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CHAPTER 48: ASHES ASHES THEY ALL FELL DOWN

❝ i will tell you a secret every day until you forgive me. ❞

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"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"

Have you ever had a moment where you knew that beyond a shadow of a doubt you were right where you were supposed to be? Maybe the sense that you had crossed a boundary or jumped a hurdle and somehow, after facing some unconquerable mountain, found yourself suddenly on the other side of it? When the night was warm and the wind was cool and a song carried through the quiet streets around you and you were part of it and everything was good.

Contentment, Elijah supposed, is the simple explanation for it. But it felt more than that, stronger than that, like some sort of purpose had been fulfilled, and he had never felt more at home than in that very moment. These moments never seem to last long enough. The song ends, the breeze stills, the worries and fears creep back in and you are left trying to move forward. Then you glance back at that mountain behind you and wonder how you managed to even cross it, afraid that it had all been a lie. That the shadow over your shoulder might decay before you and you would be forced to cross it again. The song ends and you stare at the quiet house before you and you grasp the doorknob and you walk back into your lonely life.

"After decades of starving and yearning, love has finally been bestowed upon you." Elijah said. "That is all I have ever wanted for you." He slowly raised the white oak stake to his chest. "I will not allow you to throw it all away."

"Elijah," Klaus warned slowly. "Put it down."

"I will not," Elijah decided.

"Put it down," Klaus growled again.

"I will not!" Elijah spat.

"We need to talk about this," Klaus tried.

"There is nothing more to talk about," Elijah shrugged. "Let me put an end to this chapter and get rid of the dark magic once and for all."

"What the hell is going on?" Enola stood at the edge of the clearing with a look of confusion. Her eyes flicker between her husband to her brother in law to the white oak stake. Realization clouded her eyes as she gasped. "Elijah, what have you done?"

"I—" Elijah hesitated. He was truly at a loss of words. Though his neck was being snapped by his brother before he got the chance to come up with some sort of explanation.

"Nik," Enola began. "What happened?"

"Elijah took the darkness is what happened," Klaus scowled. "Where are our girls?"

"Sleeping," Enola answered. "It has been a long night. For everyone apparently."

"They can sleep on the way there," Klaus decided.

"On the way where?" Enola frowned.

"Home," Klaus said. "We are going home."

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Enola took Hope and Finn upstairs to explain the situation while Klaus locked an unconscious Elijah up in the cellar. That is when Rebekak and Kol arrived at the compound. Neither of them were quite surprised by the circumstances. But while one was distraught, the other was annoyed by this new level of stupidity.

"Here we go again," Kol sighed. "Yet another melodrama we are left to stew in."

"His death is not a melodrama," Rebekah argued with a deep frown.

"Perhaps we should call Freya," Klaus suggested. "Her honeymoon has gone on long enough."

"Not that calling her would do us any good. She would just tell us what we already know." Kol scoffed. "Elijah is dying. There is nothing any of us can do for him right now."

"How can you be so cruel?" Rebekah demanded. "Our brother does not deserve this fate."

"But it is a fate that he himself has chosen," Kol pointed out. "How many times are we going to play this game? Calamity and doom inevitably approach us often. There is almost always a sudden trapdoor that appears in the nick of time and we escape. There is always a trapdoor or a loophole."

"What if it is different this time?" Rebekah wondered. "What if he figures out a way to end it all?"

"I don't think he would notice or care that I wasn't around to witness it," Kol shrugged.

"You don't mean that," Rebekah said.

"Oh, but I do." Kol hummed. "Now, if you will excuse me, I am going home to my wife."

Kol did not wait for Rebekah or anyone else to speak before quickly leaving through the open door. He had come to the conclusion that death is inevitable for everyone. Even immortals. He had died twice and he cannot remember anyone ever shedding a tear for him. No one except his wife. The one who proceeded to bring him back to life when the rest of his family had forgotten about him.

"He will be back," Klaus claimed.

"Will he?" Rebekah wondered rhetorically. She turned on her heels and stormed out of the room. Arguing would not help the situation. Not anymore. Not today.

"Dear, brother." Klaus sighed, looking down at Elijah with a small frown. "Why must you make things more difficult?"

