C10
Caroline held her head high as Klaus guided her towards the young blonde girl standing next to Katherine. She assumed it was Rebekah, Klaus' sister. Klaus leaned in, as his lips brushed against her earlobe sending shivers down her spine, "That's my baby sister Rebekah" he whispered and pulled back with a satisfactory smirk.
Caroline nodded and smiled at the blonde in front of her. "You must be Caroline. Nice to finally meet you" Rebekah said coming forward, ignoring formality, and hugged the other blonde with a warm smile. The Forbes' princess immediately recovered from her shock and hugged back.
"It's nice to meet you too. Klaus has told me a lot about you" Caroline greeted back but it didn't sound half as warming as the Mikaelson princess' welcome and somehow she felt embarrassed at that. Rebekah didn't seem as the rumors suggested about her.
"I'm just glad I'm going to have some lovely female company with me" Rebekah said glancing over to Katherine clearly unimpressed. "This is…" she started but was cut off by Caroline.
"Katherine" Caroline said with a fake smile and moved forward to stand right in front of the brunette who had half the decency to look ashamed. "Of course how can I forget you? You're the reason I'm here in the first place" she continued as she hugged the brunette shocking everyone around her.
The blonde leaned in towards her ear, "Watch your back Katherine Pierce because now you're going to know the consequences of messing with a Forbes" she whispered loud enough for both the Mikaelson siblings to hear.
Caroline moved back with the same fake smile, "I have to find so many ways to pay you back Katherine" she added in as she linked her arm through Klaus' again and started walking off until she felt someone grab her arm.
She spun around to see it was Katherine with a dead serious expression on her face, "You don't want to do this Care" she warned.
Caroline yanked her arm away from Katherine and straightened her dress, "I will forget your bad behavior just this once obviously because you're overwhelmed but don't think I'll always show such mercy towards you considering you're just one of the prince's … mistresses?" Caroline asked adding salt to her wounds. She knew it was not a very nice thing to say but Katherine had literally destroyed her life.
"Careful little girl. You have no idea what you're getting into" Katherine hissed taking a step forward menacingly.
Caroline smiled cruelly and took a step forward too, "On the contrary, I'm not the little girl anymore. It's you who is mistaken. You will never be a Queen Katherine. It's time you realized that and remembered your place" the blonde reminded her with a disapproving look and spun around to face both shocked and impressed Mikaelsons.
"I think I already like you" Rebekah murmured smirking at the other blonde. At least they both hated Katherine. There was already something in common between the two.
Caroline only smiled in return and started walking ahead talking in the beauty of the Mikaelson kingdom. It was no doubt a very scenic place and totally opposite to the rumors spread across. But even with all this beauty she had to be careful. She couldn't trust anyone here just yet.
She listened carefully as Klaus showed her around the castle and introduced her to some people. She also heard Rebekah ramble about how fun things were going to be because she was there now. She was walking in the gardens taking everything in when someone bumped into her and she lost her balance and fell into the grass with a yelp.
"Eehh!" she yelped as she fell to the grass and Klaus spun to see what happened.
Caroline straightened herself and stood up with Klaus' help and soothed her dress and then turned to see the person responsible for her fall. He was a young boy who seemed around 13 or 14 years of age.
"Henrik!" Rebekah scolded looking at the young boy. He looked down to the young ashamed as his cheeks flamed red. He had dark brown hair and chocolate brown eyes with a mischievous glint in them. He looked innocent most of all. He peeked up from under his eyelashes and smiled at Caroline sheepishly.
"This is my youngest brother Henrik" Klaus introduced with a warm and pleasant smile on his face. "Henrik, this is Princess Caroline from the Forbes kingdom" he introduced them both.
The young boy grinned and ran his hand through his hair before taking Caroline's hand and placing a light kiss on her knuckles, "I'm Henrik your majesty. The youngest and the most charming Mikaelson" he added playfully. Klaus and Rebekah both rolled their eyes, shaking their heads at his confidence.
"You have to stop learning these things from Kol Henrik" Rebekah said laughing.
The blonde princess laughed and smiled at him, "It's a pleasure to meet you Henrik. Call me Caroline" she said and smiled at him.
"Caroline" he pronounced as if testing how it sounded on his tongue. He suddenly grabbed her hand and pulled her forward. "I have been waiting for you for a long, long, very long time. Now maybe you can play with me" he proposed as he ran pulling Caroline with him.
"Henrik. She has yet to meet our parents" Klaus said and stopped him in his tracks.
Rebekah went over to her little brother, "And she needs to rest. She just came from a very tiring journey. I'm sure you'll find one of the servant kids to play with" she suggested.
