#trevor is a bit intimidated by her at first but slowly grows comfortable and they become close <3

[clouds-oc-corner]

...help I am starting to have ships for my ocs

[vampiregirl1797]

Hopeless: Chapter Ten

Klaus Mikaelson x OC

GIF Not Mine

Warnings: More SMUT people, so 18+ ONLY

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I woke up to the sounds of birds chirping and the sunlight stroking my skin, but the warm body I had fallen asleep next to was absent. I stretched and yawned as I took in my surroundings, slowly registering that I was in Klaus’ room. I frowned as I tried to remember the events of yesterday and as soon as I was conscious enough, my brain was more than happy to supply the memories. The party. Katherine and Klaus. Me leaving the party. A certain hybrid finding me. We had sex and I must have fallen asleep afterwards. I idly wondered when he left as I climbed out of the bed and started to search for my dress. But then I remembered Klaus ripping it apart and with an annoyed huff I rummaged through his wardrobe and pulled out one of his shirts and slipped it on, just encase I ran into someone on the way to my room.

Honestly, I had never done the “night after walk” before. Usually when I got to the having sex part of a relationship I didn’t need to worry about sneaking out. But there weren’t any parts of my relationship with Klaus that could be described as normal. I focused my hearing as I stepped out of the hall and found Katherine, Elijah and Klaus to be in the dining room.

 ‘Are you sure your sister is well? The hour is rather late for a lady to be rising if she is not sick.’ Katherine commented, her English accent grating on my nerves because I knew it was fake.

 ‘Our sister is quite the late riser. Isn’t that right, Niklaus?’ Elijah said, I could only imagine the pointed look he was giving his brother in that moment.

 ‘Indeed, brother. But there’s no need to worry… something tells me she’ll be joining us sooner rather than later.’ I swear I could hear the smirk in his voice; obviously he had heard me rising.

 ‘Ten points to the eavesdropper.’ I muttered, knowing he could hear me, ‘and by the way, you owe me a new dress. I had to borrow one of your shirts to wear back to my room.’

 There was a sound of choking that made me smirk.

 ‘My goodness, are you alright, Lord Klaus?’ Katherine asked, sounding rather worried.

 ‘Yes. My drink just went down the wrong way.’ He said, the sound of hunger in his voice made me bite my lip; clearly he liked the image of me in his clothing.

 ‘Something tells me you’re lying.’ I teased, unbuttoning his shirt, ‘it’s a shame you left before I woke. Something tells me we could have found many creative ways to spend this morning.’

 I heard him growl, the doppelgänger gasped in fear or surprise and Elijah cleared his throat, warning not only Klaus but myself as well. I felt my cheeks heat when I realised Klaus hadn’t been the only one who was able to hear me.

 ‘Sorry, Elijah.’ I mumbled, rolling my eyes when Klaus chuckled quietly.

 I was pretty sure Katherine thought crazy people surrounded her at this point and if she didn’t then I would have been surprised. I made good time in changing into a pink dress before making my way downstairs to the dining room. I avoided Elijah’s eyes and shared a knowing smile with Klaus as I took the empty seat to his left. The hybrid was sat at the head of the table with Elijah to his right and I found it quite interesting that the doppelgänger preferred the empty seat beside the elder Mikaelson rather than the one beside the man who was supposed to be “courting” her. But I didn’t comment on it in favour of drinking the glass of blood that was waiting for me. I bit back a moan of pleasure at the taste before helping myself to some bread that was in the centre of the table. I frowned when I noticed that the conversation had basically stopped when I walked in.

 ‘What?’ I glanced over to Klaus and noticed he was hiding a smirk behind his hand, but he wasn’t the one who answered my question.

 ‘It is improper for a lady to begin her meal without properly greeting those already at the table.’ Katherine told me, deadly serious and I found myself looking directly at her for the first time since she had arrived.

 She must have read the hatred on my face because she shrunk back from my gaze a little and I was amused that I could intimidate Katherine Pierce.

 ‘I’ve never been one for formal conventions, you’ll have to forgive my manners.’ I smiled but there was nothing friendly about it.