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Out of the suffering emerged one of the strongest souls. Hope was a product of that. For the tiniest shred of timber and brick her mother built a home. A home of safety and peace. A home free of violence and anger. A home she did not want to run away from. She had almost been sacrificed to the ancestors, killed by her grandmother, kidnapped by her aunt, and dehumanized by vampire extremists. But she is here and she is alive. There must be a reason for that. No coincidence or luck to be found.

Hope was alive because of Elijah. She felt as if she owed him for taking the darkness. Which is why she could be found sitting on the floor of her bedroom with spell books scattered everywhere. She knew she should have been grateful for what he had done. But she felt guilty. He had spoken about how he spent his entire life protecting her dad from the darkness and here he was. Doing it again. Though, this time, he was protecting her from the darkness. It was unfair.

"Your uncle is strong. That works against him here. The energy will feed off of that strength." Enola explained. "He will quickly go mad and it will not be long until he is unrecognizable and impossibly dangerous to all of us."

"Okay," Hope nodded along, eyes scanning another spell in another grimoire. "Well, how long does that take? Days?"

"More like hours," Enola corrected.

"So today?" Hope questioned, earning an almost hesitant nod in return."Then we are just gonna have to pull the darkness out of him. Divide it up again."

"And then we end up where we started," Finn reminded. "With our family scattered to the corners of the world until something life threatening calls them back."

"Then we keep him asleep," Hope continued. "He won't be angry if he is asleep. We will just brick him up in the head garden and that will at least slow it down."

"You are not listening to me," Finn huffed in frustration. "There is not enough magic in the world to slow this down."

"I just—" Hope hesitated. "I told him something that might have influenced his decision."

"What are you talking about?" Enola frowned.

"I saw Aunt Hayley. When I collapsed." Hope explained. "It was only for a moment. But she told me to tell him that she is still waiting for that dance."

"Aunt Hayley meant a lot to Uncle Elijah," Enola began. "She was his soulmate. What happened to her absolutely broke him."

"It would be like if you lost dad," Finn realized.

"Or if Kol lost Davina and Rebekah lost Marcel," Enola continued.

"What are you saying?" Hope frowned. "Maybe this is for the best?"

"What I am saying is this," Enola began. "A day will come when death knocks on your door. Only a few of us will learn the true essence of life; to love, which means to be human."

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Rebekah and Marcel were cuddled up on the couch in the study. She had spent the past ten years with him. But she felt a sense of foreboding when he proposed. Which led to her leaving him at the altar and him returning to New Orleans. Though she realized that she had nothing to fear. Because there was no one who could stop her from falling in and out of love. Not anymore.

"Remember when Nik stopped sleeping? He was so paranoid someone was plotting against him that he would wander the halls at night and listen at our doors." Rebekah hummed. "Elijah listened to every fear and every worry without complaint. He even joined in on the fruitless search just to appease our brother."

"That night they almost caught me sneaking out of your room," Marcel reminisced. "I think I was hiding in that crawl space for about twelve hours."

Rebekah and Marcel were interrupted by the sound of a throat clearing near the door. Enola stood with Finn and Hope on either side. None of them were fools. They knew exactly what had transpired before their arrival. The messy hair and disheveled clothes gave it all away.

"I take it you two finally made up?" Enola teased.

"You could say that," Rebekah grinned, holding up a hand to showcase a beautiful diamond ring.

"Oh my god!" Hope squealed.

"Another wedding?" Finn gasped.

"This one probably won't be as spontaneous as the last," Marcel shrugged. "With everything going on."

"Elijah would want you to take your time," Enola claimed. "You only get married once."

"Who is getting married?" Freya wondered, peaking into the room.

"Rebekah and Marcel!" Hope informed.

"Congratulations!" Bonnie cheered, stepping into the room.

"Thank you," Marcel smiled lovingly at Rebekah.

Enola found a home on the love seat with Finn and Hope squeezed on either side. She had come to the conclusion that her children would always be stuck in the clingy phase. Not that she minded as she watched everyone else get comfortable in front of the fireplace.

"There was this April Fools in Copenhagen where Elijah had compelled a circus troupe to follow Nik around," Rebekah began, earning a round of amused laughter.

