Chapter Twenty Three

I felt like I was falling deeper and deeper into the water, the black abyss suffocating me, consuming me. When I opened my mouth to call out for help or scream, the water invaded my lungs in a warning, telling me if I wanted to live I had to remain quiet. So I did. I stayed quiet, unmoving revelling in the peace and the quiet around me. I don't know how long I was there for, but eventually a pain started in my chest, at first it was bearable, nothing more than a needle prick. But it continued to escalate until I felt like I was being stabbed in the heart. My hand went to my chest gasping for air-

My hand was cupping my chest as I sat up straight with a gasp. My forehead was caked with sweat and my heart was beating a million miles a minute, but it was beating. Once I realised that my heart was actually fine, I looked around taking in my surroundings. I was in Klaus' bedroom, the curtains were wide open but it was dark outside, which made me wonder how long I had been here for. I tried to think back to the last thing I remembered and my brain flooded with images of Alaric stabbing me, to being caught in Nik's arms as I collapsed. I was stabbed in the heart but I'm still alive… did that mean I was in transition? I felt the answer as soon as the question ran through my mind: no. I wasn't in transition, I didn't know how I was still alive and human, but I was.

I needed to find Klaus. That was the one thought that seemed to remain prominent in my mind above all of the others. He wasn't here, but I knew that he hadn't been gone for long; I could still feel him close by. I tried to stand, but I suddenly felt very weak and light headed. What the hell? So instead of trying to find him on foot seeing as my body wouldn't allow it, I adapted a different tactic.

'Nik?' My voice wasn't above a whisper, but I could feel his heart lurch when he heard my voice and not three seconds later he was kneeling beside the bed where I was laying, his hand holding mine.

'You're awake,' he said, his voice so low that I almost didn't hear him; I could feel the worry mixed with relief flowing from him, I wanted to relieve him of his concern but as if he knew what I was thinking he gave me a hard look, 'don't even think about it, love.'

'Fine,' I sighed, my free hand moving up to cup his face, my thumb moving back and forth comfortingly, 'how am I alive? I thought I'd be in transition.'

'Well after I ripped the vampire hunter's heart from his chest I gave you CPR. I got your heart beating again and I fed you some of my blood to heal you. There was still a chance it could go either way, though.' He said, his voice low as he tried to keep the pain from his voice as he remembered what had happened.

I wasn't too worried over Alaric; I knew he would have been wearing his ring, so he would still be alive, though what he did… it wasn't him.

'Thank you.' I gestured for him to come to me, which he did with a soft smile; I kissed his cheek gently, loving the feel of his forehead against mine, 'how long have I been out?'

'Two days, love.' Nik's voice was gently as he broke the news to me.

'What?' I tried to sit up, but I couldn't both because I didn't have the strength and Klaus was holding me down with a hand on my shoulder.

'Everyone's been visiting you. Even Bonnie; you've had everyone quite worried, love,' Nik said his voice serious.

'I should see them, could you call them and let them know I'm awake?' I asked, trying to discretely rub my temple to ease the tension that was starting to form.

'Of course, love but first,' he pulled away and bit into his wrist, I ignored the stinging where my own wrist opened up as he offered his blood to me, 'drink'.

I did so without hesitation, moaning at the taste as well as the immediate affect it had over my body; it caused my tiredness and my headache to fade, leaving my body humming with energy, which was when I stopped drinking.

'Better?' He asked with a smirk.

'Much better.' I agreed, licking the blood from the corners of my lips with my tongue, 'aged to perfection.' I winked.

He laughed, resting his forehead against mine again, 'I'm so glad you're all right.' He whispered his voice was so low, I wondered if he meant for me to hear him.

'It's going to take a lot more than an unhinged vampire hunter to get rid of me, Nik,' I assured him, pressing a soft kiss to his lips, which somehow made all of the concern drain from him, not that I was complaining.

He pulled back and stared into my eyes, his own so soft and intense it made my heart beat faster, 'I-' he started but someone banging on the door cut him off.