 ‘I don’t believe you’ve been formally introduced.’ Elijah cut into the conversation, trying to relieve the growing tension, ‘Lady Katarina, this is our sister, Evangeline.’

 ‘It is a pleasure, Lady Evangeline.’ Katherine bowed her head slightly so she no longer looked me in the eye.

 ‘Likewise.’ I gritted out, picking up my blood and taking a long sip. I almost choked in surprise when I felt Klaus’ hand on my thigh. I placed my goblet on the table and shot him a look but he was the picture of innocence, which made me roll my eyes.

 ‘So, Lady Evangeline why is it you do not share the same accent as your brothers?’ Katherine asked, eyeing me almost suspiciously.

 ‘That is a good question,’ I pursed my lips and grabbed another roll of bread, stuffing some of it into my mouth to buy myself some more time. Klaus shot me an amused look while Elijah looked exasperated.

 ‘Thank you.’ Katherine said, clearly confused.

 ‘Forgive our sister, she is rather insecure about her different way of speech.’ Klaus said, a mischievous twinkle in his eye, ‘we asked our mother about it as we were growing up but she never provided us with an answer before she died.’

 ‘I’m sorry to hear about your mother’s passing.’ Katherine murmured, seemingly embarrassed to have bought it up.

 I placed my hand on top of Klaus’ where it still rested on my thigh; I imagined that the mention of his mother’s passing stirred some unpleasant memories. I entwined his fingers with mine and squeezed gently, silently offering him any comfort he may need. A part of me expected him to pull away in anger or irritation; Klaus Mikaelson wasn’t weak and he didn’t need to be comforted, after all. But he had never had a problem revealing vulnerability to me and I was grateful for that. Maybe it was because my guard easily came down in his presence so he felt I deserved the same courtesy. Or maybe it was because he was as comfortable around me as I was him. Either way, I was glad.

 His thumb moved over my knuckles in thanks and we continued eating breakfast that way, each of us only using one hand. If Elijah or Katherine noticed, they didn’t comment on it and the rest of the meal passed rather peacefully as a result. When we were finished, I expected Klaus to announce his plans with Katherine for the rest of the day, but to my surprise Trevor entered the room just as the maids were clearing our plates.

 ‘Good morning, Lord Klaus, I have come to escort Lady Katherine and Lady Evangeline to the market.’ Trevor bowed his head respectfully.

 My head whipped in Klaus’ direction so fast that if I were still human, my neck would have snapped. My hand tightened around his so hard I heard bones crack as I met his gaze with a fierce glare.

 ‘Market? What is he talking about?’ I asked, barely managing to hold back my snarl.

 ‘I thought it would be nice for you and Lady Katherine to have chance to bond and what better way to do it than to shop?’ Klaus asked, clearly amused though I could see the creases around his eyes that hinted at his pain.

 ‘How lovely.’ My smile was lethal. I dropped his hand and stood in one smooth movement, looking over to Trevor with a nod. My expression must have been terrifying, because he gulped and took half a step back.

 ‘It does sound rather pleasant. I just need to freshen up and I will be back in a moment.’ Katherine said, bowing out of the room without meeting anyone’s eye.

 As soon as she was gone I had Klaus pinned to the wall with a hand on his throat. Of course it didn’t affect him, but it helped with my anger considerably.

 ‘You have got to be kidding me! Tell me this is some kind of joke you’re employing to get a rise out of me! You’re not actually going to make me spend the day with her are you?’ I practically shouted in his face, the only thing controlling my anger was my desire for the doppelgänger not to over hear me.

 ‘Calm down, love there’s no need for hysterics.’ Klaus smirked, antagonising me even more.

 I threw him into the opposite wall and pointed at him accusingly.

 ‘This is just for your amusement, isn’t it? Well you know what, Lord Klaus mark my words, you’re going to regret this.’ When he simply cocked his brow in amusement I went to lunge at him again but found myself stopped by two strong arms around my waist.

 I looked up into the eyes of Trevor and immediately shoved him off me. He snarled and went for me again, his vampire face on full display. I gave him an unimpressed look and prepared myself to attack when he was suddenly thrown away from me.

