Hello, all! It's been quite a while and with that in mind, I apologize for the very late update. I am a bad girl and an even worse human being for keeping you all waiting, but there are good reasons for that. For one, I am working and studying for my Master's degree, so things have been tight in terms of time for writing. Also, whatever time I fought to get some writing done had me revamping a lot of chapters I already had ready to publish.
I confess, I have been rewriting the next few chapters quite a lot because nothing seems right, especially when I want to make sense of things and whatnot that the show left a bit unresolved or left me wondering. I have also been working on switching between characters in the next few chapters because I want to avoid previous mistakes where I only focused on Gwen a bit too much with other characters that are important to the story and want to give them their time to shine as well. Sometimes, it may feel like Gwen's story is pushed a bit to the side, but that is far from what I have planned, but I need those moments away from her to develop the story further, so please bear with me.
Now, to respond to such lovely comments:
-xenocanaan: I am glad you're loving Gwen and Kol, especially when I'm working on developing their relationship better. I recently reread the original story and it had me cringing a bit by how underdeveloped they were, but I am working to make them an epic couple/love for you all to enjoy. And surprise, June is gonna be around for a little while. She's like the recurring character that comes and goes, but she'll have a more prominent role later on, so get used to her. I wish I could kill Elena and I am so close to, but it's counterproductive to what I want to get at, so she's here to stay for a bit, but no fear. Her role and that of the rest of the residents of Mystic Falls will not be permanent and will have a closure in MY story. I hope you enjoy this chapter!
-brigitm28: I am so glad you like how I'm writing Kol so far. It's a lot harder than I remembered. I even question how I was able to write him in the original story. Trust me, I am working hard to move the setting out of Mystic Falls and reach New Orleans, the core of all the Original drama for the future. Also, Gwen is still too sheltered and I want her to have flaws, so have no fear in complaining about the characters. Unlike my original story, I want to create flaws and such to make them more authentic and unique.
-GhostGypsy: Here is more Kol/Gwen interaction and there will be a lot more soon enough. I think there have been quite a few changes to the ball, especially with Gwen and June altering events with their presence, which is what I want, so I hope you enjoy it!
-spirouFr: Thank YOU for reading and liking it!
-Guest (CJ/OddBall): Oh, his jumpscares are gonna be a thing for them, especially since he will like teasing/annoying her. He'll like those reactions. XD
-Guest: I MISSED YOU GUYS AND GLAD YOU HAVE SUCH PATIENCE!
-littlemissy3982: Thank you so much! Here is the next chapter for you to enjoy!
Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it.
if you hear music…
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"I feel weird. I mean, not a bad kind of weird, but still weird," Juniper hummed as she held a dark green dress in front of her body to assess it without putting it on, trying to imagine it on her body instead of the navy-blue robe she wore and the many rollers in her hair.
Gorgeous dress, glittering jewels, and shoes to die for were foreign to her. Never in her life could she have ever imagined wearing such things, which she was used to longingly stare at through a display window on a mannequin. There was always a wall between her needs and desires. She couldn't really complain about such a lifestyle. For the witch, brands were inconsequential, trends were fleeting, and being comfy was better than being stylish.
An orphan like herself was used to having nothing to their name. A strict, middle-class foster family reinforced that way of thinking. Juniper never really possessed anything that she couldn't find in the clearance area. Things were even more difficult for her after leaving home and relying on herself, so that meant that money was tight. It meant that she could only spend money on necessities as she jumped from state to state with odd jobs allowing her a nice place to sleep and good food to fill her stomach. On some occasions, she even resorted to stealing from a workplace before disappearing and even using her magic on an ATM. Things had been hard for a time.
Meeting Missus Bixby in Chicago had been a blessing. With a stable job and place to settle down, she earned enough money to come and go whenever she stumbled upon a possible lead, but nothing changed in terms of what she bought and how much she spent. Inheriting Missus Bixby's business and home gave her more luxuries, but nothing more than shoes that were too cute to pass up, a dress that made her feel like a model, or a restaurant that had good food.
Meeting Gwen had finally set her free of her pointless search and taught her that indulging in life was important. It was okay to take a pause and spend without worry. Because of this, Juniper felt giddy at the thought of attending a ball, even though it felt off. Not everyone could go to a ball and dress up like a princess for a night. It was like a dream from when she was five years old. All the dresses and shoes and accessories that Klaus offered for the night's event made her feel like Cinderella, so she was going to enjoy the ball and night to the fullest.
"Don't you feel weird?" Juniper asked Gwen, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed wearing a pink robe with her hair sporting a few rollers. She paused with a small frown. "What am I talking about? You're used to this kind of thing." She walked to the bed and draped the dress in her hand over a few others.
Gwen chuckled as she stared at the many dresses on the bed beside her, not sure which one would look good on her. "You just feel weird that all of this came from Nik," she said as she gestured the many articles of clothing around the room.
