So where have I been for the last couple months? Well, I've been recovering from what Life had to throw at me, lemons and watermelons and whatnot. However, with every down there is an up, and there was certainly an upside to this. Though, I am sorry for such a long wait, I was working on this third part in bits and pieces.
Inspiration kept eluding me, however, since my short break has started, I've gotten up from my lazy butt and started typing away. I do hope you all like it, or liked bits and pieces of it. Some of the scenes were hard to write, truthfully, and the final installment of the story is truly diffcult to write without crying a bit.
Was that too much? I'm just a crybaby.
Thank you ALL for the reviews, I really do appreciate them. They have made me smile and sometimes even laugh, and for those who have questions (specifically you, Dark-Supernatural Angel -smile- ) I hope that this chapter answers [sort of] your questions in regarding Hermione's disgust towards Klaus as far as being an Original-Vampire-Werewolf-Hybrid.
And I love to thank Cassie-D 101 and Winter's Empire for putthing this story in their archives!
You all are so wonderful, thank you for supporting me and this story.
Anyways, I do hope you all enjoy this
Warning(s): Inappropriate language and use of alcohol.
Disclaimer: I do not own either of the series, Vampire Diaries or Harry Potter. Also, I do not own the song that is mentioned here, Skinny Love.
.:Part Three:.
To Free
….November 15th…..
She knew that she was being watched.
For every turn of her head, Hermione would see a blur with runaway locks of gold. With every silent moment, she would hear a soft murmur and the occasional grumble. Hermione knew that she was being watched with jealous eyes, and it amused her.
Caroline Forbes,Vampire-Barbie, perfection was jealous of her, and it was all because of some arrogant hybrid. Initially, Hermione felt frustrated by the baby vampire's presence but she quickly warmed up to the idea of having another girl jealous because of her. Plain Jane, she was, became the source of annoyance of Miss Mystic Falls.
A laughable situation really.
So Hermione spent her days wandering in this small town watching Caroline observe her.
It was amusing, it really was, but then she realized what the blonde baby vampire really was: a sad and insecure girl who knew nothing about being happy. It wasn't a rare story nor was it the most tragic, but Hermione could relate.
It was a sad story that would always happen.
So it wasn't an accident when Hermione happened to ran into her in the middle of the street, leaves fluttering around and about them as if it was a fateful meeting between two people, and perhaps it was. It wasn't a grand meeting where all the planets aligned nor was it the loudest and most colorful blossoming of friendship.
But it was special in its very own quiet manner.
"No doubt your witch friend absolutely detests me," Hermione grinned, taking a sip of her drink, "I know she's been searching for answers and all. I'm surprised she hasn't figured it out."
Though, in all honesty, Hermione liked dangling the obvious in front of the other witch's face. Something about Bonnie just irked her, and it wasn't anything personal. It was just something about her that annoyed her, and it amused her when she could return the favor.
Perhaps it was that prejudice that Bonnie has shown that reminded her of home, though, then again, Hermione was being hypocritical of herself. She has welcomed everyone except Klaus, but then again entirety of Klaus's existence went against the balance of nature itself.
It was seeing the one thing that Voldemort had tried to achieve but failed.
Indestructibility and immortality.
It was terrifying, really.
"Oh yeah, about that, you are a witch, right? She says your magic feels…same but somewhat different?" Caroline titled her head to the side, her face twisted with curiosity.
If only they knew, Hermione thought with a small smile, and so that how her afternoon went. Speaking to a girl who would be forever young and perhaps even eternally insecure, and it was such a shame since Caroline had potential to be something more than just some shallow image that she had created for herself.
"Why are you being so nice to me now?"
The question threw Hermione off.
She needed a distraction from her own messed up life.
Hermione was not always so noble.
""Well, you have been following me for the past three weeks or so," Hermione replied with a small smile –You already knew about Ben- she desperately crush that thought, hoping her smile had not wavered, "And I know that you aren't the typical blonde imbecile cheerleader that everyone makes you out to be. If you were, Klaus wouldn't be so interested in you."
It was honest, she thought, watching the blonde visibly cringe at her words. Klaus would have never given her a second glance if there wasn't something truly special about this girl. The sudden hurt that appeared on her lovely face was quickly smoothened away. It reminded her a bit of Draco, but it wasn't quick enough to hide everything.
Insecurity, hurt, and jealousy.
"He's a bit slow with the latest gifts and all."
Such cold and unfitting words from an affection-starved girl.
"I've learned a lot about you, Caroline, and not just from Klaus's horrible rants about you but from observing you observing me, which is no doubt Salvatore's idea?" Hermione asked, her expression slightly amused.
"Damon's a bit paranoid." Her eyebrow twitched.
Hermione bit back a smile.
"Well, anyway, I've learned about the whole bit with you and that doppelganger. Klaus told me about what he was expecting from you, well, you know prior to the sacrifice and all. He is quite chatty when he is drunk. He sings like a canary," Hermione lilted, "And you seem a bit sad."
"Well, can't be exactly happy when you're dead and all, you know?" It was a snappy reply, but Hermione did not blink an eye. She had dealt with worse in school when she had once roomed with girls.
"I've seen your thoughts once, Caroline. I know about your whole issue with Elena."
Hermione watched her bristle like a cat, and like any other feline, she looked like she was ready to pounce on her, fangs and all.
"No, I haven't entered your mind ever since then. It was wrong of me, but you all caught me in a bad mood and the Bennett witch kept trying to give me an aneurysm or something," Hermione gave her a sardonic grin, "But I really want to talk about you and your thoughts."
It appeased her somewhat, and she became relaxed once more.
Like a cat.
"Fine! What do you want to tell me?" She snapped, her leg already shaking with not only annoyance but anticipation. Hermione tilted her head in a thoughtful manner, soaking in the situation.
Everything slipped into silence, Caroline's bright eyes studying her as if she were some impossible puzzle. The crease between her eyebrows deepened and her lips turned down into a worried frown. It was a look of pure insecurity and defeat.