"But I want to play with her. She is to be my new sister. Is she not?" he asked in a sad and worried tone.
Caroline's ears perked up at the sister part and that is when she realized that she was an only child and now she was going to enter a family with a lot of siblings. She certainly had to make quite an effort to settle in. "Why don't we play after I've met the King and Queen" Caroline recommended and watched as his face lit up.
"Okay. It was wonderful meeting you" he said and leapt off but before he totally disappeared, he turned back and smiled at Caroline. "You look very pretty with my brother Caroline" he called out and ran away.
Caroline blushed and looked away while Klaus grinned at his baby brother's retreating form. He always did love Henrik the most.
Rebekah cleared her throat awkwardly, "Nik why don't you go meet father? He's been nagging us about you for the past week" she whined.
Klaus nodded and looked at Caroline, "I'll see you at dinner then" he submitted and took her hand and brought it to his lips, never once breaking eye contact. "Have a good day Caroline" he said and placed a chaste kiss on her knuckles.
After that Rebekah lead Caroline to the throne room where the Queen currently was. Caroline was very nervous and she could feel her palms getting sweaty again. Her hands were shaking but she was trying really hard to look confident. Rebekah seemed to have sensed her uneasiness and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"You don't have to worry Caroline. I'll be there with you. Besides my mother is not going to eat you up" the younger Mikaelson joked.
"No, I'm not worried. It's just … new place, new people. That's it" Caroline said unconvincingly and smiled at her.
Rebekah turned to her and smiled, "Seriously though. Mother has been very excited to meet you" she said seriously.
Caroline's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "Why? I mean why are you all so excited? You are aware how I accepted this proposal. Are you not?" she asked unsure why they were being so utterly nice to her. There had to be something more to it.
"Have you ever wondered why Niklaus is getting the throne in presence of Finn and Elijah?" Rebekah asked but didn't wait for her to respond. "Finn married Sage, a commoner and father was very enraged because Finn broke our law." She stated sadly.
"Laws? I'm sure marrying a commoner is not against the laws?" Caroline asked in confusion.
Rebekah looked down, "It is according to my father so he made Finn choose between his love for that woman and his love for the throne. Eventually brother relinquished his right on the leadership and it passed to Elijah but my noble brother, too, fell under the charm of a commoner. A whore." She said disdainfully.
"Katherine?" Caroline questioned through gritted teeth.
Rebekah nodded, "Yes. He says he wants to marry her but she insists they wait. Apparently she isn't ready for such a big commitment yet." Rebekah sneered and scoffed.
"So Klaus gets the throne" Caroline said thoughtfully as all the pieces of the puzzle settled in her mind.
"Nik is going to be the first one whose marriage is going to be celebrated and personally mother and I are just glad to have some suitable feminine company other than each other of course" Rebekah chimed in cheerily.
Caroline looked at her skeptically but she didn't have time to respond before the doors opened and Rebekah dragged Caroline inside.
The Mikaelson throne room was very different to her own. Where hers was bright, this was dark. Hers had large windows for natural sunlight but this one had huge curtains creating shadows and darkness. The only light seemed to be coming from the candles lit in the room. There were only two main thrones but there were seven seats at the side of the thrones. Maybe they were for the children.
She didn't have much time to examine the room, as she spotted an elder blonde woman sitting on one of the thrones with much elegance. She had a stern look but a calculating smile on her face.
"Mother" Rebekah said alerting her to their presence. The woman looked at them and broke into a warm smile. "Caroline is here" she added beaming at her mother and dragged a very puzzled Caroline with her.
The woman stood up from her throne but didn't move forward. Caroline expected this. Of course they'd want her to curtsy to let her know she wasn't in charge. Not yet anyway.
She walked in front of the throne and curtsied gracefully and then stepped back as the Queen gave her an approving nod.
"Rebekah. She is to be the Queen, show her some respect." The Queen scolded in a sweet voice. Either she was very good in disguising her truth or she was truly a very nice person.
"She is to be my sister. Besides she said it herself to call her Caroline" Rebekah said and shrugged.
The Queen just shook her head with a slight chuckle and moved towards the blonde Forbes and embraced her warmly. "It's lovely to finally meet you. My son is very lucky indeed" she praised and for a moment Caroline thought they were all mad. How could they be so welcoming towards her? She was not here by choice. Weren't the Mikaelsons supposed to be very stern and cruel people?
"I hope by now you've met all of the family" The Queen guessed and waited for her to reply.
"No. I mean I have yet to meet the King and Prince Finn's wife" Caroline answered not knowing how exactly to address Sage.
