#maybe it’s because klaus and elijah are separated for so much of it

[klausysworld]

Hello gorgeous!

Sooo I had this idea of Klaus and reader being married (she wants a divorce) but currently separated. She starts seeing Damon. Klaus lets her have her way for a bit as nothing has crossed the line, but then he finds out reader slept with Damon and Klaus goes absolutely feral over it and tells his wife that’s enough of this and drags back reader home and slides her wedding ring back on her finger.

Not His, Not Yours.

Klaus and I had slowly but surely grown apart.

We had married for decades for now, just over a century actually and to begin with it was all but a dream.

He had hundreds of thousands of gifts and words to express his love. Paintings and poems to show how pure his feelings were.

He was gentle when I needed and only ever rough when I wanted when him to be.

There wasn’t a question of doubt between us both. I loved him with all of my heart and he loved me with all of his soul. So much so that he actually proposed to me. Elijah and Rebekah couldn’t believe it but were unbelievably supportive. I even turned into a vampire so that I could be with him forever.

And for a nearly eighty years, everything was okay.

Of course the gifts were less frequent but I didn’t care about that so much. Not if I still had him. Even if he forgot to tell me he loved me, I didn’t need him to, deep down I knew that he did.

One thing I didn’t like, was when he would get flirty with other women. Especially because of how he behaved when I, heaven forbid, smiled at a man.

But still, with reassurance from his siblings and Elijah’s promise to talk to Klaus about it, I dropped it and didn’t speak of it. So he flirted, it didn’t mean anything. What’s a kiss when I have his heart?

Surprisingly Klaus never slept with anyone else. I suppose it’s unfair to say surprisingly but to be honest I had feared and expected him to have from time to time.

Especially when he became more distant. When he would disappear or return in the early hours of the morning. I would beg to know where he was and after a series of repeated yelling, he would grab me and show me his memories of the night before. Often he just got drunk and would pass out somewhere random or wonder around for inspiration, sometimes he’d attack a village and slaughter hundreds in mere hours. When finished showing me, he would give me that same look and tell me that I shouldn’t look so surprised. He may love me, but he wouldn’t ever be better for me.

And I would just nod and told him I already knew that.

And I’d wait for the next time that would happen.

We went days between sex, then weeks, gradually months and eventually we just didn’t. We slept beside each other mostly out of habit but we wouldn’t touch.

I never stopped loving him, I don’t think I ever could but I wasn’t sure if I loved him the same way anymore. And I certainly didn’t think he loved me that way. But we weren’t exactly friends either. It were as though we were just strangers at this point, strangers who held each others hearts.

And I had accepted that perhaps that’s all we would be. We lived that way for a couple of years, I’d stay with him like a shadow but that’s all I would be.

Until Mystic Falls.

So much happened in not enough time. Klaus became his true self and for some reason part of me thought perhaps that would rekindle something but he showed no more nor less interest so I just went on.

Until one day, his eyes held a spark. But it wasn’t for me. It was for Caroline Forbes.

She was blonde, young and new to vampirism but still bold and confident in herself. I was like that once, before I grew quiet and obedient to Klaus’s will.

So I took another step back and let him chase her a little. I sort of wanted him to sleep with her so that maybe he would just divorce me and I would know that what we had was really over.

But he didn’t. He gave her a present, drawings and spoke poetry to her without her realising but he didn’t kiss her or even lean in.

He still would come back to bed and lay beside me like usual.

I didn’t want him to think I would hate him if he fell for someone else. I’d rather he be happy with another than miserable with me. I knew he craved more, so did I.

And so with a lot of courage, I asked for a divorce but he refused me. That I didn’t understand.

“Why?” I asked, my brows pulling together as he scowled

“Because you’re my wife” he answered as though that meant anything anymore “I have loved you for a century. I will not just be done with you”

“Loved, Klaus. Loved. It’s in the past.” I argued

“I love you now as much as I did then” he told me, his voice raising

“No Klaus…you don’t” I whispered, my eyes glancing to the floor as I let out a small sigh. This was probably one of the reasons he liked Caroline more. I showed weakness and submission too easily to him. The difference was that I knew he wouldn’t kill me if I fought back but I feared it would be worse.

“We’re not getting a divorce. Ever.” He stated calmly, though I could feel his anger.

“I can’t do this Klaus” I mumbled. “I can’t just be known and your wife and hide in the house all the time”

“Then go out” he grumbled

“You don’t let me” I answered, remembering the last time I went out without telling him and he yelled at me for being inconsiderate and stupid. Apparently it wasn’t safe for me without his protection due to being so intimately associated with him.

“Well…now you can” he replied matter of factly.

“You should ask Caroline out” I whispered “She likes you too, Rebekah heard her talking to Bonnie about you”

“I wouldn’t-“

“But maybe you should” I sighed, hesitantly looking him in the eye once again. “You should at least try…you might like to be with someone…” I paused and swallowed dryly “someone else”

“Are you seeing…someone else?” He asked quietly, his eyes flicking between mine.

“No…not yet” I whispered and he nodded

“But?”

“But I think I should” I murmured before falling back into silence.

We stood there for a while, uncomfortable and guilt ridden before his phone went and he reluctantly left.

He didn’t come to bed that night.

To me that seemed like his way of confirming that we wouldn’t be together anymore, or for a while at least.

When I saw he had made up a bed in one of the guest rooms, it was clear that was the case.

So I started to go out a little.

When I saw Klaus with Caroline at the grill, I realised I needed to leave. Leave town, his life so that I didn’t ruin his chances.

But as fate would have it, when I rushed out of the building, I walked straight into Damon Salvatore. He recognised me in an instant and was grinning like a Cheshire Cat.

“What’s Klaus’s wife doing out and about?” He snickered and I sighed

“I’m not” I mumbled and he raised a brow

“Not what? Not his wife or not out?”

“I’m going home” I whispered, walking outside but he followed.

“Oh come on, I didn’t mean to scare you off so quick” he chuckled and I rolled my eyes

“Please. You couldn’t scare me” I muttered “have you seen who I’m supposed to be married to?”

“Supposed to be eh? Things not turning out?” He pressed, walking backwards beside me as I made my way back to the mansion.

“My marriage falling apart won’t benefit your precious Elena. It’s been broken for years.” I grumbled, and he rolled his eyes

“Forgive me for being curious” he muttered, his annoyance shining making my heart sink. I didn’t like it when people were rude and now I was the one doing it.

“Sorry” I whispered “I didn’t mean to sound so snappy”

I could feel his eyes on me as we neared the manner and before I could get it the door, his hand reached for mine which however pathetic it may seem, made my smile. Nobody had touched my skin for months.

“You should come out more, I’d like to talk with you some more” he told me and I faltered

“I wouldn’t tell you anything- not about him”

“I didn’t think you would” he answered, before leaving.

After that I went out a little more.

Damon would tease me and make me laugh. He would draw out the little confidence I had left and have me use it. I’d taunt back at him and go so far as to flirt once I’d had a few drinks.

After a while he asked to take me out. I thought he was joking.

“Oh will Elena be joining us? Perhaps Stefan to?” I laughed but he didn’t even smile

“I’m serious” he stated, his hand squeezing mine “just us…anywhere you want”

I stared at him “I um…I don’t know” I whispered, nervous and confused.

“I can wait” he answered as he caressed my arm softly.

When I got home Klaus was already there, his eyes on me in an instant. Without a word he placed his wedding band on the table before him and walked out the room. I felt a lump form in my throat as I shakily slid both my wedding and engagement rings off and put them beside his.

I went upstairs and cried. And I felt stupid for it because I was the one who asked for this.

So after a moment I pulled myself together and grabbed my phone. I took a breath before sending Damon a message

I like the Italian the next town over?

He replied quickly

Friday, 7?

I’ll meet you there

I’ll see you soon

I swallowed thickly and closed my messages before searching for apartments near me to rent.

If Klaus and I were actually ending this then I wanted to do it right. That meant I needed to live without him fully, so I sent in some applications to a couple of places.

Before any of them could come back, my date with Damon came around.

It went surprisingly well. We ate, spoke, joked and laughed. He paid, insistent that I shouldn’t. He then drove me back to the mansion and kissed me goodbye.

I refused to look anywhere near Klaus when I went up the stairs. He never said anything either, we spoke only if we absolutely had to and on the occasion that Damon and I would see Klaus out, we would instead go to his house for a while.

I spent a lot of time with Damon, he made me feel more alive. He brought back the spark in me that I thought I had lost and built my confidence back up. He made me feel more things in a couple months than Klaus had in the past fifteen years.

I knew it was wrong to compare them, but when all I had ever known was Klaus…he was all I had to know how a relationship worked to be able to tell if what I had with Damon was really something.

It progressed quickly, it scared me somewhat. I worried that it was a trap to make me help him with everyone else. However when I heard him defending me to both Elena and Stefan, I double guessed myself.

Slowly I felt myself begin to trust Damon, I felt as though I was learning to love and desire once more.

It was because of that feeling that I didn’t stop him when he began to take my clothes off. Or when he trailed his lips down my skin and pressed his mouth between my legs. I cried out for him when his fingers curled inside me and I clung to him when he finally took me as his own.

I stayed beside him for the rest of the night, pressed to his chest with his arms around me. It was a warmth that I wasn’t used to anymore but that I needed and yearned for. I stayed at his house for days after, wearing his clothes and living in his arms. But unfortunately I knew that I couldn’t just move in there so soon, so I had to go back to the mansion.

————————————————————————

(3rd person)

Klaus found out that Y/n had slept with Damon the day after it happened. Stefan had told him so when in the heat of an argument.

To begin with he thought the Salvatore was just trying to piss him off but when Stefan’s face dropped and his heart sped up, Klaus realised it was true.

Immediately he went home and smashed every item in her room. Shredded her clothes and tore up every flower Damon had gifted her and the little photos she had printed of them. It was after he broke apart her bed and found the box of forgotten memories did he calm down. He found all the poems and pieces of artwork he had ever given her, love letters and other tokens of their love kept safe and close to her. It broke him.

Klaus never meant for their marriage to deteriorate so badly. He loved Y/n, truly. But throughout the years he got distracted. Whenever his family got to town, his focus was off her and whenever a threat showed up he made a point of being distanced from her to ensure they wouldn’t attack her. After the first few times he’d done that, she got upset and wouldn’t want to kiss him, not when he would go weeks of ignoring her and then expecting her affection.

So he began to drink some more, to forget her touch and her voice for just a moment. But it made everything worse. She began to worry he was cheating on her and to be honest he couldn’t blame her for thinking that but in the moment when she would accuse him, he would be outraged.

He couldn’t stop himself from yelling, being offended and snapping. But after, when he would hear her cries and see her curled up in their bed, he would push himself further away in hopes that he wouldn’t be able to hurt her as much from a distance.

It only got worse.

And now he was on the floor of a room that was once his aswell, crying for his marriage that would no longer last.

Eventually he dragged himself up from the floor and went back to his own room, or rather the spare room that he had been sleeping in. He dug through his drawers to find their rings that he took after they both removed them and put his wedding band back on, smiling sadly at the fond memories of the first time she had put it on him.

He held her rings in his hand tightly as he heard the front door open and closed quietly before soft footsteps sounded up the stairs.

————————————————————————

(1st person)

I moved as quickly but as quietly as I could up to my room. I was in jeans and one of Damons shirts so I really couldn’t let Klaus see me.

Hurriedly I opened my bedroom door only to come to a standstill. Quite literally everything was on the floor. If I didn’t know what Klaus was like, I’d have thought a hurricane had passed through the room. I stared blankly for a moment before I both heard and sensed his presence from beside me.

“What did you do?” I whisper, staring at all the little things that meant so much to me scattered and broken into pieces.

“I don’t want you seeing him” he told me, his voice firm. My head snapped to his and I felt both anger and sadness swirl inside me.

“You ruined everything I have” I uttered, my voice still barely above a whisper

“You slept with him” he stated his tone cold but his eyes showed hurt and I part of em felt guilt but the other side just wanted to smack him.

“And?” I asked, my volume increasing slightly

“And? And you’re mine. You do not get to sleep around-“

“For crying out loud Klaus! I am not yours!” I yell, pointing my finger at him “And I do not sleep around! I slept with one person”

“I should have stopped you seeing him ages ago, this shouldn’t have happened” he muttered

“You can’t control every aspect of my life Klaus. We are not together anymore. We agreed on this” i whispered, my tone tired.

“We have not agreed on anything! I never wanted this-“

“Klaus we haven’t agreed on something for a good twenty years! It’s why we’re here” I exasperated

“That does not give you the excuse to fuck someone else” he growled and I glared

“Why? Did you plan on fucking me? Because I highly doubt it Klaus. And even if you wanted to, I wouldn’t have your hands anywhere near me now” I retorted.

I knew immediately that he would speed at me and so moved out of the way, he continued to chase me round the house until eventually he had me against the wall. Both of us were panting heavily, my hands pushing at his chest but he kept me caged.

“Get off me!” I cried, kicking my feet at his legs but he only grunted and held me as still as he could. I shoved at his chest with as much strength as I could but it was obvious that I couldn’t overpower a hybrid. He faltered only slightly at the impact before his hands were grabbing my waist to lift me. Without thinking I brought my hand to his face, smacking him as hard as I could manage.

His head cracked to the side and my eyes went wide. Slowly, he turned back to me. His expression was one of surprise as he stared at me. I felt myself grow meek under his gaze and my bottom lip wobbled.

“I’m sorry” I whispered “I didn’t mean to do that- I didn’t…” I felt his hold on me weaken but I didn’t move this time. My hand tingled from where I’d hit him and so did the guilt that pooled in the pit of my stomach.

His arms slipped around me, hugging me to him and I just didn’t know how to react.

I love Klaus. I do, I always will. But I couldn’t just pretend that every bad thing hadn’t happened and fall back into his arms. I wondered if in Klaus’s mind, if he thought that just sleeping with me and telling me that he found me pretty would be enough to fix this marriage. I knew it wasn’t but I worried for what he thought.

Still, I hugged him back gently. By touch reluctant but there. His warmth enveloped me and I felt my eyes water at the once familiar sensation.

“I missed you so dearly” he mumbled, his face lowering to nuzzle the crook of my neck. He pulled away slowly and grabbed my left hand, I looked to him blankly as he slid both rings back onto my finger. “I’m gonna fix everything” he whispered

“Klaus-“ I sighed

“Just let me try” he murmured

“I-“

“Please” he whispered and I sighed softly. Only the lords know whether I was going to make the right decision or not.

[witchcraftandgeeknes]

Gift

Just a silly little fluffy story, Mikaelsons celebrating winter holiday. As I don't celebrate Christmas and it's way too late for it anyway, it's not specified which holiday it takes place in. You can think of whichever you celebrate yourself.

Dedicated to: @fitzs-trained-monkey who persuaded me to post it despite this fic being silly and my English being bad. Love you, marshmallow

Word count: 1900 approximately

•❅───✧❅✦❅✧───❅•

Elijah rarely received any gifts.

This might be connected to complicated family bonds, or maybe to the fact that mostly his family was separated by a cold steel of a dagger plunged in someone's chest or their father making them fly in separate ways to avoid him catching any of them. Because of the latter, infinity of things that were precious to their hearts were indiscriminately left in the race against Mikael: their beloved ones, favourite places in the world, many houses they were foolish enough to declare their permanent homes, and tremendous amount of belongings that limited time or need made them leave behind.

That way or another, Elijah rarely received gifts from anyone, including his siblings. But when he did, Elijah treasured each and every of small mementos in his heart if he cannot garner all of them in his current adobe. The most rare name on the gift boxes Elijah saw was Kol's.

To say that they didn't see eye to eye on thing would be an understatement of a century. Kol was vicious and was fond of all the nefarious activities that repelled Elijah. Despite everything, Elijah loved Kol, and small signs of his little brother's affection were just as dear to his heart as ones from Niklaus or Rebekah.

Nevertheless, Elijah must admit that the gift was quite... puzzling, to put it best. It was not like Kol completely missed with his guess, Elijah always adored a pristine atlas tie as a gift but.. The colours.

Indeed, the colours were of quite peculiar choice. His newest tie was made of excellent quality and smooth texture, but the black-and-yellow stripes.... Though Kol's everyday attire was much different from Elijah's, the youngest Mikaelson's sense of fashion was never questioned. Keeping that in mind, it was hard to explain how on Earth he might have chose such a tie to give as a genuine present.

Maybe Kol's mischievous nature is involved in this case, or perhaps a huge difference in their styles. Whichever it is, Elijah could not hurt his brother's feelings. Absolutely not and especially not now, when their home finally finessed the most cordial atmosphere in many centuries. Obviously, this... tie is not to be worn on an official visit or in a wide public. Home celebrations in a close family circle, on the other hand, Elijah could bear. Even such a bright, bright yellow tie with evidently contrasting ink-black stripes.

He and Kol had reached temporal understanding and there is no saying how long peace will last, and as long as it does, Elijah shall do anything to keep it this way. Even if that means to step on the common fashion senses. After all, it is without a doubt not the worst thing he had to endure for the sake of his siblings` wellbeing. Elijah had to admit, that even so odd, the gift elated him.

***

*an hour earlier*

Kol loves Harry Potter books. Reading them made him feel a very special kind of way – as if for a few hours of devoted reading he traveled back in time, to the period of it that he was still alive and human and full of mischievous energy that danced in his veins, asking for permission to break free and promising a lot of fun.

And when Klaus announced that they will all together celebrate impending winter holiday, Kol decided to choose the gifts for that day based on his own little obsession. Why the hell not? Klaus gave them all a lot of art throughout their lives, ignoring the fact that Kol, for example, could not care less about anything connected to it.

Regardless of his reasoning, Kol heard they say that it's the attention that matters, and not the gift itself. If that's true, it means that Kol's choice was splendid. Or at least so he thought.

As an official expert on this matter, Kol was the only one capable of sorting his dear relatives into their respective houses of Hogwarts school. That was probably stupid, Kol knew that. But these silly decisions he took with whole seriousness he could muster.

Klaus, undoubtedly, was the one hell of a Slytherin. Kol doubted any explanation was required for this choice, but if one would need it, he contemplated it with all details elaborated in this mental essay (deep down, he actually wished that someone would ask and he would get to explain his decision, even thought it's unlikely). Therefore, Kol packed a pair of green socks with a  prominent snake emblem for dearly beloved Nik, and attached short note that conveyed his hopes that dear brother will abstain from chewing his gift during full moons – Kol wrote this with a huge grin. One day he will pay for all those dog jokes. Today is not this day. Kol was fairly sure that killing (or daggering, for that matter) family members is officially against holiday traditions.

For Rebekah, his favourite sibling, and his fellow fan of magical world, Kol prepared the whole suit of Gryffindor uniform. Her warm smile and hug and possibly a thank-you kiss planted on his cheek will be worth all the collecting and packing he went through for this.

Elijah was the hardest one. Firstly, Kol was postponing choosing the gift for Elijah till last moment, and when he finally did select Elijah in his corresponding Hogwarts house (Hufflepuff, as Kol deduced), packed it in a box and wrapped it in a paper decorated with images of dozens Rudolfs, he couldn't bring himself to actually put it under a tree like all the other gifts.

It was silly, after all. And Elijah never approves of silly things. The elder brother was always dead serious and restrained, the perfect image of the head of the family. More of a father figure than a sibling like Nik and Bekah. And while Kol could act silly and joke around with the latter, Elijah seemed unaffected by their ideas of fun.

But what's the alternative, anyway? Thanks to procrastinating, it's the big day today, and there's literally no time to think of something more serious or appropriate. Damn it.

It seems like he has to do it no matter how ludicrous this gift is.

To avoid embarrassment, Kol decided to put the gift box near Elijah's bedroom door. At least this way he doesn't have to witness big brother's dissapointment. Again. Nevermind. What happens happens. It's too late to change his mind.