"You could be happy, you know," Hermione said slowly with a small sigh, "If you could just stop for once and think about how great you are and not compare yourself to somebody else."
And then she could see everything break and rearrange inside of her.
"Have you been in my mind?" Tears filled those pretty eyes.
She could see why Klaus had loved her eyes so much.
Expressive and so light.
"No, Caroline. I'm just telling you that you will be a lot happier when you realize that people have their own fatal flaws, and that you, yourself, are a great girl who has offered everyone she loves a piece of her heart. So for once, stop comparing yourself to other people. Nothing can be measured between two people." Hermione tried to offer a small smile, a pathetic one, but a smile nonetheless.
Caroline simply stared back at her in wonder.
It was in that moment they had found something in each other that they had needed. Hermione found a friend in Caroline, and in return, Caroline found someone who understood her. It was a fleeting moment of companionship.
And it was all that they had wanted.
~x~
….November 18th…..
Klaus and his family have been alive- well, alive as a vampire can get- for a long time, a thousand years, give or take. When his mother poisoned him and his siblings with the blood of Tatia, and of course, killing them off to change them, Klaus felt afraid the next morning.
An odd concept, really, when fear was the first thing he had felt after being immortalized.
Was it terrible of him to try and off himself once in awhile during the first few decades?
It was unnatural to be forever young with very little to kill you, and by Gods did Klaus try to kill himself. He tried various methods, from throwing himself off of cliffs to even running into a broken piece of wood, in which Elijah called him foolish afterwards. Hell, he even tried to consume large amount of vervain once, but that only made his skin and insides burn unpleasantly.
But as the decades quickly turned into centuries, Klaus came to his survival instincts. It wasn't exactly a secret that his father wanted all his children, especially his dead wife's bastard child, dead, and despite his occasional suicidal tendencies, he never wanted his siblings –even his brat of a younger brother, Kol- dead because of their terrible father.
He loved his family too much, perhaps a bit too much.
So Klaus lived his early days as a vampire with his sad thoughts entertaining him mixed in with protecting his family so of course having the human experience was out of the question. Love was out of the question when humans died like flies, and he could never bring himself to love another woman since Tatia, the very same woman that his brother loved.
Her allure seemed to have been passed down to her successors, a dangerous thing, indeed.
It wasn't until a decade or so after his turning that he actually done it. Every one of his siblings had already tasted the pleasures of the human flesh, and he was always teased by Rebekah and Kol for being so chaste. With all the self-loathing, sadness of his little brother's death, and his own, fornicating was the last thing on his mind.
Though, Kol would disagree with him on various levels since apparently 'fucking' was the best distraction from feeling so lonesome, but then again this was his brother who enjoyed feeding off of his women while he was still having his fun.
Of course, there were times before that he had almost done it -he wasn't that inexperienced-, but he had never garnered the self-restraint to stop himself from sinking his teeth into his intended sexual partners for that night.
He wasn't too keen on the idea of becoming a necrophiliac.
However, it was one particular year where he had spent somewhere on the British Isle that he had met her. Lucia was her name, and she was a lovely and delicate thing with soft waves of crimson with eyes of summer green. The details of her life were hazy to him, but Klaus could always remember the sweet curve of her lips when she smiled.
Klaus was still young and inexperienced despite the fact he was a decade older, but it was something about her that moved something inside of him. It was an unusual stir in his chest, but it was always a flicker of something unknown but familiar. He didn't love her, but he was deeply affected by her.
Affection was what he felt towards her and nothing more because he couldn't. No woman could ever replace the love he had felt for Tatia, and despite the fact that Lucia was a beauty; he couldn't bring himself to feel any more than just a cheap imitation of love.
They had spent a lot of time together, and Klaus felt like him, you know, the human Niklaus. It was refreshing and captivating the way she made him feel, and he knew that he had missed out the experiencing all the different shades of love all those years ago. The experience that they both had shared together was lovely and surprising.
It was intoxicating how her scent spiked whenever he had sent her on the edge, and it was even better when she clung onto him when they both experienced the beginning and the end of their little world. He remembered how he whispered her name repeatedly into her fiery locks, desperate in memorizing her sweet scent and the way he held her against his own body.
Klaus didn't love her, no, he didn't love. He couldn't.
But he tried so hard to feel the love that Lucia gave him.
"Klaus, Klaus...Klaus…love…My love…Klaus….My Klaus…"
Lucia was soon married off to another man, a man who promised her dying father that he would take care of his sweet young daughter, but she promised him his heart. Lucia promised him her heart, her body, and soul.
She promised him her everything.
And so he took her heart on her wedding night, leaving the village to give into the burning flames of fire that he created out of spite. That man could not take her away, no, he could not! Not when she still had her promises to keep. This was the first time when disappointment twisted its cruel knife into his heart.
Klaus had left his sweet Lucia, taking the heart that she had promised with him.
Promises, promises, they meant nothingg.
"So where is she, brother?" Kol's teasing voice reeled him back from his memories.
Klaus blinked, suddenly aware that he was still in his sitting room with his open sketchbook on his lap. The hands of sadness softly plucked at his shriveled heart when he saw the same warm smile on his half-drawn woman. He closed it carefully, ever so gentle with his book of creations.
"Worried that she is dilly-dallying with another human commoner?"
"Hermione is a commoner, too, brother, so please remember that," Klaus chided, annoyed by his brother's words, "And she's out in our blasted woods again."
His younger brother gave him a cheeky smile along with a thoughtful hum.
"She doesn't want to see you, Nik. She doesn't want to see Rebekah and me neither, and she's only half-friendly towards Elijah," Kol sighed as he watched the rain pitter-patter against the window.
The sitting room felt awfully lonely without the witch's aggravating presence.
Klaus threw his glass down, wasting yet again another screwdriver. Kol gave him a look of disapproval before offering another smile, and for some odd reason, he felt a bit comforted by his sibling's unwavering attitude. Of course, he found Kol's company to be annoying and tiresome, but he was one of the constant things in life that will never change.
