Perfect Night of Last Loves Part Two.
IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ THE SHORT AUTHOR'S NOTE BEFORE STARTING THIS ONE SHOT!
Song: Talking to the Moon by Bruno Mars.
If you haven't read Perfect Night of Last Loves you should read that before starting this. It can be found in chapter two of this drabble series, Songs of the Moment.
The long awaited and asked for summary for Perfect Night Part Two:
Klaus has an intricate spell to have cast in order to bring Caroline back from the dead. The spell that was lost through time only to land in his lap by Caroline herself. The only supernatural beings with the power and strength to return from the dead have been witches. But with this spell and a gathering of many very special and very hard to find ingredients Klaus will have the chance to bring her back. So far he has found them all, but one. His hope is failing him, for this one seems impossible to find.
And with the Other Side gone…What does that mean for Caroline?
Life is darker than dark, blacker than black but when a sudden burst of light comes filtering in, it brings a ray of hope to the (perfect) night. – By Me
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Klaus dusted his hands off as he scowled down at the sobbing and shaking warlock as his body bounced against the wall he had just thrown the sniveling pathetic man into. "I'm growing weary of all these pointless searches and wild goose chases."
The warlock raised his shaking bloodied hands in hopes to calm the deranged Hybrid, "I…I truly thought you would find someone Kl…Klaus."
"Well you thought wrong!" Klaus shouted through his fangs as he hurled what was probably a priceless vase near the man's head causing shards of sharp porcelain to rain down over his exposed skin. "The spell says I need to find a link to magic in her bloodline. Only problem with that is there are no traces of any witches in her family tree." Klaus's yellowed eyes inspected the cowering warlock with a taunting smirk, "And since you've failed me as all the others did before you, you shall meet a similar fate."
Klaus stalked predatorily to the quivering man, his mind a maelstrom of riotous emotions. He had spent months scouring the Earth, chasing ever lead he could find in order to bring her back. With each and every dead end his hope was dwindling to the point it was hanging on by a single thread, much like his very sanity.
He paid no mind to the ramblings of the man who was currently pissing himself in fear causing Klaus's nose to scrunch in disgust as he gripped him by the shoulders slamming him against the wall with his feet dangling above the floor.
Irritated by the man's constant stream of illegible words Klaus growled, "What in the bloody hell are you blathering about?"
"She is from your vampire bloodline, no?" The sniveling warlock sputtered.
"Yes." Klaus hissed through his exposed fangs.
"And if an Original falls…" The shaking man stuttered out.
His yellow eyes widened as it hit him, "Then they all fall with us."
The dots connected in his mind, he felt unbelievably foolish that he had not figured this out before, that he was so blinded by pain and rage he nearly missed this vital piece to bringing her back. Caroline might not have magic in her bloodline directly but his did and she was a vampire whose origin could be traced directly back to him. The veins crawling across his cheekbones receded, his eyes slowly shifted back to their blue-gray color while still holding a hint of the yellowed madness. Klaus carelessly dropped the warlock to the floorboards, pointing a finger down at him, "Count yourself luck old friend, you just bought yourself more time." Turning on his heels, his long coat billowed out behind him as he left the room.
Klaus slammed the cottage door closed on his way out feeling, if only slightly, less crazed than he had over the past few months since…He quickly shook the dark thoughts from his mind as he felt his bones being to shift as a perfect mix of anger and despair shot through him, which seemed as of late to be his cocktail of choice.
His attention was drawn to the sounds of someone flashing through the secluded forest where the warlock had been hiding himself away. Pulling his body up straight, forcing his bones to realign, Klaus threw his arms wide as a suited figure came into view, "Brother! What brings you way out here I wonder?" A cocky smirk lit his face even as the yellowed mania swirled within the depths of his eyes.
Elijah pulled the cuffs of his long pea coat down as he subtly inspected his brother, "I'm sure you know quite well why I'm here Niklaus." Leveling him with a hard stare Elijah spoke sternly, "This blood bath needs to end. I don't know what has possessed you to ravage your way through bloodline after bloodline of witches and every other known supernatural creatures but it must stop. The rumors are running rampant of the Original Hybrid who has gone mad. And by the evidence I have come across, the rumors are not too far from the truth."
Klaus scoffed with a shrug his rigidly set shoulders as if he hadn't a care in the world, though Elijah could detected even more credence to the rumors in his younger brother's tone, "Worry not Elijah, I have it all under control. Besides," He smirked darkly, "A little mass terror never hurt anyone."
Elijah quickly grabbed ahold of Klaus's arm as he attempted to pass by, yanking him around to face him, "Enough Niklaus! Months ago you left here without a word to anyone only to return not yourself. I've spoken with Rebekah and Marcel; they tell me that you have shirked the duties as King of this City that you fought so valiantly to gain. Instead you choose to tear through the area, terrorize the populace to the point they are all but afraid to come out of their homes. That is, the ones who haven't fled in fear of the Hybrid gone mad."
