"Tristan?" Klaus called drunkenly, his friend joining in moment later, "Tristan! Come out, come out, wherever you are! Unless, of course, you're afraid!"

"Are you gonna step in or just leave them to it?"

"Tristan can flounder a little first," Elijah murmured causing Frankie to let out a snort.

"Who's the guy beside him?"

"That's Lucian, Tristan was the first person I turned, and Lucian was Niklaus'."

Both of them watched as Tristan approached and tried to talk Klaus and Lucian down and away from the party but his participation only seemed to warrant further ridiculing from the pair. Eventually with a sigh Elijah squeezed Frankie's hand quickly before tearing away to tell them himself.

By the time Elijah returned, Frankie was searching for a chair and some actual food to combat the much too large quantity of alcohol she'd consumed. She should've figured it out by now, that at any sort of ball or Gala she attended they'd mostly have champagne on offer but she hadn't and that combined with the shots she did with Cami spelled disaster and exhaustion.

"Can I get you another drink?" Elijah asked when he returned, smiling at the way she looked to him and her whole body seemed to settle in relief at his presence, "There's still another hour or so until daylight when Marcel's deadline to finish his task will arrive."

"No," she groaned, "Cami and I did vodka shots before I came-"

"-You hate vodka."

"I do," she nodded with a laugh, "but I was nervous. Either way I'm way too close to drunk to drink more. Plus I probably have the lowest tolerance of anyone here and would be the undeniable loser in any conflict so it's probably best not to poke the proverbial bear more than I already have."

"I'll find you some water," he chuckled, "Or do you want to leave now?"

"No, I'm okay to stay, I want to know Marcel will be alright. Water would help though, that and some postmates when I'm home. I would kill for some fucking noodles."

Elijah laughed, offering his arm to her as they both turned back towards the bar. There was where they found Marcel and Hayley, both drinking like their lives depended on it and looking equally anxious.

"Frankie," Marcel boomed, tugging her towards him in a hug, "You're back, does D know?"

"Hi," she grinned, "No, I just got back today. Only Cami knows, and uh- you guys."

"Killer time to come back, huh," Hayley added, "Well I'm pleased you're here. Klaus needs someone to beat his ass."

Frankie laughed at that, she knew the vague story of how Klaus had acted in the year prior and she knew he'd been terrible. She knew too that she'd only heard his perspective and so she was sure in actuality it was way worse. She didn't blame Hayley for her anger, she couldn't imagine how painful it would've been for her to lose time with her daughter again after so long apart.

"Oh I'll definitely-"

"If you'd please come with us, Mr Gerard," a cool voice cut in, speaking sharply and causing Elijah's arm to return quickly and wrap around Frankie as though if he wasn't holding her close someone would pull her away.

It was a woman, one she'd noticed talking to Marcel earlier but hadn't asked about though, by the way her eyes flicked between each of them, it was clear she knew just who they all were. She was tall and statuesque, wearing a glittering dress with short cropped hair and she was possibly the most beautiful woman Frankie ever seen.

Marcel looked around, a grin on his face though it had faltered ever so slightly as he followed the woman. Hayley, Frankie and Elijah followed too, close behind though when they entered the room all three stopped as part of a gathering crowd rather than following them to the centre of the room.

"Aya," Marcel announced when they'd all gathered around him and a hush of anticipation fell over the room, "Aya took my ring."

The woman Marcel was pointing to, Aya, was the goddess like one who'd come to fetch him with the cool expression on her face. Frankies studied her, focusing on the tiniest of movements as she felt her heart begin to pound anxiously in her chest.

She hated this.

Frankie cared about Marcel. Even if they hadn't spent much time together she knew what he meant to her friends and so by extension, he meant something to her. Too, she knew Marcel was a good man, she knew he was kind and fair, sometimes, and she didn't think he deserved to die. Waiting to see if he was going to survive the initiation was excruciating because of how awful it would be if he failed.

The smirk of amusement on both Aya and Tristans faces spelled disaster for Marvel and she felt her fists curl up with terror.