"Maybe," Juniper huffed with her arms akimbo. "Not that I'm complaining, because he does have good taste." She looked at the dresses, the shoes, and the jewelry. "The guy has a gift for this kind of stuff. He even gave us options based on our skin color, hair, and body figure." Her eyes narrowed when they fell on Gwen. "He can't be this good."
Smiling, Gwen nodded as she said, "If he weren't the Original hybrid, he would make a hell of a stylist."
"Still," Juniper began as her eyes roamed over the many dresses on the bed. "I have no idea what I should wear." She grabbed a dress' skirt, running her thumb over the soft material. "They're all so beautiful. I kind of feel like Cinderella." She glanced at Gwen. "You'd be the Little Mermaid." Gwen stuck her tongue out at Juniper, causing the witch to chuckle. "Come on, you like the Little Mermaid."
"I do," Gwen sighed as she recalled the songs of the animated movie and the many written works about the princess, having even read the literary fairy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen that inspired the famous animated movie and knowing it by heart. Her love for The Little Mermaid was much like how she loves The Princess Bride.
"And who would I be?" a voice asked from the bedroom's doorway, gaining the attention of both the halfling and the witch.
Gwen stared at Rebekah and remembered that she had yet to have a decent conversation with the female Original concerning their last encounter before the blonde had been daggered by the latest Petrova doppelgänger. It still bothered Gwen that someone who she saw as her friend would drug her but clearing her mind and having some space gave her time to understand where the Original vampire was coming from. It was still messed up, but the young hybrid knew better than anyone that no one would ever understand if they weren't in some way involved with the Original family for an extended period.
Juniper snorted while smiling. "For obvious reasons, you'd be Sleeping Beauty."
Rebekah focused on Gwen and took a deep breath, mindful of not clenching her hands into a fist after having gotten her manicure and pedicure done. "Hello, Weny," she greeted the halfling.
With a small smile, Gwen returned the greeting with a "Hey, Bekah."
"Good to see you again, June," Rebekah greeted the witch with a half-smile.
Juniper nodded with a small smile. "Same here."
Shifting her attention from the witch to the halfling, Rebekah began with, "So, you're aware that I've drugged you but know that it was nothing personal." She shifted from one foot to another, fighting to keep her eyes centered on Gwen. "I…" she began but cleared her throat when she couldn't give voice to the words she had rehearsed before encountering Gwen. She prided herself on being better at emotions and connecting with humans than her brothers, but she was felt like she was fooling herself. She couldn't even apologize to a friend. "It wasn't my intention to do so," she added, receiving raised eyebrows from the two girls who were staring at her silently. "I just wanted to let you know." She grunted, upset with herself and her inability to be vulnerable, but who could blame her when she was always painfully reminded that this was her greatest weakness.
"I have to admit, you're better at apologizing than Nik," said Gwen.
"A bit rocky and awkward, but good," Juniper added as she gave Rebekah a thumbs up. "We can work on that."
Rebekah stared at both Gwen and Juniper with a frown, having not expected such a calm reaction. She had come fully prepared to be turned away and losing the only friends she had. "Wait, you're not angry?" she had to ask.
"I was but having some time to myself to think about everything that happened helped me understand that you were in a very difficult position," Gwen explained with a sigh. "Things were a bit of a mess, especially for you. So, I thought it was best to put it all behind us." She pursed her lips as she tilted her head to the side.
"I hated myself for even thinking that siding with Mikael was the right thing to do. It all feels like a nightmare when I think about it," Rebekah said, sharing her thoughts and feelings. "In my anger and grief, I forgot who the real monster was. Although Mikael was innocent for once in his life, he still tormented my family and his hold on us is firm still."
Gwen sighed with a small smile of sympathy. "Don't beat yourself up for how you felt, Bekah. You had just found out that your brother was the one who killed your mother, whom you love deeply." She cleared her throat as she looked down at her fingers on her lap that were fiddling with the ends of the belt of her robe. "I don't blame you for that." She looked up to lock eyes with the blonde with a smile decorating her lips. "I forgive you."
Rebekah frowned, not used to someone being so compassionate. It was as unnerving as it was comforting. "Just like that?"
Nodding, Gwen reaffirmed as she grinned, "Just like that." She pointed a finger at the Original with a half-hearted stern gaze. "But you need to promise that you won't ever do something like that again."
"Well, I promise not to intentionally drug you," Rebekah said after a small pause. "I mean, what if I accidentally drug you when I mean to drug someone else?"
"She has a point," Juniper piped in, glancing at Gwen.
"Okay, then just promise not to consciously drug me again," Gwen clarified.
"I promise not to consciously drug you," Rebekah repeated before she clapped. "So, on to much better things. Have you girls picked out a dress yet?"
"No," was the exasperated response from both Gwen and Juniper.
