Hey beautiful readers! I apologize for taking so long to update-writer's block and real life got in the way of my inspiration. Thank you so much to all of you who have reviewed/favorited/followed this story-you really keep me going! Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Happy reading!
Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries.
Chapter Nine
Locked away in his study, Klaus had just finished his evening feeding when he heard a sharp rapping on the door. Flinging the serving girl to the floor and licking his lips for any excess blood, he strode over, throwing the door open to reveal Bonnie and Elijah on the other side.
"Bonnie, Elijah," he nodded at them in greeting, standing back and allowing them passage inside. He took a seat on the sofa, leaning back comfortably and stretching his arms behind his head, while his visitors remained standing. "I take it you have good news for me?"
Bonnie glanced at the body on the floor, suppressing a scowl at Klaus's careless treatment of the poor girl who had just been drained. A lifetime serving the Originals, however, taught her to hold her tongue about their gruesome feeding habits.
"I rearranged the order, like you asked. Lexi Branson, Caroline Forbes, and Elena and Katherine Gilbert are at the top of the list. The Branson girl will be going first," she reported curtly, handing him the list of candidates.
"Excellent," Klaus smirked, taking the parchment and unfolding it, giving it a cursory glance.
Elijah looked as if he were about to speak, but Klaus cut him off without looking up from the list. "Oh, and don't worry, brother, I promise to leave the rude Gilbert girl alone. I will never understand what you see in her."
Elijah shifted slightly on his feet, his face impassive as ever. "Thank you for your generosity, Niklaus. And as to your unwarranted remarks about my taste in women, I should think that you of all people would recognize genuine beauty when confronted with it. If I recall correctly, there was a time where you found brown curls and olive skin extremely attractive," he said politely, a corner of his mouth pulled up ever so slightly in what Klaus knew was meant to be a mocking smile. As the resident mediator and consummate politician, Elijah always was one to deliver taunts with a honeyed tongue—a master of word manipulation and feigned cordiality.
"Perhaps my definition of genuine beauty has changed over time," Klaus parried indifferently, concealing his bubbling anger at Elijah's hint at his short-lived affection for Tatia. The topic at hand, however, suddenly directed his thoughts to a pair of fine blue eyes and straw-colored curls.
"Perhaps," Elijah agreed complacently, clasping his hands behind his back.
Bonnie choose the brief lull in conversation to intervene in the brothers' little struggle of wills.
"I am still very much interested into why you went to all this trouble to arrange an order for the interviews. I was originally going to draw the names randomly," she asked curiously, a small half-smile playing on her lips as she regarded Klaus. "Is there something these particular girls have in common?"
Klaus shrugged, leaning forward in his seat and passing the list back to Bonnie. "If I must choose a queen, then why not start with those who have caught the eyes of some of the Council members?" he replied easily, staring innocently right back into Bonnie's narrowed, playfully suspicious eyes.
He distinctly heard Elijah clear his throat in disapproval at his apparently shallow logic.
"Hmm, I suppose you have a fair point," the witch conceded, her expression still intrigued. Klaus had the rather uncomfortable feeling that she guessed more than she was letting on.
He withdrew his gaze from her, folding his hands together in his lap and looking expectantly at Elijah, knowing from countless years of experience that the dark-haired Mikaelson still had a lecture or two left in him.
He was not disappointed.
"Niklaus, I hope you will remember to leave the candidates in one piece when you are finished. No need to cause a riot in the streets," Elijah began, his arms crossed across his chest as if waiting for confirmation from his temperamental brother.
Klaus groaned, throwing his head back over the back of the sofa childishly. "You wound me, Elijah. We're not savages, after all," he remarked sardonically, throwing his arms out in a gesture of mock acquiescence.
"I am glad to hear it. Now remember, you're to meet each candidate at precisely five o'clock in the private dining room for dinner. There is no time limit on the interview, so the rest will be up to you," Elijah explained, brushing off the non-existent lint on his velvet tunic.
