Chapter Eight – A Magical Night Under the Stars


"What are you up to, brother?"

Stefan had just hung up on Matt, mid-sentence; he had called Matt to see if he knew anything about whether Caroline accepted Klaus's second invitation to prom; neither knew anything. But when Damon walked into the room, he all but threw his phone away from him. "What do you mean?" Stefan asked, trying to feign ignorance. Or innocence.

But Damon knew his younger brother well enough to see through his act. "I mean, you're acting dodgy and all conspiratorial-like. What's up?"

"Nothing. You're just paranoid."

"You have secret, hushed phone calls that abruptly end when I walk in the room, but it's just me being 'paranoid'? No. Out with it, Stef. Why are you being so secretive?"

"There's nothing to say, Damon."

Damon could see through every word that was coming out of his brother's mouth. Stefan wouldn't even look in Damon's direction.

"And you're a terrible liar, Stefan."

Stefan sighed. He had always been rather close with Damon; too close, apparently, for him to get anything by his brother. "Okay! Okay. I've been working with a few people to help you with Elena."

"You what?"

Stefan finally faced his brother. "Not help you, exactly. Help her. I found a guy for her friend so Elena can spend time with you, outside of school, without breaking her deal with Caroline."

"You what?" Damon was too stunned to say anything else.

The look on Damon's face made Stefan feel guilty about his actions. He immediately shifted into explanation mode. "I was just trying to help. I had hoped that if things were going well with Elena, you would stop hating me and dad for wanting to come here."

Damon momentarily ignored the part about Stefan wanting him to be happy, and focused on the outrageousness of this idea. "How could you possibly think this was a good idea, Stefan? Forcing some guy to spend time with Caroline so I can date Elena? That's sick!"

"I was trying to help."

"Help?"

"And Klaus wasn't forced; he willingly participated."

Damon's skepticism was so very plainly written on his face. "Define willingly."

Stefan's face fell. Perhaps 'willingly' wasn't exactly the most appropriate word. "We got Tyler Lockwood to pay him." He mumbled that bit, but Damon heard it very clearly.

"There was money involved?! Stefan, have you lost your mind?! You're now pimping out a girl so I can date her friend? That's disgusting."

Stefan groaned slightly; that had most definitely never been his intention. "You're making it sound worse than it is."

"Am I? Because I don't think so. You get a guy to pay another guy to get Elena's friend out of the way. That is wrong on so many levels. And how did you get Tyler to agree to pay for this?"

Stefan blushed and avoided Damon's gaze.

"Stefan! How?"

"We never promised him anything…"

"But?"

The look on Stefan's face made Damon wonder if maybe he didn't actually want to know. But all or nothing, right?

"Tyler has his sights set on Elena for his next conquest."

"What?"

"We knew nothing would come of it, because she likes you, but we needed some sort of motivation for Klaus. And neither Matt nor I could afford to bribe him. So we brought in Tyler as a brainless backer."

Damon didn't even know where to begin berating Stefan for his idiocy. "Is there anyone you haven't lied to or kept something from during this endeavour?"

"I…" Stefan tried, but he couldn't answer that question.

"Wow!" The stupidity of everyone involved stunned Damon. He couldn't find any words to properly express what he was feeling. "Just wow."

And so he wouldn't have to listen to any more of Stefan's explanations or reasonings, Damon just shook his head and left their family room.


Caroline spent the entire day before the prom with her fellow committee members. They were decorating. It was exhausting, but they had finished. And the place looked pretty great, if Caroline did say so herself.

She arrived at home just around dinner time that evening, and she was texting Dana some last-minute instructions regarding prom decorations — mostly things to check on or attend to during the prom, since Caroline herself would not be attending — when she heard a knock at her door. She left her bedroom, but she didn't see anyone through the window in the front door.

She set her phone down on the table near the door and opened the door anyway. She found a dark brown box with a white ribbon sitting on the doormat. On top of the box sat one stiletto. She recognized it immediately; it was one of her own shoes — it was from the pair she had worn when she was crowned as Miss Mystic Falls a few months earlier.

She glanced around, but saw no one. Confused, she bent down and grabbed the shoe. Underneath it laid one single, long-stemmed red rose. She picked it up, as well as the envelope that it was resting upon. Her name, in cursive lettering, was all that was written on the envelope.

She opened it and found a note inside, written on a piece of parchment.

I've heard talk of a grand ball, one that takes place every year.
This year's event happens this evening.
I wish to attend, but I have no one to take as my match.

