Chapter 11: Out Of Gratefulness
Aria was waking up slowly. I stayed up the entire night, looking after her. I never thought Kol would get that low to make me suffer. That he would endanger Aria just because she was being my friend. But then again, it's Kol Mikaelson. Everything is possible for him. I didn't know why I thought that perhaps there is a little bit of goodness in him. That he is not entirely evil. I was so wrong. I should have known better. I still don't know what Kol wants from me. Why is he playing with me? Why can't he just pick up another toy? And leave me the hell alone. I don't know what I did to attract him in the first place. And why isn't he getting bored of me already? I miss my Kol free life. I wondered how my life would be if I never met Kol. Much better I was certain. I snapped out of my own thoughts as Aria groan out softly and finally opened her eyes. She looked confused for a moment.
"Aria!" I called her name. She looked at me with half closed eyes and smiled.
"Riana" said Aria before closing her eyes again and opened them more widely this time. "I can't believe I had such a horrible dream."
"Dream? What kind of dream?" I asked Aria wanting to know about it.
"I dreamed that I was getting raped by these guys from the party I hitched a ride from. They had dragged me into a dark alley. It was horrible" said Aria and tried to get up but groaned immediately because she felt pain throughout her body.
"What the hell?" She muttered to herself, feeling confused.
"Aria." I said softly making her look at me. "You weren't dreaming." I said feeling terrible myself. Aria gasped out loud. She immediately checked her arms and found bruises there. She was shocked to say the least.
"Oh my god!" Aria said to herself before looking at me. "Did you tell Meredith?"
"No, I was waiting for you to wake up and tell me what to do." I replied to her honestly and Aria looked gratefully at me.
"Please don't tell her anything. I don't want Meredith to worry about me" said Aria however I protested against the idea.
"Aria, she is going to come home soon. How are you going to hide these bruises from her? It's better to tell Meredith everything." I advised Aria wisely. However she shook her head.
"No, it's better she doesn't know. You don't know how my sister gets when she is worried about me" said Aria and I completely understood her because I know I wouldn't have told Sophia if I were injured badly knowing she would be worried sick about me until I am completely healed. But I was never good at hiding things from her. She would always figure out something is wrong with me if I am really in trouble or hurt. I was curious to see how Aria handles the situation with Meredith.
"As you wish Aria. You better get dressed then before Meredith arrives home." I said and helped Aria out of the bed.
"I swear I am never taking rides from strangers again" said Aria limping a bit as she felt pain in her legs as well.
"Oh my god Aria, you just made a wise decision. Now I am really worried." I said with mock seriousness and received a glare from Aria right away.
"Speaking of strangers, do you know who saved me? That drop dead gorgeous looking guy from the Grill. Though I am a bit confused about how he managed to save me. There were five or six guys trying to rape me" said Aria and she really wondered about it.
"Perhaps he managed to scare them off." I said to Aria and thought to myself 'or killed them off'. The later was more likely to happen.
"Anyway, I am eternally grateful to him. I would be lying dead somewhere if he hadn't saved me" said Aria and I immediately felt guilt hitting me inwardly. Kol indeed saved Aria. And instead of thanking him for that, I accused him of hurting her. But why did Kol bother saving Aria? Is it possible that this has something to do with me? I didn't know that for sure but I made up my mind about meeting Kol and apologize to him. I knew Kol was no angle but he saved Aria and he deserved appreciation for that. It was wrong of me to accuse him so bluntly of things he didn't do. And I never hesitate to apologize if I make a mistake. Even though the person is Kol, I would still say sorry to him. I just hoped that he would be in the mood of listening to me. Kol was quite mad at me last night. And he had a right to be. I am surprised that he didn't just snap my neck to shut me up.
"We should really find him and thank him for saving my life" said Aria which snapped me out of my thoughts. I nodded my head vehemently.
"Yes, we should." I said more to myself than to Aria. Suddenly my eyes fell on the jacket Aria was wearing last night. It was Kol's for sure. I picked it up and gazed at the piece of clothe. It smelled like Kol. I would be lying if I said that I didn't feel a twist in my stomach as I inhaled the scent of Kol off his jacket.
"Is that his jacket?" Aria asked as she noticed me holding the garment in my hands.
"Probably, you were wearing it last night." I hid it from Aria that I met Kol last night and confronted him as well. I didn't want Aria to ask me questions because I wouldn't be able to answer them to her. Aria took the jacket from my hand.
"We must return it to him" said Aria and she breathed in the scent of cologne off the jacket openly. "He certainly smells nice."
"I would really appreciate it if you freshen up and smell nice again. I can smell alcohol in your breath." Aria rolled her eyes at me but thankfully made her way towards the bathroom. I folded the jacket nicely and put it in the closet. I decided that as soon as Meredith comes back home, I would take a nap and go to the Mikaelson mansion in the afternoon. I wouldn't find peace as long as I don't apologize to Kol for last night.