'Come on, Nik! You've hogged her long enough, I want to see my bestie!' Kol shouted from the other side of the door, making me laugh while Nik rolled his eyes in irritation and amusement, but he did move back so I could stand up and answer the door.

'Coming, bestie!' I shouted back, I went to reach for the door handle but it suddenly flung open banging loudly on the door as it did. Before I had any time to process what was happening, I was lifted in Kol's arms as he twirled me around; I couldn't help but laugh in surprise.

'I'm so glad you're awake. Everyone's been miserable without you around.' Kol pouted as he gently placed me back on the floor.

'I'm glad I'm awake too.' I smiled at him, squeezing his arm lightly before I was pulled into someone else's arms, I couldn't help but squeak in surprise, as I wasn't expecting it. I looked up to see the relieved eyes of Elijah as he gently smiled at me.

'I'm glad you're all right, Kimberly. You gave us quite the fright.' Elijah said, his voice as calm and collected as always as he released me from his hug.

'I'm sorry,' I apologised.

Elijah opened his mouth to retort but before he could I was pulled into another hug, Finn being the Mikaelson behind it this time. He offered me a soft smile when he pulled away, which I returned but otherwise he didn't say anything else; I could read the relief in his eyes and the happiness in his smile, so no words needed to be said. Once Finn released me, Nik placed his arm around my waist, and I reciprocated the gesture.

'Where are Elena and Bekah?' I asked, noticing that they weren't there, which was odd.

'Elena's asleep,' Kol offered, smiling at the mention of her before he continued, 'she hasn't been getting much sleep since you got attacked.'

'I'll leave her to sleep as long as she needs then.' I said, frowning at the mention of my sister being under duress, but I knew if it had been the other way around I would have been exactly the same if not worse.

'Bekah should be getting ready for the dance, though I haven't heard her move for a while so she may have already left.' Nik said, resting his head on my shoulder and wrapping his arms around my waist.

As soon as the words left his mouth I knew something was wrong; as much as Bekah loved school dances she wouldn't have left me to go to one while my state of recovery was questionable. I just needed to get the details to figure out what the niggling feeling at the back of my brain was about.

'What have I missed anyway?' I asked as we all made our way down stairs to the sitting room, Nik pulled me onto his lap, while the other Mikaelson's took their own seats.

'Oh, darling let's just say it's been a busy few days.' Kol muttered before Elijah launched into the details; I had to concentrate to take it all in. It turned out Ric's ring had been what caused the darkest parts of himself to take over his body from time to time, and it had been him who had attacked me. Bonnie had managed to find a spell and some herbs to keep it at bay, but I had a feeling that it wasn't working. Bekah had found out that the white oak tree had been used to build the underneath of Wickery Bridge, though Damon had been snooping in her head and found it out as well, but Bekah burned it before he could use it. At least she thought she did; Stefan and Damon had forged some stakes from the remaining white oak that had also been used in the sign that graced the bridge. They had tried to kill Finn and Kol while they were at the Mystic Grill trying to cheer up Elena; when I heard this it pissed me off. Needless to say, they had failed and Klaus had ordered they hand over the stakes or he would kill everyone that they had ever cared about; they collected the stakes only to find out that Alaric's alter ego had hidden his somewhere that they couldn't find it. Damon and Stefan spent yesterday beating the location out of him, Bekah took him to get it and Nik apparently burned it. But as soon as Elijah said the words, I knew it wasn't true and when they told me about Ester coming to the house and talking to Bekah alone before she died, I knew what was going on. I jumped up from the sofa with urgency and went to the room that Klaus kept the coffins. I opened them all, noting that Ester's body was gone and Bekah was lying daggered in a box, I pulled it out without hesitation and turned to the four Mikaelson's who entered the room after me.

'I'm assuming that none of you daggered her?' I said, placing the dagger on the table to my left, 'Ester has got something to do with this I can feel it; I'll bet she was possessing Bekah's body from when she came to see her, meaning that when she went with Alaric to collect the remaining dagger…'

'Ester had the chance to swap it, so when I burned the dagger…' Nik trailed off looking more and more concerned.