Klaus growled in his face, "Back off Brother." Trying to loosen Elijah's hold on his arm only to have his grip tighten even more before Elijah pulled him in close.
"Not until you explain to me just what is going on with you!" Elijah yelled with a hint of desperation, needing to know just what it was that was causing such a violent change in his brother, one that bordered on the insanity that he had only seen when Klaus was under the effects of the Hunter's Curse.
"You wouldn't understand." He growled deeply, trying to shake his brother's hold, "Now let go of my arm before I send you into a nasty bout of hallucinations." Klaus hissed as his fangs dropped.
Elijah bared his neck without fear, "Go ahead Niklaus. It wouldn't be the first time. But know this," He said determinedly as he looked straight into his brother's crazed eyes, "I will still be here when they fade; I will continue trying to help you, to figure out what is happening…"
"There is nothing to figure out! This isn't some riddle for you to discover the answer and win a prize! She's dead Elijah!" Klaus shouted as he felt his mind snap. His frenzied yellow hued eyes searched his older brother's face for a hint of clarity, for something to grasp onto to keep him focused even for just a tiny second before he collapsed into his brother's arms, hiding his face against Elijah's shoulder as he whispered brokenly, "She's gone. Her light is gone. She's gone and I may never get her back."
Elijah stood with his eyes widened in shock before he wrapped his arms around Klaus, embracing him in a way that he had not done for so long. He kept his voice soft and soothing, attempting to comfort his broken younger brother enough to understand just what and who he was speaking of. With his hand trailing over his brother's back he spoke with a steady but pleading tone, desperate to figure out just what had his strong and fearless brother so lost and broken in a way he had not seen of him since the last days of their human lives, "Talk to me Niklaus. Tell me what has happened so I might find a way to fix it for you brother."
Elijah's breath caught as Klaus lifted his head to look up at him with a steady track of tears leaking from his eyes that were a mixture of their normal blue but still swirled with hints of yellow and down his face as his lower lip quivered uncontrollably.
Klaus latched onto Elijah's jacket so tightly with his trembling hands at the shoulders that a tearing sound could be heard echoing amongst the trees, "If ever there was a time that I need your complete trust 'Lijah that moment is now. Please brother! You must help me bring her back."
Elijah was more confused than ever but the whimpered sound of his brother's voice combined with the use of the nickname that he had not heard fall from Klaus's lips in centuries awoke something deep within him, making his decision for him. It matter not if he understood, it mattered not if the odds of bringing back this mysterious woman who's death left his brother so shaken it nearly drove him mad with grief. Elijah looked straight into his brother's pleading desperate eyes and his crestfallen face, "You have my trust and whatever else you might need of me Niklaus. Family above all," The small portion of relief in Klaus's voice and the echoing, "Always and forever." told Elijah that he had made the right choice, that his brother needed him now more than ever.
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Klaus walked out of his bathroom into the darkness of his room exhaling a deep shaky sigh. A soft gust of wind filtered in through the open balcony doors allowing the light of the moon to shine in lighting a path from where he stood and outside to the terrace.
He followed the path as if in a trance, lightly brushing the gauzy curtain out of his way as he stepped out into the night air. From the corner of his eyes he caught sight of the make-shift bed that Caroline had made for the two of them all those months ago bringing an aching pain to his chest. He didn't have the heart to move it once he returned to New Orleans and he was ever thankful for the overhang of the roof that kept it protected against the elements; for it was the last thing she had touched. It was the last place he had seen her, the last place he had heard her voice as he held her wrapped up safely in his arms.
Klaus sighed once again as he folded his arms over the ledge, leaning down to rest his weight against it as he gazed up at the nearly full moon before he started talking quietly, "So the whole of New Orleans thinks that I've lost my mind. They say I've gone mad." He looked down towards the grounds beneath him as he chuckled humorlessly, "Maybe they are right Love."
His watery eyes rose from ground to stare at the moon after a few silent moments, whispering fiercely, "I found the way to bring you back Caroline. And now with Elijah's help, I can see it through just as you wanted. Just as I promised you." Klaus released a despondent sigh when no reply came; maybe he truly was going mad. But like he did every night since his return to the city, he stood out on his balcony talking to the moon, hoping against all odds that she heard him. That she would understand his lapses and his violence over the past few months. But most of all he hoped that within the next few days he would no longer have cause to wonder if she heard him, that she would be standing in this very spot next to him letting him finally hear the sound he craved, her voice.
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Caroline bit back a sob as she realized she no longer felt or saw the first rays of sunlight filtering in through Klaus's balcony doors. The tears she had shed while writing him the letter as quickly as she could while battling against time it self still tracked down her face as she now stood in an empty grey void.
