Disclaimer: Don't own anything you recognise.
OMG 500 REVIEWS! I can't believe that this story has reached that number. Thank you all so much! I appreciate all the feedback that you've all given me!
NonBinaryAceKitten: I don't know what you're saying YES to but thanks!
Nozomi Akiyama: I'm using translate so forgive me if I have gotten your question wrong, but Stefan is going to be team Elena for quite a while, especially seeing as how Damon isn't going to be competing for her affection, so Elena has no reason to break up with him.
waterchild13: Thank you! I'm really concerned about keeping them all in character and Damon is one of those that I find difficult, because he was so wrapped up in Elena for the whole show, for a lot of it, I have to go with how I think he'd react to the goings on within this world.
twibe: Thank you!
Ashes2Dust18: I envy her too!
Nicole Cullen Masen: Caroline was just collateral damage for Katherine, she turned her because she wanted to hurt Elena, but Caroline's not Elena's friend in this, so I'm not sure how Caroline and Katherine will react to each other yet.
Dark Angels and Light Angels: I didn't think that the trio were that easily defeated in the Originals, I mean a large chunk of their plan actually worked, Lucien killed Finn, the Strix managed to break Klaus's sire line, and Rebekah ended up cursed. They'll definitely be antagonists, especially with Aurora's obsession with Klaus. So I hope that whatever I choose to do with them, you'll enjoy. I get that Elena's young, but Maya and Elena are never going to like each other, and once the sacrifice is done and The Originals storyline starts we'll be moving all the way away from Elena, and she won't be in the story, so it won't be Elena bashing all the way through, she's just gonna get left behind.
Guest: I'm genuinely surprised that the og plot hasn't really started yet, because when I first started this, I'd pictured maybe ten chapters of build up, but the characters and their stories just kept growing so it's been getting pushed further and further back, but I can tell you that one or two more chapters and then the og plot will be starting.
Katerina: Thank you! I really appreciate it, I try very hard to make all the character interactions feel very natural, whilst trying to have each of them grow. Elena's definitely not going to be having a good Summer at least with her broken leg she has an excuse to stay inside.
xoxoKaraKxoxo: I always believed that Damon and Klaus had much more in common with one another than Stefan and Klaus, especially because Klaus enjoys being who he is, and Damon has said that the way he survived was being able to revel in being a vampire, and Stefan hates being one. I think it's finally getting into Klaus's head that he has someone that's going to choose him, no matter what, someone that he can trust, which he hasn't been able to do since he was human. From what I understand Hope's existence was pretty much solely based on Malivore needing to be destroyed, so it's part of canon that Klaus can have a child, but I haven't made a decision on which way I want to go with that. I didn't like the fact that Klaus's redemption was tied up in having a 'biological' child, because it completely takes away from the fact that Klaus took in Marcel, gave him a name, kept him safe, raised him as his own, and yes Klaus made mistakes with Marcel, but he loved his son and The Originals basically completely ignored it. Miranda was trying to protect Elena, and I think that a large part of it, is because she lost her husband so recently and doesn't want to lose her daughter, but she's going to have a problem now with Jenna and Maya, and Jeremy is going to be stuck in the middle because of her.
Heroina: Yes Maya and Nik do have a breakthrough, and Klaus is growing as a person, because he didn't massacre Mystic Falls when he got angry, at least it was a bunch of criminals that ended up being killed. Damon and Enzo's relationship is very new, and with Elena showing up it's going to cause problems because Damon has broken Enzo's trust before, and that is going to cause problems. But they need to work through them together. Caroline's never been able to stop herself from blurting something out, even when she shouldn't so that's something that Klaus is going to have to get used to.
Pari34162: This has definitely fractured Jenna and Miranda's relationship, and it will take a lot of work to get them back into a good place.
jessisthebestduh: Thank you!
WiseGirlDivergence46: Was it worth the wait?
xotinkerbella: I finally gave you all a real kiss between Klaus and Maya, was it worth waiting for? Damon's feelings are going to be put to the test, but not with Elena, it was definitely him being phased by the fact that she looks like Katherine. He expected to see the doppelgänger, but having her be connected to Maya, and being introduced to that in such a terrible way, really threw him off. Klaus already knows, the whole point of waking Freya is to get her to find a way around activating the failsafe in Esther's spell, Maya told him that the doppelgänger needed to live when they were in Death's domain together. I actually really like Lucien, but then he's evil and we can't like him, because he wants to kill the Originals, so no matter how charming he is, he's the bad guy.
lillen20: Thanks!
guest: Yes Elena's a minor so that will heavily play a part in her punishment from the law, and Caroline is definitely going to take every opportunity to get back at her, any way that she can. Elena deserved the compulsion, but Stefan's probably going to 'admire her for her honesty.' Maya and Jeremy have got to have some family bonding time together. And she's probably going to drive Stefan to drink, because she's not going to take any shit from him, in fact, she'll probably go out of her way to annoy him. Maya's going to have a fun Summer, she deserves it before TVD actually starts.
Tom122000: Thank you! Canon will start soon.
sam: Thanks!
sammyleann: That's cool, I just wanted to point it out before you got your hopes up for some early Katherine action.
l2pantelis: Enjoy this chapter.