'You didn't burn the remaining white oak.' Elijah filled in for him.

'What if she's planning on using Alaric somehow? Think about it; a man with a vampire hating alter ego and a woman who wants to rid the world of the evil she created,' Finn murmured his own concern matching his siblings.

'That's exactly what she's planning,' I whispered as the realisation washed over me like a bucket of water.

We were all cut off as Bekah suddenly sat up in her coffin, gasping for breath, 'what the bloody hell happened?'

'Oh, sister it's a long story…' I went to fill her in but I was cut off as she flashed over to me.

'Kim! You're awake!' She said, her voice full of excitement as she hugged me tightly; I couldn't help but laugh softly at her enthusiasm.

'I'm awake,' I assured her.

The next thirty minutes were spent catching Bekah up on everything she had missed, which was almost as much as I had, before we sat down and decided how we were going to handle Ester's new plan. Just like we had before, we decided to act completely normal; Bekah mentioned the dance that she had been helping to plan, so we decided that we were all going to go, seeing as Bekah would have convinced her brothers to go nonetheless. Though I wasn't looking forward to being dressed up, I was happy to be doing something relatively normal, even if it was going to a high school dance as a chaperone. Bekah was trying to get me to stand up so she could usher me to the room she had people waiting to do our hair and make-up but I was putting up a fight.

'Kim, come on!' Bekah looked like she was two minutes away from stomping her foot.

'I'll be up in a little while, I'm still a little tired,' I lied, resting my head on Nik's shoulder to make myself more convincing.

'You've been asleep for two days!' She complained, crossing her arms over her chest.

'We have plenty of time to get ready, Bekah.' I tried a different angle, 'it's four in the afternoon, and we don't have to be there until seven.'

'Yes and three hours is cutting it close, now come on!' Bekah said getting more and more irritated.

Apparently I didn't move fast enough because I was suddenly thrown over Bekah's shoulder much to everyone else's amusement.

'Bekah! What the hell, I can walk!' I screamed, smacking her back, but of course it had no effect.

'You weren't moving fast enough,' she said, waving her hand dismissively as if that explained everything.

'Oh for goodness sake!' I muttered before I continued when I heard Kol and Nik laughing loudly; Elijah and Finn were just as amused but they were much more subdued, 'you could help, you know.'

Nik just held his hands up in an 'I'm not stupid enough to mess with Bekah right now' gesture, his amusement only growing when I glared at him. I looked over to the other three who just repeated the same gesture; I rolled my eyes at all of them, before Bekah had carried me out of sight. I was half way through being plucked and prodded when Elena walked into the room and almost knocked me to the floor.

'Thank god you're okay. When I saw you covered in blood with a knife in your chest I-,' she cut off as she started to sob, I sent a wave of comfort to her, happy when she calmed down a little.

'It's okay. I'm okay,' I assured her, stroking her hair, I noticed that the women working on my hair hadn't hastened in their progress; I internally snorted at that, 'anyway, I'm almost done and then it'll be your turn,' I winked at her, attempting to lighten the mood a little and I was glad when it worked and she laughed lightly.

An hour later Bekah and I were finished as we sat on Bekah's bed and waited for Elena. We were all dressed as flappers from the roaring twenties; our dresses were identical, fitted and beaded. Bekah and Elena were wearing wigs that were styled into a short bob; Elena's was brown and Bekah's blonde. I had point blank refused to wear a wig, knowing how much it would irritate me from last years Halloween costume, so instead my own hair had been pinned up with about a million pins, a few strands of my hair left down and curled into ringlets to frame my face.

'It's six thirty,' I commented, hoping we would be leaving soon, I was starting to get stir crazy.

'We're just finishing up, Miss,' the woman putting the finishing touches on Elena's hair said.

'Wonderful,' Bekah muttered, looking a little annoyed herself.

'Bekah, if we don't leave soon we're going to be late to your precious dance!' Kol called from the other side of the door.

'Bestie! Save me, please!' I called out from my place on the bed.