It was a sad fact. Always the cheeky eternal brat that brother of his, and Klaus would be damned if Kol ever grew up. It would be a sad day when one day his brother will wake up and discover how truly grey and cold life has become.
"You have broken her wings and taken away her freedom, and now, she is in the woods, bleeding away her pain." Kol sang, plopping down onto the empty love seat.
"Aren't you poetic this morning?" Klaus gave him a sardonic smile, feeling his jaw clench.
"I sing the miseries of a woman's heart." Kol smiled ruefully, motioning for his brother to pour him a shot of whiskey as well.
Of course, they were day-drunks, he and his older brother. They were practically drinking partners for horrible days like these. But they never thanked each other for having each other's company, and Kol wasn't going to start today, not even when his brother actually gave him a drink without a threat or two.
"You see, brother, that's where you are wrong," Klaus drawled as he poured himself another shot, "I didn't break her. She was the one who gave me her wings and freedom. She was the one who gave me her everything, and she is not bleeding away her agony. No, Hermione is experiencing growing pains."
Kol didn't know whether to laugh or cry at his brother's logic.
~x~
….November 20th….
Hermione didn't like to listen to sad music when she was in a horrible mood that swayed back and forth from sadness to frustration, but it seemed like that aspect of her changed as well. Here she was in a pile of leaves, somewhere in the middle of the large Mikaelson estate. It was their own little reality here; their own world of pretty things, power, and idiotic love troubles.
So old and so self-absorbed, she thought bitterly, not minding the fact that she lost all feeling in the tips of her fingers.
Here she was on the filthy ground in the middle of autumn, slipping away in her deep lake of emotion as she listened to the sad, somewhat pretty voice of a song that she chose for this dreary weather. It wasn't the greatest, his voice could have been better, and different words would have made this song a bit more poetic.
Though, its flaws what made this song so lovely, and she knew that it meant more to the author than to anyone else.
It sounded like a confession, well, almost.
Skinny Love, she thought with a small sigh, her grip tightening around her small iPod.
"And I told you to be kind." The words came out as a whisper.
What a line, a lesson that would never be learned.
Something he will never learn.
Hermione avoided thinking about him, not only because she was still furious with him about Ben and hovering over her shoulder, but because every time she thought about him it became tiring. It was exhausting trying to even understand his logic and moody attitude, and trying to not think of him was even more draining.
So she thought about something else that would take the focus off of him somewhat: his exasperating and annoying family.
It was odd the way the Original family have been treating her as if she was a truly their pet with the way they randomly lavished gifts on her. From small little gadgets like this to idiotic toys that shouldn't even amuse them at all, and yet they deemed Wednesday night as Just Dance night. A competitive lot, they were, and surprisingly, Elijah was the one who was most competitive out of all of them.
However, it was Klaus who always threw a temper tantrum, accusing them all of cheating, which was true.
Shouldn't it bother her that these ancient creatures were doing something so silly, so human that seemed almost cruel for life to show this side of them to her?
It would have been easier to continue hating them all.
"You know, hiding out in the woods seem a bit idiotic, especially in this weather," Rebekah's voice forced itself into her own little world, "Hermione, you forget you are human sometimes. You can get sick, you know."
"Then what? You and your brothers will scramble around, trying to find me medicine? I'm not your pet, yet you keep treating me like one." Hermione snapped, scooting away from haughty girl.
Here was probably one of the seemingly shallowest girls that Hermione has ever met, sitting down next to her on the cold wet ground with a pair of designer jeans, not caring if they get stained and ruined. Even without being completely made up, Rebekah was still a beauty, and Hermione just simply wanted to curse the whole entire Original family for having outrageously good genes.
Hermione couldn't help but to scowl at the unfairness in life.
"Only because you keep letting us treat you like one."
"What?" Hermione squawked indignantly, her face becoming eerily similar to that of a goldfish's. The blonde beauty simply ignored her angry words, plucking the small music player out of her hands.
What the hell?
All she wanted was some peace and quiet out here, alone, and she can't even have that!
"Really, Hermione? Sad, pathetic songs do not fit you," Rebekah quipped, throwing the iPod back at the scowling witch.
"Then what fits me?" Hermione said daringly, and she immediately regretting challenging her.
The blonde bombshell smirked.
"It's Wednesday night, Hermione. So I'm thinking a bit of Just Dance 2 should fit you right about now!"
Hermione groaned, tugging her arm back from the Original's loose grip. She would rather sit outside in this cold and dreary weather in a pile of leaves than face another round of filled with accusations and dagger threats. Honestly, this family was completely nutters with the way their moods shifted from one end of the spectrum to another.
"But Kol always trips me!" Hermione grumbled.
Rebekah scoffed.
"And you always do something to Elijah's feet being glued to the floor!"
It was hard to try to continue hating this family, especially when they acted to bloody human and nice, sometimes though, and besides, they weren't perfect.
She was far from it.
~x~
….November 23rd….
"Oh come on now, brother, it's not her fault she isn't your usual type. She is neither a dark-haired beauty nor a golden-haired goddess, but she is more of a nymph. Playful and extremely mischievous," Kol smirked, raising his shot glass to the annoyed hybrid, "And though she lacks a good rack, her legs make up for it."
Klaus glared at the smirking brunet, daring him to go on further.
"And those legs," he whistled, "are a mile-long. Smooth and toned. I wonder how they would feel-"
"Say another word and I will tear out something more than just your liver. Perhaps a kidney of yours and sell it on the black market." Klaus quipped, flinging a lime slice at his annoying sibling.
"Always with your idle threats, brother!"
"Do shut up, Kol."
Oh, the brunet was always daring and never learned to keep his mouth shut.
"Hermione," Kol breathed out her name in a drunken slur, "She is not an outstanding beauty. She's more brainy than sexy, and sometimes, it makes me wonder why you even like her. She is nothing like your Caroline."
Klaus slammed down his book, effectively shutting up his brother for once.
He felt his jaws clench at the sight of his brother's knowing smirk.
"She is nothing like Caroline."
