A/N: Welcome back! I hope that you enjoy this new chapter.
I don't own The Vampire Diaries. All characters (except for Grace) belong to author L.J. Smith.
Please review and no flaming please. Thanks :)
FROM THE FAT TO THE FIRE
"When things are bad, we take comfort in the thought that they could always be worse.
And when they are, we find hope in the thought that things are so bad they have to get better." ~Unknown.
The sounds of birds loudly squawking from outside my bedroom window woke me up from what was probably the best night's sleep I had had in months. I frowned in confusion; questioning why that was, when I realized that my pillow was breathing.
What? I raised my head slightly, and glanced down at what I was lying on; which turned out to be Nik, still dressed up in what he had been wearing from the night before. That was when the memories of last night came rushing back, and I glanced back down at Nik; who was cradling me close in his sleep. It would be interesting to note that Nik looked younger when he was calm and relaxed, and I smiled, grateful that he had remained here with me in our time of need, and the substantial love that I already had for him, increased tenfold.
However, I also noted that I seriously needed the loo; and unfortunately, Nik was holding me in a possessive grip. Which meant that any sudden movement on my part could potentially wake him up, and if I remembered correctly; Nik was not a morning person and god help you if you woke him up before he was ready to greet the day. Slowly, and cautiously, I started to sit up and remove Nik's arm from around my waist gently. I immediately froze when he frowned and moaned in his sleep. Then, much to my dismay and frustration, tightened his hold around me and pulled me closer.
I decided to risk his wrath.
"Nik, honey? I kinda need to get up. Could you let go, please?" I muttered, still sleepy. No response. "Nik, please let go of me." I urged. But this time when he didn't wake up and let me get up, I simply growled underneath my breath: "Oh, fuck it!" and just moved. Next thing I knew I was lying flat on my back with a snarling Nik glaring down at me with his fangs bared. I froze instantly, looking calmly at my boyfriend who slowly registered my face and immediately mellowed.
"Grace? Oh, God! I'm sorry, love." He rolled back over and yawned. "What time is it?" He mumbled. I sat up and glanced over at my alarm clock.
"It's about 8:30 in the morning." I reply, quickly hopping up off the bed and darting quickly for the bathroom. Nik groaned in annoyance.
"It's still early, darling. Why did you wake me up?" He bitched.
"You were stopping me from getting up." I immediately retorted, coming back out of the bathroom after finishing my business and heading for the door. "Go back to sleep if you want, I'm not stopping you." I reminded him, pulling back my freshly brushed hair back into a messy ponytail. As I reached for the doorknob, a hand held the door shut and I jumped and froze; still a little edgy after what happened last night at the Lockwood's, and Nik's supernatural speed didn't help matters.
"I will in a moment. First, tell me how you are, Grace." Nik asked, gently. I trembled at the feeling of his overly warm body pressing up against my back and the way his lips caressed the back of my head – sending a wave of tingles shooting down my spine – when he asked me how I was. I just focused upon Nik's hand, unwilling to turn and face him just yet.
"Fine. I'm fine." I lied, in a quiet voice.
"You're lying, sweetheart. I heard your heart skip a beat." Nik pointed out, and I frowned at my traitorous heart. "Please tell me." He urged, sounding a little hurt. I swallowed hard, trying to moisten my suddenly dry mouth and throat.
"I don't know how I'm feeling, Nik. That's the thing, I'm not sure how I'm supposed to be feeling at this point." I admitted. Nik sighed heavily, before he gently turns me around and takes both my hands leading us back over to my bed. Whereupon he takes a seat, leaning against the headboard and pulls me onto his lap. I straddled him so that I was facing him, unable to actually hide the emotions of my face: which was probably the point. "What are you doing?" I asked him, a little wary.
"Just being here." Nik smoothed back a loose tendril of my hair behind my ear, and smiled at me. His blue-green eyes were full of longing, love and understanding. "I'm not going to pressure you to tell me how you're really feeling. I'm just going to let you come to your own conclusion in your own time, and hope that you trust me enough to confide in me eventually." He reassured me. "I just hope that my presence here with you, brings you comfort." He said, sounding hopeful. He encouraged me to lie down and cuddle up to him and rest my head on his shoulder, as he carded his hand through my hair. I was about to protest, before I let out a large yawn. So I made myself comfortable against him, giving in to the fatigue.
For some reason this position, laying against Nik felt oddly familiar. That was when I suddenly had a flashback: I glimpsed memories of times, back when Nik and I were children, then rebellious teenagers and even in most of our early adult lives; when we both would routinely sleep in this position together after a long day or after a hard working day. Whether it be in the green sprawling meadow or leaning against a log around a warm campfire … and I couldn't believe that I had forgotten this favorite past-time with my beloved boyfriend.
I smiled, feeling a bit better than I had before I remembered this positive memory. Maybe after another few hours' sleep, I might have a better answer to give Nik.
Both Nik and I shot up in bed, bleary-eyed and alarmed about an hour later (I happened to glance over at my alarm clock), because somebody was thudding loudly on my bedroom door.
"Get up, you two! I'm starting to get bored!" It was Rebekah. Both Nik and I groaned in annoyance before flopping back down on the bed and spooning together. I attempted to drown out her whining by pulling my pillow over my head. Nik chuckled in amusement, and cuddled in closer.
"Then go find something to amuse yourself, sister." Nik suggested with mock irritation.
"I have, and she's currently lying in there with you." Rebekah retorted. "Seriously, Nik. You can't monopolize Grace to yourself." I rolled my eyes at their slightly childish bickering, but at the same time smiled at their antics; it was bringing me some comfort and reminding me of home a thousand years ago. I let out a surprised 'eep' when my boyfriend suddenly wrapped a very warm and strong arm around my waist. I could feel my whole face burning up in embarrassment.
"I can and I will. I've been waiting a thousand years for her, and I have a lot of catching up to do." Nik teased, before dropping gentle kisses on my shoulder and attempting to fall asleep again, while Rebekah moaned in frustration.
"Oh, my God! Do not start up with the sibling rivalry. This is one thing that I have not missed in a thousand years." I grumbled, fighting my way out of Nik's grasp. He playfully put up a fight, before eventually letting go and sitting up also. I got out of the bed and stomped my way over to the bedroom door, wrenching it open to glare half-heartedly at my sister. "Okay, I'm up. Now where's the fire?" I asked her, earning a perplexed look in return.
