Title: Promise of Forever
Fandom: The Vampire Diaries
Author: darkmagic-luvr/thecunningclock
Pairings: Kol/Anna
Rating: PG-13
Author's Note: Unbeta'd. This was supposed to be updated over the weekend, but I got distracted by HOW MANY FEELINGS THIS CHAPTER GAVE ME. I can only imagine what it will do to you. Enjoy, loves.


Kol was utterly unsurprised to wake up in pain, held up against a wall with only vervain soaked roped to keep him up. He was a bit curious to know how the witch had managed to fashion a torture chamber in the Bennett witches' basement in such a short amount of time, and if she just carried around a bunch of circular wooden objects for inflicting pain or if those were just lying around.

Really though.

Flicking his eyes onto one of his arms, he remembered the first dream he'd had, just after seeing Anna. Something similar had happened then, with the hollow wood; obviously Cataleya had a fetish for hanging people on walls and bleeding them out. Kol snarled, thinking of Anna and remembering the rage he had felt in the memory that'd been forced on him.

Movement out of the corner of his eyes caught his attention, and Kol turned his head to see Cataleya frozen in place staring back, more of those wooden circles in her hands. "You're not supposed to be awake," she said, sounding surprised. Kol sneered, sliding his eyes away to check how much damage she'd done so far.

"You overestimate yourself," he muttered. She must have just started because there were seven of those things in total: two in each arm, and three in his chest. "How often has this happened, anyway?" he asked casually, his lips turning down thoughtfully as he took a closer look at the wood; he could just make out a pattern carved along the rim, and if he had to guess it probably matched the one Anna had on her skin.

Cataleya didn't answer him right away, instead she moved to stand in front of him, weighing one of her cursed wooden circles in her hand for a moment before pressing it lightly to his abdomen. Kol watched her impassive face carefully through narrowed eyes as her head tilted to the side. "This? Once or twice..." she started softly, sliding the wood up his stomach and stopping just below his sternum, between his ribs. "Only when you need some help remembering."

"I seem to be doing just fine without your help," hissed Kol, one of his arms jerking out of instinct. He went still just after that as Cataleya's eyes snapped up to meet his.

"I didn't choose to do this to you, Kol," said Cataleya, her voice breathless. "You did this to yourself; your family did this." she took a deep breath and held it for a moment, her eyes suddenly shining. "All I wanted was for Annabelle to die, so you could let her go and be with me, like you were meant to-" without warning she forced the wood through his skin, causing him to clench his teeth to keep from shouting in pain. Kol struggled to keep himself composed and his eyes on the witch, his wrists straining on his bindings. "-But you keep saving her...I had no choice."

"When I'm close to her..." started Kol, his voice sounding strained; but Cataleya was already nodding along with his words. "She dies."

"Then you went and bound yourself to her," she snarled. Her confession surprised him, he had thought she was the one to do it. It made a little more sense that he did, she must have fucked with the spell - bastardized it into a curse that affected both him and Anna, because they were linked and hurting him meant hurting her. "I had no choice," she said again. "I couldn't risk you dying too."

He still had no idea what she was doing to him now, maybe trying to unbind them, but honestly he wouldn't be surprised if she was just trying to hurt him for no reason at all. Cataleya turned, reaching behind her to grab another piece of wood to stick into him; without hesitation, Kol braced himself and wrenched his left arm away from the wall, pulling the bolt the rope was tied to clean out of the wall. His arm shot out just as Cataleya turned back, wrapping his hand around her throat.

She choked, clawing at his wrist with one hand and reaching up to push against his face with the other. He knew she would tried harder than that, and he was almost prepared for the onslaught of exploding blood vessels in his brain. His grip loosened, and she managed to step out of his grip, stumbling backward slightly as she massaged her throat.

Kol rubbed his temple with his now freed hand, wondering idly if she would punish him for that (and then smirking because he couldn't help the dirty things that popped into his head at the thought); he stilled when a flash of movement caught his eye, and he blinked, startled to see Anna standing at the bottom of the stairs. She caught his eye, and he watched her breath catch in her throat.

Cataleya didn't even notice her; her eyes were red and her lip was pulled up over her teeth as she raised her head to glare at Kol. She straightened, but in a flash of vampire speed Anna was behind her, sinking her teeth into Bonnie's neck and draining her. Kol quirked an eyebrow, sorta turned on by the sight of it; but now really wasn't the time, and he turned his head to undo the rope around his other wrist, his fingers burning against the vervain before he finally managed to shake his hand free. By then, Anna had dropped Bonnie's body to the ground and was breathing hard, her hand shaking slightly as she wiped blood off her lips.

Then it was silence between them; Anna wouldn't meet his eye and Kol was too uncomfortable to care. He needed the wood out of his body, and his fingers played along the rim of one in his forearm for a second or two before he grimaced and decided against it.

"Thank you," Kol heard himself say, glancing at Anna. She swallowed, nodding, and still refused to look at him; he wasn't sure if that bothered him or not. Anna looked up suddenly, her eyes on the hole in his skin, and walked up to him. She reached for his arm, frowning when he pulled away.

