A/N: Welcome back, guys!
Happy New Year, and let's hope 2020 will be an awesome year! I hope you enjoyed the last chapter.
I do not own The Vampire Diaries. All characters (except for Grace) belong to author L.J. Smith.
Please review respectfully with your thoughts, and please, no flaming.
Enjoy xx
PLAYING WITH FIRE
"I need someone who sees the fire in my eyes and wants to play with it."
~Unknown.
~: Founder's Hall :~
Nik and I were driven by one of his many hybrids to the Founder's Hall, where the Wickery Bridge Fundraiser was going to be held. By the time we got there, night had almost certainly fallen and already the place was packed with people attending the function.
Including, all the Founding Family representatives of the Council.
I decided to follow Nik's lead, since he was technically the mastermind of the whole reason why we were here (otherwise I'd have rather remained back at the mansion watching that promised movie with Henrik and Rebekah, eating my weight in junk food, while talking smack about the people who were giving us all the shits lately).
The very first thing Nik did when he first set foot in the place, was reach for a glass of champagne and plucked a second one off and handed it to me with a casual flourish. I accepted it without hesitation and took a generous sip from it, as Nik placed his hand on the small of my back and lead me deeper into the gathering crowd, to schmooze and locate Carol Lockwood so he could put the next part of his plan into play.
That was when I spotted both Damon and Alaric walking side by side up towards the entrance. They seemed to be in a very animated conversation with each other; and judging by the frowns and looks of concern I could see on both of their faces, the topic wasn't a particularly nice one. Nik's arm tightened around my waist, drawing my attention.
"There she is." He said, taking a sip from his champagne as he indicated towards a smartly dressed Carol Lockwood, dressed in a tailored cream coloured suit jacket and skirt, with a crisp white blouse and matching cream pumps. The woman was working the crowd surrounding her with the fakest 'politician' smile I had ever seen.
"So is Damon, and Alaric." I indicated over to the oblivious pair who were paused in the front doorway, still talking.
Nik glanced at them both before rolling his eyes and removing his arm from around my waist with great reluctance.
"Just be careful, sweetheart. Don't invite trouble." He urged, sounding vulnerable but wearing a mask of indifference on his face, despite knowing that I could be potentially in a whole lotta danger tonight.
Story of my lives, honestly...
I nodded, not bothering to argue with him about the possibility of trouble finding me. Because the same bad feeling I had been experiencing all day had not abated in the slightest.
"I won't." I promised, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek (earning a warm smile from him in return) before making my way through the crowd towards Damon and Alaric. I hadn't made it within a few feet of them before I could clearly hear their conversation. (But that might've been because of how loudly the background music was playing, that they needed to shout to be heard).
"I thought Stefan saved your life." Alaric was saying, and I paused frowning at the memory of watching Damon slowly deteriorating on his bed at the Boarding House when he had been affected by werewolf venom. It was actually the combined efforts of both Stefan AND myself that he had been saved.
Damon nodded, still frowning. "He did."
"And now he is willing to risk it just to see how far he can push Klaus?" Alaric listed the facts, sounding disgusted.
"It seems so." Damon confirmed.
Alaric looked a combination of disgusted, but also extremely confused. And to be honest; I was too. "So is his humanity on or off?" He asked.
"I think there is another option at play." Damon stated, and I raised an eyebrow. I couldn't wait to hear this theory. "A dimmer switch, which is a huge problem."
"Why?"
"Because I can't predict how far he is willing to go until someone gets killed." Damon confessed, looking stressed. What exactly went on after he dropped me off at the Mikaelson Mansion this afternoon, to cause my best friend this must stress and anxiety? Even Alaric looked dubious.
"So, suddenly you care who lives and dies?" He smirked. Thankfully, Damon knew that Alaric was just taking the piss and not intending any offence.
"I have a small list." Damon smiled, as his eyes suddenly flicked in my direction and he nodded in greeting. I grinned back and saluted him with my champagne flute before taking another sip. I decided that it was safe to approach now.
"Talk about a humanity dimmer switch." Alaric teased.
"Screw you!" Damon was unamused. Alaric began to rubberneck around the party as I almost reached them.
"Can't a Council meeting ever just be a Council meeting?" He asked, tiredly.
"Is that what this was?" I piped up, drawing Alaric's attention. The older man looked surprised to see me here, but offered a small smile and nodded in acknowledgement. "And here I thought it was just a plain old boring fundraiser to update the town's rickety old bridge." I teased, poking my tongue out at Damon when he narrowed his eyes warningly at me. "Silly me."
"Where's Klaus?" Damon asked me, when Alaric was out of earshot.
"Probably still trying to find Carol. Wouldn't be surprised if they're already talking as we speak." I clarified.
"Great..." Damon drawled, unenthusiastic. I rolled my eyes at him.
"Would you just relax already? You already know what Nik's purpose here is. Just pray that Stefan doesn't go and fuck it all up, and ignite Nik's foul temper." I said, mentally crossing fingers that that did not happen. Damon and Alaric escorted me towards a nearby model of how the town wanted Wickery Bridge to be restored. My best friend grimaced.
"That's the bridge where Elena and Jeremy's parents died in the car accident." Damon decided to share with us.
"Is it really?" I said, sardonically. Damon elbowed me in the ribs just as Alaric changed the subject.
"Which reminds me. Something is up with her. Elena. Something more than usual. You know what it is?" Alaric asked Damon. However, I filled in the question; since I needed to tell Damon exactly what Stefan had done this afternoon and the consequences of said actions.
"Pretty sure it starts with a 'Stef' and ends with an 'an'." I said, earning a frown from Damon who had been about to open his mouth and respond. "BTW, Stefan paid a little visit to Nik this afternoon. Probably a little after we finished with our business at the old witch place." I informed Damon, who immediately stiffened.
