A/N: Thank you to all of those who have read, reviewed, and subscribed to the previous installments. I'm immensely grateful for each and every follow and favorite. All About Us has reached 100th favorites!
- Unbeta'ed for now. All mistakes are mine. Also, I've created a poll regarding this installment. Click on my profile to check it out. I'll leave it as a blind poll; there's no closing deadline... although the results do depend on how quick/ slow the other chapters (even-numbered) will take to post. Poll question: Who should Kol Mikaelson be with? Annabelle Zhu, Caroline Forbes, or Others (if polled others, please DM your preference.)
Previously:
"You're not Elena. What's going on?"
"I'm hoping you have the answer to that," Jeremy sheepishly replies.
xXx
After being ambushed by the younger Gilbert, all Caroline can glean are the three most important highlights. One, Elena is missing. Two, Jeremy's looking way too perky from having just awakened from a coma. And three, bullet points one and two have to be connected somehow. This would be much easier if Katherine actually bothers to answer her string of calls and many spammed texts.
She blurs out of Tyler's place and takes a bunch of shortcuts using the woods to avoid any curious passerby. She reaches home in six minutes. Caroline slips through the back door and hollers for her mom. There is no response. She sighs in relief as she grabs her car keys. On second thought, she back-tracks and scribbles on a notepad. The page is torn off and stuck on the fridge with one of many cute cat magnets.
There. Maybe she won't try another house arrest attempt.
Not that she is against spending time with her workaholic mom but her best friend is missing, and she can't let the authorities handle it because… it involves a whole lot of witchy super mess of an explanation. Her mother may be somewhat accepting of her only daughter being a vampire. But to expose that Elena has an identical vampire body is Pandora's box.
She exits the front door and slips into her trusty Ford Fiesta. Keeping up her human appearances is exhausting but necessary. She starts up the car engine and drives off to Katherine's favorite haunts.
xXx
The first destination that comes to mind is the acquisition of the manor located just at the edge of the border. Katherine had bought it for reasons unknown to Caroline. At that point in time, the ownership was placed under Elena's name.
Standing on tip-toes, her fingers fumble for the key resting in its usual hidey-hole, just above the door. She inserts the key into the lock and turns the knob. The door creaks as it swings forward. Caroline presses on, despite its dead giveaway that the manor looks exactly as she last visited.
She moves towards the living parlor and a particular memory swims to the shoreline… the first time Elena had crashed her restraint practice, she'd almost jumped her.
XxxX
A tinge of sweet-smelling rust wafts in from the open window, causing her mouth to salivate. Her tongue darts out to wet her chapped lips, whilst the darkness inside her howls to be unleashed. Before she even processed her decision, her feet propelled her forward.
An arm stretches out… then a full body blocks her view. Her sire enters her line of sight. "Breathe. What do your senses tell you?"
Caroline pushes back with a snarl. "That I need to feed, and you should stop starving me."
It's not the answer Katherine is looking for, and the next thing she knows, she's being tossed unceremoniously into a storeroom. By the time Caroline takes to spring to her feet, the door has slammed shut in her face. She lets loose a growl and yanks at the brass knob. To her surprise, it stays unyielding.
Not used to being ignored, she huffs and raises her fist to-
"It's homemade."
Elena's sweet, muffled voice filters through the narrow slits between the metal hinges and plywood. The once closed fist unfurls open in surrender to cup her open-jawed, elongated snarl as the guilt churns and then pools in the pits of Caroline's stomach that even the demons inside falter.
She dry-heaves and nearly retches on empty air at the thought of what Elena's blood coating her lips tastes like. Her head spins as she presses her stiff back firmly against the cool cemented wall, whilst willing those fangs away upon hearing Elena's innocent laughter against Katherine's bossiness.
"Fine, cupcake. But you're staying upstairs until I come to get you."
She hears Elena's yelling loud and clear and realizes it's meant for her. "You're in good hands, Care."
