A/N: Welcome back, and thanks for reading this new and (hopefully) exciting new chapter.
I do not own The Vampire Diaries. All characters except for Grace belong to author L.J. Smith.
Please review if you enjoy reading this chapter! However, no flaming will be accepted.
Enjoy xx
BELLE OF THE BALL
"I'm suspicious of people who don't like dogs, but I trust a dog when it doesn't like a person." ~Bill Murray.
So here I was trapped in the protective restraints of my second oldest brother's arms which felt like steel vices, while I was watching as my boyfriend slowly healed up from a vicious knife attack 'lovingly' given to him from his baby sister, while being forcibly restrained by his younger brother who was still staring at me with sheer disbelief in his deep brown eyes.
"Okay. Somebody better tell me what the hell's going on here!" Kol immediately blurted out, sounding angry. "Explain to me why Gráinne is standing right over there in Elijah's arms, when I clearly remember seeing her dead bloodied body being carried into those caves by Niklaus all those years ago?!" He demanded, angry tears in his eyes as he pointed at me with his free hand that wasn't holding Nik in a choke hold.
"Calm yourself, Kol. This is a unique and complicated situation." Elijah attempted to maintain order, as he unwrapped his arms from around my waist when he realised that I wasn't going to run at Nik again and took a step back. But the urge to do so was very high. Nik looked at me with reassuring eyes, but I didn't feel very reassured.
"Did you manage to change her into a vampire? Then keep her hidden away like you did with us?" Finn frowned as he asked Nik, without looking away from me.
"I'm not a vampire." I spoke up for myself, irritated that they were talking about me like I wasn't even in the same room as they were. "I've been reincarnated from the girl you've once known." I explained. I shook my head a little and staggered when everything started to go blurry. A warning sign to myself that I was about to regain memories of both Kol and Finn.
"Reincarnated? How is that possible?" Kol asked.
I didn't get the chance to respond, as my eyes suddenly rolled back into my skull and I fell forward. 'Grace!' and 'Gráinne!' were the last words I heard before strong arms caught me and darkness consumed me…
NO P.O.V
Kol dumped Klaus in a heap onto the floor and blurred over to Grace's side, catching her before Elijah could even lift a finger. Rebekah came over to his side to smooth back her sister's hair, looking anxious as Kol glanced around accusingly at everyone.
"What the hell just happened?" He demanded, as Klaus struggled to his knees, still healing from his knife wound.
"She's regaining her memories." He responded, very worried and wishing that he was the one holding his girlfriend in his arms, rather than his highly unstable and unpredictable brother who currently looked like he wanted to maim someone.
"Her memories?" Finn echoed.
"Yes. This is one of the side effects of Grace's reincarnation. She had no recollection of any of us - except for Niklaus in her dreams - for several years before she returned to Mystic Falls with Henrik." Elijah explained, also worried about Grace every time this happened. Thankfully, this would be the last time that this would occur.
"Henrik?" Finn's eyes widened at the mention of his baby brother's name.
"She doesn't remember us?" Kol looked heartbroken.
"She will when she regains consciousness. Each one of us have gone through the same thing with Grace when she reunited with us." Rebekah reassured him.
"What about Henrik?" Finn reminded them, also grabbing Kol's attention.
"Yes. That was an unexpected gift that Grace had unwittingly given us when she returned here." Elijah confirmed. "Which reminds me, I must go upstairs and inform him that you both have been awakened." He turned and walked from the room. Kol looked down at the unconscious girl in his arms and frowned curiously.
"So, this was the girl who visited me while I was still daggered." He mused, drawing Klaus's attention.
"Excuse me?" Klaus demanded, slowly getting to his feet and approaching Kol, but stopped when Finn suddenly stepped in front of him blocking his way. Kol turned his head towards his brother and smirked.
"You heard me. This young woman visited me while I was still underneath the effects of that dagger." Kol told him. Klaus frowned looking disapprovingly at his girlfriend and Kol's smirk immediately dropped, realising where his brother's thoughts were heading and immediately moved to defend Grace's actions.
"Relax, Nik. She never attempted to free me. She just wanted to talk to me." Kol reassured him, against his better judgement.
"You're far too paranoid, Nik." Rebekah chastised him. "You know that Grace would never betray you. She loves you." She stated, sincerely. "Although I have to wonder why at times, considering the type of person you are." Rebekah muttered.
"You're skating on thin ice, Rebekah." Klaus warned.
"So? What if I am? What are you going to do, dagger me again?" Rebekah challenged him. Klaus bristled and opened his mouth to shout at his sister, but his eyes locked onto Grace and softened, causing him to immediately back off.
"Of course not. I promised Grace that I would never again do that to you all." Klaus declared, earning dubious looks from his siblings.
