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The stutters of her frail heart were music to his ears. The chill temperature of the night reddened her cheeks with blood which Kol craves for ravenously. Focus was hard to achieve when the sound of her pounding heart sliced through the air, working twice as hard to keep her body warm. It only made him drool. There was a difference between a human and a blood bag. It was the struggle for life as they grow limp in his arms that Kol enjoyed. He wanted to grab her slim waist and rest his lips where the pulse beats the strongest and feel her fragile life balance in his hands before he would sink his fangs into his victim. It was all making him hungry.
"That is so not subtle," the girl remarked. Kol raised his brow in confusion. "The I-want-to-eat-you look. It's no secret that you want to eat me."
"Oh, I do." Kol answered in a heartbeat. "Why? Are you offering, darling?"
The two pricks in his bottom lips had healed quickly from his sharp incisors. He hadn't realized that he had been suppressing his hunger. The girl was right; Kol did want to devour her. The vampire was sick of the bagged blood Elijah had supplied him with continuously. He was desperate to hunt and there sat the most perfect opportunity, ready to fulfill his hunger. Kol became distracted with the different ways to end the girl and satisfy his growing thirst for blood. His wandering eyes landed on the pair of luminous green eyes hiding in the shadows. It was the strangest hue of green. The tone of her eyes was like none he had ever encountered before, unnaturally beautiful. Her face was immersed in the dark shadows but Kol's preternatural eyesight was able to pinpoint the girl slouching against a tree, struggling to keep awake in the cold.
"I know that the weather is harsh but don't die on me now, pet."
The girl scoffed. "Keep talking."
The leaves rustled in the winds as it swept through the woods. Carter ran a hand down her bare arms to feel the uneven skin from the goose-bumps. A shiver ran through her as the wind nipped at her skin again.
She wondered how long would it take for her friend, Lenny, to discover that she was missing. How will she react when she finds her car door lying meters away? Pissed because she had just managed to pay the last of her car debt or anxious because Carter is missing? How long would it take for Lenny to find the Original? Provided that he is real, of course. She bunched up her wild hair into a ponytail and silently observed the arrogant vampire strutting from one end of the clearing to the other end as if he was due for a fashion show. How long would it take for her to die of hypothermia rather than spend another gut-wrenching second with an obnoxious vampire? Is it even possible to cheat death when a vampire who is hyper actively aware of your every move? Maybe not. But magic has a way of making it work.
He had stopped in his tracks with his back towards the witch. Wise choice, Carter congratulated the vampire. She let her concentration pool on his shoulder blades, imagining a fiery torture for her kidnapper. Her eyes wandered south and a smile tugged at her lips, he does have a cute bum.
Kol doubled over in pain with a hiss. It was a miracle. Carter had expected it to fail miserably but watching the vampire snarling in pain at her torment encouraged her further more. She grinned gleefully before realizing the flaw in her plan. Kol turned on his feet with an icy glare on his lips and arms hanging loosely by his sides, they were his most lethal weapon. Her magic had almost no effect on the vampire. A dark chuckle emanated from Kol. His brown orbs were dark and riddled with malice. "I am a thousand years old, pet. You're going to have hit harder."
"Well, I apologize for trying to save my own skin. It's not every day I get kidnapped and held hostage, just so we're clear." Carter spat.
Her spunk made Kol laugh. "I do apologize for my rash actions. My manners are not quite polished after a century in a coffin, you see."
The girl froze. "Holy shit, it's you."
"Excuse me?"
It was all very amusing to Kol. The girl emerged from the dark with her arms swaying by her sides and her strange eyes round with curiosity. The dead leaves clung to her fuchsia skirt as she waddled in the dress into the brightly lit clearing. The moonlight washed over her radiant face as she moved. It was the first time that Kol had actually observed her closely. She was slender and tall with wild bronze hair that would reach her waist if it were free. Freckles were peppered lightly across her ivory cheeks and her full lips were moist as she licked them repeatedly. His heart dropped when the dots connected. Kol remembered her.
"Sienna?"
She glared in irritation. "No, Carter."
The Original narrowed his eyes to scrutinize the girl. She clawed at her hair in a fail attempt to free her fringe but ended up ruffling her hair. Carter hissed in annoyance and ripped the elastic free to let her bronze curls cascade down her back like a waterfall. Kol was right; the tip of her untameable hair did graze her waist. The roots of her hair were dark red which morphed into a beautiful bronze, another similarity that Kol noted painfully. He despised nature of its sick reincarnation.