"Isn't that why you like her so much then, brother? You are trying to dissemble the woman you loved by loving another woman who is the complete opposite. You did that with Tatia-"
"Shut up, Kol!" Klaus knew that he shouldn't let his egotistic brother crawl underneath his skin, but he just couldn't help it. So here he was again, pinning his sibling against the sitting room floor with his hand fastened around Kol's neck, fangs bared and eyes bright with anger.
Kol simply laughed in his face.
"Seriously brother? Always denying the obvious! Of course, you would have fallen in love with a haughty thing like Forbes, shallow and the American girl in every sense. Total opposite of the docile and gentle-natured Tatia, but now," he spat, his smirk twisting into an unfitting scowl, "You have to go and fall in love with a broken woman. Snarky, headstrong, defiant but somehow still in the boundaries of being obedient, and she isn't gorgeous like the others. So don't be such an arse-face!"
"When do you ever shut up, Kol? You and that mouth of yours-"
"You are just trying to run away from everything again. Deal with your blasted feelings with that blonde before you even try to woo our pet, you idio-" "When will you ever shut up?"
Klaus had never meant to snap his brother's neck, but his temper always got the better of him. It was one of the many things that overshadowed his charming good looks and alluring smile, and despite the fact that he always tried to feel remorseful since it was the right thing to do. Well, according to Hermione's standards.
It was the human thing to do, she would say.
But no matter how hard he tried to feel guilty about any of his questionable actions, he could never bring himself to feel it. Klaus just couldn't, he was incapable of feeling such emotion unless…unless it affected his own goals and interests. So temporarily immobilizing his brother shouldn't be something to worry about.
"Really, Klaus, I expected better from you, especially when it comes to our younger brother, Kol. You really shouldn't let him get under your skin like that," Elijah's chastising voice carried over from the door.
"He was getting annoying," Klaus snapped, glaring at his older sibling over his shoulder.
"Well, Rebekah and I say the same thing about you, but you don't see us going around and snapping your neck, now do you?" Elijah said amusingly, raising an eyebrow at his brother's scowling expression.
"No, but you all tried to dagger me once."
"And you daggered us all, more than once, might I add."
"For your protection!"
"And for your own benefit as well, Klaus."
Elijah gave him smile of victory when he witnessed his competitive brother admit defeat by stomping away like some spoiled brat. He gave his temporarily dead brother a glance, and with a shrug, he stole a bottle of chardonnay to accompany him on this quiet night.
Kol would be fine and the house will be finally nice and peaceful.
Well, it would be if it weren't for the sounds of his brother wrecking yet another rare and delicate piece of furniture. It was probably that wonderful display cabinet that he obtained from the Rococo period, and he felt his heart drop at the idea of his collection shrinking. His family never appreciated the treasures in their home.
The Original sighed, and silently he wished that he wasn't the responsible one in the family.
"Niklaus, stop breaking everything! I'm tired of importing our stuff overseas!"
~x~
….November 25th….
Hermione was becoming excellent in the art of avoidance. She certainly was since she hasn't seen Klaus for the past three weeks or so, even during the Just Dance nights. Either she was really good at avoiding him or he was simply doing the same. Rebekah called them both imbeciles who were only running around in an endless circle.
"I'm surprised they even let you out on your own."
The witch didn't even have to look over her shoulder to know that it was Klaus's dream girl.
"Well, being a witch and all helps," Hermione drawled, sipping on her margarita as she gave the blonde vampire a quick glance, "Shouldn't you be off somewhere? Planning and dictating the all American teenage life and what not?"
She didn't mean to sound so bitchy, it was the alcohol that was talking for her.
Caroline didn't even flinch at her harsh words. No, her long and thick mascara-coated lashes just fluttered at the curly-haired woman as if she was used to such generalization. The baby vampire just took her place on the neighboring sitting stool next to Hermione, compelling the bartender for a small round of shots.
"Klaus likes me," the Barbie-dolled girl stated after downing her own drink.
"Fascinating." Hermione shot back, rolling her eyes. "I really don't give a damn, Caroline. We already established that during our lunch date a few weeks ago."
Caroline rolled her eyes at her, already used to the usual biting, alcohol-driven words from Damon the Day-Drunk.
"But you really do. Or you wouldn't be here, drinking your thoughts away. Confused and everything."
Childish anger swelled up inside of Hermione, and she huffed and puffed her cheeks.
"I'm not confused!" Hermione snapped, slamming down her glass onto the table. "I'm angry! Frustrated! Annoyed! Okay? So leave it alone!"
"Honey, I may be only seventeen, but I know what jealously looks like. Trust me, Hermione, I've worn that look many times before." Caroline sighed, signaling the bartender for a drink.
The brunette snorted, sloshing her drink around as she moved in her seat. She gave the blonde a look, her expression torn between exasperation and jealousy. Caroline was beautiful, there was no sense in lying to herself, especially when the girl's hair shone gold even in this poor dim light. Hermione took another gulf, only this time in self-pity.
Why couldn't she be pretty?
"I'm not jealous." She stated but her voice wavered with self-doubt. Hermione didn't even have to look at the cheerleader to know that she was giving her the look. What was is and shallow girls ending up as the most understanding? Perhaps it was only because it dealt with a guy.
And all girls, even the shallowest and bitchiest girls, can relate to guy problems.
"He stopped giving me drawings. Stopped paying attention to me, really," Caroline said with a sigh, "I don't mind, though, since I already have Tyler."
Hermione's eyebrow twitched but said nothing.
"You know how you said don't compare yourself to others, Hermione? Why don't you take the same advice for yourself because as far as I know, you and I can't be compared since we are different, right? It will save you in the long run, trust me; you're the one who taught me that."
Caroline flashed Hermione a quick smile before bouncing off her seat, walking towards Elena and Bonnie who finally arrived. Hermione felt her eyes swell up with tears, and for some odd reason, she felt a wave of relief wash over her. She quickly wiped her tears away, not wanting to appear pathetic to anyone here.
