Chapter 2 Little Drummer Boy

Shout out time to all you sexy Klaus fans out there made my day and commented.

Hidansgirl1234: I'm sooooo glad you loved it. And thanks for commenting on the other stories of mine.

Lily Rose Morgan (they didn't let me spell it out the way you have it!): Yeah, to the favorites pile! P.S. That's a pretty name.

Indigobutterfly: I tried to make an original premise. And I hope this chapter satisfies you.

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"Just inhale deeply, exhale slowly, free your mind of those silly thoughts of yours, and we'll find you something in no time," Klaus said, grasp tightening against me as I struggled to break free. Normally I would've tore from his clutches with ease, but not only was he now a hybrid, I wasn't at my fullest strength potential. In fact, all my senses were weakened, except for my sense of smell. That was on overkill. Starvation was to blame for that.

"Just me go, Klaus. Please." I said, nails digging into his hands. My hypersensitive skin stung like hell as Klaus quickly swatted my hands off him. Rebelliously, I attempted to dig my nails into him once more, but he took my hands, entangled his fingers in mine, and went back to cradling me against him. How easily I'd forgotten that Klaus always won.

"You see, I can't do that. What type of friend would I be if I idly watched you torment yourself? Not a very good one, I suppose." Klaus nestled his head onto the crook of my neck. "And besides, you're always so painstakingly boring during these times. And you have awful mood swings."

Fury seared my skin. Where did he get off telling me I was boring? He was the definition of boring. "Remember when I saved you from being dismembered? You'll fucking wish you had died then, if you don't let me go."

"Mood swing, number one."

Regret filled my heart. I didn't mean what I said. Klaus was the only friend I had. "I apologize, Niklaus. I'm a terrible person. You've always been so kind to me."

"Mood swing, number two," He laughed, before we came to a stop in the middle of the sidewalk. He squeezed me closer to him as one of his hands pointed out in front of him. My eyes finished the trail his fingers started, and saw a man, strumming the tunes of Christmas carols on his guitar outside of a supermarket. An empty guitar case, with the exception of a few singles and loose change, stood at his feet. "I don't know what it is you eat nowadays, but last time we were together, it was vampires. And since I assume time is not on our side, I won't be finding you one. But you've always had a thing for that starving artist type, correct?"

The man reeked of desperation and loneliness. His lungs were charring away due to his smoking, but that bothered me none. Smoking was only seasoning to me. He was perfect, just what the doctor ordered.

"I shouldn't, Klaus."

My protests went unheard, as we approached the man. The closer and closer we got, the more and more my body burned. It yearned to rip away his skin so my tongue could feel his veins strum melodies against it. Brown eyes, olive skin, medium build. He wasn't much to look at, but his organs smelled beautiful. Beauty really was skin deep.

Klaus gave a quick wave to the man, who in turn, nodded his head towards his change filled guitar case. Klaus reached down into the pockets of his jacket I wore, before taking out a huge wad of cash, rolled tightly together by a rubber band. The man's eyes moved left and right as Klaus waved the money in front of him. Klaus proceeded to shove the money back into his pocket, before using his index and middle finger to beckon the man forward. And like the money hungry fool he was, the man, never ceasing to play his guitar, followed behind Klaus and I.

This hunger must've really taken its toll on me as my world began spinning, and the urge the vomit everywhere was becoming more prevalent. But I noticed Klaus no longer had me crushed against him. Instead, one hand was planted onto his shoulder, as my other was extended out tightly gripped in his hand. He guided my movements and where my footsteps were going. Were we... waltzing?

The spinning continued, and continued, and continued until my back fell into a pile of snow and my gaze shifted to the sky. Snow began drifted onto my face, starting its burial process, until I lifted my body up, to notice that I was no longer on the sidewalk, but in the back of a dark, isolated alley. The guitar player, yards a head of me, stood frozen in fear as Klaus held him in place by the back of his neck.

"What's your name?" Klaus gave the man a smile.

"J-Jared," Jared said, fear rising in his voice. Heart beating faster. Turning my mouth into a waterfall.

"Well Jared, my girlfriend over here is absolutely starving, and you're on the menu."

Jared struggled to break free from Klaus as I once did. If I couldn't overpower Klaus, then surely this boy didn't stand a chance.