 ‘I didn’t think it was necessary, mate, but let me make it perfectly clear. Evangeline is off limits do you understand?’ Klaus snarled in Trevor’s face. When the latter replied an affirmative, Klaus snapped his neck and let him fall to the ground with a thud.  

 I would never admit it aloud, but seeing Klaus acting all protective and possessive was actually a HUGE turn on for me. I shook away those thoughts and fixed him with an annoyed look, as arousing as that was; I was capable of taking care of myself.

 ‘Was that necessary? I could have taken him.’ I crossed my arms over my chest and rolled my eyes at his look of disbelief.

 ‘Love, he’s over a hundred years old. You’re a baby compared to him.’ His eyes darkened as he continued, not letting my scoff deter him, ‘and he doesn’t get to touch what is mine.’

 ‘Oh dear.’ I muttered, holding my hand out to stop him from getting too close and distracting me from what I wanted to say, ‘I’m not a piece of property, Klaus.’

 ‘No, but you do belong to me.’ He insisted.

 ‘I’m sorry, but does that not contradict with what I just said?’ I glanced over to Elijah for back up only to see he was already gone. I focused my hearing and realised he was talking to Katherine, probably preventing her from walking into the middle of our argument.

 His vampire face came forward and instead of being afraid, I was confused.

 ‘Is this a wolf thing? You need to mark me as yours? Because I think you did a pretty good job of that last night.’ I told him honestly, sighing happily when his hands rested on my hips. His head went to the crook of my neck, allowing his fangs to tantalisingly graze my skin.

 ‘I don’t know what it is about you, Evangeline.’ He murmured so quietly I was sure even Elijah wouldn’t be able to hear him, ‘every part of me is screaming to protect you, make you happy and to make sure everyone knows you are mine.’

 ‘A part of me will always belong to you, Klaus.’ I said, meaning every word. He was the first person I had been in love with and he would always have a part of my heart.

 He growled, clearly liking my words and before I could blink I was pinned against the wall with him drinking from my neck. My eyes fluttered closed and I relaxed into him, enjoying the pure pleasure flowing through my body. His hands tightened around my waist, silently offering me support. One of my hands went to his hair while the other rested on his shoulder, clutching him as close to me as possible. This felt different from the way we had shared blood last night. The first time was purely for pleasure, and although it was still incredible, it felt more like I was offering him assurance. Assurance that I cared for him, that a part of me did belong to him. I was taming the wolf part of him, surrendering to its desire for dominance, as well as its possessive and protective tendencies towards those he cared for.

 I don’t know how long he fed from me for, but by the time he pulled away I was starting to feel a little light headed. My forehead slumped into his shoulder, suddenly too heavy to remain upright. Klaus adjusted my weight so that he was holding me with one arm and I heard him bite into his own flesh.

 ‘Here, love.’ He murmured, tilting my head up and brushing the loose hair away from my face before placing his bleeding wrist to my lips. I responded immediately, greedily taking a few gulps of his rich tasting blood before pulling away and offering him a grateful smile.

 ‘Have your testosterone levels returned back to normal?’ I teased, still heavily leaning on him, my hands gripping his forearms.

 ‘I apologise love, I don’t know what came over me.’ He rested his forehead against mine, allowing me to see the sincerity in his blue orbs.

 ‘Don’t worry about it, your part wolf, it’s bound to come with a dominant streak.’ I shrugged, playing with his hair idly, ‘it’s part of who you are and nothing to be ashamed of.’

 He didn’t say anything for a few moments, and when I looked up to him I realised why. His eyes were wide and full of unshed tears, indicating to me that he was grateful and touched by my words. The surprise on his face told me he wasn’t used to being accepted, truly accepted, for what he was and that broke my heart a little. Suddenly, the fact that I loved him wasn’t something I wanted to hide from anymore, I wanted him to know, to understand that there was someone on the earth who not only accepted him for who and what he was, but loved him for it too. But before I could get the words out, Trevor letting out a groan of discomfort interrupted us.

 We shared a look of irritation and Klaus placed a gentle kiss to my forehead before we pulled apart. As his warmth left me, I could feel my body yearning to feel it, to be encased in it, again. I had to force myself to remain where I was and pull myself together. I had never been this clingy with anyone before, and I wasn’t going to start now.

