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Chapter 10

It was another rehearsal for the principles and Caroline had given another solid performance of All I ask of You. Technically her voice was beautiful and the feeling for the music was there but it just didn't feel right and Klaus knew it. He was taping this rehearsal so that the principles could watch their own performances and improve.

"Trent step off the stage for me," Klaus said as he hopped up onto the stage. He lowered his voice and looked deeply into Caroline's eyes. "Caroline I want you to close your eyes and picture whomever your heart most desires. I want you to imagine that they are offering you the words in this song…" He nodded for the music to begin as Caroline closed her eyes. She began the choreography by letting him lead her from lower left stage to center stage as though she were in a trance. When Klaus began singing Raoul's part it shocked her. His voice was magical – almost hypnotic to her ears. She couldn't stop staring at him.

When it came time for her to sing her lines they poured forth effortlessly as she imagined actually saying those things to him and hearing Raoul's replies as his own. She filled the room with her passionate vocals and he matched her as he followed the choreography turning her back against his front and wrapping his arms around her as they sang. She could almost believe that the moment was real. Finally as the music died away they stayed in position. It was then they noticed that Trent had left the studio. Caroline stepped away from Klaus as if she had been burned.

"I can't sing anymore…" she trembled; "my voice is tired…" she hurried from the studio and through the snow back towards her dorm room.

Elijah looked up from the desk in his classroom where he had been preparing his lesson. Now he stared at the young Salvatore brother (though he really doesn't get along with either brother, his like for this one was slightly more significant) when he heard the words that escaped his mouth.

"I would like your permission to ask for Rebekah's hand in marriage." Oh yes, if Elijah could get away with it, Stefan would be dead but he did not want to hurt his little sister like that and getting rid of her suitor would not be tolerable.

"As much as I want you to disappear," Elijah mused out loud for him to hear. "I would not want my little sister to be depressed so I will say yes as long as you know not to hurt her otherwise my idea of compelling you will come true." Stefan gulped and nodded. He could remember every single threat that the Original gave him and he still shivered in paralyzing fear.

"Now why don't you go and make the plans for how you will propose to my little sister?" Elijah gave him a pointed glance. "I have a class to prepare for."

Stefan couldn't leave there fast enough.

"Can we talk?" Elijah turned to see Elena had poked her head into his classroom and was staring at him. "Tonight at the library?" she asked. She had only missed Stefan by a few minutes but he was thankful that she had. His plan seemed to have paid off and she was happier. She came all the way into the room to await his answer.

"I look forward to talking to you then." Stepping up to her and assuring himself they were alone, he kissed her cheek and smiled at her lightly. "I wouldn't want you to be late to your next class now Miss Gilbert." He told her as she smiled and walked from him.

Elena sighed as she tapped her pen to her chin as she was scribbling furiously on a few pieces of binder paper and hating what was written. She had been at the library a half hour and still had little to show for it. Ripping the paper from the binder, she crumpled it into a ball and began anew.

The assignment was to define love – no simpler or more complex than that. She began the tapping anew when a shadow covered her. Looking up and getting ready to scold whichever frat boy Matt had been friends with, she was pleasantly surprised to see that it was the elder Mikaelson brother.

"I didn't expect you so early when I asked if we could talk." She admitted and he smirked.

"I had a free period-just like you do." He told her honestly. He looked over her shoulder; reading what she had written and he chuckled.

"Elena-this paper is supposed to be your own opinion about what you believe love is." She snorted.

"So I can't write anything about the supernatural as my whole love life is one supernatural mess after another?" He winced.

"Elena…" she shook her head.

"I lied to my friends about why Matt and I broke up." She looked at him as she was admitting this terrible truth. "He and I did fall back in love but we became rocky and when I caught him lip locked with Amber-the crazy girl-we had a huge fight and broke things off." Tears were beginning to fall from her eyes and he wrapped his arms around her.

"I know that it hurts-and it will for a long time-but one day it'll fade and you'll realize that you weren't meant to be with him in the long run."

Sniffing and sniffling, she smiled.

"I thought you didn't believe in love," Elena reminded him of both a conversation they'd had long ago and Katarina's words to him on a garden bench.

"Elena, love is like a rose. It is possible to be enjoying the flower when you are ravaged by the thorns. After such pain one might discard the flower and feel a bit jaded as they wander the garden. Perhaps if they are lucky enough they will find a flower of unparalleled beauty who will tame her thorns on her admirer's behalf."

It was that moment that she knew what she thought love was-one of the most beautiful emotions and something that no one can control.

To her, it was a blooming flower with the most beautiful of scents.

Klaus was in his office, watching the video of Caroline singing. He kept hitting pause on the video when he would see her smile and looked curious as to who she was thinking about-Mark, Jesse or himself.

She's gorgeous he thought as he saw the way the lights hit her.

He smirked as he watched her dance with the two men-their Phantom and Raoul-but she didn't seem to be into it so he kept watching it, waiting to see if she would act differently if she had a different partner to dance with.

That thought made him pause. How would she react to dancing with him during a stage rehearsal as well as singing with him? He grinned and went back to watching the whole thing again, this time, from the beginning all the way to when the rehearsals ended for the day before starting it again. He would watch another and another.

Now, though, after turning it off as his eyes were stinging, he felt a little bit like a stalker which ended up making him wonder if the idiotic vampire was actually stalking them.

I'll talk with my brothers about this tomorrow he thought as he left his office. Making sure that he locked it, he walked back - at a human pace - to his room where he locked all the doors and windows before settling himself down in bed.

Tomorrow was going to be a better day and he hoped that something good happens.

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