Klaus waved a hand at him impatiently. "Yes, yes, I will be on my best behavior and play the part of the kindly sovereign," he huffed indignantly.
Bonnie snorted, provoking an annoyed glance from Klaus. "Wonderful. Now that everything's settled, I shall leave you. Kol has taken to terrorizing the kitchen maids again, and I need to put a stop to him once and for all," she sighed, rubbing her temples in exasperation at the youngest Mikaelson brother.
"Well then, it is fortunate that he actually listens to you, Bonnie," Klaus chortled, shaking his head at his younger brother's antics. Personally, he believed Kol deliberately caused trouble for their witch housekeeper, as she would probably never give him the time of day otherwise. Subtlety never was one of Kol's stronger suits. Still, the plan seemed to work for Kol, as Bonnie was usually fit to be tied with all of the trouble Kol caused her on a regular basis.
"This time I really believe he actually wants me to give him a migraine," Bonnie mumbled under her breath as she left the room, knowing the other two could hear her. "His masochism has reached an entirely new level."
Klaus erupted into a fit of laughter as Elijah snorted at her parting remarks.
"Be sure to throw in a broken leg from me along with that migraine, Bonnie," the hybrid called after her, his dimples appearing in full force.
Elijah smiled in spite of himself. "I take my leave as well, Niklaus. Remember my instructions, and good luck tomorrow. I hope you find a worthy candidate," he concluded.
He nodded briskly at Klaus, following Bonnie out of the chamber, the sound of his footsteps receding.
As soon as he was out of earshot, Klaus let out a low chuckle.
"Don't fret, big brother. I'm always one step ahead."
The conversation finished, Klaus looked over at the serving girl still lying unconscious on the floor, blood seeping out of the bite marks on her neck. Cursing slightly as the girl's heartbeat was barely audible and not wanting to have Bonnie on his case again about replacing perfectly good and able servants, he bent down, biting his wrist as he did so and thrusting it against the girl's mouth. He sent her off to her duties when she was able to stand, the girl almost ramming into the door in her haste the escape the hybrid's clutches.
That taken care of, and making a mental note to have the blood wiped off of the floor before it left a stain, Klaus strode out of the room, a strange desire to take an evening swim in the river leading him outside.
He took his time meandering through the grounds, breathing in the cool breeze and the faint light of the stars scattered across the twilight sky, reflected in the rushing water as he arrived at a familiar patch of silver maples along the solitary bank.
Throwing himself unceremoniously onto the grass, he began to undress, throwing his shirt onto a nearby rock.
Recalling his earlier conversation with Bonnie and Elijah, he smiled to himself, diving into the stream. Everything was falling into place, just as he planned.
Lexi paced nervously about her chamber, fists clenching and unclenching as her agitation grew by the second. It was half past four already, and Bonnie had informed her at breakfast that she would come to escort her down to the Original's private dining room to meet the king at a quarter to five. She had spent the morning and afternoon with Caroline, Katherine, and Elena, who had made it their mission to distract her from her impending doom. They had succeeded somewhat, as Lexi had calmed down from her anxious crying the previous evening, where she had fallen asleep in Caroline's room. However, the blonde vampire's anxiety was steadily seeping into her again as the clock ticked ever nearer to five o'clock. The only vaguely comforting thought was that Bonnie had explained to all of the candidates that they would all remain at the castle after their own interviews, until all the girls had a chance and the king reached a final decision. At least she would not be sent home in disgrace tonight after it was over.
"Lexi, come and sit down. You're going to wear a hole into the carpet if you're not careful," Caroline spoke up in an attempt to lighten the mood that had fallen on the four of them, as she and the twins watched their friend with concerned expressions.
"And besides, you look lovely. The king is sure to pay attention to you, and he would be a fool not to appreciate your kind personality," Elena smiled in encouragement, gesturing to the white and gold patterned dress that Lexi had chosen to wear for the evening.