 ‘What happened?’ Trevor murmured, rubbing his neck as he stood.

 ‘You moved to attack my sister and I snapped your neck in punishment. Be glad that I did not remove it.’ Klaus snapped, his tone furious.

 ‘I apologise Lord Klaus, Lady Evangeline.’ Trevor bowed his head and I rolled my eyes, more than done with the fifteenth century formalities.

 ‘See that it does not happen again. You are dismissed for the day. Return home to your sister.’ Klaus said, glaring when Trevor opened his mouth as if to argue.

 I turned to him in surprise when I heard the door shut.

 ‘What about going to town?’

 ‘I do not trust him with your safety. Elijah can take Katherine to keep her amused and if you would like to, you can spend the day with me.’ He offered me a tender look and a soft smile. I felt my cheeks redden under his gaze, but I returned his smile with a nod of agreement.

 ‘I would like that very much,’ I said with a smile, taking his offered arm and following him as he led me out of the house, ‘but are you sure? You are supposed to be courting Katherine after all.’

 ‘I gained her interest enough to get her to move in and the show yesterday was more for the guests benefit. The compulsion is in place, both with her and Trevor, and so I see no reason to waste precious time with her when I could be spending it with you.’ If I had an eternity with him, I would never get used to being on the other end of that intense stare. His blue eyes glittered with sincerity and adoration; I found myself gripping his arm tighter as my knees weakened. If my heart were still beating it would have been furiously pounding against my ribcage with his words.

 ‘Very well.’ I grinned, not bothering to hide my happiness, before my expression turned serious, ‘though I have one request.’

 ‘What is it?’ he asked, curious.

 ‘We have that sword fighting rematch. I said I’d beat you at least once before I went home, remember?’ I smirked, though it transformed into a smile when he laughed genuinely.

 ‘So be it, love.’ He said, once he had managed to compose himself.

 ‘Mmhm, just know I’m gonna be the one laughing when I kick your ass.’ I shoved him when he started laughing again.

 ‘I’m sorry, love it’s not funny.’ He held his hands up in surrender, but he was clearly struggling to hold in his laughter. I rolled my eyes at his attempt to apologise and walked ahead of him, my arms crossed over my chest as I headed over to the utility shed where they kept their weapons.

 I grabbed Elijah’s sword and Klaus’ and exited the shed with a devilish grin on my face. Klaus cocked his brow in question and I just threw him his brother’s sword in answer.

 ‘This isn’t mine.’ He frowned; observing the sword like it was about to strike him.

 ‘Tell you what… you beat me and I’ll let your have your sword back.’ I smirked, moving the weapon around and getting a feel for it.

 ‘You know I could easily take it from you, right?’ he gave me a patronising look that made me roll my eyes.

 ‘Very true, but where’s the fun in that?’ I asked innocently, grinning when his shoulders slumped in defeat.

 I laughed when he suddenly took the first swing, clearly trying to catch me off guard. The clang created by metal meeting metal echoed around the trees.

 ‘I almost forgot. You fight dirty.’ My eyes glittered with mischief as I considered the ways I could actually win this game. Clearly, I was no match for him in strength, but perhaps I could beat him with a good strategy.

 I shifted my weight so that I was resting on my right leg, my dominant leg, which led to me leaning slightly forward. When I saw Klaus’ gaze drop to my chest for a moment an idea popped into my head. He may be the strongest being on the earth, but he was still a man, a man who couldn’t help but gaze at what was in front of him.

 ‘You know, I think I figured out why you won last time.’ I said, keeping my voice causal.

 ‘Because I’m physically stronger, because I’ve been fighting for four centuries longer than you… either of those is a suitable explanation love,’ he smirked.

 ‘No because I’m restricted in this dress. I can’t move around as easily as you can.’ I said and before I could talk myself out of it I ripped the lower part of my dress so that it cut off just below my ass cheeks, revealing a lot of leg but that was the plan.

 I looked over to Klaus when I was finished and bit back a grin when I saw his lust filled eyes staring at the newly exposed flesh. He’d already seen me naked, but he was looking at me as if he hadn’t.

