Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries.

Edited: 1/2/13

Chapter VI

Las Vegas, Present-Day

Klaus was a patient man.

Centuries upon centuries of waiting had proved that to be true.

However, as he stared upon his younger brother Kol, who was happily feasting on humans and scattering drained bodies around Klaus' hotel room, he was starting to reconsider that statement. Klaus shook his head, disgusted with Kol's actions. While Klaus fed only out of necessity, Kol enjoyed it, practically thrived on it.

Klaus, for his part, found the creatures to be absolutely revolting. They were all so weak and fragile. These were the beings that God had kicked him out of Heaven for? Klaus still couldn't believe it even after all this time.

Pathetic.

And as if to rub the salt on the wound even further after having stripped him of all his pride and honor, his Father had cursed him to an eternity of reliance on the very creatures he despised for sustenance.

The irony of it all.

An incessant noise shook him out of his thoughts. Klaus glared at Kol, who was grinning devilishly at a frantic blond girl whose screams were starting to cause an ache in Klaus' head.

"Turn that thing off."

"Aw, brother, don't spoil my fun."

"Then go take it elsewhere. I can't believe you brought humans into my room. I expect that you will clean this up."

"Relax, brother. You know me."

"I do, and it's taught me that I am the one always cleaning up after your messes."

"So tense. You're sure you don't want a drink?" Kol roughly tugged the sobbing girl's head up, causing the veins in her smooth pale neck to jut out towards Klaus, who frowned and looked back down to the sketchbook in his hands.

"I'm positive."

"Your loss, Nik." Kol tore into the girl's neck, whose screeching voice promptly filled the room once again. A good fifteen seconds passed by before Klaus decided that he could not stand the maddening noise any longer.

Klaus let out an exasperated sigh and gently set down his pencil and sketchbook. He flashed over to Kol and the girl.

"What, Nik, did you decide that you wanted some?" Kol looked up from his meal and flashed Klaus a snarky smile, crimson liquid dribbling freely down the sides of his mouth.

"Give her to me."

"But she was mine first..." Kol complained.

Klaus stared coldly at Kol until he finally relented.

"Fine, fine. Up you go." Kol pushed the hysterical girl into Klaus' arms.

"Please... please don't hurt-"

Klaus gave the girl's neck a clean twist and she crumpled to the ground, her words dying mid-sentence with her. He wiped his hands on his leather jacket, which he then took off and tossed to the ground. Klaus walked back to his desk and picked up where he had last left off on his sketch.

"Well, that was a complete waste." Kol muttered as he came out of the bathroom a few minutes later, wiping his bloody mouth with a towel he had grabbed from the rack inside. "You know how to ruin a man's dinner."

"Unfortunate." Klaus replied, indifferent. "You should have kept her quiet then."

"But why would I want to do that? I like it when they scream." Kol threw the stained towel on top of one of the many female bodies scattered around the room.

"And I don't." Klaus continued to draw, a portrait of a beautiful girl beginning to form on the page of his book.

"Well, I'm going to go out and grab another snack, since you just killed the one I was feasting on." Kol waited expectantly for a reply from his elder brother.

"Fine by me." Klaus glanced up disinterestedly. "Just clean this up first."

"I will when I get back. But you brother, need to come along and have some fun. Stop sitting on your arse being boring all day."

"I'd rather not participate in your type of fun, Kol."

"Aw, that hurts. You don't even have to feed. Just slaughter a bunch like you used to back in the old days."

"I've better things to do."

"Like scratch things on a flap of paper?"

"Yes."

"Klaus, you used to be so much more exciting." Kol moped next to the door.

"Well then, Kol, it's a good thing that I really don't care about your opinion of me. Now if you keep disturbing me, I'll have no problem ripping out your tongue."

"Alright, alright. Later, then." Kol held his arms up in surrender before making his way out of the room. The door clicked shut behind him.

Klaus let out a huge breath.

Finally some peace and quiet.

He continued to draw, the only sound in the room that of his pencil moving. After fifteen minutes, Klaus set down his pencil and leaned back into his chair. He stared pensively at the page in his sketchbook, his fingers gently tracing the outlines of his completed drawing.