"Have you?" Juniper asked Rebekah.
"Yes, and I have also found myself a date for tonight," said Rebekah, which caused Juniper to perk up.
"We need dates?" Juniper asked with furrowed brows.
"Well, not necessarily," Rebekah responded. A date wasn't needed, but she had a motive for inviting Matt Donovan, which she would keep to herself for now and avoid getting into more trouble. "The event of the night is a waltz, so I secured myself a partner beforehand."
Juniper looked befuddled and stared at Rebekah as if the Original vampire was talking in tongues. "A what?" she asked for clarification.
Gwen laughed as she stood from the bed. "It's a dance," she began to explain as she raised her arms to show Juniper what her position would be during a waltz. "You turn rhythmically around and around as you progress around the dance floor." She danced a bit as she spoke, chuckling when she saw the witch roll her eyes. "Imagine Disney movies, like Cinderella or Beauty and the Beast."
"Oh, no," Juniper said as she shook a finger at Gwen. "I'm notorious for having two left feet, so count me out of whatever period drama you'll be performing tonight. My specialty lies in bobbing my head along to the music and looking good while doing it."
"If you have an expert for a partner, you should be fine," Gwen said as she stopped dancing, dropping her arms at her sides.
Juniper narrowed her eyes at Gwen. "You know how to waltz?"
"Um, yeah," Gwen said as she went back to surveying the dresses. "Nik taught me."
"And I was around when the first form of the waltz was invented in the 13th century," Rebekah said as she joined Gwen's side. "None of my brothers have a date for tonight, so ask one of them if you want to join the dance."
With a raised eyebrow, Juniper asked, "First of all, your brothers will be pounced on as soon as the doors are opened to the public." She smirked. "They are hot."
Rebekah nodded in agreement. "Don't tell them I said this, but they are quite the handsome lot."
"Second of all, forget about me dancing. I would like my dignity to be intact, thank you very much," said Juniper.
"Oh, come on. It'll be fun," said Gwen. She paused and thought something over before grinning at the witch over her shoulder. "Wait, you can ask Nik. He's really good at the waltz and your dignity will be intact."
A surprised laugh left Juniper. "I don't think that's a good idea."
"Why not?" Gwen asked with furrowed eyebrows.
"Seriously?" Juniper had a deadpanned look on her face.
"Come on," argued Gwen, slightly smirking. "He's not so bad."
Juniper narrowed her eyes at the halfling. "What are you doing?"
Gwen's eyes widened with feigned innocence. "Whatever do you mean?"
"Stop it," Juniper scolded halfheartedly.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Gwen chuckled.
"Well, I have to warn you that he's not in the best of moods today," Rebekah said as she picked up a red dress that she presented to Gwen.
"Why?" Gwen asked as she made a face at Rebekah's choice of dress.
Rebekah shrugged her shoulders as she discarded the dress, thinking that the design wouldn't look appealing on Gwen at all. "I made a comment about killing the doppelgänger tonight, which led him to threaten me with a dagger, which led to an argument with Kol and ended with him being scolded by Mother."
"That settles it. No dancing, I avoid humiliation and death by pouting hybrid," Juniper said as she walked over to the bed to continue her search for a dress. "This is so hard, and we don't have much time left. So far, we've only had our manicures and pedicures done. We still need to pick shoes, accessories, finish our hair and do our makeup." She glanced at the clock on the nightstand. "And we only have like three hours left."
"No need to worry, not when I'm here," Rebekah announced as she shifted her eyes between Gwen and Juniper, grinning. "I'll have you girls make hearts stop at tonight's ball."
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Gwen had to admit that Rebekah had a gift.
The ivory nude ballgown she wore favored her hourglass figure in all the right ways. The dress that had spaghetti straps was drenched in white shimmering sequins, sheer lace, and floral appliqués over the bodice and full-length skirt over nude fabric that was unnoticeably sheer at the bodice and solid at the skirt. The bodice that had a V-shaped neckline hugged her figure before it flared out slightly. And it had a strappy design over the middle of her back.
The young hybrid's accessories were made up of pieces with the theme being rose gold, which forced her to remove her bracelet that she always wore due to it being silver and clashing against the rest of her accessories, but she kept her necklace that had a rose gold chain from which hung a round-shaped pearl. Her earrings were pearl studs that complimented her necklace. On her right wrist was a champagne-mix wrap bracelet that consisted of a bricolage of faceted stone beads and luminous freshwater pearls. And her sandals that had a slim heel were also rose gold with slender vamp and ankle straps that had glistening crystals on them.
Finally, Rebekah's hands worked magic on Gwen's hair and makeup. The Original combined a braided crown and a low bun by using a loose braid on the right side to delicately wrap around the low bun with her bangs swept to the left and wisps here and there to frame her heart-shaped face. A few small, ivory flower hairpins were scattered around her braid and bun. As for the makeup, soft shades of gold-rose were used for the eyes and pink for the lips.
