Firstly, I want to thank you all for taking the time to read and review this story.
As my first venture back into the world of FanFiction after such a long time, your response and support to this story has had such a profound effect on my confidence as a writer. So again, I say thank you.
This story was inspired by the song Beautiful War by Kings of Leon.
Please sit back and enjoy! :)
Caroline twitched nervously as she waited, foot tapping furiously against the hardwood floor. Maybe he was out or maybe he was busy... Oh god! What if he and the redhead were – no, no she would hear if they were doing that. She had avoided using her vampire hearing as she'd entered the building for that reason alone. She'd blocked out all sound and just put one foot in front of the other, reassuring herself with every step that she could do this. She was doing this. He was taking an awfully long time to answer the door though.
Maybe she had the wrong address.
Caroline rummaged through her handbag for the napkin she had scribbled his address on. She hadn't really known where to start looking for Klaus when she had first arrived in New Orleans. She'd just kind of assumed that he'd be easy to find. After all, he was Klaus Mikaelson and the man that she knew was not one to hide in the shadows. He liked the attention far too much to ever simply fade into the background. So she'd headed to the first bar that looked anywhere half decent and simply asked around.
The bartender had been far too snippy, short and dismissive to be telling the truth when she'd said that she didn't know the man Caroline was describing. Obviously, she had encountered him if the scowl on her face was anything to go by. Caroline wondered briefly, as she looked at the blonde bartender and then at her reflection in the mirror, if the woman had more than simply encountered Klaus. But, after a short battle of wills the woman, Camille, had relented and given her his studio apartment's address. Don't go to the compound, she had said brusquely, you won't find him there.
So here she was...staring at a door, waiting for the biggest monster of them all to sweep her off her feet. Or let her fall, unceremoniously into an embarrassed mess when she realised that coming here had in fact been a very stupid idea regardless of what Stefan said. What if he actually cared about that woman, that beautiful redhead that she had no hope in hell of competing with? What if he had moved on, truly moved on with his life? New Orleans was so different from Mystic Falls. What if it was too different? What if she simply didn't fit here?
There were too many 'what ifs'.
Caroline impatiently rapped on the door a second time. A part of her hoped that he wasn't inside. It would be so much easier if he simply wasn't there and not actually avoiding her. She hadn't actually thought beyond confronting him. She hadn't envisioned what she would say or what she would do. If he turned her away, at least then she would know the life she had to go back to. But if he didn't, if by some chance Klaus didn't turn her away then Caroline didn't know what she would do. She had her mother to consider, her friends, college; Caroline hadn't stopped to think beyond any of that.
Until now.
It made her want to run. And she would have run, she would have fled without him ever knowing she was there...
"Hello sweetheart."
...if he hadn't of opened the door.
She felt as if all breath had been kicked out of her. She stood, mid-turn, eyes wide and unbelieving, if not a little upset that he hadn't simply let her run. Caroline exhaled harshly, one foot hanging mid-air, mid-step, mid-turn; it was almost as if her body had ceased to remember how to function, how to move of its own volition. She felt his eyes on her, knew that in her current position there would be three little crinkles indented on either side. She knew the lines of his face. She knew when he was angry or amused, whether he was genuinely happy or disgruntled. Caroline had watched him far too closely to ever claim ignorance. She knew that her mid-freeze would amuse him. She hated being an amusement.
Spinning around haphazardly, she slammed her foot on the ground and casually leaned against the banister beside her all in one swift movement. Casual. Purposeful. She acted like she meant it, like she had always intended to greet him thus. Klaus simply grinned, dimples and all. He wasn't fooled for one second.
"Hi," she breathed out nervously, eyes dancing across his face.
She would never admit it, not to him, but she had missed him. She missed the mischief in his eyes when he was around her, the easy smile he gave, the look that she knew belonged to her and her alone. How she could ever think differently, now that he was staring at her with that lopsided grin, not the fake smile he put on for others but the genuine one, the one that she knew belonged to Niklaus Mikaelson and not Klaus, was beyond her.
Damn him.
He stole her reason, her judgement; the very thought of him, of that day in the woods had led her to this moment. Once would never be enough. He'd known it. And now, now so did she.
"Do you want to come in?" he asked almost hesitantly, fearfully dare she say it.
Caroline licked her lips nervously, regretting the action as his eyes snapped down to her mouth. "Here's good."