"What fire?" Rebekah asked, confused.
"Exactly." I replied, letting out a large yawn as I padded through the living room towards the kitchen and clicking on the kettle. I noticed Henrik, fully dressed in a pair of baggy grey jeans, a Rock n' Roll T-shirt and boots, lounging on the couch in the middle of watching cartoons on the flat screen. He had a dirty great big grin on his face, which told me that he was thoroughly enjoying his brother and sister's antics like it was a sideshow attraction.
"'Morning, Grace." Henrik greeted me, with a sunny smile. I waved back in greeting, unable to respond properly due to a rather large obnoxious yawn expelling from my mouth at the same moment. I reached up for the cabinet above the kettle and tugged down two mugs, putting a teabag in each.
"I'll actually have a coffee, love." Nik interjected casually as he wondered into the kitchen and wraps his arms around my waist, dropping another kiss on my cheek. I nodded absently, and replaced one of the teabags back in the holder. I noted that he had slightly damp hair from a – ridiculously quick – shower and was now dressed in blue jeans, a black Henley and boots. A pair of rosary beads dangled lazily around his neck, and I automatically reached up to grab the silver wolf tooth he had given to me as a gift around my own neck; a gesture that earned an affectionate chuckle from Nik as he started rubbing my arm with his thumb. Rebekah and Henrik came over to perch around the island bench; both focusing on me as I spooned two generous teaspoons of coffee granules into Nik's mug.
"So how are you feeling this morning, Grace?" Rebekah asked, worried. I winced a little, before putting on what I assumed would be a brave face before replying honestly.
"I wouldn't count on any miracles, but I'm okay at the moment. I swear." I responded with a tight smile. Both Rebekah and Henrik managed a weak smile in response, but said nothing else. "So what's on the agenda this morning?" I asked, trying to change the topic away from my wellbeing as the kettle finally clicked off and I walked over to retrieve it and the milk.
"Well, I'm going to get the ball rolling with reuniting our family." Nik was the first to answer. Rebekah's eyes lit up like Christmas lights when she heard this.
"Really? Honest to God, Nik?" She asked, hopeful.
Nik smiled, "Of course. Daddy is dead; it's time for a family reunion." The smile dropped when he noticed Henrik's face suddenly pale. "What's wrong with you?" He asked, curiously.
"Oh, uh, nothing I swear. It's just, I'm worried about how Elijah, Finn and Kol are going to react when they see me again." Henrik admitted, uneasily. I handed Nik his coffee and took a generous sip from my tea, allowing the caffeine work its magic.
"You and me both, pal." I piped up, smiling at him to make him feel better. Henrik looked unconvinced. "But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." I reassured him. Then something occurred to me that I nearly forgot to tell Nik. "By the way, there's something that Henrik, Bekah and I nearly forgot to tell you." I said, walking back over to my DVD collection and rummaged around the shelves until I located where I had stashed the silver dagger after we saved Rebekah from being 'daggered' by Elena to get her out of the way, before everything that went down with Mikael. Nik frowned the second he saw the silver dagger.
"Where did you get that?" He demanded, looking suspicious.
"You should be directing that question to Elena Gilbert. Henrik and I witnessed her 'daggering' Rebekah last night when she was preparing for the Homecoming Dance." I replied, dully. Nik took the dagger from me, and I noticed Rebekah looking at it nervously; especially because it was in Nik's hands, as he was notorious for being dagger happy whenever he was particularly angry. Or so Elijah had told me previously, before Nik came to break his curse, months ago.
"Why the hell would she do that? I thought she believed that Rebekah was on her side against me, with Mikael." Nik looked a combination of confused and angry that his sister had been 'killed'.
"She said that she didn't trust that Bex would've suddenly turn on them at the last minute and sided with you." Henrik filled in the gaps.
"Good thing that Henrik and I were there to save her." I added, quietly and smiled when Rebekah squeezed my hand in gratitude. Nik was quiet, and that usually was never a good thing; as that meant that he was plotting something.
"So. What are you doing today, Grace?" Rebekah asked, returning the subject to what we were discussing before, presumably to distract her brother from his scheming; and apparently it was my turn to give an answer. I shrugged, walking towards my room still sipping away at my drink.
"I'm gonna go for a run. Helps me keep my mind off things." I said. "Anyone want to come?" I asked, not expecting any takers.
"Sure. Sounds like fun." Nik agreed, and all three of us looked at him in surprise. "Along the way I can check up on something." He added. I smiled and nodded.
"Sounds great. I'll be right back." I said, and disappeared into my room to get changed into my working out gear. I was still questioning what he was playing at; because Nik had never shown any interest in going for runs, recreational or otherwise. I eventually reckoned it was probably Nik being overprotective again and didn't want to waste an opportunity to spend some time with me.
I immerged dressed in a pair of tight black leggings, black sports bra, an old oversized purple tank top, brown hoodie and a pair of black and white sneakers, and I had fixed up my fly-away ponytail. I picked up my phone, keys, wallet and iPod and shoved them into the deep pockets of my hoodie before striding up to Nik who had been waiting patiently. Rebekah had disappeared; presumably back into her room and Henrik was reading one of my books.
"All good, love?" Nik asked, warmly.
"Yep. Shall we?" I replied, returning the smile a little. "See you later, Henrik!" I called back to him, and the fifteen-year old ghost absently raised a hand in the air in acknowledgement.
The run I had with Nik quickly turned from being weird and unheard of, to fun and enjoyable as we shared stories about what we had been up to in our thousand years apart. Although, most of Nik's stories were kind of gruesome, so we didn't dwell on those for very long. Part of me just hoped that Nik's unexpected decision to go for a run with me, wasn't so that he could scope out what Elena's typical everyday routine was and figure out a little bit of revenge, or lay down a warning against crossing him and threatening his family members.
Then, much to both my surprise and Nik's, Elena turned the corner of the opposite side of the street we were running down at that moment; iPod in her ears, and oblivious to the world around her. Surprisingly, Nik let her be. I had half-expected him to have ordered her head on a silver platter for being that brazen, the second he had learned that story from his younger siblings and me.