Then there was the snap. The vampire didn't hesitate to wrap a hand around her porcelain neck, his lips curled back to expose his sharpened incisors. His predatory senses were heightened. Carter's heart rate had spiked and Kol could sense her circulation beginning to cut off. His unpredictable behaviors are what terrify others. It was a quick flip switch.
Kol watched her struggle for her breath. "You haunt me throughout my existence. Give me a reason not to kill you."
"It is nature's way to punish you," a thick accent answered. "Leave her be."
A small woman emerged barefooted through the thin foliage. Her round face was trailed with wrinkles collected over the years and her gray hair rested on her shoulders. The pendants adorning her chest clanked against each other as she moved. Kol recognized the old witch whom he had acquainted in New Orleans not too long ago before he was daggered. Vera followed in suit with the young witch whom they are all suspicious of, her eyes were sealed as if she was soundly asleep.
The girl in Kol's death grip was turning blue. "What if I don't Astrid?"
He fell to one knee with a guttural snarl. The old witch, Astrid, was used to his antics and it was no surprise that he hadn't changed. In New Orleans, Kol was released from his mystical slumber for a few years before Klaus daggered him again. In the time that he was awake, he and Astrid became acquaintances and now Kol wanted to finish what he had started in New Orleans.
Carter was sprawled on the ground. There was a real struggle to breathe; it felt as though a thousand minuscule needles were jabbed into her throat. Her thoughts wandered back to Oliver, was this half as painful as what he went through? The twigs poked at her cheeks and imprinted on her skin. Carter found her savior through hooded eyes. The old witch was running the show now, sprinkling salt on the ground with echoes of her rapid murmurings around the young witch. She recognized Lenny's tattered dress. Her heart skipped a beat. Carter couldn't stop the overwhelming guilt that washed over her as she realized that their plan was a flop. Her obsession to resurrect her dead family risked Lenny's life and that was a price she wasn't willing to pay.
Vera hovered by the trees, her eyes glued on Astrid with a flash of concern. Astrid is nothing but strong and Kol respected her for it. She shuffled around the outer circle and stopped behind Lenny. Slowly, she began to stir awake. Kol had recovered from Astrid's witchy-migraine and snatched Carter into his arms roughly; her gasp was silenced with his lips as they graze her naked skin. It took Lenny seconds to piece everything together.
"Oh shit," was all she said.
"That doesn't even begin to cover it." Carter forced a grin on her lips to calm her friend.
Kol tightened his grip around Carter's waist to silence her. "Did the Original witch call for you?"
There was no reason to suspect Ester of anything but her forgiveness for his hybrid brother did strike him as peculiar. Kol brushed it off his shoulders the second he realized it, it needn't worry him. There were many things that intrigued him, like this strange reincarnation of a girl he once loved.
"No," Lenny locked eyes with Kol. "We're here for you."
He froze. What she had said rendered him speechless. It wasn't expected. The vampire's rigid stance relaxed and he held Carter by his side tautly. If it was a casual situation, Carter would blush madly from the intimate position and become enraged. She wasn't fond of intimacy. But Carter was willing to stay in Kol's hold if it means the cold winds would stop nipping at her exposed skin. She poked his ribs repeatedly as an attempt for Kol to release her but his eyes snapped away from Lenny's and met hers. She cringed visibly; his glare was enough to send her running for the hills.
There was a hint of smugness in Lenny's tone. "We've caught wind that you are searching for the tomb where Dimitri lay. And I know exactly who can find it and unseal it – trust me, I've done my research. We just want a small exchange for that precious information."
Vera's eyes flitted over to the Original. Would he take the bait? Kol chuckled. "You are either courageous or incredibly stupid."
Lenny shrugged. "Pick one."
The Original grinned maliciously at Lenny. He tilted Carter's head to the side to give him access to her flawed neck. The veins were visible through her translucent skin, even though they were marked with horrid bruises from his hands. His lips were poised over her carotid artery, ready to strike. Lenny's face paled. "Incredibly stupid, it is."
Neither Astrid nor Vera had the strength to stop Kol from plunging his fangs into the girl's mellow skin. Kol couldn't stop the content sigh escaping his lips as the taste of warm blood flooded his mouth. His fingers played with Carter's hair and they wandered to her neck, feeling and waiting for the last pump of her pulse as she dies. Of course the other one was next, he was ravenous.