Kol rushed away to avoid getting caught as if he did something wrong. Perhaps the life of mischiefmaker made him a bit paranoied. Like Nik. What a nightmare.

***

*later*

Kol has to say. The only reason he let Rebekah do this to him was a bribe. The bribe was a box full of chocolate and other candies. At least, it was good enough of a reason at first thought. Kol now doubts his decision. Perhaps it was a bad impulse.

"Ouch!"

"Hush, sit still," Rebekah hisses at him from the couch while braiding his hair in tenth tiny braid. Kol shifted at her legs unhappily and pouting.

Klaus tried to muffle his cackling but failed miserably.

"You never looked better in your life, Kol."

Kol sent the remote control flying across the room and it hit Nik in the forehead.

"HEY!"

"At least I don't have a stupid ass sweater with chihuahua!"

Klaus blushed, embarassed. The poor idiot lost a bet with Rebekah (and to place bets with Rebekah was always rather risky activity) and was forced into this sweater. Maybe Kol won't be the number one target for dog jokes as soon as holiday is over after all.

"Shut up, both of you," their sister chided and tugged Kol's hair especially roughly. If that's what she had to endure each day Mother was braiding her hair then maybe he was too harsh on her all that time.

Kol relaxed and pressed his back to her legs, surrendering to his cruel fate. Until...

"Well, at least it's not as dumb as your Ravenclaw sweater," Klaus said, a minute too late with his comeback.

"You take that bac– AW, BEKAH!" Sister dearest hit him with the Dickens book across his head when Kol abruptly tried to stand up. "That was uncalled for!"

"I told you to sit still," she said, tugging him down on the floor by the hem of his beautiful Ravenclaw sweater. "And I told you to shut up, Nik. Elijah! Tell them!"

To the brothers' surprise, Elijah chuckled from the threshold. Neither of them noticed how the eldest brother entered. He was in his suit, like always. Kol resumed to his place on the floor and let Rebekah continue her work.

"Gentlemen, behave," Elijah commanded and made his way to the table and took one mandarin.

"Can you be nice to each other at least at a family holiday, mhm?" Elijah didn't stop berating them even as he proceed to peel mandarin. "You look wonderful today, Rebekah."

"Thank you, 'Lijah!"

He was right, Rebekah looked like she's posing for the holiday edition of some fashionable magazine. What can't be said about Klaus and Kol himself.

"Why, brother, you look quite dashing yourself. Where did you get your tie, on a masquarade?" Klaus laughed. Kol looked up at Elijah. He didn't notice at first, but Elijah wore his gift. The Hufflepuff tie looked out of place on Elijah, like Kol predicted. His stomach sank.

"Thank you for your insight, Niklaus," Elijah said, glaring at the middle brother sternly. Then he looked down, and straightened his already perfectly fastened tie. "In fact, I quite like your gift, Kol. It's probably my favourite this year."

Kol felt his cheeks getting hot. He rarely heard nice words from his family and it felt... very strange but he loved the feeling.

"Really?" Kol muttered under his breath. Elijah smiled at him.

"Of course. Thank you for this, I'll wear it whenever an opportunity presents itself, like today. Now, does anybody want hot chocolate?"

Kol and Rebekah didn't let him finish the sentence and agreed immeadiately and loudly, and when Elijah matter-of-factly asked if Klaus wants a cup too, the hybrid rolled his eyes. Nonetheless, he didn't refuse the offer either.

"He looks stupid though," Klaus whispered quitely so Elijah's ear won't catch it but loud enough for his younger siblings to hear. Kol snorted. Klaus was petty and didn't like the fact that Elijah scolded him but complimented Kol's gift.

He didn't notice how Rebekah finished braiding his hair – Kol couldn't imagine how much he looked like a hedgehog right now – and suddenly leaned down and hugged Kol by his neck.

"You're the best brother, Kol. You're my favourite, you know."

"You tell that to each of us, don't you?" Kol rolled his eyes but couldn't stop a smile spreading across his face. He loved his family with all his heart. Even grumpy Nik. The idea of being his only sister's favourite brother was quite amusing too.

From the kitchen Elijah announced that their hot chocolate with marshmallows is ready and waiting for them.

Rebekah was the first to get on her feet.

"Race you!" and just like that, Rebekah sped up towards kitchen. Kol and Klaus didn't have to be asked twice and they swiftly followed her.

From the kitchen, Elijah's voice could be heard: "Oh come on, you all, how old are you, ten?"

•❅───✧❅✦❅✧───❅•

You made it that far? Good job, I guess

[jennifersminds]

out of curiosity what did you think of to? did you like it? who were your fav/least fav ships and characters?

hi anon !! tbh yeah i did (s5 notwithstanding)

as for my least favourite/ favourite ships and characters, I remember liking haylijah when i first watched it- and i do still think they had chemistry but now i find that relationship just very random and slightly problematic tbh.

not even because of my elejah fixation (gialijah was a slay but i’ll get to that later), hayley is essentially elijah’s problematic tool to his family and brothers redemption aswell as a textbook example of someone who needs protecting (and elijah’s insane saviour complex just latched into it). it never really feels like either character is completely honest about who they are to eachother and both of them idealise the other to the extreme.

for hayley, that’s seeing elijah as this perfect white knight and ignoring the fact that’s he’s a slutty serial killer with intense familiar issues and for elijah that’s refusing to ever really see hayley as a whole person.

that being said they’re both hot as fuck so go them for that.

I essentially have all the same problems with klamille, however i do think that both cami and that relationship is severely overhated by *cough cough* klarolines.

klaus falling in love with a women he compelled to be his therapist is so heavy with gross mommy issued irony i’d need a whole other post just to get into it but,,, (feel free to send a separate ask bc that’s it’s own thesis statement)

that being said i cried more when she died than i did any other tvdu scene she deserved sm and i did enjoy their dynamics at times.

as for things i did like,,

hayley in general, i’m a gen z australia girl- pheobe tonkin can literally do no wrong even though i don’t think hayley ever manages to become a fully fledged character.

davina !! severely underrated. served klaus anti cunt and i loved it.

gia!! deserved sm better. really was one of the only elijah relationships that actually made sense to me completely and i think the show moved on from her death way too quickly.

elijah in general, specifically s2/3. while i dislike the way the show handled him in the run to klaus’ redemption (essentially massacring his basic intelligence to prop klaus up) i do think his more brutal/ cunt moments where stellar. i especially enjoyed when the show was honest about how actually unhinged he is, another reason i dislike haylijah. he’s not the easter bunny, he’s not the families morality, not always. he’s a bitch and unlike hayley im aware and love him anyway.

the flashbacks! i’m endlessly confused by the choice to spin off with a baby plot line, the most interesting parts of to to me where seeing the family in the past and i feel like it would’ve been a much better choice to have the show act almost as a prequel maybe with one foot in a less stakes present day storyline also centred around nola.

hope!! despite thinking the baby plotline is weird, the families relationship with her was cute.

basically,, i liked it and i’m far more likely to rewatch it than tvd

[kylermalloy]

Set in the boyking!Klaus AU

He is losing Elijah.

Mikael watches his sons lounge under a tree side by side. They hold hands. Niklaus plays with Elijah’s fingers, running his hand over them one by one.

After some time, Niklaus guides the same hand to rest on his thigh, where he continues to stroke Elijah’s fingers.

It’s the expression on Elijah’s face—slightly unfocused, enraptured, breathless. Ecstatic.

From a simple touch.

That is what convinces him.

He needs to tear Elijah from Niklaus. The devil child has sunk his claws into Mikael’s second son, and he must do something about it.

Esther is perplexed when he informs her of his plans. A hunting trip? Now? We have enough meat for another moon.

Finn and Elijah, he hedges. They’re growing up. They need more experience.

Esther shrugs.

.

Elijah responds with quiet acceptance, as he usually does. That is, until he is informed that Niklaus will not be coming along.

He bites his lip, winding one arm around Niklaus, who clings to him like a lifeline.

How many days? he asks.

As many as it takes, Mikael says. His gaze is on Niklaus, whose lip has begun to quiver. His bright blue eyes widen, filling with tears that begin to flow and do not stop.

Elijah places a consoling hand on Niklaus’s golden hair, his own expression despondent.

As long as it takes to shake that blight from your mind, Mikael adds silently.

Elijah reluctantly prepares to depart, gathering weapons and provisions and a fur pelt for the cold nights. All the while Niklaus trails after him, tears spilling down his cheeks as he pleads with Elijah to stay.

Mikael waits impatiently with Finn by the large oak while Elijah kneels before Niklaus, thumbing the tears from his cheeks and speaking quietly to him. Brushing the hair from his face. Gripping his arms assuredly. Enveloping him in an embrace, kissing his forehead.

Niklaus places one hand on Elijah’s face, thumb stroking his cheek. Elijah spasms. His eyes close.

In the brief moment that Elijah is not looking, Niklaus turns his head and looks directly at Mikael. Through his tears, there is a fury in his face that no boy of eleven years should carry.

The hair on the back of Mikael’s neck prickles, as though sensing a predator—or an attacker.

Then the moment is over. Elijah stands, slinging his bow over his shoulder. He walks away from Niklaus, toward Mikael and Finn, who straightens from his crouch and remarks, Finally.

No one else has seen. As always, Mikael is left alone in his knowledge.

Elijah’s face pinches with emotion as he nears Mikael. Niklaus watches him go, face shining with tears. Standing alone, shoulders slumped and face smudged, he looks almost as helpless as he should.

Almost.

As they leave the village, Niklaus follows them to the edge. He clings to a tree at the border, staring after them tearfully.

Elijah glances back until Niklaus falls from sight.

Mikael breathes a little easier.

.

Esther watches her sons say their goodbyes. Both are pained by the separation, but Niklaus appears inconsolable. Tears spill from his big blue eyes like they haven’t since he was an infant.

She follows him to the edge of the village, ready to console him as Elijah, Finn, and Mikael disappear into the trees.

But as soon as they are gone, something changes.

When Niklaus turns around, his face is calm and composed. He passes a hand over his cheeks, wiping away the tears—which have stopped flowing almost alarmingly fast.

His brow is smooth, his eyes clear. His lips press into a thin line.

Niklaus? Are you all right?

He meets her eyes coolly. I will be, Mother.

.

Mikael takes them far.

Finn and Elijah follow unquestioningly, deeper and deeper into unknown woods. They do not stop—not for the deer Finn sees in the distance, not for the burrow of rabbits that could be trapped.

Elijah continues to look back from time to time. Looking, searching for the cursed child he left behind.

Mikael watches him closely, waiting for the spell to break. How far must he travel? How many days must they spend apart, before Elijah is whole again?

.

Niklaus seems adrift without Elijah.

Esther watches him wander the village aimlessly. His fingers flutter empty at his side. He sighs often, long loud breaths meant to catch others’ attention, for them to ask him his troubles.

Esther did wonder if Mikael’s impromptu trip was another of his attempts to separate Elijah from Niklaus.

Although her secret is safe from Mikael, her husband still harbors an intense grudge against Niklaus.

Her sweet, golden boy. Her secret joy.

He becomes petulant and cross without his brother to temper him.

Rebekah tries to console him. She follows him all day, placing a hand on his shoulder, speaking softly to him. More than once he pushes her away, but she will not be deterred.

—That is, until she comes home in tears, cradling her arm, after Niklaus pushed her down a knoll.

You ought to know better, Esther chides him as she binds Rebekah’s wrist. You’re a strong, growing boy. You must know to stop before you hurt someone. Especially your sister.

He shrugs.

.

They make camp after walking all day. Elijah eats little. While Finn sleeps soundly, Elijah tosses and turns on his pallet.

Sleep evades Mikael. The woods are peaceful tonight, but he cannot shake Niklaus’s expression from his mind.

Niklaus haunts him day and night.

He enters the camp, having followed them undetected since they left home. He kneels over Elijah’s sleeping form, inhales his hair.

You can’t save him from me, he hisses in Mikael’s ear. Mikael is paralyzed, unable to reach for his weapons.

He’s mine. He will always be mine.

Mikael wakes with a strangled gasp.

.

The family next door wonders where their dog has gone.

Rebekah stays inside, playing with Henrik. She moves her injured wrist gingerly.

Niklaus returns from the woods, announcing he has found a beehive full of honey.

His hair, hands, and sleeves are inexplicably damp. He must have fallen in the stream, Esther reasons. Wouldn’t be the first time.

She recruits him and Kol to collect the honey.

The bees have all gone from the hive when they arrive, leaving a bounty of honey for them. She reminds her sons not to sample too much as they harvest it. Niklaus in particular savors the taste, licking golden drops off his fingers.

We must save some for Lijah, he declares. When he returns.

Of course, Esther reassures him. There will be plenty for him, and Finn. And Father.

Niklaus smiles his bright, honey-sweet smile. Not Father. Father can’t enjoy sweet things. He’s too bitter.

.

The snares prove plentiful. Finn and Elijah return from their scouting with four squirrels and a rabbit.

They lunch on two of the squirrels. Finn finishes Elijah’s portion when he declares he is not hungry.

Elijah is quiet for most of the day. He reaches out to empty air often, reaching on instinct for someone who is not there. He stares into the distance when Finn mentions home, or their family. (He knows better than to mention Niklaus by name, though.)

If it is not distance from Niklaus that will break the spell, then it must take time. Mikael vows to keep Elijah away for as long as it takes.

.

Niklaus has always been Esther’s special child. She has watched him carefully, gifted him an enchanted necklace to temper the bloodlust he would inherit from his father.

He hums with an energy different to his siblings. Different to Freya and Kol, her children gifted with magic. Different to Ansel and his brethren, whose blood runs a curse through their veins.

Perhaps the mix of magic and the curse created something new in him. (Something Mikael must never know about.)

Ever since Mikael has taken Finn and Elijah away, that difference has become more pronounced.

The hum in his blood is louder, a thrumming in Esther’s ears. When she catches him sitting still, he nearly vibrates with restless energy.

Niklaus, are you all right?

His head tilts to one side, golden hair falling in his eyes. I will be.

.

Four days in. Elijah seems tired. He has continued to eat little—a few bites of meat or dried fruit each day. Despite his fatigue, he still tosses and turns in the night, unable to sleep peacefully.

They fell a deer. Finn suggests they bring it home, but stops when he sees Mikael’s expression. He has no intent of returning home until he’s satisfied that Elijah is free.

.

Ayana complains of her birds going missing. She and Esther combine their magic to perform a spell to locate them—to no avail. It’s as if they’ve disappeared from the face of the earth.

Niklaus volunteers to wash his own things in the stream. She lets him, grateful for the help.

.

They are running low on supplies. Finn observes—rightfully—that the game will spoil if not dried soon.

Mikael sends him back to the village with their kills. He stays with Elijah, who has begun to skip meals altogether.

.

Niklaus runs to greet Finn excitedly, before realizing Elijah is not with him. Esther places a comforting hand on his shoulder. He’ll be back soon. In a day or two. You’ll see.

Later that day, Rebekah comes to tell her Henrik is crying at home and won’t stop.

What happened? she asks.

Rebekah shrugs. I left him with Nik. When I came back, he was in floods.

Henrik is a master of words by now. He speaks all day long, for the most part using words everyone can understand.

But none of Esther’s coaxing convinces him to tell her what upset him so badly.

.

Father, I don’t feel well. Elijah is pale. He hunches over on his pallet, after yet another sleepless night.

You should eat something, Finn scoffs. It’s been two days.

Elijah wrinkles his nose. He chews on a piece of dried meat, tossing it into the leaves unfinished after half a day.

He doesn’t sleep again that night.

Nor does Mikael. Niklaus glides into their camp again, eyes and skin shining like the wood alves from the old world.

He lays one hand on Elijah’s forehead. You thought he could escape me? You thought he would want to? His voice envelops Mikael, whispering in both his ears like an enchantment.

He loves me. He only fears you.

.

Niklaus is sprawled on his back, looking up at the sky.

It’s nearly suppertime, Esther calls to him. There’s deer or rabbit. Niklaus, she repeats when he does not answer. What do you want?

He doesn’t move. I want my brother back.

.

He’s burning up, Father, Finn announces. Would it not be best to bring him home, so Mother can care for him?

Mikael seethes. Fight through it, Elijah. You are strong.

He hopes.

.

Esther offers the little ones honey on their bread, as a treat.

Niklaus shakes his head, turning his sweet radiant smile on her. Not for me, Mother. I’m saving mine.

.

Nine days in the forest. Elijah has burned with a fever for nearly half of them. His voice scratches in his throat. He can barely stand.

Mikael swore to keep him away until Niklaus’s hold over him was broken.

It isn’t magic, Niklaus sneers. He grows more impatient.

There is no spell to break. I will have him because he wants me, Mikael.

Mikael shudders.

.

After ten days, Mikael finally relents. Esther does not need to lose another child. He and Finn hoist Elijah between them and carry him home.

.

Upon the hunting party’s return, Niklaus will not be torn from Elijah’s side. He holds his hand while Esther and Ayana treat him with herbs (and a few whispered spells). He holds Elijah’s head on his lap until he wakes.

When Elijah’s eyes open, he comes back to life. Color seems to return to his cheeks, the heaviness leaving his limbs. He reaches up to cradle his brother’s face while Niklaus holds him close, exclaiming softly but excitedly.

Niklaus feeds Elijah supper that evening, letting him lick drops of honey from his fingers after a meal of bread and fruit.

Esther catches him dozing upright late in the evening, Elijah’s head still on his lap.

Niklaus. She shakes him gently to wake him. Are you all right, my love?

His eyes are bleary, exhausted. There is a tangle of honey stuck in his hair. But he smiles, his blue eyes shining with contentment. Yes, Mother.

.

Mikael gnashes his teeth when he sees how readily the two boys snap back together. Elijah, so wearied by whatever fever overtook him in the forest, recovers quickly in the arms of his hungry-eyed brother.

Niklaus breathes Elijah in, holding him close as if to make up for all the lost days.

He made no trouble, Esther reassures him. Although he missed his brother.

.

Mikael is awakened in the night by harsh breathing close to his ear. He reaches instinctively for his knife, but it is not beside his pillow.

He opens his eyes to see Niklaus’s slender figure. Looming over him, staring at him with those cold, pale eyes.

Don’t you ever, he snarls, take him away from me again.

Mikael closes his eyes again and waits, through his pounding heart, for Niklaus to disappear. (He drank too much at the homecoming meal.)

When he wakes in the morning, his knife is still nowhere to be found.

