THE VIOLENT DESIRES

Chapter twenty | Clarity from afar

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ONE MOMENT.

THAT WAS ALL IT WAS, MUCH LIKE A BLINK. In one moment, Kalliope was in the Martins's old apartment, stowing away in Elijah's presumed bedroom, and in the next instant, she was on her very first airplane to Paris, France. The number of exclamations and gasps of shock between the stylish pearl-colored car with a leather interior to the ramp onto the private plane was astronomical. Elijah simply lost count of how many adorable expressions she could make in mere minutes of each other.

The sun had just begun to rise when the plane took off into the clouds. Kalli stood bone straight in her seat. Hands clasped into fists as the plane ascended into the sky like something out of a magical storybook. Her doe brown eyes were blown wide with fear. A sudden grasp on the cufflinks of Elijah's suit both annoyed and amused him in equal measure. She thought she'd lose her stomach at the velocity they were traveling.

The view outside of the window once the plane settled nearly brought the Genie to tears. She had never been so high off the ground before. Everyone looked minuscule compared to her great height. The world and its endless problems couldn't reach her from above. Yes, she felt pure unadulterated fear, but she also had never felt more exhilarated.

She wondered if this was how her daughter and husband felt when they ascended into the light. Weightless, endless, full of hope and wonder beyond comprehension. Her heart pitter-pattered a symphony of sounds, emotions elevating with her body. So high, her eyes fluttered as she shakily sighed. Kalliope thought she'd combust with over-emotion.

Kalli didn't have many regrets at this moment other than leaving so abruptly. She worried for Jenna. Her newest friend and so suddenly, her dearest friend. There was a sense of familial bond with them. Kalliope felt responsible for her well-being.

What if she forgets to summon Kalliope and it's too late?

There was only one time when a Wishmaker died before she could grant them their wish. People have died because of their wishes. Far too grand or greedy, the monkey's paw type of thing. However, such a drastic, dark end was scarcely unusual. She couldn't even think- no, she made her deal with Klaus. He wouldn't so easily break it unless he didn't wish for her to come with him on his tirade. Maybe Klaus wasn't one to keep his word, but Kalli sure was and she'd hold him to it. Her newest friends meant far too much to her.

Although Kalli wished her friends could travel with her, she started to feel an adventure of her own choosing taking place. It might have been seemingly insignificant, but the choices gave her much more control over her situation. Elijah and her were working together, she wasn't being carted around like a prize. It was a consensual partnership. One she readily signed up for.

It was a huge difference.

The Genie finally turned away from the window after being fascinated for a long time. The patented seats were incredibly comfortable, slightly facing one another at an angle. Kalliope glanced over to Elijah and noticed he was still on his device, typing away with orders to his henchmen no doubt.

She observed his finely pressed suit. He had changed again from the time they left the apartment to now. It was cream this time-cream and white with a handkerchief to match. The texture seemed almost tweed. Kalli could only describe the ensemble as clean, polished, sophisticated, and smooth. All descriptions made her want to run her hands over the material. Her fingertips just itching to ghost over his broad and stiffened shoulders.

Elijah took great care in his appearance. The soft comb of his dark brown hair was no longer wet from the shower. He was clean-shaven again, to her dismay. His left leg crossed overtop his right as he only used one hand to reply to messages. The other rested casually against the armrest. He exuded elegance and dominance in a way that could not be replicated. It took a thousand years to build such a steel resolve. Not a chink in his armor, but a smoak in his gaze.

Kalliope pitied his enemies. For a time, she was one.

"Where would you like to stay while we're here?" His inquiry startled her out of a stupor. Eyes flashing to meet his own. A subtle blush coats her cheeks in embarrassment.

She stumbled for a response and realized, she didn't know much of anything about Paris anymore. Plush lips parted, she stuttered. "I haven't been to France in a very... long time." After all, the last time she lived there it was far too traumatic to bear. A ghost of a memory appeared on her heart-shaped face and the question was on the tip of his tongue.

His reservations had yet to return to him since he awakened. "Please," He beckoned with a wave of his hand for her to share, setting his phone aside. Elijah always seemed to give her his full attention when warranted. Kalliope never failed to notice it.