"What did he do?" Damon asked, sounding both resigned and anxious.
"Basically threatened Nik with the destruction of his hybrids if he didn't call them off." I replied, earning a groan from Damon.
"And naturally, Klaus refused; like the dick he is." Damon guessed.
"Ignoring that last part, but yes. That's pretty much what happened." I confirmed.
"And how did you know this? Pretty sure that Stefan wouldn't have said anything if he knew you were there." Damon questioned.
"Eavesdropped. Which would've worked if Stefan hadn't come out and spotted me, before demanding to know what I knew about their conversation. And..." I hesitated, making Damon narrow his eyes at me.
"What did he do?" Damon demanded, already predicting the worst.
"He grabbed my arms very tightly – there was a perfect black and blue hand print on both my arms afterwards – and shook me violently." I replied, watching Damon's cerulean blue eyes turn hard and flinty like an iceberg.
"Of all the stupid things to do, Grace." Damon muttered, annoyed. "What happened next?" He asked.
"Nik came out, told him to let me go and then broke his wrist. Which only served to provoke Stefan even further and he decapitated one of Nik's hybrids." I responded, shuddering at the memory.
Damon swore, and looked like he needed a stiff drink or to break something … probably both. Then Damon looked at me, with dread on his face.
"Let me guess, Klaus retaliated?"
I really wanted to tell him 'no', that Nik decided to let it all go so we could all deal with one drama at a time. But I couldn't.
Stefan brought all of this upon himself, and unfortunately, he was bringing Damon down with him. You never messed with someone who could potentially hold your nuts in a vise, if they so desired. You especially don't mess with somebody whom said person prizes above everything else (INCLUDING his hybrids) and not expect to get away with it scot-free. (And if you think I'm stroking my own ego by saying this; you'd be wrong...)
"Yep. Big time." I confirmed. "Partially why we're here. So I'm just giving you a heads up." I said.
"Gee, thanks." Damon radiated sarcasm, but his eyes reflected gratitude behind all the anger and frustration.
"That's what friends are for, Damon. Remember that." I didn't hesitate to tell him. "You might also want to keep an eye on Caroline too." I muttered that part underneath my breath before taking a sip.
"What? Why?" Damon asked.
"Nik ordered Tyler to bite her." I responded. "He naturally refused, but you never know." I said, apologetically. Damon sighed, before turning towards a concerned looking Alaric.
"I'm gonna get a drink, write a check and then we're out?" He suggested to Alaric, who nodded. "Thanks." Damon smiled a little at me, before spotting Nik talking with Carol Lockwood. "Shall I go and make nice with Klaus then?" He asked me.
I shrugged, "Up to you. But I'll come with."
Damon and I excused ourselves from Alaric who was quickly approached by an unfamiliar woman. My eyes narrowed when I noticed that Carol was in full flirt mood with Nik; but thankfully my love did not seem to be flirting back. In fact, he looked rather repulsed but managed to keep a polite smile on his face as he laid on the charm.
"You know Carol when I think of a mayor I think of an old fuddy-duddy, but you really have changed my perception." Nik stated to her, causing her to beam at the praise.
"Oh, thank you!" Carol fawned over him, but immediately frowned when I quickened my step towards them both and took Nik's hand when he reached out for me without looking away from her. He really drove the disinterest home towards Carol when he wrapped an arm around my waist and kissed my temple.
"Hello, love." He murmurs to me, before returning his attention back towards Carol. "May I assume that you know my girlfriend, Grace, Carol?" Nik asked politely, but with a wicked smile on his face when he noticed Carol's obvious annoyance and disappointment that he was already taken.
"Yes, we've met once. How are you, Grace?" Carol asked, smiling and glaring at me at the same time. I didn't miss a beat, and returned the 'compliment'.
"Very well, thank you. You've really outdone yourself with this party." I stated, with a saccharine smile and tone that Rebekah would've been proud of. Nik chuckled underneath his breath and squeezed me to show his appreciation. Carol reluctantly accepted the compliment and made to change the subject.
"Yes, well. The mayor's work is never done." She said, haughtily.
"I mean you are just delightful!" Nik continued to insincerely compliment her. "What colour are your eyes?" He wondered, just as Damon finally caught up with us.
"They are blue." Carol sounded confused by the question. Nik examined them.
"Oh yes, they are." He smiled, compelling her with a silent message to relay.
"Look what the cat dragged in." Damon greeted Nik, who narrowed his eyes slightly at his greeting. I glanced behind when I could sense a presence, and noticed that Daniel had shown up; presumably waiting for his instructions.
"Thank you very much, good to see you, Damon." Nik greeted him with a pained smile on his face. "Carol and I were discussing about whether you would be the other big benefactor." Carol immediately addressed Damon, obviously reacting to whatever Nik had compelled her to say.
"What do you say Damon?" She wheedled. "Klaus has made a very generous pledge. You know how we're chomping at the bit to begin the renovation." Carol explained to him, and I raised an eyebrow and looked at Nik questioningly. I didn't think that he'd be spending money on this.
Damon looked disapprovingly at Carol, "Don't take this the wrong way, but do you realise that you've been kissing the ass of an immortal hybrid who ruined your son's life?" Nik pretended to look affronted by the accusation, even though every word Damon had said was entirely true.
"Oh, come now. Some would say that I saved him from all that nasty full moon business. I've never had to go through it myself more than twice, to be honest, but still, I'm very sympathetic." He argued.