The girl in his picture radiated of light, her silken locks flaring fiercely behind her and an intense look blazing in her eyes.

Klaus thought back to when he had first met this girl 520 years ago.

To when he had saved her from Kol.

England, 1492

Klaus was closer than he'd ever been to opening the Gates to the Garden of Eden. Almost all of the necessary ingredients were in place.

It was July, the month of Precious Blood, the only time at which the ritual could be performed. He had both an Angel and a Fallen Angel to sacrifice.

And now all he required was the Descendant, whose blood was needed in the ritual. Kol was out retrieving the Descendant for him at this very moment and when he returned with her, it would all be completed.

He would finally have his vengeance against his Father. He would open the Gates, enter the Garden, and rid the world of its disease by destroying the Tree of Life, which was the only thing sustaining humanity. With this, he would finally be free of his curse, which bound him both to an unfortunate dependance on humans and to the very earth on which they lived. By destroying the Tree, he would be able to return to his former home, a place of endless beauty and light.

A place Klaus longed for dearly.

Klaus tapped his foot impatiently. Minutes turned into an hour, but there was still no sign of Kol or the Descendant.

Something was wrong. Kol had been gone for far too long.

He stood up and growled.

It seemed that Klaus would have to do everything himself.

Klaus flashed outside his home and towards the location Kol had said the Descendant would be at. The forest blurred around him as he moved. He came to a stop in front of a old wooden house, whose door was slightly ajar.

He pushed the door open to behold a sight that made him roar in fury, a noise that silenced every living creature in the general vicinity. Red-hot rage filled every crevice in his body and consumed his entire being. His normally blue eyes flashed a demonic gold-black.

The Descendant, swinging limply in the ceiling, was lost to him once again.

Klaus hit the wall beside him, blasting a large hole clean through it.

All of his preparations had been for naught. He had been so close to opening the Gates but now his goal was out of his reach again.

He had no doubt that another Descendant would appear soon. It was just the matter of when and where.

However, a more pressing question soon emerged in his mind.

What had happened here?

As Klaus examined his surroundings, he noticed that there had been definite signs of struggle. There was a stake lodged in the wall to his far left, which he assumed was fashioned from the wooden chair lying in splinters next to him. Lying on the ground to his right was a brown-haired girl whose her heart had been torn and left several lengths away from her.

He needed answers and he needed them now. There was only one person who Klaus was sure had them.

Kol.

Klaus inhaled through his nose, attempting to track Kol's scent. He was able to faintly detect his brother in the surroundings. However, another stronger and unfamiliar fragrance pervaded his senses, one that smelled distinctly of lilacs and hyacinths.

A scent that reminded him briefly of his lost home.

So someone else had been here as well.

Klaus followed the mysterious fragrance outside, where it continued to intermingle with his brother's weak scent. He had no doubt that he would find Kol wherever the person who carried this scent was.

Klaus flashed through the dark woods, following the path of the flowery fragrance. A sudden agonized scream broke through the air to the left of him, one that sounded very much like Kol's. Klaus whipped his head toward the direction of the noise and flashed close enough so he could determine what was happening but still be hidden.

His younger brother was lying on the ground, his eyes closed and his breathing slow. However, sitting on top of him was the most beautiful creature that Klaus had ever laid his eyes on.

The girl was of a slim and petite figure. A golden dress hugged her body, highlighting her curves in all the right places. Silky waves of glowing gilded hair scattered all around her, accentuating the girl's features even more.

If Klaus looked closely enough, he could even see the traces of a tattooed pair of golden wings on her back, which he knew was used to seal the wings of Angels from mortal eyes.

So this girl was one of Heaven's residents.

The girl made to leave, but his brother had recovered from whatever assault she had surprised him with, and shot his fingers around the girl's neck. The girl had a shocked expression on her face, clearly not expecting his brother to be awake.

Kol flipped their positions, and the two exchanged words, but Klaus was too far away to catch anything.