Finally, after she was done, Gwen stood in front of the mirror and saw someone who looked enchanting, resembling a princess from a woodland realm.
"I must say, I outdid myself," Rebekah boasted as she stood behind Gwen, the latter looking amazed at how flawlessly beautiful the Original looked. The halfling couldn't help but compare the blonde to a goddess. "You look like a flower nymph." Out of the corner of her eye, Rebekah saw Juniper coming out of the bathroom. "And you are very much like a star maiden plucked from the night sky."
"I still feel weird," Juniper sighed with a smile as she twirled a bit in her dress. She was not used to wearing such things, but she couldn't help but feel like a princess. "A good kind of weird," she said as she smiled at her friends.
A contrast to Gwen, Juniper wore a sparkling and impeccably structured ballgown in a beautiful shade of midnight that made the witch look like she was wearing fabric from a starlit night. It was a sleeveless dress and had a plunging sweetheart neckline with a mesh inset and a trio of black, thin waistbands that were wrapped around her abdomen and waist. It also had a plunging back, allowing a view of the middle of her back. And the full-length skirt was softly pleated.
The witch's accessories were a combination of silver and black. Around her neck was a silver, triple-layered necklace crafted with a mix of chains and two medallion pendants dotted with a single cubic zirconia. She wore a pair of black pearl drop earrings and a multi-strand, silver bracelet on her left wrist. The finishing touch was a pair of glittering, black, high-heel sandals with slender straps crisscrossing the front.
Like Gwen, Rebekah herself had worked on Juniper's hair and makeup. Her wild curls were in a simple but beautiful half-up hairstyle. A few crown locks were pulled back and pinned in place at the back of her head with a silver barrette that was decorated with crystals. Her bangs that were parted in the middle framed her oval-shaped face. And her makeup consisted of a navy-blue smokey eye that brought out her blue eyes, which were paired with velvet pink lipstick.
A knock on the open door had all three women turning to find Klaus wearing a tuxedo, looking quite dashing as he stood straight. Just as the three girls were thinking about how handsome he looked, he was also thinking about how beautiful each one looked.
While Klaus was used to seeing Rebekah look stunning as always, Gwen seemed ethereal, and he couldn't help but feel warm at how happy she looked. Even though she had always been gorgeous in his eyes—much like how any other parent felt when seeing their child all dressed up—this time felt different. It irked him to know that there would be many eyes filled with nothing but lust while following her every move throughout the night, but she would be upset with him if he deprived her of attending the ball. He had to get used to the idea that she was stepping out into the world and would possibly meet someone who would sweep her off her feet. The thought had his blood boiling, but he calmed himself, lest he ended up making the same mistakes he did with Rebekah.
When Klaus' eyes landed on Juniper, he had to pause and collect himself for a moment as he took a good look at the witch to make sure that his eyes weren't deceiving him. While he hadn't known her for long and bickered with her most of the time, he had never seen her look so stunning. Yes, she took care of herself and her appearance. She was someone who liked to feel good and comfortable with herself, so he was used to seeing her dressed in style but remain casual. And yet, nothing compared to how she was dressed at that moment, as if the very night and stars had fallen on her, clinging to her body. Simply put, she looked heavenly.
"What?" Juniper asked with a frown as she nervously fidgeted with the skirt of her dress, thinking that there was something wrong with how Klaus was staring at her.
Klaus opened his mouth to answer without really knowing what to say, but he was saved before he had the chance to utter a word and probably embarrass himself.
"I know she looks exquisite, but you can keep staring at her later," Rebekah huffed with a playful tone as she walked past him, smirking as she glanced at Gwen and Juniper over her shoulder before winking at them. "You have all night to do that, so let us not keep our guests waiting. Mother wouldn't be pleased if we were tardy." She then disappeared down the hall to join the rest of her family in greeting the guests that were already arriving.
Silence permeated the room and Gwen had to bite her tongue to keep herself from laughing out loud at how awkward Klaus and Juniper looked, looking at everything but each other. The halfling imagined that it was so odd for them because of how blatant they had been in their dislike for one another, so she assumed it was the shock of seeing each other in a new light that they were not used to.
With a clearing of his throat, Klaus broke the silence before taking a step back and gesturing for Gwen and Juniper to follow Rebekah's lead. "Shall we?" Juniper shook her head and kept her head high as she walked by Klaus with a grinning Gwen trailing behind her. "Stop it," he whispered to the younger hybrid as he walked beside her.
"Stop what?" Gwen asked, failing to hide her confusion as her lips widened into a big smile, receiving a roll of the eyes and a small smile in return.