Eventually, I seriously needed to stop. My lungs were burning and so were my muscles. I did run occasionally, but I had been a bit slack and it was going to take a few more running sessions to find my stride again.
"Are you alright?" Nik asked, concerned; probably because of how red I had gotten. I nodded, taking in deep breaths to get my breathing under control.
"Fine. I enjoy the adrenaline rush. It's just been a while since I've ran." I responded, stretching out my muscles and enjoying the warmth shooting up and down my muscles and bloodstream. "I'll be good in a few minutes." I promised. Nik smiled.
"Take your time." He said.
"What was it that you wanted to check up on, Nik?" I asked, curiously.
"You remember the truck we traveled back to Mystic Falls in a month ago?" Nik asked, and I nodded.
"You mean the one that had those four coffins that you were transporting back here to Mystic Falls from Chicago, and where you snapped Stefan's neck twice when it turned out that he was fishing for information?" I reminisced, casually.
"That's the one." Nik confirmed.
"What about them?" I asked, a little disinterested. Nik wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled along down the street.
"Just going to check to see if they're in good condition after their long journey." He explained.
I shrugged, "Fair enough. Are we going there now?"
He nodded, "Hope you don't mind?"
"Why should I mind? This is your business, not mine. I know better than to question your good judgement, sweetie." I responded, raising an eyebrow at him and earning a kiss to the temple. Nik lead me towards where he had stashed the truck, and just as he was about to open the roller doors; his phone rang unexpectedly. Nik immediately answers it after briefly looking at the caller ID.
"Stefan! Miss me already?" He chirped, immediately catching my attention. I raised an eyebrow at him, and he accessed loud speaker; surprising me with that much trust.
"I'm just calling to thank you for my freedom." Stefan replied back. I frowned; something didn't seem right here. I noticed Nik tensing up also, smelling a rat like I was.
"Oh, I like to believe I'm a man of my word, more or less." Nik said, breezily.
"Yeah, well. The thing is, it came at too high of a price." Alarm bells started pealing in my head. "You took everything from me, Klaus." Stefan stated, causing Nik to frown in annoyance.
"Let bygones be bygones. Trust me, resentment gets old." Nik suggested, as he passed his phone to me and approached the roller doors on the truck to unlock the bolt holding it shut.
"You know what never gets old? Revenge." Stefan sounded almost triumphant, as Nik finally gets the door to slide up … and reveals that the back of truck was completely bare of all four caskets.
My mouth fell open in shock, "Oh shit…"
"No." Nik muttered, in horror. Then I noticed the color rising on Nik's face as the realization set in exactly what happened.
"What's the matter, Klaus? Missing something?" Stefan taunted him.
"What the hell are you doing?!" I demanded, dreading the answer.
"Is that you, Grace? Hmm, should've expected that. Well, if you must know; I'm just enjoying my freedom." Stefan sounded positively giddy, and Nik abruptly turned and snatched his phone back from me.
"I will kill you and everyone you've ever met!" He vowed, furiously.
Stefan snorted at the threat, "You do that, and you will never see your family again." All the blood drained from my face at the thought that I wouldn't see Elijah again, or reunite with both Kol and Finn; both of whom I hadn't received any memories of just yet. Nik snarled, but apparently Stefan wasn't finished. "I wonder, Klaus, as someone who has been one step ahead for a thousand years … are you prepared for this?" The phone went dead, and I suddenly felt sick.
Behind me, Nik let out an enraged scream; which caused me to maintain some distance from him. I wasn't stupid enough to approach him to attempt to calm him down. Mostly because I was just as ropeable as he was. But also, I wasn't suicidal. Thinking fast, I grabbed my phone from my pocket and accessed speed-dial; stabbing immediately on Damon's name.
"Missing me already, Grace?" Damon's cocky voice answered after a couple of rings. I rolled my eyes, not in the mood for 'flirty Damon' at present.
"I kinda need you to be serious right now, Damon. I've got an enraged Hybrid boyfriend right now, and I really need your help." I urged him, impatiently.
"Enraged? What's happened? Are you in danger, Grace?" Damon sounded alert.
"I'm fine. The only person you should be concerned about is your oh-so charming baby brother." I answered, tersely. "Tell me, Damon. Do you know the current whereabouts of Stefan by any chance?" I asked, getting straight to the point. This got Nik's attention if the sudden warmth at my back had any indication. I glanced back at him in alarm, but he nodded at me in reassurance that he had his temper under control for the time being. I relaxed a little.
"Not since yesterday when your boyfriend gave him back his freedom, then he disappeared. Why?" Damon asked, sounding wary and long-suffering.
"Well, Stefan managed paint a giant bullseye on his back this morning when he pinched Nik's family from the back of his truck." I explained.
"He did what!?" Damon exploded, causing me to hold the phone away from my ear.
"Geez, lower the decibels!" I grumbled back at him.
"Why can't we catch a break? It's just one crisis after another around here." Damon bitched, ignoring what I had said. I rolled my eyes, as Nik growled and started pacing again. He was truly acting like an agitated wolf at this moment.
"Yeah, if it doesn't rain it bloody pours around here." I agreed before sighing. "So I take it by your reaction that you haven't the faintest idea where Stefan is?" I prodded.
"No, I haven't got a clue. But if I do find him, and I'm gonna kill him. He just landed me in the shit with Klaus again." Damon yelled.
"No, actually. You're off the hook. Nik's not gonna come after you for information." I confirmed.
"Huh? How do you know that?" Damon asked, surprised. I glanced back at Nik who was now currently on his own phone, yelling down the line at some poor sod called Tony – probably one of his hybrids – for some assistance.
"Because a) you helped out last night with taking down Mikael; which in Nik's eyes means that you're not a threat and therefore can be trusted. And b) your reaction just now, indicated that Stefan orchestrated this on his lonesome; and therefore you were completely ignorant of any threats towards him and the rest of the Mikaelson's." I clarified.
"Oh. Well, that's good news, I guess." Damon sounded taken aback.
"Listen, where are you going to be today?" I asked, as Nik hung up his phone and looked at me for an explanation. I waved him off.