[georgiaheartsdilfs]

→ forgotten love klaus m x vamp f!reader

imagine: years ago you and klaus were rulers of the world, the most hated and the most powerful, after owning the world you wanted to settle down so klaus and you moved away, after living together for over seven decades klaus decides to randomly leave. You waited years but no sign so you decided to return back to your best friend the Salvatore brothers and have lived with them for the past sixty-four years, never once thinking about Klaus until... The Mikaelsons had recently returned to Mystic Falls, the originals. I wasn't close with the Mikaelsons well I was, but I never liked to admit it not to Damon or Stefan and definitely not Caroline since she has a thing with one of them, she doesn't like to admit it but we all see it. "The Originals what a boring name" Damon rolls his eyes lounging around on the couch, I pace back and forth in front of him biting my nails "They know Elena is here they want her" I say "He came for her years ago remember maybe he is here for Caroline" Damon said casually. "he?" I ask stopping to look at his dull face "Klaus?" by this time Damon had sat up to drink the rest of his Bourbon "Nik" I pause, whispering silently. I hadn't said that name in years, I've heard it of course but saying it was different was more nostalgic to say the least. "Well he may be here for more of Elena's blood" I shrug pushing the hair out of my face and tucking it behind my ears, Nik and I had been separated multiple times whether it was because of his father, mother or even his enemies. Then one day he left, never to be seen again. No note or phone call he had just left me alone on the other side of the country. I always made excuses for his disappearance but after time I gave up knowing that if he were to return it wouldn't be for me. "Why are you so panicky whats up?" Stefan walks in through the front door as five people walk in behind him and my jaw drops, there they were. The people whom I once called family were standing in front of me. "The Mikaelsons were in town so I invited them over" Stefan said casually after Klaus and Elijah had left the last time they had resolved their issues with Stefan and Damon. They were friends. My mouth still gaped at the sight of them Freya, Rebekah, Elijah, Nik and Kol all of them in the house I live in, a house that I had to get friends for. "Hey" I finally say as everyone continues to stare at me, I finally close my mouth taking Damon's bottle out of his hand and drinking it myself. All the endless nights of party and pleasure, feasting for days and murdering for nights. The love and the pain came rushing back all at once and for once I felt something that could kill me, stupid heightened emotions. The Mikaelsons all sit down on the couch opposite from Damon and I, Nik sitting across from me staring at me intensely "My Siblings and I were in town we thought why not  pay our friends a visit hm" he said with that stupid smug look. I lean back "So Elijah last I heard you were a pianist in France?" I change the subject looking away from Nik "Yes well that has been the word" Elijah clears his throat and I nod "My apologies drinks? anyone" Damon stands up since I obviously drank the last of his bottle. "I'll have one" They all say to him and he nods walking off, "Why are you here" I clear my throat sitting forward "visiting" Kol shrugs, I had trusted Kol maybe not as much as Elijah or their sisters but I trusted him nonetheless. "right" I nod clicking the tongue "anything new with the mikalesons?" I ask, I have never seen them all sit in one place being quiet... ever so this was new and awkward. "we fought de martels you remember them?" Rebekah smiled to me, she was always so chatty I'm thankful she came "oh yeah aurora right?" I look over to Nik and clear my throat "Who are de martels" Stefan walks in from downstairs, now this is the moment I dread. "oh a family around 1000AD y/n joined us sneak into this whole royal family thing yeah well they tried to kill us, Austin is in the water drowning right now" Rebekah says happily "as in the year 1000?" Stefan had asked and I look down. "Ye- oh she didn't tell you" Rebekah had realised from the moment I looked down "Yeah so I've known them all my life surprise" I look up and smile to Stefan "all your life?" he questioned me "Human and not" I clear my throat. Damon had come back "y/n is older than us" Stefan says turn to me and then back to Damon "obviously I mean shes not angry all the time so the fact shes stronger than us has to mean that she is older than us Stefan" Damon says in an odd tone. Hours pass of the Salvatores and Mikaelsons talking about blood, history and other stuff but all I could do was stare at him. How could he walk on in pretending like the last time I had seen him he promised to come back for me, just me. How could he sit there and pretend like nothing happened, of course, he came back years ago but it wasn't for me... it was for Elena. In MY story it's always about Elena or someone else that isn't me.

"Nik a word" I clear my throat standing up straightening my shorts and then walking outside, Nik followed me outside and I close the front door. "What the fuck" I say and he looks at me innocently, as if he hasn't committed mass genocide or killed children, daggered his siblings and killed his mother. "what happened to coming back for me? to travelling the world with me?" I ask him and he shrugs "I came back did I not" he asks me and I slap him "I waited years, decades sat in my chair waiting for you to come home with your siblings yet you didn't" I say angrily. My eyes turn red "I waited and wasted my life away slaving away for you, killing enemies, loving you, cooking for you" "NO ONE TOLD YOU TO DO THAT" He yelled, he was angry when he had no right to be. "NO I WAS YOUR WIFE NIK I FELT OBLIGATED TO OTHERWISE I FELT YOU WOULD KILL ME LIKE YOU DO TO EVERYONE" I yell back pointing at him "I DIDNT ASK FOR YOU TO TURN ME I DIDNT ASK TO BECOME A MIKAELSON BUT I DID IT ALL ANYWAYS BECAUSE I LOVED YOU"  I step closer to him. Nik stood there silently, he wasn't angry nor was he sad, he was nothing. "I loved you so much I waited two whole centuries for you, I never moved because I thought that some day you would knock on my door with a smile" I go quiet looking down "but you forgot" my voice breaks. I was hurt, furious I could kill him if I wanted but I didn't and I can't think of a reason why "look I don't expect an apology or anything because I know you, Nik, you are you and you never change, I just want to know whether that 200 years of my life was a waste of time" I whisper, my voice breaking at the last sentence. As I straighten my hair and my top turning to open the door he grabs my hand and pulls me towards him kissing me, the familiar taste of blood entered my mouth he must have come from hunting humans. He pulls away "I hadn't forgotten love" he said.

[spunky-89]

All Power (Kol Mikaelson x Female Reader)

A/N: Woo a new fic! Cause updating or finishing old WIPs is apparently not as cool. Also, this fic is a bit of a crossover from Teen Wolf, not anything like major, just some references and such.

Word Count: 1.8 k

Warnings: None that I can think of

The air was tense in the courtyard as Kol stood protectively in front of his lover, facing off against his pain-in-the-ass hybrid brother. Elijah stood between the two trying to keep them from tearing each other apart. Freya was off to the side holding herself, feeling guilty for starting this disagreement.

“You come anywhere near her Nik and I swear it will be the last thing you do.” Kol threatened.

“I don’t like liars, especially not in the house where my daughter sleeps,” Klaus growled.

“You really think I wouldn’t make sure that my girlfriend had no ill intent towards my niece? Do you think that low of me brother?”

“Enough, both of you,” Elijah spoke, turning slightly to look at his youngest brother and his lover. “Now, would you care to share what this ruckus is all about?”

“I don’t know, ask Nik.” Kol spat, rage in his eyes.

“You stand there and make me the bad guy when it is your pet human that is lying and has been her whole time with us.” Klaus proclaimed.

“And how do you know this Niklaus?” Elijah inquired.

“Because I sensed it,” Freya spoke up, moving closer to the brewing storm.

“Sensed what Freya?” Kol snapped, becoming more and more fed up with the current situation.

“Something… off,” She tried, struggling to find the words.

“You need to do better than that sister, or else this is a waste of time because you have no grounds to accuse my girlfriend of anything.”

“Enough.” The woman came out from her position behind Kol and came to stand next to him. “Please just stop, all of you.” She requested.

“Darling?” Kol gave her a questioning look and she gave a heavy sigh.

“She isn’t wrong, I’m not human,” She started, avoiding eye contact and staring at the ground. “Well, not entirely human I should say.” She then looked to Klaus, “I’m honestly surprised you didn’t sense it. I mean typically wolves have a sense for this sort of thing.” She remarked.

“Get to the point, my patients is waning fast,” Klaus warned. As he did so, Kol took a threatening step forward, only to be stopped by a hand on his arm.

“Okay, calm down. The short version is I’m a werewolf.” The woman stated plainly.

“You can’t be, you’ve never turned on a full moon,” Kol stated, looking to his girlfriend in confusion.

“That’s because I’m a different breed and I’ve learned to control it.” She then gave a bashful smile at him and said, “I also happen to have an amazing anchor that keeps me grounded.”

“That’s it,” Klaus growled and sped at the supposed werewolf and pinned her to the wall, his eyes glowing golden. “Who are you?”

She saw Kol move to intervene but she shot him a look to let her handle this. She smirked as she took a deep breath and closed her eyes, opening them to reveal her eyes were glowing a vibrant purple, wolfish features taking over her face slightly. And before Klaus could make a comment or move, she dug her claws deep into his side and rake them upwards, causing him to release her in shock. She used that moment to roundhouse kick him away from her.

“Who am I? Well, I’m someone you really don’t want to piss off.” She huffed, fixing her clothes.

Kol was looking at her wide-eyed, never having seen her like that before. He watched in fascination as her face shifted back to the one he loved so much, though the claws on her hands didn’t disappear.

While Kol was focused on her, she was focused on Klaus. She knew she just poked the sleeping bear, or well in this case wolf. She acted casual, but she was ready for a full-fledged brawl. She heard him let out a chuckle, and her heart went icy cold. She knew that kind of chuckle. It was the kind that told her she’d just pissed him off and he was amused by her attempt to hurt him.

“That was a neat trick, love,” He said as he stood back up to his regular height. “But you’ll have to do a lot better than that if you want to hurt me.” He growled as his eyes flared and he started to rush towards the woman. Before he could even get close Kol threw him to the other side of the courtyard.

“I told you Nik, not a hair.” He seethed, standing protectively in front of his girlfriend, who was now minorly terrified and clutched onto the back of his jacket.

“Maybe I should just go,” She murmured to Kol.

“Nonsense, you are still welcome here,” Elijah promised.

Klaus had gotten up and was getting ready to argue when Elijah cut him off.

“Why don’t we give the lady the benefit of the doubt. As it stands, if she had wanted to harm any of us she’s had ample opportunities to do so and has not. We shall hear her out before we jump to any more conclusions.” He stated, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Everyone was slow to move, but eventually, all were gathered in the seating area.

“What do you want to know?” The woman asked, practically perched in Kol’s lap.

“First off, how is there another breed of werewolf?” Elijah asked.

“Well, there’s actually a few. I’m from the French line of werewolves, whereas your brother is of the North American breed. As far as I know, the only other breed is English wolves. But there are many different shifters out there from many cultures. Kitsune, for example, come from Japan.” She explained as best as she could.

“How is it we’ve never heard of any other wolves or shifters before?” Freya asked.

“That I am unsure of, but I’ve met loads of different shifters and other creatures. Where I come from, it’s practically a beacon for supernaturals.”

“And you can control your shifts?” Kol piped up.

“Well for the most part. The way French wolves and shifters work is that you can shift at any time, not just on the full moon. But the full moon makes us more susceptible to turning. But for older wolves, it becomes easier to control your shifts. Whereas baby wolves tend to be much more at risk of turning uncontrollably.”

She then spent the next hour or so explaining the differences between the different wolf breeds and other supernatural creatures, although she never really explained what she was. It was actually Kol that brought up the question.

“Me? Well, I’m kinda a special case. I’m a werewolf, but well, an extremely rare one. It’s why I didn’t tell you who or what I was.” She explained, clearly nervous to reveal who she was. But with one squeeze of the hand from Kol, she sighed and started speaking, “I am the twin sister of Scott McCall, the True Alpha. I am his opposite in most cases which makes us an elite team that is nearly unbeatable. So I am what is called a Compliment Alpha. Part alpha, part beta, all power. It’s why my eyes are purple. It combines the red of an alpha’s eyes and the blue of a beta’s.” She explained, once again flashing her eyes.

“Does that satisfy you Nik? Or does she have to go through her life story before you trust her?” Kol asked, seemingly done with his girlfriend being interrogated.

“I swear to you I am no threat to your family. I didn’t even know of your existence until Kol revealed who and what he was. Vampires are kinda new territory for me. This is not some evil plot to harm you or any Mikaelson. You all have become my new pack, and you don’t hurt your own pack.” She swore.

“I shall allow you to stay, but be warned little wolf, I see even the slightest hint of your inevitable betrayal and I will end you and your brother.” Klaus threatened, but instead of being scared she just gave him a smile.

“I would expect nothing less.” She teased as she stood from the couch. “But just so you know, my old pack and I are hard to kill. Trust me, many have tried, yet here I am.”

Kol stood as well and took her hand as they left for her apartment on the other end of town. He pulled her close by her shoulder and kissed her head as they walked out of the compound.

-----------

When they finally made it back to her apartment, he could see her noticeably relax.

“I have to say, darling, I’ve never seen you kick ass before but I would love to see it again,” Kol murmured as he wrapped his arms around her waist and laid kisses on her neck. She giggled and tried to push him away.

“Stooop,” She whined as she tried to wiggle out of his grip.

Kol, unfortunately, refused to let her go and held her tighter as he relished in her laughter. Moments like this were his favorite because there was just joy in the air. All troubles forgotten and burdens lifted to make room for the contentment he felt when he was with her.

The two settled down on the couch and just sat cuddled up in silence for a while. Kol was the first to break it after about half an hour.

“Would you have ever told me?” He asked, looking down at his lover who suddenly seemed very interested in the couch.

She sighed and sat up. She hated this. She knew he would eventually ask this. And she dreaded it because she didn’t have a good answer. But she knew she had to give him something.

“Honestly, I don’t know,” She started, “My identity and my secret is the reason why I ran here in the first place. The danger became too great for my brother and me to stay together. We had to separate, at least for a little while. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.” She paused as she recalled the day she had to say goodbye to her mother and brother. The physical pain she felt when she got on the plane without him. “I was scared.” she admitted, “I trust you, and I wanted to tell you so many times, but…”

“But what darling? Cm’on darling, I just want to know.”

“If my identity was found out, I would have had to leave again. Which would mean leaving you. And I couldn’t- I can’t lose you too. It would break me. Shatter me to a point that I would become volatile and dangerous to those who came across me. Because my heart’s been broken a few too many times for me to be able to come back from that.” She said quietly, not realizing that tears had begun to stream down her face.

Kol pulled her back into his arms and just held her.

“I swear to you my love, no one will keep me from you. Not even my brother.” He vowed.

[thatfanficstuff]

Asshole - Elijah Mikaelson

Pairing: Elijah x Reader

Warnings: Bullying, Assholes, Flangst

A/N: I’m gonna let y’all in on a little secret. When I can’t/don’t write for a long time, I find it incredibly hard to start writing regularly again. Part of me feels like I am incapable and the rest fears I am. Anyway, this took much longer than it should have. I hope you enjoy!

***

You sat at a table at the back of the Grill enjoying your own company and a well-aged Scotch. Well, as aged as it got at the Mystic Grill. You were supposed to have been spending your evening with Klaus and Kol but they’d opted out to take care of some business. Kol had sounded so sincere in his disappointment you couldn’t be mad at them.

After some indecision, you came to the Grill on your own. It had been a long week and you’d been looking forward to getting out of the house. You’d already eaten dinner and decided to have a couple of drinks before you walked home. Or maybe more than a couple since you were already on number three.

Your gaze jerked up from the glass in your hand when someone slid into the chair across from you. Seeing Damon, you started to smile before remembering he was no longer your friend. And as much as you didn’t want to let that bother you, it stung. The two of you had been near inseparable until you saved Kol from the mechanizations of the Scooby gang.

You’d chosen your side. It didn’t matter that killing Kol would have ended the lives of who knows how many vampires. Apparently slaughtering innocent people was only bad when the Mikaelsons did it. None of your friends would even attempt to see it your way. They’d cast you out and the Originals had taken you in. You tried not to be bitter about it. You even succeeded most of the time. Until moments like this anyway.

You clenched your teeth together and willed the tears that threatened to fill your eyes to fuck off. “Is there something you needed, Damon?”

Damon clicked his tongue before giving you a little smirk. “So testy. Can’t I just say hi to an old friend?”

“You can do whatever you want, but let’s not pretend that these aren’t the first words you’ve said to me in months. Whatever we are, we’re not friends. Not anymore.” And god you wished that didn’t hurt as much as it did.

He made a show of looking around the room. “I just noticed that you were alone. Not a Mikaelson in sight. Thought I’d check to see if you’ve finally come to your senses?”

You swallowed what was left of your drink in answer. Anything else you said would only lead to a repeat of the same argument you’d had a hundred times.

He tapped his fingers on the table. “I’ll take that as a no.” After a moment of silence, he pursed his lips and leaned forward. “Or perhaps they’ve learned that your loyalty is a fickle thing and they’ve kicked you out of their little family.”

“Fuck you, Damon.” You wished you hadn’t finished your drink so you could throw it in his face. “I wasn’t the disloyal one. All of you turned your back on me because I saved someone’s life.”

“Not just someone. Kol fucking Mikaelson. You knew it was a betrayal before you even did it. How were we supposed to overlook that? To ever trust you again?”

“Honestly, I thought you’d all lost your ever-loving minds. Why would any of you think it was okay to not only kill Kol but everyone that would go with him?”

“It was to save Elena.” Damon all but hissed the words.

“No. It was to make her human again. Big difference.” You leaned back with a frown and signaled for another drink. “You know, for someone that claims to love a vampire, she certainly has a deep-seated hatred for them.”

Damon’s gaze moved over you as though he were looking for something. It wasn’t until your drink was delivered that he spoke again. “They don’t care about you, you know. They never did. Getting you on their side just another way to get under our skin.”

You sipped at your drink as you looked him over. If he only knew the number of times you had convinced Klaus not to kill one of them. The number of times you’d redirected the hybrid’s rage or Kol’s anger. Then again, maybe he wouldn’t care at all. “I’m not a tool, Damon. I’d know if they were using me.”

His ever-present smirk faded as his eyes turned cold. “Would you? You believed everything I told you readily enough. Of course, you were so lonely you would have believed most anything, wouldn’t you? Anything to have a friend. Somewhere to go where you weren’t alone.”

You clenched your teeth tightly and refused to meet his gaze as he threw confessions made over late night glasses of Scotch back at you. “Were you never my friend then?” You hated yourself for asking the question. Even more for the way your voice broke as you did.

He tilted his head. “Oh sweetheart, why would I have been?”

And with that, he was gone. So nice of him to stop by. You downed what was left of your drink and signaled for another.

By the time you determined no amount of alcohol was going to erase Damon’s words from your brain, you were well and truly drunk. When the waitress came by to check on you, you ordered a glass of water and pulled out your phone.

You tapped your finger against the back of it as you thought. Going home to your empty house meant wallowing in self-pity until you passed out and then probably doing the same thing when you woke. Kol or Klaus were always your first call at moments like this, but you had no idea what kind of business they had to do and didn’t want to interrupt if it was something important. The last thing you needed was for them to be angry with you as well. Rebekah was out of town.

That left Elijah. You weren’t as close to him as the others through no fault of his. No, he’d gone out of his way to make you feel welcome, to extend the hand of friendship. But you were painfully shy when he was around. If there was one thing in life that could be counted on, it was the fact that you would be incredibly awkward around anyone you felt the slightest interest in. Poor Elijah probably thought you hated him. Klaus however thought the way you clammed up in his brother’s presence was hilarious.

Maybe that was the only reason they kept you around. Because you entertained them. At this point, did it really matter? Even if they didn’t need you, you needed them. Without the Mikaelsons you would be completely, utterly alone. Maybe you should start thinking about moving on. You could just start over somewhere else. Preferably somewhere with no supernatural drama. That would be fantastic.

After giving it another moment’s thought, you pressed the screen and called Elijah.

He answered on the second ring. “Y/N. Lovely to hear from you. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Tears flooded your eyes at the warmth in his voice and a lump formed in your throat. “I’m sorry to bother you, Elijah. I just…” You trailed off and sucked in a deep breath to keep from crying.

“Is everything all right?”

You cleared your throat. “Not really, no. Could you come pick me up at the Grill?”

“Of course.”

You hung up and slid your phone back into your pocket. After pushing yourself to your feet, you stood still for a moment to get your bearings. When you glanced toward the bar to signal for your check, your gaze met Damon’s. He smirked as he ran his eyes over you and saluted you with his glass, clearly knowing he was the reason for your current state. Deciding to wait for Elijah outside, you tossed enough money on the table to take care of your ticket and a generous tip.

The cool air bit at your skin as you stepped outside. You moved to the end of the building and leaned against the wall. You tilted your head back to lean against the brick. Closing your eyes, you took a deep breath of the crisp air to sober yourself up a bit and drive back the tears.

“It’s not safe for you to be out here by yourself, Y/N. You never know who might wander by.” Damon’s voice cut through you but you maintained your position.

“Why are you doing this?” Relief flooded you when your voice didn’t break. You didn’t want to give him the satisfaction. “Just leave me alone.”

“Where’s the fun in that?”

The only response that came to mind was telling him to fuck off so you kept your mouth shut and ignored him. Or you tried to at any rate.

A firm hand grabbed your chin and tilted your head down. The pressure he applied was enough to send a jolt of pain through your jaw. Your eyes shot open at the violation. “Don’t ignore me.”