Damon looked like he wanted to retort with: 'yeah, I'll bet' but I quickly widened my eyes at him and tried to subtly shake my head to stop him from doing so. Damon sagged, but reluctantly agreed to behave himself. Carol continued talking, oblivious to the brief pantomime performance between Damon and myself.
"Klaus has promised to protect Tyler, Damon. And our town." She told him.
Damon raised a sceptical eyebrow, "From who?" He gestured towards Nik with his thumb. "His hybrids are the ones the town needs protection from." Except for the nicer ones like Emma and (up until she had been killed) Mindy. Daniel was okay, but tended to be more a 'yes man' and got kinda nervous around Nik due to his temper.
"Well, I'd have no use for them if your brother would kindly return my family." Nik responded, still with a sardonic smile on his face. Damon looked Nik dead in the eyes, which caused my boyfriend to falter slightly and subtly raise a questioning eyebrow at him.
"Not gonna happen." Damon stated with a pleading look in his blue eyes, trying to translate to my boyfriend that while he'd be all too willing to just hand his brothers back over to Nik, no questions asked, it wasn't going to be an easy task when it came to Stefan and his personal vendetta.
Nik's smile fell slightly, and his blue-green eyes narrowed. He very obviously did not like that answer, and both Damon and I knew that. But he surprised us both by nodding very, very subtly and very reluctantly at Damon. But he still had to be the hard-arse he had been projecting to the world for the last thousand years; so he responded with:
"That's what I thought, which is why I've come to an agreement with the Mayor. You and the Council stay out of my hair, I stay out of yours. Your town gets protected, my hybrids get left alone and everybody will be happy. All you have to do is get Stefan to stop decapitating my friends." Nik 'compromised', tightening his arm around my waist.
"Please Damon, just get your brother under control, or the Council will be forced to take action against him." Carol added.
Damon looked aghast, "You've gotta be kidding me!"
Nik takes a sip from his champagne, a look of triumph on his face, "Oh, come on mate. Give peace a chance."
Damon groaned in frustration before walking away, disappearing into the crowd.
Something moved within my peripheral vision, and I automatically glanced in that direction. My eyes widened in shock when I spotted Stefan, darting through the crowd. He looked like a man on a mission.
"Everything alright, love?" Nik asked me, concerned.
I turned back to him and offered him a reassuring smile. I needed an excuse to go and investigate Stefan's unexpected presence here, and one glance at the champagne I was still in the process of drinking gave me in the inspiration I required.
"Fine. Nature's just calling." I responded, drinking what was left in my champagne flute before handing it to a passing waiter. "Please excuse me." I said, kissing Nik chastely on the cheek before breaking away and heading in direction I had last seen Stefan walking in. However, it appeared that Stefan had either seen me coming or I had lost my sense of direction entirely, because he had completely disappeared.
Stumped, I gave up the useless searching and headed for the upstairs bathroom. I pushed open the restroom door, unintentionally interrupting a conversation between two women, whom immediately scowled at me. I rolled my eyes and darted quickly into a nearby stall, just barely managing to get my knickers down in time. The conversation I had interrupted resumed in low murmurings, but I tuned it out trying to figure out the reasons why Stefan would've come here to the fundraiser if his mind was completely focused upon getting back at Nik.
Coming up with nothing, I tuned back in and realised that both women had already left the restroom. So I quickly finished and flushed before walking back out of the stall and over to the large, fancy vanity mirror and grimaced at my tired face, and at the slightly smeared eyeliner and mascara.
Real attractive.
Sighing, I washed my hands then splashed my flushed and sweaty face with water to help myself cool down and refocus. After patting my face dry, and a quick eyeliner and mascara re-apply, I walked out of the bathroom and back towards the staircase to rejoin the conversation Nik was feigning interest in, or to go and find Damon.
Something shatters in a nearby room, and I frowned, debated with myself about whether or not I should investigate or ignore it and rejoin the party. I chose, and against my better judgement, found myself walking over to where I could hear a struggle taking place in a room with a closed door.
I pressed my ear up against the door, and waited.
"What are you doing?" My eyes widened when I recognised Stefan rudely addressing somebody in the room with him.
"What are you doing? No dead hybrids at the Founder's party!" It was Damon.
So that's where he disappeared off to. He must've spotted Stefan either before or after I did, and like me, decided to go and intercept him.
And by the sounds of it, Stefan was not at all pleased.
"No, I told Klaus to get his hybrids out of town. He didn't listen, so I'm gonna say it louder." He retorted, angrily.
"You don't think there's ten more where that came from? And if you kill them, Klaus won't make twenty more?" Damon pointed out, sounding at his wit's end. "Have you forgotten about Elena's part in all of this? Or do you not care if she is a human blood bag for the rest of her life?"
Stefan sneered at his brother, "Protecting Elena is your problem now. See, I'm not compelled by Klaus to do that anymore."
There was another loud thud; which I imagined was probably Damon shoving Stefan up against the wall to prevent him from leaving the room.
"Don't give me that no-humanity crap, you can't just flip your switch!" Damon yelled at him. "Your switch is fried, Stefan, just like your brain! You wanna take Klaus? You wanna beat the villain? You gotta be smarter!"
Some more muted movements, then: "To beat the villain, Damon, you have to be the better villain." Stefan told him.
Suddenly, footsteps began approaching where I was currently standing; and not wanting to be caught in the same situation again, with no Nik to come to my rescue, I quickly darted back into the ladies room.
I forced myself to count to ten before, cautiously, re-emerging into the hallway. I sighed with relief and turned in the direction of the staircase, only to thud into a hard body. I gasped out of shock and found myself staring into Stefan's cold face. I opened my mouth to scream, to at least alert either Damon or Nik to my danger; but Stefan quickly puts his hand over my mouth and blurs me away.