"I'm sorry," Aya declared, "but I don't have your ri-"

"-Hold up," Marcel cut her off, "I said you took it. I didn't say you still have it. See, after you lifted it off me, you gave it to my man Mohinder over there."

The room was silent for a moment. Frankie watched both Tristan and Aya, she knew they were the two who would make the decision on whether Marcel would live or die and so when a moment later they both grinned with pleasure she let out a sigh of relief. Mohinder, the culprit in question was holding the ring up and the room seemed to swell with delight over Marcel's success.

"Well done," Tristan said condescendingly, walking over and clasping Marcel on the shoulder like he was a schoolboy, "Of course, as you know, that was only half the challenge."

All the relief that had flooded through Frankie a moment ago shattered. Somehow she'd not realised that Marcel hadn't really won yet and as both Marcel and Mohinder began unbuttoning their jackets to fight she felt herself tense up with horror. Marcel was a good fighter, he'd been in charge of New Orleans for decades but she knew whoever Tristan would've employed to fight him would've been their best.

The moment the first punch was thrown her stomach fell further, with each hit and kick between the two Frankie grew less hopeful and her fists curled up tighter by her sides. While everyone in the room seemed to watch the fight as though it was entertaining, she watched terrified each blow would be the last. A fight evidentially to the death was something she wanted no part in and with no other resolution in sight she only felt worse.

An arm wrapped around her waist and Frankie stiffened before familiar lips neared her ear and Elijah shifted to stand closer, tugging her curled up fingers open and to his arm.

"Do it to me," Elijah murmured softly, knowing that her fingers were moments away from causing the little half moons that were forming on her palms to bleed, "This is not the place to draw attention to the fact you're human. Take my arm, not your own."

Frankie knew she should've done something else, pulled back or forced herself to relax but instead she felt her fists curl back up, clutching Elijah's jacket desperately. His arm hadn't removed itself from her waist either and instead of thinking about the bile that was threatening to rise as Marcel endured each agonising blow she focused on his touch, the soft movement of his thumb across her waist.

She'd forgotten how gruesome it was, watching someone suffer and knowing she could do absolutely nothing to help and with each groan of pain she felt herself choke a little more.

The final straw for all of them was when Mohinder grabbed Marcel by his lapels, pulling him to his feet and sinking his teeth into him. Frankie only just repressed her shock and even Elijah behind her shifted, moving to intervene until Hayley grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"'Lijah," she whispered softly, leaning back so the fewest people could hear, her body against his now while her head leaned back on his shoulder turned up to face him, "this is-"

"I know," he replied, his arms tightening around her, "I'm so sorry, I know."

"You've fought with honour. Embrace the nobility of this end," Mohinder said, holding Marcel by his neck with a stake in his spare hand pressed against his heart.

"I will if you will," Marcel coughed, blood literally falling from his lips as he stared back victoriously, "Or, do you still not know?"

Behind her, Elijah and Hayley exchanged glances as he placed the pieces together while Frankie's grip softened ever so slightly. She still hadn't realised exactly what happened, but when Mohinder faltered, her eyes flicked back to Tristan and Aya who seemed intrigued, curious again where a moment ago they'd been looking away disdainfully.

"You must've tasted it in my blood."

Frankie finally looked at Hayley as the pieces fitted together. Her knowing grip stopping Elijah's intervention, the way she seemed less concerned even with each blow that Marcel endured, the glances between her and Elijah. Hayley's eyes flicked to hers and the corner of her lip quirked up as she gave Frankie a short nod of assent that both terrified and settled her racing heart.

Marcel continued, his grin growing as Mohinder stepped back, wobbling slightly, "Oh now you're starting to feel it, aren't you? That burning sensation in your gut? Wolf's venom. A going away gift from me. I may not have beaten you, but you lost all the same. I suggest you make your peace, we're both dead men walking."