You jerked your head to the side and he released you. “Don’t touch me.” At least the anger chased away the tears.

He placed his hands on either side of your head and leaned in until barely a breath separated you. You pushed against him though it did no good. You knew it wouldn’t but you couldn’t just stand there and let him do whatever he wanted. “Get away from me, Damon.”

“Why should I? You like vampires, don’t you, Y/N?”

Your eyes darted up to meet his and you realized that your comments about Elena had bothered him just as much as his words hurt you. Good. Asshole. “I like some vampires. I’m not particularly fond of you at the moment.”

He snarled and shoved himself off the wall putting some much needed space between the two of you. “You think you’re better than me? You’re nothing. Less than nothing. The only attention you received from me was pity.” Every word he threw at you struck like a physical blow. And the smile that crossed his face told you he was very much aware of it. But he wasn’t finished yet. “I pitied you, took you in and you repaid me by siding with the Mikaelsons. God only knows what they’re still keeping you around for but when they finish with you—after they’ve taken whatever it is they want from you—don’t come crying to us. Frankly, I’m glad to be rid of you. We all are.”

Hot tears began to leak down your cheeks and you wanted nothing more than to escape. Before you could run away or even think of another response, Damon was slammed face first into the wall beside you. You jumped away in response, relaxing when you saw it was Elijah holding him there. He had Damon’s arm twisted behind his back and kept him pressed to the wall with a hand between his shoulder blades.

“Get off me,” Damon demanded as he struggled to free himself.

Elijah ignored him, placing all of his attention on you. “Are you all right?”

You swallowed past the lump in your throat. “I’m not injured if that’s what you mean. He was just being an asshole.”

He hummed as he arched a brow. “Yes, well, it is Damon.”

The corner of your mouth kicked up and you wiped the tears from your cheeks. Elijah stepped back, pulling Damon away from the wall in the process though he still didn’t release him. “In the future, it would be wise for you to leave Y/N alone. The next time we have this conversation won’t end as pleasantly for you.” Only then did he let him go and Damon was gone in the blink of an eye.

Elijah placed his hand on your back to direct you to his car parked a short distance away. It wasn’t until he’d started to drive that either of you said anything.

“Would you mind just driving around for a while? If it’s not too much of a bother I mean.”

The silence stretched but you resisted the urge to look at him. Fresh tears were running down your cheeks and you preferred to keep that to yourself for the time being.

“Of course, it’s not a bother,” he finally responded, his voice quiet, concerned. “Whatever you need.”

Some time later you wiped the tears from your cheeks and turned to watch Elijah drive. His face was drawn and he had a firm grip on the steering wheel. He glanced your direction and smiled when he met your gaze. “Do you want to talk about it?”

You shrugged a shoulder. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Certainly.”

“Why do you keep me around?”

“What?” He couldn’t have sounded more surprised if he tried.

You turned your attention back to the view from your window. “Not you specifically. All of you. I mean, you don’t owe me anything if that’s what you think. Or maybe you just feel bad for me because everyone else is mad at me. You don’t have to. I’d do okay on my own.”

Elijah didn’t respond right away and you figured he was trying to think of a way to gently break the truth. Just as you were about to tell him it wasn’t necessary, the car slid to a smooth stop. You glanced around to see nothing but trees and you hadn’t been paying attention to the direction Elijah drove from town. You had no idea where you were.

“Look at me, Y/N.”

You turned in your seat so you faced him as much as possible. His dark gaze ran over you and if you didn’t know better, you’d swear you saw sorrow in his eyes. After a moment, he cleared his throat. “What exactly happened tonight?”

You glanced away as your hands twisted together in your lap. “Nothing. I told you he was just being an asshole.”

“Why don’t you try expanding on that a bit, sweetheart. I’m afraid I’m not buying it at the moment.”

You stayed silent as you figured out how to phrase everything so it would make sense.

“Y/N—” Elijah started and you held up a hand to cut him off.

“The thing about your best friend deciding they hate you is that they take everything they know about you and use it to hurt you. And god, Damon’s a pro at it. He hits the mark every time.”

“What do you mean every time? Has this happened before?” The irritation in Elijah’s voice made you smile.

“Not for a while. Right after the whole Kol thing, it happened almost daily. I figured he was done being an ass to me. Guess I was wrong.”

“Why did you not say anything?”

You shrugged again. “It didn’t seem important at the time. I just quit going anywhere I might run into him or the others unless one of you was with me. I figured it had been long enough I’d be safe to have dinner and a couple of drinks without a bodyguard.”

His hand reached out to cover yours where they still twisted together in your lap. Your face heated immediately but you didn’t pull away. “Y/N, if it was bad enough to keep you from living your life the way you wished, it was very important. I can’t believe none of us were aware of this.”

You shook your head, not wanting to argue the point. “It was just pokes. Snide comments, dirty looks. Tonight though…He said he was never my friend. That he pitied me and took me in and I betrayed them. He said there was no reason for anyone to ever be my friend.” Your voice trailed off at the end until it was barely audible. And once again you found yourself unable to look the vampire in the eyes.

He hummed in acknowledgement and released his hold on your hands. Seconds later he was out of the car and opening your door. He offered you a hand to help you out and you took it with no hesitation. He led you toward the front of the car before lifting you and placing you on the hood. You looked up at him with wide eyes as he stepped forward, placing himself between your knees.

One hand settled on your waist while the other hooked around the side of your neck, his thumb tracing the line of your jaw. You swallowed past the lump in your throat as he stared down at you with a serious expression. “Listen to me, Y/N. The Mikaelsons pity no one. We are a thousand years old. We have long ceased wasting our time on those that we deem unworthy. Damon is simply pissed that he never wormed his way into your bed before you proved yourself to be monumentally out of his league.”

The corner of your mouth kicked up a bit at that though you weren’t sure you believed him. There was one part of what Damon said that still bothered you. “He said once you all get what you want from me, you’ll toss me away and I’ll be alone again.”

His hold tightened enough to let you know he was upset but not enough to hurt. His jaw set and he took several breaths before responding. “The only thing my siblings desire from you is your companionship, Y/N.”

There was a brief flash of hurt that he hadn’t included himself in the statement. The look in his eyes had you pressing for more. “And you? What do you desire from me, Elijah?”

The press of his lips against yours was an answer you could never have anticipated. His hands pulled you forward and you slid off the hood to erase the space between your bodies. The hand on your neck shifted to bury his fingers in your hair while his other arm wrapped around your waist. Your hands gripped the lapels on his jacket as you tried to pull him closer.

Finally, the two of you separated and your chest heaved as you sucked in much needed air. “That was…unexpected,” you breathed.

“Unexpected but not unwelcome I hope.” A smile flirted with his lips as his dark gaze studied you.

You shook your head and he kissed you again before resting his forehead against yours. “I’m sorry Damon hurt you, Y/N. I won’t allow it to happen again.”

“How can he possibly hurt me when I have you to protect me?”

His low chuckle rolled through you as you leaned up to kiss him again. As his hands gripped your waist you couldn’t help but be a little bit grateful that Damon was such an asshole.

[lets-imagine-fanfics]

Prompt: “Do you even care anymore?” with Klaus

Pairing: Klaus Mikaelson x reader

Words: 955

A/N: To be honest I only watched the first season of ‘The Originals’ - Klaus my fave, but i’m kinda basing this around only my knowledge from the first season and a little bit of the second season xxx

A/N/N: Okay so this request just said Klaus, and as I was about to type in the tags…The only Klaus I saw was Klaus Hargreeves… so I’mma do 2… 

[Klaus Mikaelson] [Klaus Hargreeves]

[Prompt List | Masterlist | My Fandoms | Send an Ask]

You and Nik had been together for years, so many in fact that hat you have lost count but to give an example of how long, you were born the same year the Miklesons had been turned.

For some reason, Klaus kept your relationship a secret, he told his family, and you all spoke to often with one another even when one avoided the other, but other than that nobody knew. You guessed it was because he wanted to keep you safe since he's been making enemies from the day he was born.

Since you had been with Klaus for so long, there were a few things that you had become desensitised to, slight torture, killing etc. - you were a vampire, yes, but you never killed anybody - There was one thing that you could never get over, Klaus cheating.

You had caught them, Klaus and this girl, one night and you had left there and then, cut all ties with him. Elijah and Rebekah had been there to pick up the pieces of your broken heart, and you promised yourself that you would never be tricked by Klaus again.

Eventually, Nik found you and begged for you to come back to him, be his again, he slowly got you to doubt yourself and your options using that silver tongue of his. He would so easily manipulate those thoughts and memories that you had made, and you ended up taking him back after 20 years of him giving you gifts every other day.

It's easy to say you loved Klaus with everything you had, and you used all the patience you had with him too.

You had both decided to take a business trip to Paris while Klaus had been lead to somewhere in America, you said your "goodbyes and See you soon" and headed off in your different directions. It was easier to be separated for such a short period of time when you've lived several hundred years; it isn't ideal to be away from the person you love. Still, it's more manageable for the lifeless vampires that live on throughout time.

Throughout your trip you had been excited for it to end, despite enjoying it so much, to be able to see Klaus again, it was one of those trips for Klaus were he was so busy and so caught up down the rabbit hole that he couldn't message, so this whole trip there's was barely anything from him, or his siblings who accompanied him to Mystic Falls, somewhere with a lot of vampire action that apparently was not going under the radar.

The last day of your trip you receive a text, a sentence which you had read multiple times from Klaus before, although this time it was from an unrecognisable number - "Meet me in New Orleans, we have much to discuss."

On your way to a place you had once fled, and when you did, it had broken your heart, you only hope it goes better this time.

You walk through the large house that you once called home, admiring the decor that you remember as you move through the house.

You can hear talking through the house and can pinpoint that it is coming from the office - Klaus' voice is coming from Klaus' office.

As you make your way to your love, happiness fades, and sorrow hits you like a train as you overhear what Klaus and his siblings are talking about.

"She's having your child, Nicklaus, you need to do something to protect her and the child."

"Really Nik? you had to have a rebound, from Caroline, who -"

"Don't you ever mention her name to me again!"

Now here you are, standing in the corridor refusing to breathe as you were listening in to Klause and Elijah as they spoke about how it was possible for Klaus to bear a child.

A woman, with a hand over her stomach protectively despite her even showing, walked up to you. She could see the sadness in your eyes as she asked you if you were okay and introduced herself as Haley.

Haley, you had learnt a moment earlier was the woman who was having Klaus' child... So this was her, not only that but there was two of them: Haley and a Caroline.

Haley looked at you with slight concern, that innocent girl- you could have killed her there and then and end it all - but no, you were never evil, maybe a little desensitised.

You boss and begin to walk away only for you to hear the door of the old house creak open.

"Y/N?" Klaus, the person you had dedicated most of your life to loving unconditionally, asks as if you weren't even invited to the party.

You turn, holding your feelings down but refusing to flick that switch, the switch that is just there - just beginning for the rage that has been waiting to be unleashed for decades.

"Oh sorry, am I interrupting you and your family matters?" You reply with a snark.

"It's dangerous, you being here."

"Yeah, I was just leaving."

"Is that all you have to say? You know I committed infidelity and you don't have anything else to say? Do you even care anymore? There's nothing left for you to say... After all this time?" Klaus says, trying to get a rise in you or seeing how far he can push you before you break.

"...The mother of your child...she's lovely," you say before you walk away. You left that house and that family; you would more than likely see Rebekah and Elijah again but never Klaus. You promised yourself you would never cry over that man again.

[bonniebird]

Kol x Reader

Requested by Anon

Kol paused as he heard a phone ringing. Damon rolled his eyes and glanced down to his pocket which Kol helped himself to, fumbling around in it. “Hello? You do know you’re interrupting a very important torture session?” Kol said as soon as he answered.

“Kol! You’re playing with Damon! It’s my turn.” You said huffily. Kol laughed and glanced at Damon.

“It’s my sister she wants to know when it’s her turn.” Kol explained and Damon groaned. “You’ll have to wait. I just got started. Why don’t you see if you can bother Stefan. It would really upset Klaus.” There was a pause and Kol gestured with his hands that you were talking. Not that Damon carried on the slightest. “Yes. Well I suppose Elena would do just as well. I would avoid the witch though, you know how they can get… hmm… No that one is somewhat of an obsession for Nik. I would avoid the blond one yeah… just Elena. Rebekah would probably help. Ok talk later.” 

“You’re a bunch of weirdos.” Damon grunted as Kol dropped the phone and stepped on it.

“Maybe. But seeing as my brother thought it was ok to keep me and my sister apart, I think she should be allowed some fun. Did you know he daggered me. But he let her stay around. Favoritism, one of Klaus’ shortcomings. Although my dear sister was nice enough to find a witch that allowed us to share a mind on occasion. Those fleeting moments of being able to see what she saw was… well all I lived from you could say.”

“What?” Damon asked. He wasn’t sure he wanted to know but the Originals was rambling on the way they did when they got sentimental.

“Oh. Well she’s my twin sister. Did you really think I was the sort of person that came singly. I’m half of a set.” Kol said as he grinned.

“So there is another you out there? Right now?”

“Right now! Did you know she was once invited into the Gilbert house. I’m not sure if the invite still stands but wouldn’t it be a sight to behold if it did. She doesn’t like your Elena too much. Blames her for Katherine’s death.” Kol smiled as Damon frowned, starting to fight back.

**********************

“Why is our sister being nice?” Rebekah asked Kol as she came to his side.

“What do you mean? My (Y/N) is the epitome of manners and kindness.” Kol said firmly, he frowned at his sister who could hear the touch of mischief in the way he spoke.

“Last week she tried to kill Elena Gilbert and nearly did. This week she is playing nice with all of us.” Rebekah insisted.

“Well, she’s probably just planning something. You know how she gets when she’s planning something big. You can’t expect her to put as much work into being mean.” Kol answered sarcastically. He moved off to join you in the crowd, having insisted that he be your dance partner for the evening.

“Did you find out what they’re up to?” Elijah asked Rebekah who sighed.

“Not yet. But I’m on it.” She assured him.

The dance went on for so long that your mind started to wonder. You haven't told anyone your newest piece of mischief but you could tell that Kol was dying to hear it. “Did you know brother, I can still get into the Salvatore house?” 

“Can you?” Kol answered as he spun you around in time to the other dancers.

“Did you know that they have a little room with lots of vervain in it?” You added and Kol shook his head. “Wouldn’t it be awful if everyone was ever so busy tonight and one little vampire just happened to vanish!” You said and grinned wickedly at Kol.

“Which little vampire?”

“Well, I’ve already bothered the witch, that one hurt so I’m not going there again. Then the fake. But Elijah says we can’t kill her yet because we need her blood. Only one left after that.” You said sweetly your eyes led to Caroline and Klaus who were dancing. 

“You really want to take on Klaus?”

“He doesn’t know what it’s like to have a brother locked up in a horrible box!” You objected. Kol raised his eyebrows and you sighed. “Fine. He does but he doesn’t care and he should care so I’m going to get some harmless revenge.” The dance ended and the two of you started to go your separate ways. You, towards Caroline. Naturally Kol decided he would distract Klaus. Best to help you get away with something, then waste time getting you to stop. He knew by now it didn’t work.

[kikilefangirl]

The Witch Who Won’t Part 4

Klaus Mikaelson x Reader

(Word Count: 2064)

You woke up to a flood of texts, calls, and voicemails. Most were from your cousin, but a few came from Marcel. Tossing your phone on the other side of the couch, you rubbed your temple. You hadn’t even made it to your bed last night. Your puff was matted and misshapen.

You rubbed your eyes and stood up. A pounding headache and nausea made you keel over and do a mad dash to your trash can. You yakked up your dinner. After you brushed your teeth, you seized up.

The presence of an Original. Bounding from your bathroom to your front door, you flung it open. You don’t know why you expected Klaus. You had burned that bridge, indefinitely.

Elijah stood at your door offering a handkerchief. You cocked your head to the side and clicked your tongue.

“Whatever you want, I’m not interested.” You spat out.

Thinking back to the night before, you crossed your arms. The reality that Klaus had kissed you, and that he did it to handicap you was too much. Now his brother was at your door too.

“Y/N, would you please invite me in?” Elijah asked. His critical gaze had something else behind it, true concern.

You knew it wasn’t for you. Originals were only truly worried about other Originals. Klaus.

“I imagine Niklaus has upset you. I do apologize on his behalf, he has a, uh, talent for such things.” He said.

Elijah still had his hand out, still offering the handkerchief. You stepped closer, and took it. You wiped your mouth with it and set it on the counter.

“Come in.”

You surprised yourself. The thought of an Original having permanent access to your home made your stomach turn, but this time it was unavoidable. Elijah stepped through the threshold and unfastened his suit jacket as he sat down at the table.

You watched him, cautiously. Elijah wasn’t Klaus. You knew better than to make assumptions about him, certain concessions simply would not be granted.

“I beg you to consider forgiveness. I fear Niklaus requires it.” He replied. Elijah ran a hand across his bottom lip.

“He did what he wanted and now he’s dealing with the consequences.” You were firm.

Elijah scoffed and leaned back in the chair. You didn’t back down. You couldn’t. You sucked in a breath.

“Esther has him,” He ran a finger along the table, his daylight ring more prominent than before, “Aided by our brothers Kol and Finn, my mother has stood against Niklaus.”

Elijah began tapping his fingers. He pulled the corners of his mouth back with thinly veiled contempt. Esther was the original witch. You had learned your history and now it was sitting in your living room.

Esther was the woman who hid Klaus’s true identity, and when it was revealed, bound it from him for a thousand years. The man he had become––the creature that could kiss you one second and shackle you the next was partly her doing.

“She will ruin him. Again. She’ll ruin him again.” Elijah hissed.

On the surface, he appeared perfectly composed. Elijah was the pristine elder brother—the eldest due to Finn’s absence—constantly working for his siblings’ happiness. Klaus too, had his own persona to hold onto as well.

But the truth underneath remained: Where Elijah was cool determination, Klaus was wilder, freer.

“Pass me that grimoire. I’ll see what I can do.”

After a millennia of separation, you knew Elijah was right. Klaus was not going to recover the little bits of him he had left. He had a daughter out in the world who needed him.

“Call Rebekah. She should be here, too. And Vincent.” You said.

Turning on your heel you head down the hall toward the bathroom. Just because you were going to spend your whole day dealing with Originals, your basics weren’t going by the wayside.

                                                         …

Nothing in Gammy’s grimoire could have prepared you for the Original Witch or what she had reduced Klaus to, either.

Esther was in the body of a witch you knew. You flared your nostrils. Dead witches taking the bodies of living ones always made you upset.

“We came here for Klaus.” You announced.

She stepped away from her herbs, though you couldn’t see which ones. Even in another body, Esther was full of the kind of grace and danger you had previously seen with Klaus.

“I am afraid my son is unavailable.” She replied. Her eyes darted between you and Elijah, and even he was stifled by her presence.

“Mother, release Niklaus to us. Immediately.” He said.

“In your custody you and your siblings, especially Niklaus, have been a blight on this earth. You leave nothing but blood and death behind you. I will not be idle anymore.” She let out.

You could feel her anger, and oddly enough her love for her children. Esther was probably a good mother once, but her protectiveness ruined them and her.

You concentrated on Klaus’s familiar aura, drawing it closer and closer to you. Esther must have noticed because her eyes were trained on you.

“My, my, you are powerful indeed. And in love. Nevertheless, the strength in you does not wish to oppose me, nor I you.” She offered. While she spoke you curled your hand and twisted.

The stone wall behind her slid open, revealing a chained Klaus. The bitter part of you that enjoyed seeing him chained after what he did to you was quickly overpowered by a wave of worry. His golden irises burned with rage and hatred even as subdued as he was.

“If you truly loved my son, you would want him to be free of his curse. A pretty young witch like you would want children of your own and a husband capable of loving you without the threat of violence all around you!” Esther continued.

