Wow! I am amazed at the responses I've received from this story! Today (4/20/16) marks the third day of my story being posted and it's already gathered 24 followers, 10 favorites and 10 reviews! I am counting that as a big win in my book! Thank you to all of you who have done all that. It really kicks me in gear to get more chapters out as soon as possible. I hope you are happy with the next chapter. FYI It will be just a few more before they will be moving out of the Gilbert living room, I want them to bond a bit more before I bring the rest of the cast into the story.
Don't be afraid to tell me what you think or if you have any thoughts on anything. I'll respond back as soon as I get a chance.
As always, I own nothing but the direction I decide to take these lovely characters.
A few hours had pasted now and Klaus was halfway through a bottle of his finest scotch and was finding it utterly amusing to watch Caroline. Her blonde hair was pulled back loosely from her flawless face, he grinned as he watched her yellow gloved hand come up to push that defiant lock back behind her ear for the eighth time in the past ten minutes. After her rousing little speech she grabbed him a bottle and a glass and went to work putting things in order. He watched her over these past few hours flitting around the doppelganger's house like some sort of cleaning fairy. All that seemed to be missing was a couple helpful animals and she would look like character from the fairy tales. Klaus shook his head and could not help the laugh that escaped, he must be hallucinating. Maybe she grabbed a container of Absinthe and he was just too distraught to notice.
Caroline looked up at him from her spot on the floor where she was just finishing up scrubbing what neither one tried to think about. She raised a perfectly groomed eyebrow at him, "Care to share what you find to funny?"
Klaus let out another chuckle under his breath, "Well Sweetheart, after watching you flit about scrubbing nearly every surface in sight, whether clean or not I might add, I'm waiting for you to burst into song and have your little woodland friends come to help." Now he was convinced it was the wrong liquor, how could he have possibly let that fall from his lips! He felt a damn blush lightly cross his face. He eyed the glass in his hand critically; it would be just like Kol, the eternal prankster, to switch the drinks just for a good laugh. He took a tentative sip letting the flavor reach his tongue for the first time, no it was defiantly scotch.
"Wow! You really do have some kind of Cinderella fetish don't you?" Klaus felt relief wash over him at her own soft giggle. "But this isn't some fairy tale Klaus, I mean if it was I wouldn't be cleaning…" She let out a sigh standing up realizing she did all she could to get the burnt spot off the floor where Kol's body had rested. "Look this is what I do. I stress clean. I can control this you know? Plus it keeps me busy. Don't you have stuff like this too? You know, for when you get overwhelmed or whatever? And killing and draining innocent humans doesn't count." She snapped her cleaning gloves off pointing her finger at him with her eyes squinted.
"Yes, while fresh blood does help to calm all of us vampires down, I do have other means myself." He sighed trying not to feel offended that yet again she went right to the Klaus is nothing but a monster routine. "You've seen my passion with art Love, which is what I like to lose myself in. That or a good book does the trick every now and again as well, but I have as of yet to come across any decent literature here in the doppelganger's living room." Klaus's face turned hard as stone again at the thought of being caged like some sort of animal and he sunk back into the chair to continue his drink.
Caroline walked over to the sink to wash her hands off, the down side of wearing the gloves was that powdery residue it left on her hands, Eww!, she grabbed a towel to dry her hands off, "Actually I think I have some things here that might help with that."
Klaus raised his hand pointing his glass towards her, "I'm not dusting the damn Gilbert living room Sweetheart, yellow gloves don't really go well with my complexion."
"Attitude much? Geez." Caroline came back into the living carrying a duffle bag, one that he was sure he last saw on his closet floor in his bedroom. "I come baring gifts!" Caroline said cheerily as she placed the duffle bag at his feet.
"No doubt you did quite a bit of snooping at my home after you took care of my brother then." Klaus eyed her suspiciously.
Caroline rolled her eyes and scoffed at him, "The proper response here Klaus would be, Why thank you Caroline for thinking of me in my time of need." She gave a poor attempt at his British accent. "And no, unlike some people" She continued looking at him pointedly, "I don't have stalker tendencies. I only grabbed what I thought you would need. I was in and out of your house in less than a half an hour." Caroline set the duffle bag down near his feet and rose to stand tall, "Besides I would need like way longer than that for a good snooping escapade." Klaus couldn't help the small smirk at her as a matter of a fact tone.
Klaus shifted on the chair setting his empty glass on the side table so he could go through what she brought. Inside he found his books from his bedside table that he had been reading to occupy his mind at night when he couldn't sleep, toiletries from his personal bath and a few changes of clothing. Klaus looked at her from beneath his long lashes, "So, going through my underwear drawer doesn't count as snooping?"