The group of three arrived at the top of the staircase just as Rebekah was making her way down the stairs to reach the foyer that was slowly filling up with people. The decorations fascinated Gwen as she looked around, amazed at how fast everything was set up. There was nothing put up this morning, but now there were lights wrapped around railings of the stairs, furniture had been moved to make space, and tables and a few chairs were set up. A live band playing classical music was good background noise to keep conversations from echoing. And servers walked around holding trays that consisted of either drinks or an hors d'oeuvre.
Juniper hummed as her eyes roamed all over the room. "I feel like we're in a movie." She glanced at Gwen. "Is this a regular thing for you?"
"I wouldn't know." Gwen shrugged her shoulders, giving Klaus a pointed stare. "I was the flower hidden in the attic."
Klaus rolled his eyes as he raised his arms for Gwen and Juniper to take. "Care to wait until I have a few drinks before you start complaining?"
Gwen and Juniper shared a smile before they each grabbed one of Klaus' elbows and descended the stairs with him. The girls grew nervous when they felt several eyes on them, but they chose to ignore it and focused on their steps to avoid tumbling down the stairs and making a fool of themselves. Once the trio reached the foyer, the halfling and the witch released Klaus' elbows as they looked around the crowd.
"Now, Mother has placed some rules," Klaus began to explain.
With a raised eyebrow, Juniper asked Klaus, "Rules?"
"Just one," Klaus clarified. "No violence of any kind toward anyone, this applies for tonight and any other day during our stay in this town."
"I still don't get why she wanted to host a ball. I mean, if she wanted to celebrate her family's reunion, a dinner party would have been fine," said Juniper.
"No," both Gwen and Klaus said simultaneously, recalling their most recent dinner party.
"Well, I'm hungry," Juniper announced as her eyes zeroed in on a table filled with a variety of snacks. "Anyone want anything?" she asked as she looked at Klaus and Gwen.
"I'll go for a drink," said Klaus as he was about to follow Juniper.
"I'm fine," Gwen said, which had Klaus and Juniper pausing to look back at her. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes and reassured them with a smile. "I'll be fine. I can survive a few minutes on my own in my own home."
Klaus and Juniper shared a glance before the witch grabbed the hybrid's arm to pull him with her, deciding it was best to let Gwen have some room to breathe. She also didn't think that there was much that could happen to the halfling in a room filled with people.
"You know," Juniper began as she walked toward the snack table with Klaus beside her, "I thought you were making progress." When he furrowed his brows, she continued. "You need to let her breathe, Klaus. She should know how to function in different settings, but you've sheltered her for too long and still don't let her learn."
"I know," Klaus sighed as they arrived at the snack tables. It was hard for him. It was wrong to want to control everything about Gwen's life, he knew that. The problem was that he couldn't help it, not when his mind was imagining different scenarios where anything could go wrong. "It's hard," he confessed. "All her life, I've only ever wanted to protect her. I only know of one way to do that."
Juniper hummed. "Well, it's about time that you leave behind those toxic tendencies." She turned to him with her head slightly tilted to the side. "I know you love her best when she's happy, so imagine how bright her smile would be if she lived her life on her terms."
Klaus could admit that she was right, but that didn't mean he had to like it.
After she was left on her own, Gwen found herself at a loss at what to do. One of her hands grabbed onto the other one's wrist as she took hesitant steps, walking through the crowd and taking note of her surroundings. She had yet to see a familiar face, but she was fine with that, especially since she was bad at making conversation with strangers. She was too shy for that. There was also the fact that she had little to no experience in settings like the one she found herself in. While she felt a bit awkward, she was happy looking about as she waited for what she was interested in—the waltz.
"Hello, Thumbelina," a familiar voice to her right said. Gwen looked to find Damon Salvatore, who stood next to a beautiful middle-aged woman of medium height with straight, light brown hair that was pulled up into a neat bun and blue eyes. "It's been a while." He wore a lopsided grin as he glanced at the brunette beside him while gesturing to Gwen with his hand that was holding onto a champagne glass. "She's the Original family's pet." He then looked at Gwen and gestured to the woman beside him. "This is Carol Lockwood, the Mayor of Mystic Falls and mother of Klaus' first experiment."
Carol sighed heavily, glaring at Damon for being disrespectful in the very home of those who could kill them all on a whim. "I am so sorry about him," she told Gwen.
Gwen forced herself to smile as she approached the pair. "Don't worry about it," she told Carol before glancing at Damon. "You have eternity to be a jerk, why not take today off?" Her gaze returned to Carol. "I'm Gwen Moone. It's nice to meet you."
"Likewise," Carol responded with a polite smile. "I hope I'm not offending you, but are you related to the Original family?" She wanted to make sure how much damage control she would have to make after Damon's comment. From what she had heard, the Originals had quite the temper. The last thing she needed was to wake up in the morning to the news covering an unexpected massacre.
