Disclaimer: I only own a tub of Ben and Jerry's. *sighs*
"Heavy Stone" by Kyla La Grange - Please, don't, hold me in your soul like a heavy stone; I am carrying my cold heart...
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It burned.
The fiery pits of hell had nothing on the searing, sizzling, never ending onslaught of heat the encased her. Through the steam that rose from her toasting flesh, Alaric's grin never faltered. He drew the blinds, as Caroline collapsed against the desk, completely and utterly drained.
"Sweet Caroline..." Alaric crooned from her side. She raised her head, in time to see him approaching with a bucket, that he emptied on her, the vervain burning in an entirely different, but equally horrific way, "Good times never seem so good..."
At some point during the mind numbing torture, the liquid was simply water. Caroline turned her head, relishing in the relief the pure, uncomtaminated water brought. She opened her eyes to find herself weightless, floating within the dark depths of the ocean. The sea was an inky black, and try as hard as she did, she couldn't see her hand in front of her.
But the light...
She could see small pools of light, battling through the waves to reach her. She frantically kicked her legs, her hand outstretched. Her fingertips were close, so close, she only had to reach a fraction further... Something tugged at her ankle, and yet there was nothing but the vast ocean beneath her.
Until she looked up.
Klaus.
It wasn't his sudden appearance that made her scream, rather his ashen, lifeless face. She coughed and spluttered as the salt water scratched against her lungs. The bubbles simply bounced off him, as he continued to float in front of her eyes, limp and lifeless.
She reached out, tracing the dark veins that spidered across his grey, pallid face. He was cold to the touch, and no matter how desperately she clung to his face, he wouldn't awaken. The current changed, and he pulled away from her, floating further and further into the darkness. She tried to follow, her limbs aching and heavy. He was so very far away, she could barely make out his shadow, as his cold, hard, gunmetal blue eyes snapped open.
She jerked awake, her heart pounding, the sound of it thrumming in her ears. Her joints actually creaked as she sat up, despite her firm belief she should no longer have cramp as a vampire. She was fully clothed, having fallen asleep on the couch. She grabbed her buzzing phone, leaping immediately to her feet as Jeremy whispered, "Elena's hurt"
A few hours later, and Elena was sleeping on the couch, Caroline's guilt gnawing and gnawing at her. She had spent so many hours thinking about him, and yet Elena bore the marks of his rage. How could she be so selfish?
In an instant, her world turned on its axis... she had to run, Alaric made sure of that. But, there was one, safe, good, constant. Tyler. How could she doubt him? He was always there for her. She loved him. It was good and honest.
Yet another plan was put in place, designed to save them all. Somehow she'd been paired with the eldest, suavist, and in her opinion, scariest Original as hey awaited news of their future. Or lack of it.
Caroline sat on the upturned tree, pausing to look at the sky. It was a beautigul night. Each star in the ebony sky seemed to shine that bit brighter, that bit stronger. A beautiful night to run off, never to see her Mother again. Or a beautiful night to slowly die as her Sire came to the end of his immortal life. Stripping a piece of bark from her seat, she twirled it between her fingers, deciding whether to play with it some more, or to pulverise it to dust. A wave of nausea overcame her at the thought of Alaric pondering the same thoughts over her as he toyed with her fragile, burned body. She dropped the bark as though it shocked her.
"You seem troubled" Elijah noted calmly, as he ever so casually leaned against a nearby tree.
Caroline's eyes flickered to him, an incredulous eyebrow raised at him, a sassy retort biting at her tongue. Of course she was worried. Her newly psychotic history teacher was out to kill her, having exposed her and her sort of, sometime boyfriend to the Council. However, the intent way in which he watched her had her ducking her head at her shameful, angry thoughts. He seemed genuinely interested, and above all, cooly perceptive. No, he knew it was more than the Alaric issue that troubled her, and managed to convey all this within one look.
Damn those Mikaelsons.
"I'm fine" Caroline lied, smiling tightly, her voice anything but.
"Is that is your usual retort? You seem well practiced" Elijah remarked casually, his chocolate eyes warm.
Caroline felt her stomach drop. She could of sworn all her organs had left her the moment that he had made that casual statement. It was phrased differently, far less passive aggressive, but it held the same intent. The same intrigue that laced Klaus' words the night he saved her from the wolves.
The corner of Elijah's mouth lifted as Caroline stared open mouthed, "Did you not think my brother would mention you?"
