Title: Backwards
Author: d0ntbleenk
Fandom: The Vampire Diaries, AU
Ship: Kol Mikaelson/Faye Salvatore
Rating: M

*Note - Faye Salvatore is the younger sister of Stefan and Damon Salvatore. She died at approximately age 16. This chapter takes place in the mid-1800's.

Chapter Two

In the farthest recesses of the Mikaelson manor there were long forgotten rooms, neglected even by the family that had inhabited the home for decades. Such a level of neglect had turned out to work in Faye's favor, for in her attempt at avoiding her gracious hosts she had stumbled across one of the afforementioned rooms.

She was curled up in a lush, dusty armchair by the window, watching a pair of bright blue birds dancing around the branches of a tree outside and reveling in her momentary solitude.

"You certainly know how to make it difficult for others to find you."

Faye blinked, shaken from her reverie, before straightening up and looking towards the door in surprise. But the second she saw him standing there across the room, her surprise turned into a deep annoyance. "That's the point of hiding." She told him pointedly, shrugging nonchalantly. "Besides, I've had a lot of practice."

Kol chuckled, the sound sending a chill across her skin as she remembered her dream from the night before – or had it been real? "Well it's rather annoying when you're needed, but nowhere to be found."

She rolled her eyes, standing up and sighing. "I thought I made it clear that I didn't want to talk."

"I do." He shot back. Kol stepped further into the room; she shot him a warning look. "You don't honestly believe that dream you had really happened, do you?"

"I know what I saw and what I felt, Kol." Faye told him firmly, turning back to him. "You bit me, and I swear I could feel your teeth sinking into my neck when I woke up like it had only just happened. Why would I be making this up?"

"Oh, I don't know, to make me look like the bad guy?"

"Unbelievable." She forced a laugh, shaking her head incredulously. "Trust me, you don't need my help with looking like the bad guy. You do that just fine on your own."

"I didn't do anything –"

"Stop lying to me!" Faye was shaking with anger by this point, her voice raising an octave in frustration. Before she could think twice about it Kol was being slammed into the wall, her hands at his shoulders and her eyes narrowed threateningly. But instead of being intimidated by her temper, Kol merely smirked, clearly amused by this show of emotion. He'd gotten under her skin.

With an irritated groan she released him, turning away and running her fingers through her hair as she began to pace. Kol watched her for a long moment, unsure of how he felt towards her. It was amusing to see her so torn up about this, but it also made him almost feel sorry for her as he could see just how crazy the idea of no one believing what she'd seen was making her. It very well could have been the latter that prompted him to say the words that finally emerged from his lips next, "Okay, you're right."

It took her a moment to register that he was talking again, but once the words had sunk in, Faye stopped moving, her eyes fixed on him. "About…?"

"Everything," he replied simply, sliding his hands into the pockets of his trousers. "I did bite you, but it was weeks ago and not for the reasons you think." Kol paused, studying her face for a reaction, but her expression was unreadable. "I knew that once I told you what you were it'd be near impossible to get you to feed. It was the only way I could –"

"Wait – feed?"

Kol moved toward her, brows furrowing slightly. "You were in transition when I met you, Faye. You needed human blood in order to complete it, or things would've gone bad fast."

Her eyes were wide. She backed away from him, looking horrified. "You… you gave me human blood?" She tried to wrack her brain for more information, searching her memory of that night for some explanation for what he was telling her now, but there seemed to be pieces missing there, too.

"Faye –"

"I can't believe you did that. How dare you –"

"You would have died!"

"It wasn't your place to decide my fate!" Faye managed to get out, though her words were hesitant, her brows furrowing as she let his words sink in.

"I saved your life!" Kol shot back sharply, his eyes full of the frustration she had felt only a few minutes before. He shook his head. "You're alive, Faye. Why can't you just be grateful for that?"

But she wasn't alive. Not really. He'd said it himself – she was dead, but somehow she was still hanging around like nothing had happened. And then it dawned on her. The 'transformation', her 'condition', the burning in her throat, the blood, the dream…

She closed her eyes, trying to shut it out, but it was useless. "Because," she replied. "It doesn't make any sense."

"Yeah, well you're a vampire now," he told her. "So that happens quite a lot, but it's something you'll have to get used to." He turned to leave, but before he could get far the words came out.

"I never asked for you to save me." Her voice was low, forgetting that his senses, especially his ability to hear, were heightened as well.

Kol stopped on the threshold of the room, crowding the doorway as her words hit him, but didn't turn around as he told her, coldly, "You'd better be careful, then, because it won't happen again." And with that he walked off down the hall, disappearing from sight and leaving Faye alone once more.

She bit her lower lip, tilting her head back and groaning softly, unable to understand how she could go from not wanting him around to wishing he'd come back in such a short amount of time.

But, then again, the saying 'you don't know what you have until it's gone' had to come from somewhere.