"I remember the first time I saw Elijah get drunk," Marcel began. "He vowed to compose a sheet of music so beautiful that it would set the world ablaze."

"And then he actually set our grand piano on fire and played Mary Had a Little Lamb while it was burning," Rebekah finished.

"He kidnapped me on a couple occasions," Enola blurted.

"You are always getting kidnapped," Kol entered the room, lifted a bottle of alcohol for all to see. "I should have known this was going to be redundant."

"Oh, please." Enola grinned, snatching the bottle with a pleased hum. "Bourbon is never redundant."

"The prodigal brother returns," Rebekah smiled, standing to pull Kol into a tight hug.

"Yes, well, as much as I hate to admit it, you were right." Kol sighed, pulling back to look at Rebekah. "We should honor Elijah. His sacrifice. If his time is up, then, I guess I didn't want to miss my chance to bitch and moan because he has a large stick up his ass."

"That, he does." Elijah agreed, stepping into the room with Klaus following close behind. "But he also secretly adores his youngest brother."

Elijah pulled Kol into a rare hug that was quickly reciprocated. Smiles were shared at the surprising action. The Mikaelson brothers were hardly known for their affections. Most of their love was received for their sisters. Though today was different. And they all knew it.

"Do not stop on our account," Klaus teased. "If this is to be a funeral, we are going to do it right."

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Stories were exchanged around the dinner table in honor of Elijah Mikaelson. Enola could not remember the last time the entire family was able to come together like this. It felt nice. Despite the dire circumstances. Just being able to smile and laugh and joke without a care in the world.

Enola glanced around the table before making eye contact with Klaus. He sat directly across from her with a soft smile. Everyone was too preoccupied with the conversation at hand to notice the tension between the two at the other end of the table. She was brought back to the last moment she spoke to him alone. He had made the decision to take the darkness and she had accepted that. At least, that is what she told herself.

"What are you thinking about?" Klaus whispered.

"Tell me a secret," Enola demanded.

"What kind of secret?" Klaus wondered.

"Any kind," Enola shrugged.

Klaus stared at Enola in thought. There is a light in her eyes and a darkness in her soul and he would not change a thing about her for all of the treasures in the universe. Her very existence is a paradox, a contradiction he could spend centuries studying without getting bored. Without wanting to study something new. That is a secret.

"I don't have any secrets," Klaus claimed.

"Liar," Enola scoffed. "Everyone has secrets."

Klaus nodded because Enola was right. She has haunted his thoughts and his dreams since the moment he had laid eyes on her. He has memorized the slant of her brow and every curl in her hair and sweep of her lashes and rhythm of her steps. He would know her blind, deaf, numb, in this world and any other. That is another secret.

"Alright. Here is a secret." Klaus began. "I am afraid."

"Of what?" Enola wondered.

Klaus gave Enola a soft smile. Eternity. Oblivion. Crowded rooms and authority figures and being alone for too long and, yes, her. He is terrified of her and not for the same reasons as before. He is terrified of her because she has the power to destroy him and she doesn't even know it. She has no idea. That is the last secret.

"Spiders," Klaus blurted.

"You are joking," Enola laughed.

"No, really! I think it is the legs." Klaus explained. "And the eyes."

"Tell me another one," Enola demanded.

"How about this," Klaus began. "I will tell you a secret every day until you forgive me."

"You seem confident that forgiveness is possible," Enola said.

"Forgiveness is always possible," Klaus shrugged simply. "Do we have a deal?"

"Fine," Enola reluctantly agreed. "One secret a day."

"Alright," Rebekah hummed. She clapped her hands together and rose from the table. She grabbed the note cards and quickly began to hand them out. "It is time for an old fashioned wish burning ceremony."

The light hearted atmosphere was quickly replaced by the dread of what was to come. Everyone wrote their wishes down on their respective note cards before filing out into the courtyard. They each took turns tossing their wish into the fireplace before taking a step back as the realization finally sunk in. This was a funeral. And it was finally coming to an end.