If this shoe fits, will you please be my date?

And instead of a signature, the note ended with a phone number.

After rereading the note, Caroline brought the rose in her hand up to her nose. She smiled as she inhaled its sweet scent.

But she was still shocked. And confused. She stared at the note for another moment, unable to fully comprehend its meaning. Then she picked up the box, balanced the shoe on top, and took them into her bedroom.

She put the box down on her bed and opened it. She let out a small gasp of shock when she saw the box's contents: inside it, she found a stunning blue dress. The bodice appeared to be form-fitted; it was embellished with silver beading and it had simple tulle straps. The attached skirt was blue and silver tulle, floor-length and flowy. It was simply perfect and stunning. It had a note of its own, in that same cursive lettering:

-In case you change your mind.
Save me a dance.

Fondly,
Klaus

Caroline was rendered stunned and speechless.


After Klaus left the invitation and the dress for Caroline on her front porch, he stood nearby, hidden by the trees that lined her property, and watched to make sure she received them. He smiled at her stunned expression.

Once Caroline had taken the box inside, he left.

He woke up early the next morning. He had one more task to complete before prom. He drove straight there, as the sun was rising, and easily picked the lock on the door — he never said his entire reputation was unwarranted or undeserving.

It was the day of the prom and, as per Caroline's orders, the committee had finished decorating yesterday. (Since most of them were attending the prom, Caroline wanted them to have the day off to prepare themselves, and not to spend that time preparing the venue — she may not have planned to go, but she didn't want to be a dictator about what the other prom committee members did on the day of.)

He found it ironic that he never went to school functions, yet here he was, over twelve hours early, at the location of where the prom would take place. And he could potentially be here tonight as well. It felt oddly like he was turning into an overachiever.

Even without any of the lights on and just the early morning sunlight streaming in, Klaus could tell that the place looked great. He saw bunches of fabric hanging near the walls in strategic places to create a soft and intimate feeling; there were two large chandeliers hanging from the ceiling; there were several round tables with chairs that encircled a large area cleared for dancing; he noticed a slightly-raised platform off to the side with a banner behind it that read 'Mystic High 2013.' Klaus didn't know much about proms, but he assumed that was where attendees would pose for photographs.

He smirked when he saw one of the spotlights that had become the bane of Caroline's existence as of late. He left them alone and quickly got started on his task. He easily found a tall ladder, and with it, he began to do his own decorating. He took his time, knowing he wouldn't be disturbed and wanting everything to be perfect.

He couldn't wait to see Caroline's reaction.

Just as he finished, his phone rang. It was Caroline.

"Hello, sweetheart."

"Hi."

He knew why she was calling — he had loitered around her house just long enough to make sure she had received the invitation and the dress— but he asked her anyway.

"I, uh, I've changed my mind. About prom."

"You've decided to attend?"

"Yes."

"And do I get the pleasure of escorting you?"

"No. I'm going on my own." The cocky smirk faded from his face at her words. But before he could comment, she spoke again."But should we meet up while there, well, that wouldn't be too terrible. That is if you attend as well."

He smiled at that. "I'll see you there, Caroline."


Caroline drove herself to the prom. She wore the dress Klaus had sent her — it was gorgeous, after all, and it would be a shame to waste it. She paired it with a light, near-white shawl. Her hair was pulled back into a low side bun. And she wore a different pair of shoes that the one he had used with the invitation. She was curious as to how he obtained one of her shoes — she should probably be worried or creeped out, but honestly, she was just impressed.

She got out of her car. She strolled through the parking lot, making her way to the entrance, when she noticed Klaus; he was sitting on the main steps, presumably waiting for her.

As she walked towards him, Klaus noticed that she had cut the rose's stem quite short and was now wearing it as an accessory in her hair, just by her left ear.

"You didn't have to wait for me," she said once she was only a step or two away from him. "We're not here together, remember?"

He rolled his eyes and ignored her words. As if he'd enter the prom on his own. "You look ravishing, love."

She dropped her gaze down to her dress for a moment. "Well, I didn't really have time to shop. Where did you get a dress?" She looked back at his face, giving him an almost accusatory look.

He shrugged. "I have my ways."

"And the tux?" Which he looked amazing in.

"Oh, the tux is mine. I always have my formal wear at the ready; one never knows when a beautiful woman will agree to accompany him." He winked at her.

She scoffed before catching his gaze with hers. "I'm sorry I questioned your motives. I was wrong."

He winced slightly, but covered it with a smile before she could notice. "It's not a problem, love."

