The Originals' Ball

"Elijah," Elena greets him. Like the true, moral gentleman he is Elijah smiles in return.

"Hello Elena," He kisses her hand. "I don't believe you've met my brother." Elijah motions to the man standing next to him. The stranger stares at Elena with a shocked expression. He barely knew Katarina, but knew her all the same, and he can't believe the resemblance between this human and the girl who ran from his brother for five hundred years.

"Kol Michealson," The stranger introduces himself, placing a delicate kiss on Elena's gloved hand.

"Elena Gilbert," Elena smiles, her eyes slipping over Kol's shoulder spotting a very familiar face.

Damon.

He isn't meant to be here, Elena thinks as she walks away from him, but then she is met by a pair of familiar green eyes.

Stefan.

No! The Salvatore brothers will ruin everything with Esther! They can't be here!

Niklaus watches and listens to the scenes below him, tracking his precious doppelganger through the crowds. He is aware of how much his sister Rebekah would like to rip off Elena's head, and he can't let that happen. No Elena, no hybrids.

From his place at the top of the stairs Klaus spots Caroline making her way to the top of the front steps. Using his vampire speed Klaus rushes down the stairs so he can greet his latest love.

"Caroline," He says when she finally spots him.

"Klaus," She replies curtly, the midnight blue dress swaying across her ankles as she turns.

Klaus had stolen the dress from a princess, and yet, the princess did not look nearly as lovely as Caroline in it. Only when she sighs and turns away from him does Klaus realise he said that out loud.

Later, an old waltz begins, and Klaus immediately sought out Caroline for the privilege of a dance. Reluctantly, she agrees, and together they perform the centuries old waltz.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Caroline hisses, realising she is actually dancing with Niklaus Michaelson, the man who would not hesitate in killing her friends if they annoyed him.

"Because I fancy you," Klaus replies simply, "You're very beautiful. is it really that hard to believe?"

Caroline stares at him in shock for a moment before composing her expression, "Yes!" She almost shouts, causing some people to stare at her and Klaus as she drops his hand and stalks away across the ballroom.

She continues on through the house until she reaches the front door. Her resolve to leave vanishes as she looks back and sees her reflection in a dark glass window. The golden cage around the corset of the midnight blue dress Klaus gave her catches the moonlight in a mesmerising way, and the smooth, yet still slightly ruffled skirt of the dress ripples with her every movement. The very sight takes Caroline's breath away, and she realises that, looking this good, she can't leave now.

Instead, she walks back in gracefully and consequently bumps into Finn, another original, as she mulls over her own beauty.

"Well, hello," Finn smiles, holding out his hand in an angle that shows he would kiss her hand should she oblige to the offer.

Caroline gave him her hand graciously, and he kisses the gloved fingers gently, never breaking eye contact. "I believe I've seen that dress before," He remarks, smirking slightly as an embarrassed blush coats Caroline's cheeks.

Caroline nods, having not expected anyone to comment on the dress despite her undeniable arrogance over her prevailing beauty. "You might have," She smiles slightly, "Your brother gave it to me."

Finn gives Caroline a kind, knowing smile as he takes in her full appearance. "So you must be Caroline," He murmurs, "I must say, I do see the appeal."

An even fiercer blush rages across Caroline's cheekbones. This is the first time she has even spoken to Finn and yet he has already complemented her. Across the room she sees Elena with Elijah, and uses that as her escape.

Before she can get to the two, however, she is stopped by none other than Stefan Salvatore. Or what's left of him considering he has no emotions.

"Get out of my way, Stefan!" She demands, trying to push past him, but he catches her and keeps her in front of him, a smirk playing on the corners of his mouth.

"No, Caroline, this isn't something you need to get involved in," Stefan groans, holding her back.

"But Ste-"

Stefan cuts her off rudely, "You know they have horses here?" He chimes as if she's three, and spins the angry Caroline around to, once again, face the wide open front door.

"Damn you Stefan," Caroline grumbles, hitching up the skirt of her dress so she can walk away without tripping.

Despite her annoyance, Caroline does wonder outside to the stables she had spotted when she arrived. Smiling, she stands quietly next to the horse while it scuffles across the stable floor.

Meanwhile, Klaus is watching Elijah and Elena's exchange, but not listening. He has other things on his mind... Like the lovely Caroline Forbes. How he wishes for her to be his. Everything about her mesmerises him, her grace, elgance, beauty. And the fact she is quite blatantly too clever to be charmed by him. She is a challenge, and that is another reason why he likes her.

While he contemplates how amazing Caroline truly is, Klaus decides to take one of the horses in the stable for a ride, but is shocked to find her standing idly by the very steed he had planned on taking.

Klaus smiles gently. "So you like horses?"

"A bit," Caroline reaplies, turning amd seeing Klaus. "Would you quit following me?!" She almost screams in frustration.

Klaus is not shocked by her response, he had, after all, killed her best friend's aunt, and then 'killed' her best friend...

Maybe they didn't start right.

"What is your problem with me?" Klaus demands, parying to a God he never believed in she will be honest.

"What's my problem? My problem is that you have Tyler under this stupis Sire Bond! And I want it to stop!"

Her ramblings continue, but Klaus tunes them out. So this is about Tyler...

Later, after the ball, Klaus decides not to kill Tyler, knowing Caroline will never forgive him for it. Instead, he decides to do something for Caroline.

He takes a sketching pencil and a thick sheet of creamy paper. At the supernatural speed he has grown accustomed to, he sketches I picture of Caroline and the horse he caught her smiling at a few hours prior. Taking out a pen, he writes at the very bottom:

Thank you for your honesty, Klaus.

When Caroline sees the page Klaus left on her bed in a black velvet box, she sighs, but can't help but to be slightly moved by the gesture. Gently, she places the beautiful sketch onto her bedside table, where she stared at the exquisite beauty of it for hours at a time.

It truly was a work of art, just the love slowly growing between the two.