I do not own TVD or TO.
Seagulls and ocean waves, there was a time when she had feared the deep and its heralds of death. Vultures and crows signified ill will on land and led to the dying, but there was nothing ominous in the squawking calls of the white birds; she had come to learn that an abundance of the creatures meant the ship was close to land. Her fear of the water had lessened with the swimming lessons she had received a few years earlier from Klaus; it had been hard to think of drowning in the shallows when Kol had come upon them.
Salty waves crashed against her knees soaking through the light trousers she wore cinched in at her waist. A larger wave rose and broke near her hips turning the bottom of her shirt transparent.
She shivered when he settled his hand on the small of her back and gave her a small nudge into the ocean. They weren't deep enough yet, she knew it.
Deeper and deeper he walked until tiny fish nibbled at her toes and the water swirled around her waist.
"Do you see how the water is rolling towards us?" Klaus pointed to the shifting ocean. "When it comes on you jump otherwise it'll will force you from your feet."
She nodded and watched the wave; it seemed to grow larger the closer it got. Bracing her legs she prepared to jump. The water hit her square in the chest and knocked her over. She flailed as the ocean closed over her head, for several long seconds she was certain she was going to die but then strong hands had hauled her up.
Clinging to his soaked shirt she spoke through chattering teeth.
"I… I've ch… changed my mind."
Before Klaus got a chance to respond and talk her into trying again their attention was grabbed by an enraged voice on the shore.
"What the bloody hell are you doing?"
She couldn't remember ever seeing his mouth twisted in that particular line in the year that she had known him; he was always smiling and laughing. His eyes never held that kind of fire; she could feel the burning gaze from where he stood.
It took her a moment to recognize the expression and the glare that she suddenly saw was aimed at Klaus and the hands on her hips. The realization that he was jealous brought a harsh laugh to her throat; her attempt to swallow the sound meant it was a choking sound that reached the brothers as he waded into the ocean.
She forgot she was waist deep in the most dangerous body of water around when she turned to face him and crossed her arms. She was still angry with him; he'd been flirting with her for months, and the moment they reached land she had found him with the tart she had seen him talking to before going on the ship several months before.
Seeing them together earlier had formed tightness in her chest. Maybe that was why she had asked Klaus to teach her how to swim instead of him.
"Your brother was teaching me how to swim," her eyes narrowed in a glare that rivaled his own.
"You could have asked me," Kol's eyes darted to his brother's hand still on her waist.
"You were otherwise engaged," she spat. "Where's your friend?"
Neither of them noticed Klaus slipping away towards the shore.
"Mary-Alice?" His brows shot up. "She's not a friend."
"Yeah right," she snorted. "She looked rather familiar with you. Her hands were all over you."
She recognized the mistake when he tilted his head with a small smirk.
"You're jealous."
"I am not," she felt her annoyance flare, "you're jealous."
"Why would I be jealous?" He laughed.
"You were glaring daggers at Klaus," she poked his chest, "and any other man who comes near me." Her flesh tingled when he took her wrist.
"Only the ones that look at you like you're a snack."
"Why do you care?" She gasped when his free arm stole around her waist and pulled her into his chest.
"I don't want another man touching you," he whispered staring down into her blazing eyes.
"I don't want another woman touching you!"
Klaus pivoted on the beach. Cupping his hands over his mouth he yelled back to them.
"Would you two just shag already?"
A year and a half later she knew Klaus regretted the suggestion that they had both jumped on, but she didn't care.
She looked over her shoulder to where Klaus and Kol were overseeing the loading of supplies: barrels of fresh water, dried beans, pickled vegetables, salted meat, sugar, biscuits, cheese, herbs and spices, and what looked like a rather fine wine; it was clear the ship had only been on the water for a few days, and been planning a rather extensive journey.
"What was that about risk and reward?" Kol gave his brother a pointed look.
"Oh, shut up," Klaus grumbled.
Lexa smirked and turned her attention back to Rebekah who was using the toe of her boot to turn over Kai's face. Elijah's aim had been true; the shot had entered the man's head and blackened half of his features.
She knew Kai Parker as the mad mercenary. He always took out his target after some psychological torture, and typically he would kill anyone else in the immediate vicinity.
"Who was the target?" Lexa crouched beside the body. The sight was sickening, but in the last few years she had seen worse; heck, she had done worse.