A thick fog and mist swirled heavily in the air around her, bringing with it a strange feeling of displacement and a frigid icy cold that settled down deep within every inch of her. Her hand was still out in front of her, poised as if it still held the pen she had only seconds ago used to write Klaus's letter. Shakily she brought it in closer to her, cradling it to her chest as if it was the last shred of connection she held to the real world.
Wrapping her other arm around her middle tightly she glanced around, trying to figure out just where she was. The dark grey fog seemed to grow heavier and thicker as if it understood that she was trying to see through it. A flurry of voices filled with unintelligible whispers surrounded her, echoing across the void confusing her.
"Hello? Is anybody there?" Caroline choked down a whimper as the distorted voices grew louder, seeming angry at her inquiry.
Spinning in circles she frantically demanded, trying to keep the fear she felt from her voice, "Who's there? Where am I?"
The haunting whispers became a mass of screeching voices all blending together with a force that made her quickly cover her ears with her hands as she squeezed her eyes shut.
Her terrified blue eyes shot open as they all blended into one word that was hissed hatefully into her ears.
Purgatory.
A gasp barely had the chance to cross her parted lips before an unseen force shoved her violently into the waiting fog. Her breath froze in her throat as her mouth dropped open in a silent scream.
Vivid visions of her past flashed underneath her eyelids as the icy fog felt like tiny vervain soaked knives slicing through her skin and down into her bones. Every painful memory, every agonizing moment she had ever lived flashed like torturous clips in a never ending loop. She could feel her heart break all over again as tears slid like molten lava down her face but she was unable to scream, unable to move while they all played out in her mind.
Caroline clenched her fist reaching down deep to find her inner strength, forcing her tears away as she grounded out through clenched teeth, "NO!"
Pulling herself together Caroline remembered that all these horrible things, her mother's rejection, Damon, her Father and those she had killed were all things that she had already coped with, already worked so hard to be strong and learn to live with.
Suddenly her suspended body was thrown to the ground, the hissing taunting whispers starting up once again.
Retched filthy mistakes. Every last one of your kind.
The Gods should have done away with you all instead merely becoming bored, allowing the strong to survive and hunt each other down.
Let's see how strong you are now, little vile creature.
Caroline suddenly sat up as a roar from a fire was heard around her. Glancing around she found herself back in the woods where she had killed the twelve witches to save Bonnie.
"Yes you killed us Caroline!" A blonde woman shouted from a few feet away from her, a gaping hole bleeding profusely from her chest.
"All of us!"
Caroline's head swung around looking to yet another witch in the circle with the same wound.
"We had families Caroline!" A brunette woman screeched.
"I…I'm sorry…I…I…Bonnie…"
A mocking laugh cut off Caroline's stuttering response pulling her attention to the opposite side of the circle.
"Oh listen to her! She can't even speak!" A witch cackled.
"I had to save Bonnie." Caroline shouted firmly.
"Oh yes, your poor little friend. What about my grandmother Caroline?!" A dark haired male shouted, his face turning as red as the blood pouring from his chest. "I was all she had left in the world! I was the one to take care of her! What happened to her when I didn't come home!?"
Caroline's eyes rounded as they filled with tears, "I didn't know…I didn't think…I…"
"You didn't think what you selfish girl? You didn't think the lives of our loved ones mattered as much as your friend's?"
Caroline's heart beat a frantic tune in her chest as they all began shouting and screaming at her of all that she had stolen from them and their loved ones. She fell to the ground hugging her knees to her chest as she rocked, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry." She mindlessly sobbed.
The warmth of the fire was gone the moment a hand on her shoulder shocking her and she gasped in surprise as she was face to face with her Father.
"Daddy? How…how are you here? How are you alive?"
His cold chuckle brought a shiver of dread across her skin. "Did you really think that prison you and your lover put me in would hold me forever? When I have a group of loyal followers willing to help me to end you?"
"I don't understand." Caroline shook her head slowly, "Daddy you died. You died in our house back in Mystic Falls."
"Yes I did. But you," He laughed harshly, "You just couldn't let me go could you? You just had to shove a blood bag in my mouth!" The veins under his eyes spread as fangs dropped from his gums, "You turned me into a monster just so you could stay a helpless little girl!"
It wasn't until he backhanded her across the face that she realized she was no longer in the woods but she was chained to the wall behind her as her body was yanked back to the hard concrete floor.
"But you found yourself another to play your hero didn't you?" His cruel smile was like nothing she had ever seen on his face before. He backed slowly away from her, allowing the light to filter in and land on a figure nailed spread eagle to the wall.
"Klaus?" She gasped in horror at his greyed complexion and the blood that had dried as it trailed down his arms from the nails violently shoved through his wrist above his head. The large manacle that held him tightly against the stone wall was layered with thick dried blood, as were the spikes driven through his kneecaps and his ankles. She had no idea how long he must have been hanging there to make such a large pool of blood that had started to dry around the edges underneath him on the floor.
