Warning, there's some violence in this chapter, marked with xxxxxxx. I also changed the rating, just in case.


Clarissa was clenching her fists in rage; she was in a very bad mood. The whole day she had been ready to meet Niklaus Mikaelson, she had looked especially stunning at dinner, but he hadn't been there. Nor had he been at lunch or breakfast, according to his brother, he had been feeling a bit ill. Still he hadn't been in his suite either; Clarissa's maid had made sure of that. This was simply intolerable; men chased her, not the other way around. He would chase her; she would make damn sure of that.

"I'm sure he will be feeling better tomorrow…" her mother was saying, but Clarissa could barely hear her, she was looking at the tall dark-haired man who was standing silently next to the sofa. There was no expression on his face; he was waiting for her orders.

"I want you to follow his every move tomorrow," she said. "I want to know exactly where he is."

"Yes, miss Spencer," Lewis replied. "I will take care of it."

Clarissa hated when things didn't go her way, but perhaps a little challenge could be refreshing for a change. She smiled and looked at her flawless face in the mirror; Niklaus Mikaelson didn't stand a chance.


"Thank you," Elijah said when the maid poured him some tea. He was sitting on the armchair, glancing at Klaus who was sitting on the sofa with his own tea. Klaus had come back to the suite so late last night that he hadn't run into Elijah, but now they were having their morning tea, Klaus had plenty of time before meeting Viola.

"So, do you have any plans for today?" Elijah asked, keeping his face free from emotions.

Klaus shrugged.

"Perhaps. How about you?"

Elijah's eyebrows furrowed, he waited until the maid had left.

"Niklaus…"

"Don't start," Klaus warned. "This is not any of your business."

Elijah sighed.

"Perhaps not, but playing with a blind girl is low, even for you. No offence."

Klaus' eyes narrowed.

"Is that so?" he asked darkly. "Well, guess what I planned to do with her when I first saw her. That's right, I was planning to drain her and I would have loved every second."

"How nice," Elijah replied coldly. "What are you doing with her now?"

Klaus smirked and placed his empty cup on the coffee table.

"As you said, I'm playing. We still have a long journey ahead of us and I don't like to be bored."

Elijah sighed and shook his head.

"You are hopeless."

"Yes, probably," Klaus huffed. "But I trust you are smart enough for not trying to ruin my fun, you know how I get when someone tries to do that."

Elijah's nostrils flared.

"Was that a threat, brother?"

"No," Klaus replied innocently. "Just a friendly advice."

He stood up and tapped Elijah's shoulder before walking out; he had no intention to continue this conversation. Elijah could think whatever he wanted, it made no difference. In fact, it was definitely better if his brother thought that he was simply playing with the girl. Lazily Klaus made his way to The Lounge; there were few men and one woman playing cards there. Most First Class women spent their time in The Reading and Writing Room, which was meant especially for them, The Lounge and The Smoke Room were mostly for men.

The woman who was playing cards with the men didn't seem out of place at all; she was talking and laughing loudly. Klaus remembered seeing her at lunch two days ago, her name was Margaret Brown. The women, who had sat at the same table with him and Elijah, hadn't thought very highly of her, they had seen her as uncivilized upstart, new money, but apparently she was too wealthy to be completely ignored. She seemed to be quite a character. Klaus considered joining the game, but he didn't feel like sitting indoors, the deck sounded much better. He still had time; perhaps he would take a seat and order a drink. He barely made it to the deck and leaned against the railing when someone appeared next to him.

"Good morning, Mr. Mikaelson," a perky woman's voice said. Oh great… He suppressed his sigh and turned to look at the young blonde who was standing next to him, he had forgotten her completely.

"Miss Marissa," he muttered.

She looked more than offended, but she managed to hide it quickly.

"Clarissa," she corrected, keeping the sweet smile on her face.

"Yes, right. I apologize."

"That's alright," she said and blinked her big blue eyes. "It's such a beautiful morning."

"Yes, it is."

"I didn't see you at breakfast."

"I wasn't there; my brother and I had tea in our suite."

"Oh, I understand, I'm not much of a morning person myself," she purred.

"Hmm."

Klaus wasn't even slightly interested in her company, but she kept babbling. Finally she paused and leaned towards him.

"I was hoping that I could ask you a favor," she said shyly. "I would like to take a walk on the Promenade Deck, but I don't have anyone to escort me, I would feel much safer if I would have a strong gentleman like you by my side."