It was the alcohol, she thought, since everything became a blur and she cried over nothing all the time whenever she drank.
Hermione finished her drink and ordered a shot for herself.
Merlin, she was drunk.
"Well, if I knew you were going out for a drink, I would have came with you as your designated drinking buddy, darling!" Kol's irritating voice snuck up behind her, and Hermione knew that she would need something stronger with withstand his smart-ass comments tonight.
Hermione downed her shot in a quick gulp.
~x~
Kol snapped.
They were all bound to snap every once and awhile, and honestly, Hermione was expecting one of them to crack. She was expecting violence, harsh words, and even a few wounds on her person when it did happen. Though, the witch never expected him to drag her out on an old back road bridge, daring her to go jump off with him.
He was completely hammered, but then again, so was she.
"Come on now, darling, it's fun! It's an adventure! Be daring for once in your life!" Kol slurred with the bottle in his hand already half empty. He slung an arm around, and Hermione scrunched up her nose at the smell of alcohol on his breath.
Her breath probably wasn't a bouquet of flowers either.
"Kol, I think you've gone off your rocker! I am not jumping off this damn bridge for your own amusement. And I've been a bit too daring in my life." She shoved his arm off of her and took a few cautious and wobbly steps backwards from the edge.
"Oh yeah, that's true!" Kol chortled. "You're with my brother. Very daring, indeed! Quite stupid actually."
"I'm not with your brother, Kol, I'm his witch servant! Now jump already and I will just wait here while twiddling my damn thumbs together!" She slurred, her cheeks red, a combination from the alcohol she had consumed before and embarrassment.
Kol snorted, obviously he had planned to do this with Hermione, with or without her permission, but he figured that if he convinced her then his brother wouldn't rip out his liver again. He stumbled towards the witch, intending to wrap his arms around her for the quick dive, but no, Hermione was too smart for him.
She raised her wand, the tip against his chest.
"No, Kol, I am not going to jump with you." Hermione said slowly as if she were talking to a stubborn child rather than a thousand-year old vampire. She already felt her head pounding.
Kol's bottom lip jutted out, and if Hermione felt less aggravated, she would have found the image of him pouting to be both ridiculous and amusing.
"You are such a party-pooper, pet. I promise that there aren't any rocks down there so you'll live. And if you can't swim, then you can climb on my back and we'll jump in together!"
Though his words sounded a bit silly to his own ears, that didn't deter him from mustering all the will and power to create a pouty expression that was akin to the puppy-dog look. Hermione snorted, waved him off as if his face had little effect on her, which it didn't. In fact, it made it difficult for Hermione to not laugh in his face and at his pathetic attempts.
"I'm human, Kol, you're a vampire." She waved her hand between them for emphasis. "One of us is living and the other, well, isn't really. Plus, you are basically indestructible so the answer is no."
"Please, Hermione! I'm bored and I haven't jumped off of anything in awhile!"
"No, Kol. Now jump before I make you jump." Hermione scowled, pocketing her wand.
"Just give me an answer to one question."
She sighed. "Fine, Kol. What is it?"
He gave her a peculiar look, tilting his head to the side in question.
"Why do you stay with my brother when it is obvious that you do not want to be here at all? I know that he hasn't compelled you to stay with him since you still have that nasty temper and free will of yours."
It was an innocent question paired with glittering eyes.
"I swore my loyalty to him, Kol. I did an oath, a promise to serve him and only him until the day I die. Klaus saved the one who gave up his childhood and even the future for this world….He saved my best friend…And now I am forever in his debt. Sorry for the dramatics." Tears welled up in her eyes.
It was the damn alcohol that was making her cry.
He tilted his head.
"You can never leave, can you?" He slurred his words, but his face became so serious that it reminded her a bit of his older brother, Elijah.
Kol wasn't some kind of idiot that she made him out to be.
She released a sound that neither a cry nor a laugh. It was odd to him really, how Hermione was strong despite these bittersweet feelings that weighed down on her soul. It was rare for him to their little pet in a light-airy mood; it was as if she would walk among the clouds with the way she stared off into the distance.
"Only your brother can release me from this prison, Kol…He has to mean it, and we both know that Klaus's heart could never be selfless. It's as if he needs to hold onto someone in order to know, to be in control."
His expression was blank, void of emotion, but Hermione was grateful. She rather have him indifferent than pity her. Kol may be an idiot most of the time, but he knew what people need the most, may it be painful and brutally honest.
"It's getting late," she sighed, turning away from him, "we should return soon."
The fun was ruined by one simple question.
It was around midnight, and she knew that Klaus and the others would be wondering where they went. They would never let their nutty brother take out their pet so late at night, hell; they would never allow Kol to even take her out without his siblings. Perhaps it was a good idea that they rarely do.
However, one could never blame him for trying.
"Plea-" "No."
Kol rolled his eyes. It was obvious that arguing with Hermione could take several hours along with a few bruises so without wasting any more time and effort, he lifted her up in his arms and with a blink of an eye, they were already jumping off of the edge. He grinned at the sound of her screaming.
She will surely drown!
It was a violent landing, the water rippling and crumbling all around them, engulfing them both in her cold embrace. The water didn't affect Kol but then again, he was after all dead and full of happy-hour drinks.
However, it was harsh and cold against her skin, chasing any warmth that she held in her tiny body, and then it started. To be paralyzed yet aware of the chilly waters surrounding her, to feel the soft and tangled hair, the silent horror that she had faced in water before.
Her heart pummeled against her chest, and panic started to constrict her throat.
Hermione shoved him away, desperately trying to find the surface, but where was it? How deep had they gone? Everything was black, and suddenly, she couldn't see Kol anymore. Everything seemed deeper and darker, and she couldn't find a way to escape it.
The water was strangling her, she swore that it was.
Strangling the lifeout of her.
Her lungs burned, and the need for air was becoming unbearably painful.
It was black and deep, and she couldn't find the way.
No way out, not way out, it was the story of her life.
Hermione just drifted into the darkness.
~x~
To throw up water was painfully disgusting.