Marcel had beaten the man, but she wasn't so sure he'd won. Elijah though slightly settled hadn't fully relaxed and that too made her weary, he knew this group better than anyone and if he hadn't relaxed neither could she. She wasn't sure whether Marcel would make it through this thanks to the fact that he'd technically killed his enemy or if Tristan and Aya would take his move as a death sentence for them both.

"A desperate ploy," Mohinder shouted, desperation seeping through in his own words, "A lie."

Marcel tugged his sleeve up after that, showing off the bite that Hayley evidently made earlier in the evening and a hush fell over the room as Mohinder stood still, stupefied.

Things moved quickly after that.

Tristan seemed impressed by Marcel's gambit and it was enough to grant him success though as he stumbled forwards towards Hayley, Elijah and Frankie, she wondered whether he'd even make it to Klaus before his injuries overtook him. The blows delivered by Mohinder in their battle were ones that, while gruesome, would normally heal within several minutes for a vampire but it seemed the venom in his veins prevented his healing and he wavered weakly.

Marcel had collapsed into Hayley and she was the one to hold him steady on his feet but Frankie knew Elijah was worried and that his cool face was secretly filled with concern. Now it seemed all they were doing was waiting for permission to leave and Frankie let her thumb run back and forth across Elijah's arm to silently reassure him that they would make it to Klaus for the cure before it was too late.

Mohinder was killed by Tristan, apparently his death had been intended all along. By having Mohinder as the person Marcel was to fight, the Strix had set their plan in motion knowing that whether Marcel won or lost, they'd win.

Frankie bore no shame in the way her eyes screwed shut and her fingers curled back around Elijah's arm as his heart was ripped from his chest. Even with her eyes screwed shut she could still hear the sound of Tristan's hand plunging through his back and she felt the bile curl up in her throat.

She didn't look up again after that. When she heard the thud of his body to the ground she spun away, turning to face Hayley and Elijah rather than look at the corpse.

Certainly within the group they were in Frankie's stomach was the weakest. Once she could deal with an evening like this but with her year away she'd not seen a single dead body and she wanted to continue that streak as long as she could. She'd seen enough corpses in her lifetime and had no desire for that number to grow if she could help it.

Finally they were free to leave, Marcel had been granted entry into the Strix, provided he lived, and Hayley, Marcel, Elijah and Frankie all took the opportunity to retreat with relief. The sun was out when they did, Marcel's ring firmly on his hand and Frankie tugged her phone from her pocket to see that she had literally dozens of texts from Cami asking how the evening was going.

"I need to ensure Marcel gets to Niklaus," Elijah said softly as they made their way to the exit, Hayley supporting Marcel in front as Elijah and Frankie followed, "Will you come with us?"

Elijah's question was less of a question and more of a plea. Despite everything that had seemed to happen between the two, how easily they seemed to have slipped into old patterns, he wasn't quite so ready to lose her from his side and he worried if she slipped away he wouldn't get her back. He still didn't know the reason behind her attendance beyond the invitation from Tristan he'd heard her mention whilst they danced and he needed to know more, how she was and if she was staying. It took everything in him to allow her space if she needed but while he could he'd keep her close.

"Yeah, of course," Frankie nodded, "Marcel's important. Let's get him home and then we can talk."

Elijah nodded and they both started forwards, Elijah taking the weight of Marcel from Hayley while Hayley took Frankie's arm, all of them speeding quickly back to the compound. Frankie wondered for half a moment how Hayley knew that she'd be returning to the compound before remembering that both she and Marcel had likely listened to Elijah's gentle question.

It was odd being back. Like New Orleans itself, the compound funnily enough felt like home, the familiarity of it all overwhelmed her, enveloping her in delightful comfort.

Elijah sped Marcel upstairs but within moments he'd returned, instantly by Frankie's side, grasping her arm to steady her as she unbuckled her aching feet from her heels. He watched her fondly as she let out a quick sigh of relief, her dress now trailing ever so slightly across the floor as she took her shoes in her hand.

"Are you still hungry?"