She didn't trust herself if she went inside with him. At least here, outside, leaning against the banister for support, she could think somewhat reasonably.
Klaus nodded his head absentmindedly, his hand running along the back of his neck in a nervous line. Suddenly, he let out a breathy laugh. She started, jumping slightly at the noise. He looked at her almost sheepishly. "You've caught me quite off guard, love. I didn't expect to see you..." his voice trailed off.
Caroline tried to ignore the jolt she felt when he called her 'love'. She knew it was a 'British thing' or whatever. He probably called a lot of women 'love' whether in endearment or patronisation, even offhandedly. Still, somehow she felt as if the term meant so much more when it was said to her and her alone, by him and him alone. She felt as if he meant it, as if he truly meant that she was his love.
"I should have called," she admitted with a weak smile. "I didn't...think."
He looked at her, eyes searching. "Good," he said simply, moving to step through the doorway. "Sometimes thinking is highly overrated."
Caroline took a step back. "And sometimes it is absolutely necessary."
They stared at each other for a long time, silently barraging the other with all the pent up emotion in their eyes. She felt as if they were screaming at each other, throwing argument after argument at the other without uttering a single syllable, without ever making a sound. Klaus seemed to come to some sort of conclusion, some sort of decision as he swallowed thickly. She tried not to stare at his Adam's apple, tried to ignore the way that it bobbed at the movement. She tried to forget the taste of him, the way she had nipped at the tender skin just so when they had been –
"Why are you here, sweetheart? Truthfully," his interruption to her inner monologue made her blush a pretty shade of red. If he noticed, he didn't bother to acknowledge her embarrassment. Klaus wore a guarded expression and she knew that he expected the worst from her.
"I wanted to see you," she replied simply, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. He looked at her silently. She felt uncomfortable under his stare. It was so unrelenting but still she persisted. "I know that I haven't exactly been the easiest person to get a straight answer from. I think the truth is that I hardly know what I want anymore. I'm confused by not wanting to let go of the life that I know and the life that I want. Because what I know and what I want – they're so conflicting, so confusing and I guess I don't really know how to sort the two of them out."
"So you're here to what? Figure it out?" Klaus asked, his face unreadable after her hurried confession. She felt so stupid, looking at him now and hearing the mistrust, the slight indifference in his voice.
Caroline closed her eyes. She would not cry. This had been a possibility from the start. She knew that he could turn her away. And now he was. His voice told her he was.
"Nothing," she mumbled, an embarrassed blush on her cheeks. "Forget I was ever here."
She turned to leave, humiliation burning in her eyes. His hand stopped her. She felt the warmth of his palm as it wrapped around her wrist. She didn't try to pull away, didn't try to run like her head screamed at her to. Instead she waited, her breath coming out in short rasps as she fought to regain some semblance of composure. She was Caroline Forbes; former Miss Mystic Falls, not a simpering nervous wreck. Klaus Mikaelson would not render her into one of those girls. She was stronger than that.
"I'm sorry," his breath tickled the back of her neck. Caroline found herself closing her eyes at the sensation.
"So am I," she whispered quietly. His hand relaxed around her wrist but he did not let go.
It was easier this way. Caroline felt as if she could say what she had wanted to from the beginning now that her back was turned, now that she didn't have to look into his eyes. It was strange but she felt almost calm. Perhaps it was his touch, the gentle rub of his thumb as it glided comfortingly over her wrist. He would not hurt her. He never could.
"I missed you," she breathed out softly. "More than I should have. I missed you and I regret... I regret telling you to leave. That is why I'm here," his grip on her wrist tightened.
She had stolen his breath. Caroline smiled at the thought.
Slowly, she turned around and looked at him so unguardedly that he could do naught but stare. He had stolen her breath just as she had stolen his. He was evil, volatile, dark and brooding, impulsive in his anger and downright unrepentant in his rage. And yet, for all that, she cared about him, perhaps even loved him. Caroline suspected that a part of her always had. It had simply taken the sight of him with another woman to spark that realisation.
Caroline's eyes widened then as she remembered the redhead in the alleyway. "I know that I should have called ahead. I mean, it's good manners and all but –"
"I don't care. I'm just happy that you're here, love," Klaus interrupted her, his hand moving to touch her hair. She fought the urge to lean in to his touch.