The hands on her chest were not hands of mercy but of selfish need.
Fear was evident in his voice.
"Oh Jesus fucking Christ! Klaus is going to dagger me forever! Don't die, don't die, don't die! Please don't die on me, pet! Hermione, please just wake up!" He was gentle with her yet at the same time, it bruised her.
"Damn it! Drink up, darling. Drink up."
It was sickeningly sweet and warm.
It should have disgusted her, the way it slid down her throat in an unhurried and thick fashion. It was harshly metallic, but oddly comforting. She felt Kol's shaking hands against her cheeks, and for a moment, Hermione felt that she was actually loved.
A strange notion.
Hermione felt her lips curl into a small smile.
"Hermione, thank God." He began cradling her body back and forth.
He started to sing a lullaby in that stupid drunken voice of his. It was not the most beautiful rendition with the way he messed up on the high notes and when his voice cracked, but it was the most comforting thing that she had listened to in a long while.
Kol's tired voice lulled her sleep.
~x~
When his little brother bustled through their front door with an unconscious Hermione in his arms, Klaus felt the flames of rage and jealousy consuming him at that moment. Rebekah and Elijah were quick by Kol's side, concerned for their little pet and paid little attention to their hybrid brother's inability to prioritize certain aspects in life.
"Stop acting like a damn child, Nik!" Rebekah snapped, annoyed by his glowering. "Either you help us with her, or you can just leave."
Elijah led Kol to the sitting room, keenly aware of Klaus's heavy gaze on them. Kol paid no attention to his brother for all he was focused on was Hermione and her health. She was shivering, lips blue and her skin sickly white. Their little pet was not invincible like them.
It was harsh reality that was thrusted upon them all.
"Fine." Klaus ground his teeth together, stalking off in order to find extra covers and towels.
Rebekah snorted in triumph.
"Stomped away to pout, didn't he?" Elijah's voice carried over from the lit fireplace.
"How accurate you are, Elijah."
She didn't know whether or not to consider Nik emotionally challenged.
~x~
….November 30th….
It was one of those rare days where Hermione would forget her angry feelings towards the Original Hybrid, and Klaus would actually be pleasant to everybody on the street without having the urge to rip anyone's heart out for giving him an odd look. Perhaps it was because it was November, and Thanksgiving was near.
Or maybe it was the fact that he didn't rip his brother into two for bringing 'their pet' drunk swimming in the middle of the night.
It was safe to say that Klaus and the rest of his siblings voted and agreed that Kol was no longer allowed to be Hermione's drinking buddy. A token of thanks for the upcoming holiday, Rebekah had said, and for putting up and entertaining Kol when they couldn't.
Hermione never participated in an American holiday such as that. It was an interesting experience to sit down and have a Thanksgiving feast with the Original family. It was normal, minus the blood, and it reminded her of the times she had spent at the Burrow. The chattering, the laughter, everything was warm, and all the miserable things that usually plagued this family were forgotten.
She missed her own family.
And so Thanksgiving was her excuses for letting the usually arrogant hybrid sit next to her on the sitting room sofa, even it has been weeks since the actual holiday.
Who was she kidding?
Hermione simply missed Klaus's company.
"Tell me something about your world. The most magnificent thing you have ever seen that no mere normal human can imitate with their hands and fancy machines." His voice sounded so wistful and childlike as he twiddled his thumbs together.
Hermione found his curiosity somewhat endearing, and for a moment, she allowed herself to indulge in his company.
"In a world full of magic and wonders, it would be silly of me to say it," her cheeks reddened, and she blames it on the wine, "You will think of me as a silly little girl."
Klaus snorted.
"Like you care about what anyone thinks of you, Hermione, so quit the shy act and just tell me."
Hermione gave him an exasperated look at his demanding tone.
"Hogwarts was the most magnificent thing I have ever laid my eyes on," her voice filled with wonder and nostalgic.
"Your school? Honestly, Hermione, I knew you were a nerd but now you have just made it worse for yourself."
The stubborn witch threw him an insulted look.
"I'm not a nerd! I prefer bookworm!" Her insecure side was resurfacing, and suddenly, she felt like she was in school all over again with everyone poking fun at her hair, buck teeth, and cleverness. Then Klaus had to go and laugh at her, making her want to punch him in his nose.
Damn him and his hybrid status.
"Fine, fine, you are not a nerd. You are an intellectual, there. So go on?" Klaus motioned her with his hand as if he were some king and she his loyal subject.
Arrogant prick, she thought with a heavy sigh, counting down the seconds as she allowed herself to cool down. For a moment, they sat there in silence, their usual comfortable silence that they can only find with each other. Hermione breathed loudly, overdramatizing the situation.
"It was everybody's home. It was…It was magnificent. It was old and you could feel the castle's history…what it has witnessed. When I walked through the very doors of Hogwarts," Her words turned into whispers," And…and I felt like I could be something more than just some bookish girl with bushy hair and buck teeth. It was spectacular not only because it was an architectural master piece, no, it was spectacular because it made people."
She sighed, finally realizing that tears had dripped down her cheeks.
"It was what made me have a family. An irreplaceable, somewhat annoying family," Hermione laughed, feeling every emotion she did not want to deal with at the moment. She didn't know whether or not to be grateful that he distracted her with another question.
"Were you in love with him?"
Hermione blinked, turning towards him with a surprised expression.
"With Harry?" Her voice sounded empty, even to her own ears. It seemed funny how she knew who he was talking about, and if he wasn't giving her such a serious look, Hermione would have laughed it off and ignore it entirely.
But looking into his eyes felt like he was actually compelling her to tell him the truth despite the fact Klaus gave no order in her doing so.
"No…I wouldn't say that I was. I loved him to the point where I basically sold my soul to you."
She didn't see him cringe at her careless words.
"Did you ever think there was a possibility?"
"I thought about it-once, really. It was when Ron abandoned us…. But I stopped myself. Denied my feelings to go on any further than the boundaries of friendship and familial love because I was supposed to be in love with Ron, right?"