"Look man, I don't know what you-"

"Shh," Klaus said, interrupting the man's plea. "Your death isn't set in stone yet. I'm a fair man, I'll let you fight for it." He shoved Jared onto the ground. Jared scrambled onto his feet and made the mistake of trying to escape. Klaus simply used his vampire speed to block every attempt he made of leaving. "You're going to play for your life. I'll call out a Christmas carol, and you have to play it. No pauses, no screw ups, no incorrect notes."

Jared, still thinking he had a chance in hell getting out of this, tried the new strategy of begging. "Please dude, if you want my money just-"

"Nobody wants your fucking money," Klaus said, tone growing stern. "Now the next thing I hear better be, 'Santa Claus is Coming to Town' or I'll break your fingers off and play it myself."

Jared's wild eyes turned to me.

"Don't look at me for help," I laughed. "I'm just an innocent bystander."

Jared, with no options left, began playing the tune on his guitar. With each chord he struck, his fear reverberated against the strings, and wafted into my nose. Klaus knew exactly how I liked them before they died. Afraid. Not to the point where they were pissing themselves, but where his senses were heightened just enough. Elevated heartbeat. Sweaty palms. Clenched teeth. Rapid eye movement. Racing mind. Jared's last few emotions before he died would affect how he tasted.

"Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer," Klaus said, bobbing his head as Jared changed songs with ease. His anxiety melted away as he started to become more comfortable with his playing. But Klaus, being the diabolical man he was, had more plans. I could feel it.

"You're quite the guitarist, mate." Klaus clapped his hands, feigning a cheerful mood, but he wasn't fooling me. "You've past round one, congrats. Round two, you have to play and sing." And Klaus, sensing Jared's dread returning, tauntingly tried to ease it. "Oh don't worry, you'll do fine." He gave him a pat on the back. "Any requests from the lovely lady?"

I raised an eyebrow and titled my gaze towards the sky. "Um...how about Jingle Bell Rock?"

"You heard her Jared, Jingle Bell Rock. Three. Two. One."

Jared began playing the song, his vocals coming out breathy and shaky. He knew he had no chance of surviving, and that's when realization seeped into me. We were toying with this man's life. This wasn't right.

I had to stop this.

"Klaus, wait." I began my protests.

"Silver bells," Klaus said, continuing his game.

"Seriously, Klaus."

"Silent Night."

I stammered, "Klau-"

"Jingle Bells." He ignored me calling out the song names so quickly Jared struggled to keep up. "The Twelve Days of Christmas."

I wanted to get up, run over to them and put an end to it. But I was so lightheaded, I could hardly move. The most I could do was tell the man to try and leave. But Jared's fear of Klaus prevented that from happening. He simply did as Klaus instructed.

"...Three French maids, two-"

"Pause," Klaus said, putting an end to Jared's singing and playing. Klaus, hand running over his chin, eyes squinted in deep thought, began to laugh. A long, terrifying laugh. "I'm sorry mate, but I believe the lyrics are, 'three French hens.' Not, 'three French Maids.'"

Jared instantly began to cry, making my eyes roll. He grabbed at Klaus's shirt, pleading for him to spare his life. This poor man. God only knows what goes on through someone's mind when they know they're about to die.

"I'm sorry you lost the game, Jared," Klaus said, actually sounding sorry. But we all knew he wasn't. "If only you were better at your profession, then you wouldn't have to die."

Jared began to utter another plea, but it was too late, he was laying motionless in the snow. Klaus had snapped his neck. But I never saw it happen and I barely heard his neck snap. Goddamn piss poor eyesight and hearing.

Klaus grabbed Jared up from the back of his collar, lifting him from off the ground. Looking at me, that daunting smile of his returned to his face. That smile meant that Klaus thought he'd won. That the game was over and he came out victorious. But that wasn't the case. I refused to eat from Jared.

He walked over to me, arrogance infused in each step of his. Too fatigued to run away, I simply let Klaus hover over me, dead Jared still in his hand. He crouched down to my eye level and his eyes sparkled like the snowflakes on the ground. I seriously wasn't going to eat from Jared.

"I have a gift for you, pa rum pum pum pum." He used Jared's limp finger to tap me on the nose as he sang the last 'pum'.