Blu3b3rryT3a: Rage feeding is better than either of them massacring Mystic Falls, or taking out their anger on Maya, but they do act like children sometimes. Neither Enzo nor Klaus were messing around, not when it comes to Elena. You're right it's probably the doppelgänger allure, something about them that always makes people want to just keep them safe, even when they don't deserve it.
Mari Wollsch: Thanks!
Rhaelyant: Thank you, it's definitely not a normal reincarnation story, and the idea was that TVDU has never been a TV show, it was just easier for her past life to absorb the information she needed by watching it on TV instead of having the information just downloaded into her brain. Hope you enjoy the next chapter.
It was two days later when Maya finally got to go home, she sighed in delight as Klaus deposited her on the living room couch, "Liz is coming round after her shift to get your statement!" Jenna called from the kitchen, frowning she came into the living room, "We have absolutely nothing to eat. So I'm going to order in."
"I'm sure that Sunshine said that she'd re-stocked the fridge in anticipation of my arrival home," Maya replied, looking at her mother with suspicion.
"Fine!" Jenna rolled her eyes, "I can't be bothered to make anything so I'm ordering!"
Maya smirked at looked over at Klaus, "What she means is that she can't cook and I'm not supposed to be in the kitchen so she's gonna order."
"Hey!" Jenna exclaimed offended, and threw a cushion at her daughter, one that Maya flicked away with a wave of her hand.
"I'm severely injured! Stop throwing things at me!" Maya turned to Klaus, "What are you just sitting there for, protect me!"
"I think that even injured, you've got protecting yourself covered," Klaus smirked, and looked over at Jenna, "Damon's an excellent cook, why don't you just get him to make something?"
"Why am I being volunteered for kitchen duty?" Damon groaned.
"Because we're hungry and you make good food," Maya shrugged leaning back on the sofa, "Now go and make me a sandwich!"
Damon shot her a scowl, "You're lucky you're injured," he stormed off towards the kitchen.
"Damon seems extra pouty today," Klaus mused.
"Oh that's just because it took him three years to get an invite into this house," Enzo said, lifting Maya's legs and putting them in his lap, "And you only had to ask once before Jenna let you in."
"I've got to keep Damon on his toes!" Jenna defended.
"I heard that!" Damon called from the other room, causing Maya to burst into laughter.
"So where's this Nik I've heard so much about?" Jeremy asked nervously, looking around Maya's room, as though the Original would pop out at any moment, his mom was busy dealing with Elena's lawyer and his sister was laid up at home thanks to her broken leg so he'd snuck over to his aunt's house.
"Out with Damon and Enzo, they need to eat and deal with some…issues."
"So we're not going to see him…?"
"Chill Jer, he's not that scary," Maya dismissed, leaning back against the headboard.
"Really?"
"No," Maya admitted, "He's terrifying, to everyone, except me, because I'm you know…awesome."
"Yeah sure," Jeremy rolled his eyes.
Maya snorted in amusement as she pulled him closer to her, "But seriously, I'd think you'd like him, he's an artist you know?"
"Really?" Jeremy asked sceptically.
"Honestly!" Maya insisted, "He's amazingly talented!" she waved her hand and her grimoire appeared from it's hiding place and floated over, "See, he painted all of this," she gestured at the front and back covers, "And that painting in the family den, he did that too."
"Wow," the sheer amount of detail was impressive, "He really did this?"
"Uh-huh," Maya nodded, "He knew Leonardo Da Vinci."
"Shut up, he did not!"
"He did! And he knew Michelangelo, Botticelli, Monet, and basically all of the famous artists from the Renaissance."
"That's nuts," Jeremy said, "I know he's a vampire, but thinking about all the things that he's witnessed, the history that he's lived through, it's insane!" Jeremy was mind blown when he met Damon and Enzo, and compared to Nik, they were babies.
"You do realise that technically I'm like 6000 years old?"
"Yeah but you can't remember any of it, it's way less impressive," Jeremy shrugged.
"Less impress- less impressive! You're such a little shit!" she shoved him.
"I saved your life! No shoving!" Jeremy laughed, falling out of the bed as she gave him a little extra push with her magic, "And no magic! That's cheating!"
"I am severely injured, magic's all I got!"
"Stop using that as an excuse!" Jeremy jumped up from the floor with a grin, "I am the saviour!"
"Don't call yourself that!" Maya groaned.
"It's my Superhero name!"
"That's terrible!"
"It's the best name ever!"
"So lame!"
"So cool," Jeremy insisted.
The Sheriff had left Jenna's house for the final time that week, she'd just let Maya and Jenna know what the final decision was regarding Elena, 100 hours of community service and she had been banned from driving for a whole year, it was less than she deserved, Maya had thought, but as a minor, and with it being Elena's first offence, she'd gotten off easily. Miranda had also been ordered to pay Jenna for the cost of the car that had been totalled, not that Jenna cared about that, she'd wanted an admission of guilt from Elena, an apology from both her and her mother and hadn't received either. It was putting a strain on Jeremy, being stuck in the middle of the family, Elena was his sister and he loved her, but he loved Maya too, he knew that Elena was to blame, but he didn't want to take sides.