Klaus clicked his tongue at her, his eyebrows furrowed together in a look of disapproval.
"Why deny yourself of anything you desire when you live such a short life?"
"Because," she licked her chapped lips, "because I don't want to mess up the only one I have."
It was with Hermione's words that made him realize.
Those words made him remember that Hermione, his little pet, was still human, and ultimately still fragile.
Klaus sometimes forgot that Hermione wasn't invincible like him and his family, no; she was just an enhanced mortal with a longer lifespan and a fancy magical stick. He sometimes forgot that he could actually break her bones beneath that soft skin by accident. And most of all, he sometimes didn't realize that it was her heart that was truly beating when they were together.
Klaus often wondered what life would have been like if they were different people.
~x~
….December 3rd….
"The thing about wand is that it really isn't that different from a muggle weapon despite the fact it has the ability to do almost anything if you have the will to do. And that is also why it makes it so dangerous and perhaps more like a gun than anything really."
Elijah raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her words, glancing at the small wand that was in his hands.
It was nothing but a mere stick, he thought, shaking it slightly.
"Oh, really, it doesn't seem like much," he mumbled.
"I know this is going to sound so corny, but guns don't kill people. People kill people, and so do wands. Or any weapon really. It's the intention of that person that is dark," Hermione stated, casually looking through a shelf that carried a number of rare texts that the Originals had collected over the centuries.
Their library even rivaled Hogwarts.
"What do you think is my brother's intention then?" Elijah asked both out of curiosity and boredom, setting down the wand onto the hard wooden table in front of him.
"What is his true intention throughout the centuries, Elijah? To be the most powerful being in the world immortalized with his good looks? Or to basically build an army of hybrids? To protect himself and his family?" Hermione sighed, giving up on her quest to find a book.
It was simply too hard to search for one when you were burdened with a loaded question like that.
"Do you want to know what I truly think?"
Elijah glanced up at her, his dark gaze meeting her own, and for a moment, he wondered why his brother chose her as their witch. She was simply too young to be plucked from her own world and being shoved into a life of extravagance and danger such as this. Hermione was clearly meant for something more than just being a slave to his brother's will.
It was a sad sight to see her being locked up in such a pretty cage.
It was even a sadder sight to see her fit so well in their life of luxury and endless mood swings.
"Yes, Hermione, I do," he gave her a tentative smile, "I appreciate your thoughts. They are quite refreshing to hear, especially to an old man such as I."
Hermione sighed, plopping down next to him onto the window seat.
"I think your brother is just lonely. I think you all are. I think you are all cold and aloof, but that is to be expected when you have lived for a thousand years, from age. Not from some desire that made you completely mad. At least not yet. I think you all are simply yearning for a new experience that life hasn't given you," Hermione breathed, and he could hear her heart pummeling against her chest, "And I think that you are all wicked and twisted people."
"Hermi-" "I'm not done yet!" She chastised, shutting him up with a glare.
Elijah nodded, his lips thinned with displeasure at her words.
"But I think there is more to all of you than being simple villains. I've seen a true monster, Elijah, that enjoyed everything about taking lives. No doubt, your brother does, too. As well as the rest of you at times, but there is more to him than just some bi-polar lunatic who enjoys people kissing his feet. There is more to you all, really," she glared at him once more when he opened his mouth to say something, effectively shutting him up, "I think your intentions from the beginning were formed out of the goodness of your young hearts, noble even, but I think all of that has changed. So I do not think of you all as truly good or truly evil, just like everyone else on this earth."
The eldest Original gave her a thoughtful look.
"Then what are you?" He asked, tilting his head to the side, causing his bangs to move out of place. Hermione gave him a small smile, and for a moment, she wondered what he would have looked like with long hair. Would it have been soft and shiny like his short locks today?
"I don't know what I am anymore."
Everything was quiet after that.
~x~
….December9th….
It was innocent enough, the way he hid in shadows in the library, knowing that he had caught his sister and Hermione in the middle of one of their 'girl conversations.' Klaus would rather not face his sister's childish temper and the end of Hermione's wand, and perhaps it was his curiosity that made him stay.
Or perhaps it was the witch's sad voice that made him stay.
"Rebekah," Hermione breathed out a heavy-hearted sigh, "Why do you stay with him when you are free to leave him?"
It was a simple question that made him ground his teeth together in silence.
His sister placed her glass onto the table, and she gave the witch a peculiar look. Klaus knew that their family was dysfunctional and that the love that they shared for each other was complex and fragile, and Klaus knew that by being such a complicated man made matters even worse.
"Because he is my brother, and where everything else has failed and disappointed me, I know that I still have him and my family. I love him. We all love him despite all the horrible things he has done."
Cold blue rested on the indifferent witch.
Hermione gave the Original a sad smile.
"Is it really love when you are forced to feel it?"
"But don't you love him?" Rebekah's voice asked accusingly.
Klaus already knew her answer. His gut twisted in the most painful way, making him realize that what he felt for the witch could never be returned, a sad truth. He thought he was done with emotions when Caroline had chipped a few pieces of his shriveled heart, and yet he allowed another woman to crawl her way into it once more.
Hermione was a sneaky witch, another fact that he had to learn the hard way.
He left them to their conversation, his heart unwilling to bear the pain any longer.
"He is a desperate man, Rebekah, and sadly, I do love him," Hermione let out a shaky breath, feeling the traitorous tears swelling up in her eyes, "But being in love is a whole different matter."
The blonde Original gave her an odd look but seemed satisfied by the witch's honest words. Rebekah tilted her head to the side with a thoughtful expression, and for a moment, Hermione was puzzled by the vampire's calm state. She didn't know whether or not to be terrified.
The moments were painfully long and silent.
"But not impossible." And with that, Rebekah had left her speechless.
~x~
….December 16th….
The peace that had settled into Mikaelson home was never meant to last, Hermione knew that, but she didn't expect this to happen. Ever since her conversation with Rebekah a few days before, her feelings for Klaus became even more muddled. She could love Klaus if he were different.