~: Stefan's Car :~
A few minutes later, I found myself sitting in the passenger side of Stefan's red car; feeling disoriented and questioning what he was about to do.
"Stefan?" I blurted out, confused. He ignored me, put his car into gear and immediately took off for the highway, driving at a very reckless speed. "What are you doing, Stefan?" I demanded, nervously.
Suddenly, my phone rings and before I could answer it, Stefan snatches it from me and answers instead.
"Hello Damon, she's a little busy right now." Stefan wasted no time setting his brother straight.
"Why the hell do you have Grace's phone?" I could clearly hear Damon's voice from where I was sitting, and I stared at Stefan in absolute horror.
"I'm making my next move." Stefan responded, bluntly. "Let me ask you something: what will Klaus do if his long-lost sweetheart suddenly goes missing without an explanation?" He asked rhetorically as my mouth fell open with shock. This was the bad feeling I had been dreading all day. I had an inkling when I noticed the look Stefan gave me back at the Mikaelson Mansion when Nik stopped him from hurting me and had broken his wrist in retaliation.
"What?" I yelled.
"Stefan, leave her out of this." I heard Damon shouting desperately at Stefan, who responds by rolling down the window and throwing my phone out of it, onto the road below.
"You're using me as leverage against Nik?!" I immediately saw red. I grabbed the door handle and made to unlock it, with the intention of barrel rolling out of the car if I had to, in an effort to get as far away from Stefan as possible. However, the vengeful vampire backhanded me across the face – causing my nose to gush with blood – and deadlocked the car; leaving me at his mercy.
I turned on him, cupping my face with my hand; letting the blood pool in my palm as I glared at him, "Stefan, let me out of this car. Do you hear me? Let me out of the car!"
Stefan chose to ignore me as he continued driving towards our unknown location.
~: Founder's Hall (No P.O.V) :~
The second the line went dead, Damon swore colourfully and nearly threw his phone against the wall in his anger. But he somehow managed to stop himself in time, and instead shoved his phone back into his pocket and raced back inside the mansion; in search of the only person who could stop this potential disaster from happening.
He eventually found Klaus in the middle of a conversation with Carol and a bunch of other guests. But he also observed that the Original seemed to be somewhat distracted and worriedly glancing about the room, searching for somebody.
Oh, this is not good... Damon thought, despairingly. "Klaus," The Original Hybrid turned towards him, and narrowed his eyes at the younger male in annoyance.
"Back so soon, Salvatore?" He smirked, mockingly. Damon barely acknowledged the slight, much to Klaus' suspicion.
"May I have a word?" Damon requested, as politely as he could underneath the obvious frustration and anxiety he was exuding at present. Klaus raised an eyebrow, but nodded. He turned back to a curious looking Carol and offered her his best disarming smile.
"Please excuse me for a moment. There's something that needs my attention." He said, with false sincerity. If he was being entirely honest; he was somewhat relieved that this baby vampire had pulled him away from the otherwise dull conversation. But he wasn't about to let Damon know that, obviously. He walked into another room, with Damon following closely; gesturing to a nearby empty room. "What now? You just pulled me away from a fascinating conversation about landscaping the Town Square." Klaus demanded, as Damon immediately shut the door behind them.
"Stefan just grabbed Grace." Damon got to the point.
Klaus immediately froze and his hands clenched into fists. It appeared that his last warning to his former best friend had gone in one ear and out of the other.
"Well, he's getting desperate. I had half-expected him to go after Elena." Klaus admitted, just barely holding onto his temper.
"Stefan knows how important Grace is to you, Klaus." Damon reminded him. "He gonna try and use her against you. Do what he says, get rid of your hybrids." He urged, pleadingly.
Klaus shook his head, "Or what? Stefan won't kill her. He knows the consequences should he attempt that route."
"You're going to gamble her life just to prove a point?" Damon sounded outraged. Almost immediately, Klaus grabbed him by the throat and shoved him up against the wall.
"How dare you!" He snarled, his eyes turning hybrid gold at the mere suggestion. "I've spent nearly a thousand years trying to find her again after Mikael slaughtered her in front of me. I would not jeopardise a future with her."
"I'm serious." Damon wheezed, trying to pry Klaus' hand away from his throat. "He just tried to behead someone in the middle of a Council party. He's operating on crazy right now." He insisted.
Klaus squeezed his throat a little tighter, "Well, crazy or not. He's bluffing."
"Maybe he is, maybe he isn't. But if you don't want to believe him, believe me. I know my brother better than anyone, and right now, I don't have a clue how far he is willing to take this." Damon admitted, helplessly. "So if he says blink, I suggest you blink."
Klaus snarled in frustration, before releasing Damon who dropped to his knees; gasping for breath that he didn't really need.
~: Stefan's Car (Grace's P.O.V) :~
I watched the scenery outside my window practically blur by as Stefan continued driving along the road. His behaviour had been concerning before, now it was downright scaring me and I glanced over at the speedometer, only to gape at him in horror when I saw that he was going way too fast.
"So what's the plan, Stefan? What's the big move you're making?" I asked him, not expecting him to actually answer me; since he was seemingly deaf to my pleas for him to stop and let me get out of the car. To my surprise, he answered.
"I took Klaus' family to make him suffer. I think that it's high time, that I finished the job." Stefan stated, darkly.
I stared at him with dread, "What are you gonna do? Lock me in some cave and keep me hostage?"
He scoffed, "Now why would I do that?" Stefan increased the speed before continuing to speak. "I think driving you off Wickery Bridge is more likely to drive the point home, don't you?"
I suddenly felt sick...