"Well... no" Caroline shrugged lamely, as Elijah's smile only grew. It was an honest, genuine smile, and Caroline couldn't help but return it.
"In truth, Miss Forbes, my brother is not a particularly open individual. My interest was only piqued when I witnessed the attention he lavished upon you at our family's ball. Do you remember that night?"
How could she forget? "Yeah" Caroline nodded, uncommidtedly, "Sure"
"So the night held more significance for my brother than for you?" Elijah asked, the bracken crackling underfoot as he slowly walked towards her.
"I didn't realise it was significant for him" Caroline lied smoothly, praying her features were schooled into indifference. Not the dread she felt at the thought of anyone, especially Klaus' own brother, knowing about their twisted and absurd relationship.
"Oh? So you are just friends?"
"We're not friends" Caroline denied quickly, flushing hotly at as Elijah's eyebrow raised in an unmistakable oh really? move, "We aren't anything"
"Forgive me, but Niklaus is not the type of man to invite an aquaintance to an occasion and have her survive the night" Elijah replied, resting elogently on the trunk next to her.
Caroline cast her eyes down, allowing the full impact of his statement to wash over her. It wasn't the casual insertion of Klaus' speculated feelings. It was the reality that if he didn't fancy her, she'd be dead. Dead. Klaus didn't have qualms about who he killed - no, it was notable when he didn't kill someone. She stared at her hands, at the ground, at her toes. Anything to avoid facing the eldest Mikaelson.
"I'm sorry if my uncouth words upset you" Elijah offered gently, so incredibly old school charming.
So, naturally in response, Caroline snorted. It was as though all her Miss Mystic training fell out her head the moment she met the Original Family, "They didn't. I've heard worse. You're pretty tame, y'know"
Elijah stilled for a moment, watching her sad smile carefully, "Then it isn't my words that upset you. Perhaps it is the reality?"
Caroline flinched. He couldn't be that perceptive, realising what was wrong with her before she knew, could he?
"It is difficult to accept the horrible crimes he has committed" Elijah remarked, "But simply because the path is treacherous, it doesn't make it the wrong one"
Treacherous was the understatement of the century. For longer than she'd care to admit, this internal argument had been raging. To hear it voiced out loud brought the reality firmly in front of her face. A reality she wasn't ready to admit to, at all. That she liked him, in spite of it all. Caroline smiled, tears shining in her azure eyes, "You sound like a fortune cookie"
"Do you have feelings for him?" Gone were the gentle lilts of his voice, the coaxing. Elijah was genuinely interested in the reality of her feelings.
"It's not that simple" Caroline replied, swinging her legs gently as her feet skimmed the dirt. She hadn't felt like a child in years, and yet here she did, sat on a tree, in the middle of the forest with an impossibly aged man.
And an apparent mind reader.
"I have feelings" she continued, "But there's too many to deal with. Anger, annoyance, guilt-"
"Guilt?"
"He saved me. From Alaric" Caroline shrugged, with a little, apologetic, grin, "He saved me"
"Niklaus halted his mission to protect you?" Elijah clarified incredulously. She wasn't offended, she could tell by his tone he wasn't trying to insult her. It wasn't disbelief at the thought of someone saving her; it was the reality that it was Klaus.
"And then he tried to drain Elena of her blood" Caroline finished bitterly.
"Tell me, Miss Forbes, do you feel guilt that my brother is currently desicated? Or is it guilt that you felt grateful for his rescue, and then he hurt your friend?"
"I want it to be option B, but I'm more of an A" Caroline confessed in a small voice, concentrating on her toes as they dug into the soft earth. Discussing Klaus was a cathartic experience, and try as she might, she couldn't stop her thoughts from tumbling out, "But everything he has done to Elena. How do I forgive that?"
"I tend to find that only the kindest, brightest souls are able to see beyond the night" Elijah murmured gently, his eyes fixed on the trees ahead in some weird attempt to give her privacy with her thoughts. She'd never been more grateful.
"Are you giving yourself a pat on the back?" Caroline quipped, desperate for relief from their emotionally draining topic.
"I only have the capacity to forgive family" Elijah replied, with just a hint of regret.
"Maybe that's all who can" Caroline mused, thinking of her father, her mother. After all the horrible things they'd done when they found out she was a vampire, her heart ached from how much she loved them.
