ELIJAH, punishing Marcel for his violation and putting Valentina's life in danger, ripped Thierry's heart clean from his chest in front of him. He cautioned his pregnant sister-in-law about any potential threat their family may face following, but the next few weeks were eerily quiet. No threat or drama loomed over them, and Valentina knew better than to question it.

He walked into the study to find Klaus furiously rummaging through the bookshelves for something in particular. "Can I help you find something?" The eldest surviving brother questioned curiously and lifted his tea cup to his lips, sipping quietly.

"Yes, in fact, I believe you can. I'm looking for a book about yay big -" Klaus pulled a random book off the shelf and held it up as an example. "Filled with our mother's most powerful spells. It appears to have been misplaced."

"How very mysterious." Elijah commented dryly, walked over to the desk, and sat down in the office chair.

"Indeed. At first, I feared the witches had succeeded in their efforts to obtain it, but considering their last attempt ended with me relieving a rather large, tattooed gentleman of his hands, I began to wonder if the thief wasn't a bit closer to home." Klaus noticed Elijah nonchalantly scribbling in a notebook. "Don't make this harder than it needs to be, brother."

Elijah stopped writing and sat back in the chair with a smirk. "Well, admittedly, I did have a theory that your sudden interest in mother's grimoire was in some way related to whatever foolishness you've been conducting with the Crescent wolves. Therefore, I took it upon myself to carefully place it where naughty little fingers could not pry."

"And here I thought you, of all people, would understand. I am simply trying to help those wolves! Play Samaritan to the abused. Champion to the underdog, so to speak." Klaus whispered dramatically as he strolled across the room to stand directly in front of him.

"How splendidly noble of you." Elijah mused sarcastically.

"Have you ever considered that I am doing everything to try and keep Valentina safe? Using our mother's magic to empower the wolves so they are capable of protecting her?" Klaus attempted to convince Elijah by using the emotional play.

Elijah rose to his feet and rounded the desk, crossing the room toward a file cabinet. "Yes, unless, of course, they decide to seek retribution for decades held in exile, and Valentina could very well find herself giving birth in the middle of an uprising. One that will only provoke further violence. You see, you risk turning New Orleans into a war zone, brother. How exactly does that assure your wife's safety?" He questioned rhetorically, then shook his head. "No. I won't let that happen."

"The drums of war were beating long before we returned. I suggest you use a little less of this -" Klaus made talking gesture with his hands. "And a little more of these." He pointed to his ears and smiled fakely before sitting on the couch.

"Well, if you're finished -" Valentina remarked as she suddenly waddled into the room. "Destroying the study, I need your help carrying everything into the nursery." She requested from the hybrid and pushed his feet off the leather. "Now. Please." She added with a bit of attitude when he didn't immediately get up.

Seeing how she was thirty-four weeks pregnant at that point, she was in a rush to get things finished as fast as they could before the twins arrived. It didn't help that she and Klaus had procrastinated so much and it only made her more anxious. Her emotions and hormones had started to catch up to, leaving her either a blubbering mess or short tempered.

Realizing she wasn't in a mood to deal with his antics, he sighed loudly and slapped his hands against his thighs before standing up. He tried to empathize with how she was feeling, not allowing himself to lose his temper with the love of his life.

"Alright, my sweet. As you wish." He said affectionately, leaned down to kiss her forcefully on the cheek, and left to do as he was told.

"Hello, darling." Elijah greeted her calmly. "What are your plans for today?"

"Putting all the baby shower gifts away until my appointment at noon." She replied simply and tilted her head to the side with an exhausted sigh.

"Are you alright?" He asked worriedly, his face falling in concern.

"Yeah." She answered honestly with a nod. "Just a bit stressed, but I'm fine. Really."

"Is there anything I may do to assist?" He offered immediately.

"Go to the doctor and take my glucose test for me?" Valentina replied playfully and gave him a hopeful expression.

Elijah made a face of realization, shook his head, and chuckled. "Unfortunately, that is something I cannot do."