"I'm supposed to meet Alaric at the Grill to 'regroup'. Why?" He asked.
"Nik's gonna be retaliating big time, and thus we will need a plan to figure out how to get the coffins back to avoid Nik's wrath." I said.
"Okay. Well, I'll keep an eye out for the both of you then. Thanks for the heads up." Damon stated. I scoffed, feeling like I owed him another piece of information to help him avoid another headache.
"Yeah, well don't thank me yet. Unfortunately, I have something else to tell you, just so you're forewarned." I stated, tiredly. "This morning; Rebekah, Henrik and I revealed to Nik that Elena 'daggered' Rebekah last night to stop her from attending the dance yesterday." I confessed.
"What?! Why? Why would you do that, Grace?" Damon moaned.
"Because now as a result, Elena also has a bullseye painted on her back; and is likely to run to you for help when she realizes the danger she will most likely be in. This will give you the chance to figure out how to deal with it." I explained.
"Again … thanks for the heads up, Grace. Like I didn't have enough to deal with." Damon grumbled. I protested when Nik took my phone from my hand and started talking into it.
"Nik?! What are you doing?" I yelled. He ignored me, turning away so that he could address Damon properly, knowing that I wouldn't be able to hear what my best friend was likely to say back to him.
"Why don't you just say 'thank you, Grace for being so generous with the information' and actually be grateful, mate?" Nik suggested, bluntly. He paused, listening to what Damon said and frowned in annoyance. "I'd watch yourself, Salvatore. You've already used up your 'get out of jail free' card already when Grace gave you this heads up. Don't push your luck." Nik snapped, before hanging up and handing me back my phone.
"Thanks for your help, Nik." I said, sarcastically.
"You know that I'd do anything for you, sweetheart." Nik replied sincerely, obviously aware of the sarcasm in my voice and not caring. "Now, enough chit chat. We've got our work cut out for us." He said, shutting the roller door on the truck and locking it.
"Hell hath no fury on an Original Hybrid scorned." I quipped underneath my breath, as I followed him back to my apartment.
It didn't take long to get back to the Apartment, especially by how fast Nik was walking … and by 'walking' I actually mean cantering. So by the time we actually got back, Nik was no less angry and I had gotten an unwanted second workout just trying to keep up with him.
I was definitely going to feel it a few hours from now.
I felt the anger radiating off my boyfriend in waves as I let us back into the apartment; and Nik strides past me, making a beeline for my bedroom the second the door was open, not even casting a glance towards his bewildered and concerned brother and sister as he went.
"What's wrong with him?" Rebekah asked, eying my bedroom door that Nik had just slammed shut. "Did you two have a row?" She narrowed her eyes at me, disapprovingly. I just gave her a flat look in response.
"Hardly. Nik and I made an unpleasant discovery that affects all of us." I replied, sighing heavily. "You have Stefan to thank for that."
Henrik frowned at me, "Why? What did he do?" He asked.
"He stole Elijah, Kol and Finn from the moving truck last night the very second he had been liberated from Nik's control." I elaborated, not bothering to tell them about the mysterious fourth coffin; which I had absolutely no clue who could be residing in it.
"He did what?" Rebekah shouted, angrily.
"You heard me, Bex. Apparently, this is his revenge against Nik for taking everything from him during this past summer." I stated.
"I think I might actually kill him." Rebekah muttered, sounding mystified. My bedroom door opened, revealing Nik who had changed clothes again due to his own workout. He walked unusually calm towards the kitchen and helped himself to some scotch. I ignored him, but both Rebekah and Henrik watched him warily, like he was a cobra seconds away from striking out.
"Yeah well, join the club. I think Nik gets first dibs." I stated, dryly. "Excuse me, I need to take a shower. I'll be back shortly." I said, walking towards my room. Minutes later, I stepped out; dressed in black skinny jeans with a studded leather belt, a purple paisley blouse that was tight around the bust - showing off the 'girls' – and a pair of simple everyday socks.
I saw Henrik lounging lazily on the couch watching cartoons, with Rebekah sitting beside him flipping through a magazine and looking thoroughly bored out of her skull. But I was alarmed when Nik appeared to be missing.
"These paintings are wonderful, darling." I turned to see Nik examining the painting of him and his brothers and sister from a thousand years ago, with an artistic eye. "But why are Kol and Finn's faces blank?" He repeated the same question others before him had. I smiled and approached him, wrapping my arms around his waist.
"Because I haven't regained my memories of them yet." I said, grabbing Rebekah's attention as well. "Since I returned to this wretched town and reunited with Elijah, I knew that there was a very strong chance that I could potentially reunite with everyone else. So I made a pencil sketch of all of you, and then copied it onto canvas; filling in your faces when I finally reunited with each one of you and got back my memories." I explained, feeling like a broken record but not minding in the slightest. I beamed at the smile that spread across Nik's face, as he raised one of my hands to his lips.
"And which one is your favourite piece?" Nik asked, gesturing to my artwork decorating the brick walls of my apartment, curiously.
"I've got two actually." I admitted, breaking away from him and wondering over to the painting I had copied from my sketchbook of the memory of myself, Nik and Rebekah sitting around in the meadow from long ago; laughing and looking to all intents and purposes innocent and carefree. Nik followed. "Remember that?" I asked him, and Nik studied it with curiosity as Rebekah set aside her magazine and got up to stand beside her brother to look at the painting also. Then a brilliant smile spread across her face.
"I remember that day. It was just before we were changed into vampires." Rebekah marveled, before looking at me with a quizzical expression on her face. "Why did you decide to paint this?" She asked.
"To remind myself of the simpler times we all shared before all of this happened." I replied, feeling melancholy. "Whenever I'm feeling particularly lonely or upset, I see this painting, remembering when we used to genuinely laugh, joke, complain and actually be human. And then I'd remember that I wasn't truly alone, and that I'd always have two of my favourite people in my thoughts." I confessed. Both Nik and Rebekah looked surprised and touched.
"What's the second painting, love?" Nik reminded me. I reached up and carefully pulled down the painting of six-year old Elijah, two-year old Nik and baby me, and handed it to my boyfriend and Rebekah who peered down at it.