"You have the desire. You're trying to find a way"
Caroline had always beleived that thoughts, though powerful, couldn't achieve anything. And here she was, petrified of what her mind wanted, "It doesn't mean I'll succeed. And it doesn't make it right"
"Miss Forbes, you'll do what is right, I have faith in that. Forgiving a dark, lonely individual... how can that be wrong?"
"But, Elena-"
"Is spectacularly adept at forgiving as well" Elijah cut in gently.
"She couldn't forgive Klaus" Caroline disagreed forcefully, willing it to be true. Creating that barrier made everything seem simpler, less chaotic. Seperated into good and bad, Team Elena or Team Klaus.
And then he shattered that carefully constructed barrier, "She would forgive you in a heartbeat"
"Doesn't mean I'm worthy"
"Are any of us?"
Caroline paused for a moment, before smiling at the memory of the goodness, the light in her life. He shone bright like the moon he was a slave to, his intergrity was crystal clear, "Tyler. Tyler's a good person"
"That is admirable" Elijah agreed, casting a glance to the side, "If we could follow the right as blindly as logic dictates"
If only. "I love him" she replied forcefully, but she didn't know whose benefit it was for.
"No one is denying that. But the heart is a fickle creature"
Caroline watched him carefully, the heartbreak in his voice evident. She only knew of Elijah loving one woman, and took an ironic shot in the dark,"Like Tatia?"
"It is unusual" Elijah mused, the hint of a smile ghosting over his features like a memory, "I went for over nine hundred years, never mentioning her name, and yet she is continually talked about in Mystic Falls"
Caroline paused, running over the story in her head. Tatia, Elijah and Klaus. One girl, two brothers. And here she was, with two guys affections in her hands, "What makes me different from her? From Katherine?"
"It will give you little comfort, but your anguish tells a thousand words" Elijah rested a strong, yet gentle hand on her forearm, "This is no game for you"
Elijah's comfort constricted her heart, "I don't want to play anymore"
"Miss Forbes, I know that you will find the journey that is best for you. I do not wish to influence you, but do not cancel my brother out completely. Very few people have seen every facet of his personality. I suspect you may have been given that pleasure"
Caroline smiled faintly, Elijah's perceptiveness confusing her more and more, "Are we just predictable little bugs, who behave in exactly the way you think?"
"On the contrary, I find the human race has the infinite capacity to suprise me. And themselves" Elijah smiled, his eyes conveying the exact meaning his words masked. You can surprise me. You can surprise yourself. It was wonderfully creepy and reassuring at the same time. Funny how those two little nuggets went hand in hand with Klaus and Elijah.
Caroline shifted uncomfortably, uprooting moss all over her jeans. She spent the next few minutes hurriedly wiping the dark green from her legs, but despite her best efforts, she did little more than smear it deeper, darker. Not avoiding Elijah's perceptive gaze. No. That was just a by-product.
"Doesn't really matter though, does it?" Caroline eventually muttered, raising her eyes to his questioning orbs, "You're gonna take him as far away as possible? Away from Elena?"
"Elena will come to no harm" Elijah agreed, "Niklaus will no longer be a fixture in her life, or her children's, or even her grandchildren. However, I cannot - and will not - banish him for eternity"
"Which is what I have as a vampire" Caroline finished for him.
"Precisely, Miss Forbes" Elijah smiled, "I can guarantee you the world will seem an entirely different place in one hundred and fifty years"
"But will he be a different person?" Caroline mumbled, knowing the answer. He would never change, least of all for her.
"No" Elijah replied honestly, his eyes twinkling in the moonlight, "But here we are, discussing the possibility. His transformation would be convenient, but it is not necessary to nurture your feelings"
Caroline smiled faintly, struck by the numbing truth. He didn't have to change for her to reciprocate.
She had feelings for Klaus.
It was the oddest conversation she'd ever had. Here she was, airing the feelings she had spent spent the best part of two months trampling down and ignoring, to a man she had only officially met an hour ago.
A man who was hundreds of years older than her. And impossibly classy. And the brother of the man who was making her life a confusing hell. Here she was, receiving advice from him like he was her own personal Agony Aunt.
She bit her lip, "Can we keep this conversation between us?"
"It goes without saying" Elijah mumured gently.
"I know guys have a bro before ho-"
"Rest assured" Elijah interrupted with a shudder at the hint of the slang Caroline was about to employ, "I shall not repeat what I have heard tonight. To anyone, relation or not"
Caroline turned to thank him, as he suddenly rose from their makeshift seat, staring into the inky black night, "Mr Salvatore has had word from his brother"
Caroline strained her ears, hearing nothing but the gentle breeze as it rustled through the trees. Must be that advanced Original hearing. That, or he truly was a mind reader. And after that conversation, Caroline was inclined to believe the latter.