"Stop the car, Stefan!" I shouted, fearful for my life. "I mean it! Stop the car!" Stefan continued to ignore me and reached into his pocket for his phone, accessing speed dial. "Please, Stefan! I don't want to die!" I screamed.
"Stefan, how nice to hear your voice." Nik stated, sarcastically. I saw my chance and immediately yelled out to him.
"NIK!" I hollered, ignoring when Stefan glared at me. "NIK, HELP! HELP ME!" Stefan instantly slammed his hand over my mouth and held tight when I struggled to free myself.
"Tell your hybrids to get out of town, Klaus." Stefan ordered him, still effortlessly fighting with me to stop me from calling out again. I whimpered in fear; and judging by the wolf-like snarl that came over the line, Nik obviously heard me.
"Well, that's not gonna happen until I get my coffins, AND Grace back." Nik gave his rebuttal.
"Okay, well then I'm gonna drive your sweetheart off Wickery Bridge." Stefan told him, casually.
"I don't believe you Stefan. You won't kill her." Nik insisted. Stefan pressed his foot further down on the accelerator, and I started to panic even more and managed to pull Stefan's hand from my mouth.
"No! No! No! Please, stop! STEFAN!" I wailed, tears threatening. Stefan slowed down very slightly.
"What's going on?" I could hear Damon in the background, sounding incredibly concerned.
"Oh, hey Damon. You're just in time to hear Grace take a little plunge over Wickery Bridge." Stefan explained, casually.
"WHAT? Jesus, Stefan! Don't do this!" Damon yelled, frantically.
"You won't do it." Nik promised him, sounding livid.
Stefan chuckled, "Really? Try me, because your coffins are next to go. Say goodbye to your family, Klaus!" He snarled, before flooring it.
I screamed at the top of my lungs, "Oh, God! Stefan, slow down! Stefan! Stefan, stop it!"
"Klaus! Do something!?" I heard Damon snarl at my boyfriend, as I clung for dear life to the passenger side door, and shut my eyes tightly in my fear.
"Nik! Damon! I love you, both." My voice broke, tears streaming down my face. "Tell Rebekah and Henrik that I love them too!" I yelled over the roar of the engine as the car continued thundering towards the bridge.
"Fine, I'll send them away! You win!" Nik's hard voice shouted. However, Stefan did not immediately stop.
I screamed in absolute terror...
"STEFAN! STOP, DAMMNIT!" Damon snarled.
"Stop the car, Stefan!" Nik screamed, urgently.
Stefan slams on the brakes and the car skids to a stop, just yards away from the bridge. I forced up the lock on the door and immediately stumbled out of the car and started to run back towards Mystic Falls, uncaring that Stefan could easily catch up to me in a heartbeat.
"Get back in the car." Stefan growled, stepping out of the car also. I stopped running and spun round, glaring hatefully at him; and wondering why Elena was wasting her time trying to bring Stefan back.
He was clearly a lost cause.
"You stay the hell away from me!" I yelled back at him, tears still streaming down my face. Stefan ignored what I said and took a deliberate and very threatening step towards me.
"Grace, I said: get in the car." He repeated himself.
"Are you hard of hearing!? I already told you no!" I screamed back at him. "Why me?! I was not a threat towards you, Stefan. I thought that we were friends!?" I demanded.
Stefan sighed in irritation, and I itched to slap his face. He raked a hand through his brown hair, before turning to give me an explanation.
"Look, he had to believe that I would do it, alright? Your fear sold it." Stefan insisted.
"Your plan was flawed from the very second you abducted me from the fundraiser, Stefan. Nik would never let anything happen to me, and you know it!" I stated.
"You're very sure of yourself." Stefan retorted.
"Hardly. If Nik did not care about me, he wouldn't waste his time on me." I told him, like it should've been obvious.
"You are his weakness! That's why I kidnapped you, Grace. Through you, I can destroy him!" Stefan shouted at me, and I looked at him with pity.
"After everything, that's what mattered? Destroying my boyfriend?" I was stunned.
Stefan looked away. "Destroying Klaus is all I've got left." He started walking back to his car, and was about to get back into it when I spoke up at the last minute to remind him of something.
"What about Elena?"
Stefan paused, tensing. "I lost her the minute I left town with you and Klaus. She just hasn't let herself admit that yet."
"Is that seriously what you're doing? Trying to make her hate you?" I was disgusted. Stefan raised his head to look at me with his cold, empty forest green eyes.
"I don't really care what she or anybody else thinks about me any more, Grace." He paused for a moment. "I'm sorry that I scared you."
Stefan then gets back into his car and drives off. I watched him go, until I couldn't see his taillights anymore.
A few hours after Stefan had abandoned me on the side of the road, nearby the Wickery Bridge, I was sitting on the banister staring off into space. Silent tears were still falling down my face, when I realised exactly how close I had come to dying [again] tonight.
That was probably why I didn't notice when Damon's car pulled up to the bridge, or when somebody came and sat down beside me, until a hand reached over and wiped away a stray tear. I jumped and looked at the person intruding on my solace.
"Grace? Are you okay, sweetheart?" One look at Damon's extremely concerned face was apparently all I needed to completely break down. He pulled me into his arms and kissed the crown of my head, and I automatically wrapped my arms around his middle; clinging to him like a lifeline. "Shhh, Grace. It's okay I've got you, you're safe now." He promised me, still sounding angry.
"Where's Nik?" I whispered.
"Waiting for you in my car." Damon responded, indicating towards the idling 1969 baby blue Camaro Convertible. It took a few minutes to compose myself before I pulled back and wiped my eyes. I smiled at my best friend, gratefully.