Kinder, patient, and selfless.
But she didn't expect the peace to be destroyed this way.
Everything was breaking again, and this time the pieces were sharper than ever.
Klaus could not and just would not let things go. He couldn't let go the fact that she was involved with Ben, and he would sometimes gloat the fact that he had killed the man with his bare hands. It infuriated her how he had no respect for her and the dead, and yet he was the one to become enraged by her disloyalty.
He threw the table past her, shattering as it hit the wall, and she ignored the splinters that penetrated her skin. Hermione was used to his fury, and that was not something that one had to get use to if it were actual love. No, Klaus was a hotheaded man who knew nothing about love.
"I am loyal to you, you big dunderhead!" She shouted, her grip on her wand became tighter. Her whole body was tensed and ready for anything that he had to throw at her. She had been deflecting for the past hour or so.
"You are not loyal to me, witch. It was a damn good thing I killed him."
He was devilishly wicked the way he gave her such a soft smile, but Hermione did not listen to his words. Her hardened heart would not allow it, and Klaus knew that. She could have loved Klaus if he was a different man.
But he wasn't.
"Do not deny me, Hermione!"
"I have denied you nothing," She spoke the truth, and yet he still questioned her "You are the one who denies me my freedom!
"You promised to give me your everything, witch."
"I promised you my loyalty and anything beyond that is mine to keep," Hermione licked her chapped lips, trying to keep her tears at bay, "Mine to give."
Everything was breaking all around them. Everything they knew was slowly slipping away in this one silly little fight, a fight that they had taken to whole new level that should have never been even an option. Why were they even fighting?
"But you are mine!"
The words were harsh, screamed in a whisper that made everything seem blurry in her eyes. It was exhausting fighting with him, fighting against him, just fighting him in general was tiring. Her heart felt heavy with these feelings that she felt for him. It was a twisted, perverted version of love.
A tear rolled down her cheek.
The anger they had felt dissipated, and what was left was painful silence and open wounds.
"I don't love you."
He brushed it away with a soft caress.
"I know."
Hermione gave him a shaky smile.
"No you don't, Klaus, you really don't. You think my feelings will change for you, but they won't. Ever. I don't love you and I always will. Can't you see that you and I are nothing more than just…broken things trying to fix that empty space?"
"I know, Hermione, I know. I don't love you either." The words stung her, and she didn't know why. "But there is something unexplainable…something so strong between you and me. It can become more. Just please."
Such soft words crushed her.
"But just let me do this, just once. Just for once, please." Klaus implored, and he peered into her eyes with a look of desperation.
For once, Hermione allowed herself to break.
His lips were undoubtedly soft but chapped, and the sensation of this kiss was overwhelming. It was a mix of unbearable heat and mind-numbing cold, and for once, Hermione didn't know what to do with herself. All she could feel were his lips and his calloused hands caressing her cheeks, silently begging for her to give him a chance.
To give them a chance.
But it was as if a string inside of her broke and she tore herself away from his embrace.
"I can't, Klaus."
"Hermione, please-" "Klaus, no, we can't. We can't. I can't." Never before had she felt her tears so traitorous. His hands were wiping them away; the very same hands that bruised her before were now trying to comfort her. Klaus was learning, he was trying, and Hermione knew that he was.
But she couldn't bring herself to succumb to his charms.
Hermione couldn't fall, no, it was too dangerous, too reckless, but then again, when did she ever play it safe?
"Yes, Hermione, you can. Just this once."
And this time, Hermione didn't protest his.
She just let him have her heart for this one, fragile moment. The pieces were slowly brought together, forcing themselves to fit into these jagged edges. The feelings they had felt for each other was the result of their shared loneliness and bitterness. It was a sour experience, but it became slightly sweeter when they shared it together.
Klaus pulled away from her, his hands still cradling her lovely face. He placed his forehead against hers, and he listened to the loud thrum of her beating heart. Hermione was lovely even in her sadness, the sadness that he caused inside of her.
He loved her, he realized.
It was a moment of fulfillment where all the pieces finally molded together into one.
And then everything crumbled all around them.
"I'm letting you go, Hermione."
~x~
…December 20th….
"Nik, just because your life is breaking doesn't mean you have to, you do know that, right?"
"The doppelganger is dead, Rebekah, no thanks to you. You and Kol are leaving me to God knows where, Elijah has already left a few weeks ago, Finn is dead…And…and," His voice broke, "She's gone, Bekah, to her own normal life without me."
"Nik-"
"Do you think I did the right thing? Letting her go with her memories of us? Of what could have been? Do you think she will be old with wrinkles and grandchildren the next time I see her? If Iever do? She would be still lovely." He was rambling, and he knew that.
He was trying to stall his baby sister from leaving him.
When did he stop appreciating her presence and loyalty?
"Do you think she is happy?" Klaus held back his tears, not wanting look so pathetic in his little sister's eyes.
Rebekah gave him a sad smile, and suddenly, the bags in her hand felt so heavy. She knew that it broke her brother's heart to see everyone leave him, it was his worst nightmare coming to life, and she couldn't stay and help him recover. No, it was time to see the modern world without her older brother and his issues.
She wasn't being selfish.
She was chasing after her own freedom.
"I don't know."
Klaus didn't know anything anymore either.
"Love is when the other person's happiness is more important than your own."
- H. Jackson Brown, Jr.-
Author's Note:
I do hope all of you enjoyed reading this, I had the pleasure in writing it all out for you. I do apologize for the delay of everything, my life became mess and schoolwork certainly did not help. Let's just say Life kept throwing cantaloupes at me, and I kept forgetting how to dodge. Though, these songs kept me on track for this story:
-Poison and Wine by The Civil Wars
-Wild World by Cat Stevens
-Breathe Me by Sia
-Quelqu'un m'a Dit by Carla Bruni
And everything I could listen to by Lana Del Rey. I simply love her.
Anyways, do you have any thoughts, comments, etc?
I'm excited to hear them!
Until next time, lovelies!
-The Red Strings-