She did make quite the picture, her long blonde hair matching the golden threads of the dress.
Lexi paused, swishing her skirts in embarrassment at the compliment.
"Thank you, Elena, you are too kind," she answered with a weak smile. "And as for the king, I can only hope that I do not end up with a stake in my back," she added, shuddering at the gruesome (but very real) possibility. She then pretended to faint, throwing herself into the chair and making a great show of shaking in the throes of a death, clutching her chest.
Caroline covered her mouth with her hands, shaking silently in mirth at the sight, while Elena gasped in horrified amazement and burst into a fit of nervous giggles.
Katherine snorted at Lexi.
"A bit overdramatic, don't you think? He seems to me like "bite 'em, then let the werewolf venom kill 'em slowly" type. Hybrid and all that," Katherine mused, only half-jokingly.
That shut everyone up. Everyone present knew the horrible effects werewolf venom had on vampires—terrifying hallucinations, coughing up blood, the poison spreading tortuously through the body, destroying from the inside in a whirlwind of pain.
"The soul of tact, as usual, Kat. Well done," Elena chastised her sister sarcastically.
"What? I'm just preparing her for the worst. The best being death by the stake, obviously," Katherine replied nonchalantly, lounging back against the headboard of the bed.
Caroline scowled at her friend's thoughtless, ill-timed remark. She turned her attention to Lexi, whose face had turned pale and drawn at the thought of a hybrid bite. She laid a soothing hand on Lexi's arm, shaking her slightly so Lexi would look at her.
"Don't worry, Lexi. I know the king has a reputation of ruthless cruelty, but trust me when I tell you that there is more than just brutality in him," she said softly and earnestly, slightly surprised at her own words.
Lexi gave her a confused look. "What are you talking about, Caroline?"
A muffled rap on the door took away any chance for Caroline to elaborate.
Elena jumped off of the bed and opened the door to a solemn-faced Bonnie, who crossed the threshold gracefully.
"Come, Miss Branson. It's time."
Visibly trembling, Lexi bowed her head in resignation. Caroline gave her one last reassuring squeeze before she released her friend, who headed toward the door after Bonnie.
Turning around, Lexi swallowed and looked around at her friends' worried gazes. "Will you wait up for me?" she whispered meekly, wringing her hands.
"Of course we will," Caroline said, shaking her head vigorously. "We'll see you later tonight."
Smiling faintly, Lexi left the room and followed Bonnie down the hall, amid the whispers of the small crowd of candidates hovering to watch the proceedings.
Poking her head out of the door, Caroline looked on as they parted down the middle to let Lexi pass, until she reached the end of the corridor and was lost from view.
Drawing a deep breath and closing the door quietly on the chattering gossip that broke out in the hallway after Lexi's departure, Caroline retreated back into the room, flopping onto Lexi's bed as she exhaled.
The silence that had fallen on the three friends persisted, until Katherine broke it in a low voice.
"I hope she does come back, the poor girl. I only pray that he hasn't already drawn and quartered her."
Two voices groaned in unison, followed by a shriek as Katherine found herself shoved off of the bed and onto the floor. A pillow smacked her square in the face to add insult to injury.
"Ouch! I'm just trying to be realistic!"
"Yes, well, try less, it won't kill you!" Elena's voice threatened angrily.
Scowling, Katherine sat back up, running her hands through her hair in an attempt to tame her wild curls. "You know I'm right," she mumbled under her breath.
THUMP.
"OUCH! Mercy, please!" she begged, toppling back to the ground as another pillow hit her, a chorus of giggles coming from the bed as her two friends bore down on her, their childish play distracting them for now from their worry over the fate of their friend.
Klaus strolled leisurely into the family dining room exactly ten minutes late, reveling in the chance to outwardly ignore Elijah's strict scheduling—as if his brother could possibly dictate when he would come down to dinner, like a mere child at the beck and call of his mother.