Kalliope struggled to find her words, wetting her lips with a soft sigh. "The first time we met was because he stumbled upon my chalice. It washed up on the beach and I truly believe fate put it into his hands. He was the only master who never wanted to own me. He never made a wish, not because he was holding out for something good to wish for, but because he said he had everything he could've ever wished for... with me."

Her hesitation continued as if struggling to get over this last hurdle. "... and he was the first person that I've encountered who died before I could grant them a wish." As if she were finally releasing the heaviest weight off her back, Kalliope rolled her shoulders to ease the ache.

She sniffled only once, raising her doe-shaped eyes to meet that of Elijah's. Tears swallowed back with just a quiver of her lower lip. It was the first time she didn't completely break down mentioning her first true love and she hoped it wouldn't be the last. "My Guillaume Lenore. Mon mari." Her lips pose perfectly over the French words, an unconscious smile curling against her rounded cheeks.

"He gave me the most precious gift I could've asked for, Florence, notre petite fille - our little one. When the black plague swept through, we like many others didn't know how to fight it. How to keep it out of our walls. Sickness was everywhere on the streets. In the food, on the beds.

Guillaume became ill first and we had to keep Flore away from him. She did not understand why - why she couldn't see him. I tried to look after him because it didn't affect me, but little did we know that I could be a carrier of the sickness... Florence... she grew ill because of me. Because I failed to protect her." A tear fell then, slipped down the supple slope of her cheek before she could wipe it frustratedly away. Her heart sped too impossibly fast and hard against her chest. So much so that she tried to control the pound with the palm of her hand.

"When we found you in Sicily," Elijah felt the pressures of guilt. Everything was starting to make more sense. He was piecing the scattered moments together and he didn't like the end picture.

"I escaped France because I was surrounded by so much death. I needed to get away. Then you and your brother caught me." She shrugged like the whole situation didn't matter anymore. Kalli could see by the pensive expression on Elijah's face that this conversation made him uncomfortable.

Kalliope scooted further up on her seat, gaining his averted attention. "Then you released me. I never... thanked you for that. I was far too angry and prideful, scorned. Now, well... Thank you, Elijah."

A short reassurance did much for Elijah's posture. Although the Original was harder to read than most people, she could visibly tell that even those few words set him free of some guilt. Kalliope had many grudges as of late and Elijah's was one she was willing to let go.

Everyone else? Well, not just yet.

"It was the right thing to do. I apologize for how long it took for me to understand that."

"We all learn a little differently," Kalliope smiled then and the tension seemingly broke like the first drop of rain after a year-long drought. A teasing arch of her brows as she crossed her legs at the ankle took over her whole persona. The heaviness had dissipated. The strain weakening. "So tell me about Katerina."

Elijah chuckled at the uncontrollable shudder Kalliope did at her mention of Katerina's name. "There's is nothing to tell," He coyly murmured, reaching for his cell once more to avoid the conversation. However, Kalliope knew better.

She wiggled her fingers and just before he grabbed it, the cell phone flew freely to her palm. "Na-uh," The Genie taunted. "Secrets, secrets."

"Come now, hand it here." His voice grew in volume to an authoritative father. It amused her that he thought that would work on her like it does the young vampires in Mystic Falls. She was older than him. They were equals as long as she was concerned. "Truly, Ms. Debonair you are being quite childish."

"Shame on you, Elijah for assuming I'd bend the knee," Her plush lips smacked together in mock disappointment. Eyebrows arching in a challenging plight.

She didn't take his words as an insult. She loved children. She thought more people should learn to let go of their inhibitions to be wonderous and playful like a child is to some extent. Kalliope couldn't remember much of her childhood, but she was sure it had ended far too soon. "Now, even though my dislike for Katherine greatly outweighs my interest in hearing your story, I am willing to spare you a favor. Out with it, Mikealson."

Kalliope could feel her playful spirit coming back the higher they soared through the air. Her pain and anger were shoved into the recesses of her mind until further notice. Lying in wait for a moment to unleash like the flood of a dam. For now, it was easy to forget.