 ‘Klaus?’ I murmured, biting my lip when he didn’t seem to hear me. I stalked over to him, his gaze never moving from my legs, and when I was close enough I knocked the sword out of his hand and pinned him to the ground, holding my sword to his throat.

 He blinked up at me in surprise that quickly morphed into shock when he realised what I had done.

 ‘You cheated!’ he exclaimed, clearly outraged.

 ‘It’s not my fault you couldn’t take your eyes off my legs.’ I smirked, throwing his sword to the side and moving to get up.

 I was quickly stopped, however, by two hands on my waist. I looked down to Klaus and caught the seductive smirk on his face. I huffed and gave him my best unimpressed look, which was hard when I was on top of him. His hands didn’t waver and started to travel to my exposed legs, gliding smoothly over the flesh. My eyes closed at the feeling, the warmth from his hands spreading through my body like fire.

 ‘Klaus,’ I tried to make it sound like a reprimand but it came out as a breathy moan. Internally cursing my body for betraying me, I tried again, more forceful this time, ‘Klaus. We shouldn’t.’

 He leaned up, pressing our chests together as his hands glided up my thighs, getting closer and closer to where I was starting to yearn for him. His forehead was against mine; close enough so that our noses were touching.

 ‘We’re going to be apart for six hundred years, Evangeline, so we should. We should make the most of what little time we have left, before I have to live without you.’ He murmured, his words made the fight leave me and I closed the small gap between our mouths.

 I kissed him softly, affectionately, conveying how much I loved him, how sorry I was that I was going to have to leave him, through the kiss. I knew he understood as his hands squeezed my waist once in understanding before gliding up and tangling in my hair. He pulled away first, his lips dropping to my collarbone and his hand coming to move away the fabric of my dress as he kissed the skin he exposed. A breathy moan fell from my lips when his mouth closed around my nipple, his tongue flicking back and forth over the soft flesh. My back arched without my consent, causing my hips to grind against his and resulting in the both of us releasing simultaneous sounds of pleasure.

 Before I could blink I felt myself being pushed against something and opened my eyes to see we were deep in the woods, surrounded by trees much like the one I was being pressed against. My legs wound around his hips and my hands went to his shirt, unbuttoning it before pushing it from his shoulders. I felt the smooth, hard skin of his chest before leaning down to kiss along his pecks. I smiled when the nip I left upon his collarbone caused him to moan and involuntarily jerk his hips. I made my way up to his throat, trailing my hands along his back gently enough to make him shiver. When I reached his earlobe I bought the soft flesh in-between my teeth and tugged gently. He moaned again, his hands tightening on my waist and pulling me closer to him. I released his ear and kissed along his jaw, making my way to his lips and when I reached my destination I kissed him hard, silently telling him how much I wanted him in that moment.

 He growled against my lips and I gasped against his when I felt the rest of my dress being torn from my body, leaving me bare in front of him. His hands travelled over the newly exposed skin slowly, attentively, as if he were committing every inch to memory. Klaus pulled away from the kiss and gently lowered me to the floor, leaving me more than a little confused, at least until he fell to his knees in front of me. The hunger and desire in his eyes made a moan escape from my lips and I repeated the sound when he took my right thigh and placed it over his shoulder before diving into my centre. He worked slowly, leisurely and continued to bring me to the edge only to leave me hanging multiple times. Each time he did, his eyes would meet mine, a mischievous twinkle in them before he dove back in to repeat the process. Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore and when I was once again reaching my end, my hands tangled in his hair to prevent him from moving. I could have sworn I felt him smirk, but he made no movement that indicated he was going to move away and instead inserted his fingers, adding to the pleasure created by his mouth and allowing me to fall over the edge screaming his name and pulling on his hair so hard I’m surprised I didn’t leave him with bald patches.

 When I recovered, he was standing in front of me, a smug smile on his face as his hands brushed my hair behind my ears. Before I could call him a jackass, his mouth was on mine and I was once again being pinned to the tree. He lifted my left leg this time and slid into me with one swift movement that had me releasing a loud moan at the sudden intrusion. I pulled away from the kiss and rested my forehead against his shoulder as he moved inside of me at a pace that wasn’t too fast or to slow; it was perfect. I felt myself nearing the end and I wanted him to get there with me, so I bought my vampire face forward and gently bit into the crook of his neck, my hands winding in his hair to give me balance. He released a loud moan and his pace increased, it became rougher more uncontained and it wasn’t long until I exploded. Klaus followed closely behind me and when he had emptied himself inside of me, I removed my fangs from his neck and licked away the stray droplets of blood as the wound closed. Klaus shuddered and rested his forehead against my shoulder while my head fell to the tree behind me.