Klaus raised his eyebrows.

"There are many people on the Promenade Deck, I'm sure you will be safe there."

There was a glimpse of something dark in her eyes, before she managed to place a coy smile on her face.

"I haven't got used to be all alone," she said innocently. "How a fragile woman like me could defend herself if someone would harass me."

"I'm sure you will manage," Klaus huffed and was about to turn around when Clarissa started to shake.

"Oh, I feel dizzy…" she sighed and fell down, forcing Klaus to catch her. Honestly? He could have just let her fall on the deck, but this was probably the easier way to get rid of her.

"I need some help here," he said, trying not to sound annoyed. "The lady needs a doctor."

Fortunately there were few people on the deck, one man ran inside to get the doctor while others gathered around him and "fainted" Clarissa.

"What happened?" some woman asked.

"I don't know, she just fainted," Klaus replied. "Could someone help me, my arms are getting numb."

He had said that on purpose and clearly Clarissa could hear his every word, she clenched her fists in anger when he implied that she was heavy. Not a very gentlemanly thing to do, but this woman was really getting on his nerves. He had never liked women like her, but for some reason she annoyed him particularly much.

"I'll take her," some man offered, making Clarissa to immediately open her eyes.

"Mr. Mikaelson?" she said weakly. "Please don't leave me…"

"The doctor is on his way, miss," he interrupted her and shoved her on the other man's arms. "He can offer you much better assistance than I can. Excuse me."

The other people gave him disapproving looks for abandoning "the poor girl", but he couldn't have cared less about that. He headed straight to the Third Class deck, it was much better to wait for Viola there. After walking around for a while, he went back to the First Class deck and asked a steward to get him his sketchpad; he needed something to do to past the time. Fortunately no one was sitting on his and Viola's bench; he could settle there and start sketching. Viola arrived with her cousin right after lunch, Klaus stood up and took her hands while greeting her.

"Have you been here for long?" she asked.

"No, not very long," he lied. "I took my sketchpad with me to keep me occupied."

"Oh, you can draw?"

"More or less, it's just a hobby. You know, drawing, painting, I have always been interested in art."

"That sounds nice," she said. "What kind of things do you paint?"

"Sceneries, buildings, sometimes people," he replied. "That depends on my mood."

He leaned over and softly touched her cheek while tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. If he wasn't mistaken, his touch sent goose bumps down her neck. The realization made him smile.

"I would love to paint you sometimes," he stated smoothly.

She let out a nervous laugh; she didn't seem to know how to reply.

"I'm serious, love," he assured. "What do you say?"

"I… Sure, if you want to."

"Yes, I do."

The blush was rising in her cheeks, clearly she was flattered. He couldn't help but to think how easy target she would be to any bastard who would want to take advantage of her innocence. She was a smart girl, but she was also naïve as far as men were concerned. But then again, her cousin would have looked after her if Klaus wouldn't have compelled him to think that he wasn't a threat. He definitely was a threat, the most dangerous predator she would ever meet.


"Are you sure about this, love?" Klaus asked. "There's going to be a lot of people there, we can just go back to the deck…"

"I want to do this," I interrupted him. "I'm not some doll, Klaus, I won't break."

"No, of course not, I just…."

I couldn't help but smile, he was worried about me. That was so sweet.

"I promised Tommy a dance, he said that he has never been in a party like these, there's some man who plays harmonica and other man who plays fiddle…"

"Yes, yes, I understand," Klaus muttered. "Of course we can go if you want."

Tommy had told me this morning about the party he and Billy had been last night, there had been plenty of people there, men, women and children. The Third Class passengers certainly weren't invited to the balls that were organized for the First and the Second Class passengers, but we were allowed to have our own parties in the Third Class Dining Room. There was no orchestra or anything like it, just passengers who could play some instrument.

I was excited; I had never been in a party or danced. Tommy had assured that it wasn't difficult, just moving with the rhythm. I only wished that papa would have joined us, but he hadn't felt much better today. At least he had eaten, that was a start. I would have liked him to meet Klaus, but I had no idea how he would react. Today had been just as amazing as yesterday, Klaus and I had spent most of it on the deck. We had even had some tea and sandwiches at the bow of the ship, Klaus had somehow got us a permission to go there.