Elijah made it easier to forget her pain.

The revelation shocked her because centuries ago, such a notion wasn't the case.

"What did you assume would happen once you gave Katherine the elixir?" Her voice softened, tapping his phone to the bud of her chin, curiously.

Elijah released a haggard sigh, fiddling with the sleeves of his suit. "Not that it is any of your concern..." He eyed her for a moment longer, brown irises squinting before he relented. "But I had hoped... hoped that she would be with me, without the company of my brother."

"You'd run with her from your brother? Because there is no possible way Klaus would let you two be together after the ritual failed." Of course, she didn't know Niklaus as well as his own brother, but she knew enough. The man was relentless and determined to get what he wanted. Klaus would stop at nothing, even at the expense of his brother's happiness.

"A hopeless romantic thought, but one I had nonetheless." He ground his teeth subtly, still visibly scorned from the betrayal.

"You should tell her," Kalliope muttered begrudgingly. The Genie didn't think Katherine deserved her convincing, but Elijah seemed to have a lot of viewpoints that contrasted with his brother's. Maybe Katherine didn't deserve it, but Elijah... there was still an honorable man within him that did. "For better or worse, you'll never know what she would've said but at least you'll have some closure."

A small smile that didn't reach his eyes flickered across his pert lips. "After living for so long, should beings like us seek such resolve?"

"We should always seek the things we love. Since it is so fleeting and fickle. Who knows when we'll get the chance again?" Kalliope handed Elijah his phone back. His warm fingers brushed against the back of her own.

A shiver went down her spine, a familiar reaction to Elijah as of late. Their eyes met for one of those fleeting moments. Kalli swore she could hear their hearts beating in an identical tempo, but maybe she imagined it. Nevertheless, her skin was warm and her consciousness was a little lighter after speaking so candidly with the Noble Original.

Their talks had always left her wanting more of it. For better or worse.

...

They landed in Paris without much trouble. Kalliope was too busy gawking at just about everything. Elijah nearly drags her by the upper arm so she can keep up with his large strides. Her awes, sighs, and gasps sounded adorably behind him.

The apartment he secured was breathtaking. Kalli's eyes widened the size of saucers. The walls were lined in brilliant cream molding that Kalliope dragged her fingers over it to feel the raised shadow boxes. Intricate golden sconces that held old-fashioned candle sticks sat on either side of an ornate fireplace. A mirror probably as long as Kalliope is tall hung just above it. A fresh bundle of hydrangeas cradled in a crystalline glass vase on the coffee table.

The chandelier that hung from the ceiling transported her back to Elijah's dreamscape. In fact, she was pretty sure it was fairly close to the dreamy house. The windows nearly touched the ceilings, draped in champagne curtains with golden tassels.

Kalliope was kissed by the bright sunlight as she slowly padded into the apartment. Her shoes were long discarded by the door and the decorative rug held vibrant colors of blood red and midnight blue replicating something she'd put in her own home. She practically danced around the room in her excitement, curls bouncing as her fingertips brushed against any surface she could reach.

This didn't feel real, but she was willing to spend more time in the fairytale.

"It's brilliant, really just gorgeous." Kalliope's wide grin took over her whole face. Eyes twinkling as they pinched at the corners. Cheeks rounded and rosy. A little out of breath from the frolicking of the large sitting room.

Elijah stood at the front entrance, watching her with practice restraint. However, this had to be the most beautiful she had ever looked around him. Completely at ease like she was in a field of flowers, picking only those she adored. His hands rested in his pockets, jacket slung over his forearm as his helpers set down their carry-on bags.

"I'm glad you're pleased," He muttered with a smile barely at bay.

"Pleased? I'm-I'm. Well, I don't know quite yet but it's more than pleased," She teased him. "Chuffed maybe."

"Mm, not too dissimilar," He replied unhelpfully.

Kalliope rolled her eyes, "And still better than what you said." She turned to face him again, momentarily getting caught up in the sights on the streets. Her feet skipped to his side, face lighting up as she looked up at him. "Oh, we should explore. Surely, there is time, Elijah."