Maya had mostly just ignored the news, her surgery meant that she wasn't going to be in school for the last few weeks of the year, and Damon had worked his own 'magic' to make sure that she could move into her Junior year in September, without having to finish off her assignments. She'd just been waiting for Liz to give her the sentencing news so that she knew when she could finally get some vampire blood in her and heal up her wounds. She wasn't the only one waiting, the moment the Sheriff had left, Klaus swept into her room, "Your mother said that she's getting you out of town," he said.
"Yeah," Maya nodded, "I can't take vampire blood and heal and stay in town, it would be too suspicious. So I get some blood and spend the Summer outside of Mystic Falls, it's a win-win, I'll need the break anyway, when I come back…" she sighed, "I have to prepare for Katherine."
"I know I said that I liked your plan, but Katerina's dangerous."
"You're sending vampires to town aren't you?"
"I am," he nodded.
"So have them keep an eye on me," she shrugged.
"You'd really be okay with that?"
"It's not like you weren't going to do it anyway," she smirked.
Klaus looked away for a moment, "I'm due to leave in the morning, I have to get back to the pack."
Maya frowned, she was going to miss him, but she knew that he was needed elsewhere, "How are the kids?" she asked, "The moonlight rings still working?" She was curious, Klaus had barely mentioned the children when they talked, but she could feel that they were important to him. He was Klaus Mikaelson, he didn't ask for help, but he'd asked both her and Kol to help the kids, for him.
"They're doing well, they're still wary of most of the pack, especially since they were gifted those very fine pieces of jewellery, but they're good."
"No nightmares? No behavioural issues? I mean they lost everything."
"There haven't been any problems, why are you so interested?"
"I've just been thinking about them lately."
"What have you been thinking?" Klaus asked, he moved further into her room, sitting on her bed and gently pulled her towards him.
Maya rested against his chest, wincing as the shift tugged on her stitches, "I think they're lucky to have you."
Klaus stiffened, "What do you mean?"
"As an Alpha, a protector, whatever capacity they have you in… they're lucky."
"No one has ever been lucky to have me in their lives," he said, "I am the monster that monsters are afraid of."
"I'm lucky to have you," Maya insisted, and she reached up and stroked the talisman around her neck, "I wouldn't have this without you…it means that I can defend myself, when there are people out there that want me dead just for existing. And those kids, they wouldn't be alive without you either, because without you, I wouldn't have known that they needed help. And I wouldn't have known how to help them if you hadn't have shown me that ring. So yeah, they're lucky to have you, and I think they know that."
"Well…I suppose we can agree to disagree on that," Klaus dismissed, "I think it's finally time for you to get some blood in your system."
"Yes!" Maya exclaimed, giving a little fist pump, "My insides hurt so badly, please give me your blood," she held up her hand before Klaus could bite into his wrist, "But try not to overcook me this time. The crash really sucks."
He snorted in amusement, "I'll keep that in mind," he bit into his wrist and placed it against her lips.
Maya was quick to open her mouth and she swallowed down as much of his blood as possible, as the wound started to close, she sank her teeth into him, and Klaus let out a little groan at her unexpected move. His skin tore, his blood flooded her mouth, and she moaned, it shouldn't have tasted so good, but to her it did. She did it again and Klaus let her, blood exchanges were intimate for vampires, but he was letting her, because a part of him wanted that connection, needed it, craved it. But when she went in for a third helping, he pulled his arm away and she mewled in protest, "Sorry Love, but that's enough."
Maya turned to face him, eyes glazed over in a haze of pleasure, blood on her lips and all around her mouth, Klaus's gaze turned heated, she was a messy eater. His vampire bubbled to the surface, and he swooped in to kiss her, licking the blood from around her mouth, his own, but it still tasted good, and she responded. She turned her body to face him fully, pressing herself into him, "This doesn't mean anything," she whispered, pulling back for a moment to catch her breath. "You need to stop kissing me," she said, before leaning in again, she couldn't help herself, he was a very good kisser.
"I think you're the one kissing me." He pulled her closer, lifting her so that she was straddling him.
"Nope it's all you," she mumbled against his mouth, "But I need you to tell me that this is nothing."
"Why?"
"Because I'm still in high school, I'm not letting you cloud everything just because you're a good kisser."
"Oh, I'm more than just a good kisser," Klaus grinned, "I could show you."
"Mmm," Maya pulled all the way back, "Absolutely not!"
"Why not?!" Klaus laughed.
"Because I said so, I'm not letting your thousand years' worth of experience ruin me before I even get out of high school!"
"So you admit there is something between us!"
"Oh please, we both saw that vision, you know I'm going to sleep with you eventually," she pouted.
"You don't need to look so down about it Love."
"I can feel the smugness rolling off of you, I hate it!"
"You find it attractive," he smirked.
"Ugh, just shut up and kiss me," she leant down and pressed her lips against his again.
Caroline found Maya packing her stuff into a suitcase, "So where are you guys going?" she asked, it was going to suck having to go to school without her for the next few weeks, but she knew that her friend couldn't stay in Mystic Falls now that she was uninjured.
"Nik doesn't want us in New York, Kol's still travelling and he's staying in Arizona, so Enzo's extended our stay in California. I'm probably just going to spend my time relaxing in the Sun on the beach."
"I hate you," Caroline pouted.