 My arms wound around his shoulders as we both struggled to return our breathing to normal. I don’t know how long we were stood there for, entangled together in the woods, but eventually we pulled apart and started looking for our clothes. Klaus was pulling on his trousers when I picked up my dress—or what was left of it—from the floor.

 ‘What is this?’ I muttered.

 ‘Your dress love,’ he answered sarcastically, chuckling when I glared at him.

 ‘I can’t wear this, it’s been ripped to shreds.’ I gave him a dark look, but he didn’t look even a little remorseful.

 ‘Sorry, love, you’d already ripped it and so I got the impression you wouldn’t mind if I ripped it a little myself.’ He sent me an innocent look that made me snort. I threw the dress at his face and bent down to grab his shirt from the floor, quickly slipping it on.

 When I looked up and saw Klaus’ eyes begin to darken lustfully I pointed at him in warning.

 ‘Don’t look at me like that, Klaus.’ I said, trying and failing to sound stern as I stepped back away from him. He just grinned, undeterred and followed after me slowly.

 ‘I can’t help that you look positively ravishing in my clothes, love. Really, it’s your fault.’ His eyes twinkled in amusement as he continued to advance towards me.

 ‘My fault?’ I protested, ‘you ruined my dress and if you hadn’t I wouldn’t have had to wear your clothes.’

 ‘I cannot say I regret it, love.’ He looked me up and down and I felt my own desire grow at the heavy lidded look he was giving me.

 ‘No.’ I said, feeling like I was telling off a pet.

 He didn’t listen and continued to walk towards me but I flashed away before he could touch me. I heard him growl and couldn’t help but release a delighted laugh at the sound. I strained to hear him as I continued to run and felt my dead heart pound when I couldn’t pick up on anything that hinted to where he was. I slowed down and looked around, hoping something would clue me into his whereabouts.

 CRACK.

 I span around to where the noise came from except there was nothing there. My heart pounded in anticipation, and when I felt warmth radiating onto my skin from behind me, I knew where he was. My shoulders relaxed unintentionally and just as I was about to flash away again a pair of hands around my waist stopped me and pulled my back flush against his chest. A laugh left my throat when he accidentally touched the skin below my belly button; my secret ticklish spot. My amusement faded when his warm breath hit my neck, making me shudder in pleasure.

 ‘You didn’t really think you could evade me, did you love?’ He murmured quietly.

 ‘I could have if I really wanted to. Maybe I just wanted to make you work for it.’ I teased, gasping when he suddenly span me around.

 ‘You are something else, Evangeline.’ He said, caressing the side of my face gently.

 I didn’t know what to say to that, so I didn’t say anything and leaned up, sealing my mouth over his.

 Xxx

 Klaus’ POV

 I heard the front door open with Elijah and Katarina’s voices echoing throughout the manor. I glanced down to the beautiful woman who was peacefully sleeping against my chest. My hand stroked through her hair, thinking over the day as I had been since she had fallen asleep. To be completely candid, my thoughts rarely consisted of the ritual anymore. Which was amusing in itself seeing as being able to unlock my werewolf side had been my primary goal for centuries and all that was needed to change that was Evangeline Gilbert. A woman who accepted me for who I was despite everything I had done, everything I was capable of. I of course was planning on going forward with the ritual, but I refused to waste any time with Katarina when I knew Evangeline would be leaving me in two days.

 I felt my heart squeeze painfully at the reminder. I knew she had to leave me, but a part of me wanted to keep her here against her will. A part of me would rather her hate me than have to leave me, but I knew that I could never do that. I had sworn to myself that I would give her the future she deserved, and I had no plans to go against that. She came here to save her family and I would make sure that happened by assuring that Katarina didn’t flee. Then I would have to live without her for six hundred years. I sighed forlornly at the reminder, subconsciously holding her tighter in my arms.