"She can unseal the tomb you're looking for!" Lenny cried. "Just don't hurt her."
This was negotiable. The Original released Carter from his grasp; she stumbled before hitting the ground hard. She was barely alive. A thin stream of red ran from the corner of his mouth down to his chin. Kol sunk his teeth into his wrist and pressed it against Carter's pale lips. His blood would heal her faster than any modern medication would. Kol stalked towards Lenny; her dark brown orbs glistened with tears that threatened to fall. He raised a hand to stroke her cheek through the barrier but Lenny flinched away.
"That wasn't so hard," he purred. "Now, does she know where it is? Because that warlock has what I need, darling."
"Maybe she does. I don't know." Lenny bit her lips from letting them tremble.
He clicked his tongue. "You see the conundrum, darling? If Carter cannot locate it, she is no longer of use to me. Neither are you."
She was racked with fear. "I promise you."
Kol looked up to find Astrid's eyes ad beckoned her forward. It was all then too fast for human eyes to catch it. The Original had plunged his hand deep into the witch's chest cavities and ripped out her beating heart which he dropped onto the ground, splattering Lenny's white dress with blotches of red blood. Then Vera found Kol standing before her with a grin upon his face. Her heart drummed in her ribcage, shock had overwhelmed her. With one swoop of his hand, Kol had decapitated the young witch. Their service meant nothing to him any more. Kol was ready to kill if it meant he got what he wanted.
"Don't be alarmed." A smile graced his lips. His eyes flickered over to Carter for a moment; her face was filled with pure horror and disgust for the vampire. "If you will work for me, you will understand how meaningless they were."
"Brother," a voice full of authority sliced through the ecstatic crowd. It was followed by a concerned face, no older than Elijah. Finn handed Kol a glass of champagne. "Where have you been?"
"I was outside, Finn. Do you want to know my body count?" Kol taunted darkly.
The liquid in the glass trembled as he accepted Finn's offer. No one had noticed the absence of the uninvited guest and her great-grandmother, and Kol felt that tonight had been a success at extracting information from his resourceful sources. There was no need for Vera and Astrid any more. They had done their part.
"Rebekah was looking for you before. Although she failed to mention why," Finn informed him quietly. The awkwardness between them settled as fast as a sinking ship. Kol looked around for the familiar flash of blonde.
"Mustn't be important, I gather." Kol murmured and raised the rim to his lips.
Finn stopped him. "Let's not be rude. Let's wait for Mother's toast, shall we?"
Finn, along with everybody else, turned to meet the eyes of the woman standing on the marble stairwell. Everything about Ester screamed elegant. It was a trait that very few possess and many yearn. Kol was unaffected by his mother's heartfelt speech of reunion. Unlike Klaus, Kol didn't beg for forgiveness from their mother. It was her who turned them, now she suffers the consequences. Ester's eyes flitted over to Kol for a second before fluttering to the different pairs of eyes in the room.
"Cheers," she said with a smile. Kol tipped the champagne down his mouth in one swift movement.
The Original was distracted despite being in the company of beautiful women who began flocking around him. Kol peered around to catch a glimpse of a pair of captivating green eyes. There were none like hers in this room. He wished to see it once more before they leave Mystic Falls tonight but he was greeted with disappointment. Finn cleared his throat to pull back Kol's wandering mind. A smile spread across his face as if he was caught being cheeky. But then he found a glimpse of wild bronze curls weaving through the crowds.
"Excuse me, Finn," he thrust the glass into Finn's hands and followed Carter.
He copied her footsteps and followed her outside. There was a flash of annoyance on his face; he had made it clear that both she and Lenny were to leave Mystic Falls before anyone stumbles upon them. It would be far less complicated if she would just listen. Despite that, Kol couldn't stop the excitement of seeing Carter bubble to the surface. The mass of people began to thin out and they stood by the carriages. The horses whinnied and stomped their hooves on the bitumen. As soon as Kol was sure that they out of hearing range, he reached out for Carter. Only Kol watched as his hands clutched at the empty air. Both his hands were thrown in front of him as he clutched frantically at the air. What is this?
It was peculiar. She turned to face Kol. It wasn't Carter any more, it was her. The smile on her face made his heart skip a beat, like it always did. Her eyes. It was as blue as the oceans.
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If you've made it down here, I congratulate you :) Thoughts? Critiques? Reviews?