The Queen smiled at her, "The king is quite busy now but I assure you he'll be enthused to meet you at dinner and Sage is no one important" she answered shrugging. It was just wrong how Ester treated Sage or at least talked about her. "You should go rest. I'll send a maid up right away to help you dear" Ester said and it didn't sound like a request so Caroline nodded and let Rebekah lead her to her bedchambers.
They entered a hallway with many doors. She was led to the end where Rebekah stopped. "The room on my right hand is yours. If you need anything, Nik's room is right across yours" she said with a cheeky smile and hopped away.
Caroline breathed in deeply before pushing the doors open and moving into the room. She closed the door behind her and took in the room. It had dark colors. Red velvet curtain and a four poster bed with red and black eiderdown. The floor had been made of hardwood and there were two other doors inside the room, one leading to the washroom the other leading to her wardrobe perhaps. There was an elegant chaise longue in the room with a small, delicate heavy wood table in front of it. There wasn't a lot of ventilation in her room but the flowers placed in different vases gave the room a very sweet scent.
She walked over to the wardrobe and picked out an emerald colored gown which harmonized greatly with her blue-emerald eyes. By the time she stepped out of the wardrobe, a maid was already standing there with a water bath ready. She helped Caroline bathe and get ready. Caroline hurried up and tapped her foot impatiently has the maid braided her hair and nodded at her. The maid bowed and went out of her room.
Caroline looked out of the window and saw Henrik sitting alone far in the gardens. She turned around and went out of her room and walked down the corridor. She kept walking and walking but she couldn't find the way. Maybe she had taken a wrong turn somewhere. If she had only listened to Rebekah more carefully. She sighed and turned around to find her room. Klaus' room was across it, maybe she could ask for directions?
She shook her head and walked further into the current corridor she was in. She knocked on each of the doors and opened them to see they were empty. Great, now she didn't even know the way back to her own room. At the end of the passageway, she saw a little ray of light coming from the slightly opened door. She walked towards it and saw that there were multiple canvases and supplies in it. It looked like a store room or something.
She should just turn around and go find her way to the garden but her curiosity got the best of her and she walked into the room tiptoeing on her tiny feet. Upon reaching she gaped. There were art pieces everywhere. Paintings, sketches, drawing lying everywhere. Some pieces still on multiple easels incomplete. The room was beautiful. She wondered who in the castle painted. Maybe it was Elijah. Or Finn. He loved Sage enough to leave the leadership of this kingdom for her. He was a true romantic, surely he would have done these.
Forgetting everything, Caroline went forward to the main table and stared at a painting hung on the wall. It was a painting with bold paint strokes and dark colors. She didn't know much about art except it was either pretty or not and this painting was certainly not pretty but it was … lonely.
She heard someone clear their throat behind her and she turned to see it was Klaus leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest.
"Enjoying yourself love?" he asked casually with a certain warmth and bounce in his voice.
Caroline blushed deep red at being caught snooping around, "I… I got lost. I'm sorry I shouldn't have come here" she excused and ran towards the door only to be stopped by him. He grabbed both her arms and pulled her towards him softly. He moved towards her ear.
"Don't ever apologize to anyone Caroline" he whispered sensually as his lips brushed against her earlobe. "Do you understand?" he asked softly looking at her intently.
She nodded furiously still not making eye contact with him. He smiled and released her but didn't step out of her way. "This is your home Caroline. Feel free to explore anytime you want. Nothing is off limits to you sweetheart" he reassured her and motioned for her to join him towards the main table.
Caroline looked down but still followed him. He stood in front of the painting she was viewing a few moments ago and looked at it intently with his hands clasped behind his back.
"You seem to have taken a liking to this one" he said trying to understand how someone as beautiful and full of light would like such a piece of darkness. "It's the only one of my painting I can relate to" he said remembering the day he painted it just like it was yesterday.
Caroline's head snapped up to look at him and her eyes widened. "Did you do these?" she asked surprised. She did not think of Klaus as the artistic type.
Klaus looked around nervously, "Umm... Yes" he answered stammering. Somehow he felt self-conscious in front of Caroline.
"They're beautiful" Caroline commented as she ran her fingers over the number of sketches scattered on the large table. The sketches truly were mind blowing. "I thought Finn did these" she blurted out loud before she could stop herself.
Klaus looked at her with a surprised expression and chuckled lightly. "Why would you think that Finn would do these?" he asked softly still chuckling. Finn couldn't paint or draw even if his life depended on it. He was never artistic enough.
Caroline blushed slightly and shook her head, "I don't know. I just thought he loves Sage so much and he must be really passionate…" she mumbled on not really knowing how to explain love and it' effects to a person who probably didn't even know the meaning of love.
