xiv.
Alex lay in the middle of a dirt road, dressed in slacks and a button up as Katherine sat staring down at her. A smirk appeared on both of their faces as a carriage began to draw closer. Katherine cleared her throat as her face quickly went from a smug joyful expression to a fearful one.
"Please!" She pushed herself off of the dirt road, stumbling forward in a hurry. "Please, help us!" She called out, the horse coming to a stop as she drew near. "Please, my husband, he's been hurt!" She begged, balling the skirt of her dress in her hands. "Please help him." The coachman jumped from his spot, rushing towards Alex's side.
"What are you doing out here in the middle of the night?" The passenger asked, confused, as he stepped out of the cab. "It's not safe."
"No. No, Sir," Katherine looked down at her feet, a smirk quickly taking over her lips. "It's not safe." Before the man could react, Katherine lunged forward, sinking her teeth into his neck. The coachman looked at Alex with a furrowed brow, kneeling down to get a better look in the dark.
"I thought you said this was your husband?" He called out, turning his head as he spoke. "This is a woman." Alex let out a laugh, opening her eyes.
"One can pretend, can't they?" She asked, quickly lunging forward and doing the same. She tossed the drained body of the cab driver to the side, slowly rising to her feet. She used her thumb to wipe the excess blood from her chin, tilting her head at the girl who flashed in front of her. "Husband, huh?" She let out a laugh as Katherine twirled back and forth for a moment.
"You act like they would have stopped if I had said my 'friend'." The brunette rolled her eyes, the blood from the man in the cab dripping from her chin. Alex reached her hand out, lightly grasping Katherine's chin, and pulled the girl's face towards her own.
"Always finding new ways to play with your food," the blonde's eyes flickered towards her lips before quickly returning to look into the brunette's eyes. Katherine placed a gentle hand against Alex's chest before responding in a breathy tone.
"I learned from the best," She smirked as Alex let out a soft chuckle, shaking her head.
Alex sat in the basement, a fresh blood bag in her hands as she tossed the now empty one to the side. As quickly as she had drained the previous one, she sank her teeth into the next bag. She was too busy draining the tall pile of bags in her lap to pay attention to the excessive number that rest in the large basement fridge.
Alex and Katherine sat across from Emily Bennett and Toriana in the back of the horse drawn carriage. The doppelgänger looked down at her hands quietly, humming to herself as the body of the carriage wobbled back and forth.
"Must we really return to this town every century as if it doesn't end always in pitchforks and flames?" Tori asked, looking out the window as Alex sighed audibly.
"If someone could be more discrete with their feeding habits and not use the town as their play things we wouldn't have to move around so often." The blonde looked over to Katherine who sat with her hat covering her face. The brunette rolled her eyes at the Mikaelson's statement, fiddling with the gloves on her hands. Her cornflower blue and cream dress highly contrasted Alex's solid black one. Tori, being the stubborn one, sat in trousers and a petticoat. The snowy ruffles of her cuffs and collar peeked out from under her navy colored coat adorned with brassy buttons.
"You speak as though we don't already have constant camp canard with Toriana's buccaneer duds," Katherine scoffed.
"And what of it?" Tori asked, leaning forward to rest her elbows on her knees. "Let those no account grey backs continue their jawing. Besides," She narrowed her eyes at the Petrova seated diagonally across from her, a smirk creeping across her lips. "You cannot tell me you were not entertained when truly was a buccaneer." Katherine laughed through her nose, shaking her head.
"Steal from the rich and give to yourself," The Petrova sighed, finally looking up at the youngest Mikaelson with a smile of her own gracing her features. "You truly were your own Robin Hood, little fox." It was Tori's turn to roll her eyes, opening her mouth to give a snarky response until her eyes met her sister's.
"Enough," Emily glared at Katherine, her gaze quickly moving to look at the roof of the carriage above her. "The last thing we need is for the Salvatore's to greet a carriage full of bickering hens." Alex raised a brow at the Bennett witch, a scoff leaving her lips. She shook her head, her eyes quickly meeting Katherine's.
