"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them." ~ Desmond Tutu
"What's going on?" Caroline asked nervously floating to stand near Elena. Elena's wings quivered ever so slightly and she shook her head.
"I'm just as confused as you are…" she responded.
Gabriel moved about The Hall, not looking at either Caroline or Elena. Occasionally, his hand went to pinch the bridge of his nose. His usual sign of anxiety.
"Okay, so not to be rude or anything, but this is our only free time and we'd like to be gone," Caroline said after a few minutes of Gabriel's pacing.
"Caroline!" Elena scolded quietly.
"No, no, she's right, I apologize," Gabriel said, turning to face them. Caroline suddenly saw the age in him. His face was worn down and he looked sad, as if all the sadness in the world was crashing down on him.
"Angel of Compassion, this is about your sister."
Elena gasped and Caroline's jaw fell open. Katherine? How long had it been since that name was brought up? Two…three centuries?
"Sir…sir I don't understand…" Elena managed to choke out.
"Your twin Katherine, Angel of Bravery, was hurt today. The man she guarded was almost murdered and she saved him, but not without a price."
Elena stiffened. "Is she…"
"No, don't fret about it, she's not dead."
Elena let out a sigh of relief. Everyone knew Elena and Katherine's relationship was rocky, but they were family. They loved one another.
Gabriel still looked grieved and Caroline asked the obvious question.
"What's wrong with her?"
"She was staked by a white oak stake. It was very close to killing her, but she managed to change back before it hit her heart. It drove deep…I believe she will be in confinement for some time."
A tear trickled down Elena's cheek. "Katherine hates being locked away. She'd never want this."
"No one would. The stake was infected her, meaning evil has damaged her purity. Elena, I believe you may understand now why you are here.
Her eyes widened and she took a flap backwards. "Oh no, I couldn't…"
"Elena, I believe you have been waiting for an assignment for quite some time now, am I not right?"
The angel looked up sheepishly and muttered, "Yes…"
"I also believe that you will be challenged by this person you're guarding. He has himself in a tight situation and you have a strong ability to help people in these cases. He's of a different species on Earth, but he's a good one of his kind."
"What do you "species"? Is he not human?"
Gabriel sighed and moved over to Elena, putting gentle hands on her shoulders. "He is a vampire."
Elena gasped and turned to stare at Caroline as if making a connection. "Do you not guard a vampire, Caroline?"
Caroline laughed lightly. "Hybrid. Much different from a vampire."
Elena trembled and looked back up to Gabriel. "I don't know much about vampires….
Elena gave her friend a look. Caroline, still shocked, only nodded. She could sense that this wasn't all. She knew she was in trouble, but Gabriel wouldn't tell Elena about all this with her there. Unless Caroline had something to do with it.
Elena, with her friend's acceptance, turned to face Gabriel. "I will do it."
Gabriel turned and strode he hall, no doubt receiving this person's files for Elena.
Caroline let her mind wander back to the times when the Angel of Bravery lived in the realm of Gabriel. Katherine lived with her sister Elena, which would have made sense if not for the fact that God made then polar opposites. Elena wanted tidiness and order, Katherine hardly ever cleaned up after herself. While Elena was hospitable to guests, Katherine left the home immediately to avoid them. That was before Caroline moved in. Before the fight that made Katherine finally leave the realm and move to another "more suitable" one. The realm of Raquel, to be specific. Elena hardly heard from her after that.
She shook her head out of her memories when Gabriel arrived back with a rather thick file. Elena gingerly took the file from his hands, looking at the cover in awe.
"Elijah Mikaelson…what an old name."
Caroline cocked her head to the side. Mikaelson?
"As in Klaus Mikaelson?" Her voice came out an octave higher, hating the way Gabriel gazed down on her with curiosity at her sudden change in emotion.
"Wait…Elijah is Klaus' brother?" Elena asked. Her wings started to tremble again.
"Yes, they are siblings," Gabriel put his hands on Elena's shoulders, trying to give her peace.
"I want you to guard this man, Angel of Compassion. You do not see yourself as a strong angel, but you are. Prove to yourself through this vampire, that you are powerful and truly are the Angel of Compassion."
Elena bowed her head, letting a tear trickle down her cheek. If Caroline knew one thing about her friend, it was that how much Elena wanted to prove herself to everyone. She wasn't brave and courage like her sister, so her inferiority always got the best of her.
Sometimes Caroline was happy her Lord had not blessed her with a sibling.
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Gabriel turned to face Caroline the moment he bade Elena farewell. Elena would have to get started right away on the file if she wanted to go to business.
"Now, onto your little situation, Angel of Light," Gabriel said with pity in his eyes. Caroline gulped. A list of very foul words was running through her head, but she wasn't about to rant them off in front her boss.
"Caroline, you know the rules of the place by heart…"
"I believe that one of them said that I am allowed to show myself to the one I guard, and to no other. I've only ever shown myself to Klaus."
Gabriel was suddenly in front of her, his massive wings fanning out around her so she had nowhere to look at but him.
"My angel, you know also that you only show yourself if your guarded needs your aid. Niklaus never needed your help."
That stung. Before she could stop her mouth, she asked, "He does need me. Not in the way you mean, but he's lonely. He needs someone to be with him and make him feel happy. I…I make him feel happy." Her face flushed, but she was determined to get her way.
Gabriel rested a fatherly hand on her head. "I love you, Caroline. That means I want to protect you and keep you safe. Turning into your human form every time makes you more susceptible to the harms on Earth and I cannot allow that."