A weak and painful groan brushed through his greyed chapped lips at the sound of her voice. As Klaus slowly lifted his head, Caroline gasped in horror at the sight of the iron manacle holding his neck in place against the wall. "Caroline?" His weak and brittle voice croaked as he tried to reassure her. "It will be fine Love."
Tears streamed down her face as she shook her head back and forth violently as her Father brandished a White Oak stake from his pocket twirling it in his hands with a malicious grin, "I would say it's a pity that your lover here broke you from his sire line in order to save your pitiful excuse of a life if something were to happen to him but I find a cruel humor to it all." With a quickness that even shocked Caroline, he stabbed Klaus in the stomach with the stake before yanking it out as Klaus bellowed in pain through his clenched teeth.
"Now I can kill him right before your eyes and leave his body to burn and rot beside you before I end your life as well."
Klaus's eye locked onto hers, she was left breathless at the pure unadulterated love blazing out of them at her, the message he tried to pass to her though a simple look. Her insides screamed as her Father's arm came into view thrusting the stake into Klaus's heart, his body catching fire instantly.
Caroline didn't know she was sobbing and screaming Klaus's name until her voice cracked painfully and her ears registered her father's laughter. Her eye's, still swimming with tears, looked around the cell frantically as she began muttering, "This isn't real. This isn't real!" Before she slammed them shut in denial.
"Of course it is Sweetheart. You might not want to believe it but it is as real as you are standing before me."
Caroline glanced up to find herself standing in front of Klaus, the chains no longer holding her down. "You're alive?" Her eyes lit up and a smile began to form on her lips. Her arms rose as if to embrace him before she took in his dark sinister smirk lowering them slowly as she realized something was dreadfully off.
"You didn't really believe that you and your little group of fellow miscreants could put me down now did you?" Klaus chuckled darkly as he opened his arms widely, showcasing what lay behind him, "You may be a bit late to the party," He gave her a wink before whispering ominously, "but I did always enjoy saving the best for last."
Caroline looked around the room in absolute horror, feeling a sickness rise in her gut at the sights around her. All of her friends lay bloodied and mangled around the room. Dead. They were all dead.
"I…I don't understand."
"What's not to understand Caroline? You lot sought to put me down, throw me into a watery grave never to be seen or heard from again. Only it didn't quite work out that way now did it?" His devilish smirk was colder than she had ever seen as he aimed it her way.
"But…but you were in Tyler's body, you…you saved me. Then Bonnie put you back and then you…"
"Mmm yes," Klaus rubbed his chin thoughtfully as if caught up in a delicious memory, "I did quite enjoy the attention you bestowed on my while I was in the young Brutus. The way you moaned for me thinking it to be Tyler," His eyes fell closed for a single second as he groaned, "now those are sounds that will follow me for years to come. Long after you are dead of course."
Caroline swallowed past the bile rising in her throat unable to process what she was hearing from him, "What?"
"Oh Sweetheart," Klaus taunted her mockingly, "You didn't really think that the young pup could bring you that much pleasure now did you?" Klaus tilted his head, "Or is it something else entirely?" Klaus chuckled, "Oh Sweetheart. Did you really think that you meant something to me? That you were somehow special to me when there are plenty of pretty faces that cover this world?"
Caroline began walking backwards with her hands raised in front of her as Klaus started stalking after her like he was the hunter and she was his prey. Her head shaking back and forth, "This didn't happen. That's not how things went. I…" She tripped over something behind her crashing her body to the floor and landing with her legs sprawled over the mass she tripped over. She looked in horror at Elena's bloody and mangled body before screaming, "Elena!"
As soon as her scream left her mouth she found herself pinned to the ground with a hand wrapped tightly around her throat. Caroline's eyes widened as she took in Elena's angry face looming over top of her. Finding her bearings even with as confused as she was, Caroline used all of her strength to throw Elena off her and flashed up to a stand looking frantically around finding she was no longer in Klaus's home but standing in the middle of the woods behind the Salvatore Boarding House.
Elena flashed a few feet away from her, "Not bad. Not technically good, but then again Alaric didn't train you. You were probably too busy butting into other people's business."
Caroline ducked as Elena's leg rose to kick her only to lunge back up to have Elena grab ahold of her throat once more. She fought off Elena's hold, hearing bones crack as she pried Elena's hand off her throat and flung her away.
Caroline's mind quickly caught up with where she was, "God just stop! Elena I don't know what's happening but we've done this already. We're friends, we don't need to fight!"
"Awe, are you trying to make me feel bad for hurting your Mom? When are you going to get it? I don't care." Elena said coldly before smirking, "Maybe you should think about turning it off, then you wouldn't have to deal with all the dirty thoughts you have about Klaus."