He looked disagreeable, "We came here for business. Business we need to take care of before Niklaus captures your friends in Mystic Falls."

As if Elijah somehow summoned chaos, Kalliope's cell phone suddenly started ringing loudly. The Genie jumped while Elijah remained mildly disturbed. Kalli never really learned how to use her phone. She tugged it out of her carry-on bag, frowning at the device in annoyance.

Sighing in false disappointment, Elijah opened the phone and answered the call for Kalliope, handing her back the phone. Kalli mouthed her appreciation, brushing her hair aside to hold it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Kalli, hey! You figured out how to work it. Are you okay? I haven't heard from you for a while and I've been texting."

Jenna.

It was Jenna on the phone. Kalliope searched her brain for the last moment they interacted. Jenna was going off to class, unaware when she was kidnapped by Klaus.

Kalliope brought her phone away from her ear to glance at the screen, seeing many many messages from the strawberry blonde. Her heart warmed, subduing a little more of that bitterness she felt for being forgotten. She glanced at Elijah with a hopeful smile. The Original nodded surely before he started taking his own phone calls, stepping out onto the balcony.

Bringing it back to her ear, she bit her bottom lip. "It seems I still need a little more help navigating the device. I apologize for not responding to you. Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you? I can come to you quickly." The Genie rushed out, suddenly nervous for the ginger.

However Jenna chuckled, which brought down her anxiety exponentially. "Calm down. I'm alright, nothing a little Tampico can't fix. You should come over, actually. Ric's been busy setting up for the dance that I refuse to go to, by the way. Been there, done that."

The mention of Alaric concerned her. Especially because the last she'd seen him, he was unconscious with Katherine and Klaus hovering around. Maybe he was better now? Klaus did make a deal with her. "I'm afraid, I won't be able to accompany you. You see, I'm on a... expedition with Elijah. Before-you-say-anything! We haven't told anyone and whatever it is we are doing, which I will not say, is meant to save Elena."

"Kalliope, what have you gotten into? I don't know what to say to that... wait... Elijah?" There was a tone shift in her speech, causing Kalliope to arch a brow in confusion. At first, she was worried but now, well what Jenna is insinuating is making her cheeks heat a warm red. "Where are you with Elijah?"

"I cannot say," Kalliope grumbled, her ears beginning to heat. She shrunk away from the glass door Elijah went through, eyeing him through the mirror above the fireplace. "But I will be home soon. I promise."

"Hm, I don't know if I should be rooting for you or mad that you left me here... Be safe, I trust you."

Kalli was so incredibly flattered. A genuine soft smile curled her lips. "And I you. See you soon."

As soon as she hung up, Kalliope took a gander at her messages. Some were from Jenna, wondering what she was doing and where she was. Then there were some more troubling. Some that made her blood boil and her stomach sink with disappointment. Messages from Damon, asking, "Where the hell she was" and notifying her that "Klaus made his big move" and she wasn't there.

There were other messages asking if her absence and silence were a result of her anger with him. If she were simply ignoring him, the reason was inquestionable. Of course, it would be about his infidelity, but it was now about his negligence. All but that one message was about Klaus and Elena, none were really concerned for her well-being.

Then there was Stefan, whose guilt was easy to detect in his lengthy words. However, they all seemed to have those two common denominators; Klaus and Elena. They'd been family. She was a part of their family. Did she not deserve the same luxury of worry or care? Did her marriage and union beneath the stars and gods with Damon not mean anything? Surely she was seeing things, imagining the impossible.

The emptiness was becoming more than bothersome, it was damn near agonizing. The kind to fuel endless fires rather than stifle in the withering cold.

Kalliope clenched the phone within her hand so tight the skin brightened in shade. Her jaw clenched with so much hurt, the world could weep if she wished it.

A hand placed on her shoulder drew her from a dark place. She spun, capturing Elijah through a firey gaze. He contemplated her appearance for a moment. Cleft chin downturned with the world behind his brown eyes. Kalli couldn't guess what he was thinking. But not much later, when he'd come to some conclusion, Elijah offered his arm as an escort. "What did you want to see? It seems we have a little time."