For a split second you hesitated. You did want that and maybe with him. But Esther knew him as a child, and longed for that child. You met the monster first, and loved him anyway. Whatever that made you definitely wasn’t normal.

“You let a man believe the one child he saw true potential in, the one child knew he could mold in his image, was his. And Mikael hated him for it.” You admitted.

Saying the words out loud made Esther pause in shock. Mikael’s name and his function in her life had the same effect on her as it did Klaus. Taking advantage of her vulnerability, you unleashed the brunt of your magic.

Elijah’s expression was cold and unflinching. He knew it was true just the same as you did. Esther may have the title of the Original Witch, but she thrived off the shared power of all witches. Dead and alive. You could draw on them, too. You thought of Vincent, of Gammy and beyond.

Esther flew through the air and slammed against the wall. Elijah immediately went to Klaus, breaking the chains that held him.

Before he was completely free, Esther countered. Her strength coupled with your overexertion made you fall to your knees in pain. You could feel her magic weighing you down. Something wet dripped from your nose. Blood.

You weren’t backing down from her. You felt a tugging in your gut and threw your head back. Esther wasn’t going to stop you from taking Klaus. You called on your ancestors and their power just as she did, with renewed focus. Wind whipped around you, dust swirled at your feet. The jars of herbs and dark objects shook and some shattered to the ground. Letting out a guttural cry, raw power radiated from you and it pulsed through the room and and the entire French Quarter.

You collapsed with exhaustion, your body landing on the hard floor. You were fading fast, you could barely keep your eyes open. As your vision blurred you could see Klaus speeding toward Esther. The chains were still on him, but the ends had been broken off.

Holding a thousand lifetimes of pain and betrayal, Klaus snapped his mother’s neck and she went limp in his arms.

You smiled, as you had done your part. Cold hands were the last thing you remembered before everything went black.

                                                        …

You woke up in a large bed in the Mikaelson compound, completely alone.

You were wearing your pajamas from home. You stepped on the floor barefoot, flinching at the cold.

“Good evening, Y/N. I must say we were beginning to worry.”

Elijah. He offered you his arm and you took it. Your legs still felt like jelly. He led you to another empty room, stopping at the threshold.

“Niklaus, do not be rude to our guest. She did save our lives.” Elijah called out. So this was Klaus’s room.

He did not immediately appear. Preparing yourself, you let go of Elijah and stumbled into the room. You made it to a stool. Nearby were beautiful paintings and three full blood bags. As you admired the artwork, Elijah took his leave. As soon as he did, Klaus finally appeared.

“Careful, love. I did that one in 1823, it’s fragile.” His tone was his usual charming self, but his sunken in eyes, and restricted movements told the story.

“Here.” You slid a blood bag over to Klaus.

He poured it into a glass, but he made no moves to drink it. He swirled the liquid, squeezing so hard on the glass it broke in his hand.

You jumped, but Klaus wasn’t fazed. Instead he was staring at a spot on the floor, expressionless. He sat slack jawed and deflated. He was none of the wild hybrid—whether he was angry or vindictive or proud or jealous.

The man across from you was nothing at all.

“Klaus. You need to drink.” You whispered.

There was something fragile about him you had only seen glimpses of. Klaus always fell back on his default, but this was different.

“Klaus!” You boomed, bolting upright so fast your chair fell to the ground.

You stalked up to Klaus with fear as an afterthought. He was beginning to have that effect on you, which was probably for the worst. You wrapped your hands around his neck and jaw. He wouldn’t meet your gaze.

“Esther was right to call you a monster. She was wrong to say that was all you were. Look at me, Klaus.” You pleaded.

You were nose to nose now, and once you had his eyes on yours you wasted no time.

“Klaus! She was wrong! Esther was wrong. You have a daughter who will always love her daddy. Your siblings won’t turn away from you. I won’t, either.” You said desperately.

Esther was a woman whose back was against the wall and Klaus was her secret keeper, her ultimate secret keeper. And he, unlike Mikael’s children, was hers to isolate, a punishment Klaus could never bear from his mother.

You sucked in a breath, and bore your neck out for him.

“Drink.”

The quick pain as the hybrid’s fangs pierced your neck was followed by pure euphoria. You could feel him take every drop of blood that oozed out. Klaus’ arms wrapped around you, pulling you onto his lap. It was as if you two were the only two in the world, and you reveled in it.

Once you began to get light headed, Klaus retracted his fangs and licked the wound. His amber eyes burned with an intensity that made you squirm at how close you were to each other. You were hyper aware of his body and your own.

Klaus smirked at your newfound discomfort and kissed you full on. You could taste traces of an iron tang on his tongue, but that didn’t stop you. You kissed him back and your heart was heavy with all the emotion and stress from the day before. He leaned into you, taking care to hold you tighter. It was the reassurance you needed. You broke away from the kiss to breathe, and you drank each other in.

Klaus wasn’t one to say thank you, and you didn’t need it. You flashed him a show stopping smile. You didn’t know what would come from your actions.

All you knew was that you had fallen for this man; you truly and wholeheartedly loved Klaus Mikaelson, and he, in his own way, loved you, too.

END

[misssophiachase]

For @klarolinefallbingo “Did you have to upset the goblins?”  

A/N Thanks to @helpfulfairy for giving me some supernatural tips that were so useful to make this happen : ) 

Mission Impossible?

Kol Mikaelson, the youngest prince of the underworld, is being held captive in the forbidden forest by an army of vengeful goblins. Two separate rescue missions are launched. One by a mysterious mercenary hired by the King and the other his older, and very suspicious brother. Who will come out victorious and what secrets will be revealed along the way? 

I

Yes, he’d upset the goblins. 

So much so that the young prince found himself captive in the deep, dark depths of the forbidden forest. 

Goblins weren’t considered a threat in the supernatural order of things but, at the same time, they could easily be underestimated. Although, the possibility they had joined forces with one of their bigger enemies couldn’t be dismissed either. 

“Your highness.” Klaus turned to see his servant mid greeting. Josh was young and inexperienced but at least he’d mastered his technique. “I come bearing news.”

“Well, how about less bowing and more talking. What news do you have of my brother from the capital?” 

The ruling family oversaw the entire realm and resided in the heavily guarded capital. Klaus, however, had recently taken up a posting in the northern region in order to quell rising tensions against the heirachy. 

This latest attack on his brother seemed too much of a coincidence, even if he probably did do something idiotic to deserve it. Kol was the black sheep of the family and their relationship was strained at times. Although, that didn’t mean he wasn’t anxious about his fate given he was missing. 

Abducted. 

Goblin fodder, according to Rebekah. His sister, the princess, never did possess much empathy or tact. 

“The King is displeased it has come to this,” Josh recited. No surprises there given Mikael was never happy and made his sentiments known on a regular basis. “He wants this dealt with quietly and swiftly so has contracted a highly trained mercenary to track down the prince.”

“This is father’s great plan?” He growled. Klaus was trying to remain composed but this latest news was doing nothing to ease his concerns. As much as Kol frustrated him, Klaus had no intention of leaving his rescue up to a questionable stranger whose loyalty could be bought. 

“I understand that the mercenary in question possesses the requisite skills for this kind of mission.” 

“I’ll be the judge of that,” he replied gruffly. “Do you know this mercenary?”

“No, Your Highness,” Josh replied. “All I know is that he is well trained in tracing, combat and speaks fluent Ghukliak.”

The language of goblins. Not many outside their close knit circle could speak it let alone were fluent.

Klaus felt his chest constrict, his instincts telling him he was right to question his father’s motives and that the supposed mercenary probably wasn’t who they purported to be.

Klaus knew someone who fitted that description. 

Someone he loved probably more than he should. 

But it was a she not a he. 

She was brilliant, that much he knew from their time together. She spoke multiple languages and dialects. In fact, they’d met when she worked as a translator at their annual summit which brought together representatives from all supernatural orders.     

He also knew she was handy with a weapon given that time she ‘accidentally’ stabbed him in the foot during an impromptu and mock fencing battle. Well, afterwards she maintained it wasn’t an accident because he was being an ass. Rather than incensing the hot blooded prince it only made him want her more. 

And more. 

But they were from two different worlds, so much so that their possible union would be considered a curse that could bring down the ruling heirachy and everyone they presided over.  

Suddenly, all of the good memories were replaced, not by their wretched circumstances, but by a renewed and sickening fear for her safety along with his brother. 

“Bloody hell,” he cursed aloud, unable to help himself. 

This was not a game, so what was she playing at? 

“I’m sorry, my lord, is there something I can do...”

“Summon Elijah and prepare the horses. We’ll be leaving at first light.” Elijah had been visiting when Kol disappeared, so Klaus figured the least he could do was lend a helping hand, especially given what they faced.

“But the King.” 

“Not a word, Josh, if you value your life,” he hissed, spinning on his heel and leaving the room without a backward glance.  

II

“I think my behind has gone to sleep.” Caroline rolled her eyes wondering not only why she’d opted for a companion but chosen this particular one. The fog was thick in these parts and for once she was glad her friend couldn’t properly gauge her reaction. 

Caroline was trying to tell herself she made the right decision. Katherine Pierce was a revered witch in these parts so was more than qualified for the mission but every minute they rode and every single complaint was telling her otherwise. 

“Luckily you’re not doing the work then is it?”

“I’m doing plenty.”

“Complaining doesn’t count.”

“I’m heartbroken, the least you could do is give me some pity,” she growled. Before Caroline could reply she continued. “In case you’re wondering, that means my most vital organ has been shattered into a trillion, tiny pieces.”

Drama really should have been her middle name. 

Caroline wanted to be that supportive friend who knew the right thing to say. Unfortunately, she’d had her most vital organ broken too and, not that she’d admit it to anyone, still hadn’t fully recovered. Well, not enough to give any helpful advice. 

“He’s not worth it,” she offered mechanically, thinking that line had been thrown at her enough times.

“I beg to differ.”

“You’ve never even mentioned anyone and now suddenly he’s the love of your life?” 

“What can I say? It all happened very quickly.” Caroline knew that feeling all too well. “He’s not my type at all so I wasn’t expecting it to hurt so much.”

“So, who is he?” Her friend gave her a look which said she wasn’t going to divulge his identity anytime soon. “Fine, then you can stop whining and let me concentrate.”

“Why are you doing this?” The question wasn’t completely unexpected but at the same time it was a difficult one to answer. “Not to mention pretending to be some kind of mercenary which we both know you’re not.”

“I have the skills required,” she argued.

“But mercenaries don’t possess loyalty or hold allegiances, nor do they care for anyone but themselves. We both know you are far good to be that way.”

“I might have misrepresented myself, true, but let’s just say I owe someone.” 

She’d been the one to leave in the middle of the night, to flee when their circumstances became too difficult. Caroline knew he would have fought to the death for her and a life together. 

She knew if she couldn’t give him that then the least she could do was help his younger brother. Someone she’d grown fond of in the short time they’d spent together. It wouldn’t fix them but she hoped it would make some amends at least.  

“You gamble? That I wasn’t expecting,” she offered. Caroline wanted to correct her but thought better of it. 

“Maybe I liked you better when you were complaining about your love life.”

“Fine, if I tell you his identity it stays between us.” Clearly they were back to her mystery man and Caroline was immediately regretting her clumsy segue. “Promise?”

Caroline only nodded by way of response, there was only so many theatrics she could take in one day.

“It’s Prince Elijah.” 

Caroline’s head flicked around to face her friend. Now that she wasn’t expecting, even if she did know him. She needed to conceal her surprise. “Well, now it makes sense that prince of the underworld isn’t your usual type. How did this all come about or do I not want to know?”

“We met purely by accident on the streets of the capital. He’s handsome, yes, but it was something else.”

“Let me guess, some imaginary magnet was pulling you towards him.” 

Caroline knew that feeling all too well when she’d been with a certain prince that happened to be his very own brother. 

“And how do you know that exactly?” She’d clearly said too much. 

“Uh, so, how exactly did he break your heart then?”

“He had to leave the capital on assignment. I must admit finding out you wanted help rescuing Kol Mikaelson seemed like a weird coincidence.”

“Does Elijah know?” Caroline did not need that complication. She knew Elijah and that, although they quarrelled, he was extremely loyal to Klaus. If he found out Caroline was on a mission to rescue Kol he wouldn’t let that stand. 

“Of course not,” she replied. “Although I did tell him I had business with you and I could have sworn I saw a flicker of recognition in his eyes. Do you happen to know why that would be?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Caroline could have kicked herself for being such a bad liar. 

“Okay, so tell me about this debt you owe, it’s the least I deserve.”

This was going to be difficult to explain without giving everything away. 

III

“I thought father said there was a mercenary rescuing Kol?” Elijah asked as they made their way through the forest the following day. 

“Well, if you’re not up to it, older brother,” Klaus responded emphasising the word ‘older’ on purpose.

“I was merely pointing out that it seems excessive given we are currently fighting wars on multiple fronts. But Kol does like to be the centre of attention so will appreciate the added effort, I’m sure.”  

That last part Klaus couldn’t argue with. 

“I’ll be sure to tell Kol you said that after we save his sorry ass,” Klaus joked before growing serious again. Something had been playing on his mind since he found out the possible identity of his father’s chosen ‘mercenary’. “Do you trust Mikael’s intentions?”

“Is that a rhetorical question, Niklaus?” 

“I find this whole situation unsettling. It seems all too much of a coincidence that father has sent us outside the capital and now Kol is missing. You don’t think that he...”

“What? That he Is trying to kill the heirs to the throne and his very own children? Mikael has many faults and he’s certainly not going to win father of the year but I think you’re being a tad ridiculous.”

“I know I’m the cynical one but think my suspicions are justified.”

“And what makes you think that?” Klaus hesitated briefly. He had no intention of mentioning Caroline, not yet, but when it came to her he couldn’t contain his feelings or his composure for long.

“I believe the mercenary father hired is Caroline.”

“Forbes?” He questioned dubiously. “Why would you think that?”

“She speaks multiple languages, a skill the very mercenary possesses.”

“Well, last time I checked she isn’t a mercenary but fallen fae royalty.”

“Watch how you talk about her, brother.” Klaus growled. He couldn’t help the over protectiveness, it just seemed to envelop him when anyone spoke adversely against her. Even after she left him he still couldn’t let her go. 

“Finally,” he acknowledged. “I admit I only said that to incite you, Niklaus, given she was the best thing to ever happen to you.”

“That I don’t need to revisit, brother. But we both know that nothing good could come from our union.”

“Remind me, was that before or after she stabbed you?”

“Elijah has a sense of humour who would have thought that?” Klaus drawled. “Clearly I’ll never live that incident down but right now, given present and urgent circumstances, it doesn’t matter.” 

“I must admit, I’ve been distracted.” That Klaus wasn’t expecting. His brother was the epitome of law and order and not much more. 

“I’m almost too scared to ask.”

“There’s a woman.”

“And here I thought you were celibate for life,” he chuckled. 

“Hilarious, Niklaus,” he shot back. “Although, given our brief discussions, apparently she’s travelling with the very girl you are pretending not to seek.”

Klaus was struggling to control himself. Not just because he wanted to kill Elijah for dropping that clue without warning but because the thought she was close only made him want her more. 

TBC - You Reap What You Sow for @klarolinefallbingo

[kylermalloy]

Your last answer got me curious, what’s your opinion on Marcel? His relationship with Klaus?

Pretty much the same as all the other Mikaelson dynamics and characters—Marcel is a complex, well-rounded individual. He’s a terrible person. He does good things. He cares deeply for his family and would do anything for them.

His relationship with Klaus is fraught, tense, Freudian in the best of ways, and sooo interesting.

I remember when we first met Marcel, I was dubious of the way they were presenting him. Like I said in my response to Christina’s ask, I was afraid the pilot was setting Marcel up to be The Monster Klaus Created Who Is Worse Than Him. But they weren’t, so my fears were unfounded!

I was also wary of his backstory—were they trying to tell me that of all the atrocities Klaus witnessed (and committed) throughout the ages, slavery was where he drew a line? And in a universe where mind compulsion exists? But again, this show proved me wrong! (Yay, Klaus…isn’t against slavery? Well, he’s Problematique. Get over it.)

Although our first impressions of Marcel are of a loud, showy, charismatic version of Klaus with way more friends—that’s not who he is. The tyrant we meet who tortures witches and murders them in public is merely punishing them for the wrongs they committed against their own children. That’s not who he is, fundamentally—although he can draw on that side of his personality easily, having grown up with Klaus.

Speaking of Klaus! Marcel has grown up to be a slightly more mentally healthy adult than Klaus, despite them both having horrifically abusive childhoods. I don’t want to give Klaus too much credit, because he created as many problems as he remedied, but Marcel did have an adult in his life who cared for him—more than one, if we can count Rebekah and Elijah (😔). While Marcel clearly has Issues with his surrogate family, he takes lessons he learned from them and uses them to build his own community, his own kingdom. Some lessons he borrows from the Mikaelsons, and some he does the exact opposite. He trusts people. He makes alliances. He kills (mostly) as a last resort. But he’s still ruthless toward his enemies. He punishes those who step out of line. He’s conniving and manipulative and he can do it all with a big smile on his face.

I do think there’s a fair amount of projection going on with Klaus when he takes Marcel in. He wants to give this kid (also an abused bastard child) something he never believed he had—someone to look out for him, someone to care for him and protect him. But as he sees himself in Marcel, it’s hard to give him the unconditional love Klaus can never believe he’s worthy of. (It’s complicated.)

And of course, the people Klaus cares for become possessions in his eyes. He expects everyone he considers family all to revolve around him. This is why he resents Elijah for showing Marcel too much kindness—they shouldn’t be allowed to have a bond separate from him! This is why he daggers Rebekah for winning Marcel’s affections; in his eyes, they cannot love each other and him.

This is something Marcel carries with him throughout his life, I think—he tries to treat his own friends as their own people, allowing them much more agency and freedom. (see: him allowing Thierry to date a witch, even though Klaus exploits this connection—it’s a worthy price, if that’s what they want. In the same vein, he allows Davina out on the town when the witches are hunting her.) Though he does not always succeed—he still uses Davina for her powers, lying to her about the danger the witches pose. He is still part Mikaelson.

1x20 is still my favorite klarcel episode, because So Much happens. So much is said, and unsaid.

“How did I fail?”

“Maybe the scars just ran too deep.”

(Is he talking about his own scars, or Klaus’s? You decide.)

But then:

“You didn’t fail me. You taught me everything I know. You taught me I can’t be weak, not when my enemies are stronger. […] And I will fight until I’m dead.”

Because underneath the war they’re waging against each other, they genuinely care about each other. They consider it unfortunate now, but Klaus poured himself into his little Marcellus, for better or worse. Marcel grew up with Klaus. He knew what kind of person Klaus was. He knew firsthand, and he chose to become a vampire like Klaus anyway. Because just like Klaus, immortality can be terrible and awful but it can also be beautiful.

Gonna go cry.

Let me skip ahead to season 3, where their dynamic changes fundamentally again. Some of the narrative choices made in this season were iffy, so I am still on the fence about Marcel’s turn. Part of me thinks it was justified, part of me thinks it should have happened differently, and part of me thinks it was a big misstep.

Marcel turning on Klaus and demanding he answer for his crimes would make sense in a different narrative than the one we were in. The events that turned Marcel against the Mikaelsons this time were committed not by Klaus, but by Freya and Elijah. Having Klaus be the target of his vengeance would’ve made sense…a season ago. Not now. Not with the moral code we’ve been going with.

But I digress.

I think this is a perfectly natural turn for the klarcel relationship to take—Marcel positions himself as a moral arbiter, above Klaus in every way, although…well, he’s not. Marcel has aided and abetted, he’s slaughtered indiscriminately before. There’s some truth to how he condemns Klaus, but there’s also some self-righteousness—as any conflict on TO should have. (These are all still, fundamentally, terrible people.)