"Get that fucking body away from me, Klaus," I spat, wishing that dead body was Klaus instead of Jared. He was such a prick sometimes. But you know what? He was my prick. And only cared about my benefit. He was such a good guy.

"It's okay to leave the wagon now, Lucinda. How do you think this little hunger game your playing will end up?" Klaus said, waiting for an answer that never came. He sighed. "With you murdering people by the hundreds when you relapse. And as much as I'd love to help you with that, we've got bigger issues on our hands. So you're going to feed from this dead fellow and get it over with."

Klaus rammed Jared's head into the brick wall beside us, splitting his skull right open. I was going to tell Klaus to move that body away from me, but it was too late. Klaus had already thrown Jared in my arms, and I responded to the dead man I cradled instantly. My teeth began ripping away at him. Skin, organs, muscle and bone, anything I could grab fistfuls of I piled into my mouth. Eyes rolling into the back of my head, a small groan of pleasure slipped from out of me. I wanted this to last forever. For there to be an abundant supply of Jared for me to claw through. Sadly, all that was left of the guitar player were dismembered body parts not worth my time eating. I needed more. And I needed it now.

Looking around, I noticed what a bloody mess I had made. What was once pure white snow, had now turned into the deepest shade of crimson. Not wanting to waste all that blood, I began shoving handfuls of the sanguine snow into my mouth.

I held a handful up to Klaus eager to share.

"I've already had dinner," He said, taking a step away from me.

I frowned, scooting forward. "But it's like an icee, Klaus! An icee with blood! A blood icee!" I stuck my arm out as far as I could.

"I don't eat my food from off the floor like an animal, love."

My frown dived deeper. "Well I suppose this is a bit embarrassing, me eating like a puppy." I looked up to see Klaus already walking away from me. "Wait for me." I screamed, running towards him. You see, zombie's can't run very fast due to the fact that our bodies are decayed. Unlike vampires who have supernatural speed and their corpses remained as they were when they died. So the fact that I could even run quickly was probably because I'd just fed. And god did I feel invigorated. Which is another thing feeding did to me. For the rest of the night I'd be on the equivalent of a sugar high.

"You've made quite the mess," He said, pointing at my face and hands that were drenched in blood. I rubbed them on sides of his jacket before using the arms of his coat I wipe my face. "My god, Lucy, what are you doing?" He yanked me over to him. "Do you know how fucking hard it is to get blood out of clothes?"

He shouldn't have let me fucking borrow it and then ask me to feed! I sighed, "I can pay for the dry cleaning bill."

He growled. "And what shall I tell the dry cleaner when he asks me what happened to my coat? 'Sorry mate, my girlfriend got carried away while she was eating a fucking person!"

"I'm not your girlfriend, Klaus," I said, trying to catch snowflakes on my tongue. Standing in the middle of the alley was now beginning to frustrate me. The night was still young and I wanted to do something. Make a snowman, go to a bar, sing karaoke.

"Let's not get into this argument again." Thank god, we began walking down the street. I couldn't take another minute just standing around.

"Why are you here, Niklaus?" I eyed him suspiciously. Klaus had a funny way of finding you even when you didn't want to be found.

"I should be asking you the same thing, love."

Of course he'd tip toe around the subject. "After I left you and went to America, I began wandering around different places. Cleveland, New York, Chicago-"

"You were in Chicago?" We ran across the street.

"For a brief time, yes. And I just kept wandering until I ended up here in LamecitywhosenameIcantrecall, Virginia," I said, playing with the scarf around my neck. I pulled the edged above my head and pantomimed hanging myself. Klaus, being the sour puss that he was, didn't even laugh.

"Rebekah called me and said that she saw someone that looked like you. She said she wasn't sure because your hair was a different color."

I began playing with the strands of my hair. "You never told me how you liked it! I commented on your silly haircut, but you didn't have the decency to say anything about mine. I swear, Klaus, your manners seemed to have left you when I did." My hair, once a light sandy blonde color, was now cotton candy pink with pastel strands the color of rainbow sherbet spread throughout it.

"Why did you change it to that horrible color?"

"I thought to myself, 'new millennia, new hairstyle.'" I mocked him. "I'm surprised Rebekah even told you she saw me. Little bitch has always had it out for me."