"As much as I have savored the joy of tormenting you throughout the years, I must confess you mean everything to me. Your loyalty and your counsel and your love is probably the only reason why I have survived as long as I have." Klaus confessed. "Which is how I know long after you are gone, we will all come together time and time again to take care of each other. We will be okay, brother."

"I know," Elijah smiled wistfully. "Which is why I am not afraid to die. And though I may be leaving you tonight, this is not the end of our family. Always and forever."

"Always and forever,"

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Elijah sat on a bench in the middle of the French Quarter with Hope and Finn settled on each side. The conversation they had was a hard one. Where they expressed their gratitude. And where they forgive each other for all the high expectations and harsh words. They were family after all.

Enola dismissed Hope and Finn with a single nod before sitting down in the recently empty seat beside Elijah. She chose not to look at him. Because she knew she would start crying like a baby if she had to face him head on right now. Though a few tears did slip past her defenses. Her heart hammered in her chest because she knew that this was the end and he would be dead by morning.

"This is not the end of the Mikaelson empire," Enola said. "We will keep building up. For you."

"How about you don't have to build an empire? Or dominate an industry? Or be the number one at everything?" Elijah hummed. "What if you simply built a lovely life that makes you happy, that brings you joy? What if you healed the parts of yourself that you thought were forever lost? What if you decided that enough is enough? What if you felt satisfied in the right here, right now?" He nudged her slightly. "How much empty space would be left for your joy if you stopped thinking you had to earn it? How much time could you spend in the act of living your life if you stopped striving for more? How much more beautiful would this moment, right here, become for you?"

"Where would I even start?" Enola inquired. "If that kind of happiness even exists."

"That is something you are going to have to discover alone," Elijah hummed.

Enola and Elijah slowly stood from the bench. They stared at each other for a long moment. A long was said in that single look before they finally collapsed into one another for a bone crushing hug. No more words were spoken as silent tears made an appearance. Neither of them would have pulled a part if a throat clearing had not sounded. They reluctantly separated to face the intruder.

"Goodbye, Elijah." Enola whispered.

Elijah and Klaus watched Enola leave before taking seats on the bench. It was officially their turn to bask in the silence. There was nothing for either of them to say at that moment. They had never been particularly emotional. Or so they liked to believe. But even they were brought to tears by their horrible circumstances.

"Why?" Klaus finally wondered.

"I saw a vision of a future for everyone that we love and then when I looked at my own future—" Elijah hesitated. "The purpose of my life, my unrelenting desire has always been your redemption."

"And after everything I have done," Klaus began. "Do you truly believe that I am redeemed?"

"Yes, I do." Elijah smiled. He hesitated a moment before pulling the white oak stake out from his jacket pocket. He stared at the piece of wood for a long moment before finally holding it out. "I want you to do the honors."

"Elijah—"

"Please, Niklaus." Elijah pleaded.

Klaus and Elijah did not move for what felt like an eternity. Then Klaus finally reached out and took the white oak from Elijah. They both closed their eyes for the briefest moment before rising from the bench to face each other. They simply stood there with acceptance written all over their faces before any more words were spoken.

"I do not deserve the love you have given me, brother." Klaus whispered. "But I am so grateful."

"It has been a glorious ride, Niklaus." Elijah smiled. "And my greatest honor."

Elijah watched as Klaus lined the white oak stake up. He knew this was it. This was the end for him. But he still smiled. Even as his brother hesitated. He nodded his head because it was okay and he was ready. Though what surprised him most when the stake penetrated his heart was the lack of pain he felt. He had expected to yell or scream. But all there he felt was this sense of sweet, sweet relief.

And Klaus cried. He cried as he watched the gray veins cover every inch of skin Elijah had to offer. He cried as he watched the way Elijah gave him a peaceful smile. He cried as he watched Elijah turn to ash in his arms. He cried as he dropped to his knees and watched Elijah blow away with the wind. He cried as he realized that Elijah had to die just so he could be happy. He cried as he wondered what came next.

Like an empire, they rose and they fell. They laughed and they cried. They lived and they died. They killed and they saved. But their memory will always live on in those who knew them for who they truly were.

Always and forever.

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AUTHORS NOTE.
and that concludes the originals. though there is still one chapter left which will finally conclude this series. until next time, my loves!!!