"Miss Forbes?" Elijah gestured into the night, his other arm extended as if to help her through the imaginary door he had just opened for her. A reluctant smile crossed her features as they wandered into the night, ready to face their fate.
"What happened?"
Stefan turned to face them, swallowing thickly, his eyes never quite meeting Elijah's. She knew it. She just knew. But it didn't feel real. It felt like a bizarre dream as she asked, without even realising, "Stefan?"
"Alaric... Alaric, he... they couldn't stop him" Stefan murmured slowly, his eyes focussing in on Elijah. He was pleading silently for mercy, and it echoed through the forest.
"Rebekah?" Elijah asked simply, his face a perfect mask of indifference. Caroline raised her eyebrows at the complete and utter lack of emotion. It must be a British thing.
"She's on her way back" Stefan replied, staring at Caroline, "You okay?"
Caroline nodded, "I feel fine"
She did. She felt strangely numb, as though she were watching the scene unfolding from a distance. It didn't feel real. Klaus was dead.
Dead and gone.
All those whispered promises and fleeting glances. Gone.
Why should she care about losing a future that was never guaranteed when the life she had right now was going up in flames? If Klaus was the Sire of her line...
Tyler.
Stefan came to the same conclusion at that moment, their panicked eyes locking. He didn't have to utter a word, she knew that they had been drawn to the same devastating realisation - Tyler was going to die.
Stefan drew her into a much needed embrace as she let her weary head rest on his shoulder. The complete and utter sadness was overwhelming. Only an hour ago she had been confused about her feelings for the two men, and now they were both gone.
Stefan gave her arms one last, strong, reassuring squeeze, his face betraying him. Neither of them knew if they'd last the night. And like a siren's call, Stefan had to follow Elena, regardless of his fate.
He vanished into the inky night as she turned to Elijah. There was little evidence in his face to show that his brother had been ripped from him, but his eyes.
His eyes shone with a sadness Caroline understood. She had felt it the night her father died. Her heart broke for him, the unapollegitcally kind, paradox of a vampire.
Rebekah shot through the trees, a whirl of blonde and tears and she fell on her brother, sobbing. Caroline averted her eyes, feeling like an intruder on the private, fraternal moment. Elijah's eyes connected with hers, the pain evident in the tears he struggled to hide as Rebekah's painful sobs broke the silence.
And, just as Stefan had, she knew where she needed to be. It called to her. He called to her. She had to go to Tyler in the Lockwood cellar. It was like a festering wound on her heart, that she had to watch another man she loved die in her arms, but she had to.
She ran as fast as she could from the heartbreaking scene unfolding in front of her, barrelling down the steps of the cellar as her tears flowed freely down her cheeks, "Tyler! Tyler! Oh God..."
"Caroline?" He appeared from the shadows, his chocolate eyes unusually bright, sparkling. A sob left her as she saw his bright face, clearly unaware of the danger that had befallen them all, as she launched herself into his arms, "Sorry, I was just with Bonnie... what happened?"
Caroline lifted her teary azure eyes to meet his mildly worried ones. How could he seem so cool and confident, knowing the dangers that lurked in the shadows? "It's...it's... Kl-Klaus died"
Tyler's eyes flattened, his entire body tensing as his gentle hands drew soothing patterns on her arms, "What happened?"
Caroline breathed deeply, everything aching. How could she tell him he was going to die, and there was nothing they could do about it? "He's dead."
Tyler's jaw fell into a comical O, the silence only perferated by Caroline desperately trying to contol her sobs. She had to be strong. She had to be strong for him. He licked his lips, eyes darting around the cave as though he was planning something. But how could he? His death warrant was signed.
Klaus' mind raced. He was dead. What did that mean? Alaric was alive. He had to stop him, using Tyler's body was definitely an advantage. But he couldn't concentrate on anything, not when Caroline was in front of him, literally breaking her heart in two.
It hurt, strangely. More than it should, certainly. Her tears fell for Tyler, and as far as she knew, he was dead too. After that moment in the school, he hoped that something had changed between them. It had to. She kissed him, she chose him.
Or so he thought.
Being in Tyler's body had given him access to Tyler's mind. He knew exactly how she spent last night. Celebrating.