"Not really," said Gwen. "I was taken in by Klaus when I was just a baby." This information had Carol feeling like a bucket of ice-cold water had been dropped on her, something that Gwen noticed by how the woman's eyes widened. "There's nothing for you to worry about, Mayor Lockwood. I can assure you that I am not so sensitive to offhanded remarks."
"You've got to have tough skin if you're to survive my family," Kol said as he appeared to Gwen's right with a wide grin. "Mayor Lockwood," he greeted the woman as he offered a hand, which she took. "We haven't formally met. Kol Mikaelson." He raised her hand and placed a kiss on her knuckles before releasing her. "I hope your lovely town embraces us just as much as we plan to embrace it."
Damon held out his hand to shake Kol's. "Damon Salvatore," he greeted as he waited for the Original to shake his hand.
Kol smirked at Damon and ignored the younger vampire's extended hand before looking down at Gwen, placing a hand on the small of her back. "Care for a drink, darling?"
The contact of Kol's hand on the skin of Gwen's back sent a warm jolt throughout her body and had her heartbeat picking up. "Sure," she said as she smiled up at Kol before walking away with him. As she walked away, she noticed Elena enter the mansion and wondered why she was at the ball, but she decided to focus on Kol. "Thank you for that," she told him as they reached the bar that had been set up, keeping her hands at her front. "I'm not the type of person who can mingle with ease."
Earlier, Kol had seen Gwen walk down the stairs with Klaus and Juniper. He couldn't lie and say that he was not mesmerized by her beauty, but he reasoned that it was because she was a faerie and vampires had little control over themselves when exposed to the addicting scent of a fae, which included Originals. In other words, he couldn't help but be drawn to her, ignoring the small voice deep inside telling him that he had enough experience with faeries to not be affected by their allure.
"A wallflower," Kol said as he signaled for the bartender before focusing on Gwen. If he wanted to annoy Klaus, then he needed to get her to like him, which would also allow him the time to satiate his curiosity about her as a faerie. "I must confess, you look quite divine, like a blooming flower."
This comment shocked Gwen for a moment as her mouth hung open for a moment, taking a moment to gather her thoughts. She could feel her cheeks and the tips of her ears growing hot. "And you look, um," she began as she struggled not to stutter, "dashing."
Kol chuckled at her nervousness, turning to the bartender to order his drink. "Any vintage is fine."
"A rosé, please," Gwen told the bartender.
"So, your friend is a witch," Kol stated as the bartender delivered their champagne glasses, but his eyes were focused on his half-brother talking to the brunette witch.
Gwen hummed as she nodded, following his line of sight. "A very smart one. She likes to research witchcraft and sees every spell like a puzzle she loves to deconstruct," she explained as she took a sip of her drink.
"My kind of girl," said Kol.
"Really?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, disliking his comment for some reason she wasn't sure of.
"Well, I used to run with witches and got to know many different types of witchcraft. They fascinate me," he said but paused, disliking the memories his mind was conjuring up. "But I know better than to go after my brother's girl," he said as he noticed how Klaus stuck close to Juniper as they walked around. "Love triangles are his and Elijah's thing."
Gwen nodded, wondering why she was relieved by his words. "I heard about that." She took a sip of her drink. "A bit cliché." She then paused as she turned to him. "What about you?"
"What about me?" Kol asked as he drank a sip of his champagne.
"You know, just wondering if there has been any drama-filled love like that in your life or maybe an epic love," Gwen clarified, immediately regretting her question when she saw how his jaw clenched and his face hardened. "I mean, you've lived for over a thousand years. I imagine that there have been quite a few." She tried to backpedal.
"Such emotions are nothing but a weakness," he argued, which had Gwen frowning.
"Why do all vampires say that?" Gwen mumbled. She thought that it was curious how many vampires thought that love was a weakness. The immortal creatures avoided it as if it were the plague. "Is it so bad?"
Kol nodded. "Very bad."
"Why?" asked Gwen.
"You're a very naïve girl," Kol countered. "Let me guess, you believe in love and all kinds of fairy tales and happy endings." When he saw how Gwen's cheeks flushed, he huffed. "You should experience things before commenting on them, love. I've no problem helping you with that," he said while smirking.
Gwen rolled her eyes, looking away from him. "Is it so wrong to believe in good things?" she questioned. "Life is hard enough as it is."
"How would you know?" Kol disputed. "You've been very comfortable inside the gilded cage my brother placed you in."
"Not by choice," Gwen scoffed.
"Is that right?" Kol taunted with a smirk.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Gwen challenged.
"You know very well what I mean," Kol threw back at her.
The pair stared at one another with heated glares, neither yielding to the other. Gwen was not about to let him push her around and Kol was eager to get her riled up, maybe even get her to turn against Klaus. After all, there was no better revenge against his brother than to have his precious toy switch brothers. Just like how Klaus stole his witches and ruined his plans, Kol planned to steal Gwen and ruin her completely for Klaus.
