Who: Klaus & Elena When: A few weeks prior Where: Chinese take out place What: Random meeting; hell, she doesn’t hate him yet ;) Rating: Low probably Status: Closed; Incomplete
While most people her age were out, partying up all night and probably much into the next morning, Elena was doing homework. Medical school was officially in full swing and the amount of homework was not surprising. The field she was working to enter was complex and involved absorption of a lot of different, often difficult knowledge. She needed to pay attention and work to learn all of it to the best of her ability. Elena was a good student, but this was far from Pre Med anymore and she was becoming stressfully aware of it this week. The rise in the amount of coffee was a sure indicator as was her lack of inspiration to cook for herself. Not that it really mattered because everyone knew Elena was a horrible cook and burned even the simplest things, like macaroni and cheese. Jeremy had been an unfortunate witness to that many, many times. Still, despite constant failure, she tried to eat on the healthier side of things, but she knew tonight was probably going to involve some take out and since she hadn’t spoiled herself in a while, she felt she was in a way deserving of it.
Shaking her hair from her messy bun, Elena slipped on a pair of converse and jumped into her car. It was not a terribly long drive to the nearest Chinese food joint, but everyone knew California traffic, even on a Saturday. After about thirty minutes, the majority of it in her car, Elena finally saw the sign and let out and audible sigh of relief. Being struck in traffic had only added to the young woman’s stress level and, worst, she was starting to get hungry. A growling stomach was always a sure indicator of that and honestly, she could not remember if she’d ingested anything that day at all aside from binging on coffee. Yes, she was definitely back in school and it was kicking her ass. Come on, Elena. Eat and you’ll feel better. Elena mentally chided to herself, flipping on her turn signal and practically barreling into the parking lot. Not surprising for a Saturday, the parking lot was pretty full and Elena had to drive around a few times before finally someone pulled out and she was finally allowed to turn off her car.
The Chinese place was actually a place their parents would order from when the family was digging something different and mom might have just been to lazy to cook. It held a lot of memories for Elena and she guessed it would for siblings too even as she knew Katherine would not be caught dead here. Elena’s memories were good; going with her father in the family car to pick up their order, singing along to some random song on the radio, and yes having the wonderful opportunity to hear her dad laugh and smile at his daughter’s horrible singing. Yes, Elena was definitely not cut out to be a pop star, but at that age, who didn’t think about it? Walking up, Elena pulled open the door and felt a pang of nostalgia as the bell dinging. She wished she was simply running in for an order she was about to share with her family and not just ordering something small for herself. Stupid dream. Elena walked up to the counter, blissfully empty at this point, and put in an order of two egg rolls, beef chow mein, brown rice, and those delightful fried noodles. Paying, she took her receipt and found a seat on the bench to wait for the her meal to be finished.
Now that Klaus had decided to stay in Orange County there was a lot to be done. Moving wasn’t all that time consuming. Niklaus hadn’t brought that many things with him. Just his art, clothing, and a few photos of his family. He had left all his furniture back in New Orleans. He was planning on starting fresh, with new furniture. Even though he didn’t have a lot to pack up there was still much to be done. Mostly in the way of preparing for his new gallery.
Klaus had already been to numerous galleries and museums in the area, making note of what the county was lacking, what was popular, that kind of thing. Now Klaus was looking for a space for his gallery. There was a lot of thought that went into it, not only did the space have to be perfect, but so did the location. Klaus spent his day scouting out different locations. Before he knew it it was past seven and Klaus’s stomach was growling. Time to grab some dinner.
Lucky for Klaus there was a Chinese place near by. Klaus made the drive over, parking his car and heading into the restaurant. He got there just as a woman finished placing her order with no one in line behind her. Good timing. Niklaus walked up to the counter placing his own order for pot stickers, honey walnut prawns, and sweet and sour pork. Once that was taken care of he took a seat beside the woman on the bench. “Looks like we came at the right time.”
Lost in thought, Elena had not noticed the arrival of someone else in the Chinese restaurant. More often than not, she found her mind occupied by those strange dreams she’d been having the last few nights. Mostly, it was people’s reactions to the dreams that puzzled her. They were treating it as if these dreams were real and, frankly, Elena found that impossible. Everyone knew dreams were self-conscious reflection and good majority of the time random as they come, but Katherine had almost made it seem as if they were true. It was weird because she didn’t peg her sister as one to believe in supernatural mumbo jumbo, but in those responses on the network, it sure seemed that her twin did. She sounded upset Elena was dreaming and seemed to warn her away, but it was too late. Her tuition was in and she was not going to leave town over a few random dreams. That was just...silly.