Snorting inwardly, Klaus immediately noticed the young vampire—the Branson girl, Lexi, was it?—sitting at the far end of the long table. She was currently looking into her lap, the rapid fluttering of her heart not escaping Klaus's superior senses.
He could practically smell the fear on this one.
The knowledge made him smirk a bit, his predatory nature awakening, as he cleared his throat to announce his presence.
The blonde's head snapping up at the noise. Scrambling to get out of her seat, the girl rose and curtsied hastily.
"Your highness," she said, her greeting barely audible and with a tremor in her voice.
Klaus lifted one eyebrow mockingly, returning the favor with the smallest of nods, his eyes trained on her face.
"Miss Branson, how charming to see you again. I hope this evening finds you well?" He lazily motioned for her to sit, drawing out his own chair opposite her at the head of the table. She complied with his order, sinking into her seat with almost supernatural speed.
"I am, thank you, Your highness," she replied meekly, lowering her gaze to the table.
"Excellent. Now, I wonder, Miss Branson—or may I call you Lexi?" he questioned, cocking his head to the side.
At the bob of her head, he continued. "I wonder, Lexi, if you would prefer the interrogation now or after some refreshment? I am in a generous mood tonight, so the option is yours."
He grinned up at her, his elbows resting on the table, with his chin resting on his folded hands. The plan he had formed was simple: convince Bonnie to begin the interviews with the girls closest to Caroline. It would give him a perfect window of opportunity to gather information on the blonde whom he had already decided to make his queen, as well as keeping up appearances of interviewing at least a few of the candidates.
"If it pleases your majesty, I would rather begin with the questions," the vampire spoke up, straightening up in her seat while keeping her gaze lowered respectfully.
Klaus laughed at that, relaxing in his chair. "Quite anxious to get it over with, aren't we? Very well, then."
He gave her a calculating look, wondering where exactly he should start.
"Let's begin with something more trifling. Favorite color?"
"Green, your majesty."
Klaus shook his head in mock regret. "Nothing in common so far; I prefer blue." Out of nowhere, memories of a pair of cornflower-blue eyes surrounded by long dark lashes assaulted his mind. "Cornflower, to be precise."
Lexi nodded mutely, shifting in her seat. Her obvious discomfort amused him.
"Now, then, onto the next question: what is your family background? I assume you hail from within the confines of Mystic Falls?"
"Yes, your highness. That is to say—I live here now. I was actually born in northern France, but I moved here after I was turned at the age of twenty-one. You see, I was alone back then—my parents had died of infection, and I didn't even know the vampire who turned me one day while I was wandering in the woods near my village—but after adjusting to the lifestyle, I heard about the refuge that Mystic Falls offered to vampires, so I made the journey and have lived here for the past fifteen years," she finished, regarding him apprehensively.
Klaus lifted his eyebrows, amused at the sudden rambling of the young vampire. No doubt she wanted to be as thorough as possible in her answers under the circumstances and with the present company—or else suffer the unpleasant consequences reserved for those caught lying to the hybrid. He appreciated that she was truthful in her answers, as it made everything that much easier for himself. Although he would be damned if he married a vampire who originated in France—a cruel reminder of the battle he had fought and won against his accursed step-father and his army from that blasted country.
"Ah, France. I knew there was something," he drawled, stroking his stubbled chin pensively, for a moment lost in memories of destroying his accursed step-father once and for all and proving his own strength and power as the Original hybrid to the entire supernatural realm. Mikael had underestimated him for all of his life-a mistake the older Original paid for with his life. Vengeance is indeed sweet.
Pushing all thoughts of Mikael away, he focused his attention back on Caroline's friend, the pure terror radiating from her filling him with that familiar heady rush of power.
"Don't worry, love, just a few more questions. What about your close friends?"