He watched her intently with a slight smile on his face and inched closer to her. Each step he took forward, Caroline took two steps back until her back hit the wall. "So the thought never crossed your mind that I can be passionate?" he whispered sensually as his lips brushed against the shell of her ear.
Caroline gulped at the proximity and almost shivered. "N-n-no. I mean…" she started off but was cut off by Klaus.
"Shh! Shh!" he cooed and dipped his head and ran his lips ghostly over her neck, never once making contact. He sniffed her neck and inhaled her sweet scent of flowers, honey and sunshine. He could swear it was the sweetest scent he had ever smelled. He placed a soft kiss on her pulse point, lingering longer than necessary and then pulled back only a little to look into her eyes.
"Don't" she whispered, trembling. But somehow it wasn't because of fear. She could feel herself getting hot and she was attracted to him but this was wrong. This was wrong before marriage.
Klaus' eyebrows furrowed and he clenched his fists. If this was about Damon-"We are not married yet" he heard her whisper.
His gazed softened but he was intrigued by her. "You are my betrothed. It doesn't matter" he answered casually shrugging his shoulders and placing a sweet, open mouthed kiss on the corner of her lips.
Caroline placed her hands on his chest and pushed him slightly. "We really shouldn't" she pressed turning bright red.
Klaus merely smiled and held his hands up in surrender, backing away. "Of course. Who am I to deny the lady?" he asked mockingly.
They both stayed that way for a little while, both not wanting to end their conversation.
"Why didn't you ever mention Henrik to me before?" Caroline blurted not thinking again. She mentally face palmed herself but she had to know.
"I don't want any danger to come to him because of what my brothers and I do" he answered truthfully. Obviously one day Henrik had to do the same but he was still young and had days to enjoy himself without danger looming over his head.
"What do you mean? That telling me would endanger his life?" she questioned feeling quite offended. She could barely kill a fly, how would she harm such a beautiful young boy?
Klaus shook his head, "You wouldn't but the Salvatores would. Damon would" he answered sternly.
Caroline jutted her chin in the air, "I wouldn't have told him. Believe it or not, I have no intention of ever letting an innocent get hurt because of me" she replied crossing her arms over her chest.
"I know" he replied with a sincere smile on his face. "That's why I like you" he added.
Caroline blushed and looked away. "Will you take me to the gardens? Henrik is waiting for me" she said awkwardly.
Klaus nodded and smiled. "I'm glad that you're getting along with him. He means the world to me" he stated proudly as he offered his arm to Caroline who took it without much of a fight.
When they were in eyesight for Henrik, the little boy jumped and ran towards Caroline and hugged her forgetting all formalities. Caroline giggled slightly and untangled herself from him.
"You came" he said with a bright smile and gratefulness.
Caroline smiled. "Of course I came. I promised didn't I?" she asked pinching his cheek softly.
He looked down sadly, "Well Nik promises too but he doesn't have time for me and mother forbids Bekah to play with me. She says it's inappropriate for a lady to run around and Elijah and Finn don't play but Kol does. Sometimes when he's trying to impress his lady friends" he stated with sadness and loneliness.
Caroline placed her hands on her hips, "Well now I'm here and we'll have to change that won't we?" she asked Henrik and looked over at Klaus who was red and embarrassed.
Henrik nodded eagerly and Caroline smiled at him again. "Why don't you go start counting over there while I hide?" Caroline suggested and watched as he happily sprinted away to the corner.
The blonde turned to her future husband. "You should spend more time with him. Do you see how lonely he feels?" she asked softly not wanting to sound too interfering.
Klaus nodded. "I will. Once everything is settled. I have a kingdom to look after for now" he replied a bit coldly and walked off.
Caroline sighed and went to hide as he saw Henrik nearly finishing up his counting.
Meanwhile Damon was rummaging through the files in a dark cellar his family once used for torture purposes. He hadn't slept peacefully for a while. His peaceful slumber had been snatched from him by Klaus Mikaelson and he was going to have it back. He was going to bring Caroline back. No matter what the price.
His thoughts were interrupted when his messenger came to him and gave him a nod with a sinister smile, "Your work will be done Prince. The princess will be back in your hands in no time" he told him.
Damon turned to the man, "Who will do my task?" he asked carefully. He didn't want anyone to manhandle Caroline and he knew she was going to struggle.
"Lockwood" he replied and that one word sent shivers down Damon's spine. Had he really done the right thing?
A/N: Hi guys! Hope you liked it. A bit slow but Klaroline is gaining a start. I'm sorry I haven't been feeling completely well so my updates have been rather irregular. Guess what? I'm going to Athens! I will write from there don't worry. But I need good tourist destinations please. Have a great week ahead.