 ‘Klaus.’ I glanced down to her in surprise but when I heard her breathing was still even I realised she was talking in her sleep.

 ‘Yes, love?’ I kissed her forehead, smiling slightly when she nuzzled further into my chest.

 ‘I love you.’ I blinked, wondering if I had heard her wrong, but I knew I hadn’t.

 My heart soared in my chest and I felt a huge grin break out on my face. No one, aside from family, had ever said those words to me before. I couldn’t believe it. I kissed her hair, her forehead, her nose, her cheek but forced myself to stop encase I woke her up. We had had a busy day. A devilish smirk formed on my face as I thought over her moans and expressions of ecstasy as I had taken her for the second time in the woods before we had moved to my chambers. We hadn’t left the room all day, opting to feed from each other rather than leave bed for a meal. She was just as captivated and enamoured with me as I was with her. We couldn’t get enough of each other. I always desired to be around her; to be touching her and a part of me wondered if there was a supernatural explanation for it because I had never felt this way for a woman before. But I knew I was simply in love with her.

 My gaze moved away from her face and to the door when I heard footsteps hesitating behind the closed wood. I focused my hearing and the absence of a heartbeat assured me it was Elijah. With a sigh I carefully shifted out from underneath Evangeline, smiling softly when she groaned in protest and tried to reach for me again before settling on my pillow. She hugged the fabric and inhaled, seemingly satisfied with the scent she found because she relaxed again. I shook my head fondly and kissed her forehead before throwing on some clothes to answer the door. I stepped out to join my brother in the hallway, not wanting to risk him seeing Evangeline when she was indecent and vulnerable. She was mine and not to be seen in that state by anyone else but me.

 ‘Brother. I trust you had a good day with the doppelgänger?’ I smirked, my hands clasped behind my back.

 ‘I kept her occupied, yes.’ Elijah sighed, gesturing to my closed bedroom door; ‘I trust you had a good day with our other guest?’

 I couldn’t have hid my grin if I tried, ‘that would be one way of putting it. Personally I prefer the word exquisite to “good” but that’s just me.’

 ‘Niklaus, I am happy you have found someone who seems to inspire such happiness within you, but I must implore you to focus. The ritual is taking place soon and you don’t seem to care.’ Elijah fixed me with a frustrated look when I continued to grin.

 ‘Don’t worry brother. I have everything in place, the witch is ready, the werewolf is secure in the basement, I have a vampire in mind and so all that needs taking care of now is the doppelgänger. I am trusting you and Trevor with her, brother. Make sure she does not flee.’ I clapped him on the shoulder and turned to leave him but he stopped me with a firm grip on my arm.

 ‘I am glad you found her, Niklaus. You deserve happiness more than any of us.’ Elijah told me seriously. I felt my eyes fill with tears and I shook them away before giving him a grateful nod and a brief hug that surprised us both.

 ‘Thank you brother.’ I murmured into his shoulder before stepping away and into my chambers in one swift movement. I leaned against the wood of my door, taking a breath and forcing the tears in my eyes to leave.

 A part of me wondered what was happening to me, but I knew; my humanity was back and stronger than what it had been when I was human. My gaze shifted to the sleeping beauty in my bed and I knew why—it was because of her. She had awoken a part of me that I thought was dead and buried. I was surprised by the lack of response from that realisation. Before she had arrived I would have insisted that feeling and caring for anyone was a weakness waiting to be exploited and I would have sooner killed than give my enemies something to use against me. Except now, while the thought of hurting her made me feel ill, and the thought of others hurting her filled me with complete rage, the way she made me feel was worth it. She was my weakness that much I knew, but she was also my strength and I would protect her whether she wanted to be with me in the future or not. Slipping off my clothes I slid back into my bed, smiling softly when she immediately curled into my side, her face nuzzling into my chest for a moment before she released a happy sigh and relaxed completely. I gently brushed her hair away from her face and kissed her forehead before allowing myself to fall into unconsciousness. I had told her I didn’t know if I would find her again in the future. But I lied, because I was going to find her, no matter the cost, and I wasn’t going to let her go.