His eyes gazed down at her with love and a bit of disappointment. Next to him, she was so small and fragile. She knew she really had no chance next to an angel so wise and powerful.
Sighing, she asked, "What is my punishment?"
He moved his wings to rest on his back, allowing Caroline to feel the fresh air again.
"Tomorrow morning, you will come see me in The Hall and you shall give me your necklace. I'll keep it safe for you until the end."
Caroline laid her hand on her necklace, hating the idea of it off her neck. The idea made her feel naked and exposed. This also meant that she wouldn't be able to see Klaus anymore in a human form. The thought made her ache.
"How long until I get it back?" She asked, hoping she didn't sound too heartbroken.
"When I believe you deserve to have it back. Now, I believe you wanted some of your free time back am I correct?"
Caroline nodded dumbly. She bowed and it hit her once she was out that she wouldn't be having much of a free time.
Stefan took a long drag of the bourbon, loving the way it burned his throat. He stared at the closed door ahead of him, wishing that Rebekah and Elijah would hurry up. He didn't like the sudden seriousness that was taking over his home.
A hand slapped down on his back and he turned to glare at his brother.
Damon smiled and tapped his glass to Stefan's. "Cheer up. Rebekah won't keep anything away from you. Besides why do you always insist on not listening in on her conversations with her brothers."
"This is one of Rebekah's rules and as you know, she has very little rules. Respect that."
Damon chuckled. "Too late. Already heard most of it. Quite interesting, really."
Stefan opened his mouth to give Damon a piece of his mind when Rebekah opened the door. She nodded them in and in a moment, the brothers were seated next to a sleep-deprived Elijah.
"Damon, I believe that you have already heard what my sister and I have discussed."
Damon muttered under his breath, but nodded at the Original.
"Mikael's after Nik, Stefan…" Rebekah whispered brokenheartedly. Stefan stood up and hugged her, kissing her hair.
"Explain," commanded Stefan over Rebekah's head.
"Mikael has the white oak stake. At first, he meant me to join him in killing Niklaus, but I refused and he turned against me. I escaped and came directly her. I thought we were safe from him, Rebekah."
"We should have been," Rebekah sniffled. "But he found us…even it was longer this time. He wants Nik…we have to protect Nik from him!"
"And we will sister," Elijah said softly. "I must rest now, but tomorrow we go directly to see Niklaus. We must talk to him and warn him. He's spent his whole life running…he will know what to do."
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Caroline sat at the desk near his bed, simply watching Klaus sleep.
She wanted to wake him up and explain to him her woes, but she knew he would do something irrational…something stupid and mess everything up. The tears in her eyes made the whole situation even worse. She cared for him...probably more than any angel could.
She felt a sudden urge to touch him, to feel the flesh that encased this magnificent creature.
Caroline silently placed her body on his bed, determined not to wake him up from his pleasant dream. At least she assumed that it was pleasant, judging from the gentle smile on his face. Once he woke up, that gentleness would be gone.
She laid her head on the empty pillow, facing Klaus. Her eyes caressed down his face, his strong arms, and muscular chest. He was so beautiful, yet so dangerous. Those arms had ripped humans, that chest laid against his victims' bodies, and yet she didn't seem to care about all that right then. All she wanted was to be near him. To breath his scent and feel his body heat.
Gently placing her hand on his cheek, she finally let a few tears trickle down her face.
"Hey Klaus," she whispered lowly. She barely could hear herself. "Things in heaven aren't going too smoothly right now, as ironic as that sounds…you know when you go to heaven, I swear it will be only paradise for you. Us angels have to deal with the messy bits."
She paused, recollecting herself.
"Anyway, I don't know when I can come back to see you. I…really like seeing you," she blushed. God, this was humiliating. "I just…I left you that day because I was feeling something for you that was wrong. I started feeling things in places I have never felt things," she laughed without humor. "I hope you realize that you and I could never work. You're wasting your time trying to woo me to the dark side. I'm here because of a job, remember that."
She leaned in and kissed his cheek, letting his stubble tickle her lips.
"I can't see you for awhile…but I'll be back before you know it. Only if you behave, of course."
She didn't like the way her heart clenched when she left the bed. For the first time, she felt cold.
And that was frightening.
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"You're a pretty thing, aren't you?"
The girl moaned again as he trailed his lips down her neck and onto her breasts. Firmly gripping them, he kneaded the mounds together, smiling wider and wider with each whimper and moan coming from the girl.
"Open your neck to me," he commanded.
She angled her neck for his better access. He put his nose to her skin and inhaled deeply.
"You smell delightful," he whispered and before she could even giggle at his odd comment, he drove his teeth into her neck.
He groaned at the taste of her fresh hot blood mingling with her screams. He held her closer to him and he could feel her weakening with every gulp he swallowed. He wasn't kidding. Delightful.
The mood was killed when his cell phone rang.
"Damn you, Elijah!" The girl moaned as she dropped to the floor. "Hold that thought, darling," he turned away from her and put the cell to his ear.
"What the hell Elij…" he paused for a moment, his face turning from one of agitation to one of dismay.
"I'm on my way, brother," he shut off the phone and bent down to compel the girl off.
He had a very bad feeling he wouldn't be having nights like this anymore.
I think you can all guess who this is ;) More klaroline to come and of course the Original family! Thanks for all your love guys, it's incredible!
(Someone was confused about the scene when Caroline visits Klaus while he's sleeping. Her necklace at that point hasn't been taken away from her, she still has it until the morning to give it to Gabriel. I hope that explains it, hopefully I cleared up the confusion).