"Don't be jealous Sunshine," Maya smirked, "It's only like a month and half and then you can join us."
"I hate you," the blonde repeated causing Maya to laugh.
"Well if you hate me, then I guess I don't have to tell you this juicy gossip that I have."
"How juicy?"
"The juiciest."
Caroline's eyes narrowed, "Tell me everything."
"I did something bad, and stupid, and very very bad."
"What did you do?"
Maya winced, anticipating the reaction that she was going to get from her best friend, "I made out with Nik, in my room…on my bed, we made out a lot."
"WHAT?!" Caroline almost screamed.
"Keep it down!" Maya hissed.
"Wha-when? How? When? When?!"
"You already asked that."
"Damn it Mai! Tell me everything!"
"It started when he came to the hospital-"
"When he came to the hospital! That was days ago! You didn't tell me for days?!"
"There were way too many ears at the hospital! Damon and Enzo and Nik were all there, I wasn't going to say anything when they could all hear!"
"Well you're saying something now! Spill!" she snapped her fingers.
"Don't you click your fingers at me!"
"I swear to God if you don't start talking right now, I'm telling Jenna."
"Oh my God fine! He came into my room, and I didn't notice at first, but then all of a sudden he was in front of me, and- and his hand was on my cheek, and his lips were on mine, and then he was kissing me, and it was long and slow and it wasn't like the kiss he gave me last year when he thanked me for finding the moonstone!" She was blurting it out now, "Because that was just quick, like really quick! And it was nothing like the kiss I gave him in December when he came to check on us after we'd been attacked by those Werewolves. I mean that was just a peck! Like the 'peckiest' of pecks!"
"Yo-you've kissed him before?! He's kissed you before?!" Caroline asked with wide eyes.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you that didn't I?" Maya palmed her face and groaned, she was in trouble now, and she was. Caroline jumped on her, attacking her with slaps wherever she could.
"How. Could. You. Not. Tell. Me. This!"
"Care-"
"I'm. Your. Best. Friend!"
"Care-"
Caroline stopped, she was on top of Maya holding her friend's arms down, "Does Enzo know? Did you tell him before you told me?!"
"Enzo doesn't know!" Maya replied, she was really going to have to do something about Enzo and Caroline's rivalry.
"Finish the story."
"What?"
"You said you made out with Klaus in your room, on your bed, which means you kissed him again, after the kiss in the hospital!"
"It was yesterday," Maya admitted, "After your mom left with the news about Elena, I could have blood, because my part in the whole 'information providing thing' was done. So he came up to my room, we talked for a little bit, and then he fed me his blood."
"And?"
"And then when I was done, he kissed me, and I kissed him back, a lot, and then I was straddling him and we were making out, and then I told him that it meant nothing."
"WHAT?!" Caroline shrieked.
"Oh for the love of-" Maya flipped them over, "Keep you voice down!" she said straddling Caroline.
"Why would you say that?!"
"I told him that I didn't want him to 'ruin' me while I'm still in high school."
Caroline frowned, "Ruin?"
"Ruin me."
"Oh."
"Yeah!"
"I bet he was smug about that."
"He was! So smug!" Maya backed off so that she was sitting on top of Caroline's thighs, and crossed her arms, "And he knows! He knows that he would ruin me! And he laughed at me! I told him that I wouldn't let him ruin my high school experience just because he was a good kisser, and do you know what he said?"
"What?"
"I'm more than just a good kisser, I could show you if you like."
"Ugh!" Caroline scoffed, "That's such a line!"
"I know right! And the worst part is I like it! I like his lines! And his smugness, and his power, and his accent, and his mind and his dimples. God I really like his dimples. What am I gonna do Caroline?" Maya threw her hands up in the air in frustration.
Caroline gave her a thoughtful look, "Here's what you're gonna do." she said decisively, "You're gonna have a great summer, you're gonna come back to school and go to parties and get drunk, and date boys, and inappropriate men and have bad sex. And then, when you're ready, go for him."
"You think that he'll wait for me to be ready?"
"I think that for all of his experience, in his ridiculously long life, he has never ever had someone like you, someone that cares about him the way you do. So even though you need time, I really believe that he'll give it to you. He might go out and get laid while he waits, but he'll give you time."
"Okay," Maya nodded thoughtfully, "Does it have to be bad sex though?" and Caroline snorted in amusement.
"Hey, what are you two doing?" Damon's voice said from the doorway.
Both girls turned to look at him with wide eyes and said simultaneously, "Nothing!"
Enzo put Jenna and Maya's suitcases in the car, their flight was scheduled to leave in the afternoon the next day so they'd be leaving first thing in the morning. "Hey Enzo?" Maya said, walking outside.
"Yes Love?"
"Can you take me somewhere?"
"Of course Sweetheart, where to?"
She smiled and held out her hand, "Can you take me to the crash site?"
Enzo paused for a moment, "Why? Why would you want to go there? Relive that horror?"
"I don't know, I have the feeling, an itch in the back of mind, I need to go back there, before we leave for L.A."
Enzo nodded, he gripped her tightly and whooshed to the bridge, "We're here, exactly where it happened." Maya let go of him and walked to the exact place where the car crashed, the vampire practically glued to her hip. "What is it you need?"