Without thinking Caroline lunged at Elena knocking her into a tree, "Just stop!" Hearing Elena gasp and gurgle Caroline pulled back to find blood trailing down Elena's front with a branch sticking out of her chest. "Elena?" She pulled back, her body shaking as Elena turned grey.
"What did you do?"
Caroline spun at Damon's low growl.
"I didn't…I mean…this isn't how it happened." She stuttered as Stefan flashed up next to his brother, his eyes wide with shocked tears before he turned his head slowly to face her with veins webbing down his face in anger.
"How could you kill her Caroline? She was your friend! She didn't know what she was doing! You know she would never have acted this way with her emotions on." Stefan sneered at her as both brothers began walking determinedly towards her from both sides.
Caroline stumbled backwards with her hands raised as she gasped for breath, "I'm telling you this isn't how it happened!" Seeing them gaining on her she flashed backward screaming, "Nothing that's been happening to me is real!"
Damon flashed forward quickly, taking her off guard and lifting her harshly by her neck off the ground as he spat in her face, "No, but it's about to get extremely real."
An agonizing scream tore from her throat as Damon's fist plunged into her abdomen and straight out of her back.
Through all the pain, both physical and emotional, Caroline never noticed how the mist would swirl around her. How it would creep in, changing the scenario and how it would play out for her and those she cared for into a constant loop of the events that had transpired and ones that were manipulated by the mist its self to cause her the most pain and suffering. Causing her to doubt her own mind and lose her grip on what was real and what was not, as well as her grip on her sanity.
It was somewhere within being caught in the middle of the mist as it changed the scene around her yet again that Caroline felt a strange pull, a warm tugging deep within her that was a mix between the metaphysical and the physical. An excruciating scream tore from her throat as she felt as if she was burning from the inside out as the warmth from the pull got hotter as the tugging became more intense until she felt herself being thrusted into a heavy and oppressive realm.
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Her body ached in a way she hadn't felt in so long, every muscle, every bone, every inch of her body inside and out felt weighted down and weak. Her ears rang so loudly she could barely make out the muffed sounds from around her. Gradually the ringing slowed and quieted to the point she could hear an accented voice cautiously calling her name like a prayer.
"Caroline?"
She felt something foreign rub against the exposed skin of her arm feeling like a thousand burning needles being drug across it.
A pitiful whimper escaped her throat as she weakly pulled her arm away from the source of her discomfort, rolling her body over to curl on her side on top of the hard cold surface she was sprawled out on, her breath huffing with the effort it took to move.
"Everyone out."
She heard the shaky accented voice demand and the sound of quickly shuffling feet that followed. The rustle of clothing and the soft sound of something hitting the floor in front of her made her crack her eyes open only to whimper, squeezing them shut once again as the light from the lamps in the room scorched her eyes.
She heard a muffled curse before the sound of a rushed wind screamed in her ears. She felt a small amount of comfort when she could tell the lights were dimmed from behind her grainy eyelids. Through her confused and distorted mind she could sense the person had knelt back down in front of her once more, hesitation was clear in his voice.
"Caroline? It's okay, you're safe. Sweetheart, please. Open your eyes. Are you alright?"
The undeniable care and desperation in the voice tugged at a memory lost deep within her mind. Slowly Caroline tested her strength; she had just enough to lift her body up with her forearms to a half sitting position before she shakily raised her head to look at the person in front of her. It took her mind a few minutes to process just who was sitting in front of her on the floor before her eyes widened in fear and her body scrambled backwards weakly across the floor before hitting a wall.
"No. No. No. Please not again. No more." Her scratchy voice echoed throughout the room.
Klaus raised his trembling hands, trying to assure her he meant her no harm, thankful that the spell had worked and she was alive and real in front of him. They had told him she would more than likely be confused after all that she had been through, though they had failed to know just what that was or how bad it would be. Klaus gulped down harshly, no longer sure if he truly wanted to know after his eyes scanned over her features and her body language.
Caroline was terrified of him.
Absolutely and utterly terrified of him.
Never had he seen such a look from her, it was vaguely close to when she realized that Silas had got inside his head making him believe he was dying, but this look…this was so much more. It was a look he had never wanted her to have cause to aim at him. It hurt him deep into his core to know that something had transpired wherever she had gone to put such a look on her face. The pain of this knowledge battling with his pure elation that she was alive in front of him.
Slowly Klaus crept across the floor to her, keeping his movements slow and precise and forcing back tears at her choked whimpers of fear as he stopped mere feet in front of her.
Swallowing past the lump in his throat caused by a myriad of emotions coursing through him, he fought to keep his voice calm and soothing, "Caroline, you know I'd never hurt you. You're safe with me Love."
Caroline squeezed her eyes shut shaking her head weakly back and forth.