Third Person's POV
Jeremy was running through the hallway, but Kol appeared right in front of him and punched him in the face. Kol was fighting against the Gilbert siblings where his own siblings were busy doing something else. They didn't have any clue about what was going on with Kol. Well Klaus was probably on his way to the Gilbert house as Kol has called him earlier to threaten him. Rebekah however was dancing and having fun with Stefan at the moment and Elijah was trapped in a conversation with Professor Shane. Kol truly believed that his siblings planned his death with the Mystic Falls group especially Klaus and Rebekah and it angered him to no limit. But he didn't let the anger control him at that time. Kol needed to make sure that Jeremy would be of no use in finding the cure. He was astonished to say the least that a newbie vampire and her baby brother were planning on taking him down. A thousand year old original vampire. Kol would have left Jeremy alone if Elena really gave up looking for the cure like she promised a while ago. But Elena Gilbert was spouting nothing but lies to Kol when she said she would do anything for her brother.
Back in Jeremy's room, Elena pulled the stake out of her leg and rushed outside. Meanwhile Kol threw Jeremy down the stairs making him groan in pain. Elena jumped on Kol's back in order to snap his neck but he tossed her against the wall. Kol ripped out one of the posts from the railing and impaled Elena through the abdomen, pinning her to the wall. Elena gasped in shock and pain, completely immobilized. Kol walked over to Jeremy, who was still grunting in pain on the stair landing.
"Now... about that arm" saying that Kol dragged Jeremy down the stairs by his feet. Elena pulled feebly at the stake, but couldn't move it an inch. Elena's perfect plan of killing Kol was really not going accordingly. Her only hope was that Bonnie would show up suddenly at their house and save Jeremy and her from the maniac vampire.
Riana's POV
I was walking down a path while lost in my own thoughts. I went to the Mikaelson mansion earlier but no one was there. I didn't find any of the Mikaelson siblings. I couldn't help but wonder where they were especially Kol. I wish I knew where he was. I never thought I would be desperate to talk to Kol out of all the people. But it was important that I see him as soon as possible. The sooner I apologize to Kol the sooner I would stop feeling guilty. I was crossing a house when suddenly I heard screams, rather painful screams. My head snapped up immediately. When I looked around I found Klaus standing at the door. He was desperately trying to get inside but couldn't do it. Klaus looked horrified and suddenly I realized who was screaming inside the house. It was Kol. I ran up to the door immediately and looked inside myself. The sight I was suddenly witnessing was rather gruesome. Elena was holding Kol down with a cleaver buried inside his chest. Jeremy was spraying Kol with water that burned his skin. I understood that the water is laced with vervain. I remembered Kol saying that the town is vervain free. I guess he was wrong.
Kol was screaming out in pain. I watched Elena took out a stake from inside Kol's jacket. It was a wooden stake. But it wasn't just any wooden stake. I remembered Kol telling me about it the night we were together.
Flash Back
"How are you different from other vampires?" I asked Kol with soft tone of voice. My head was resting on his bare chest and I had my arm wrapped around him. Kol was running his fingers through my hair softly. I didn't expect Kol to hold me affectionately after coupling with me. But he was and I found myself appreciating it very much.
"As an original vampire, I have many differences from ordinary vampires. For starter, I can't be killed by a normal wooden stake unlike other vampires" said Kol and he sounded proud about it. I couldn't help but roll my eyes at that.
"Hmm, but I have a feeling that there is something that CAN kill you." I said that without any hesitation and out of pure curiosity. I wasn't trying to get any information out of Kol for future use or anything like that.
"You are right, there is. A white oak stake through my heart could kill me" said Kol and I lifted my head up to see his face.
"What is a white oak stake?" I asked with serious curiosity and interest.
"A stake made out of white oak tree wood. It's an ancient tree. When our mother turned us into vampires, she had prayed to the white oak tree to give us strength and immortality. Later we found out that the very tree could kill us as well. My family burned the tree to the ground but that wasn't the end of the white oak tree. Not long ago we found out that there was another tree after we burned the first one and our enemies made several stakes with it before my siblings could destroy the wood completely. They had weapons in their possession and things got worse when my mother stepped in. She created an indestructible weapon out of those stakes to kill all her children and handed it over to our enemies" said Kol and I listened to every word very carefully.
"I can't believe your mother was ready to kill all of you." I said that more to myself than to Kol. From what I have learned it was their mother's fault that they are vampires now. She didn't have any right to hate them for it.
"Yes, she was quite a great mother. But she wasn't always like that. There was a time when she loved her children to death and would have done anything for us" said Kol and I realized that he was reliving those wonderful memories. It rather saddened him thinking he could never get back that time. I felt sorry for Kol and couldn't stop myself from pressing my lips against his and kiss them softly. I was going to pull away but Kol didn't let me. Instead he started kissing me back. Kol turned us around so that I was lying on my back and Kol was hovering over me. Our lips were moving against each other in sync. My fingers tangled in Kol's soft hair, pulling him closer to me. Kol left my mouth to kiss my neck. I moaned a little as he bit my skin lightly, leaving a hickey at the spot. Kol sucked on my earlobe before speaking up in my ear with husky tone of voice.
"Would you enjoy watching me die?" asked Kol which caught me off guard. Why would he ask me such question?