Kol laughed loudly before he pushed the door open without another word, he still had a grin on his face as he glanced over to my pleading expression but it dropped into one of awe when his eyes landed on Elena who was just standing up from the chair she had been sat on for the past hour. I smiled when I felt the waves of affection and attraction coming from them both. My eyes snapped away from them when the pull in my heart drew my gaze to the doorway where Nik was standing. I saw he was wearing a white tux with a matching bow tie and he looked incredibly sexy, when my eyes finally met his I noticed that his eyes had darkened much like my own and we wore matching expressions of lust. At some point I had stood from the bed and my legs had carried me over to him as he met me in the middle. His lips were on mine before I could process another thought, moving passionately as my own hands tangled in his hair, keeping him there.

'Okay, you four need to stop before I vomit.' Bekah said, sounding mildly disgusted.

We pulled away from each other, I rested my forehead against his smiling softly at the tenderness in his eyes before he pecked my lips softly once more and turned back to his sister, his mask becoming one of irritation. Before he could say anything Bekah cut him off.

'Listen, Nik, you two can do that to your hearts content when I'm not in the vicinity.' She muttered, her hands resting on her hips before she turned to also glare at Kol and Elena who were also breathing heavily, 'you two as well.'

Elena and I laughed lightly while Kol and Nik just glared at their little sister in annoyance, but I could feel that it was only light hearted. We made our way out shortly after, walking into the gym that was decorated in nineteen twenties galore.

'The decorations are great, Bekah.' I complimented her, genuinely meaning it, she beamed at me before she went off to find Matt. I turned to Klaus whose arm was linked through mine, 'if this is what the twenties was actually like this then I'm sorry I missed it.'

Nik grinned as he led me to the dance floor, one hand on my waist the other linked through mine, pulling my body flush against his as we moved to the music.

'You would have loved the twenties, Kimberly. The girls were reckless, sexy, fun. They literally used to dance until they dropped.' Nik said, his voice dropping to a huskier tone.

'I doubt I would have fit the bill, you know with my laziness.' I muttered, completely meaning it; Elena may drag me out on a few runs here and there but dancing until I dropped sounded like hell to me.

Nik laughed, his eyes lighting up with amusement, 'you may have surprised yourself.'

'I doubt it,' I mumbled against his shoulder.

'I look forward to having forever to show you everything that the world has to offer.' He whispered into my ear, his breath blowing onto my neck making me shiver.

'All I need is you.' I assured him, staring into his eyes so that he could see that I was being sincere; I noticed his eyes glimmer with vulnerability and hope. I pressed my lips to his and stared back, allowing him to search for whatever he was looking for. After a while he blinked, his expression softening as he kissed my forehead and spun me suddenly, making me laugh in surprise. I don't know how much longer we were dancing, but eventually I got thirsty and ushered him over to the punch table. Someone had clearly spiked it, and after my first drink I was moderately buzzed so whatever it was must have been strong stuff. Once I had finished my first glass Kol yanked me back onto the dance floor as he dipped me and spun me around rather haphazardly.

'Jesus Christ, Kol,' I laughed, grabbing onto his shoulders for support and to make sure I didn't end up on the floor.

'I had to have a dance with my bestie,' he smirked; twirling me around again, I could feel the beads on my dress flapping around wildly as a result.

'Very true,' I agreed, nodding my head seriously before a smile took over my face, 'so… you and my sister huh?' I wiggled my eyebrows teasingly.

'Me and your sister,' he confirmed, his eyes lighting up at the mention of her before they darkened in concern as he looked down to me 'you-.'

I cut him off, 'I hope you're not about to ask if I'm all right with it,' I raised my eyebrows in defiance before I continued, 'you make her happy, she makes you happy. That's all that matters to me, Kol.' I assured him, kissing his cheek before I smiled brightly.

'Though if you hurt her, I will make you suffer,' I winked teasingly at him, though I was deadly serious, he laughed anyway, 'I'm serious. She will be getting the same threat don't you worry bestie, no-one's hurting you either.'