"What are you-?"

"I don't want you hurt," interrupted Kol, making shooing motions with his hand when she tried to touch him again. He could feel her gaze on his face as he just did it himself, managing to get a grip on the wood in his forearm and pulling it out. Immediate relief followed, and Kol opened his mouth to tell Anna he had everything under control; he made the mistake of looking up at her, and his voice died in his throat.

There was an unfathomable expression on her face, and it sent shivers down Kol's spine. It was gone in an instant, and with a short nod she turned away, rubbing her arm and staring at Bonnie's body on the ground. Anna stopped and looked back, chewing on her lower lip as confliction warred behind her eyes.

"What?" asked Kol, reaching for another one of those things in his arm, sighing hard as he ripped it out and dropped it to the ground. He almost asked her again what the matter was, but before he could he heard her inhale sharply.

"You wanted to know what would happen if you kissed me," she said tightly, earning his full attention. Anna backtracked, reaching out to place her hand on the side of his face and leaning up to kiss him, pressing her body against his as she did. For a moment Kol didn't move, he was too shocked, because up until that moment Anna had done everything short of punching him in the face to keep from touching him - and now she was kissing him.

But the feeling of her lips against his made him cave, and he inhaled deeply as he kissed her back. Something like a switched flipped in the back of his mind, and everything he thought he was missing - the feelings he had for her, the memories of her that linked to other memories - came flooding in. The smell of her around him, the taste of her on his tongue, the way her body molded against his was all familiar; and Kol pressed his hand to the small of her back, the other going to the back of her head as he deepened the kiss.

Honestly Kol thought there would be more pain, at least for her; and he pulled away from her mouth reluctantly but also hoping wouldn't die on him. Anna's fingers played across the side of his neck, breathing hard despite her not needing to and staring at his lips.

"It doesn't hurt to touch you," she whispered, leaning up to brush her lips against his once more. Kol didn't hesitate to kiss her back this time, wrapping his arms around her and lifting her against him. She pulled away from him slightly to mumble against his lips. "Why doesn't this hurt?"

Kol didn't care, and he would have told her so if he hadn't been interrupted by the sound of crashing wood on the ground floor above them, followed by a high pitched "Bonnie!". Kol set Anna back onto the ground as Caroline flew downstairs, her eyes widening when she spotted her friend's body lying on the floor.

"What the hell did you do to her?!" she shouted, the volume of her voice making Kol wince. He was tried all of a sudden; blinking heavily, he leaned back against the wall he had previously been tied to, sliding down it until he was sitting on the floor. Anna followed him down, ignoring Caroline as well as the baby vampire tended to her (surprisingly, still alive) friend.

"Shut up, Caroline," Anna snapped when the blonde's voice became too intrusive, her hands glancing across the wood Cataleya had stuck into him. She pulled them out one by one, and with every wound that closed shut the more tired Kol felt. He caught her hand before she could move to the ones in his chest, leaning his head back against the wall as his eyes dropped.

Anna stilled for a moment, her eyes softening. She pulled her hand out of his and pressed it to his cheek. "I'll take care of you." she whispered, leaning forward to kiss him softly; he passed out beneath her lips, and Anna let her hand linger on his face for a moment when she pulled away.

.

Kol walked back into the mansion after dealing with Cataleya, practically shaking with rage as he stalked across the foyer; running his hand across his mouth as he thought about the witch and what she had done to Annabelle. Because he couldn't protect her he had to turn her into a vampire, something he hadn't wanted to do so soon. Maybe in a year or two, maybe never; but he didn't have the option now.

Kol pushed open his bedroom door, finding Anna lying dead above the sheets and Finn standing over her with his arms folded across his chest. He looked up when Kol entered, glaring as he strode away from the bedside and up to him.

"Where the hell have you been?"

Kol ignored him, moving around Finn without a word and over to Annabelle's side. She wasn't awake yet, good. Swallowing, Kol reached out to brush the back of his fingers across her cheek, hating how cold she felt to the touch. He could feel Finn's eyes burning into him, and he bit his tongue to keep from snarling when his brother spoke again.

"You left her here alone," Finn accused him, his voice thick with disbelief. "Why?"

"I have my reasons," murmured Kol and nothing more. The silence stretched between them for a few minutes, and then without a word, Finn turned on his heel and left, slamming the door behind him and probably waking the entire house.

But it didn't wake Annabelle.

Crouching beside the bed, Kol folding his hands on the bedspread and watched Anna's face for any sign of movement. But like everyone else who transitioned into a vampire, she came back without warning, flying into a sitting position with a hard gasp that scared the daylights out of Kol. He rose quickly, grabbing onto her arms to keep her from hurting herself or him while she calmed down.

"Shh, love, it's alright, I'm here," whispered Kol, pushing her hair out of her face as he caught her attention. Annabelle gripped the front of his shirt, pulling him closer to her. He did as he was bidden, sitting next to her and wrapping his arms around her tightly. Swallowing thickly, Kol pressed his face into her hair, muttering nonsensically into her hair as her breathing slowed and she relaxed against him.