"Thank you, Damon." I turned and headed for the car, knowing that Damon was following. As I got closer to the car, the passengers side opened and within seconds my face was buried in Nik's dark silk button-up as he crushed me to his chest, and I winced when I could feel warm blood dripping out of my (up until now) healed nose. Damon respectfully continued walking towards the drivers side and got in, closing the door behind him to give Nik and I some privacy.
"I love you too." Nik murmured into my hair, and I frowned before remembering that at the height of my fear I had said my goodbyes to both Nik and Damon. I smiled, and tightened my arms around him.
Suddenly he sniffed and immediately pulled back, starring at my face. His eyes narrowed dangerously at the blood. "You're bleeding."
I sighed, rubbing uselessly at my nose.
"Yeah. Can we get out of here? I just want to get away from the bridge." I admitted, pinching my nostrils closed. Nik nodded and lead me over to Damon's car. "Sorry about your shirt." I winced, causing him to roll his eyes fondly.
"Please, love. This shirt has seen its share of bloodstains over the years." He confirmed. I grimaced at the thought.
"I don't think I wanna know..." I joked, earning a chuckle from him.
"That's too bad. I still look back on those days with fond memories." Nik teased back with a playful smirk, and handed me a handkerchief.
I smirked when the handkerchief immediately reminded me of Elijah; who after dealing with something bloody – such as removing hearts – would always meticulously, with a calm, composed expression on his face, remove his clean white handkerchief and slowly and deliberately wipe his hand clean. I wondered when we would ever be getting him, Kol and Finn back safely.
Sliding into the backseat, followed by Nik who immediately cradled me into his side and kisses my temple; Damon puts his car into gear and swiftly turns it around and takes off back into town.
"About that." Damon indicated to the blood I was dabbing and wiping away with the hanky, as he eyed me through the rear view mirror, looking stern. "How in the hell did you get a blood nose in the first place?" He wanted to know.
I grimaced, "Stefan backhanded me when I tried to escape." I said, without hesitation. Nik stiffened and growled, while Damon slammed on the brakes; which nearly threw me onto the floor of the car.
"What?" Damon exclaimed, looking at me with outrage.
"You heard me; and you can relax, it's not broken. It'd be bleeding a hell of a lot more than it is, if that was the case." I stated, getting irritated as I dabbed at my nose.
"That's not the point. He's clearly gone crazy." Damon stated, turning back round to resume driving.
I was concerned that Nik hadn't spoken up about the fact that I had been backhanded across the face yet. That was never really a good sign; which usually meant that somebody was about to either be seriously maimed or killed. However, that really didn't occur to me as I was too busy scoffing at Damon's rather unfair description of his brother's sanity.
"He's not actually. An insane person wouldn't have stopped the car, despite Nik and you telling him to. I'd be on the bottom of the river by now." I pointed out. "Ow, Nik..." I protested when Nik's hand gradually tightened around mine, during my explanation, to the point that it was getting painful. I glanced up at him while pulling away my hand to flex my fingers.
Nik was starting to morph into 'hybrid-mode' and my eyes widened in horror.
"Holy shit..." Damon muttered and his sky blue eyes grew wide when he saw the predatory golden eyes and the points of Nik's wolf fangs starting to jut out from underneath his top lip. He stops and pulled over once again, ready to leap in and defend me should the need arise.
However, I abandoned the hanky and immediately put both my hands on Nik's face and tried to get him to focus on me.
"Wait, Grace...!" Damon objected and I threw a stern look at him.
"No, Damon!" I hissed, not looking away from my boyfriend, feeling concerned and very scared that my experience with Stefan had caused him to react this way. "Nik, please calm down. It's not worth it, I promise you." I said, slowly and lovingly stroking his face. "I'm fine. Look at me." I persisted with clear, succinct words.
Nik obeyed what I said without hesitation, scanning over my face presumably to reassure himself that I was as 'okay' as I had proclaimed myself to be. He was shaking badly, and his chest was heaving. The sound of fabric tearing caught our attention and both Damon and I glanced down and noticed that Nik's fingernails had become longer and sharper; like a wolf's and had ripped scratches into his jeans; like he had been clenching and unclenching his hands into fists. I felt a bead of my blood slowly trickle out of my nostril, and Nik's hybrid eyes zeroed in on it before I could hastily clear it away.
"Klaus..." Damon began to say when he noticed his interest in my blood. But Nik let out a low growl, warning him to be quiet and I looked at him reassuringly.
"It's okay, Damon. He won't hurt me." I told him, grabbing the handkerchief and wiping away the blood. I put the hanky away and cupped Nik's face once again and leaned forward to kiss his forehead then his closed eyelids as Nik struggled to calm his raging temper. "Come back to me, Nik..." I whispered, still leaving small kisses on his face. Slowly, Nik started calming down and his eyes went from golden back to blue-green, and the wolf fangs receded back into his gums. "Welcome back." I smiled at him.
"I'll be goddamned." Damon muttered, uncomfortably clearing his throat as both Nik and I turned to look at him; Nik still scowling. "Now that we know that Klaus isn't about to go on a rampage, is there any place you'd like me to drop you at?" Damon asked, rather impatiently.
"The Forbes Residence." Nik immediately piped up before I had the chance to speak. He unbuckled my seat belt and pulled me onto his lap, burying his face into my shoulder. Both Damon and I looked at him with confusion. "I have something that I need to address." He mumbled, as he continued squeezing me like a vulnerable child would with a teddy bear.
"You're the hybrid." Damon said, trying to sound flippant and failing dismally as he resumed driving. It was obvious that he was shocked by the rapid changes in emotion Nik had just gone through in the past few minutes. But you could tell that he was also curious about what Nik was up to. I on the other hand knew exactly why we were making this brief detour on our way back to the Mansion.
