Caroline was speechless. She had heard of the Carnival of Venice, and of the masquerade balls, which took place at that occasion, nevertheless, it was more breathtaking than she had ever imagined.
Since she had arrived in Palazzo Pisani Moretta, where the ball was set, she was enchanted. Il ballo del Doge was an absolute dream come true.
It was spectacular, stunning and splendid. Just magnificent. Caroline was certainly not modest, however, she had never seen such extraordinary luxury. The baroque palazzo was already beautiful, but the decoration perfected the splendor.
The ballrooms were lit by countless chandeliers and innumerable candles, which contributed to a very special atmosphere.
Suddenly, she heard a voice behind her: "Good evening, love. What a lovely surprise to see you here."
She turned around. Of course the man wore a mask, yet there was no doubt. She would even recognize this voice with this unmistakable British accent alone. It was Klaus. She hadn't expected him there, neither was she prepared. Actually, she had thought him to be in New Orleans, Chicago or maybe somewhere in an art exhibition. However, the last time she had seen him was back then when he had returned from New Orleans to Mystic Falls and they had spent the day…in the woods. Since then, some years had gone by. After her first semester at Whitmore College she had gone abroad, and had immediately got pleasure of travelling around. Now she stood facing Klaus. In spite of all the years it seemed like their last encounter had just been yesterday.
"Can I treat you to a drink?" Klaus asked. "No, definitely not," she objected. Nevertheless, she urgently needed a drink, or even better several ones.
Shortly afterwards she clinked glasses of champagne with Klaus. "Are you often here in Venice?" she asked him, as she didn't know what to say. Klaus smiled. "Well, it depends on how you define 'often', but yes, as a vampire you could say so. I've been here some times in the 18th century. You should have seen that splendour of those days. I had a good friend from Venice, Giacomo Casanova, who had really known how to celebrate."
"Right, it depends on the definition. For me 'often' means something different. But probably you often had friends," Caroline answered. Klaus ignored her little sideswipe. "Speaking of friends, where are yours or are you alone here?" "They are in Mystic Falls. Damon and Elena are inseparable, which also goes for Bonnie and Jeremy, while I… I wanted to see the world. You were right. Small-town life isn't enough for me." He smiled. "So, where have you been so far?" That question reminded her of their conversation at his family's ball. At that time he had asked her where she had been, too.
Back then she had never really been anywhere, but Klaus had offered to show her the world. He had said that wherever she wanted to go he would take her, whether if it would be Rome, Paris or Tokyo. "Actually, I haven't been to that many places. At first, I've studied one semester at university in London, and then I went to the University of Florence for one semester. Therefore, I also know some other cities in Toscana, like Siena, Lucca and Pisa. I've travelled to Milan, too, and now I am here." Actually, she had wanted to go to Rome, but she still associated that city with Klaus. It was the same thing with Paris and Tokyo. A part of her, no matter how hard she tried to suppress it, wanted to go to these cities with Klaus – and only Klaus. Maybe she should just allow this part, and admit it, but with Klaus being far away it had never mattered. Perhaps she had subconsciously steered clear of him because of that. Somehow it was nice to know that there was somebody who would wait for her, and frankly, Caroline had been afraid that it wasn't true and would disappoint her. Sure, she believed Klaus, but she had also believed that Tyler would come home as soon as Klaus allowed him. On the other hand, there were worlds between Klaus and Tyler. One could never compare them. After all, Klaus was a gentleman, who could be relied on.
"That sounds lovely. I like the Uffizi in Florence. Which city did you like best?" Klaus wanted to know. That wasn't an easy question. "I like all these cities, but the one I loved the most was London."
"London is a great city," he agreed.
"Would you like to dance, sweetheart?" he asked her. Caroline nodded. "Yes, why not."
Klaus led her to the dance floor. It really reminded her of how they had danced at his family's ball. Back then he had even known that she had been Miss Mystic Falls. The next time they had danced had been at the 20s Decade Dance. And now they were at a ball in Venice. Caroline wouldn't admit it, but she always enjoyed dancing with Klaus. She felt like she were a princess, maybe even like a queen.
Admittedly, it was kind of immature and childish that she would never admit it. Especially, because once she had already confessed to him that her rejecting behaviour was only a façade. The last time they had met. In the woods… Actually, she had only wanted to kiss him, but it had felt so good. If she was honest, it had been that good that she would like to repeat it. Looking back it almost seemed ridiculous to her how hard she had tried to cover this up, telling herself that she had been a bad person. She had even cleaned her entire dorm room, including her mini-fridge. Oh, that mini-fridge. "I assume you expect cash." "That, or a mini-fridge." At the same day, Klaus had also told her that he wanted to be her last love.
"So, do you already know where you want to travel to next?" he interrupted her thoughts. "I'm not yet 100 percent sure. Why? Do you want to take me somewhere?" Caroline grinned. He laughed.
"Would you let me?" Would she? Some time ago her answer would have been 'no', but now she wasn't that sure anymore. Who did she want to persuade? But on the other hand, there was no way she could say 'yes'. Didn't she remember all the horrible things he had done? Could she ever forget these things? Maybe she had simply realized that the world was not only black and white. Was she really better? And what about Elena or Stefan? They all had done horrible things, though they had had a reason. But did the end really justify the means?
Caroline had no idea what she should answer. To cover up her embarrassment she laughed. "Who knows…," she finally replied. "Where do you want to go next?" When Klaus smiled, his eyes sparkled. "Wherever you want to go to, sweetheart. If you let me, I'll show you the whole world. If not, I'll respect that. At least until the day you'll stand in front of my door."
He would wait for her. He had told her this several times, and now he had confirmed it again. But how long would it take for her to be ready? Would she ever be? Perhaps it was similar to 'the right moment', which didn't exist either. Caroline had to admit that her feelings scared her. No matter what had changed during time, deep inside the control freak was still slumbering. Feelings, however, couldn't be controlled, although she had tried to. On top of that, she was afraid of getting hurt. Of course she knew that Klaus would never hurt her, but it was not possible to think rational in these things. Nevertheless, it meant that these feelings for him really existed.
Maybe she needed fresh air to think clearly. "Could we please go outside for a minute or so?" she asked Klaus. He accompanied her elegantly to the exit, passing all the dressed-up people and some acrobats, who were showing their best in one of the ballrooms. When they arrived outside, Klaus gave one of the gondoliers a sign, and quickly talked to him in fast Italian. Then he helped her in the gondola. After all, he truly was a gentleman. Especially because of her baroque inspired ball gown she was really grateful.
Gently the gondola glided through the water. There was something mystical and magical about floating through the darkness. Only the moon shone brightly, and sparkled on the water like uncountable diamonds.
"Klaus, I...," she started. Caroline took of her mask. So did Klaus. She was looking for the right words. Caroline had finally made a decision, but she didn't know how to tell Klaus.
"I think… I…I...," she tried again.
Then she took a deep breath. "Rome or Paris," she said. Klaus began to smile joyfully. "Rome and Paris. And then the whole world." Never ever had she seen him happier than in this moment. She also beamed with delight. And then they kissed. She completely forgot everything else around her. All was perfect.