"I don't know," Rebekah shook her head, "but there are two potential people who could tell us."
"Unfortunately, one is unconscious," Kol knelt on the other side of the body and nodded to where Elijah was checking to see if the brunette was breathing. His eyes darted to the blonde kneeling near her friend; her bottom lip was shaking as she rocked slightly with crossed arms. "The other doesn't appear to be talking."
He began rifling through the dead man's pockets. For someone to send an assassin out to sea they had to be longing for the death of someone influential. Logic told him it was the captain or perhaps someone with access to political intelligence and that there would be instructions of some sort somewhere on his body.
The only thing he came up with was a folded slip of paper containing a drawing of a necklace.
"This must be what he was looking for," he presented the drawing to his sister and lover, "but why anyone would be willing to kill for a necklace is beyond me."
Lexa took the drawing and traced the edges; it was a pretty locket with an old fashioned clasp and vines holding some sort of jewel in place.
"Maybe it's not the necklace," she tapped the paper, "but what's inside."
She saw curiosity flash in the depths of his eyes and knew it mirrored the light in hers. She had always loved a mystery.
"How hard do you think it would be to find?"
"On a ship this size?" Rebekah cocked an eyebrow. She was already imagining the pair of them searching from bow to stern. "It shouldn't be too difficult; there are only so many places to hide."
"It such a small thing," he murmured, "It could be hidden in any number of places."
"Then I'd best start looking," Lexa smirked.
"I'll join you, darling," Kol got to his feet with a wink, "in case you need an extra set of hands."
Rebekah shook her head and made a note to ensure they were both back on the ship before they cut the lines holding them alongside The Calla Lily. The couple had a tendency to get distracted when left alone for too long.
Elijah looked up from the still brunette sprawled on the deck to find his sister. His attempts to garner any information from the blonde had been fruitless so he motioned over his sister; she would be more useful in this situation than examining the dead body.
After years at sea with her brothers and a crew full of men she was accustomed to less than savoury sights, but the state of the area below deck made her stomach turn. Every corner and open door revealed more dead bodies with several slash marks and pools of blood.
Covering her mouth with her hand, Rebekah followed the line of the hall until she reached the passenger cabins. It took less than a minute to figure out which one belonged to their guests.
The bedding had been flipped over and ripped into. Clothes had been ripped from chests and thrown in every direction; it was clear from one look that someone had decided to take advantage of the ships misfortune.
With an exasperated sigh she bent and started throwing the clothes into the two large trunks at the foot of the bunks. They could sort out what belonged to whom later.
It was the sound of laughter and soft moans that brought his attention to a partially closed door near the end of the hall. Crossing his fingers and hoping they were decent he pushed open the door to the captain's quarters.
It was hardly the first time he had walked in on his younger brother in a compromising position; ships didn't leave much room for privacy so the couple had been interrupted many times by half the crew.
By the way her head was tipped back and his lips were working along her collarbone Klaus knew they hadn't seen him. He cleared his throat when he saw her hand slide down Kol's stomach.
"Really?" Klaus looked between the pair. Kol's shirt had disappeared, as had Lexa's black corset; her blouse hung from her slim shoulders exposing her upper back to his gaze. "You realize there's a dead body in the next room?"
"What?" She straightened up and grabbed the sides of her blouse.
"I'll take that as a no," Klaus chuckled.
She scrambled off Kol's lap and began buttoning her blouse. Shouldering open the door built into the cabin wall she gulped at the sight that greeted her.
This was the room they had been looking for; it was the Captain's office, and the thing that surprised her most was the immaculate condition of the small space.
"You might close the door, Nik," Kol nodded to the office door. Men were peeking in; their gazes were lingering for too long on Lexa. "People are beginning to stare."
"I'm certain everyone has seen her in less," Klaus smirked.
"Why is he propped up?" Lexa intervened before the argument could begin because Klaus was right; she was still covered with only her collarbone bare to the men sneaking glances into the room.
"Shouldn't this room have been ransacked?" She finished buttoning her shirt, and accepted the corset Kol handed her; it hung open from her arms like a black vest as she circled the body. He had been a tall man with a clean shave and dark hair beneath the blood spattered powdered wig.
Kol shook his head and glared at the men still looking in. They scattered when they caught his dark gaze.
