Beauty and the Immortal
Disclaimer: The characters and other things from The Vampire Diaries don't belong to me. Credit goes to the rightful owners
Prologue: Once upon a time
"Am I supposed to glow?" Caroline asked Elena warily.
"No…" Elena said, turning to Jeremy, "Can you ask Bonnie what's going on?"
"I think she's in some sort of shock." Jeremy said looking alarmed as he stepped towards the unseen Bonnie. "She just keeps saying 'Silas' over and over again. Bonnie! Snap out of it."
"Well, tell her to stop! I'm glowing like a neon sign over here and it is not a good look for me." Caroline said shakily.
"Stefan's still not waking up." Elena said cursing under her breath.
"Relax." Damon said calmly as he circled Stefan's body on the floor. "The guy went through hell, literally, to defeat his doppelganger. You can't expect him to be all alert and enthusiastic all at once. I'm more concerned with vampire day glow stick over there."
"Bonnie's spell to pull back Stefan must have rebounded on Caroline." Jeremy said.
"You think?" Damon said rolling his eyes. He turned to Caroline then frowned, "Uh, is Bonnie still hanging around because I think now is the time to do something, anything really…Barbie looks like she's about to blow."
Caroline's eyes shot to Elena in alarm, "I've progressed to shimmering. Why am I shimmering?"
They all watched as tiny pinpricks of light illuminated Caroline's skin, each burst gaining strength until hundreds of light beams burst out.
"Guys?" Caroline whispered weakly before everything went black.
Caroline awoke with a gasp, clutching at her throat as she sat up. She blinked several times, her normally sharp vision somehow out of focus. Caroline looked around and found she was sitting next to a well about ten meters away from the edge of what appeared to be a forest. She pushed herself up, one hand grasping the cold stone of the well.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fi—" Caroline started, trailing off when she saw who it was—Rebekah. But not quite the original vampire she loved to hate. This version wore a long dress that seemed to be centuries out of date, hair in a neat braid and face completely devoid of any makeup. Most importantly, this one had a heartbeat.
"I'm sorry." Rebekah said, looking utterly confused, "You're wearing trousers."
"Rebekah! That's rude. Apologize."
Caroline turned and saw Elijah, for the first time, wearing clothes that hung loosely from his frame instead of the usual tailored suits he wore.
Rebekah ignored Elijah and merely narrowed her eyes at Caroline. "You're not from here, are you?"
Elijah sighed and stepped forward, "Forgive my sister, miss. She does not mean to offend. She is merely curious. It is rare that anyone new comes into our small village."
Caroline blinked rapidly, wondering if this was just a dream or her wild imagination at work but Elijah stood there expectantly and Rebekah's eyes had already become thin slits. "Yes…yes I'm new. I'm Caroline."
"I'm Elijah and this is my sister, Rebekah. Glad to meet your acquaintance." Elijah said bowing slightly but kept his distance from her.
"So where are you from, Caroline?" Rebekah said placing her pail down on the ground. "What sort of place is there that allows women to prance about like men?"
Elijah glared at Rebekah but made no further comment. Caroline opened her mouth to answer but her power of speech left her when someone else came to view.
"Storm is coming. Let's go."
It was then that Caroline noticed the grey skies rolling in, rumbling as they came closer. Rebekah huffed, annoyed that her curiosity was left unsatisfied, but picked up her pail just the same and moved to leave. Elijah nodded his head towards Caroline and also turned.
"Wait!" Caroline said stepping forward, causing all of them to stop and look at her. "Is there some place here for, uh, visitors…like a hotel or something?"
"Hotel? What is that?" Rebekah asked tilting her head.
Caroline growled a little in frustration and thought of a way to explain but a low voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Do you need a place to stay, miss?"
Caroline turned towards the familiar blue eyes, hoping he would recognize her and the nightmare would dissipate but there was disappointment when she saw he was merely waiting for her answer.
Her face fell as she responded, "Yes. I need a place to stay."
"Then follow me. My name is Niklaus by the way."
Caroline sighed and muttered to herself as she followed his lead. "I know."
"What did you say?" Klaus said turning around to face her.
"Thank you. I said thank you." Caroline said quickly. "My name is Caroline…in case you wanted to know."
Klaus raised his eyebrows, his dimple showing even as he tried to suppress a smile. "Dresses like a man and lies almost smoothly as silk. We're going to get along, aren't we?"
Caroline rolled her eyes but the corners of her lips turned up slightly as she spoke, "I wouldn't count on it."
Klaus shook his head as he laughed softly, slowing down to walk beside Caroline, the silence stretching between them as darkness slowly settled over them. Storm and night crept up as Klaus kept his eyes on Rebekah who walked ahead with Elijah. "You did not intend to come to this place."
Caroline raised her eyebrows. "That's not a question."
"There's no point in asking something that's already quite apparent." Klaus said as he pulled back a branch so Caroline could pass. "My sister seems quite intent on finding out where you're from. Elijah is likely to be concerned about how you'll get home since you appear quite out of your element here."
"And you?" Caroline asked looking sideways at him.
"I'm rather interested on what sort of trouble you'll bring into my life." Klaus said with a mischievous smile.
Caroline was about to reply when Klaus stopped all of a sudden and put a finger to his lips. Rebekah and Elijah had stopped as well. Elijah had his hand protectively on his sister as he locked eyes with Klaus.
"Run." Klaus mouthed to Elijah. They nodded to each other and before Caroline could react, Klaus' hand was on her wrist pulling her along.
She kept pace with Klaus, concentrating on not running faster than her companion. Caroline listened carefully and noticed the disturbance in the area. She sniffed and her eyes widened in surprise when she recognized the scent.
Werewolves.
Klaus stopped by a mound of dirt, brushing away vines to reveal a large stone covering a cave entrance. "I wouldn't normally ask a lady but those…things move fast….a little help then?"
Caroline nodded and pushed the rock easily. Klaus hid his surprise until they were inside, rock safely rolled back into place.
They listened to the howls of the wind and the creatures outside. Caroline's eyes adjusted to the darkness and noticed that Klaus was watching her, even if he could barely see her.
"We'll be safe here, right?" Caroline said as she eyed the entrance and tiny crack that allowed some moonlight to shine through.
"You are." Klaus said slowly, pushing off the wall that he was leaning against, letting the moonlight illuminate part of his face. "Am I safe here with you?"
Caroline laughed, the sound echoing in the small cave. "I never imagined I'd hear those words from…look, don't mind me. What makes you think you're not safe with me?"
Klaus looked at her, scrutinizing everything he could see with the little light they had. Caroline stood still, watching him watch her, as she wondered how it was that Klaus was so different and still somehow be exactly the same. After about five minutes Klaus stepped forward and placed his hand once more on her wrist, lifting it to place it on his chest.
He looked her straight in the eyes as he spoke. "Because your heart does not beat like mine, love. In fact, it does not beat at all."