The laugher drained away from his face as his expression became soft, 'we're lucky to have you, you know.'

His statement made me blink in surprise before I returned his smile, 'I'm lucky to have all of you.'

He kissed my cheek before I was stolen way by Elijah, his dancing much more subdued than Kol's; I looked over to see that Nik was dancing with Bekah and it was nice to see them smiling and getting along without their constant bickering. I was about to make a joke when I felt Kol's panic coming from behind me, I instantly turned around, grabbing Elijah's wrist and dragging him with me.

'Kol? What's wrong?' I asked, though I already had a pretty good feeling.

'I can't find Elena.' He said, his panic rising as well as his anger towards whoever was behind this.

'She's not here. Not anymore.' I said my voice certain as I looked over to Nik. He caught my eye and seeing my concern he made his way over to me without a moments hesitation, bringing Bekah and Finn with him. I walked out into the corridor and saw Damon and Stefan already making their way towards the exit; I followed them.

'Lost someone?' I asked innocently with my arms crossed over my chest.

'Not now, princess,' Damon said, waving his hand dismissively.

'Damon if you know where Elena is…' I trailed off my tone becoming threatening and I noticed that Damon and Stefan straightened slightly, though I suspected that had something to do with the five Originals that were probably sending them death glares.

'All I know is that we got dragged here with a lead on Ric but he is no where to be seen…' Damon said, his hands flailing around as he explained.

I could feel the honesty coming from him so I tuned him out as I tried to concentrate on what the whole point in gathering us all here was. If she was planning on taking Elena then why would she… No!

'Son of a bitch!' I shouted, stepping forward, the Salvatore brothers moving out of my way immediately, which if I wasn't so angry and worried in that moment I would have laughed. I saw the barrier of salt around the school and my stomach dropped, 'she's trapped us here.'

'What?' Kol was the first to say as he walked forward and tried to put his hand over the salt, but he was met with an invisible barrier.

I went to copy his movements and noticed that my hand went through, I met Kol's eyes in surprise before I went to step over the barrier but I was pulled back with a yank on my wrist.

I didn't have to look over to know that Klaus was behind it, 'Klaus…' I started but he cut me off with a look that made me roll my eyes.

'If you think I'm letting you near my Mother after last time then you are sorely mistaken.' Klaus said, his tone dripping with disdain.

'Whatever she wants her for, she's not going to hurt her I know that.' I said looking over to Kol, sending him a wave of reassurance as I did, 'but whatever she's planning on using her for isn't going to end well for anyone. I can get through, I should go.'

'Whatever who wants her for?' Stefan asked, him and Damon completely confused.

'She's my sister, Klaus. I have to try and help her.' I said, my tone pleading.

'Fine. You can go, but first let's find out where she actually is, shall we?' He turned to Stefan and Damon, 'if you two could be so kind as to find the local witch, we're in need of a locator spell.'

Surprisingly, Stefan and Damon scuttled off to do just that without complaint, leaving the Original siblings and me alone, summoning us to a classroom a few moments later where Bonnie had a map open on the desk.

'Hey, Bon.' I greeted her, my voice soft; I knew she had been to see me while I had been out but that didn't necessarily mean she forgave me for her Mother, and I wouldn't have blamed her if she hadn't.

'Hey, Kimmie,' she returned my soft smile and was relieved when I didn't feel any hatred or deceit coming from her.

'Do you think you can find her?' I asked looking to the map.

'I've been trying, using some of her hair from the brush in her locker, but it's like someone's fighting me.' She said, sounding concerned.

'How would she have that much power?' I asked, looking over to Nik who looked like he was wondering the same thing.

'She could be channeling something… like a hotspot?' Bonnie suggested.

I felt Nik's realization and looked over to him questioningly as his eyes met mine, we had a silent conversation, reading each other's facial expressions.

You know where she is. Tell me.

Love, I don't know about this…

Nik, I'm not having this argument with you again.

Fine, but you have to take my blood.

I already did, earlier.

That healed you of your wounds before; it would be out of your system by now.

Okay, fine, whatever you want.