"This painting I created not long after Elijah came back into my life, after Rosemarie and Trevor kidnapped Elena, Henrik – before he became corporeal – and me to bring us to you." I said. "Painting it, helped me remember bits and pieces of my earlier life, back when it was partly Elijah's responsibility as the elder sibling to look out for us, and how close we were." I said to Nik, who didn't say a word, but looked like he had sort of withdrawn into himself. Seeing this, I decided to change the topic.
I knew that Nik loved the fact that I was an artist like he was. But I remembered too late that showing him a painting of a time when he and Elijah had had a close relationship, one that lasted up until his big brother helped Mikael tie him to a cross as part of the Hybrid ritual, would hurt him. Rebekah gave me a hard, disappointed look and shook her head at me for my lack of tact. It was obvious to the both of us by Nik's body language that he wished that he and Elijah could have that sort of relationship again. But until then, they were divided.
And I felt like a bitch for reminding him.
I replaced the portrait back onto the wall before turning to look at Nik with guilt on my face. "I'm sorry, Nik. Forgive me." I pleaded, avoiding direct eye contact with him. I felt him raise my head with his index finger hooked underneath my chin, and I was forced to look him in his beautiful, but deeply troubled blue-green eyes.
"There's nothing to forgive." He reassured me, smiling a little, and earning a surprised look from Rebekah which he ignored. I sighed with relief, then grew nervous when he smirked mischievously.
"What?" I asked. Nik started walking towards the shelf where I kept all my DVDs, books and games; still not saying a word. "Niklaus Mikaelson, you tell me what you are up to, right now!" I demanded, suspiciously. Then let out a surprised 'eh?' when he pulled out Twister from amongst my collection of games. Rebekah blinked at it in confusion while Henrik cheered and vaulted over the couch to join us.
"Fancy a game? You did promise, you know." He reminded me of the day I sent him a multimedia text message of when Stefan was playing a literally bloody game of Twister with a group of sorority girls from the nearby Duke University. I grinned at him.
"You're on." I said, grabbing the box from him and taking out the multicolored spot mat and unfurling it onto the ground, before placing the cardboard spinning arrow beside it. Nik and Henrik toed off their boots, as Rebekah watched us all; still completely confused.
"What is the purpose of this game?" She asked. I walked over to my sister and pulled her over to where the mat was.
"The board with the arrow gives us our directions." I explained. "There are four colors, obviously. So whatever the arrow points towards, you have to touch with either your hand or foot." I said. "For example…" I flicked the arrow and it spun rapidly before landing on 'right hand blue'. "All of us have to place our right hands on one of the blue spots." I explained. Rebekah nodded, understanding so far.
"You want to play?" Henrik asked his sister, excitedly. She nodded before hesitantly taking off her heels and setting them off to one side. It only took a few spins of the arrow before Rebekah caught on, and pretty soon she was having just as much fun as Nik, Henrik and I were. Until one spin that Henrik made, which landed on 'left foot green': We all made our move; and I ended up in a position that closely resembled how one would 'crab walk'.
We were all laughing at the awkward positions we were all in … until I noticed just exactly how close Nik and I were in proximity to each other. The laughter between us died out slowly as we stared into each other's eyes, and I looked back at the seductive, tender gaze Nik was giving me. He was leaning over me, both of us in a rather intimate position, and I could feel the warmth of his body against mine. I felt a red hot bolt of desire in the pit of my stomach that caused me to immediately turn bright red, and I lost my balance falling onto my back. Which disturbed Nik, Henrik and Rebekah, causing them to fall like a tower of cards. I disentangled myself from them and quickly got to my feet.
"Uh, good game." I stammered. Henrik sat up, and looked at me curiously.
"You okay?" He asked, still laughing a little. I smoothed back my hair behind my ear.
"Yeah, absolutely." I lied, trying and failing not to look at Nik who at first, looked just as confused as Henrik did. But it didn't take long for the pennies to clatter when he finally understood my current state of fluster. Then he smirked seductively, winking for effect. I rolled my eyes at the flirtatious gesture, and the fact that he was stirring the pot, and headed for the kitchen to get a drink of water. Just then, Nik's phone started trilling loudly; annoying him before he realised who the caller was.
"Hello Tony. Did you succeed?" He asked, all business-like. He got up and wondered into another room.
"I saw that." I jumped when Rebekah snuck up behind me, with a shit-eating grin on her face. I decided to play dumb.
"Saw what?" I asked, innocently.
"How you reacted during the game." Rebekah explained, and I scowled defensively and turned away, continuing to sip at my water. "Hey." Rebekah turned me around to face her, and I saw the pleased, but slightly confused look on her face. "What is wrong?" She demanded, a no nonsense look on her face. I paused, trying to figure out the best way to explain myself without feeling like a fool or possibly acting like one in the eyes of my far more experienced sister.
"Well, um, I'm still a…" I trailed off, feeling embarrassed. But it seemed like Rebekah understood what I was trying to tell her, and she immediately hugged me.
"Oh, sweetheart. You do realise that Nik won't care that you are a virgin still, right?" She pointed out, sounding sympathetic, and I looked at her with astonishment.
"He doesn't?" I mumbled, with wide eyes. Rebekah laughed, hugging me again.
"Oh, God no, darling. If anything, knowing this will only inflate his ego and please him to no end that he will be your first and only." She said. "He loves you, Grace. The very last thing that Nik would want to do is hurt you or reject you, if he's spent his entire lifetime searching and hoping. But, you will know when the time is right, and when that time comes; you will know how much he cherishes you." Rebekah promised me.
"Thank you, Bekah. You don't know how much that means to me." I told her, hugging her tightly.
It turned out that 'Tony' had been given the assignment to keep an eye on Elena, and report back to Nik on what she did. Next thing I knew, all four of us were headed for the Mystic Grill. My best guess would be so that Nik could intimidate Elena, out of revenge against her for 'daggering' Rebekah, and to get back at Stefan at the same time. Rebekah and I went ahead first to grab a table for us all, and so I could catch up with Damon after our conversation with each other this morning.
The very first thing I noticed the second we stepped into the restaurant were Elena and Bonnie sitting at a booth, talking, and not too far away from them was Damon, perched at the bar with Alaric who was doing some marking. I relished in how pale Elena's face became the second she saw Rebekah, who glared at her. I could tell she was just itching to rush over at her and rip the doppelgänger's head off her shoulders for stabbing her in the back.