"Emily's right, flutter mouse," the blonde sighed in content as the doppelgänger placed a gloved hand in her own. "It's best we remain civil until we can return home." Alex looked down at their hands, delicately lacing their fingers together. Her blue eyes flicked up to meet Katherine's hazel ones, a small smile on her lips as the carriage came to a halt. The Petrova released Alex's hand, returning her own into her lap as she slowly turned towards the door next to her. Emily stepped out first, her hand quickly reaching outward to help Katherine and the others out of the carriage.
Alex was at a loss for words, her gaze finally catching Stefan's face as he made his way down the front steps of the Salvatore estate. She swallowed hard as the Salvatore made his way to greet the group, her head quickly turning to look at her sister. Tori's brow was furrowed, her eyes blinking quickly as she tilted her head. Alex bit back the words she so desperately wanted to speak, her previous cheerful expression faltering.
"Is the universe playing some sick joke?" She whispered, clenching her jaw as the boy stopped in front of Katherine. Alex watched them, her heart dropping when she saw that the doppelgängers shared the same gazes with each other that the last pair had. A gaze filled with lust, longing, interest, hopefulness.
You died in my arms eight centuries ago. I took your wife as my own and raised your son after she burned on the pyre.
"You must be Miss Pierce," Stefan said simply, his arms tucked behind his back as he bowed slightly.
"Please," The Petrova smirked, reaching out a hand for the Salvatore to take. "Call me Katherine," he took her hand in his own for a moment as she curtseyed. They looked at each other for far too long after Stefan had let go of Katherine's hand, causing Tori to speak up.
"What's more of a courtesy than meeting your neighbors face to face," Tori smirked, tilting her head slightly as she reached out her hand, quickly taking Stefan's in her own and shaking it.
"Ah, the Mikaelson sisters," He said, his voice cracking slightly as if he was caught off guard.
"Toriana," the brunette spoke quickly, clearing her throat to grab Alex's attention.
"Alexandria," Alex forced a smile as Stefan reached out his hand. Instead of taking it, she looked down at the ground and curtseyed quickly. "It's a pleasure, Mister Salvatore."
"Oh, Mister Salvatore is my father. Please, call me Stefan." He smiled as he returned his attention to Katherine as if the rest of the group didn't exist. Katherine couldn't keep the corner of her lips from flicking up in a small smile, causing Alex to clench her jaw once more.
Alex moved to the biohazard bin, quickly tossing the now empty blood bags in as she moved back towards the stairs. She rung her hands together, clearing her throat. As she moved, she grabbed a rag off the railing, wiping the excess blood from her face.
Alex slowly stumbled up the steps of the Salvatore estate that led to the bedrooms, watching Emily as she frantically moved up the stairs ahead of her. Katherine and Emily hadn't returned home the night before, leading her to grow exceedingly worried. With the town beginning to learn of its vampire inhabitants, the blonde's mind was racing with every little possibility. When she had learned that Katherine had stayed with the Salvatore's, her worries only changed their topics. Her eyes caught the open door to the guest bedroom, causing her to turn her head slightly. Her confused expression fell when she heard Katherine's giggles coming from the closed door at the top of the stairs.
"What are you doing? Stop it!" Katherine's voice was muffled, but Alex could hear the words from the other side of the door. Once again, her heart dropped. She knew what she would find on the other side of the door but let Emily lean forward to knock anyway. As Emily pushed the door open slightly, Alex leaned forward to open it fully, running her tongue against her top teeth as her nose twitched. Katherine wore the same dress Alex had arrived in, her hair pulled to one side out of her face. She watched as the blankets moved underneath the girl.
"Yes?" Katherine asked, turning to look at the door as she sat up, straddling Damon. Her expression contorted from a playful smirk to a shocked, fearful, expression. "Alex, I—" The blonde shook her head, scoffing as she turned and left the room. She could hear the Petrova calling after her, her feet stomping against hardwood as she ran, but continued to move down the stairwell.
There was a knock at the door that pulled her back into reality again, causing Alex to look down at the doorknob in front of her. She blinked back the thoughts that came rushing in. It was one of the reasons why she had avoided the Mikaelson estate at all costs. As she pulled the front door open, she was met with an all too familiar face on the other side.
"Alex—"