"Dammit." Valentina scored under her breath, then turned around at the sound of Klaus' footsteps approaching them. "Well, I guess I'll just have to do it. I'm really not looking forward to this."

"You'll be fine." Klaus reassured his wife and kissed the tip of her nose. "They're just going to take a little blood. It'll be quick. Then we can get you something to eat afterward."

"It is not a little." She rejected pointedly and shook her head the best she could within his grip. "And I'm not supposed to eat anything the entire day before. So not only am I starving, but they're gonna draw four viles of blood every sixty minutes over the course of three hours, which makes it worse."

"You'll be fine." Klaus repeated, causing her to groan in frustration. "Quit being so overdramatic."

"Well, I am a Mikaelson, so..." She glanced between the Originals with a smirk. "If you need me, I'll be in the babies' room folding hundreds of pairs of socks." She made an overwhelmed face then started toward the door but suddenly stopped and motioned toward the piles of books scattered along the floor. "Clean this up, Niklaus."

Elijah looked down at his dress shoes to keep from laughing and ran his tongue over his lower lip. Once she was gone and he was alone with his brother, he glanced up at the hybrid and smiled in amusement.

"Not a word." Klaus sneered bitterly as he bent down to pick up the books he tossed carelessly around.

Once he was finished fixing the mess he had created, Klaus walked through the doorway of his children's nursery and stopped to admire Valentina using her baby bump as a surface to fold onsies.

She felt his eyes on her and turned at the hip to place the clothes in a pile. "Why are you staring at me?"

"Because you---" He pushed off the doorframe and strolled toward her. "Are the most stunning woman in the entire world. I'm always so shocked at how lucky I got to have you as my wife and the mother of my children."

She was about to walk towards the dresser and put the clothes away, but he grabbed the stack from her and did it without her asking. Placing her hands on the back of her hips, Valentina scoffed at his compliment. "Please. I'm the least attractive person in the world right now. I have to wear compression socks just to reduce the swelling in my cankles. I don't fit in my clothes, and I look a mess about ninety-five percent of the time."

"And you're the most beautiful woman in the world because of it." Klaus whispered lovingly and tilted her chin up with the tips of his fingers.

"I love you." She expressed affectionately, her voice cracking as her green eyes watered with happy tears.

"I love you." He replied softly with a wide smile, then craned his neck and kissed her tenderly on this lips.

When they broke away, he stared deeply at her with an expression that was nothing short of dreamy admiration. His hands wrapped around her waist before he pulled her closer and embraced the Mikaelson woman. "I think we should go out to dinner after your appointment."

"Like a date?" Valentina inquired giddily and bit the inside of her cheek to keep from grinning.

"Like a date." He clarified while gently swaying them side to side. "Just the two of us before it's the four of us."

"I'm scared, Nik." She shamefully admitted after a moment, causing him to back away just enough to look down at her in confusion. "About having these babies and I--- I don't mean the birth. Although, that also terrifies me. I mean, being a mom. What if I'm not good at it? What if I screw up and I'm the worst mother possible?"

"Hey. Hey." He talked over her voice to get her attention and cupped her face in his large hands. "Listen to me. You are going to be the most wonderful mother. I know that to be fact. You can't be the worst possible, okay? That title already belongs to my mother." He joked lightly, hoping to make her smile. "I won't lie. You're not going to be perfect, and you'll make mistakes along the way. I know I will, too. More than you."

Valentina let out a watery giggle and used the heel of her palm to wipe away her tears.

"It's foolish to get yourself worked up when you have nothing to worry about. Everything is going to be fine. You're not alone in this. You never will be. I promise to be there with you every single step of the way." The hybrid said, placing his forehead against hers.

"You always are." She praised dotingly and brushed their noses together. "I know you are going to be the best father."

Klaus helped Valentina fold the remainder of the clothes, put the rocking chair together, and organize all the supplies that had been gifted to them just in time to make it to her appointment which went exactly as she had expected. The solution they made her drink burned her throat and nearly made her throw up, but she stuck it out and finished the whole thing.