I didn't think that I would ever forget that experience, the sea breeze on my face and the sound of the huge waves hitting against the ship's bow. Klaus was truly an amazing man; I couldn't believe how lucky I had been to meet him. A part of me worried that I would never meet him again after we would reach New York, but I didn't want to worry about that, I wanted to enjoy this time we had together. Whatever would happen, I would never forget him.

He was squishing my hand tighter when we approached the Dining Room, I could already hear the music and cheerful voices of people talking and laughing. So many voices, many of them sounded to be more or less drunk. People were clapping their hands, stumping their feet and cheering. Klaus wrapped his arm protectively around me when we entered the Dining Room, I could feel how tense he was. All the loud noises made me a little nervous, but I was also excited.

"Momma, why does that lady have a cane?" I heard a child's voice asking.

"Because she can't see, sweetheart," a woman's voice replied. "She's blind."

"Oh. Am I going to be blind too if I touch her?"

"No, sweetheart, but don't go near her, she might accidently step on you or hit you with that cane."

"Listen, lady…" Klaus started angrily, but I stopped him.

"Please, don't," I asked quietly and stroked his arm until he calmed down. "Is there any place where we could sit?"

"Yes," he muttered and led me towards the wall; apparently there were empty seats there. "Some people just don't have any manners."

I smiled.

"That was nothing; you should have heard some of the things people have said to me. There was this one man in our neighborhood who was always drunk; he kept calling me Satan's harlot. You know, because God have punished me with blindness."

"I would have ripped his tongue off," Klaus replied.

I was sure that he was joking, so I laughed.

"My knight in shining armor. But really, I don't care what people say, those are just words. Yes, I was more sensitive at first and I was ashamed of myself, but I had to get over that, otherwise I couldn't have left home at all."

He was quiet for a while; I wanted to ask what he was thinking. Suddenly an unpleasant thought crossed my mind. Maybe I didn't care about people saying things and staring at me, but he might.

"I'm sorry, you haven't got used to people staring at you and everything, I haven't even asked…"

"Hey," he interrupted me. "People can stare at me as much as they want. If they are foolish enough."

I laughed.

"You're not embarrassed?"

"Embarrassed for what? For being with a beautiful woman?"

His words made my heart skip a beat; that had been the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to me.

"Would you like to be really embarrassed?" I asked. "Would you like to dance with me?"

"That would be an honor," he replied and took my hand.

"I have to warn you, I have never danced before, but I'll try my best for not to crush your toes…"

"It's alright," he said. "Relax and follow my lead. I won't let you fall, I promise."

His words almost brought tears to my eyes.

"Thank you. I trust you."

I felt almost naked without my cane, but I did trust Klaus and I felt safe when he wrapped his arms around me.

"Here we go…"

It was surprisingly easy for me to move my legs with the music; the rhythm was cheerful and vivacious. Klaus was right there; I felt his body pressing against mine and tried my best to move with him. At first I was very cautious, but when I truly realized that he wouldn't let me fall, I allowed myself to let go and really moved my whole body with the rhythm. I didn't care how ridiculous I looked like, that was one of the rare perks for not seeing how other people looked at me. I heard people cheering and clapping their hands, some men even whistled.

"Go Viola!" Tommy's voice shouted.

I laughed when Klaus spun me around and around until I lost my balance and would have fallen down if he wouldn't have caught me. I danced with Tommy next, then with Klaus again. Some other men would have wanted to dance with me as well, but I heard Klaus growling at them that I was spoken for. I couldn't believe my ears, was he actually jealous?

"Would you like something to drink?" he asked after escorting me back to our seats, I really needed to catch my breath.

"Some water would be wonderful, thank you," I replied.

I couldn't remember ever being so happy, in that moment everything felt perfect.

"Thank you so much," I said when Klaus handed me a glass of water. I was so thirsty that I drank it all with few gulps and sighed in content. "So, are you embarrassed yet?" I asked teasingly.

I felt him moving closer to me and touching my cheek.

"I'm going to kiss you now, love," he announced determinedly.

"Wait," I gasped and placed my hand on his chest. "I mean… I want to kiss you, but there's something I would like to do first."

"What's that?"

I bit my bottom lip.

"I would like to… see you. If that's alright."

Clearly he couldn't understand what I meant.

"Sure… What do you need me to do?"

"Hold still."

He didn't say anything when I leaned over and placed my hands on his shoulders. Carefully I felt his neck before sliding my fingers towards his chin. He was motionless like a statue when I touched his cheeks, his lips, his nose, his forehead and finally his hair. His lips felt so nice that I had to touch them again, but I didn't think that he minded, he parted them a little when I caressed them with my fingers.