Frankie looked up at him sheepishly and nodded. Truth be told she was starved, she still felt a little tipsy and given that the sun had risen and neither of them had slept she was verging on exhausted too. Delight flooded her as his fingers intertwined with hers, tugging her along to the kitchen and pulling a chair out for her.

"It doesn't seem fair that you're not exhausted," she said honestly, stifling a yawn as she propped her chin up on her hand and watched him search through the fridge, "I know you're immortal and all but it's like six am."

"I'll be fine," he chuckled, watching her affectionately as she fought against her struggling eyes and passing her a glass of water, "drink this. You should stay here tonight and I'll take you to Camilles in the morning."

"Does it count as tonight if the sun is up?" she teased, secretly grateful she wouldn't need to traipse back to Cami's this early. Elijah's face twitched into a smile before nodding and Frankie smiled before her nose screwed up uncomfortably, "Are you sure it's not weird?"

"It's not weird," he promised.

It was easy for Frankie to forget that things were fractured between her and Elijah. It felt like they'd slipped so easily back into place that she had to catch herself and remember that they weren't together. She knew Elijah was the same, she watched him at one point in the evening lean in for a kiss before freezing and pulling back, as if he was so enamoured with her he'd forgotten everything that had happened between them.

Frankie didn't want to push him away again, she was doing what she could to be open but she knew too that she'd been the one in the wrong when they left things and she didn't want to stumble back into his life if that wasn't what he wanted.

Elijah froze for a moment, leaning his head to the side and furrowing his brows as though he was listening to an argument nearby. He evidently was listening because at one point he frowned and let out a sigh, clearly frustrated by whatever he could hear.

Frankie watched him curiously and when he turned back to her he explained, "It appears my brother has kidnapped someone, or rescued someone from kidnapping, that part is unclear given they're discussing whether she's conscious."

"It's great to know that Klaus is the same," Frankie snorted, gratefully tugging the bowl of noodles he was passing her closer as she nodded in thanks, "Wouldn't have wanted him to rise above kidnapping."

Elijah smiled at her but when he heard the voices raise again he sighed, knowing he needed to check everyone was alright.

"I'll only be a moment."

Frankie nodded absentmindedly as Elijah slid from the room. She was vaguely aware of his absence but really her focus was on the noodles. She was engaged in trying to find each piece of corn in the bowl when he returned, watching her with his lips twitching up into a soft smile before clearing his throat to remind her of his presence.

"Oh," she looked up in surprise,"hey."

"Hi."

"So which was it," she asked, "Did Klaus kidnap the girl or rescue her."

"It appears it was a rescue," he chuckled, grabbing her glass and refilling it, "though it seems Freya is the reason she's unconscious."

"Freya," Frankie laughed, "huh."

"She's my-"

"-Sister," she finished, looking up and catching the bewilderment that ran across Elijah's face, "I know."

"You know?" Elijah's brow furrowed in confusion, "How could you-"

Frankie looked down, she hadn't expected that Elijah would be so entirely clueless about everything and she felt a little guilty that she was dropping everything on him. She pushed the now finished bowl away from her before looking up.

"Klaus," she said quietly, a trace of nervousness in her tone, "He uh, leaves me voicemails. Every week or so, just letting me know what's going on. He told me about her, when you guys first met her. He doesn't talk about her so much anymore but he does rant a little about the people she brings home."

Elijah usually concealed his shock well enough but this was truly such a surprise to him that he didn't know how to react. He'd always known Frankie and Klaus were close, closer than they should considering everything his family had put her through but he hadn't expected her to have truly known everything.

He thought by allowing her her space he was giving her freedom and he didn't know whether to reprimand his brother for stealing that freedom or be grateful to him for letting her know she'd never really be alone if she didn't want to.

"Are you mad at him?" she asked when he stayed silent, "Or at me because-"

"No," Elijah shook his head sharply, "No I'm not angry, I'm just surprised."

"I'm sorry," she said weakly, "I'd rather talk after I've had a little sleep and I'm more sober but I really am sorry."