Thankfully, Rebekah curbed the impulse.
"Rebekah?" Both she and I looked up at Matt Donovan who had tentatively approached the booth we had nabbed, looking guilty and remorseful. "I'm sorry, I ran off last night. I didn't mean to ditch you like I did." He apologized, probably expecting Rebekah to be angry with him.
Rebekah instead smiled, "I know you didn't. I have no hard feelings towards you." Matt visibly relaxed.
"I'm glad. Maybe we can do it again sometime?" He asked, looking hopeful.
"It's a date." Rebekah agreed, smiling warmly at him. Matt nodded, before excusing himself to get back to his job.
"Aww!" I teased, giggling. Rebekah gave me a half-hearted scowl.
"Shut up, Grace." She scolded me. "Don't you have something to do?" I glanced over at Damon, who was looking at us with a raised eyebrow. I smiled and waved at him, before sliding out of the booth.
"I'll be back in a minute." I promised, as Rebekah haughtily waved her hand at me in dismissal and started scanning through the menu. I rolled my eyes and sauntered over to where Damon and Alaric were talking with each other. Damon had different alcohol bottles in front of him, while it appeared that Alaric was only half-listening to what he had to say. I caught the tail-end of their conversation as I approached:
"Oh, I give you a choice. Bloody Mary or Screwdriver. Brunch in a bottle." I rolled my eyes. "Come on Ric, I can't drink all this by myself. I mean I can but then somebody's getting naked." Damon waggled his eyebrows at me suggestively, as I flushed red and scowled at him. "Oh man, I can't believe you're making me drink alone." Damon bemoaned. Alaric rolled his eyes as he continued grading essays.
"I'm busy. " Alaric responded, absently. "Hey, Grace."
I smiled, "Hey!"
Damon draped an arm around my shoulders.
"It's the eve of Klaus-ageddon." Damon pointed out, and I was about to scowl at him before I realised he was keeping up appearances in front of Elena and Bonnie, who were probably expecting feedback from him about Nik. "You're doing homework?" He indicated towards the essay Alaric was just about finished putting a failing grade on. Alaric let out an annoyed sigh.
"This may come as a shock, but I am not here to hang out with you. I'm here to see Jeremy." He glanced up at the wall clock above the bar. "Who is an hour late for his shift." He revealed. Damon didn't look surprised.
"Kids today … where are their values?" He remarked, clicking his tongue sarcastically. Alaric slides one of the essays he had been marking across the counter towards Damon and me, and I picked it up to read who the essay belonged to: Jeremy Gilbert.
My eyebrow rose in surprise at the big fat 'F' Alaric had written in red.
"That's his mid-term paper. Copied straight off the internet. Didn't even try to hide it." Alaric sounded extremely disappointed, and I didn't blame him. I know that I only met the kid once, but Jeremy didn't seem like the type who would plagiarize his midterm on purpose. What the hell was going on here?
"Ooh, somebody's getting grounded." Damon sounded amused, but one glance at his face; suggested to me that even he was concerned about Jeremy's wellbeing. Just then the same female bartender that had been serving Damon and Alaric before I arrived walked up.
"Did you say that you were waiting for Jeremy? As in Jeremy Gilbert?" She asked, curiously. The three of us exchanged glances between us.
"Yeah?" Alaric responded, frowning a little. The bartender looked uncomfortable.
"He was fired last week." She reported to him, before moving away to attend to another customer. Alaric sighed with frustration, as Damon glanced at him awkwardly.
"Oops?" He stated. But I was confused about something.
"Wait, shouldn't Jenna be dealing with this? Why did you need to know?" I asked Alaric, who looked pained and a bit upset.
"Oh, yeah. You didn't know." Damon looked sheepish, and I scowled at him. Alaric laid a hand on Damon's arm, eyeing him off warningly.
"After Klaus freed himself from his curse, Jenna didn't want anything to do with us. Mostly, because we didn't bother to tell her about the supernatural, and the fact that Elena was going to be sacrificed, and that she had almost been sacrificed. So she skipped town, haven't seen her since." Alaric explained, sounding dejected. I bit my bottom lip. "Since then, I sort of took it upon myself to take care of Elena and Jeremy. I've been sleeping at their place." He added.
"Oh. Well, I'm sorry to hear that. My sympathies to you." I responded.
Alaric shrugged, "It's all in the past. Can't do anything about it." He told me, and turned in the direction of where Elena was sitting with Bonnie, and noticed that both girls were looking right at us. Bonnie was glaring at me and Damon, and Elena was ignoring me in favor of focusing upon Alaric and Damon, while shooting Damon suspicious looks as well. I glanced over at Rebekah, who was looking at me with a mixture of concern and impatience.
"I better get back to Rebekah. Talk to you later, Ric." I said. Alaric nodded absently before packing away his schoolbooks, and making his way towards the door after explaining the situation to Elena; whose suspicious face instantly turned angry. She immediately got onto her phone; presumably to yell at Jeremy. Like yelling at the kid was going to make a difference. I turned to Damon, who had his back to Elena and co, and smiled sadly at him. "Come over when you can?" I asked. Damon grunted in agreement, before taking another swig from his drink and then getting up from his stool and sauntered over to the dartboard.
Rebekah looked unimpressed and highly bored as I slid back into the booth across from her.
"Doppelbitch looks pretty upset. What did the history teacher have to say to her?" Rebekah observed, curiously. I eyed her with surprise.
"You're asking me? I thought you had advanced hearing and could hear across rooms?" I said, and Rebekah grinned.
"I can, but I'd prefer to hear it from you. It's more fun that way." She confessed. I snorted in amusement.
"Apparently her brother, Jeremy, was fired from here last week. Elena is obviously not happy about this." I relayed, indicating to a now pacing Elena who was hovering around the dartboard, presumably to bitch to Damon about her problems.
Poor bastard.
"That's the big drama?" Rebekah sounded unimpressed and rather annoyed, as I shrugged.
"With Elena, anything not going her way is a big drama." I told her, as we observed Elena losing her shit over the phone. A few minutes later, Henrik came in and started scanning the place for us. I raised a hand to signal to him and he grinned and hurried across the room to our booth; passing by Elena as he went and throwing her weird glances.
