Breathing ∞ Kol Mikaelson [1]

[33]

The rest of Emma's morning had been spent talking to her mother. As promised, Marissa answered any questions Emma may have had, about both past and present. Not only did Emma gain a lot more information, but she and her mother finally managed to agree on one thing. No more secrets and lies. Now that Emma knew everything Marissa could share with her, there was no longer a need for them.

She learned that, once again, thanks to Marcel, Marissa had access to all the vampire blood she needed for Emma independent of where they were. And she finally understood why her mother chose Mystic Falls as their new hiding place. According to Marissa, small towns are easier to control. Anyone new is spotted right away, giving them fair warning if her father ever appears. Emma could see the logic in that. But she also wondered whether father, after so much time spent searching, would be foolish enough to let himself get spotted too easily.

She couldn't stop herself from thinking of some of the odd things that had happened since their arrival to Mystic Falls. Things that had no explanation rooted in the Mikaelson – Scooby Gang feud, at least. The odd man who'd been watching their house the night before the Mikaelson ball, for example.

When she mentioned that detail to her mother, Marissa was reaching for packing boxes within seconds. Luckily, Emma managed to comfort her mother when she shared that Rebekah had taken care of the issue. And not by killing the man. By compelling him to believe he hadn't found any sign of what he was looking for in Mystic Falls. If the spy truly was sent by her father, then he had no information about them staying in Mystic Falls.

And yet, her mind couldn't help but turn to the velvet box she'd received just yesterday from an anonymous sender. She hadn't mentioned it to her mother. Not knowing who it was from, Emma didn't want to scare Marissa without cause. Pulling the box out of her bag which sat next to her on her bed, Emma opened the lid and glanced down at its contents.

The bracelet was most certainly beautiful. It's gold string only bringing out the opal stone in the middle even more. But there were no clues as to where it came from, or where it was bought. The only thing that could give Emma some answers was the note that came with it.

She knew the handwriting wasn't her fathers. After months spent reading through all of his writing, Emma could be certain of that. But nonetheless, the writing seemed familiar somehow. She just couldn't place it right away. With a heavy sigh, which was followed by a string of coughs, Emma plopped back onto the pillows. Holding the note above her face, she scanned over the two words as if they would somehow change to reveal more information if she started at them long enough.

Even though that was highly unlikely, Emma also didn't get a chance to find out if it could be true as the sound of the doorbell rang through the house. Throwing both the note and the box back on top of her covers, Emma stood from her bed and quickly made her way to the door. She wasn't sure who it could be considering she hadn't made plans for anyone to come over. And since her phone was turned off, it wasn't like anyone could announce they were planning on it.

She let out another string of coughs as she walked towards the door. When she opened it, she was greeted with the sight of her blonde vampire friend standing on the other side, her arms full of grocery bags holding all kinds of snack and foods.

"It's nice to know you're alive, since you're unable to answer your phone." Rebekah said sassily as she made her way into the house without even a proper invitation. She'd been here enough times by now to know she was more than welcome.

"Sorry, I turned it off. I've been having a bit of a day." Emma said ominously, making Rebekah turn to her with a small glare in her eyes.

"Oh, I know. And you chose not to invite me." The blonde pretended to be hurt by it as she set all the bags she brought down to the floor, while all Emma could do was be confused. Why would Rebekah want to be invited? And to what? "Happy birthday, Emma!" Finally, Rebekah revealed what she meant as she threw her arms around Emma's shoulders and pulled her into a tight hug.

"How in the world did you know?" The brunette couldn't help but question, knowing fully well that she'd mentioned nothing about it to Rebekah or any of her siblings.

"Well, when we first met, and you were being all friendly, I may have taken a sneak peak at your school file." Rebekah explained as they pulled away. Emma couldn't hold back a small laugh at that. "So, I came with anything I could buy so that we can celebrate properly."

"You really didn't have to do that." Emma said reassuringly as the two made their way to Emma's bedroom. "I'm not really in the mood to be celebrating, there's a lot on my mind, and I also seem to be coming down with something." Emma explained as she coughed once again, her face straining at the soft ache in her chest. She really hated being sick.

"Well then be happy I didn't go with my first idea of throwing you a surprise birthday party." Rebekah revealed, and Emma had to admit, a fun night in with snacks and just the two of them definitely seemed like the more preferable option. "And of course, can't forget about liquid celebration." The blonde added as she pulled a bottle of champagne from one of the bags she set down on Emma's desk.

"I'm 18, not 21." Emma pointed out as she sat back down on her bed, only to be met with an unamused glance from Rebekah.

"Well, in Europe, they drink at 18. So, let's pretend we're in Europe. Or if you want, I can actually take you to Europe. That could be a good birthday gift, wouldn't it?" Rebekah said thoughtfully, making Emma laugh at the extravagance of it all.

"You don't need to take me to Europe. This is perfect all on its own." Emma reassured her friend as she started to dig through some of the snacks Rebekah had placed on the bed. Something told Emma her night might end in a sugar coma.

"Also, this is from Klaus. He sends his wishes." Rebekah announced as she handed Emma a neatly wrapped present. Looking it over in her hands, Emma suspected it might be a book or something similar based on what she could feel was inside. But when she unwrapped it, instead she discovered a beautiful leather journal with carvings of flowers and vines in the spine. "He said you can use it to start writing down the things you learn on your own."

"Right, so he can sneak in here and snoop on all the things I know or check whether I plan on betraying you?" Emma joked, but for a moment she had to admit she was becoming much too well acquainted with Klaus' paranoia and how it makes him think.

"What's this?" Rebekah questioned as she jumped onto the bed next to Emma, her hands grabbing hold of the box she'd left there when she left the room. Rebekah popped it open even before Emma could answer. "Wait, I've seen this before. Where'd you get it?"

"You know where it came from?" Emma asked in a surprised tone.

"Yes. What was it? 17th century, I think. It belonged to this French princess we knew." Rebekah explained, still sending Emma a questioning look as she wondered how it ended up in her room. However, the information of the bracelet's origins, made Emma finally remember where she'd seen the handwriting on the note before.

Reaching over to her nightstand, she pulls out the note Kol wrote that morning when he left while she was still asleep. Holding it up next to the one wishing her a happy birthday, there was no denying it was the same handwriting. Emma scolded herself for not recognizing it before.

"Your brother." She finally answered Rebekah's question. The blonde raised her eyebrow at that, somewhat surprised by the revelation. But she made no comments about it as she reached for the bag at her feet while Emma let out another string of coughs, this time more violent than before. "Are you feeling alright? Do you need your inhaler?" Rebekah asked, growing somewhat concerned as she watched the discomfort spread over her friend's face.

"I think I caught some bug or something. Nothing a glass of water with some meds won't solve." Emma said, ready to get up and go get what she needed, but she was interrupted by Rebekah offering to do it for her as she stood from the bed and left the bedroom before Emma could protest.

Already knowing her way around the house, the blonde had no issue with finding the things she needed as she moved through the kitchen quite quickly. With the glass and bottle of simple over the counter medication she started to head back towards Emma's room just as she heard the brunette call out her name.

Rebekah didn't miss the panic in Emma's voice and it only made her speed up to reach her. "What's-" Rebekah was about to ask as she walked through the door of the bedroom only to be met with a sight that made her blood run cold as she dropped the contents from her hands.