Unfortunately, though, this conflict is much more about Klaus than it is Marcel, and their interactions during the trial are rather underwhelming. It’s not about Klaus relating to Marcel as the boy he raised, it’s about Klaus using his wits and his awfulness to stay alive.

I do think there is a certain poetry to Marcel *leveling up* and becoming more powerful than Klaus, and immediately becoming judge, jury, and executioner. Only he is powerful enough to punish the Mikaelsons for their crimes, and he will do so. Oh, he will do so. There’s a certain Mikaelson-esque arrogance in that. The god-king of New Orleans.

I shan’t go into how in season 4, Marcel has apparently ruled the city peacefully for five years now that the Mikaelsons are gone (what happened to the gang wars? Factions committing terrorism on each other?) and by then the show has strayed a lot from its original atmosphere. And its characterization.

I’ll say I like Klaus admitting in season 4 that he was not a good father to Marcel, but like. Come on. We knew that. He knew that. It seems more like a step in the writers’ plan to dismiss all Mikaelsons forever as Evil And Bad Because We Can’t Promote Bad Messages For The Kids On This Show About Murderous Immortal Bloodsuckers. Like, pick a lane, guys!

…okay, this ask has rather gone off the rails. Suffice to say I adore the angst, the ambiguity, the love/hate of klarcel. Wish there had been more nuance in the later seasons.

[dcvilmade]

do tell us about the confusing end of ha/ylijah

Ok I’m just gonna preface this that I ship Haylijah. I also like Jayley. And I adore Hayley, and of course, Elijah. This isn’t a comparison of these ships, or criticism of the characters. Over all, it’s a comment on the writing.

Also this got super long. I’m so sorry. for anyone who reads this, thank you for your patience.

I’m just gonna jump into when things, to me, get hinky. So, S4, Elijah was captured by the Hollow, stabbed, dying, got his mind shattered and in the pendant. Hayley goes in to find his subconscious, which is hiding deep in his memories. Elijah is hiding in a particularly violent memory, a red door memory, and he’s IN that memory. He doesn’t recognize Hayley, so he attacks her. Hope goes into Elijah’s mind, and and cries out and wakes elijah up. He’s instantly regretful, and everything. Hayley, naturally, is shaken. Doesn’t want to talk to him. This is understandable. She just went through something terrifying, she needs time to process it.

But this is where things, to be, start getting incredibly weird to me. Hayley, after fighting the hollow and her showing Hayley an image of Jackson, later has this speech.

HAYLEY: Jack... I didn't get to say this before, so I need to say it now. You are who I should have wanted. You were right. But I could never manage to give up Elijah. I couldn't walk away. I met him at a time in my life when I was scared, alone. I know that's messed up. I guess I never really... saw what love was supposed to look like. But I don't want that for Hope. I wish she knew you. I wish a lot of things. As for Elijah, I know what he is. I guess I always knew. But I loved him despite it, or maybe because of it. Truth is, I'm a monster, too. We've all done terrible things, Jack. Except for Hope. She's innocent, pure. And I want to make sure she stays that way. I know what I have to do. I just have to be brave enough to do it.

WHICH CONFUSES ME FOR MULTIPLE REASONS:

Hayley married Jackson, and she loved Jackson, and she was utterly devastated by his death. They’re making it out like she left Jackson for Elijah when that simply is not true.

I don’t understand what…. How is leaving Elijah supposed to be good for Hope? What is with this implication that Elijah is bad for Hope.

Before this, Elijah and Hayley were positively ADORABLE. Their scenes at the safehouse early in the season, then Elijah telling Hayley he wanted to start a life with her, and after Elijah suggested that Davina kill him instead of Klaus, Hayley telling him that she needs him and him being surprised.

But okay, I just want to comment on this part too.

 I met him at a time in my life when I was scared, alone. I know that's messed up. I guess I never really... saw what love was supposed to look like. 

This is either implying that Hayley never really loved Elijah (because he definitely loved her) but thought she should, or implied that it’s a toxic relationship? Because it actually is one of the least toxic relationship on TO lol. But it also sounds like… Hayley was with Elijah because she needed him, and now that she doesn’t need him….. Yeah, it’s uh, not a good look. I really don’t know what the writers were trying to do here.

And like, I’m not saying she shouldn’t be upset about what happened, not at all. But it’s all just so???? Confusing.

Then in the next episode, Hayley says this to Rebekah.

HAYLEY: I saw things, Rebekah, in his mind. Not just memories. I saw... his impulse, his natural instincts, and... I think maybe that's who he really is at his core. REBEKAH: And that scared you? You're afraid that Hope will see that side of him? HAYLEY: I worry that she'll see that I'm... okay with it. What am I teaching her if I allow her to grow up in a place where we... trap our enemies in dungeons and retaliate against threats by killing whole neighborhoods? I... I don't want her learning to become that.

Which would be understandable, if she… wasn’t also a murderer? And, more importantly, if KLAUS WASN’T STILL GOING TO BE IN THE PICTURE??? So Elijah is too dangerous, too much of a monster, to be with Hayley because she doesn’t want Hope exposed to that, but Klaus is totally fine to raise his daughter? (as this is before they know about the ritual that they will have to be separated by.) If Hayley truly didn’t want Hope growing up around that, then she shouldn’t have saved the Mikaelsons in s4e1 and then rescue Klaus, but the whole point of that was she wanted hope to have her family. So.... which is it?

IT’S SO FREAKING CONFUSING

ELIJAH: Let me help you. HAYLEY: Don't touch me. ELIJAH: I am on your side. HAYLEY: I should never have brought her back here.

ALSO THIS IS ?????? ‘brought her back here’ uhm, they brought hope there bc she was sick/dying??? If they hadn’t, she’d be dead? It’s just like the writers totally forgot things from THE SAME SEASON

But yeah okay, continuing on. There’s a lot of…. Interactions between hayley and elijah that i genuinely don’t understand. Elijah is CLEARLY going through something. He’s severely traumatised from dying PAINFULLY AND SLOWLY and also HIS MIND SHATTERING. He’s depressed, suffering, and like, so many things he says are clear indicators of this.

Okay so fast forward to S5, which i’m skipping past all the amnesiac elijah stuff cos that’s not really Elijah. Elijah is talking to Declan, Hayley’s boyfriend, after her death.

DECLAN: Ah, who am I kidding? She probably would have turned me down. I was batting way out of my league, and... and she had a hell of a past. ELIJAH: What do you mean? DECLAN: Ah, an ex. He really did a number on her. I could tell she still held a candle for the guy. But when you... you find a woman that... Her smile could end wars, and... she has a heart as big as Ireland... you'd have to be a fool to let her go. You all right? ELIJAH: A smile to end a war. So now you see her face everywhere you go, you hear her voice in your dreams, and you feel the lingering ghost of her touch. You feel responsible. Perhaps if you had known more, you could have done... something. DECLAN: You're him, aren't you? The one that broke her heart.

and

DECLAN: So you're here to mine my pain for your absolution? Do you have any understanding of the damage you caused her? 

SO AGAIN I’M LIKE HUH??? HAYLEY was the one who chose to end things between them? Hayley was the one who made the ‘i need to be strong enough to end it’ speech? The one who was making out like Hope being around Elijah would be a bad thing? They’re making Elijah out to have just... left her? They’re making out like Elijah was a ‘bad guy’ in the relationship, that it’s his fault? He caused her damage?

Hayley’s dead, and in the afterlife with Jackson too. So like, Haylijah aren’t even together in death. Which I’m okay with, it’s just a bit odd from a writing perspective, especially with Hayley’s “if we met in another life” line or w/e it was to amnesiac elijah.

This is why I say the ending of Haylijah was confusing. They built it up all through s1-3, and most of s4 and then let it nose dive into something just,,,, so freaking confusing. And incredibly poorly written.

[alwaysfangirlingish]

One shot:

Title: Not everything is about new and fancy dresses.

Word count: 1203 <3

Warning: Nope

-------------------------

Hi! This was an anonymous request~, although I think I changed it a bit... 😊

I tried to write this as best I could, I really apologise for any grammatical or vocabulary errors. This one-shot made me realise how difficult it is to write in another language lol. I need to keep practicing and learning, yup~

I hope everyone enjoys it. Please consider reblog, comment and a like,thank you so much for reading and doing requests!✨💕

-------------------------

I entered my room, throwing my backpack on the bed while taking off my shoes, letting out a little moan of relief at having my feet free and on my soft carpet. I had just arrived from shopping at a thrift store, in the company of my boyfriend, who since the morning was trying to convince me to go buy new clothes.

“You realise I could buy you new clothes, right?” He repeated those words he had been saying since early, while he leaned against the door frame, following me with his eyes all over the room as I changed into something more comfortable to be in my apartment.

“And you realise that I've already told you it is unnecessary?” I replied, giggling while tying my hair, before approaching him and giving him a small kiss on the lips.

“It is an offer I will never stop making you, Y/N,” he responded, staring at me as I walked towards the bed, picking up the backpack. “Besides, lovely and fresh clothes are what you deserve,”

“You're impossible, Elijah,” I said, shaking my head “You all Mikaelson are impossible, except Freya,” I replied, starting to pull out the clothes I'd gotten from the thrift store, “I mean, I know Kol wants me to go shopping with him and ‘his good fashion sense’. Also, Rebekah wants to treat me like her little doll,” I looked at the man in front of me, who had a brief smile on his face “And Klaus… Well, I think he doesn’t even care”

  “Well, you definitively can’t deny that my family has this… Exceptional sense of fashion,” Elijah said, a bit proud.

“Yeah, I mean… You are good looking, and wear good clothes, but the thrift store is not equal to horrible clothes,” I replied, getting up from the bed and walking towards him. Once in front of him, I kissed him on the cheek and gave him a gentle push while saying “Now, sir ‘I'm a Mikaelson so I have a good fashion sense’  maybe you should go and let me do my magic with the clothes, you know... And after that, you and your siblings will learn that not everything is about new and fancy dresses,”.

“Of course,” He nodded, walking towards the front door “Oh, and I'll come for you tomorrow at five, if that it's ok with you” I nodded at his words. He smiled at me and disappeared, leaving me alone with my ideas and the clothes. I sat back on my bed, picking up a piece of clothing, sighing as I looked at the old jean I had in my hands and murmured, “I will let the fancy family speechless” I declared before starting.

>>> Next day <<<

I looked at all my outfits lying on the bed, proud of myself. Despite having done them in a hurry, blinded by the excitement, the clothes looked like something out of a fashion catalogue to me. I sighed, going into the bathroom to shower before Elijah picked me up to take me to the compound.

After I finished my shower, while I was getting dressed, I heard Elijah's voice outside the room, looking for me. I yelled at him I was in the bathroom, and to wait a few seconds for me to finish getting ready. When I was ready, a few -many- minutes later, we headed to his home, not without first having my backpack, where I had my clothes.

Upon arriving at the compound, Freya welcomed me with a hug, just like Hayley and little Hope, who only clung to my legs so as not to fall, as she was still learning to walk more than three steps.

"Okay, it's showtime, ladies," I announced them, carrying Hope, and heading to a room. The witch and the hybrid helped me to organise the little show that I had been planning two days ago. In less than an hour, everything was ready, and we gathered the family around the fountain, waiting to see my creations.

“Well, everybody is aware of the clothes I bought yesterday, and you all know how they looked because I sent a photo to the group chat I created,” I explained, as I walked to the room where the clothes were “Now you are going to observe how they look now,” I closed the doors to change as quickly as possible.

As I walked through space, I noticed their gazes on me. Hayley and Freya applauded, making very nice comments, prompting the other Mikaelson to do so. I could detect a flash of sorrow on Rebekah's face at the drastic change of clothes, and the smile on Kol's face was not fooling anyone who knew him well.

"I want to see another one!" Freya said, inviting me to keep up the little fashion show. So time passed, I modelled all my dresses to the vampires, who stared and applauded saying nothing, only Klaus and Kol released some jokes or laughs at the endless comments of Hayley and Freya. Even Hope was giggling and clapping, seeing her entire family do it.

When the show ended, Niklaus walked up to me and placed his hand on my shoulder, saying "Well, Y / N, lovely clothes, but I must go, if you'll excuse me ..." before disappearing, leaving me with a smile, perceiving he meant what he said.

"And you, guys? Anything you wish to tell me? " I asked innocently, looking at Elijah, Rebekah, and Kol in front of me. The older of them settled next to me, leaving a kiss on my head, hugging my waist.

"I must admit that those outfits were admirable, and you were fabulous, y/n," he said, also looking at his brothers with narrowed eyes, waiting for their words.

“Well now, I must admit that you must be very talented to turn those scraps of clothes into something like that cute tight jean,” he said flirtatiously, walking and shaking my hand with his under Elijah’s heavy sight “Excellent job, y/n, but now you have to put up with Bex and his hurt pride,” he laughed, crossing his arms and giving the least of the Mikaelson a fresh look, before he excused himself and leave the house.

"Come on, Bex, what do you think of the clothes?" I asked, approaching her with a small smile, separating myself from Elijah. Rebekah, who had her arms crossed, uncrossed them and also held out her hand to me.

“They were beautiful, y/n. I'm sorry I said they wouldn't” she said with a small smile on his lips, I accepted her hand and hugged her, saying: “If you want, I can lend you some outfits” I suggested, trying to make her smile, and I did.

"I'd like to try one too ..." spoke Hayley, who had been quiet and executive about my victory over the original family.

“Oh, I want to try one too, y/n!” Freya added, making us laugh a bit. Then I turned around to see my boyfriend, who was playing with Hope and I said, “What about you, love? I think the jean that Kol liked would suit you very well.” After that comment, Hope laughed out loud this time, looking at us as if she understood perfectly what I suggested.

[livlepretre]

So Klaus is referred to as “Nik” by mainly two people—Kol and Rebekah. This makes sense because they are his younger sibilings and they have known him their entire lives. Now, full disclaimer: I am very picky about the fanfiction I read. I absolutely love fanfiction, and I appreciate every person who takes the time to write the stories they come up and is gracious enough to share them with the world; however, it is really easy for me to be taken out of a story (one that is supposed to be canon or canon divergent) when characters are really OOC. Examples of this are: Elena being treated like a whiny homewrecker, the Originals being uncharacteristicly friendly or caring, Tyler being portrayed as being annoying because he has a vendetta against the man who murdered his mother and made him a slave, etc. It’s just not my cup of tea. One thing that has always frustrated me in the occasional fic I’ll try to read revolves around people calling Klaus “Nik.” I encountered this a lot in my younger days (I first watched The Vampire Diaries when I was a tween) and I was a Klaroline shipper. Now, I understand that the ship is narrative trash, and I no longer ship it. I’m getting really off point, but some of these fics had Klaus allow Caroline or whoever else call him “Nik” and it always bugged me. There is only one fic (I believe) that you have written where Elena calls Klaus this nickname and it is chapter 5 of bite-sized. I’m not exactly sure if that was a choice on your part or if it was the prompt (cuz the opening sentence is where it’s used), but I really like your character analysis and wanted to know what your thoughts on this topic are. Would Klaus ever let Elena call him “Nik” ? How does that come up? Whose idea is it and why? Also, I note that only in FE is “Nik” spelled like “Nick”. Is there a particular reason for this? Thank you!

Well, first off, I do agree, what characters call each other is important. I click off of fics for the same reason. 

To answer your question, the “Nik” in chapter 5 of Bite-Sized is from the prompt I was given-- almost all of Bite-Sized is based on the fic prompt game “give me the first line and I’ll write a ficlet for it” so the prompter was the origin for that. Otherwise, you’re right, I never have had Elena use that name, and it’s on purpose. 

So, to me, it’s not really so much about Klaus “letting” Elena call him Nick as it is about the fact that I don’t think she would ever think to. 

Elena has a really different relationship with Klaus than either Rebekah or Kol-- obviously. For Bex and Kol, there’s that “younger sibling intimacy” that gets established through the nickname, and also that thing where they’re going to completely ignore the nickname their brother chooses for himself and use the familiar nickname-- maybe even the one their mother used for him when they were small? 

For Elena, the name Klaus isn’t just Klaus as in the individual-- I think that name holds so much weight and terror and dread in it, because it’s the name of that formless nightmare that was her inevitable fate hanging over her head for months and months and months before she ever knew him. In my fics, when she names him, especially when they’re having an intimate moment and she uses his name, it’s almost like it’s an acknowledgment that the person she has become to close to is also the same person who is all of her worst fears embodied. It’s a nod to the fact that she’s allowed herself to become sucked in, and a reckoning with who she’s given her heart to. I very much like that idea that by calling him “Klaus” she has to confront her actions and who she is really doing this with again and again. 

I’m also really particular about Elena calling him Klaus because that’s the name Klaus chooses for himself (”Niklaus is the name my father gave me. Please, call me Klaus”). There’s a lot in his character about forging his own identity and I like to reenforce it in text. 

(Elijah therefore choosing to refer to his brother as Niklaus packs a punch-- he’s constantly denying Klaus’s attempts to forge his new identity by going back to the other name-- I’m sure there must be times in the show where Elijah does call him ‘Klaus,’ but all the Niklauses ring much more loudly in my ears, so.) 

As for why I chose “Nick” instead of “Nik” for FE-- well, originally, I didn’t. I realized that I had gone back and forth in different chapters, and that I had to make a writing choice. I decided on the English “Nick” spelling for the simple reason that the first time we hear that nickname, it’s in Chicago in the 1920s. Bex and Klaus are having an American phase, and that name in that setting immediately put me in mind of The Great Gatsby (even though the flashbacks are set a few years prior to the book’s publication). It made me think about how the Originals are constantly changing and adapting the details of their identities to suit time and place-- how they’re cultural chameleons. I’m very fond of the idea that they’ve changed their names over time-- that maybe Elijah used to be Ilya and he’s anglicized it, or in this case that Klaus used to be “Nik” and it’s changed over time to “Nick.” This was my little nod to how slippery those details are with them. It’s significant too that Rebekah in particular is the one calling him that, because at least when the fic started, she was coming directly from that 1920s mindset (whenever I have Rebekah use an idiom, I try to find phrases that were popular from about the late Victorian era-the early 20s for this very reason-- although, obviously she’s adapted in the four years since her awakening). I’m pretty back and forth in my fic in general whether I think it should be Nik or Nick-- either works in my opinion, but I do like the Nick spelling quite a lot as a reference to that time and place where we were introduced to it.

A note on a couple of other things that drive me crazy in terms of who calls whom what: 

There’s a very short list of people who might call Rebekah ‘Bex’ (Elena certainly never does!) (in fact, I would limit that list to Klaus, Stefan, and Kol)

It’s not canon but I do think Elena might get called Lena by some of her oldest friends-- really, Tyler, Matt, Caroline, Bonnie, maybe Jeremy (depends on his annoyance level with her) 

And finally, the big big big thing that makes me stop reading fanfiction with Klaus in it faster than any other: what he calls people. I notice the big trend is to have him call people “love.” I’m definitely guilty of that in my earliest wranglings with the character. But y’all. He doesn’t use “love” all that much, or every time he’s referring to someone. It! Drives! Me! Crazy! OTHER characters do that, but not Klaus! What he says more often are “sweetheart” and “my dear.” (And I like to have him also use “dearheart” because it’s along the same lines, and I love it, so there.) He also does use people’s names. One of the things I most insistently edit myself on is making sure I’m not overusing any of Klaus’s various “endearments,” and that I keep those separate from, say, something Rebekah might say, like “darling.” Also, the thing about those endearments: they’re usually really off-putting and a sign that he’s not taking whoever it is seriously. It’s his weird intimacy thing he does when he’s in actuality being dismissive of the person (always a woman in the show? I can’t think of any instances where he calls a man any of these endearments, but please correct me if I’m wrong!)-- “Are you ready, my dear?” being the one that always pops up in my mind with huge fog horns. 