Lexa began rifling through drawers in her search for the necklace. She was pulling books from the shelves when she felt Kol behind her as he reached for the items on the higher shelf.
He was pressed against the small of her back still excited from their earlier activities causing a shiver raced down her spine. He smirked when she looked up at him over her shoulder with hunger gleaming in her eyes.
"Later, darling," he bent and brushed his lips along her cheek.
"Promise?" She spun around and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"You two are sickening," Klaus rolled his eyes while he flipped through a thick book.
"Don't be bitter, Nik," Kol smirked. His hands gently fastened the buttons of Lexa's corset. "Just because you haven't felt the touch of a woman in months is no reason to spoil our fun."
Rebekah hopped down from the plank they had erected as a bridge between ships and held up her hand for the men carrying the trunks. It took her a moment to spot her brother in the crowd of milling bodies, when she did she waved him over.
"Where am I sending these?"
She rolled her eyes when he told the men to take the luggage to his cabin. It wasn't surprising as there were only two private cabins, in addition to his office, on the ship that had not been converted into barracks: the room she shared with Lexa and the one held by Klaus and Kol. It was just like her big brother to give up his bed for a complete stranger.
"It's not like that," Elijah sighed, "she's injured and my cabin is the only one with enough room for her to move about once she gets back on her feet."
"Oh, Elijah," Rebekah shook her head with a soft smile, "that's exactly what I thought."
Their attention was drawn suddenly to the bridge. The women who had yet to say anything was making the treacherous walk. On the last step her foot caught the edge of her skirt and she tumbled down onto the deck.
Caroline jolted when her body fell with a loud thump. Cold air swirled around her ankles and calves telling her that her heavy skirt had fallen in a way that her legs were on display. Slowly the images she had seen on the ship began to disperse and the lewd comments being made started to reach her mind.
She didn't see the face of the man who jumped down and silenced the comments with a glare until he offered her a hand up.
"Come on, love," Klaus took her hand. She had been through enough that day and didn't need to deal with the touch starved men on board the ship.
Caroline seemed to snap out of it then. Her heart began to drum in her chest as she pulled her hand away from his warm grasp.
"I'm not your 'love'," her eyes flashed with anger.
"As you wish sweetheart," Klaus held out his hands palms up as she got to her feet in a huff.
Caroline glared at him once more before pivoting on her heel and storming across the deck. She was perfectly fine and would not under any circumstances accept help from anyone.
Klaus tilted his head and watched her walk away. The catatonic young woman he had first seen seemed to have faded away to be replaced by a beautifully stubborn woman. There was something fiery in her eyes.
"Isn't she stunning?" He nodded to the blonde as Kol and Lexa rejoined him on the deck.
Kol's eyes found the woman storming off towards the far rail.
"She certainly looks good walking away from you."
"I'll take that as a challenge," Klaus cast him a sideways look and smirked.
Caroline watched the ship that had been bearing her to the New World drift away. She had been watching for the better part of twenty minutes as it grew smaller and smaller on the horizon; the life she had known, the one planned out for her, slipped away with the polished wood.
A clearing throat made her jump, pressing her hand to her fluttering heart.
"I beg your pardon," Elijah kept his voice calm, "it was not my intention to startle you Miss…"
"Forbes," she swallowed, "Caroline Forbes."
"Miss Forbes," he smiled, "I wonder if you might answer a few questions."
Caroline's eyes narrowed as she nodded. She had a suspicion that he might have already asked them.
"The man who attacked your ship was a well-known assassin…"
"Well-known?"
"In certain circles," Elijah nodded. "Do you have any idea who he was after?"
In her mind she saw the closed office door, the door she had covered with a jacket, where a bloody name had been written. She shook her head to dispel the image. Elena was her friend.
"He was crazy." She bit her bottom lip. "He k-killed everyone and he was going to…" she cleared her throat and closed her eyes. "He was going to kill us."
She opened her eyes and fixed him with a stern look that demanded an immediate answer. She hadn't seen a sign of her since setting foot on the ship, but she was certain Elena was still alive; she had to be.
"Where's my friend?"
Caroline covered her mouth to stifle her sudden sob. Elijah had shown her to a spacious cabin with a large bed built into one of the walls and on the bed was Elena.
She raced across the room to her friend and pressed her palm to the brunette's feverish brow; her eyes darted back and forth frantically beneath her closed lids.
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