Relieved to hear that she passed and didn't have gestational diabetes, the married couple left the clinic.

Klaus sat in the driver's side of his SUV and glanced over at his wife. "You alright, my love?"

She was visibly pale and lied completely against the back of her seat with her eyes closed. "Ugh. No." She groaned hoarsely and slowly shook her head side to side. "That stuff was disgusting, and now I just feel nauseous and hot. It's so hot in here."

"Do you think eating something will help?" He asked curiously as he started adjusting the temperature.

"I dunno. I don't feel good." Valentina mumbled almost incoherently.

He opened his mouth to speak just as his phone started ringing. Holding a finger up, he pulled it out from his pocket and scowled furiously at the caller ID. "Give me a moment, sweetheart." He requested from the pregnant woman, who just waved a hand in the air in dismissal. "Think very carefully before you speak." He advised sternly to whoever was on the other end. "The sound of your voice is likely to make me regret what mercy I've shown thus far."

"Yeah, yeah. I know. I'm on your "Who's Been Naughty" list." Marcel mused in annoyance. "Thing is, Cami needs you. Whatever anger you have towards me, don't make her suffer for it. She's with Kieran."

Klaus hung up the call, set his phone down with a sigh, and turned toward Valentina while smiling apologetically. "It seems I need to take a rain check on our date."

"That's fine." Valentina easily accepted. "I'm not feeling the greatest. You can drop me off at home so you can do whatever it is you need to do."

"What's your schedule look like for tomorrow?" He inquired as he put the car in drive and pulled out of the parking lot.

"Hmm. I'll have to check in with my secretary and get back to you." She weakly joked, cracking a smile in amusement with herself. "For you, my schedule is always wide open."

When they arrived home, Klaus helped Valentina out of the car. He walked her up to the front door and frowned deeply at the idea of leaving her alone when she wasn't in an ideal state. "You're sure you're alright? I can---"

"I'll be okay. I promise." She said honestly. "Kieran needs you more than I do right now. I'm just gonna go upstairs and take a nap. If I need anything, I'll call you."

He nodded his head, acknowledging what she said but not feeling entirely convinced and hesitating to leave. "I love you."

"I love you more." Valentina claimed snugly.

"Impossible." He whispered dramatically with a devious smirk. Pressing his lips to hers in a passionate kiss, he bid her farewell before rushing off to save Cami from Father Kieran.

Valentina strolled into the courtyard and gasped in horror when she saw Elijah covered in blood and ash while wearing a tattered grey suit. "Oh, my--- oh, my God. Are you okay? What happened?" She frantically waddled toward him.

He held a hand up to stop her panic. "I'm fine. I wish I could say the same for the Crescents."

"What happened?" She asked again in a sterner tone.

"Suicide bombs the Bayou this morning." He informed her gravely causing Valentina's eyes to widen. "There are no leads just yet. However, I do have a few assumptions. Marcel is the top suspect at this particular moment."

"Marcel would never." She defended sternly and shook her head vigorously. "While I may still be super pissed at him, I don't believe he did this. Not for a second. He has more class than this. Unfortunately, so does Genevieve..." She mumbled unhappily. Her eyes shifted around as she thought over every faction leader who would have a vendetta against the werewolves. "Francesca. She and her goons seem like the type."

"Either way... the response party will face the most deadly consequences. Seems it's time to bury my fantasies of peace." Elijah mused in disappointment.

"You had the right idea, and I think it's admirable that you tried so hard to get everyone to work through their shit. I just don't think peace is possible right now." She said sorrowfully.

"You are right." He reluctantly agreed then held a hand up again when she gasped loudly in astonishment. "There's no time to develop an ego, darling, I have a war to prevent and an army to assist."

"Of course you do." She drew out in understanding. "Well, I'll be sleeping and growing two little people if you need me."

"Oh, I won't." Elijah playfully replied as he turned on his heels and walked over to the staircase. He chuckled wholeheartedly when he heard her gasp in offense and scoff incredulously.

---
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