"And I'm not accompanying you; we're just in the same place, at the same time."

She noticed then that he was still sitting on the steps. She found that she was fidgeting, so she stopped herself.

Klaus stood and stared at Caroline, taking in her image appreciatively. She blushed and turned away from him slightly. "Shall we?" he asked.

She let out a breath and gave a quick nod. "Let's get this over with?"

He gave a nod of his own and approached her, offering her his arm. She smiled and took it. They ascended the stairs and entered the prom together. It was in full swing at this point in time.

Caroline was actually glad to see the outcomes of all the hard work she put into planning and decorating.

"Wow," Klaus said while looking at the scene before him. "The decorations aren't nearly as cheesy as I was imagining."

"Thanks?" She chuckled. "I don't know; it's still rather ostentatious for my tastes. But it is prom, and the entire dance committee tends to go overboard with prom. Even if I was out-voted on some aspects."

"The last hoorah?"

"I suppose."

Caroline stepped forward and looked around the room. She spotted Bonnie and Jeremy dancing and gave then a wave. She noticed Elena and Damon dancing together on the other side of the dance floor. She smiled at them, but they didn't notice her. Or anyone else.

"Does everyone pair up for prom?" he asked, nearly disgusted.

She shrugged. There were lots of couples here. "Prom is the Noah's Ark of high school dances, if there ever was one."

They moved further into the area, away from the entrance.

She was just about to ask if wanted to dance when he spoke. "I'll get us some drinks; why don't you have a seat, love."

He stepped away from her without waiting for a response. This was becoming a habit of his.

She shook her head at his retreating form, but did as he 'suggested.' She found an empty table that wasn't near any of the other prom committee members. She liked the idea that she could attend an event without having to work at it; she didn't want to concern herself with any of the issues that may arise or be involved in any way in overseeing whether things were running smoothly or not.

Klaus found her and brought the drinks.

As they sat there, making idle chit chat — mostly Caroline — and sipping their drinks, Caroline noticed that Klaus was checking his watch every few minutes.

He can't want to leave already, can he? Being here was his idea!

He checked his watch again, the final time, and saw that it was just over a minute from the predetermined time. He smirked at stood. "Shall we dance?"

She didn't know what to think. First he appears to be annoyed and bored; now he wanted to dance? She could not keep track.

He noticed her hesitation. "Come on, love. One dance." He extended his hand out towards her and smirked again. "I won't bite."

A slow song was playing. Once they were on the dance floor, Klaus kept a hold of Caroline's hand, and snaked his other hand around her waist. She placed her free hand on his shoulder.

As they were dancing, another set of lights came on. Caroline was outraged at first; this was not supposed to happen. But then she really looked at these lights. These were small, soft twinkling lights and they stretched across the entire ceiling of the ballroom.

She stopped moving completely, stunned.

"Is it how you imagined it could be?" Klaus whispered into her ear. "Is it similar enough to dancing under the stars?"

His words broke Caroline out of her stupor. She tore her eyes away from the lights on the ceiling and took in his rather large smirk. "What did you do?"

He shrugged and pulled her closer to him as he resumed their dance. "I broke in last night and did some of my own decorating."

She couldn't believe that. "Seriously?"

He nodded. "They're hooked up to a separate power source, so even if they want to, your committee members cannot turn them off. But I don't think they will want to."

She pulled her gaze from the lights to look at him, but he was looking at the people surrounding them. She shifted her gaze to follow his, and noticed that everyone around them was looking at the second set of lights that had just turned on.

She noted, rather smugly, that everyone else seemed to love dancing under the twinkling lights as well; even the prom committee members who had joined Dana to over-rule her.

"This looks amazing," she said with a nod. "Almost as good as if I had hung them myself."

They both laughed.

"Thank you, Klaus. It looks beautiful."

He brought his gaze back to her. "Yes, it is almost as beautiful as you."


Elena was so happy to be at the prom with Damon. They had been dancing ever since they arrived, and were completely oblivious to everyone else around them. She pulled back, only to lean in and whisper in his ear. He nodded and they parted ways. Damon went to get them some punch while Elena headed for the ladies' room.

Inside, Elena was checking her hair and touching up her makeup in the mirror — along with five other girls — when one of the bathroom stall opened and Vicky Donovan emerged.

"Vicky," Elena said, trying to hide her surprise as Vicky stopped in front of the sink right next to where Elena was standing. Vicky could hardly stand; she was obviously drunk. "I never expected to see you here." Especially since you graduated last year, Elena thought but didn't say.