Her laughter drifts further as Caroline tracks Elena's gentle stomps up the stairs, and then the door creaks. Following a moment of silence, the door bursts open, and light spills into the darkened room. Caroline squints at the haloed silhouette. Standing in front is none other than a cool-headed Katherine glaring daggers at her as if the arrival of Elena is entirely her fault. She takes a bite of the vanilla frosted cupcake with colorful sprinkles on top and makes a show of savoring it. Caroline sniffs and her stomach rumbles.
Embarrassingly loud.
The box full of those delicious cupcakes that Katherine is balancing on her other hand, smells heavenly that Caroline can feel her appetite of bloodlust lessen just a bit.
Something must have shown in her expression because Katherine's smirk widens. "You can't have them. They're all mine."
Right there and then, she just knows Katherine's no longer talking about cupcakes.
XxxX
It's that one particular memory that has Caroline driving to the Grill for some real substance and maybe a sweet treat to drown herself from the never-ending memories of a sardonic Katherine leering down at her.
"You can't have them." Can't have her.
Who's Isobel, Katherine? That's all Jeremy pesters her about. Is she new to town? One of KP's minions?
Caroline feels so completely out of the loop that she doesn't realize she's inside the restaurant bar, staring blankly at the menu board hanging above. She snaps out of her daze when Matt calls her for probably the nth time.
"Hi."
"Hi. You okay?"
Caroline shakes her head. She sighs. "Have you seen Elena?"
"Can't say I have. She was absent today. So were you," he shrugs as he wipes down the bar table where the previous customer had vacated.
"Fantastic," she mutters and sinks down on the cushioned bar stool. She rests her forehead onto the cool bar table.
"So where were you?"
Her pitiful answer (lie) comes off partially muffled as she groans into the table. "At home. I… overslept."
His boisterous deep chuckle booms above her. "The majestic Miss Mystic Falls overslept?! You're funny."
Caroline straightens and gives Matt a stink-eye. "Hardy har har." She hears some chortling coming from the other end where the booths are situated. She hones in on the familiar voices and spies the same duo from the reception two days ago.
Huh.
"You gonna order something, Care?"
She nearly gives herself a whiplash where Matt is still standing there, waiting for her to say something. He must have sensed something because he's talking again. "You want your usual?"
She nods and he leaves to attend to another patron. She tucks a stray curl behind her ear and tunes back to the pair.
"Don't be a spoilsport, darling. It's an adventure of a lifetime," the male cajoles.
What was his name again? Cole, Nol, Kole?
"Stop dodging the question. How do you plan to find Katherine? You already said she can't be tracked using a location spell," Anna counters.
Wait, what? Caroline gasps and then angles her body away. They know of Katherine. It can't be the same person she's searching for, right?
Only one comes to mind. Her sire is also predominantly missing along with her best friend. The pieces start forming in her slow processing brain. The cogwheels start turning. If and it's a big if, they know Katherine then they must also be vampires which begs the million-dollar question - whose side are they on?
Allies like Lucy Bennett in Georgia or…
An enemy like the Mikaelsons who she knows her own mother made a deal with the three-piece suit Mikaelson he calls himself.
She slaps her open palm against the countertop. Of course! The location spell. Bonnie can cast one and they know where Elena is immediately. She waits just long enough for Matt to return with her takeaway order and hightails out.
xXx
Something awfully wrong is Caroline's first thought as she steps inside the ajar front door of the Salvatore boarding house. Knowing the brothers and their love for privacy, they certainly won't leave their front door open despite their immediate neighbors living a mile away. Their living room has turned into a disaster of a destruction zone. Upturned furniture, pieces of glass smashed in a corner, and in the center of it lies a circular boundary of unlit candles. Sitting hunchback in the middle, pouring over the thick Grimoire is none other than Bonnie Bennett.