Lexi shrugged her shoulders at the question. "As I mentioned earlier, my family is dead, and I settled in Mystic Falls alone. I have many acquaintances in the city, but none I would label as close friends—although if it came to it, I have recently become good friends with Katherine and Elena Gilbert and Caroline Forbes, whom I met here."
Klaus smirked. And there it is.
"Ah, yes, I figured as much from the ball. The four of you have become quite inseperable, haven't you? What is it you see in them, if I may ask?" he pressed, hoping she would elaborate on her dealings with one particular friend.
Lexi's brow crinkled in thought, before a small smile appeared on her features. "Well, I arrived here in the same carriage as they did. We were thrown together by circumstance, and our friendship proceeded quickly from then on as a result," she explained. Klaus motioned for her to continue. "The twins can be very friendly and entertaining, but Caroline especially has been wonderful to me. Her kindness and selflessness is what drew me to her initially. She has a very loyal and strong spirit, too. I can't help but admire her."
Lexi stared off into space and smiled in reminiscence. Suddenly, her smile faded and her head snapped back towards him, as if she suddenly remembered who she was talking to.
Klaus, for his part, grinned at her admission, pleased that his plan was working flawlessly.
"You must consider yourself rather lucky befriending Caroline, then," he concluded, leaning forward.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I do," Lexi stated, a surge of confidence in her tone.
"Will you continue the friendship after you leave here? Perhaps you live near her in the city?" Klaus remarked casually.
"I hope so, Your highness, although unfortunately I do not know anything about Caroline's family or where she lives," Lexi answered, confusion written all over her face at his odd inquiry.
"Really? No ideas at all?"
The blonde across from him was clearly puzzled at his persistence. "None...although now that you mention it, I do recall her saying something in passing about coming from the southern part of Mystic Falls, near the witches' sector."
Klaus merely nodded, his brow furrowed as he mulled over this new piece of the puzzle that was Caroline Forbes. The southern section of the city was mainly occupied by the witches, although there were also large pockets of humans and some of the poorer vampires that resided there as well. Interesting.
Recognizing that the blonde vampire before him would have no further information as to Caroline's background and had now served her purpose, he abruptly stood up, itching to leave already as his patience for the night was rapidly disappearing.
"This has been a fun evening, Lexi, but I think it's time for you to leave now," he said, already turning away from the girl towards the exit.
Lexi looked up in bewilderment. "But…I thought we were to eat dinner? Bonnie—"
"Unless I am very much mistaken, Bonnie Bennet is not the king of the supernatural realm, and therefore has no power over my decisions," Klaus growled, slamming his palms onto the table so hard that it shook violently. The younger vampire squeaked, flinching at the noise. "I thank you for answering my questions honestly, but I am not interested in pursuing one of Damon's many toys," he continued, his voice laced with venom. "Now, you can either heed my orders and return to your room, or I can reach down your throat and tear out your insides. The choice is yours."
Jumping out of her seat and shaking in fear, the girl flashed out of the room, without so much as backwards glance let alone a respectful curtsy.
His tense body relaxing, Klaus spun on his heel and exited the dining room after her, his mind racing over the bits of information he had gleaned from Lexi. For all her talk of not knowing Caroline very well, she had certainly solidified his impression of the feisty human-strong, beautiful, full of light and life. Nothing new there. He was, however, curious about the exact location of Caroline's home. He had assumed she lived towards the eastern side, where the human population was much more dense. Although she did have a witch for a friend, what with her spelled necklace.
He hesitated, desiring nothing more than to send out a few spies to discover where she lived; but a small voice in his head whispered that there was no reason to be suspicious. After all, the Gilbert twins would surely have that piece of information for him and then some, as they were Caroline's friends from home.
His mind made up, he set out to find Kol, who was presumably somewhere in the castle, most likely drunk with Damon. Perhaps his little brother could help take his mind off of the situation with a good, old-fashioned game of terrorizing Rebekah, an activity that had long served to entertain himself and Kol to no end.
He smirked to himself. Family above all.
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