Vicky was checking her hair as she spoke with a snooty tone. "I'm here with Tyler."

She always was Tyler's old reliable.

"Good for you," Elena replied with the best fake smile she could muster. All she could think about was how Tyler had hit Caroline and then hopped into bed with Vicky. It made her stomach churn. No wonder Caroline hadn't told her when she was still dating Matt.

"I know you have a thing with Tyler, but he's mine tonight."

Elena stopped her primping and turned to stare at Vicky, doing nothing to hide the shock on her face. "I don't have a thing with Tyler; he's my friend."

"Whatever," Vicky replied with a slight slur. "You should know that Tyler only liked you for one reason. He practically announced it to all of his friends. He was going to nail you tonight."

Appalled, Elena fled the bathroom. Yes, she knew — from Caroline — that Tyler was only looking to score, but it still stung and left a horrible taste in her mouth to hear those words from Vicky Donovan, of all people.


As Elena rushed over to be consoled by Damon, Tyler walked around the dance floor. Vicky quickly found him and latched onto his arm. She could hardly stand, and as he moved around, she clutched on and trailed drunkenly beside him.

His gazed zeroed in on Elena — with Damon — and Tyler was furious!


One dance quickly turned into two, then four, and then who knows how many. Caroline stopped caring, and Klaus stopped tensing up at the end of each song, waiting for her to pull away from him.

But when another soft, slow song began, Klaus pulled away slightly. "I need to tell you something, love."

Caroline's eyes widened slightly, but she remained silent. Was she finally getting some answers or some information? She dare not speak a word, for fear of scaring him off or send him back into his usual silence.

"Caroline, I…" He paused, searching for the right words. Where to begin?

Now was definitely not the time to tell her about the money and Tyler and all that, but he could be honest with her about something. "About my past… I know you have questions."

He paused; he was still not sure how to begin his tale. But he didn't have to think about it long.

"Yes. But I don't care," Caroline said with a slight shake of her head. She could see how hard this was on him — for him to even begin to tell her about it. So she decided to give him a reprieve.

He gave her a confused look.

"I mean, I do care, and I want to know, but I don't… I mean — Ugh!" she groaned. She was making no sense at all.

She took a deep breath and tried again. "What I'm trying to say — and failing horribly at — is that your past is your past. It was before I came into your life; it doesn't concern me and I cannot change it." She raised her hand up to rest it alongside his face. "So I won't ask about it anymore. When you want me to know, I will gladly listen, of course, but I won't make any more attempts to pry the information from you. Your past is in the past; I'm part of your present. And your future as well."

Klaus wanted to say thank you, but those words seemed insufficient. So he kissed her. He pressed his lips to hers and he poured everything he was feeling into that action.

He may not have the eloquence to say what he felt, but he hoped she would understand, and know, through his kiss.

Once they parted, Klaus was going to say 'thank you.' But just as he opened his mouth to utter those two important words, he felt a hand on his shoulder and it tugged him backwards. He turned, quite angry. When he saw whose hand was on his shoulder, it did nothing to dissipate his anger at the interruption — if anything, it only increased. It was Tyler.

Tyler stepped forward, closer to Klaus. "What is Elena doing here with that cheese dick? I didn't pay you to take out Care so some smooth-talking new guy could snake in and steal Elena away from me."

Klaus shoved Tyler away from him and turned back to face Caroline. She was definitely within hearing range of Tyler's voice, and, judging by the glare that now covered Caroline's beautiful face, she had heard every word that came out of Tyler's mouth.

She looked between Klaus and Tyler; she wasn't sure what she was hearing. "Nothing in it for you, huh?"

Tyler stepped around Klaus; now Klaus had both Caroline and Tyler in his sight at the same time. "No worries about that one, man," he told Klaus, nodding and gesturing in Caroline's direction. "She'll only spread her legs for you once, anyway. Just so you know."

Tyler didn't even have the time to smirk at his jab towards Caroline before Klaus's fist connected with his jaw. Tyler lost his footing from the force of Klaus's punch and landed on the ground.

Klaus quickly ignored him and turned back to Caroline.

But she ran off, wanting to get out of this place; Klaus took off after her.

Tyler stood, straightened his tux and touched his jaw lightly, wincing at even the lightest of touches. Then he marched straight over to Damon and Elena. He quickly invaded Damon's personal space.

"You are in big trouble, man." Tyler was nearly seething.

"What are you talking about?" Damon hadn't had much interaction with Tyler Lockwood since he had moved to town, and he did not want to start now. Not when he could be — and should be — dancing with Elena.