"Kol," Rebekah appeared in front of the pair, her eyes shifting between Gwen and her brother, noticing the tension between them. She settled on a smile as she greeted the halfling. "Weny." She then gestured to the stairs. "Elijah is about to make the announcement, so we best not keep him waiting."
Kol scoffed, his mood had soured a bit after going back and forth with Gwen, so he was in no mood to entertain his family. "Do we really need to feign the image of a perfect family reunited?"
"If you have any grievances, take them to Mother," Rebekah countered as she looped an arm around one of Gwen's before leading them to the stairs with Kol following behind them. "Do try to stay away from that one," she whispered to the half-fae.
At the stairs stood all the Originals on different levels with champagne glasses in their hands. Esther stood above all her children in the middle of the staircase, followed by Kol, then Klaus. Rebekah came after as she stood on the same step as Elijah, but he was closer to the railing to be able to address the crowd and she stood behind him. Finn was below the rest of his siblings and then Gwen and Juniper stood on the last step to be set apart from the Original family.
"Uh, if everyone could gather, please," Elijah began once his family was gathered behind him. "Welcome, thank you for joining us," he greeted everyone with a smile, glancing at his mother. "You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this, it's tradition for us to commence the evening with a dance. Tonight's pick is a centuries-old waltz."
Juniper groaned within her throat, causing Gwen to grin at her before nudging the witch with her elbow. "Give it a try," the halfling whispered close to Juniper's ear.
"Don't hold your breath," Juniper huffed under her breath. She lowered her voice further as she whispered to Gwen, "Did you notice Mystic Falls' very own princess and her two guard dogs?" Her eyes landed on the Salvatore brothers, who were gazing up at Esther.
"I did," Gwen hummed. "This party was by invitation." She tried to be as vague as possible in case they were being heard. "Who do you think wanted them here?"
"Not Klaus," said Juniper.
"Certainly not Bekah," said Gwen.
Humming, Juniper saw Elena completely focused on Esther. She found the interaction odd, but only one thought came to mind. Esther invited Elena, but she wondered what the reason would be. It wasn't like they knew one another. Why would Esther want to see Elena, the girl who desired to have one of her children killed?
"So, if all of you could please find yourselves a partner, please join us in the ballroom," Elijah finished his announcement before going down the steps with his siblings following behind him, except for Esther, who retreated upstairs.
"I'm not doing this," Juniper said as she stood frozen in place, refusing to follow the crowd of people heading into the ballroom.
Gwen sighed as she grabbed her friend's hand with her free one. "Come on," she tried to argue. "It'll be fun."
"What's going on?" Klaus asked as he approached the two women, intent on asking Gwen to be his partner for the waltz.
"Perfect timing." Gwen grinned as she placed her and Juniper's champagne glasses on a passing server's tray. She grabbed Juniper's right hand and Klaus' left hand before linking them. "June wants to dance, but she has two left feet. Do you mind showing her a good time?" This had both the witch and Original hybrid frowning at the half-fae. "Go on."
Juniper and Klaus looked at one another, the former taking a deep breath. "Might as well. I don't think she's gonna stop until she gets her way," she sighed.
"Nope," said Gwen.
"Can you tolerate me for one song?" Juniper asked Klaus.
Klaus smirked as he stood straight in front of Juniper, picking up one of her hands that he pulled up to his lips, pressing a small kiss on the back of her right hand. "I think we can manage that, don't you?" He looped her left hand around his right elbow. Before he left for the ballroom with Juniper, he turned to Gwen. "Save me a dance?"
"I will," Gwen said and watched Klaus walk away with Juniper.
"Playing matchmaker now, are we?" a voice whispered close to her ear, their breath blowing a few wisps of her hair.
Gwen turned around to find Kol smiling down at her. "And if I am?" she challenged him.
"Let's not reignite that topic again, not when I want to ask you to dance," he said, which caught her off guard.
"You want to dance with the naïve, sheltered girl?" she asked him.
"I prefer to look at it as me showing a wallflower a bit of fun," Kol said as he picked up her right hand and pulled it up to his lips to place a chaste kiss on her knuckles without breaking eye contact with her.
Gwen held her breath as her heartbeat picked up speed, but she shook her head and decided to focus on having a good time. "Well, let's see if you can," she said as she gave a small curtsy before wrapping a hand around his elbow and walking toward the ballroom.
Kol grinned at Gwen. "I'll take that as a challenge."
Soon enough, the couples who were going to dance the waltz got into position. Two lines of couples paralleled to one another were formed just as a song began to play, which was the signal for the start of the dance.
Give me love like her
'Cause lately I've been waking up alone
Paint splattered teardrops on my shirt
Told you I'd let them go
By now, every couple held each other close as they twirled around in tune with the song and those around them with graceful movements.