A little FE detail which I thought was so sneaky (and was maybe too sneaky because no one has commented on it yet) is that Klaus never refers to Elena as anything other than her name from the moment he awakens from the daggering in chapter 41 onward. To me, that’s the most telling thing of all-- the constant, constant reassertion of her name-- her individuality-- her her her-- over and over and over again. 

(ps “Now, I understand that the ship is narrative trash, and I no longer ship it” I choked) 

Thanks for asking!

[queencarolinemikaelson]

Beyond Mikaelson

Klaroline Bingo as hosted by @klaroline-events Prompt // Dagger

This is set early season three, and is fairly canon compliant until then, except Caroline is an Original. Very Mikaelson heavy, and a little bit gruesome/gory in parts. It’s also very long.

This will be my last contribution to KC Bingo, thank you so much to the team at @klaroline-events​! I wouldn’t have got any of these out without prompting, and I’m glad to have participated in another fandom event! xxx

/

“Rebekah, where are you? Pick up the phone darling, daddy’s dead. It’s time for a family reunion.”

Klaus Mikaelson’s phone beeped quietly, signalling he had a call waiting on another line.

The hybrid couldn’t help the smug smirk that crossed his lips as the name Stefan Salvatore flashed on the screen.

This was going to be fun.

“Stefan! Miss me already?”

“I’m just calling to thank you for my freedom,” Stefan said on the other end of the phone, sounding far too sardonic.

“Well I like to believe I’m a man of my word… more or less,” Klaus smirked.

“The thing is,” Stefan continued. “It came at too high of a price. You took everything from me, Klaus.”

“Let bygones be bygones, trust me. Resentment gets old.”

“You know what never gets old?” Stefan asked, in a tone that had alarm bells ringing in Klaus’ mind. “Revenge.”

As the line went dead, and Klaus opened the back of his van, only to reveal nothing, Stefan’s words truly sank in.

And Klaus felt a white-hot rage bubble through his veins; a rage unprovoked in centuries.

/

It would be weeks until Klaus’ coffins were returned, and when they were, Klaus’ shoulders sagged in relief.

They were safe.

They were home.

They could be whole again; all five of them.

Wait… five?

Any shred of tension that left his body instantly returned.

There were five coffins, five.

Klaus often thought of there being only five in his family, which was likely why it took him so long to cotton to the fact he shouldn’t have five coffins.

He should have six.

Quaking with unparalleled rage, and a panic long lost to time, Klaus tore at the lids from the caskets, flinging each open so roughly he nearly destroyed their hinges.

Elijah.

Finn.

Rebekah.

Kol.

Klaus squeezed his eyes together for a moment, as he stood before the final coffin, knowing everything had a fifty-fifty chance of being okay. If they were together, they would be okay.

But as Klaus tried to open the box, he was met with complete resistance.

And he knew, that box belonged to his mother.

And he just knew, they had her.

His hands shaking, Klaus pulled his phone from his pocket, dialling Stefan’s number.

“Hello there Klaus, not the family reunion you were expecting?”

The young vampire sounded so gleeful that Klaus mentally signed his death wish then and there. Their history be damned, there was no repenting for this.

“Where is the sixth coffin, Stefan?” he asked, his voice shaking as much as his hands.

“Well, see, the thing is Klaus, we found your little cave paintings. We can account for everyone in the coffins, except for this one. She’s quite beautiful, isn’t she? I’m not letting loose an unknown entity in my town, Klaus. Not now. Not ever.”

“Stefan, I suggest you listen…”

“No, Klaus, you listen,” Stefan interrupted. “You’ll get a map. You’ll be able to find at least some of her. And that’s a promise.”

“Stefan, if I do not have her back before sunset, you will regret it.”

“You took everything from me, Klaus,” Stefan cried, his gleeful composure making way for his true anger. “I can’t regret anything anymore than I already do.”

“You have five hours, Stefan. For the sake of this town I hope you hand over my box,” Klaus said, coldly. “The consequences of this will be yours, and yours alone.”

Klaus hung up. He didn’t need any more of Stefan’s amateur postulating.

Nothing mattered, not without her.

Without much more than a heartbeat, Klaus circled the room, removing each dagger from the chests of his siblings.

He couldn’t worry about how they would react to him.

Not now.

/

It took nearly three hours before all his siblings were awake, each waking in their own time; Bekah first, Finn last.

And during that time, it had become quite apparent that, Elijah and Finn at least would not be easily swayed into helping him.

“I don’t much care that you finally killed our Father, I will never mistake our brotherhood for trustworthiness again, Niklaus,” Finn said, in the old, awkward tongue they all once spoke.

“I’m afraid I may have to agree with our eldest brother,” Elijah said, coldly, true betrayal shining in his eyes.

“I never trusted any of you,” Kol said melodramatically, eager to stir the pot. Yes, he was a little miffed that he’d been in a box for about 200 years – but had daggered and undaggered his brothers (never Bekah though) many times himself over the years. Who was he to judge?

It was Rebekah – of course it was Rebekah – who first noticed Klaus’ haunted expression.

“What is it, Nik,” she whispered, fearing the answer.

“It’s Caroline,” he said.

Her name dropped from his lips like a secret, and immediately every Mikaelson ear was tuned in, and listening.

“They have Caroline.”

Caroline was a name buried by time. It was a secret more fiercely protected than any other the Mikaelsons’ held. For she always was their saviour.

“Who are they?” Finn asked.

“The vampire who has her is named Stefan Salvatore. I need your help. We can’t let him hurt her,” Klaus explained, his sparing vulnerability revealed, even if fleetingly.

Klaus’ vulnerability, coupled with their love for their baby sister, steeled the nerves of the Mikaelson siblings. Klaus may have long since given up his right for family trust, and may have done vile and cruel things to each of them over the years. But then they all had.

Except for Caroline. Her unwavering support and love for them transcended the centuries they lived together. She would care for them, laugh with them, cry with them. And through it all, she brought a sparkling joy to their lives.

Until one day, the horrors of being a Mikaelson caught up with her, and she tried to leave. She did it with such grace; such respect.

But they had not taken kindly to her desertion, and had laid to to rest because of it.

There wasn’t a waking moment since that day, when each Mikaelson hadn’t felt their guilt keenly.

“I hope she forgives us,” Kol said quietly.

“Let’s just… get her back first,” Finn said.

“What do you need us to do?”

/

Caroline’s eyes were shut as she began wriggling her toes, revelling in the feeling of stretching through the awful stiffness. In her first moments awake, she felt dread and betrayal, though she couldn’t for the life of her work out where those emotions came from…

Birds were chirping in the distance, the air was fresh, and it seemed like an all-round good day to be alive.

Though she was almost instantly disabused of that notion, as she made a move to roll over, and was met with searing pains shooting through her body.

Her eyes flew open, and her heart raced, as she took in her unfamiliar surroundings; very low light, menacing stone walls, vervain soaked ropes and chains firmly tying her to a jagged wooden table. A bloodied silver dagger was on the ground, not too far from her, as though it had been pulled from her and tossed away.

A dagger.

And suddenly, Caroline’s agonised confusion made way for terrible remembrance.

/

“I want to travel alone for a while.”

Caroline spoke so softly, but so resolutely, that the light mood around the table seemed to still, as her statement was met with looks of confusion.

“I beg your pardon?” Elijah said, incredulously, breaking the silence after a moment.

“I want to travel alone,” her voice was steady, but she dared not meet anyone’s eyes just yet. “I love every single one of you, more than my heart can bear. But families are meant to go their separate ways at some point, to live as their own souls.”

Caroline began fiddling with her fingers nervously, but continued to speak, knowing this was her only chance to convince them of her pure intentions.

“And we are a family cursed with eternity. Yes, we are sometimes stronger together, but we’re also angrier, bloodier, more terrifying. I want to discover a world beyond our existence, we have eternity to be together, what will a few decades, maybe a century, of time alone mean in a thousand years?”

“It’ll mean you left us for a few decades, maybe a century,” Finn said, coolly. “Are we not enough for you, little sister?”

“No, it’s not…”

“Caroline, you can’t leave,” Rebekah began.

“You are our sister,” Kol pleaded.

And thus, the damn of silence was broken, each sibling layering their own heartbreak and panic over the next.

“How could you possibly do this?”

“Are we that horrible a –”

“What did I ever –”

“This desertion is –”

“Please, Caroline, please.”

The only to remain silent was Klaus, fury and fear etched in every line of his face, choosing instead to regard her with the coldest of eyes – silence had always been his knife of choice with her.

“We’ll be better. I’ll try and –”

“Who on earth will –”

“You are to leave us, just like them, and –”

“ENOUGH!”

Her own anger and frustration at their judgement of her bubbled over and she couldn’t help the as the scream leapt from her mouth, her eyes turning dark, veins snaking up her face.

“Would this have been easier if I left with absolutely no warning? If I just snuck off in the middle of the night? Without saying goodbye?” Caroline asked, disbelievingly, into the silence her loss of control had created. “I love each and everyone of you, and we will see each other again. But I just want to live, for myself.”

There was silence for another moment, until Klaus finally spoke up.

“And what if Mikael finds you?”

His voice was frank, nearly nasty, and Caroline wished her husband could understand.

“He won’t, I will be less conspicuous on my own,” Caroline replied softly, the sad truth of her statement wracking through her family.

Klaus glared at her, the fear of losing her slowly seeping from his body before their very eyes, making way for only fury.

“Oh yes, Caroline, run away like the little girl from the village who could never see me with Tatia. Run away like the true Forbes your blood says you are. Remember when your parents ran from you? Because you were a monster? You will always be a monster, Caroline.”

His voice was malicious, cruel, but Caroline knew him, she knew him better than anyone, and she knew this was his way of making it hurt less.

It didn’t make it okay, but it did steel within her that this was the right choice for her.

“It won’t be forever, Nik, I promise,” Caroline said, gently placing a hand over his. “Just a little while.”

And with that, and all the grace in the world, Caroline rose, and smiled wanly at those around the table.

“I’m going to bed for the night, we can resume this discussion in the morning.”

As she retreated, she thought she heard Elijah say, “what are we to do about this?” but she blocked it out. Her mind was made up, their pleas and arguments for her to stay would not sway her.

The next morning, Caroline woke just after daybreak. She felt somewhat numb, as she relived the previous evening, but relieved that she finally shared her desires.

She rose quickly, and decided to prepare a meal for them all to share; a last supper of sorts.

As she bustled to the kitchen, she was surprised to find Rebekah already there, as the other woman usually liked to stay in bed far later than dawn.

“Good morning, Bekah,” Caroline said, softly smiling at her, as she leant against the bench next to her sister. “You’re up early.”

A flicker of something unreadable flashed over Rebekah’s face before it was extinguished with a warm smile.

“I feel awful about last night, I couldn’t sleep,” Rebekah said, real sorrow in her eyes, as she took Caroline’s hand. “You’re my sister, Caroline, and I don’t want you to leave.”

“I know, my love,” Caroline said, resting her head on Rebekah’s shoulder. “You could come with me, you know, the Mikaelson girls against the world.”

Rebekah frowned, and Caroline’s face lit up excitedly.

“Yes! Just imagine, we could go wherever we want, love whomever we please,” Caroline’s face fell a little before continuing. “I love Nik, always and forever, but it’s been over 200 years since our wedding. I think I’ve seen him share his love with dozens upon dozens of others, because I understand that life for us is different. But he’s never shown me the same mercy. Not once.”

“I could come?” Rebekah said, her mind racing with the possibilities. “What about wanting to leave us?”

“It’s not about leaving you, or any of you, it’s about living beyond this family. Living as Caroline, not as a Mikaelson. Don’t you ever want to just live slowly? Where the day is cherished, and longed for, rather than feared?”

“We have to fear the day, Caroline, we are vampires!”

“Yes, the original vampires that can only be killed by our deranged father! Living slowly means we won’t have to fear Mikael’s retribution, because he will never be able to find us!”

For a moment, Rebekah let herself dream of a life beyond the Mikaelson name. A life with only Caroline by her side, as sisters. Her sister had always been the best of her family – the most compassionate, the gentlest, the kindest.

But she shook herself; that life could not happen. That life belonged to a girl who died many years ago.

“Caroline, it is a life I do not want, I love my brothers too much.”

The two blondes looked sadly at each other, until Caroline squeezed the hand still holding Rebekah’s and sprung into action.

“Well, let us not waste this day then, my dear sister!” she said brightly. “I was going to cook a feast for our family, care to help me?”

Rebekah smiled, and nodded. Caroline once again missing the flash of guilt across her sister’s face.

It was a few hours before the two women finished their creation, and Caroline sent Bekah away to gather their brothers for the meal, as she picked up the final dish for the table.

It was a beautifully decorated ceramic dish her family purchased her as a gift, even before the six of them turned. She had treasured it and cared for it ever since. She would undoubtedly miss this place, her family, and all the adventures that came along with them – but she hoped it would do some good; learn that a family can exist as individuals.

“Good morning,” Caroline said cheerfully, as she made it to the dining area where each of her siblings were awkwardly standing around waiting for her. “Where’s Niklaus?”

She peered around, trying to find the eyes of her husband. In her distraction, Caroline didn’t notice the predatory ring her family was making around her, until she heard a light ‘whooshing’ sound, and suddenly her husband was in front of her, a glinting silver dagger in his grasp.

“I’m sorry, Caroline,” he whispered, as he plunged it into her chest.

As a reflex, Caroline’s hands flew to grasp her husband’s arms, her beautiful dish falling from her hands, becoming a mess on the tiles below.

“Please, have mercy, Niklaus,” she gurgled, as the ice cold pain worked its way through her body from her heart outwards. Her eyes flicked to the faces of her siblings, and it absolutely shattered her heart to see them watch this happen – knowing they knew this was coming.

Her eyes flicked back to Klaus’ in her last moment, and she didn’t see regret or remorse or love. She saw only fear.

/

Caroline let the memories and pain wash over her, and cursed herself for not being more like her family.

For if she had listened to their scheming that night, had been more mistrustful she would have learned that fleeing in the middle of the night is what she should have done.

She let out a desolate sob.

She sobbed out of fear of not knowing where she was, or when she was. She sobbed out of utter desperation for the pain shooting now constantly through her body. And she sobbed out of deep, deep betrayal at the hand of those she so loved.

“Oh, you’re awake.”

A snide voice came from a shrouded corner of the room, and Caroline was immediately silent. Her grief was for her alone, not this stranger.

“Torture time!”

The man moved from the shadows, to reveal a sadistic, smug smile – that was not dissimilar to an expression that was common on Niklaus’ face – and within an instant, had buried a jagged-edged knife into her side.

Caroline winced at the pain, but did her best to remain silent and defiant, unwilling to give this cretin the satisfaction.

“I’m going to chop you into little tiny pieces and make a scavenger hunt for the Hybrid that wants you back so desperately.”

He continued speaking as he stabbed her, and cut chunks from her flesh, but Caroline couldn’t decipher any of his words, the language he spoke far different from any she recognised.

So she did what she did best, she remained silent, and somewhat calm throughout terrible violence.

She nearly chuckled to herself at how compliant she had always been with her family. Letting them destroy towns and lives, for no reason other than the sport of it. And for them to repay that loyalty with a silver dagger, and goodness knows how many years in a coffin…

She was sickened with herself.

/

Klaus’s leg was twitching anxiously, waiting for the communications to come from his siblings.

The minute he had the green light, he would tear Stefan’s world down, piece by pathetic piece, for even considering toying with Caroline.

His phone buzzed with Rebekah’s name.

“Little sister?”

“Hello brother, almost every thing is in place. Finn has the quarterback and the teacher, I’ve got the doppelganger, thank you for lending me you electric razor, by the way! Kol has the witch and the doppelganger’s brother. The only issue is Elijah can’t find Damon.”

Klaus gritted his teeth.

“I think we might just start without Damon, then; we can’t wait any longer. Have Elijah help Kol instead,” Klaus said.

“And have you done your part, brother?”

“Of course I have,” Klaus snapped.

It was agreed that to lure to bait out, unfamiliar faces would be best – giving Finn, Kol, and even Elijah to an extent an advantage over Rebekah and Klaus. Though, Rebekah had put her foot down, saying she ‘dibs-ed’ the doppelganger.

And thus, Klaus’ task was to line the perimeter of the Salvatore estate with gasoline, and maybe something explosive, then dig a fire break around it, so if Stefan decided not to talk, they could control burn his life around his wretched ears.

“Are you on route?”

“Yes, we’re about five minutes away, I suppose,” Rebekah said.

“Make sure you all stagger your arrival for maximum impact,” Klaus ordered. “I want Stefan to feel hope until the very last moment.”

Without another word, Klaus hung up his call to Rebekah, and sprang into action.

And before those five minutes were up, Klaus was pulling up outside the Salvatore boarding house. He knocked commandingly on the front door, and was infuriated when he was met with a smug smirk from his former friend.

“Stefan, lovely to see you mate, I’m here to collect my prize.”

“Your prize, Klaus, isn’t here. As I said, you will never see her again, not in one piece anyway.”

For Caroline’s sake, Klaus did everything in his power to keep his calm.

“Well, in that case, perhaps we can remake an episode of This Is Your Life?”

As if on cue, Finn arrived, flashing to the front and dumping the unconscious bodies of Alaric and Matt at Stefan’s feet.

“Finn, brother, apparently Mr Salvatore here has plans to mince our darling sister, perhaps you could show him the same courtesy, using these two as surrogates of course.”

“With pleasure.”

Stefan looked between the two brothers, confused and wary, having been unable to decipher much of what they were saying.

But the meaning of the sentence wasn’t missed, as the brown haired Mikaelson bent down, and ripped the finger encasing the Gilbert ring clean from Alaric’s body, before turning to dislocate Matt’s shoulder, leaving it pointing in a wholly unnatural direction.

“Now I will ask again, Stefan, where is she?”

“I will never tell you,” Stefan spat, coldly disregarding the suffering of his friends.

“On your own head,” Klaus said, taking a step back, as Elijah and Kol, arrived on the scene, each restraining a struggling body.

“What would be the best way to torture these two?” Klaus mused aloud to his brothers.

“This one’s true torture will come in due course,” Elijah said, nonchalantly, his vice grip clamped around the muscular arms of Jeremy Gilbert. “However, I suppose I could inflict some physical torture. For effect, of course.”

“Well it’s easy for this pretty little thing,” Kol said, grinning wickedly, biting into his wrist, as forcing it to the mouth of Bonnie Bennett. “Break that connection with nature, become that disgusting creature she reviles so much.”

“Please, stop. Let me go,” Bonnie said, weakly, struggling meekly against Kol’s strong grip. “Stefan please, I can’t turn.”

“Tick-tock, Stefan, time does march on,” Klaus said. “Where is she?”

“I will not tell you,” Stefan said, furiously ignoring Bonnie’s whimpering pleas, or Jeremy’s grunts of pain.

“Fine then. Rebekah!” Klaus hollered over his shoulder.

Stefan furiously hoped they hadn’t found her. He’d told her to stay inside, to not come out for any reason. Surely she would be safe, surely she had –

But he was cut off mid-thought as a swath of brown hair was thrown in his face, and Elena’s perfect face came into view.

Stefan’s knees nearly buckled, taking in her appearance. Her face was tear-streaked, yes, but that was hardly noticeable through the blood dripping down her face from her mangled head, large chunks of skin ripped from her skull.

“I thought I would arrest her of that horribly boring hair of hers,” Rebekah said, poisonously. “It was just so straight all the time.”

“Stefan,” Elena snivelled. “Please, just tell them what they want, please.”

Stefan’s nostrils flared, and fury, and agony coursed through his veins.

“I will kill her Stefan,” Rebekah stated, her hands placing her hands on either side of Elena’s garbled face.

“What about his hybrids,” Elena said, desperately trying to bargain for her own life. “Without me, you don’t get anymore hybrids.

“You broke the curse, brother?” Kol asked.