"You're here with Elena? Really?"

"Yea, we are. So leave us alone." Damon motioned with his hands to shoo Tyler away.

Tyler stepped even closer, really getting his face up into Damon's. "You know, you've messed with the wrong guy, dude."

"'Dude'? Really? 'Dude'?" Damon couldn't help but think, How immature is this guy?!

"Now, you're gonna pay. You and that little bitch."

"Watch it!" Damon all but yelled. "You're crossing a line, now."

Tyler just smirked and shot his hands out in front of him, shoving Damon. Damon shrugged it off, trying not to let Tyler get to him any more than he already had when he insulted Elena. He knew why Tyler was pissed that he was here with Elena and not Tyler himself, but that didn't give the Lockwood boy free reign to be an ass.

Tyler punched him. His punch didn't have the same force as Klaus's — Damon remained on his feet — but Tyler's fist still made contact with Damon's cheek. Damon quickly responded with a fist of his own.

Elena quickly intervened before Tyler could attempt to throw another punch; she stepped in between the two guys, turned to Damon, and pushed him back, further away from Tyler. "He's not worth it, Damon."

"No, but what he said about you definitely justifies it." Damon was looking over Elena's head, at Tyler, as he spoke.

"You're right." Elena dropped her hands from Damon's chest and turned back to face Tyler. She took a few steps towards him and slapped him. Hard.

"That is for punching my date."

She slapped him again. "That's for Caroline."

And then she took another step forward, placing her hands on his shoulders right as she lifted her knee, bringing it up to connect with his groin. "And that is for me."

Elena pushed against his shoulders and Tyler went down for the second time in almost as many minutes.

But this time, he remained on the ground, curled into a fetal position.

Elena quickly returned to Damon. "Are you all right?" She began inspecting his cheek.

He smiled and nodded. "Never better."


Caroline raced down the stairs, trying to make it out of this place and into her car.

"Caroline, wait." She could hear Klaus's steps; she didn't need to hear his voice to know that he was behind her.

When she didn't stop, or respond, Klaus gained on her and grabbed her arm, bringing her to a stop.

She spun around and spoke before he could utter another sound. "You were paid to take me out?! By my lying, cheating, abusive ex-boyfriend?! That's beyond disgusting!" Caroline sighed. "I should have known this was a set-up."

"It wasn't like that," he said with a slight groan. Not that he expected her to believe any words that came out of his mouth.

"Oh, really? What was it like, then? Did you get paid half now and then the remainder once you sealed the deal and slept with me?"

"I didn't care about the money, okay! I cared — I cared about you." He tried to pull her closer, as if proximity would somehow make her see the truth behind the words he spoke.

"You are so not who I thought you were." The look on Caroline's face told Klaus that she was more hurt than angry right now. "You and Tyler totally deserve each other."

"Tyler Lockwood is scum. He's a self-righteous dick who never deserved you. And he's never deserved anything that he got. Until now."

She knew it was wrong, but a part of her enjoyed the idea of Tyler walking around with a black eye or a busted lip. Or both.

But she couldn't let that distract her. "He doesn't deserve me, but you think you do after what you've participated in?" She didn't wait for an answer; she took a few steps backwards and turned away from him.

"No, Caroline, please wait."

"Screw you," she spat back at him. "Leave me the hell alone. I can't even look at you."

She turned around again, attempting to walk away, but he grabbed her arm, spinning her around and pulling her back until she was pressed up against his chest. He caressed her face his with hand and leaned down, kissing her lips very lightly.

She was shocked at the feel of his lips against hers, and she gave in for a second or two. She slipped her hands around his neck and pulled him down to meet her lips more fully. She opened her mouth, allowing his breath to mix with hers, as she ran her fingers along his scalp.

This kiss was different than their previous ones; this one was all hands and teeth and bruising lips, so hard and fast and desperate that she lost herself somewhere in the empty space where she ended and he began.

But then she remembered what just happened. She then pulled back, pushed him further away, and fled down the stairs and out of sight.

Elena stood at the top of the stairs, witnessing Klaus and Caroline's encounter. She had never felt more guilty in her entire life. She stood there, just long enough to watch Klaus slump his shoulders and leave, too.

She turned to go back inside; she was done with prom. After ruining Caroline's night, and maybe her life, Elena just wanted to go home. Damon understood and left with her immediately. Just as they walked out of the main doors and descended the stairs, they heard someone speaking into one of the microphones, about to announce the prom king and queen.