"So," Gwen began as she kept her gaze over Kol's shoulder with a hand on his right shoulder and the other held up in his left hand. She could smell his cologne, and she found herself enjoying it, as well as how close her body was to his. "Are you this nice to every girl or is there a hidden agenda?" she asked. While she enjoyed talking with Kol, she couldn't help but feel like Kol's interest in her was not sincere.
Kol had to laugh. "Your paranoia is showing."
"Am I wrong?" she countered as she turned her head to lock eyes with his.
"Well, my intention of being nice to any girl has always been to have a good time with them in more private quarters, but I doubt Nik would be agreeable to that idea," he argued. "So, I'll settle on having some good company."
Gwen raised an eyebrow. "Says the guy who tried to kill me when we first met."
"Are you ever going to let that go?" he asked with a slight groan but still smiling.
"Nope, but you are good company," she said as she shook her head.
"Good enough to sneak away with?" Kol said with a grin, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively, which had the desired effect of eliciting a laugh from Gwen.
Chuckling as she shook her head, she told him, "You're getting ahead of yourself."
Kol smirked as he looked down at her. "You're an open book, darling." His lips brushed her ear, which sent yet another shiver down her spine. "I am well aware of how irresistible I am, so don't be shy."
For a moment, Gwen's mind went blank because she realized that he was right about what she thought of him, but she calmed down and fought to keep her heart in check. "Your ego can rival Nik's," she huffed halfheartedly as she looked away from his penetrating gaze to hide the reddish hue on her cheeks. She opted to be honest. "I can't deny that I think you're handsome, but your vanity is a bit of a turn-off."
"That's not a 'no'," Kol hummed as he pulled her closer to his chest to whisper in her ear.
A shiver went down Gwen's spine as a feeling unknown to her warmed her body. "It's not a 'yes'."
Kol smirked as he pushed them apart a bit to meet her eyes. "I'm always up for a challenge."
And that I'll fight my corner
Maybe tonight I'll call ya
After my blood turns into alcohol
No, I just wanna hold ya
Give a little time to me or burn this out
We'll play hide and seek to turn this around
All I want is the taste that your lips allow
"How bad am I doing?" Juniper asked Klaus as she tried to keep up with him. She was surprised she had not tripped or stepped on his toes.
Klaus smirked. "Don't worry," he assured her. "I'm doing all the work for both of us, so you're doing amazing."
Juniper snorted with a roll of her eyes. "You're enjoying this a bit too much." Something caught her eye during a twirl. "Rebekah looks like she's having fun." She saw said blonde smiling with a man who appeared to be around her age and had blond hair and blue eyes.
"It won't last," said Klaus. "I even wonder why she brought him here. Maybe he's dinner."
"Or someone to have a sleepover with," Juniper hummed.
"That's nauseating," Klaus huffed.
The witch grinned. "It's part of my charm that makes things fun."
"Speaking of fun," Klaus began as he stole a glance of Gwen laughing at something his younger brother said. "I believe Gwen is having too much fun with my brother."
"I don't blame her," Juniper said as she also caught a glance of Gwen appearing to have a good time with Kol. "He is very handsome."
"Not the point," Klaus almost growled. "I need you to discourage any affections from growing between them."
This had Juniper frowning at the hybrid. "And why would I do that?" She scoffed as rage slowly built up within her. While Klaus was being his usual self, she despised how controlling he was of Gwen's life, even more so when he meddled in the halfling's love life. "Lay off, Klaus."
"Don't misunderstand. I know my brother and he is not good for her," Klaus tried to defend himself.
"She survived you," Juniper countered. "I think she can take care of herself."
Before Klaus could argue further, he was forced to stop as the time arrived for him to twirl Juniper away and into someone else's arms just like everyone else had to do.
My, my, my, my, oh give me love
My, my, my, my, oh give me love
My, my, my, my, oh give me love
My, my, my, my, oh give me love
My, my, my, my, oh give me love
Give me love like never before
With the exchange came new partners. Rebekah ended up being paired with Damon. Elena twirled into Stefan's arms. Klaus breathed a sigh of relief at having Gwen now dancing with him. And among the other newly formed couples were Elijah and Juniper.
'Cause lately I've been craving more
And it's been a while, but I still feel the same
Maybe I should let you go
You know I'll fight my corner
And that tonight I'll call ya
After my blood is drowning in alcohol
No, I just wanna hold ya
"Good evening, Miss Blake," Elijah greeted Juniper with a smile. "I require some assistance in a rather delicate matter."
End of the chapter!
I hope my dear readers enjoyed it and that it was good. I was worried about so many characters and how to portray them to be as accurate as possible. If not, then I'll just have to get better, so don't be afraid to voice your opinions and such!
I am loving the love I receive from this story and it pushed me to continue to correct this hell of a chapter to post it and to finally be off to the ball!
See you guys in the next chapter!