Her jaw slightly slacked in a multitude of emotions. She swallowed the feelings down, eyebrows furrowing low before she decided to push it away. "Lunch, but I get to pick the spot."

"As you wish."

The place they wound up was not what Elijah had in mind, but Kalliope was never one to do the expected. It was a ways away from their lavish apartment across from the Louvre Museum. Now they were in a little mom-and-pop boutique cafe. With umbrella round tables in slightly faded colors and chalk signs propped on the pavement. Kalliope ordered in French. The language was natural on her tongue.

Now the two sat outside under one of those umbrellas. Elijah looked out of place in the spot, but it only amused her further. Kalliope watched him over the rim of her glass of sangria. They both got the beef bourguignon. It was savy, rich and tender. Melted on her tongue and she never felt more content after having some homemade sustenance in her stomach.

"This is beautiful, thank you. The meal, the place-"

"The company," Elijah added with a firm confidence that had her sipping so much more of her wine.

"I never thought Elijah Mikaelson was one to flatter his own reflection." She teased him, deflecting the compliment with humor.

"Only when the moment calls for it." He dabbed at his lips. His expensive watch was revealed as he reached for his glass. His hand practically swallowed the cup. Brown eyes smoldering above the glass intently.

Kalliope hummed to herself, swirling her glass. "I didn't interfere with our plans, did I?"

"No," Elijah replied, setting his drink down. "My men were behind retrieving the item, so either way, we would've been waiting."

"Good, because I'm enjoying this too much to feel regretful."

"... As am I." He murmured after some comfortable silence.

The owner of the bistro came out onto the patio, which was more like a sidewalk, with a platter of chocolate mousse. Kalliope immediately grinned when seeing her. The lady was older, stout, and wore her grey curls delicately. Kalli loved to see men and women age because she'd never get to. It was like wistfully looking into a wishing well, seeing a future that will never be.

"Je t'ai eu, toi et ton amour, un désert." She spoke so eloquently and with love in every infliction like she was a mother to everyone. What she said, however, made Kalliope blush with a shake of her head.

"Non, non. Nous ne sommes pas ensemble," The Genie's hand waved at Elijah's eased and amused frame. His grin hid behind his raised hand. Not even the Madam looked convinced, which made Kalliope simply want to give up. "Hum, eh bien, merci, madame."

The elder lady waved nonchalantly, setting the dish down before leaving them alone with a cheeky wink. Once she was out of earshot, the two couldn't help but chuckle lightly together. Their spoons sample the dish with a lighthearted air.

The breeze caressed her face, sweeping her chocolate curls as she leaned back in her seat and gazed at the open sky. Life had never felt so confusing as it did at this moment. A swell of emotions she could not explain. She was enraged and yet at peace. Her heart was full of wonderous daydreams and wakeful scenery, and yet it was also so incredibly fragile, that she was fearful it would decimate at any time.

Coming to France felt like such a full-circle moment for her. Her past had not crushed her, so she was sure her present wouldn't either. She was still standing after everything. Kalliope had made it this far. What she'd do next was a mystery, but she was confident she wouldn't buckle under the pressure. At least, this short trip had reminded her of the hope she once had, and the hope that could be if she wished it so.

She could make her dreams come true too, not just others.

"Florence," Elijah saying her name brought her out of a reprieve. She leaned against her fist and gazed a him openly. His brow was worried lower, sincere. "I would like to ask of only one thing from you. When we return to Mystic Falls... remember how you felt without them in your life. How you felt here."

Kalliope sat with that for a moment, wetting her lips. "Thank you, Elijah."

"Whatever for?"

"For a taste of freedom, even for just a moment."

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Unedited. 20 January 2024

I don't consider this filler because my babies are bonding! A friendship is budding and maybe... more?? I really love how much Kalliope thinks. Writing about her mind and feelings I feel makes her a nuanced character. She doesn't just go through the motions, she feels everything and I love that for her. It's kind of the point of "These Violent Desires" She feels things violently and desires even more so.

I hope you guys like it too! We'll be back in Mystic Falls next chapter. Let me know what you think.

Comment, Vote! Xx