"Her fear of me is greater than her hatred of you."

I laughed. Rebekah, the rebellious teen acting out for attention, never got along well with me. Especially with Klaus around. No one could have more attention than her. No one could be better than the Barbie Snob. "You still never fully answered my question. Why are you here?"

"I have a favor to ask of you."

"Goodbye, Klaus" I pulled away from him, walking in the opposite direction he was. Of course he wasn't here to see me because he actually cared about me. He needed me to be his goddamn puppet. I'd do his bidding and then he'd leave me in the middle of the night. That wasn't going to happen again.

He appeared in front of me, blocking me from going anywhere. Hands gripping my shoulders, he kept me in place as fought against him. "Mikael is back, Lucy."

My fighting against him stopped instantly with the mention of Mikael's name. He was dead. I locked him away in that tomb. I fucking wrapped chains around him like a ribbon, threw him in that coffin, and sealed him in there where he was supposed to say forever. "How could you have let this happen?"

Klaus told me the entire story. Of how there were two brothers, Stefan and Damon, who were trying at all costs to protect the Petrova Doppleganger, Elena. One way or another, Klaus killed the girl but a witch by the name of Bonnie resurrected her. So now his hybrids only work if they feed of Elena's blood. He also told me that he managed to have Stefan become a ripper, and that's why that troublesome brother Damon found a way to bring Mikael back. It was all actually really stupid. "Why would Damon have been so foolish to go and do that? Mikael won't hesitate to kill him either." What a vampire wouldn't do to save a girl. Pathetic. "All my fucking hard work down the shitter."

"I need you to kill him again. I can't stay while Mikael's here. You understand why, correct?"

Because he was afraid Mikael would end him once and for all. "I can't do it again, Klaus. And besides, I need a witch for that."

"That's where Bonnie comes in. Use that wit and charm of yours and force her to help you."

I frowned, snatching myself away from him. "I can't believe I was naïve enough to think that you came here for me. That you actually missed me. When really, your incredible plan to become a hybrid has backfired and now you want me to pick up the pieces."

"Well excuse fucking me for not wanting to die, Lucinda. We all can't be like you, sitting on swing sets wallowing in our self pity, now can we?"

"No. Instead we have to rely on others to do the dirty work we're not man enough of doing ourselves."

Exasperated, Klaus ran his hands over his face. "Your options are quite simple. Either you love me and you help me, or you don't and you let me die. And I need your answer, now."

I sighed. Of course I wanted Klaus alive. But why did that mean having to be his slave? For fucking centuries that's all I'd been to him. Someone he uses until his needs are through and then he puts me in a fucking corner, collecting dust and cobwebs. And somehow, no matter how much I knew this was true, I couldn't let him down. I had to be there for him. "What will I get if I help you this one last time?"

A smile formed on his face. "My undying gratification."

"That's not good enough this time, dear." Gratification didn't mean shit to a zombie. "Find out a way to stop me from wanting to rip everyone I see to shreds, or a way to kill me."

I could smell the anger brewing inside of him, but I didn't care. He didn't care about using me. I didn't care about using him. Relationships were like that sometimes. "Why do you want to-"

I placed a finger to his lips. "Now isn't the time to ask questions. A simple yes or no will suffice."

"Fine," He said reluctantly and swiped my hand away.

"Ew, I have Jared underneath my nails." I began picking away the dry blood that was caked beneath my nails. "Oh come on now, Klausy, don't be a baby."

"Just be ready to live with the Salvatore's," He said, knowing that I'd get upset.

"The blokes that are trying to kill you? Are you insane?" I'd already known the answer to that question.

"I need you to keep an eye on those two. Thwart their plans of thwarting my plans."

"They'd kill me before I had a chance to even see Mikael."

Klaus shrugged. "You can't die remember?"

That wouldn't stop them from trying. In fact, they'd do it all the time just to piss me off. While I was sleeping, eating breakfast, watching television. And then I'd snap, and murder them all. "So I'm guessing, that's where we're headed?"

He nodded.

"And this is my first and last night seeing you."

He nodded. "For now."

"And what if this doesn't work?"

He laughed. "Then this really will be your last time seeing me."