Maya shook her head, confused as she looked around, she couldn't figure out what it was that had pulled her towards the crash site, eyeing the railing of the bridge, she found herself drawn to it. She stretched out her hand and finally touched the wood and gasped as the images of Kol burning to death thanks to Elena and Jeremy of all people seared their way into her brain. "Oh my God," she whispered.
"What is it?" Enzo asked warily.
"It's White Oak."
"What?!"
"This whole bridge, it's made of White Oak, what we're standing on right now, it can kill an Original, wipe out an entire sire line."
"We have to get rid of it," Enzo said with worry, "Burn it! All of it! Before someone else finds out!"
"We need Gasoline," Maya said, "Go and get me a load of accelerant, while I cast a spell to search for any remnants of the wood in the water."
Enzo nodded and rushed off, Maya closed her eyes and searched her mind for a spell, the spirits wouldn't help her with this, she felt like she needed to reach out to the source of her power, reaching out her hands over the water she began to chant, "Mors invenit quercum ligneum, mors invenit quercum ligneum, mors invenit quercum ligneum." As she repeated the words she could hear the blood rush through her veins, could feel the power pulse through her, whatever magic she was using, it didn't feel normal, but it felt right. When Mother Nature slipped past her defences, that hadn't felt right, it hadn't felt natural, it had been cold, and painful. But this, this was warm, and comforting, and above all else, it was powerful.
"Alright I've brought-" Enzo froze as her eyes snapped open, they were pitch black, her veins turning darker and darker, until they matched the colour of her eyes, "Whoa."
"Mors invenit quercum ligneum," all of the wood in the water began to float upwards, "I've got them all," the wood piled up in the middle of the bridge, "Do you have what we need?"
"Yes," Enzo replied.
"Douse everything."
Enzo sped back and forth across the bridge, drenching it in accelerant, and then grabbed Maya and whooshed them back onto land, when they were far enough away she reached out her hand again, "Incendia." She said, and the bridge burst into flames, but they weren't the typical orange colour, the flames started off blue, then turned white hot, "Huh, that's never happened before."
"You're eyes and veins have never been black before."
"Really?" Maya shrugged, "That's weird."
"That's all you have to say! It's weird?"
"Well I died," Maya stated, "The CPR you gave me, kept me here long enough for Death to send me back. It's never been possible before, you made it possible," she looked up at him, "But I think he changed something in me, I don't know what, I'll have to figure it out as I go. But yeah, it's a little weird."
Enzo sighed exasperated, his friend was far too glib about things regarding herself, and her safety, "Alright, how long do we have to stay here?"
"Until every last bit of that cursed wood is gone. It shouldn't take long. How are you and Damon?"
"I don't want to talk about it."
"Well I'm here, if you need to, if you need me, I'm here. I'm on your side, whatever happens between you two, I love Damon, but I'm always going to be on your side. Because you're my person."
"Your person?"
"Yeah, like on Grey's Anatomy, if you go crazy and turn of your emotions and slaughter an entire town, I won't care, if you start a war, it's fine, because I'm sure you would have a good reason, even if you didn't I'd get behind you, because you're my person, and I'm yours."
"My person," Enzo repeated with a smile, "I like that."
"I thought you might."
"Looks like the bridge is almost done."
"Looks like," Maya agreed, and then narrowed her eyes at something in the distance, "What's that?"
Enzo followed her line of sight, "The Mystic Falls sign?"
"Go and get it."
Enzo nodded and was back in a flash with the sign in his hands, "What do you need it for?"
She took it from him and this time the vision was of Klaus, desiccated in a coffin, chained, a stake driven through his heart and the area burst into flames, "It's made of White Oak too."
"Then I'll throw it in the fire!"
"You can't," Maya said finally, "Nature's about balance, when the Originals burnt down the White Oak tree, Mikael kept a stake, one, that wasn't enough to kill them all, so Nature grew another. There needs to be enough White Oak in the world that could kill them all, so that she won't grow another tree."
"This is beyond dangerous," Enzo shook his head.
"It needs to be kept somewhere no one will ever find it."
"Where?!"
"I don't know, but until I do, it stays with us, it goes nowhere near an Original. We have to keep it safe, and keep them safe. We can't tell anyone about this, not until it's gone."
Enzo nodded, "We'll hide it, somewhere no one will even think to find it, and we'll keep it safe until then."
"But we can't go until this bridge is ash."
"Right, of course, we'll wait till it's ash."
"Oh my God I love this place!" Jenna said looking around the villa that Enzo had rented for them, "It's beautiful, and warm, and gorgeous! Why don't we live here?" she looked at her daughter.
"Because we live in Mystic Falls, and you wanted to stay close to your sister."
"Well I don't want to be close to her now," Jenna pouted.
"Yeah but I'd never leave Caroline, you know that."
"Do you think that we could convince Liz to move out here?"
Maya shook her head with a grin, "Liz is Aunt Miranda's best friend, and you know, the Sheriff."
"Right," Jenna winced, "We're going to have to go back to Mystic Falls aren't we?"
"At the end of the summer," Maya nodded, "And when we get back, I will be the focus of all the high school gossip."
"Caroline will cut them down with a few words," Jenna dismissed, "And if that doesn't work, you just do that thing with your eyes that scares people."