"Sweetheart please look at me."
The desperation in his tone made her cautiously open her eyes and look him over. His face was full of concern with a strange combination of pain and happiness. Nowhere in his stance of kneeling on the floor before her did she find even a small trace of lies or aggression which allowed her to relax if only for a moment.
Klaus breathed a sigh of relief at finding her even slightly receptive to him. He shuffled forward, raising his hand slowly as not to spook her as his trembling hand cupped her cheek bringing a choked whimper from his throat at the feel of her cold but firm and alive skin beneath his hand. "You're here." He breathed out reverently, tears gathering in his clear blue eyes as his heart pounded fiercely in his chest. "You're alive. It worked."
Caroline's fears were lulled in the calming presence he offered her as she whispered hoarsly, "You're not going to hurt me?"
Klaus slid closer to her cupping both sides of her face delicately as he told her strongly, "Never Caroline. Never."
Panic filled her instantly, her breath rushing in and out of her lungs as the scenario that this would turn into began to filter into her foggy mind. Her hands weakly clasped onto his wrists as she pleaded with him, "Then you have to leave. Please Klaus, leave." She felt her throat began to close and her chest ache as she thought of what Hell would wait for her next.
Klaus watched in alarm as her blue eyes filled with tears and her body began to shake on the verge of violence, a small part of his mind was confused at just how weak her hold was on him as he could tell she was using every bit of her strength, but he would worry over that later. "Shh Love it's alright." He attempted to sooth her which only seemed to upset her more.
"I can't see this again please! Don't make me watch it again." Her broken sobs sent shards of glass through his stomach.
"Watch what Caroline?" Klaus asked in trepidation as the tears fell down her ghostly pale cheeks.
"You're being n...nice and…and that just means…" She hiccupped and gasped before whimpering, "It means you're going to die again and I can't Klaus." She squeezed her eyes shut forcefully as she tried to push him away, "I can't watch you die all over again when I can't do anything to stop it. Please just leave!"
For a single moment Klaus was left awestruck that the thought of his death upset her so intensely before a blast of red hot rage coursed through him at the thought of just what she must have gone through during her absence to cause such a fierce reaction from her.
Klaus pushed his anger down knowing that with how fragile she was at this moment she would easily feed off whatever emotions he displayed. He slowly wrapped his arms around her, pulling her onto his lap and encased her in the heat of his body hoping it would be enough to warm her frigid temperature. Her sobs soaked his shirt after she finally gave up her weak protests and clung to him in return as he rocked her, whispering soothing words of comfort in her ear as he cradled her as close to his body as he could without hurting her.
Caroline slowly calmed herself down and began actually listening to the words he was telling her; I'm not going to die Sweetheart. I'm the Original Hybrid who can't be killed Love. It's over now Caroline. You're alive Caroline. I'm here Love. I'll not let anything else happen to you I swear it. His words played in a loop in her mind like a soft soothing mantra long after he stopped talking and simply hummed in her ear.
Her head grew warm and fuzzy as her body swayed along with his gentle rocking and she all but melted into his sturdy frame. Caroline tilted her head back to look up at him to find in shock a trail of tears tracking down his cheeks. Sluggishly she raised her hand wiping away the tears on one side of his face before cupping his cheek gently and gifted him with a weak but brilliant smile before uttering tiredly, "You brought me back. I knew you would."
Klaus huffed a bashful but elated laugh as her hand slid down his face to land softly against her chest, her eyes starting to flutter shut. He leaned down placing a tender kiss to the center of her forehead, clenching his eyes shut tightly as he whispered reverently. "Sleep now Caroline. I'll be here to protect you."
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The sound of screaming coming from beside him had Klaus's eyes snapping open as he flashed to a stand in alert attention only to discover Caroline thrashing in the bed enfolded in whatever hellish nightmare she was trapped in.
Sitting down beside her he carefully he held her thrashing body still as he spoke her name in attempts to wake her.
Caroline's eyes flew open searching around her frantically before staring into his eyes as sob left her parted lips, "My mom? I…I killed my…"
Klaus shook his head slowly as he shushed her, brushing the matted hair off of her forehead, "No Love." He told her gently, "You did not kill your Mother or any of your loved ones. None of it was real. They are all safe and sound, just as you are here with me."
It pained him to see her still so timid and afraid. She was afraid not only of herself, but of her very surroundings. She had been extremely skittish since her reawakening and it had taken him weeks of constant reassurance to gain her trust after her return. But slowly she had begun to calm much faster as the days progressed into weeks and the weeks into a few months much to his relief. Though, not that it surprised him in the slightest given just how intelligent Caroline was, she quickly discovered that her after effects were worst when she slept and the nightmares plagued her. Caroline was such a stubborn woman, Klaus had quickly found that she could give Rebekah a run for her money when it came to said stubbornness. Caroline fought her battle with sleep valiantly, but with her body and mind weaker than even a human's that battle was often lost much to her dismay.