"You are beautiful," I said, once again, before thinking.

He didn't say anything; he wrapped his arms around me and hauled me tightly against him. My heart was beating like a drum when he caressed my lips with his thumb before softly pressing his lips against mine. I had never been kissed before, so I had no idea what he wanted me to do, but he definitely knew what he was doing. Slowly he moved his lips, tasting every part of my mouth.

I was a little nervous at first, but he knew how to make me relax, his hand caressed my hair and his lips slowly but surely softened mine to better fit his. After he felt me relaxing, he took a hold of the back of my head and coaxed my mouth open with his tongue. It tickled at first, but then I felt something very different. I moaned in his mouth and he continued moving his tongue in my mouth until I let out a quiet whimper of protest, I felt that I couldn't breathe. I was gasping for air when he pulled away.

"Jesus…" he muttered. "Come with me."

"What…"

He was already pulling me on my feet and leading me towards the door.

"Klaus, what are you doing…"

He didn't stop before we were on the hallway; I made him to stop by refusing to take another step.

"What are you doing?" I asked again.

He pressed me against the wall, not roughly, but still that startled me.

"I want you, Viola," he said, his voice sounded strange. "All of you."

My mouth floundered open and closed, it took a moment before I managed to speak.

"No, Klaus, no."

"Why not?" he asked. "I know you can feel it too, this thing between us."

"I…Yes, I feel…something, but I'm not ready…"

I startled again when he cupped my face.

"I won't hurt you, I swear, just let me have you. Come with me and you don't have to worry about anything, I will look after you, your father, your cousins and whatever other relatives you have. You will have everything you ever need."

"Please…" I said quietly. "You are scaring me."

"What? No, no, you have no reason to be scared…"

"I would like you to leave, please," I muttered, I really was scared now. He was acting very strangely and for a moment I thought that he was going to hurt me.

"Viola…"

I flinched when he touched my hair; that made him to take a step back.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean any of that, I must have drunk too much…"

"That's alright," I said, forcing a smile on my face. "How about we both go to sleep now, things will be better in the morning."

"Viola…"

"Good night, Klaus."

I felt tears burning behind my eyes when I headed to our cabin, how could I have been so wrong about him. I didn't have my cane and I there was no way I would go back to look for it, but that didn't really matter, the hallway was very narrow and fortunately I had memorized the way. It was very quiet when I reached the bathroom near to our cabin; I decided to wash my face.

There was no one there, but that certainly wasn't a bad thing, I needed a moment to pull myself together before facing papa. I couldn't understand what had happened, what had made Klaus to suddenly act like that. I was just washing my face when I heard someone entering the room, but I didn't pay much attention to that. Then someone grabbed me from behind and a hand covered my mouth before I could make a sound.

"Not a sound, you little whore," a man's voice whispered. It wasn't Klaus; I had no idea who this man was. I was panicking and I tried to struggle, but then I felt something cold and sharp pressing against my throat.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Can you feel that?" he whispered. "Hold still or I will cut your throat."

Tears were coursing down my cheeks, I was terrified.

"Wha-what do you want?" I managed to sob when he removed his hand from my mouth. He didn't say anything, I felt him sliding his hand down my side.

"No!" I cried out when he lifted the hem of my dress. "Please…"

"Shut up," he snapped and pressed the knife harder against my throat, it broke my skin.

"This is what a little whore like you wants, isn't it?" he asked and painfully bruised my inner thigh.

"No…"

I cried harder when his fingers circled the edging of my knickers.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Now you will listen to me very carefully, little whore, this is the first and the last warning you are going to get," he snarled. "If you ever go near Niklaus Mikaelson again or tell anyone about this, I will come back and I will finish what I started. After that, I will kill your father. Do you understand?"

I was in panic, but somehow I managed to nod. That wasn't enough for him; he grabbed my other thigh so roughly that I cried out.

"Say it!"

"I-I won't go anywhere near Niklaus Mikaelson."

Niklaus Mikaelson? That didn't make any sense; that was the name of his employer… I whimpered in pain when my attacker grabbed my hair.

"Good girl. Keep your word and you will never see me again…sorry, poor choice of words. I'm sure you understand what I mean."

I didn't have time to say anything when he threw me against the wall; I fell down on the floor and started to sob again. I couldn't move, not even after I heard him leaving. I simply wrapped my arms around me and cried.