"What's wrong with her?" He asked, sliding into the booth beside Rebekah and turning to watch Elena getting increasingly frustrated, before eventually hanging up her phone and turning her attention towards Damon.
"Nothing special. She's just pissed that Jeremy got fired from his job here and has apparently been goofing off a lot." I explained to him, dully.
Henrik looked blank.
"That seems a tad melodramatic." He observed. Both Rebekah and I snorted.
"You don't know the half of it." I said. "Where's Nik? Is he still coming?" I asked, curiously. Henrik nodded.
"He'll be here soon. Last I saw of him, he was talking with one of his hybrids." He replied, disinterestedly.
I nodded, "That 'Tony' guy?"
"I guess." Henrik shrugged, then turned towards Rebekah who was studying Damon and Elena intently with a serious expression on her face. "Can you tell us what they're saying?" He asked, curiously.
"It's not really important. Mostly she's just whining." Rebekah looked unimpressed. "I swear, Tatia is quickly becoming my preferred doppelgänger out of the three of them." She observed.
"Really? I can't tell the difference." I disagreed. Then really gave it some more thought. "Okay, I take it back. Katerina had more self-preservation than Elena does, but Tatia did not exactly flaunt herself scandalously to get her own way like both Katerina and Elena." I thought back, wrinkling my nose at the memory.
"Because her mother would've had her guts for garters if she did. I doubt that she or Tatia would've wanted a repeat performance of what happened the last time she was that trashy. Her reputation was already tarnished, if you can recall?" Rebekah pointed out, flatly.
"Vividly. Little bitch had the nerve to flirt with Nik, even when it became obvious that we were courting. Thank god it's not the case now." I said, sourly.
"That's all in the past now, Grace. Let's focus on the here and now, alright?" Rebekah suggested.
"Can you translate the conversation for us, sister?" Henrik asked, still curious. Rebekah sighed, heavily.
"If I must. Give me a moment." She said, focusing intently on Damon and Elena.
~:Conversation between Damon and Elena:~
"Unbelievable!" Elena yelled, angrily. Damon lined up his next shot.
"You are feisty when you are mad." He observed, before launching the dart at the board.
"It's not that I'm mad. I'm just-I'm worried." She stated, biting her bottom lip fretfully. Damon turned and looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Why? He lost his job at the Grill. He'll survive, Elena." He reassured her, not seeing what the problem was (and quite frankly, neither could Henrik, Rebekah and I).
"He's spiraling." Elena insisted, stubbornly. "Ever since Bonnie broke up with him, he is moody. He's not really talking to anyone." She said.
Damon shrugged, "Typical teenager."
"Who sees ghosts and has lost everyone that he cares about." Elena pointed out, and I frowned. So, Jeremy is a medium now; interesting. Perhaps I should chat with him, medium to medium? Might potentially be able to convince him that Nik isn't the bad guy that Elena is making him out to be. Damon gave Elena an almost smile.
"Not everyone. He still has you." He told her, as he shoots another dart. He curses as he misses his mark, then heads over to the dartboard and retrieves the darts. Elena frowned at him curiously.
"You okay?" She asked.
"What makes you think I'm not okay?" Damon asked, a little defensively. Elena folded her arms across her chest, looking unimpressed.
"Well, you're day drunk. It's not exactly your most attractive look." She pointed out, and I blinked at her words. Now that Elena had pointed that out, I did notice that Damon was slurring his words a little. What was eating him?
Damon smirked, "Hmm- what is my most attractive look?" He moves closer towards Elena, who immediately takes a step back away from him.
"I'm not saying you have any attractive looks. I'm saying this is my least favourite one…" Elena explained, but Damon instantly cut her off.
"Noted. See if I can make any improvements." He said, and I chuckled at him little; realizing that he was taking the piss with Elena.
~:Back with Rebekah, Grace and Henrik:~
Halfway through listening to Rebekah relaying Damon and Elena's conversation to us, Henrik kicked me in the shins and I grunted in pain and glowered at him.
"What was that for?" I growled. Henrik pointed towards the main entrance in reply, and I glanced up saw Nik come into view with who I assumed to be 'Tony' following him obediently. Rebekah sighed.
"It's about bloody time." She bitched, and we watched as Nik quietly approached both Elena and Damon. Only Damon seemed to be unconcerned by his unexpected presence.
"Don't mind me." Nik said, casually. Elena immediately stiffened the second she sees him.
"Klaus." She greets him, looking cautious. Damon on the other hand smiled politely at him, throwing Nik off a bit and giving him a slightly suspicious look.
"Hey, Klaus. Pleasant afternoon?" He enquired, earning a scandalized look from Elena, who hadn't been expecting this kind of reaction from Damon in regards to Nik.
"You're not going to start something here are you?" Elena questioned him, wary. Nik continued smiling at her with a pleasant, unassuming smile.
"I don't know what you are talking about. I just came down to my local pub to grab a drink with my girlfriend, my brother and sister, and a mate." He responded, as 'Tony' walked by Elena, causing the girl to pale instantly. She seemed to recognize him, and I groaned in realization that Nik had obviously sent his hybrid to intimidate Elena. "Get a round in, would you Tony?" He instructed. Tony nodded, giving Elena an equally unassuming smile before heading for the bar. Nik walked calmly towards our booth with a smirking Damon following close behind. It was obvious that he was enjoying the shocked look on Elena's face. Elena followed them reluctantly, and stopped dead in her tracks when she spotted Rebekah sitting in the booth, glaring hatefully at her.
"But how…?" Elena stammered, looking confused and fearful. I offered her a deceptively kind smile.
"How is Rebekah sitting here and not daggered where you left her?" I asked, chatty-like. "Glad you asked. You see, you forgot one very important thing last night when you literally stabbed my sister in the back." I noticed Nik bristle a little. "Me. Lucky that Henrik and I were in the right place at the right time." I told Elena, who scowled at me. "Suggest you watch your back for a while, Elena. Rebekah isn't too happy with you right now." I stated, brightly. Elena opened her mouth to retort when Damon jumped in to change the subject; eying me a little sternly for stirring the pot.