Klaus had panicked, nearly ripping the head off the warlock's neck when they had first discovered just how weak and near insane Caroline had been. She had barely had the strength to lift her own body from the bed when she had woken from where he had laid her after the spell was completed. She was more fragile than a newborn babe. Her fangs wouldn't drop when given blood, she could hardly stomach human food and her mind, the state of her mind was what had worried him the most. Caroline's constant state of confusion left her unaware of what was real around her and what was not. In the beginning he had to continuously help her back from the terrors that her own mind betrayed her with even when she was awake.
It was thanks to Elijah's quick hand and voice of reason that stopped him from killing the warlock that he felt had betrayed him.
"To the best of all of our knowledge no one has ever been brought back from the dead Niklaus. None of us knows just what she went through or even where she ended up with the Other Side's demise. It stands to reason that we must approach this situation with extreme care and caution as to not alarm Miss Forbes any more than she already is."
Klaus remembered glancing over his shoulder to find that Caroline had weakly scrambled off the bed, her body wound tightly in a ball as she cowered and trembled. He had never felt so ashamed of himself. Here he had promised to protect her and he was the one who was scaring her the most. The preverbal knife had only twisted into him further when she had slunk away from him when he went to kneel in front of her, her weak and feeble voice begging him not to hurt her again. It was the again that struck him the hardest in the gut. In whatever hellish torture she was put through during her death she believed that he had hurt her, he had harmed her. Any rage was doused within him as if a bucket of the iciest water covered him, drenching him in pure self-loathing even if he wasn't the one who truly harmed her in any way.
Klaus was brought back to the present when he felt the warmth of Caroline's hand cover the one he had placed on the bed next to her body. His eyes drifted down to gaze into her coherent blue ones finding her smiling timidly back up at him.
"Thank you Klaus." She shifted carefully with a show of just how much her strength was returning to her as she sat up against the headboard of the bed. "I know this is probably getting old pretty quick. With you having to take care of me like I'm some freaking nut job."
Klaus rolled his eyes and huffed in exasperation even as he felt elation at her snarky attitude returning to her, "Enough of that Love. I have told you time and again, I take it as a great honor that I am the one to help you so stop your whining."
"Hey!" Caroline shoved his shoulder lightly before crossing her arms over her chest releasing a huff with her bottom lip pushed out, "I don't whine."
Klaus raised an eyebrow at her as he threw a knowing mocking smirk in her direction.
Caroline let her hands fall to her lap as she rolled her eyes with a giggle that brought a genuine smile to his face as the sound he thought he may never hear again reached his ears, "Okay fine, maybe I do whine just a little. But I'm not that bad."
"Of course not Sweetheart." He replied with a firm nod of his head, that mocking smirk curving his lips once more before they both chuckled lightheartedly.
As Caroline's giggles died down Klaus took notice of her beginning to bit her lower lip as she stared down at her fingers while they fiddled with the ends of her blanket.
Reaching forward he gentle laid his hand over hers to stop her nervous plucking, "What is it Caroline?" He asked her softly.
Her wide childlike eyes glanced up at him as she hesitantly asked, "My Mom's really okay?"
Klaus melted at the pure and honest trust she was placing in him, the way she was depending on him to be honest with her. "Of course she is Caroline." He watched as she breathed a sigh of relief, though the worry was still clouding her eyes. They had come to an unspoken agreement after the first time Klaus had tried to get her to speak to her friends from home. Where he thought it would be a good thing for her, a way to help her heal if she spoke to them and heard for herself that they were alive and well, she had panicked. She was terrified with how little she could grasp reality from her experiences during her time in what he had learned was Purgatory. She had fretted constantly over having another episode as she took to calling them while speaking to her friends and only bringing them unneeded worry.
"You and your family are the only ones who know that I died Klaus and I would like to keep it that way."
While he felt it would help her healing along faster if other's knew of what had happened to her especially since she died trying to save them from the aftermath of the Mystic Falls groups actions, it had only took one look from her for him to cave to her desires.
She had come to him when she had died. She entrusted him with the knowledge and the book. She had counted on him and only him to bring her back and so he would not let her down now.
But he would also not let her continue to hide from herself either.
Klaus stood from the bed walking over to his desk to pick up his phone and scrolled through his contacts on his way back before sitting down beside her again. "I think it's time for you to hear for yourself that she is alright Caroline." She began shaking her head in rejection to his suggestion but he was not giving her a choice any longer. "Your mind is all but healed outside of your nightmares Caroline. Your physical strength improves a little more every day. It is time for you to be that fearless woman I know you to be and speak to your Mother."
"Klaus I can't…" She choked out only to for him to stop her.