"No. I mean, I'm happy that you're happy that I'm here," she started hurriedly, smiling at his answering grin. "But I did tell you to move on with your life the last time that I saw you. I told you to leave and never come back and basically that I never wanted to see you again, so... I guess that I'm saying that I understand if you have moved on and that there is someone else."
Klaus laughed at her then. Caroline knew that she was rambling, knew that she was avoiding the obvious but from the way that he looked at her, from the way his eyes seemed to dance in amusement, she wondered if she should just leave well enough alone. Then again, she was Caroline Forbes.
"I saw you with another woman earlier. You were outside and well, I kind of just...left. I didn't want to interrupt!" she blurted out hurriedly, watching as his eyes widened in surprise. There was something in them that she could not place; Caroline wanted to say it was fear, but that wasn't quite right. "It's ok. I mean, you can see who you like. You're not bound to me or anything like that so, I'm not upset. Not really. I mean, okay maybe I was a little bit upset but I get it. I do. So if my being here is bad for you then I can leave. I can –"
"You are perfect and I want you here, with me, regardless of what it means for the life that I have built for myself and my family here," he interrupted her, taking her head between his hands. His eyes held her captive, their intensity rendering her immobile. "I will not lie to you and say that I did not try to dispel the image of you from my mind. Genevieve was a distraction."
She shook her head, trying to pull free from his grasp but he would not relent. Her mind conjured up images of exactly how Klaus had tried to dispel her memory. She wanted to hit him. She wanted to kiss him. Caroline wanted to believe that what he said was true but a small part of her, a sliver of her old self, screamed inside her head of lies and pretty words. Her old insecurities began to take hold, something that Klaus seemed to instinctively sense.
"I want you, Caroline. Just you," Klaus persisted.
Caroline breathed out brokenly. She sniffed as he wiped away the few stray tears that had escaped at his confession.
"Just me?" she asked disbelievingly.
Klaus smiled. "Just you."
And she believed him.
Caroline smiled brilliantly then, relieved laughter tumbling from her lips. Acceptance. Love. She could scarcely breathe from the happiness that overwhelmed her at not being turned away.
A weight had lifted from her eyes as she teasingly shoved Klaus in the shoulder. He smiled down at her like she was the loveliest thing he had ever seen. Maybe she was.
"You know I'm only here for the break," she stated teasingly, moving to catch his hand as it tried to curl into her hair once more. "I do have to go back."
"We'll see."
Elijah stared down at his phone.
He tried to believe that Niklaus would not be so reckless. He wanted to believe that his brother had at least considered some other alternative. But of course, that would be so unlike Niklaus, to actually think before he took action. The ramifications were grave indeed. There would be no easy solution, no believability to whatever lie he would have to concoct.
Still, as he peered out the window of the quaint little coffee shop he had taken refuge in, his newspaper left open and unread, Elijah watched the blonde girl smile as his brother took her hand, practically dragging the poor girl down the street with a boyish enthusiasm that he had not seen in over a thousand years. Elijah could hardly remember the last time he had seen such a genuine smile grace his brother's face.
But still he wondered. Had he made the right decision, calling his brother ahead of the blonde's arrival?
Staring down at his phone once more, Elijah pursed his lips.
I am taking Caroline on a tour of the French Quarter. There is a present waiting for you back at my apartment. Try the closet. I'm sure you will be equally happy and horrified. Please deal with it.
Yes, it would be so unlike Niklaus to actually think for a change.
Elijah sighed, tired and worried. Niklaus had always had the tendency to eliminate that which he saw as a threat, regardless of thought or consequence. Genevieve was a threat to his happiness. But she had been a powerful player in a game neither of them had won quite yet. New Orleans was on the brink of peace. Yes, the treaty had held that peace for a time but it was shaky at best. To eliminate the leader of the witches, to actually force a change among the council could prove futile.
Elijah wondered not for the first time since receiving his brother's message if he had made the wrong decision. This Miss Forbes was beautiful and she seemed to genuinely care for Niklaus, but at what cost? What would he do when the knowledge of Hayley and Eva's existence threatened that happiness? What would he do if this girl, this Caroline Forbes from Mystic Fall, rejected the idea of them?
Elijah shuddered at the thought.
What did you think? Hopefully it wasn't too horrible.
Now while this is the end of Beautiful War fear not, because I do have a sequel in the works.
It should be out hopefully within a week or two. So keep an eye out for Thistle & Weeds, part two of the Black Hearts series.
Thank you all again so much!
I hope you enjoyed the ride :)