"No." I said and I didn't even had to think about it for a second.
"Why not? I thought you hate me" said Kol looking right into my eyes.
"If I hated you so much I wouldn't be in your arms right now." I pointed out right away.
"So do you love me?" asked Kol but I didn't have an answer to that question.
"I don't know." I said truthfully. Whatever feeling I have for Kol, I didn't dare to name it as love so soon but I didn't hate him anymore for sure. "But I will never stand by and watch you die. Either I will save you or ran away."
End Of Flashback
I watched Elena throwing the stake to Jeremy.
"Jeremy now." Elena yelled out.
Jeremy caught the stake gracefully. And before I knew what I was doing, I ran inside the house and threw myself in front of Kol. Everything happened so fast that Jeremy accidentally stabbed me with the stake. An air piercing scream escaped my lungs. Both Elena and Jeremy were stunned and so was Klaus who was still standing at the doorway. Kol overcame his pain in a blink of an eye and realized what has just happened. He grabbed me and dashed out of the Gilbert house in vampire speed. That's all I remembered before losing my consciousness.
Third Person's POV
Outside Klaus was prepared to handle the situation. He couldn't believe that he almost lost his younger brother because of the Gilbert heroes. If not for Riana, Kol would be dead by now. As much as Klaus wanted to make Elena and Jeremy pay for their deed, he decided to wait for it because the human girl was slowly fading away. The very reason Kol wasn't walking back inside the Gilbert house to finish off the Gilbert siblings right away. Riana's heart was punctured but the stake didn't completely pierced through. Kol was about to rip the stake out when Klaus stopped him.
"If you pull out the stake it would kill her faster" said Klaus and Kol actually listened to him. Klaus was right after all. If the stake is removed, Riana's heart would bleed out faster and it would be impossible to save her then.
"Feed her your blood" said Klaus knowing Kol wouldn't appreciate it if Klaus give his blood to Riana. Kol immediately bit onto his wrist and drew out blood. He pressed his wrist on Riana's mouth so that his blood would get inside her body. Once Riana had enough blood in her system, Klaus pulled out the stake. For a moment nothing happened and Kol turned pale with worries. Her heart beat once or twice before it stopped functioning completely. Kol didn't want to believe it but the girl was already gone. She died in his arms. Klaus realized that even if Riana didn't survive but she would wake up anyway however as a vampire. She was still alive even though faintly when Kol fed Riana his blood. Apparently Kol realized the same thing Klaus did. He sighed out heavily. Kol had no idea how Riana would react to this, becoming a vampire herself. Not well, the original assumed. They were out in the woods somewhere.
"Kol, I had no idea-" Klaus started saying but Kol snapped at him.
"Save it Klaus. You were planning on daggering me yourself." Kol gathered Riana in his arms and started to walk away. He wasn't in the mood to fight with Klaus or listen to him. All Kol cared about was Riana at that moment. He never thought she would put her own life in danger for him. She literary died to save his life. Why did she do it? Last night Riana made it clear that she hated Kol the most. And today she died for him. Humans. Why are they so complicated? Or perhaps it's just Riana. Kol knew he is attracted to her for a reason. Now she would be one of them, a vampire. Kol hoped that eventually Riana would understand him and forgive him because now she would want to kill too. She would have the same predatory instincts as Kol. On the other hand, Elena and Jeremy were freaking out. They tried to kill Kol and they failed. Moreover they managed to endanger someone the original apparently cared about. Now he is going to kill them all. Bonnie already arrived at the Gilbert house but it was already too late.
"Why the hell did she save Kol?" asked Bonnie to the Gilbert siblings. The witch wasn't dumb not to realize that they were all in grave danger now that they were on the bad side of the original family. They would definitely seek revenge on them.
"I don't know. She came out of nowhere and saved Kol" said Elena sighing out in frustration. Stupid girl.
"Didn't Kol kill her sister?" asked Jeremy for confirmation and both the girls nodded their heads. Jeremy immediately doubted Riana's sanity.
"What we are going to do now? Not only Kol but other originals would want to kill us as well. Even Elijah wouldn't spare us. We tried to kill his brother" said Elena pacing restlessly in the room.
"Kol tried to kill me. Elijah should understand why you tried to put him down. And Klaus wanted to stop Kol himself" said Jeremy but he also realized that none of those issues mattered anymore. After all they knowingly set a trap for Kol. It was more of an attempt than defense. The originals weren't dumb not to realize that. Besides, Klaus was planning on daggering Kol not kill him off.
"Even if Klaus and Elijah don't come after us but Kol certainly will. And I am afraid next time we would be the ones trapped with him" said Elena and got more worried and anxious.
"Not to mention Damon's compulsion must be still in effect. He would kill Jeremy at sight" said Bonnie worriedly as she glanced at Jeremy. Suddenly Elena stopped pacing. An idea popped into her mind that could actually work.
"I think I have an idea" said Elena and she looked at Jeremy and Bonnie with a gleam in her eyes that neither of them has seen before. It was only a matter of time before things would get very nasty.