Klaus smirked in replied and flicked his eyebrows.

“Well, congratulations!”

In lieu of responding, Klaus menacingly strode toward were Rebekah suspended Elena by her head in mid air.

“Without Caroline, hybrids mean nothing to me,” Klaus spat in her face. “So someone tell me, or all six of your pathetic little lives will be snuffed out in the most horrific way possible. And then I will find that horrendous brother, and snuff him as well. Then burn this town, and all its residents to the ground.”

The four conscious Mystic Falls residents stoically kept their silence, for a few moments, until Klaus said, “Fine then, Elijah!”

Before anyone could blink, Elijah had broken Jeremy’s back, and the young boy gargled out a cry of pain.

“No!” Elena shrieked.

“He has approximately a minute left, we can still heal him,” Klaus said, in a sing-song voice, radiating a wrath Stefan never thought possible. “Bonnie is next on the menu, and if she dies, well, we all know her fate.”

“She’s in the Lockwood cellar! With Damon,” Elena sobbed.

“Elena, no!”

“Please just help Jeremy, I need Jeremy.”

“Well, then, that wasn’t so hard,” Klaus said, as he narrowed a smirk at Stefan. “Heal the boy, Elijah. Then make them unable to follow us.”

Each Mikaelson sibling delivered a blow to their charge, and suddenly all was silent, as the whimpers and grunts of pain made way for heavy breathing.

“Does anyone actually know where this ‘Lockwood cellar’ actually is,” Kol said, letting Bonnie’s body flop unceremoniously to the dirt below.

“Well, no but I’m sure it can’t be that hard to find, given that there is a ‘Lockwood Estate’ only a few miles from here,” Klaus said. “Uh-uh-uh.”

It was at that moment Stefan attempted to run, though he made the mistake of passing Klaus, who stuck his hand out and grabbed the young vampire by the neck.

“You took everything from me, Klaus, and now this?”

“I warned you very clearly, Stefan,” Klaus said, coldly. “You and your gang have been quite lucky with your upper hand over me during the sacrifice. But I don’t fight with vigour much anymore, nothing is worth it. But you reunited the Mikaelson family, but kept one of our own to do with as you please.”

Klaus dug his fingers into Stefan’s neck, puncturing hole straight into his windpipe, and watched avidly as the blood drained from the wound.

“But Caroline, she is worth fighting for.”

Klaus dropped Stefan to the ground, only to stake him twice a moment later, one through each leg.

“Can’t you kill him already?” Rebekah whined. 

“No.”

“Can we still set the fire, at least?” Kol grinned, his eyes lighting up.

“Why not,” Klaus mused.

/

It had been over an hour of this man striking and maiming her. And she desolately thought that perhaps in whatever time it was now, not even her family were there for her anymore.

Throughout the hour, the man, who had identified himself as ‘Damon Salvatore’ – what a strange name – had moved her from being tied to a wooden plank, to being hung from the ceiling on suspended metal hooks.

“I had these installed, just for you,” he simpered, at some point or other, though Caroline still did not understand the language he spoke.

She was in desperate agony, as this man had arrested her of her fingers, then her hands, and now he was working on her legs. She still refused to give him the satisfaction of showing him how pained she truly was, but even she wasn’t sure why she was trying to be so stoic.

Damon raised a wooden knife to her face, and was just about to drag it across her cheek when there was a violent crash from above.

He whipped around, but before he could do anything, a figure flashed into the dark dungeon and slammed his body into the stone wall.

In her haze, she couldn’t quite make out the face, but at that moment, she lost her battle with consciousness and fell back into blackness once more.

/

“I know it’s impossible for her to be dead, but do you think she’s dead?”

“Shut it, Kol, she’ll be awake soon.”

“She’s had blood though, why isn’t she stronger?”

“The magic literally had to heal a foot, hands, fingers and ear that was cut off, obviously that’s going to take longer than a little gash in the palm.”

The first thing Caroline registered when she began to regain consciousness was the unmistakable sound of her siblings having a whispered argument. She’d heard similar conversations many times over their lives; outside doors they shouldn’t be outside of, over someone who was sleeping, in a crowded room of too many prying ears.

Though, unlike those times, she couldn’t understand what they were saying, for they too spoke in the same foreign tongue the man in the dungeon had spoken.

She nearly shuddered as she remembered the ordeal in the dungeon, but she didn’t want to reveal her consciousness just yet.

Though it didn’t seem as though she had a chance to rest any longer, as she felt a soft hand pick up her own and squeeze it.

“Caroline,” he said. “I know you awake.”

He spoke in a tongue she recognised, and that, more than anything, compelled Caroline to open her eyes. Her gaze was met with Klaus, his own eyes filled to the brim with love and care – very much at odds with how they looked the last time she saw them.

“Hello Niklaus,” she said, her voice small and delicate.

“Caroline!”

In an instant, each of her siblings were crowded around her, all of them vying for her attention; all of them saying how much they missed her, how sorry they were, making excuses for what they did to her.

“What year is it?” she said, ignoring their words, her voice trembling a little.

“2011.”

It was Klaus’ admission, not too small to take responsibility of his actions, though each sibling had nearly a thousand years’ worth of guilt on their face.

“2011?” she repeated. “So, I’ve been daggered in that box for…”

“Nearly nine hundred years,” Elijah finished.

“If it makes you feel any better, Caroline,” Finn said. “They got me only about 200 years after you, and I was only woken a few days ago.”

“Yes, and me and Bekah have been in and out of the boxes since about then as well.”

“Is this a joke to you?” she levelled Kol, who at the decency to look a little ashamed.

Caroline’s cold gaze moved to her husband – though it nearly revolted her to call him that now.

“And you… you’ve been living… awake… that whole time.”

“Yes, my love,” Klaus said, his deepest shame staring him in the face. “I will do anything to ensure your forgiveness. I love you, Caroline.”

Tears began to well in Caroline’s eyes at his proclamation. For he, still, after over 800 years apart loved her – or so he said.

And for Caroline, her love for him, and for her family, had not been time-tested. She had fallen asleep what felt like yesterday, and then woken up today, no time having passed at all. She loved them all like she loved them then – though their deep and unjust betrayal of her battled to be acknowledged.

“How is one supposed to live in 2011,” she asked. “You all seem to speak the same strange language that the man in the dungeon spoke.”

“It’s called English,” Kol said. “Old Finn over hear isn’t very familiar with it either, though he’s taken to it quite quickly.”

“There’s really a lot of things you would need to catch up on…” Rebekah said.

“Clothes, cars, television.”

“Electricity! The internet.”

“Hot showers – I guess, showers at all.”

“Flushing toilets.”

“Shorts and jeans!”

“Western medicine.”

Caroline listened closely as her siblings listed off so many words she never heard of, nor could even conceive, and it made her blood boil with anger.

“I think you all need to go,” she said, so quietly, they could barely hear her.

“But Caroline…”

“Go!” she spat. “Find something that will teach me this English, then stay away from me for a few days.”

/

Later that day, Caroline heard a knock at the door of her room.

The knock was light but firm, and Caroline just knew that it was Rebekah on the other side. Apparently some things hadn’t changed over the years.

Without waiting for Caroline to invite her in, Rebekah opened the door and stepped through it, a burly, unshaven man following her in.

“This is Alaric, he’s a teacher,” Rebekah said. “He’s going to teach you modern English. You shouldn’t have too much trouble with it, when you… left… we spoke what they now call ‘Middle English’. There is overlap with root words, and sentence structure. And in any case, you were always the best of us at picking up new skills.”

“I didn’t leave, Rebekah,” Caroline snapped. “The five of you put me down. For 800 years.”

Rebekah flushed furiously, but didn’t say anything, just left the room.

“Uh hi,” the man named Ric said. “I know you probably can’t understand what I’m saying, but I have no idea how to help you… I’m a history teacher, not an English-as-a-second-language teacher. But is there a difference to a thousand-year-old vampire who won’t take no for answer? No there’s not.”

Caroline smiled tight lipped at him, not catching a word more than ‘vampire’.

“This is a chair, I guess,” Ric said, pointing to the chair.

“Chair,” Caroline repeated.

“Yep,” he said, popping the ‘p’ awkwardly. “Chair…”

/

Six weeks later

It had been over a month since Caroline and the rest of the Mikaelson’s had been reunited, and she was still with them in Mystic Falss.

She had been living quite the wild crash course in modern day life, and she was annoyed to admit, she was slipping back into old patterns with each of her siblings. Joking with Kol, reading with Elijah and Finn, giggling with Rebekah. She had even kissed Klaus a few times.

She was now pretty fluent in modern English, and knew about showers and the internet. She refused to get behind the wheel of a car, because she didn’t see the use of them at all anyway.

She was tentative friends with Ric, who she learned only yesterday had been compelled to teach her – a compulsion she freed him of immediately.

She was regaled with many things the family had done other the centuries, and had been given the run down of what went on in the little town of Mystic Falls, during the sacrifice, and the aftermath, as well as what had taken place to get her back.

And through all of this she had not left the Mikaelson Estate alone. It wasn’t that she felt trapped there, as such, but she also knew if she tried to go anywhere, she would be sent with at least two of her siblings, and it irritated her somewhat that even now they were holding her as a bit of a hostage.

“I am going to the village,” Caroline said, now trying to speak only modern English, where possible. “Alone.”

“No you are not,” Klaus spluttered.

“Yes, I am,” Caroline said defiantly. “I am an adult woman, Niklaus, and you will not tell me what I can do. Goodbye.”

With that, Caroline turned on the heel of her very new boot, and flashed away.

Once in the centre of town, Caroline actually didn’t know what to do with herself.

But was spared the trouble of coming up with an idea when someone walked into her.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” she said, apologetically. “I am very clumsy.”

“Don’t worry about it,” the man said. “It’s – it’s you.”

“Do I know you?” Caroline asked, peering at the tall, dark haired man with interest.

“I’m Stefan Salvatore, maybe you’ve heard…”

“Oh… yes… I’m Caroline,” Caroline replied, awkwardly. “I’m really sorry my family were so awful to you… they can get pretty protective.”

“I’m sorry I told my brother to chop you up into little pieces…”

“Your brother?” Caroline said, incredulously. “Yes, you should be sorry, that hurt.”

Caroline let out a tinkling laugh, unable to hold much of a grudge against the man before her. Sure, Niklaus hated him, but didn’t mean she had to. In fact, it would probably irk Niklaus greatly if she were to befriend this young vampire.

And boy Caroline would love to do anything to irritate Klaus.

“Do you want to get a drink? I’ve been in that box for almost 900 years, I have five friends in this time, and they put me there. I could use… someone new.”

Stefan frowned, sensing it was a bad idea.

“It’s not a trap, I promise.”

Caroline gave him her most sunny smile – it was a smile that got her in and out of trouble a lot of the years – and Stefan relented. 

Stefan led Caroline to the Mystic Bar and Grill and Caroline took a seat awkwardly, while Stefan ordered for the two of them.

“So, who are you to the Mikaelsons?” Stefan asked.

“Niklaus and I married when I was quite young, so he’s my husband, and the rest are my siblings.”

“By marriage?”

“Yes, but I grew up in the hut next to theirs. They’re more my family than my blood family ever was.”

The two of them chatted away, Caroline learned a lot about Stefan’s life as a vampire, as well as his life in Mystic Falls over the last two years. She couldn’t always understand the words he used, but he was kind enough to stop and explain whenever such a word came up.

Caroline couldn’t help but feel at ease talking to him, despite his obvious unstable side, she could sense there was a lot of goodness in his heart – even if it had been poisoned somewhat by time and sadness.

It was a familiar sense – it was what happened to her family.

“May I ask a personal question?” Stefan asked, to which Caroline nodded. “Why did Klaus dagger you?”

“It was not just Niklaus,” Caroline said, sadly. “We were all living together, and they all liked being vampires, the murder and the power. I didn’t want that. So I told them I wanted to travel alone for a while. None of them wanted me to go.”

“I see,” Stefan said, shrewdly. “That’s why they were so willing to band together to save you, when they should have been angry with each other.”

“I suppose, plus I am the best sibling.”

“I can see that,” Stefan replied, slipping the lightest of flirts into his voice. “I guess you’re lucky I came into your life. I freed you.”

Caroline stiffened.

It was a thought she’d had a few times since waking, though it was one she always pushed to explore later. But having it so casually raised with her, she realised she couldn’t deny the question anymore.

“I’ve got to go.”

/

Klaus was sitting agitated in his study.

It had been six whole weeks since his family had been reunited, and there were times when it felt like nothing had changed. But there were also times when he could set fire to west wing of the house and still would receive no attention from any of them.

He supposed that was fine. It wasn’t an unfamiliar dynamic.

But, he reasoned, he was the only one of the six of them who remained awake the entire time. He guessed he wished they needed him more, the way he needed them.

Suddenly the door to his office flung open, and there stood Caroline.

Her eyes were full of tears, her cheeks flushed from what he could only assume was the run home from town.

“Would you have woken me if Stefan hadn’t kept me?” Caroline asked, in a strangled voice, reverting back to their old tongue for her own ease.

“What?” he asked, defensively.

“Stefan just said to me that maybe it was lucky he took me, because he freed me from your betrayal.”

“Stefan just said to you, Caroline? Your friends with Stefan now?”

“Don’t avoid my question, Niklaus,” she said, dangerously. “Would you have woken me now? Would you have woken any of us now?”

“Mikael is dead, Caroline, it was my plan to insight a family reunion.”

“That still doesn’t answer my question!” she sobbed. “If Stefan hadn’t woken me to torture you, would you have woken me now? You reasoning has always been Mikael would have killed me if I was alone. So, now he’s dead, would you have woken me?”

Klaus mouth stayed tightly shut, unable, or at least unwilling, to answer her.

“How could you?” she asked, her voice so broken.

“Caroline, you have to understand, you –”

“Understand what, Niklaus? That I wanted a life beyond this family, beyond you?”

“I was –”

“I don’t care, what you were,” Caroline cried, tears freely pouring down her face. “You robbed me of eight hundred years of life that you got to live. You got to live beyond me! Why could you never offer me the same kindness?”

“What if I lost you?”

“What if you lost me?” she shrieked, the words tearing her throat. “Your sense of love and loyalty to me is completely insane if you think keeping me dead in a box wasn’t losing me, Klaus.”

“Caroline, please, I –”

“Don’t you dare say you love me, Klaus,” Caroline spat, the tears on her flaming cheeks mixing with the sweat and mucus dripping down her face, forming a grotesque imprint of the Caroline he’d loved and lost so long ago. “I could have been there in 1492 when you tried to break the hybrid curse the first time, I could have been there when you adopted your son in New Orleans, I could have raised him with you! I could have been there to cheer you on when you finally succeeded in breaking the curse this year! I could have been around for all of it!”

“But you were leaving!” Klaus said, finally beginning to match her level of rage. “How can you not see how ridiculous your notions of ‘being there’ are, when you were – by your own admission – trying to not be there!”

“You’re unbelievable, Klaus,” Caroline scoffed. “That you still fail to see my side of this at all, proof that I was right back then.”

“I can’t stand you when you’re like this, Caroline,” Klaus muttered. “Just get out of my sight.”

“No,” Caroline said, giving Klaus a look of pure petulance. “What did you do with my stuff?”

“What?”

“Way back then, what did you do with my stuff? My books, my dresses, my everything!”

“I packed them in a box and it travelled with us.”

“Good, where is it?” Caroline asked, petulantly. “I want it.”

“Cellar.”

Klaus grunted the last two syllables as he brushed past Caroline, and stalked away from her.

She rolled her eyes, but made her way to the cellar instead of engaging him further.

/

Elena Gilbert was sitting on the couch in her home shaking intermittently.

The past year had taken its toll on the young woman, and the events of only the last couple of days had served to shake her more deeply than she thought possible.

She refused to see Stefan, or Damon – both complicit in disregarding her life, and the life of her family for their own revenge fantasies. She ordered both Jeremy and Bonnie be in her vicinity at all times, though she rarely spoke to them. Matt and Ric were allowed a little more freedom, but had to call or text her every couple of hours.

Despite the fact she was completely healed, thanks to vampire blood, Elena could still vividly feel the vicious and cold pain Rebekah inflicted upon her. And every time she looked in the mirror, and saw her bare head, her eyes would fill with tears, for her scalp was just a visual representation of all she lost since turning sixteen.

She flinched as there was a sudden knock at the door.

She knew Bonnie and Jeremy were upstairs, and Matt and Ric were at school, and surely Stefan and Damon knew better than to come grovelling for her forgiveness so soon?

Trying to pull herself together, she bravely stood up, wrapped her cardigan more firmly around her, and answered the door.

“Hi,” the blonde on the other side of the door said softly. “I’m Caroline. Are you Elena?”

Elena nodded jerkily, but didn’t say anything.

It was at this point, Bonnie came down the stairs, and, recognising Caroline, pulled Elena from the door.

“Elena, don’t, she’s one of them.”

Caroline smiled sadly – that was a line she heard frequently her entire life. She was one of them; a Mikaelson. Once she vowed her life and heart to Niklaus, she doomed herself to an eternity of spite and shame.

“They don’t know I’m here,” Caroline said gently. “I don’t even want to be invited in.”

“What do you want?” Bonnie said, tersely.

“To apologise; my family betrayed me, and I guess they thought their saving me this time would make up for that. I’m sorry for everything they’ve undoubtedly done to you. My husband, especially.”

“Which one’s your husband?” Jeremy asked, from his position behind the two girls.

“I’m sure you can guess,” Caroline huffed. “Niklaus is a brutish man, and I am loathed to admit regret for anything, but now…”

She left her sentence hanging in the air, leaving all four of them to contemplate the terrible twists and turns their lives had taken.

“It is strange,” Caroline said. “I feel as though, perhaps in another life, another universe, I could be a close friend to you three. But I don’t believe that’s for this life.”

For the first time in a few days, Elena gave a small, guarded smile to the blonde at her doorstep, and it was enough for Caroline. It was all the solace she would get from this particular encounter.

“I brought you this, I used a photocopier, whatever that is, to make you a copy from one of my old books.”

Caroline placed an envelope at the foot of the door, and took a step back, gesturing for them to take it.

“What is it?”

“It’s a spell I weaved myself, back when I was a girl, I was a witch, you know,” Caroline said, wanly. “It should spark hair growth. Over night, you should be able to regrow all the hair my brat of a sister stole from you, in any style you want. There’s also instructions on how to spell your hair to different colours, lengths etcetera.”

Elena’s eyes widened, and tears filled them.

“I know it’s not much salvation from the destruction that tends to follow my family, but hopefully it’s something. The world needs pure souls like the three of yours, and I want you to still believe there are good people out there.”

Without another word, Caroline turned and left.

She heard a quiet ‘thank you’ when she was half way across the street, and she smiled sadly again, unsure of where to go now.

/

It was a few days later, as that sun began to peak its beams through the trees, and Klaus was quietly reading when he heard a heartbroken wail, that was unmistakeably his little sister.

“Rebekah!” he called, jumping from his armchair and dashing toward her.

She was crumpled in a heap on the marbled floors of their kitchen.

“What’s the matter,” Klaus said, alarmed, as the rest of their brothers joined them.

“It’s Caroline,” she cried, barely audible through the choking sobs ripping through her. “She’s left us."

It was then Klaus noticed the the thick paper clutched in Rebekah’s hand, and the matching envelopes addressed neatly to each other them on the kitchen bench.

“I don’t know if she’ll want to come back this time,” Elijah said.

“Of course she will,” Finn encouraged.

“She can’t keep away from us forever, she won’t be able to help herself,” Kol joked, weakly.

Klaus reached for his own letter, dread coursing through his veins.

And, as he read both letters she left for him, he couldn’t help but think maybe he would never see her face again. 

/

 Hope you enjoyed! I also hope there’s not too many mistakes, I couldn’t bring myself to read this monster again!! Much love xx