"Tyler bit Caroline, huh?" I realised, then scoffed when Nik slowly nodded. "Just like you said that he would."
"Go ahead and condemn me." Nik said, sounding defensive. I sighed and hooked a finger underneath his rugged chin, forcing him to look me in the eye.
"I was there when you gave Tyler that order to bite her, Nik." I reminded him. "If I didn't yell at you then, why would I do it now?" I asked him, and smiled at him. Nik tentatively smiled back, before hiding his face back into my shoulder. "Let's just go and save Caroline."
Damon rolled his eyes.
~: Forbes Residence :~
It took the entire ride over to Caroline's place for Nik to completely calm down from his rage. But even after we arrived, Nik was still very reluctant to let me leave his side. Our hands were clasped together tightly as he lead me down the path towards the Forbes' white painted front door.
I reached up to rap my knuckles on the door. But before I could make contact, the door opened revealing an extremely worried Matt Donovan, who the very second he saw Nik, glared at him.
"Grace? What are you doing here?" Matt asked, curiously. It was becoming rather obvious that the blonde quarterback was also suffering from a lack of sleep, if the slight bags underneath his eyes gave anything away. I smiled, and raised my hand (the one not being held in an iron grip by Nik) in the air as a sign of peace.
"I'm here helping Nik on a mission of mercy." I explained, awkwardly.
"Or rather, Tyler came to see me." Nik corrected, as he came up to stand beside me; fixing Matt with a painfully polite smile on his handsome face. That only made Matt glower even further. "Poor boy, he seemed quite distressed. He said Caroline had a terrible accident." He stated, looking falsely apologetic.
I elbowed him in the side, knowing that he was deliberately stirring the pot to get a rise out of Matt, whom despite the bitter breakup he had with Caroline, still quite honestly cared deeply for the bubbly blonde vampire. Nik's response to this was to raise our clasped hands up his lips and kissed the back of mine, affectionately. I assumed that this was his way of saying 'sorry'.
Matt looked unimpressed, "You made him do this to her. He would have never done something like this." He insisted, folding his arms across his chest.
"I'm here to help, Matt." Nik stated, sighing tiredly and starting to become serious now. "My blood will heal her. Please, ask the Sheriff to invite me inside."
As though summoned, Liz appeared at the door; eyeing Nik and I with deep suspicion and caution.
"I know how this game works." Liz stated, "You want something in return."
"Just your support." Nik responded, squeezing my hand; a sign that he was becoming irritated, and I glanced up at the Sheriff with what I hoped was a pleading expression on my face.
"Please, we're not here to cause trouble. We just want to come inside and give Caroline the cure, then go home." Liz raised an eyebrow at me, looking mildly concerned by the tone of my voice. "It's been a long, rough day for both of us."
Liz studied us a few minutes longer, as she considered Nik's offer, and my plea; before eventually nodding. "Come in."
Nik smiled, and took a deliberate step forward through the threshold to test the sincerity of Liz's invitation into her home before casually breezing on in, pulling me through as well.
"Where's Caroline's room?" Nik asked, politely.
"Straight upstairs. First door on the right." Liz instructed. Nik nodded, and headed for the staircase giving Matt a sly smile as he passes by him. "May I have a word with you?" Liz stops me, and Nik narrows his eyes at her, obviously mistrustful of everyone right now.
"It's okay, Nik. I'll catch up in a minute." I reassured him, earning a perplexed look from Liz as she observed us both. He reluctantly lets go of my hand and continues making his way upstairs. I turned my attention towards Liz who looked at me with deep concern.
"Is he always like that?" She asked, cautiously.
I sighed wearily, "Not usually. But today my life was threatened four times, and Nik did not take the news very well. He almost went into Hybrid-mode as a result."
Liz's eyes widened, "Are you okay?!"
"Did he hurt you?" Matt demanded, worriedly. I narrowed my eyes at him.
"I appreciate the concern, but I'll survive. I've been through worse situations." I stated, defensively. Liz narrowed her eyes at me, critically.
"Are you sure that you're safe with him, Grace?" Liz asked me, falling back on her maternal instincts; and while I was grateful (to a point) that she was looking out for my best interests, I was getting rather annoyed that they were sticking their noses into my business. Or rather, sticking their noses into our business.
I stared her down, sharply. "I grew up with him."
Liz looked at me with shock, having obviously not expected that answer to fall from my lips. I continued eyeing her cautiously as Liz let that information sink in before continuing on with her obvious sleuthing.
"How is that possible?" Liz was astounded. "I heard that Klaus Mikaelson and his siblings were over a thousand years old, and I know for a fact that you are not a vampire."
I sighed, "My former life grew up with him and his siblings in the village that was eventually destroyed, and then recreated into what will be known as 'Mystic Falls' in 1864." I explained, tiredly. "Nik, his siblings and I became close, and eventually I became family. When we were older, Nik and I started courting; and eventually he proposed and I accepted. However, my life was then cut short when Mikael Mikaelson murdered me in front of him. My death nearly destroyed Nik, especially because he did not have a particularly pleasant family life, and I had become his reason for persevering." I stated, uncomfortable.
Matt looked confused, "So how are you here now?"
"I am a reincarnation of my former life, essentially taking over from where I had left off." I said, smiling a little.
"But that doesn't really answer my question, Grace." Liz persisted. "Are you safe with him?"
I narrowed my eyes. "A lot more than you are about to be if you keep it up with the questioning." I warned her, indicating to Nik upstairs who was most likely listening in to this interrogation.
It was Liz's turn to narrow her eyes at me. "Are you threatening me?"