Bonnie, the other best friend, who is calm, collected, and the most rational person in their tight-knit social circle, has unraveled into a delirious muttering mad woman rocking back and forth as she stares /glares at the candlewick in front of her.
"Bonnie!" She uneasily ventures forward. Bonnie doesn't seem to hear her. She continues muttering the same phrase over and over again like a broken record.
Caroline tries valiantly to get her attention. She doesn't dare break Bonnie's intense laser-eye focus because the last time she did that. Bonnie had sent a burst of uncontrollable fire licking at her heels.
Where is Damon, anyway?
Several minutes pass and she soon gets the idea that something must have gone wrong that night because Bonnie, her awesome witchy friend, has yet to light all the candles in the room. She hears a hushed whisper from above calling her name. Curiosity sets in and Caroline inches away from her spot. She creeps towards the staircase and peers up to find Stefan jerking his head up.
She flies up the stairs and into his room where the brunette is sitting on one of the storage containers at the foot of his bed. He gestures at the door and Caroline shuts the door quietly behind her.
"Bonnie doesn't have her mojo," he says in lieu of a greeting.
"Yeah, that's an understatement," Caroline sarcastically replies. "Have you seen her?! All she needs is a finger snap and poof, flame on. How long has this been going on for?"
"Hmm. About forty-something hours…"
"Are you saying Bonnie's been sending laser eyes to that candlewick for two days!" Her voice pitches and drops to a near-whisper. "What the hell happened that night?"
"I wasn't there in person but-"
"Great. I'll just add one more person to the 'Wtf-did-happen-list'. The only people who attended have either gone crazy or AWOL. Do you have any idea where I can find Katherine or Elena?"
Stefan stares and when he does finally answer; his tone feels all wrong and his words are carefully guarded. "Caroline, the ritual… I'm sorry but she's gone."
In denial, she does what she does best. She barrels on at full throttle. "Because I know for a fact that Katherine owns a phone, knows certainly how to use it, and she is most definitely up to speed with the millennium culture. I've already tried calling her multiple times. They've all gone to voicemail… an- and Elena's worse."
Her lungs heave for unneeded oxygen as Caroline pauses her tirade.
"Elena's-"
She shakes her head violently as she glares at Stefan. "No. Don't say it!"
"I'm sorry," he continues in between her hiccups.
"I mean what idiot leaves her phone at home?!"
"Klaus needed to drink all of the doppelganger's blood for the spell to work. The spell required a tremendous amount of energy that one witch just didn't have, so they used Bonnie and channeled her magic and a thousand dead witches. They paid the price," Stefan explains.
She points an accusing finger squarely at his chest. "You weren't even there! How did-"
Caroline chokes back a sob.
"Damon told me and then I just pieced everything together."
Her knees wobble suddenly and having nothing to support herself, she crumples to the floor in grief. Stefan /Ripper, Caroline doesn't know who he is now, doesn't give two-shits to care. He lowers himself to her eye level. "I'm sorry."
Her facial expression hardens yet she doesn't have it in her to move. She growls, "I'm going to find him. Find Klaus. Where is he?"
He scoots forward. "He's indisposed of. Elijah has already seen to it. He won't be returning."
"I want to-" stab /punch his ugly mug face /pluck his damning uncaring heart out
"I know," he replies gently. His knees gently tap against hers.
She hurls her entire body weight against him, crushing her tear-streaked face into his neck as she wrapped her arms tightly against his shoulders. He whispers gentle nonsense into her ear as he pulls her to a soothing, sleepy embrace.
She doesn't know how much time passes or how she ends up on one side of his bed as he presses something cold into the palm of her hand.
"She'll want you to have this," he says.
Caroline turns it over. It's a silver locket with a small clasp. Inside is a faded but recognizable photo of Katherine in 1864.
Where did you go? Where's Elena?
A/n: Next chapter will be in... Can you guess who? It'll be a pretty short chapter. I love to hear what you think~