"What thing with my eyes that scares people?"
"Oh you know what I mean!"
/ / /
Maya and Enzo were taking a quick tour of Los Angeles, Damon had hung back in Mystic Falls at Klaus's request, waiting for his vampires to arrive and set up around the town before he joined them in California. "This place is amazing," Maya said.
"Better than New York?"
"No, I still love New York, it holds one of my favourite memories."
"Oh, which one?"
Maya gave a little smile, "It's where I had my first kiss."
"Who kissed you?" Enzo frowned.
"It doesn't matter, but it was nice."
"Who are you kissing?! You are not old enough to be kissing!"
"Enzo I'm nearly seventeen."
"You're entirely too young!"
"It's not the 1900's anymore Zo, the sexual revolution occurred a while ago and this might be a surprise for you, but I'm not a virgin anymore."
"Aah!" Enzo stuck his fingers in his ears, "La, la, la! I can't know this!"
Maya laughed, "Relax Zo, it's not like I'm going to tell you who I lost it to! That's stuff that I share with Caroline…and Damon, not with you."
"Good, goo- wait Damon knows?!"
Maya giggled and ran off, "Wait Maya!"
Jenna walked into a little beachfront café with a smile on her face, there was something about the warmth that just made everything feel better. Maya was with Enzo so she was safe, which meant that she could finally relax. The little café was adorable, and had a wonderful view, she sat down at a table outside with a coffee and slice of cheesecake as she took in the ocean.
"Well isn't this an odd coincidence?" a voice said, causing her to jump.
The chair next to her pulled out, and a man dropped into the seat, placing his own drink on the table, "Elijah," Jenna said surprised, "What are you doing here?"
"I was just about to ask you the same thing."
"I'm on vacation."
"I'm working."
"Well don't let me bother you," she said, turning back to the view.
"I'm not working right now," Elijah smirked.
"Well I am vacationing right now, and maybe I'd rather not be disturbed."
"You never called me, after I gave you my number."
"I have a life, I was busy," she shrugged. "Were you expecting a call?"
"Well after that night, I just thought…"
"Oh I get it," Jenna smirked, "You thought that your performance was so good that it warranted a phone call…a second night, oh well," Jenna stood, "I guess you weren't as good as you thought you were." She walked off towards the beach, leaving Elijah stunned for a moment.
He gave a small laugh and followed her, "I'm absolutely certain, that I'm as good as I think I am," he said, catching up with her.
"You wish," Jenna said, "That night wasn't all that memorable." That was a complete lie, but she was enjoying the fact that the hot English guy that had rocked her world, was now chasing after her.
Elijah grabbed her arm and turned her around, "Now you know that's lie," he moved in closer to her.
"No," she shook her head, "My memories are all fuzzy."
"Well then, would you care to join me for a drink tonight, so that I might perhaps convince you to allow me to remind you of how memorable I can be?"
"I'll think about it," Jenna replied, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have vacationing to do, but I'll call you."
Enzo and Maya were sneaking up to the Hollywood sign when Maya froze, "Whoa!"
"Maya? What is it?"
"You can't feel that?"
"Feel what?"
"I dunno, just follow me." She climbed up the hill slowly, she was following a sensation in her gut, the closer she got to the sign, the stronger the sensation got. Finally she stopped under the second 'O'.
"We're here, now what?"
"I think this is where it's supposed to be."
"Where what is supposed to be?"
"The sign, go get the sign."
"Ma-"
"Get the sign now! We don't have much time!"
Enzo whooshed away and was back in a few minutes, "Now what?"
Maya walked further under the 'O', almost in a trance, "This is where the Oak can be hidden."
"Here? Under the Hollywood Sign? This place attracts tourists like flies to shit."
"Not here, but here." She gestured to where she was standing.
"Because that makes so much sense."
"Give me the sign," he handed it to her, "I'll be back."
"Wha-" Enzo cut himself off when she simply vanished from sight.
/ / /
Maya looked around the area that she'd stepped into, it was dark but had a warm glow providing just enough light she could see, "Where am I?" she turned around and Enzo wasn't there. She heard what sounded like rushing water and followed her senses and came across a pool. Looking down, Maya caught sight of her reflection, but it wasn't her own face staring back at her, "How am I seeing you right now?"
From the other side of the water Death smirked, "I'm in your veins, in your blood, in your very essence."
"You changed something in me."
He nodded, "I had to, and now there's more of me that makes you up, which gives you the ability to come and go from places like this."
"And what exactly is this place?"
"It's where the veil between life and death is the weakest."
"Seriously? The veil between life and death is underneath the Hollywood Sign?"
Death gave her a smirk, "One of them."
"Why am I here? And why did I bring this?" she held up the White Oak.
"You're here because I told you to come here."
"You told me to come here? Wait, that's what that 'itch' in the back of my head was?"
He nodded, "Now that we're more deeply connected, I can reach out to you in a way that I couldn't before."
"So why did I bring this?"
"I can't afford to have something like that hanging around where anyone can get their hands on it."
"Because you need to keep as many vampires as you can, alive."
"Exactly, I can protect it here."
"How?"
"Put it in the water."
"What?"
"Put it in the water," he repeated.
