Ch 8
The most curious thing, this 'guest' of his. He found her diverting with her wit, beautiful like a summer day, and utterly tempting. She was stubborn and fiery, and now he found her reordering all his books in the library.
The sun's rays through the window gave her a kind of halo around her gold curls. She hummed a tune to herself, a pleasant sound, as she placed a book on the shelf.
"What are you doing, love?"
She jumped, "Must you do that?!"
He chuckled and shrugged, "A habit."
She threw a glare at him, going back to her task. "If you must know, I'm organizing the books. I don't know how either one of you can find what you're looking for."
He walked the room eyeing the other changes she made. The furniture had been rearranged, the various items they had collected over the years displayed differently, and now she was reordering the books.
"Do you plan to rearrange all of the rooms? Will I find you refurbishing my bedroom next?"
Her face blushed, in that pretty rose color he loved so much. It was on his latest canvas, even.
She replied with a huff, "I think you'll find me anywhere but your bedroom."
Klaus couldn't help but smirk at that. "Never say never, love."
She rolled her eyes, "Oh, please." She moved towards the ladder on her right, climbing it hastily to place another book on the topmost shelf. He had not given it much notice before.
On her descent, her foot caught her skirt effectively tangling it, with a sharp gasp she fell backward.
Without a second thought, he easily caught her. He was acutely aware of her breath against his cheek, her chest-heaving from the fright-against his own, and her fingers clutching at his jacket. He found himself entranced by her eyes, trying to memorize the shade and colors, the expression of surprise and embarrassment. The spell was broken, the moment now gone, as she quickly sought to right herself.
"Th-thank you, though I would have been fine."
Klaus shook his head, "Really? If you say so, sweetheart." He helped her to stand. He remained close to her, though, causing her to shift further away only to be stopped by the ladder. He gave her a final lopsided smirk before leaving the library altogether.
"Care to try?" He asked her with that smirk she found irritating and too charming for his own good.
Did he think her incapable of it? She suppressed a scoff. She refused to show any of her annoyance, choosing to school her features into a mask of cautious apprehension instead.
Reluctantly, Caroline grabbed the bow that Klaus had offered her.
The sun beat down on the two of them. She was thankful she had forgone the sleeves of her dress.
A target was set up in the distance. One she had seen before on her previous walks of the ground.
Today, she had found Klaus practicing on it. And now he wanted to see her 'attempt' to hit the mark.
"Would you like a lesson?" He asked in an 'innocent' manner as she picked up a quiver from the stack beside him.
She recalled the time they had shared stories of their youths. A rare moment they shared days, almost weeks, ago. But back then, she had told she was taught how to ride, she failed to mention the early morning hunts she had joined her father and brothers on when she was just 11. She had worn her brother's old clothes and pretended to be like them. She was a better shot than they were. Most likely the cause of her banishment from those trips.
Her body fell into the rhythm, the old skills she had thought she would never use again. Deep breath in, pull back, steady yourself girl, keep your balance, that's it, her father's voice whispered in her mind.
She let the arrow fly. It landed just shy of the middle. A genuine smile spread across her face. It had been a long time since she had held a bow, she was happy that she could still shoot fairly well. Turning to look at Klaus, a beaming smile still plastered to her face, she exclaimed, "Almost center!" The surprise on his face pleased her. She took a deep breath, letting it out in a sigh. "It has been years since I've done this."
"Why did you ever stop?" His smile, genuine, made her heart jump briefly.
"My theory has always been that my brothers were jealous. And my mother hated when I would hunt with them. So I stopped. I stayed inside," she shrugged. A mischievous smile graced her lips, "I warned you, I'm not like other ladies." She handed his bow back and continued her walk. His chuckle was her only reply.
She swore she could feel his eyes on her back till she disappeared around the side of the castle.
Her laughter was the first sound he noticed upon his entrance into the castle. Having just returned from business in town. The second was the quiet mutterings of his brother.
He came upon them in the great hall. Caroline winded, chest heaving to fill with air as she fought to control her mirth, stood much closer to Elijah than he would like. And his brother had the look of a deeply confused and put-out fellow. His ire rose. He forced it back, unsure of what it was trying to tell him of the scene before him and how he truly felt about it.
"Am I intruding?" Klaus managed to sound less irritated than he was, though not by much.
Caroline giggled, unaffected by his question. "Elijah mentioned he had not been to a ball in some time, I figured he should learn the current favorite dance of the Court." She swept her hair back off her shoulders, giving him a better view of her neck and chest. He found he rather enjoyed her neck. Truthfully, he enjoyed many of her features. Today they were accentuated by an indigo dress made of satin.
"Dancing lessons?" It seemed too ridiculous.
His brother grimaced, "Indeed, I had thought it prudent to be prepared for your birthday."
Of course he did, Klaus thought. His anger still plaguing him, itching to be released. He left to find a servant he did not care for to quench his thirst and his anger.
The whirl of dresses was the first thing to greet him. Bodies moving and dancing to the music. He knew he was in her dream again. He supposed he could not help it. He found himself in her dreams too often.
Looking around, he noted she had dreamt up the royal court. He recognized the finery, the opulence of the people dancing. But he could not find Caroline. He moved around the various groups of people who were chatting, dancing, or flirting. Until he found himself suddenly next to her, Caroline stood on the outskirts of the mass of people. Her eyes were following someone currently dancing, he cared not who.
Smirking at her in his usual manners, he spoke, "And why are you not dancing, love?"
She made no move as if she had known he would be there, "No one asks me, anymore"
That caught him off guard. She was beautiful, slight of frame, and her smile was captivating. Maybe this was an insecurity of hers? Or was it the truth? Did she get passed over for others? Then the world was full of fools. "I doubt that anyone would deny themselves the privilege of a dance with you."
"You have it all wrong. All eyes are on her." She sounded, sad, maybe forlorn. But it held her usual stubbornness he was growing accustomed to.
He looked out at the dancing bodies, there were two forms that drew his attention. A thin framed girl dancing with a broad sort of gentleman, a Lord he assumed. Looking around, he noticed for the first time, that most of the crowd were indeed looking at the dancing couple. Ignoring the crowd and the dancing couple, he addressed Caroline, "And what is so special about her, sweetheart?"
"Everything." She smiled, a pale comparison to the few beaming smiles he had caught from her.
They stood, her watching the dancing couples and him watching her. He sympathized with her, once in his life he had wished to be seen as something great by those he had cared for. Now, he was a few steps closer to being the greatest creature alive.
"He said he would marry me." She broke their silence, her voice, detached and somber.
His eyes darted to her, was this another memory of her past life? "Oh? And she has stopped him? I take it she's your rival, then?"
"My closest friend."
Another surprise from her. He thought he was getting used to them. A laughable thought. "Then he is a fool, love."
"Is he?" She turned to Klaus suddenly, "Why are you here?"
"Perhaps I enjoy a good dance?"
She chuckled at his reply, shaking her head in the process. "I cannot escape you."
"That's correct," he leveled her with an intense stare.
She matched his stare briefly. She broke her gaze first, eyes glancing over his lips and then out towards the crowd. "I don't know what to make of that," she said before she turned and disappeared into the dancing people.
He left the dream soon after.
AN: This was a somewhat filler chapter. I liked these scenes in my head and on paper so I figured fuck it, put it in.
The next 2 chapters are a doozy. so figured this would be like a nice appetizer?
Thank you for the comments, faves, follows, and just reading this in general. I'm excited for the next half of this journey!