'Okay, stop that. You're freaking me out,' Damon said from the other side of Bonnie, snapping Nik and me out of our conversation.

'Where is she then?' Stefan asked, his arms crossed as he stood beside Damon.

'Where I ripped her heart out a thousand years ago, it's the cemetery now.' Nik answered, albeit a little reluctantly.

I nodded and walked out into the hallway, unsurprised when he followed me, I turned and took the wrist he had already bitten into without question, drinking a few gulps before I pulled back. I caressed the side of his face as I looked into his worried gaze, placing a kiss onto his lips.

'I'm going to be okay,' I told him, because I was. I placed another kiss on his lips, amplifying the reassurance I was sending to him, before I pulled away and left the school without another word. I made good time, managing to get to the cemetery in roughly ten minutes. I saw the fire flickering inside one of the crypts and made my way towards it, not knowing what kind of situation I was going to walk in on. I immediately took Elena's fear and when I walked through the doorway I felt my own concern grow.

'Elena-,' I was cut off when Ester walked forward from the shadows.

'Kimberly. I was wondering when you were going to get here.' Ester said, her voice sounding somewhat smug.

'What are you doing?' I asked, playing dumb.

'I am creating the ultimate weapon. The ultimate vampire hunter, far better than Mikael ever was.' She replied, her voice making her sound like she was making a pitch.

'Really? How do you plan on that?' I inquired, my tone innocent as I reached for Elena to pull her to my chest in a comforting gesture.

She didn't answer and I knew whatever she was leaving out had something to do with Elena… but what?

'Did she do anything to you?' I whispered softly to Elena.

'She took my blood,' she sniffled against my chest; I knew that she was more concerned about Alaric than she was either of us and rightly so, if the ball of ice forming in my gut was anything to go by, anyway.

'He shall be waking soon, he may be himself for a little while, giving you chance to say goodbye,' Ester muttered before she left the crypt.

'That woman, pure psycho,' I mumbled getting a startled laugh from Elena, 'she's linked his life to yours, Lena.'

'Wh-what?' She stuttered pulling back to look at me.

'That's the only reason I can think of for her taking your blood to make him. We'll figure it out, don't worry.' I assured her as I walked away and grabbed the white oak stake from the table, holding it behind my back as I gestured for Elena to stay put while I joined Ester outside. She had her back to me and rather than waste time making conversation I stalked silently forward and plunged the stake into her back, knowing that hesitation would only give her a chance to retaliate. I pulled the stake from her and tucked it into the side of my leg, holding it in place with my underwear under my dress. I walked back inside and saw that Alaric was awake and hugging Elena as tears streamed down his face. I was about to walk out to give them a moment when Elena pulled back and Ric stood, pulling me into a brief hug before he moved away.

'I'm sorry Ric.' I said, meaning it; he didn't deserve to be used in this way.

'It's okay.' He mumbled as he looked to the floor, tears in his eyes, 'I'm not going to complete the transition.'

'I-I don't know what to say,' I said honestly, I wasn't surprised but I was at a loss for words- what could I say to that?

'There's nothing you have to say,' Ric said, a soft smile on his face.

Before the conversation could flow any further, Damon and Stefan were suddenly in the crypt. Elena gave Ric one final hug goodbye and we made our way outside where the Originals were waiting; Elijah was holding Ester's body in his arms, and I could feel their collective relief that we were both all right.

'Let's get out of here.' I muttered linking my hand through Nik's as Elena went to Kol, him offering her his wrist to heal the wound she had acquired. Nik lifted me and we flashed back to the mansion in seconds, I immediately went to his room, stripping off my dress and the million pins in my hair and placing the dagger on the sink while I showered. When I got out I put on one of the shirts Nik had folded on the counter and picked up the dagger, walking into the bedroom already knowing he would be there. He looked up from where he was laying on the bed, his smile instantly dropping when he saw what I had in my hands.

'Look what your Mother made.' I said, throwing the stake to Nik on the bed.

'Does anyone else know about this?' He asked.