Frowning, Maya slowly lowered the sign into the water, submerging it fully and let it go. Pulling her hand back she shook of the droplets, tingles shooting through each finger. Looking back at the reflection, Death stood there, holding the Mystic Falls sign in his hand. "How did that- how did you-"
"The veil is weak here, you're alive and part of me, so you can reach across, for a moment or two, and now, the only thing that can kill my creations cannot be accessed by anyone, but you and me."
"No one can touch it?" she asked, looking at him with wide eyes.
"No one."
"And because it's here, it's close enough to nature that she won't sense that it's gone, so she won't grow another White Oak tree, right?"
"Correct."
"It's safe, they're safe." Maya sighed in relief, Kol was safe, Nik was safe, the rest of the Original's were safe, which meant that so were Damon and Enzo, because it meant that no sire lines could be killed. Not by Esther, or Dahlia, or The Five. They were safe, and it felt like a huge weight had been lifted from her, because with that weapon off of the table, she could breathe just a touch easier.
/ / /
Enzo had been frantically searching the area when Maya disappeared, debating on whether or not he should call Klaus and let him know that he'd lost her, when she reappeared. Enzo grabbed her and shook her arms, "Where the hell have you been?!" he demanded, realising that the White Oak was missing, "And where the hell did the sign go?"
"Turns out, that that 'itch' in the back of my head was Death trying to communicate with me, and the sign is safe, no one can get to it now." Maya replied, a little disorientated from her reappearance and Enzo's speed.
"What the hell do you mean?"
"Death was drawing me towards a place where the veil between life and death was at its weakest, which is where I disappeared to, because of what I am, I could enter that place."
"You're telling me that the gateway to the Underworld is underneath the Hollywood Sign?" Enzo deadpanned.
"It's not the Underworld! But yeah, basically."
"Of course it is." He rolled his eyes, of all the places the gateway would be, of course it would be in Hollywood, that was like a bad joke.
"The sign's safe, I promise, it's close enough to nature that a new tree won't grow, but far enough away that no one can touch it."
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah," Maya said, looping her arm through Enzo's as the two made their way back down to the road, "Being there, it was like the most secure I've ever felt, like instinctively I just knew that nothing bad could ever happen to me there."
"I imagine that was because you were close to your creator," Enzo mused, it made sense, unlike everyone else in the world, Death protected her.
"It was kind of nice being able to see him without needing to die first," she admitted, "Did you know that he's an impeccable dresser?"
"Really?"
"Yeah," Maya nodded, "He's always dressed to the nines, a three piece suit, not a hair out of place, and not a crease in sight."
"Huh, I always just figured that he dressed like the Grim Reaper."
Klaus arrived back at the 'Pack House' a few days after Enzo had taken the Sommers family to California. He took his time on the way back, in an effort to work off most of his anger, it would do him no good to frighten them unnecessarily. It was night by the time he arrived, most of the pack were in bed or heading that way, and Cary greeted him at the door.
"Cary," Klaus nodded, walking inside his home, "How has everything been?"
"Fine," Cary nodded, "There was a little unrest with the way you left, but I settled the pack down, told them it was an emergency."
"But nothing more?"
"You're the Alpha, if you want to tell them about your Witch, then that's up to you. Personally I'd rather wait to have the debate of tradition vs modern life expectations again."
Klaus smirked, that was a debate that had dominated many a pack dinner, and understood Cary's reluctance to ignite it once again, "And the children? How have they been?"
"They've been…difficult," Cary admitted.
"What happened?"
"Well they just…don't like listening to other adults, you told them to listen to me, so they did, but anyone else…let's just say that Liam has a very extensive vocabulary for someone so young," Cary winced a little at the memory of the Liam insulting one of the adults, "It'd be impressive if it wasn't so inappropriate."
Klaus snorted in amusement, "I suppose I'll have a talk with them, but it's nice to know that they can follow orders, even at such a young age."
Cary shook his head as the two of them made their way towards Klaus's floor, "That's not it," he said, "They don't follow your orders because you're their Alpha Klaus, they obey because you're their constant…they lost everything, their family, their pack, their ability to control their own bodies. And you gave them all of it back, you brought them to a pack, so that they can be amongst their own kind, you got them those rings, so they never have to lose control again, and like it or not, you're their family now."
"I wouldn't read to much into it," Klaus replied, walking towards his room.
"I'm only speaking the truth," Cary said, following, there was something else he needed to explain to Klaus, but he'd wait till the vampire reached his room.
Klaus opened the door to his bedroom and frowned, Liam and Luna were fast asleep on his bed, and what was that? Was that one of his shirts clutched in their hands? "Was there something you forgot to mention Cary?"
"Right," Cary looked at him a little sheepishly, "As soon as you left, they started to get nightmares, letting them in here was the only way they could get a full night's sleep." Klaus shot him an annoyed look, "Like I said, you're their family now."
Fighting the urge to sigh, Klaus turned back to look at the children, "I'll deal with this in the morning." He dismissed Cary and the Beta made his way to his own room.
Going inside, Klaus carefully lifted Liam from the bed and took him to his own, and then did the same with Luna, he'd speak to both of them after he'd gotten some much needed sleep, unable to relax since he'd left Maya back in Mystic Falls. Klaus opted for a quick shower and threw on some sleep pants before crawling into bed and falling asleep rather quickly.