"You don't have to tell her what happened to you Caroline. You don't even have to tell her where you really are or who you are with, but you have to talk to her. More than that, you need to for your own sanity. Plus I'm sure after so much time has passed she would love nothing more than to hear from you as well. It's been nearly a year Caroline."
Caroline inhaled a deep breath before giving him a firm but hesitant nod of her head, "Okay." She knew he was right. Even though before she had left, the last thing she told her Mom was she needed time away, she had spent months in Purgatory then months healing with the help of Klaus and his family. It was time for her to stiffen her spine and talk to her Mom.
Klaus clicked her Mother's contact information, starting the call and handed her the phone before she could change her mind. Once he was certain she would follow through he made to stand up only to have her place her hand on his thigh stopping him.
"Stay. Please?"
Her meek but hopeful voice sent a shot of soothing warmth through his body. Klaus settled his body more comfortably next to her on the bed with a bashful smile that turned into a beaming one as he half listened in as Caroline and her Mother spoke after months of no contact.
When the dreaded question of where she was and who she was with came about Klaus held his breath, he fully expected Caroline to lie to her Mother but was shockingly surprised as she answered, "I'm with Klaus. I know you might have some choice words to say about that but I'm happy here Mom. I'm happy with him."
It knocked the breath out of him with an audible gasp hearing her tell her mother how she was with him and she was happy. She was happy with him. The knowledge of not only hearing her say it out loud but to her own Mother no less made his heart feel fuller by the second.
Whatever else was said between the two Forbes women was lost to him as his mind and heart turned over what she had admitted over and over again. It wasn't until she placed her hand on his chest and he took his phone from her other in a daze that he snapped himself out of his blissful stupor to look down at her as she bit her lip and gazed right back at him.
"So, is that okay?" She asked him nervously as her dainty fingers drew circles over the center of his chest.
Klaus opened his mouth to reply to her only to find he had to clear his throat before asking, "Is what okay?"
Caroline giggled before repeating, "That I stay here? With you?"
"I've told you Caroline, you can stay as long as you need."
She shook her head, "That's not what I meant. I mean yeah, I still have a little ways to go, as irritating as it is, until I am back to my normal pre-dead and pre-resurrected self but I meant after that. I mean, I'd like to stay, with you. If you'll have me."
Klaus's eyes widened briefly before he scoffed and shifted on the bed to kneel beside her, his phone left forgotten on the bed as he cupped her face gently in both his hands, "What kind of ridiculous notion is that? If I'll have you? To quote you Love, Seriously?!" He snorted with his eyes widened comically.
Her loud and ringing laughter was the most beautiful music to ears as well as the most lovely sight his very eyes to behold.
"Oh my God Klaus! Seriously! Don't ever say that again, that's just…no!" She giggled with a firm shake of her head, "It's not even right coming from you!"
He leaned his face down closer to hers as her laughter subsided, "Well then Love, don't say things that are equally as ridiculous and I won't have to resort to such extreme tactics." Her sweet breath washed over his face causing his eyes to fall closed in awed pleasure before a similar look crossed over her face as his breath did the same to her, "You may stay with me as long as you like Caroline. Forever if I have my way about it."
He grinned happily as her eyes widened fractionally and her breath hitched before he tenderly placed his lips to hers.
Her arms wrapped around his neck pulling his body down to lay next to hers as they lost themselves to a series of soft loving kisses before Caroline had to pull away to catch her breath feeling weak, growling softly as her own body betrayed her, pulling a chuckle from Klaus.
Propping himself up on his elbow he brushed her hair off of her forehead, "It's alright Caroline. You'll regain your strength in no time, but until then I think it's best if we take things slow."
Caroline bit back the playfully snippy remark she had paused on her tongue when she seen the genuine concern for her wellbeing flicker in his shining eyes as he looked her over. Smiling tenderly she ran her fingers over her stubbled cheek as she gazed up at him with glistening happy eyes, "Well, we do have forever don't we."
.
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What did you all think? I have been slowly chipping away on this one and agonizing over getting it just right. I hope Perfect Night Part Two lived up to your expectations and if it didn't then I hope you still enjoyed it!
Thank you to everyone who has read/review/followed/favorited my works. It warms my heart with each new addition. You can find me on Tumblr also, 3tinkgemini, where you will be able to see my first attempts at making a cover for this Two-Shot.
OH! And I am super excited to say that the story, Covered in Glitter was picked for Drabble of the week last month and is up for voting with three other amazing author's works for Drabble of the Month on Klaroline Magazine. Just google Klaroline Magazine if you are unfamiliar with it. It has so many amazing articles and story recs. I was resently interviewed as well so you should all totally check that out!;)
Guest Reviewer on Chapter 13 on November 8th: Yes! I am always up for prompts! Funnily enough I have a short story I am working on similar to your request. Though it has Caroline being blind instead. Thank you so much for your review! ;)