I shrugged in response.
"To be honest, I'm surprised that you stuck around town long enough for happy hour. Would've thought that you'd have taken Grace and skipped town already." Damon admitted.
"There's no rush for that just yet." Nik replied. "Are you that eager to get rid of me so soon, mate?" He questioned Damon, who shrugged.
"Nothing like that. Just stating that if I were in your position, I would have hauled ass outta town the second the danger was gone." Damon stated, honestly.
"Truth is, I've grown to rather like your little town." Rebekah, Elena and I looked at Nik, like he had grown a second head. But he ignored us. Mystic Falls may looked seemingly perfect and a nice town to live in, but it attracted all sorts of supernatural dangers. "Think I might fancy a home here. Oh, I imagine you're wondering how this is to affect you." He looked pointedly at Elena, who glared back. "The answer is: not in the slightest. As long as I get what I want and everyone behaves themselves you can go on living your little lives however you choose. You have my word." Nik said, reassuringly.
Elena didn't look convinced.
"What more could you possibly want?" She demanded. Nik narrowed his gaze on Elena, who drew back a little.
"Well for starters, you can tell me where I might find Stefan." He asked, bluntly.
"Stefan skipped town the second he saved your ass." Damon reported, looking a bit worried. Nik looked disappointed; a very bad sign, something that Rebekah told us when she described how a vampire's emotions were heightened when they were first changed. She told Elena and me that Nik's temper was heightened, as was his lack of tolerance for those who disappointed him.
"Well, you see that is a shame." He admitted, taking a dart from Damon and throwing it; getting a bulls-eye. "Your brother stole from me. I need him found so I can take back what's mine."
"That sounds like a 'Klaus and Stefan' problem." Elena stated, dismissively. Both Rebekah and I flinched at her insolent tone, as Nik suddenly turns and moves for Elena. Her brown doe eyes widened as she threw an alarmed look at Damon; obviously expecting that he'd come to her rescue. When he didn't, she looked shocked. Nik smirked.
"Ha. Well, this is me broadening the scope, sweetheart." Nik told her as he wonders over and slides into the booth beside me and kisses my cheek.
After a couple of rounds at the Grill, Nik and Damon decided to take this discussion of how to deal with Stefan's thievery back to the Boarding House. Elena had left the Grill ages ago, presumably to go lick her wounds or to go and bitch to Alaric and come up with another 'brilliant' plan to somehow get rid of Nik. Rebekah and Henrik opted out of the discussion, and I was about to follow their example. But one look from Nik, told me that he wasn't going to let me out of his sight, just yet. So it looked like I was going along with them as well.
Oh, joy…
At the Boarding House, Damon pours himself a drink before turning around to see Nik casually observing all the artifacts that the Salvatore Brothers had collected over the years; which gave the mansion its distinctive museum-like atmosphere.
"Drink?" Damon held up a glass of scotch at me, and I nodded. I had the feeling that both of my boys were about to start a pissing contest; as neither of them were particularly happy that they had to share me, or the fact that Stefan was putting a spanner into the works and making everybody's lives miserable.
And I was going to need a lot more drink to help me deal with this bullshit. Damon pours the three of us a drink each, and hands Nik and me a glass each.
"L'chaim." I thanked him, absently taking a sip as I stared into the crackling flames of the massive fireplace.
"Bless you?" Damon looked at me strangely, while Nik chuckled. "What's so funny?" Damon demanded of him, looking annoyed.
"Grace was speaking in Hebrew." Nik explained, amused. "It means 'to life'."
Damon nodded. "Oh."
"Cheers, mate!" Nik raised his glass at the both of us, as Damon reciprocated the gesture.
"Down the hatch." Both of them sipped at their drink, before attempting to make pleasant conversation. I guessed it was for my benefit; of which I was grateful.
"You know, we've actually got a lot in common, you and I." Nik observed, casually.
Damon nodded.
"So Grace told me." He said, gesturing towards me from where I was perched casually on the armrest of one of the Salvatore's red couches. Nik looked at me quizzically, and I smiled and shrugged. "Maybe we can bond over our mutual loathing of my brother. So he really stole your brothers?" Damon looked amused.
Nik scowled, "Unfortunately." He confirmed. "I had them daggered, boxed-up, and awaiting the day when I saw fit to wake them. And he went in and pinched the bloody lot." Nik swallowed the rest of his drink, wincing only slightly at the burn he probably got.
"Of course he did. Such a buzzkill, my baby bro." Damon stated.
"Would you please help us find him?" I asked him, coolly. Damon glanced at me and then at Nik, before sighing.
"Well, I'd love to find him." Damon admitted. "Trouble is, I sure as hell don't work for you." He stated to Nik, stubbornly.
"Damon…" I groaned, warily. I set aside my glass and started massaging my temple, feeling the onset of a headache beginning. Nik, noticing this, wondered over and wrapped an arm around my shoulders comfortingly; allowing me to lean against him.
"You know, your drink stinks of vervain – so I can't compel you." Nik mused, just barely holding onto his patience. It had been getting thinner and thinner with every passing hour that the remainder of his family were missing from his possession. "There would be no point in killing you, because you're actually the one with the most help of getting me what I need. And because Grace actually enjoys your company – how escapes me completely."
"Hey?!" Damon looked a little offended by that comment.
"I was going to follow through on a demonstration to make it clear that I was serious when I told you to find Stefan, as apparently you people only respond best to displays of violence." Nik confessed, and I scowled at him.
"What did you do, Nik?" I asked, sternly. He ignored me.
"So we're – (he gestures between himself and me) - going to ask you one more time: would you help us find Stefan? Or do I follow through anyway?" Nik threatened. I momentarily forgot about this 'demonstration' that Nik had cooked up, long enough to look at my best friend beseechingly to cooperate. Damon scowled at me, probably for putting him in this position, before sighing.
"Fine." He acquiesced. Looking strangely triumphant, Nik immediately pulls out his phone and calls someone.
"Hey there! So, that thing I told you to do … why don't you go ahead and forget what I said?" He instructed. "Good man." He chirped before hanging up.
A/N: Finished another chapter. Hope you enjoyed this one, and please review.
The next chapter will be out soon. TTFN xx.