'Elena and Alaric but otherwise no, not that I'm aware of.' I answered honestly, 'Nik, he's going to complete the transition and when he does he's going to come for his weapon.'

'Well then we'll kill him with it. Five Originals against one, it shouldn't be too difficult.'

'No. She made him stronger than she made any of you and the white oak won't work on him either.' I looked to him, deciding whether I could trust him with what I was considering telling him, 'she took Elena's blood during the ritual.'

He looked confused for a moment before the realization dripped over his face, 'his life will be tied to Elena's.'

'Yes.' I sighed, concerned; I hadn't had a chance to talk to Elena about this yet, 'I need to talk to Elena, I have a few ideas on how we can get around it but for now, I think she needs to relax.' I muttered, cringing at how tense my neck and shoulders were.

Nik stood and moved to place the stake in a safe hidden behind one of his own paintings before he made his way back to the bed, flipping me so that my front was placed on the bed. I was about to ask him what he was doing when his hands started kneading my lower back, making his way up my shoulder blades and finally my shoulders and neck. I felt my eyelids drooping as his magical hands lulled the stiffness in my muscles, but they immediately sprang back open again when his hands went underneath my shirt to continue massaging my muscles. His touch became gentle and caressing as his hands moved over my shoulders and down to my waist, raising goose bumps on my skin and causing a persistent throbbing to begin between my thighs.

I moaned when his hands grazed over my ass cheeks, squeezing softly before his hands moved downward, palming my core, causing me to cry out. I registered that I was being flipped over before his hand was replaced with his mouth, making me moan once more. He added a finger, pumping in and out of me softly as his mouth continued over my core relentlessly, causing my back to arch from the pleasure it caused. Once of his hands moved to push under my shirt, gently squeezing my breast, his thumb moving over my nipple softly, all of it became too much and I reached my climax, my back arching once more as I did so. Before I had fully come down from the pleasure coursing through my body, I felt him position himself at my entrance as his body rested over mine. My hands went to his hair and pulled his lips to mine as he roughly slammed into me, enticing a gasp of pleasure from me, allowing his tongue to enter my mouth as a result. I moaned as he dominated the kiss while his hips moved with a greater ferocity against mine. My hands moved to his back, my nails running down his back, digging in hard enough to draw blood, enticing an approving growl from him. I was close to falling over the edge all over again, but I needed something… more. I moved my neck to the side, inviting him, he didn't hesitate, his hybrid face coming forward and sinking his fangs into me… and that was all it took for me to fall over the edge as I smothered my scream by biting into his own shoulder. I drank some of his own blood, licking his shoulder clean as he climaxed not long after me. He rested his forehead against mine, placing a gentle kiss to my lips before he flipped onto his back, pulling me against his chest and yanking the covers so that they rested over us. I rested my face into the crook of his neck, inhaling as his scent calmed me even more than I already was; I felt him gently running his hands through my hair and not thirty seconds later I had slipped into unconsciousness.

There's chapter twenty three for you! I hope you enjoyed it- let me know what you think!

A huge thank you to peanut188, NixRace, Iarissa8 and Emily Lilly Winchester for choosing to either follow or favorite my story- it means a lot :)

Guest: Amazing two chapters! Are you going to have Kim be pregnant in the Originals? Update soon please! Thank you so much, I'm glad you enjoyed it :) I haven't decided yet... but we'll see ;)

Lloryn: Well there goes telling Elena before turning…. Does it? ;)

Elljayde: Good chapter, I like how you've kept it open for them to have children even when she is turned. Wondering if you're going to make her a vampire now or if Klaus got there in time to heal her. Update soon. I'm glad you enjoyed it :) I wanted to keep that open just incase I decided to turn her before they went to New Orleans; I don't like the idea of her being defenseless and used against Klaus, which she would be if she was human. And he did ;)

XxSunnaxX:…soo mean! T.T. Can't wait to know what happens next :) ps. Kol/Elena Fan! Thank you so much, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'm glad you approve of Kelena ;)

Hayden: Please she can't be dead. She's not- don't worry ;)