"That woman," Annabelle muttered into his chest, shaking her head. "That woman-"

"You're a vampire, Annabelle," Kol interrupted, feeling her still against him. She pulled away slowly, staring up at him blankly. Kol felt his stomach start to sink. "You're in transition."

"W...What?"

Lowering his eyes, Kol focused on keeping his voice even. "What Cataleya - that woman - did to you...I didn't have a choice love. I could risk losing you." Annabelle was silent, her expression remaining blank until Kol reached up to touch her cheek. "Anna?"

"You killed me?"

Kol's hand fell away from her face, feeling his stomach drop. "You would have died anyway," he said in defense of himself. "I just made sure you would come back."

Whatever she was thinking didn't show on her face, and Kol found himself wishing she would talk to him. Finally she nodded, leaning forward and resting her cheek on his shoulder. "What happens now?"

"You feed."

.

It wasn't that simple though. At first it was just a dull ache, but days went by and suddenly Anna was in so much pain when he touched her that Kol had to go to Niklaus and request that he drag Cataleya back to the house for a word. Their trip was postponed in order to give Annabelle time to adjust to her vampirism, which Kol thought was generous of his siblings, especially when he had offered to remain behind while they went on ahead. But Rebekah adored Anna, and Klaus wouldn't leave without his sister.

Cataleya wasn't helpful, they couldn't compel her to tell them and it would have been useless to torture her. All Kol knew was that Annabelle couldn't stand to be around him, and the promise he had made to the witch about keeping her alive was starting to become thin.

Kol was keeping the witch though, in the dungeon where he had found Annabelle. Was it cruel to keep a woman tied to a chair? Yes, and he didn't care. All she did was stare at him as he lounged in a chair across from her staring back. He could be halfway across the ocean by now if it weren't for her, he, his siblings and a human Annabelle along with them.

"I don't think you understand how little I care for you," said Kol, flicking an invisible blemish of his pants. Cataleya blinked, looking started for a moment; he hadn't said a word for hours, he never did. Kol went on dryly. "But you did something to my wife and I want to know what."

"W-Wife?" stammered Cataleya, straightening in her chair. Kol nodded, his eyebrows lifting in mock surprise.

"Did I not mention that?" he asked, looking away to examine his fingernails. "Hmm, it must have slipped my mind... Well, it was a small ceremony; we had it here, but Rebekah and Annabelle did a lovely job. I'm surprised you didn't hear all the noise-"

She interrupted him with a shriek, jerking wildly in her bindings. Kol moved to the edge of his seat, leaning over his knees to glare at Cataleya as she pulled uselessly at the metal chaining her to the chair; tears spilled out of her eyes as she stilled, glaring back at him.

"Tell me what you did," he hissed.

.

"-No, no, no, no, no."

Kol tightened his grip on Anna's shoulders, tilting his head down to catch her eye again. She was crying, he was crying - it was an awful mess. His siblings were waiting for him at the ship that would take them home and he was...saying goodbye. Even though he was older and stronger she managed to push him off her, pressing her clasped hands to her mouth and shaking her head as she pleaded desperately with him.

"I have to," Kol insisted again, for the hundredth time, catching her face in his hands and turning her head up so she would meet his eyes. She held his gaze for as long as she could before her face crumpled; closing his eyes to try and fight down his misery, Kol pressed his forehead against hers. "I don't know what I'd do without you, Annabelle. This is the only way."

"She's still getting what she wants," Annabelle ground out through clenched teeth, pulling away to look at him, pushing his hands off her. "You're leaving!" she cried, her eyebrows pulled together as she stared at him accusingly. "Forgetting me!"

Kol shook his head, even though he knew she was right. He was running away because he was scared and he was leaving her because he wanted her to have a chance in the world without him. "You will die," Kol started, his voice even and serious, forcing Annabelle to still. "If I...If I stay with you, if I know you."

He watched her bring her bring her hands back up to her face, looking away from him as she tried to get her sobs under control; it gave Kol the chance to get himself together as well, turning his eyes onto the ground because when he pushed away the crushing sorrow all he felt was guilt. He loved this girl and he was abandoning her because a silly little witch had an obsession and a bit of power.

"Annabelle," he began, his voice catching. She looked at him out of the corner of her eyes, her brown eyes wide and begging him not to go. "I can make you forget," watching her eyes widen further, he continued quickly. "If you want me too. It'll be hard to live an eternity knowing me and not having me."

She snorted softly, shaking her head as she rolled her eyes in irritation. "Don't you think highly of yourself," she spat, leaving a tense silence between them for a moment before her shoulders dropped and she turned to face him. She wasn't crying anymore, but her eyes were still red and wet. Annabelle reached for his hand, holding it in both of hers. "I'd rather die than forget about you."

Leaving his hand in hers, Kol stepped closer and wrapped his free hand around the back of her head, leaning down to kiss her one last time before he forgot everything about her. Annabelle inhaled through her nose, rising on her toes and pressing herself against him, trapping her hands between their chests as they savored their very last moment together; and Kol thought-

He would never let that happen.