He should hate her, he should drain her of her blood, rip out her heart and paint the town red. Send a message, that he couldn't be toyed with. Especially not by petty blonde teenage who fluttered her eyelashes at him.
And yet...
He still wiped the tears from her cheeks, his fingers tangling in her curls, "You're going to be fine, Caroline"
"It's not me that I'm worried about" Caroline whispered, clinging desperately to his shirt. She had known Tyler for so long, firstly as a complete and utter douche, and now as a wonderful man. How could she let him go? She'd always love him, as a friend, or anything else.
Klaus watched her lip tremble, as she contemplated life without her Tyler. It was an acid in his throat, dripping down to his cold, undead heart. He hated her, but all he wanted was to comfort her, "There's no point. I'm a lost cause"
He paused, jaw tensing as she shook her head sadly. If he had uttered the same words about himself, she'd no doubt agree wholeheartedly. And yet he carried on, repeating the oaths he had sworn the first night they had danced, "But you're strong. And you have a beautiful future ahead of you"
It filled him with a regret he'd never known, thinking of the wonderful future she'd have. Without him. But that was the way it had to be. She didn't care for him, her grief proved that. He strengthened his grip on her, wanting her to know what do when this was over. He hated the control she had on him, but he had to know she was safe, "And when you make it through this, just tell my Mother I left town like I was supposed to. Okay?"
He leant down. He knew it was wrong, that she would hate him for eternity knowing she was kissing him without her knowledge, but he had to feel her lips. One last time.
She felt a pang of guilt as she wrapped her arms around him. The last man she'd kissed was dead, a stake in his chest, all because the Gang didn't want him around anymore. She felt safe, here with Tyler. Protected. She knew it was his Lycian instinct as he pulled her impossibly closer, the wolf guarding his mate.
Much like Klaus had guarded her only a day ago.
He pulled away, clutching Tyler's chest, "Do you feel anything?"
Oh, how she wished she did. It would be so much easier. Physical pain was so much easier to bear than the pain that creeped along, winding sharp, constricting chains around her heart, "No. I feel fine"
Klaus watched her complete and utter devastation. He should feel joy, relish in her pain. She rejoiced at his death. But he couldn't bear to see her sadness, "I need you to get out of here. I don't want you to watch me die"
"No! I'm not leaving. I'm staying" Caroline objected. She hated being alone, so for Tyler to spend his last, precious moments alone in a dirty, damp cellar? No.
"No" he hissed, searching her eyes. She was scared. He knew that the transformation scared her.
"Yes!"
"You run, or I'll make you run"
She knew Tyler would never hurt her deliberately, and yet the menace in his voice was so unlike him. The threat... it was practiced, rehearsed. But she wouldn't leave him, not now. Not after all the times she had thought about Klaus. She couldn't do that to him, in his final moments, "I'm not leaving"
Klaus braced himself, allowing Tyler's bones to snap. She'd broken every other part of him, why not his body? Amber flowed in Tyler's eyes as he bared his teeth, "Go!"
She paused, her eyes widening for a second. He panicked, foolishly believing that she had seen through the ruse. She ran out the cellar, and he scolded himself. She didn't care about him.
She never would.
And he'd never cared for anyone as much.
She paused, wiping the tears from her face. Tyler was dead. Klaus was dead. They were both gone, and she was all alone. She fell to her knees, sinking into the mud and bracken.
She'd fallen for him, landing so hard and so heavy. The pain was excruciating.
A strangled howl broke through the blackness of the night, piercing straight through her heart. She cried harder, nothing to comfort her but the cold hard ground.
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Hi!
I am so sorry! It's actually ridiculous how busy I've been, so I've only been able to write little sections at a time. If it feels a little disjointed - that's why! And don't hesitate to tell me. Seriously. I'd love the feedback.
I am also very sorry I haven't replied to anyone's reviews yet - I've been swamped, but I will get there! I appreciate your comments so much!
I have noticed a recurring theme, so I just want to clarify: this story is supposed to be canon, with the 2x13 backstory. Hence a heck of a lot of canon. But, as we move into season 4, I will start to deviate. I can't help it, there's things I just can't write. But I'm pretty sure you'll still recognise season 4.
I have two covers now! Crazy! I'll alternate, but if you want to see the other one, it's over on my tumblr!
346 followers? How in the world did that happen?! I love you all. And I will get back to each and every reviewer I can as soon as possible! I love talking to you all!
Until next time,
LoveYouBye!x