"Not at all." I said. "Just giving you some friendly advice. Nik doesn't like when people beat around the bush, and nor do I. I'm also going to tell you that with all sincerity, I am most assuredly safe with him." I stated confidently, as I walked over to the staircase. "Now, if you'll excuse me." I ascended the stairs to the second level where I paused when I saw that Nik had been eavesdropping on the conversation. "I thought you said that eavesdropping was rude?" I stated, smirking at him.
Nik scowled at me, unamused.
"Everything alright now, love?" He asked me, an unimpressed and frankly insulted expression was on his face, that indicated that he did not appreciate the assumption that I was in danger around him.
"Fine. Why are you out here and not attending to Caroline?" I asked him, curiously.
Nik just fixed me with a look, "I did not trust them. I wanted to make sure that they were not likely to pull a fast one behind my back."
"That's sweet, Nik. But Liz was just looking out for my well-being. It's her job." I scolded him, as I came over and took his hand. "Come on. The sooner we give Caroline the cure, the faster we can go home and crash." I sighed, exasperatedly. "I am so over this day."
"You and me both, love." He agreed, squeezing my hand.
We both found Caroline lying curled up on her side in her bed, with her right arm cradled underneath her head. Nik lets go of my hand and walks over to Caroline's bedside, while I stand at the foot of her king size bed looking at the poor blonde with deep concern.
Caroline, sensing that there were people in her room, opened her eyes and blinked at both Nik and me in surprise at first, then open hostility when she realised that Nik was looking down at her with a mildly concerned expression on his face.
"Klaus? Grace?" Caroline croaked weakly. "Am I hallucinating?" She wanted to know.
Nik chuckled, "No, love. We're very real."
"Are you going to kill me?" Caroline questioned, vulnerable.
"On your birthday?" Nik sounded appalled. "You really think that low of me?"
"Yes." Caroline glared.
Nik sighed, and glances down at her neck where I could see a nasty looking bite spreading across her throat.
"That looks bad." Nik observes, and I couldn't help but agree. It didn't look nearly as bad as what Rose's looked like, but it came pretty close. "My apologies, you're what's known as collateral damage. It's nothing personal." He insisted. I came over and sat down on Caroline's other side, drawing the girl's attention.
"Apart from being bitten," I glanced disapprovingly at Nik, who shrugged. "Did you have a good birthday?" I asked, trying to take Caroline's mind off what pain she was probably experiencing at this moment.
Caroline shrugged, then regretted the action when she disturbed the bite on her neck and whimpered. "I initially wanted to forget all about it; but Elena, Bonnie, Tyler and Matt encouraged me to celebrate. So we had a 'wake' instead."
I blinked at her in astonishment, "Interesting."
"I love birthdays." Nik commented, smiling a little. Caroline smirked at him, making Nik look at her warily.
"Yeah. Aren't you like … a billion, or something?" She asked, innocently. I snorted, giggling a little as Nik rolled his eyes and ignored the question.
"Well, you have to adjust your perception of time when you become a vampire, Caroline." Nik suggested, obviously interpreting the fact that instead of a normal birthday party, her friends were trying to make Caroline appreciate her birthday, despite the fact that she will always be stuck at age seventeen for the rest of her existence. Thus why they had a 'wake' instead. "Celebrate the fact that you're no longer bound by trivial human conventions. You're free." He stated, matter-of-fact.
"No, I'm dying." Caroline stated, wincing again when the pain returned. Nik takes a seat beside her on the bed and leans down to whisper into her ear.
"And I could let you die, if that's what you want." Nik stated, casually. I looked at him with dismay, causing him to look up at me to smile and wink reassuringly. I relaxed a little. "If you really believe your existence has no meaning." Caroline paused, waiting for him to elaborate. "I thought about it myself, once or twice over the centuries, truth be told. Especially when I believed that Grace was lost to me forever. But I'll let you in on a little secret." Caroline and I looked at him in curiosity. "There is a whole wide world out there, waiting for you. Great cities and art and music, genuine beauty. And you can have all of it. You can have a thousand more birthdays." Then Nik looked right at me, and I knew that was he was about to say next was going to not only directed at Caroline … but also towards me. "All you have to do is ask."
I smiled lovingly at him, while Caroline mulled this knowledge of a potentially better life that was waiting for her, should she choose it. Then her face set in a determination.
"I don't wanna die." Caroline stated. And with that declaration, Nik assists Caroline to sit up right and offers her his wrist.
"There you go, sweetheart. Have at it." He said, and Caroline bites into his wrist without hesitation. I smiled at her, reaching out to tuck her slightly sweaty blonde hair behind her ear.
"Happy birthday, Caroline." I said, sincerely.
After a couple of pulls at Nik's blood, Caroline quickly falls asleep and he pulls away, gently lowering her back down onto her pillow and tucking her in.
"Pleasant dreams, love." He whispers, before reaching into his jacket pocket and producing a little navy-blue, rectangular velvet jewellery box. I raise an eyebrow at it.
"What is it?" I asked, hopping off the bed and walking around to take a look at it for myself. Nik wordlessly hands me the box, and I ease it open. "Whoa! That's beautiful." I stated, looking at the beautiful and expensive-looking gold bracelet with diamonds. I quickly shut the box and handed it back to Nik, who placed the box on Caroline's bedside table with a note that read: 'Best wishes, from Klaus and Grace'.
"You're not jealous, are you?" He teased, and I looked at him in confusion.
"Why would I be jealous? It's her birthday, and everybody deserves a gift on their day." I said, walking towards the bedroom door.
"Good. Let's go." Nik said, kissing me on the forehead then the lips, before we finally left the Forbes House and headed back to the mansion.
A/N: Thanks for reading, and please review!