doesn't care for her in the same manner as he once did. And so, it's for the best that they don't get carried away, even if that's what their environment seems to call for.

Truly, this is almost as good... Freely indulging in the kind of emotional intimacy that he has long been denying himself with her. ]

Loathe though I am that you are here... I am selfishly glad for it nonetheless.

[Her hand remains against the nape of his neck, fingertips brushing lightly there. She wants to stay like this, close to him, for as long as possible because there have been very few chances for her to have this any other time. It's always been something sudden and out of the fear of loss. While it's true that they might get taken from here, brought back home, but it still feels isolated enough that she can just hum softly at his words and smile at him.]

Loathe though I am... [Her tone teases lightly.] I'm sure you say that to all the girls.

[ He smiles wryly. ]

I suppose now would be a terrible time to say who I ran into down in the caves. [ At least he seems to have learned his lesson about keeping things from her unnecessarily. Surely at some future point he'll find a way to justify it happening again if need be -- he always does -- but for the moment, he elects to just be forthright with her about ~~his dirty past~~ a potential awkwardness in their midst. ]

[Oh, Elijah, killing the mood already. Hayley pulls away to look at him more fully. The only person she's concerned about being here is ... well, okay the list is long, but top of her mind is Genevieve or one of the Harvest girls.]

Definitely a terrible time, but tell me anyway.

Katerina Petrova. Or, as you may know her, Katherine Pierce. [ The most uncomfortable pause. ] We have -- a history, her and I. [ That's putting it a little mildly of course but best not to slap her with the cray all at once. ] So I just thought you should be aware of that, that you should hear it from me first, considering our-- [ Their what? ]

[That is a name she hadn't even considered in a while and the thought of Elijah having history with her... it's probably something she read in his journals when she was snooping.]

She tried to have me killed. [Just sayin'.] It's why I was with Klaus in the first place. Trading information for protection. [There's a light frown, because she's not sure what Katherine's presence means.]

Do you know when she's from? [Because, Hayley is a hybrid now... she can handle herself if she needs to.]

I did not grill her like maybe I should have. But, judging from the fact that she is still a vampire with no apparent memory of what awaits her, at least a year behind us now.

However, she seemed -- surprised to see me, beyond even what you might expect given the circumstances. So I would hazard to guess she comes from a time even earlier than that.

[Hayley nods. She knows that this can't be easy on Elijah if he had the sort of history that she assumes he had with her, snooping not withstanding.]

Are you alright? [Hayley's hand moves to take one of his, holding onto it and giving him a reassuring squeeze.]

I am. [ Elijah's thumb brushes over top of hers, equally reassuring. ] Or, I will be. [ It had been regrettable to miss her passing in the end but he had made peace with that loss of her some time ago already. Of course, having her here again in the flesh had stirred back up some of his old weakness for her... But his concern remains with his family. Which includes Hayley now. If Katerina means her any harm, then he will act accordingly -- weakness or not. ] Thank you.

[Hayley nods, knowing that really being 'all right' is something that exists on a sliding scale in this place.]

You probably need to go find Klaus. [Not that she's trying to get rid of him, but she also can understand that he can't just take all of his time, no matter how easy that could be for her.]

[ He is reluctant to leave her but he has yet to make contact with his brother and that is something that needs to be done sooner rather than later in his eyes. So he nods. ]

Tell me where I can find you later?

[Hayley smiles up at him, a soft smirk on her features.]

I'll be right [insert the location of her tent thing that is not too far from Rebekah's. It has all the things that Klaus has been stealing for her...] there.

[ He nods, carefully memorizing this bit of information. ]

Then I'll give you another call after I've settled.

Take your time. This place is a lot to settle into.

So I'm starting to realize. [ And he will excuse himself after one last, lingering squeeze of her hand. ]

[She smiles and lets him head off to his trouble maker brother.]

at leaving messages ] [ for ophi

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