The bench shifted a little and Elena looked over, finally realizing she was no longer the sole occupant. Niklaus Mikaelson. She vaguely remembered he’d had a fling with her twin sister, but that was a while ago. She knew next to nothing else about him or much about his family really. She knew they were well off, but that was as far as her knowledge extended. “Niklaus Mikaelson,” she replied, offering him a small smile. “Long time no see or talk for that matter.”
Once the woman turned he immediately recognized her. Katherine? No not Katherine. Her hair was way too straight, and she was acting too pleasant. Smiling even. “Well if it isn’t Elena Gilbert,” Klaus replied with a smirk on his face. “Seems as though everyone is returning lately.” He had, Freya, Finn, and now Elena. Granted all the rest were Mikaelsons but that wasn’t the point. “What brings you back?”
That was something about him that did not change: the smirk that seemed to have a lasting place upon his face. Elena did remember Klaus always having a way of confidence about him and she figured that was what attracted her sister to him in the first place. Plus, he, much like Damon, seemed to have a touch of the “bad boy” vibe that attracted not just her, but her sister at times too. Elena liked to believe she was past that high school way of thought, but talking to Damon again on the network made her feel as if it was impossible. All over again, she was that girl and he was that guy who just made her feel alive without even trying very hard. She knew she shouldn’t have agreed to have dinner with him, but how could she not? They were in a good place with each other now and Elena was not going to stay away from him forever. Now, that was truly impossible.
“Oh, who else is back?” Elena asked curiously. So far, she only knew of herself from the group, but it was possible someone could have slipped back in without her being aware. She wasn’t on the network as much because of school and studying. Then again, maybe he simply meant someone from his own family. He did have quite a few siblings if Elena remembered correctly. Klaus and Kol were the ones she was most familiar with, but she believed he had at least another brother and sister maybe. With the question, Elena gave him a small smile. “You know. Responsibilities. Med school. The promise of a future. Family…” Elena trailed off. Med school was not her first reason because that spot would forever be held by her family even if her other half would never like her. Before she put in her tuition, she’d looked at many places around the country, but ultimately decided here to be closer to Jeremy. She hadn’t known of Kat’s return until she’d made her announcement on the network.
“What about you? What brings you back to Cali?” Elena asked.
“All my siblings, minus Henrik,” Klaus replied with a shrug. Granted half had already been there but still, three had recently returned, himself included. That was a good amount. And then Kol’s ex girlfriend had also moved back. She had been in New Orleans at the same time Klaus was there so he had gotten to know her a bit more. She had some odd bond with his old business partner as well. But he doubted Elena knew Davina, and if she did he didn’t really care. The point that a lot of people had recently returned still stood.
And there was the question he hated answering. Why he left New Orleans. Only Freya, Marcel and Elijah knew the truth. And he planned on keeping it that way. “Family,” he replied with a shrug. Specifically his siblings. He didn’t give a flying fuck about Esther and Mikael.
Family. It seemed like the consensus answer around here for returning home. For Elena, her return had only partially been based upon family, but it was the main reason, too. Up until she knew Katherine was here, she saw Jeremy as the last of her family and there was no way she was going to leave him here. Katherine’s absence made it seem like they were really all each other had as sad as it sounded, but it did feel that way. Finding Katherine was here was both somewhat a blessing and not so much. She loved her sister, but their history would always keep things complicated between them and they both knew it. The visit to the house was definitely not a complete 180 in their relationship and Elena was well aware of that fact. She knew Katherine was too. Her only hope was that it was a step towards tolerance of some kind and maybe understanding. She didn’t think Katherine would suddenly see her as she did when they were so much younger, but maybe just as possible family again was enough.
“Seems to the running consensus around here, ‘ Elena remarked with a shrug. “Family ties are not so easy to break I guess.” Not that she planned on breaking them from the start, but still it was so true. Katherine was proof you could not fully escape where you came from...at least not for long. The months Elena was exploring the country were wonderful, magical even, but at the end of it, she was happy she had a home and people to go back to that cared about her. Maybe that was why she came back? She felt safe here or at least comfortable. Up until now, she believed nothing back could happen to her here, but the dreams were changing that quickly.
Klaus had every intention of breaking his family ties. Well the ones with his parents, which he had already done and it was working well for him. His siblings though? He avoided them all for a year, but it wasn’t their fault he was the bastard child. That Mikael used Klaus as his personal punching bag. No, his siblings had always stood by him, supported him, Klaus intended to keep them in his life, forever.
“Seems that way,” Klaus agreed just as Elena’s name was called. “Looks like your food is ready.”
Just as Klaus answered, Elena heard her name and it could not have been more perfect timing. She was starving and having eaten next to nothing all day? Yes, she was in desperate need of some food even if it was probably of the worst variety. “Thank God. I’m starving,” Elena replied, standing up. “It was good to see you again. Maybe we’ll run into each other again,” the brunette offered him a friendly smile before she moved to the counter to collect her food and then make a beeline for the door.