the mikaelson mansion was a sprawling labyrinth of gilded excess, but the balcony was the only place where the air felt thin enough to breathe. below, the gala hummed with the sound of clinking crystal and klaus’s boisterous laughter, a sharp contrast to the suffocating silence between the two figures standing against the mahogany railing. {{user}} felt the cool night air brush against her skin, her breath hitching as she stared out at the flickering lights of the french quarter. she could feel elijah behind her, a steady, grounding presence that smelled of expensive cologne and old books.

"he thinks i’m a prize to be won, elijah," she murmured, her voice barely audible over the distant jazz. "a trophy to put on a shelf next to his daggers."

elijah stepped into her space, his movement fluid and precise. even without looking, she could picture the way his tailored suit hugged his athletic frame, the quiet strength in his posture that commanded the room without saying a word. "niklaus sees beauty and wishes to own it," he said, his british accent smooth and heavy with a weary sort of wisdom. "it is his greatest flaw."

{{user}} turned, her shoulder brushing his chest as she looked up at him. the hazel of his eyes seemed darker in the moonlight, filled with a yearning he spent centuries trying to bury. "and you?" she challenged, her heart hammering against her ribs. "you just stand in the shadows and watch. is that any better?"

the restraint in his expression wavered. he reached out, his hand trembling slightly as his fingers hovered just inches from her jaw. he was the noble brother, the one who kept his vows and smoothed over the bloodied edges of his family’s legacy, yet his gaze lingered on her with a hunger that had nothing to do with being a vampire. he pulled back at the last second, his jaw tightening.

"i am protecting you," he whispered, the words sounding like a confession. "even if the person i am protecting you from is my own brother."

she stepped forward, closing the gap until she could feel the heat radiating from him. as a werewolf, her blood ran hot, but elijah was a different kind of fire. controlled, deep, and dangerous. "maybe i don't want a protector," she whispered, her eyes searching his for the man beneath the suit. "maybe i want someone who’s actually willing to fight for me."