Klaus examined the girl's face and was thrown off by the intense emotions he saw swirling in it. A fiery and determined look was burning brightly in the girl's jade-colored orbs and her mouth was set in a firm line.

A sudden burst of wind carried her floral fragrance over to him. Memories of his former life in Heaven threatened to dig their way up. The girl in front of him radiated of light and purity, something that he had long forgotten existed.

Kol raised his hand, prepared to tear out the girl's beating heart.

Klaus resolved at that very moment that he would not see this girl dead, if only to preserve the rare shard of innocence lying in front of him. Before he knew it, Klaus had flashed behind Kol, his brother's hand gripped tightly in place by his own.

"Enough of this."

He heard Kol scoff and saw him twist his head around to confront Klaus' gaze directly. The corners of Kol's mouth quirked upward, however, his eyes were glaring with annoyance.

"Klaus." Kol ripped his hand out of Klaus' grasp and stood up to meet his full height. "Brother, uncanny timing as always. Can't you see that I'm busy?"

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Talking with you."

"Kol, I am hardly in the mood for jokes."

"Well, what do you want me to say?" Kol tilted his head, shrugging lightly. "I'm not too clear on what we're talking about."

"Why are you here?"

"To kill this pretty little thing here, clearly. Or about to, until you disturbed me."

"That's exactly the problem. You are supposed to be retrieving the Descendant, not go hunting. And yet here you are, distracted with an Angel."

"My apologies. I was so preoccupied that I lost track of time. Are we done?"

"Certainly not. It's in your best interest to tell me exactly what happened."

"What?"

"Tell me what happened with her!" Klaus curled his hands tightly. He was quickly losing his patience.

"With who?"

"Katherine!" Klaus shoved his brother angrily against a tree. "Why is she hanging from a ceiling?"

"Ah right... her. Yeah, I'm not quite sure what happened there."

Klaus growled loudly and twisted his brother's dominant arm as far as it would go behind Kol's back.

An audible snap echoed through the air.

Kol fell to the ground, gripping his limp arm. Before Kol could react, Klaus grabbed a broken branch on the ground and drove it through his brother's good hand, effectively pinning it into the ground.

"What do you think you're doing!" Kol hissed, veins popping around his darkening eyes.

"What I should've done a long time ago. You've failed me, Kol. You were supposed to keep the Descendant alive. And yet she isn't." Klaus leaned down towards his brother. "So tell me, what have you done for me to warrant your life? We may be brothers, but you know just as well as I do that I have no tolerance for failures!"

Klaus stood up, prepared to kill his brother and end his miserable existence once and for all. Because of Kol, he had lost his chance to open the Gates again.

There was a sudden snapping of twigs in the distance, which drew Klaus' attention away from his brother for a moment. He caught one final glimpse of the beautiful Angel, her hair billowing like a yellow beacon in the wind as she sprinted away. She looked back briefly, her radiant emerald eyes locking with his for a mere second before she completely disappeared from his view.

Klaus looked down to find his brother gone.

Kol's hands suddenly whipped around Klaus' neck and his brother's voice whispered in his ears.

"Sorry brother, but I'm not about to die today."

There was a twist, a crack, and then everything turned dark, the last image in Klaus' mind being that of the girl filled with light.

A/N: Wow you guys. Can I just start off by saying that last night's episode of TVD (4x07) was just phenomenal. God, I was literally in Klaroline heaven the entire time. All the scenes with Klaus and Caroline in it almost killed me with their cuteness. Klaus just became infinitely more likeable (as if he wasn't already) and my respect for Caroline went up A LOT. She sure told Elena. And it's hilarious that she's playing Stefan's therapist. Who else shares my enthusiasm?

ANYWAY.

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I really enjoyed writing this one. Klaus and Kol are just so much fun. Thanks for the follows and favorites, and PLEASE don't forget to leave me a lovely review. You reviews motivate me to write more and write faster.

Virtual cookies to my loyal reviewers of whom I adore greatly: Clara and justine. Just curious, would you guys like it if I replied to your reviews on tumblr, as you post as guests? I really wish I could answer your questions. Let me know. ;D

Much Love,

~omnomchocolate