Caroline felt a blush rush across her face, "I just figured, well, I…" She stuttered watching Klaus form a wicked smirk across his face which gave her just enough dignity to pull herself together. "I'm a planner Klaus. It's what I do. Three days in the same clothes is just gross, especially when something could be done about."
His smirk widened even more at her obvious fluster and embarrassment. He voice dropped to a husky murmur and he gifted her with a scorching look from under his lashes. "If you wanted to get me naked Caroline all you have to do is ask."
Caroline threw her hands in the air and spun around to leave the room, hoping he wouldn't catch the blush the infused her cheeks. "Seriously! Why do you have to be a pervert about it? See if I help you again."
Before she could cross the barrier holding him in, he was off the chair and gently grabbed her arm. Caroline stopped and hesitantly looked up into his eyes; he at least had the decency to look contrite. "Sorry Love, that was bad form after all that you have done for me this evening."
"Fine. Just don't let it happen again. "Caroline was still fighting the blush on her face while trying to sound stern. What an exquisite creature she is, Klaus thought as he lightly nodded his head as if in agreement with her all the while knowing he could not make her such a promise.
Klaus let his hand drift delicately down her arm before stepping away to go back to his drink. He lifted the bottle to pour the last dregs of liquid into his glass. "I truly hope you brought more than just the one bottle Love."
Caroline rolled her eyes walking out of the living room. "Please! What do you take me for an amateur? I'll have you know I have unfortunately been involved in a lot of these wake type scenarios." She wandered behind the kitchen island before heading back towards Klaus carrying a box wider than her filled with an assortment of liquor. "See! I'd be surprised if even you ran dry with all this. So why don't you pick something and pour us a drink." She suggested as she set the box on the sofa table in front of the couch.
Klaus watched her out of the corner of her eye as she went back to get herself a glass. Going to the box as she had instructed he found an array of choices for him to choose from. He sorted through various bottles vodka, cognac, whiskey, brandy and bourbon until he stopped on a bottle of Pyrat Rum. His hand begun to tighten on the bottle as a rush of emotions twist their way through him.
Caroline had seen Klaus grab the bottle as she walked back into the room, maybe it was a bad idea to grab that one from his house, but she had seen it and remembered Kol telling her that one day he would have her try real Rum, she thought it would be a good idea to bring it, now she wasn't so sure. Caroline cautiously placed her hand on his arm that held the bottle, if he doesn't ease up on it soon it's going to shatter and give me another mess to clean, she thought as she watched his once relaxed face turn to cold iron once again.
Klaus felt her consoling touch on his arm and attempted to draw his emotions back into his core but he knew she could hear the strain in his voice when he spoke. "This is, was, Kol's favorite Rum."
A gentle sympathetic smile bloomed on her face as she whispered, "I know." At his questioning look she continued before he could ask. "The seeded little bar Kol and I were in a few days ago had real crap for drinks. We ended up working our way through most of it when he went behind the bar and brought out a bottle of cheap Bacardi Rum. He told me how I just had to try his favorite Rum someday." Caroline let of a tiny musical giggle and Klaus found his entire being enthralled by the look of fondness she held as she spoke. "When he told me about it I figured it was some sort of joke to him, acting as a pirate drinking Pyrat Rum." The soft gaze she aimed at him left him in a riot of emotions. It spoke of warmth and again he found himself jealous of his deceased brother. He knew he would rue the day Caroline ever discovered just how much she affected him.
"Kol always did fancy himself a pirate, plundering and stealing the treasures of others as well as their women. He even acquired the fastest ship to ever sail the seven seas. I joined him once or twice back in the early 1800's it was quite the adventure to be had." The memories swarmed through his mind, some he would be willing to share, others he was sure Caroline would rather not hear.
"Yeah that's what Kol told me too. He said it was one of his best memories of you two together without your other siblings around. Although I could have done without hearing about some of your racier adventures." She said raising a teasing eyebrow at him.
Klaus shook his head; leave it to his brother to say exactly what he did not want her to know. "I assure you Love; my younger brother had a way of exaggerating our tales of old."
Caroline gave him a dubious look, "I'm sure." Not wanting to think about why it bothered her to think about the stories Kol had told her of them and their many women she waved the unwanted thoughts away. "So anyways why don't you open that bottle and we can have a toast to Kol?"
She held her glass out as Klaus cracked the seal on the bottle and poured them both two fingers of the Rum. Caroline raised her glass toward Klaus as he set down the bottle and picked up his own. "To Kol. May he continue his pirating ways on the otherside."
Klaus lifted his glass and clinked it with hers replying solemnly, "May he finally find the peace he rightly deserves." They shared a look of sorrow before draining their glasses in one take.
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