It was about an hour later that he was woken by quiet whispers and then his door opened. Cracking open an eye, he watched as Liam and Luna both stood in his doorway, quietly arguing with one another, "What are you doing?" he asked, startling them both.
"I had a nightmare," Luna said.
"So go to your brother's room," he said, yawning.
"I had one too," Liam reluctantly revealed.
Sighing, Klaus shifted over to one side of the bed and flipped the covers open on the other, "Close the door behind you," he muttered, too tired to be annoyed at them.
Liam and Luna were quick to scramble into the bed beside him, not wanting him to change his mind.
"Klaus?" Luna whispered, eyes on the sleeping face of the Original.
"What?" Klaus asked, not opening his eyes.
"Please don't go again."
Klaus opened his eyes, taking in the worried visage of both children, he reached out his hand and let Luna latch onto it, "I can't promise that, but I give you my word, I'll always come back." Luna gave him a little nod and squeezed his hand and closed her eyes, falling asleep in his presence rather quickly. Klaus waited until both of them were knocked out, contemplating how at ease both of the children were at being in his presence, recalling Maya's words, 'They know how lucky they are' she'd said, and Cary had informed him that the children looked to him like he was their family. Was that really true? Had he managed to create a family without even trying?
Kol was back in New York, in the Brownstone where he and Maya had woken his sister, he'd taken to doing his research for Klaus's curse there. None of his other siblings, baring Klaus, had access to the home, so he could work there without interruption. Or at least, that was what he thought, he heard someone enter the home and whooshed downstairs, slamming the intruder up against the wall.
"Freya." He said, surprised that his sister was there, he released the woman and she rubbed at her throat with a scowl.
"Hello brother," she said.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, he knew that Sage and Finn couldn't enter, but he was still suspicious of her motives. So far they'd had one semi-decent conversation, but nothing more than that.
"I've been thinking about we talked about," she replied carefully.
"We talked about a fair few things, you'll have to be more specific."
"You pointed out that so far, I've have only heard one side of the story, and you are right in that Finn seems rather obsessed with getting away from our family."
"So what is it you want?"
"Tell me about you," she said, "About our brothers and sister, because I still can't understand how you have so easily cast your anger aside."
Kol eyed her suspiciously, he'd given her access to her magic about a month after Maya had left New York, knowing that his sister wouldn't be able to locate his student, and so far she hadn't tried anything against him since he'd taken the dagger from her, but he still didn't trust Freya. She needed to earn that, he supposed the only way she could start to do that, is if the two of them talked. "Fine," he acquiesced, "Join me in the den."
Damon joined Enzo by the private pool the villa had, things between the two of them had been tense, what with Enzo confessing his deepest fear and Damon partially regressing back into his pre-Maya self as a defence. "Hey," he said, Maya had given him a serious telling off when she realised that the two of them had yet to make up properly.
"Damon."
"Can we talk?"
"I guess," he replied, feeling guarded.
"I never meant to hurt you Enzo," Damon sighed, "I didn't mean to make you feel like I'm still in love with Katherine, I'm not, I swear."
"Can you blame me? You completely shut down when you saw Elena! It was like you'd just found at that Katherine wasn't in the tomb all over again!"
"I know!" Damon clenched his fists, "I know okay, I didn't handle it well, I don't handle anything to do with Katherine well. And for a moment, a moment, all of the hurt and the anger that I feel for her bubbled up. When I saw Elena, I thought that Maya knew and just didn't think enough of me to tell me, and I get that I'll never be as important to her as you are, but it felt like a betrayal. I'm sorry that I hurt you."
"You know that she's coming back right?" Enzo asked, "Katherine's coming back to Mystic Falls, she wants to use Elena as a bargaining chip with Nik, so she'll come, and when she knows that you're there, do you think that she'll leave you alone?"
"I know, Maya told me, and it doesn't matter, I love you Enzo, you, not her, not anymore. You gave me time to figure out who I was after Katherine, because for a 140 years she was all I wanted. You forgave me, after I betrayed you in the worst way imaginable, I still don't understand how you could, why you would. I deserved to die for what I did to you Enzo, but you chose to forgive me instead, to love me, and I will spend the rest of my life working towards being worthy of that forgiveness. Whatever you want, I'll do it, to prove to you that you're all I want."
Enzo frowned, seeing the sincerity in his lover's eyes, "If I told you that I wanted her dead?"
"I'd hold her down so that you could stake her," Damon immediately replied.
"You swear that Katherine means nothing to you anymore?"
"Less than nothing," Damon said.
"Okay."
"Okay?"
"You only get one chance Damon, and this is it."
"I promise you Enzo, you're the only person I'm in love with."
In Mystic Falls a man sat at his desk, writing in his journal.
'For over a century, I have lived in secret, hiding in the shadows, alone in the world. Until now, I am a vampire, and this is my story. I shouldn't have come home. I know the risk, but I had no choice. I had to know her. But that was a mistake, I had a plan, I wanted to change who I was, create a life as someone new, someone without the past. Without the pain. Someone alive. But it's not that easy. The bad things stay with you, they follow you, you can't escape them, as much as you want to. So what do I do now?'
Thank you so much for reading! If you can, please leave a review as they really make me feel good!