"Did you just?" Kol looked surprised. "Well, isn't this a new development?"
"Enough, Kol." Finn ordered, sternly. "But he does raise a valid point, brother. How do we know that you won't fall back into old habits, regardless of what you have promised this young girl?"
"Grace. Her name is Grace." Klaus stated, sternly.
"My apologies."
"As for falling back into old habits; well I'm afraid you'll just have to trust me. I lost her once, I'm not going to lose her again due to my own stupidity." Klaus insisted, not taking his eyes away from Grace, who was showing signs of waking up.
"Forgive me, if I find that difficult to believe." Finn retorted, frowning at his brother and folding his arms across his chest.
"Exactly. 'Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice—'" Kol smirked tauntingly.
"Yes, yes. I know that saying, and I get the picture!" Klaus yelled, trying to hold his temper and failing. Rebekah, Kol and Finn all exchanged surprised glances with each other as they witnessed their reclusive, paranoid and dangerous brother suddenly adopting a protective, but no less volatile manner.
And all over this girl who was the reincarnation of their dearly beloved Gráinne. They all immediately reacted when Grace suddenly moaned and shifted around in Kol's arms.
"Ugh… What happened?" She mumbled.
Grace's P.O.V
Evening.
It was like being hit by a tonne of bricks when those last few memories involving Kol and Finn suddenly knocked me for six. I don't how long I was under for, but my first real memory after regaining all those old ones was Nik and the others shouting and arguing, and that I was also being held carefully in somebody's arms. My first thought was that this person had to either be Elijah or Nik. But the scent filling my nose didn't match either one of them. I mean, it was familiar; but nothing that I could positively confirm without looking to see who it was first.
I heard Nik yelling angrily, and I winced. I must've really freaked him out when I fell unconscious, and I needed to wake up to reassure him that I was okay. I moaned and leaned heavily against the person holding me.
"Ugh… What happened." I asked, my legs feeling a bit like jelly and unable to support my weight just yet.
"You fainted, Grace. It's alright you're safe." Rebekah reassured me to my left and I slowly opened my eyes to register her face. "Hello, sister. Welcome back." My sister smiled at me, and I pulled back holding my head before focusing on the person holding me.
"Kol?" I muttered, watching a delighted smirk spread across his puckish face that many of his victims had foolishly underestimated in the past. Or so Henrik had told me.
"Hello, poppet." He greeted me, and I immediately brightened and squealed with joy as I flung myself into his strong arms. He chuckled and automatically tightened his grip around me. "I've missed you, too." He mumbled loud enough that only I could hear him. My eyes widened and I pulled back to look at him in astonishment.
"You did hear me!" I exclaimed, cupping my mouth in mortification.
Kol chuckled, "Of course I did. You should've believed Elijah when he told you." I flushed red out of embarrassment. Then gulped when I saw the stern frown appear across his face for a split second. "And never, ever scare like that again!" He hissed, obviously reminding me of that fateful night I died. I nodded solemnly, before he pulled me back into his arms for another hug.
I glanced over his shoulder and saw Finn standing there, looking awkward, but genuinely happy to see me.
"Finn." I called out, and he smiled and nodded at me.
"Hello, Grace." He greeted me, and I broke away from Kol and walked over to hug my quiet eldest brother. "You've been missed, sister." He felt the need to remind me, and I grimaced.
"I know. But it's good to be back; completely." I stated.
"Completely?" Rebekah echoed, and I turned to her and nodded.
"Yeah. All my memories have returned. I remember everything." I said, much to everyone's relief and slight confusion (Kol and Finn). Movement out the corner of my eye made me look over Finn's shoulder and I saw a very concerned Nik watching me reunite with his brothers with a melancholy smile on his face.
I brightened almost immediately when I realised that my little fainting spell, had distracted Rebekah, Kol, Finn and Elijah from inflicting their punishment on their brother; so Nik looked relatively unharmed, save a rapidly healing stab wound in his stomach, that Rebekah had given him earlier.
"Nik!" I broke away abruptly from Finn and ran towards him, immediately wrapping my arms around his neck and passionately kissing him. He responded by picking me up, so I had to wrap my legs around his waist and cling to him like a koala to stay attached to him. This time our kiss was noticeably different, and that shocked me. Must've been a side effect from having partial amnesia, as I literally didn't know what hit me.
By the knowing smirk I could feel spreading on Nik's face, it was obvious he noticed the difference also. All we both knew was that kissing wasn't enough anymore, and I was all too ready to show this to him. I pulled away briefly to catch my breath, before he growled in protest and pulled me back into another possessive kiss.
"Do you mind, Nik?" We both froze, realising that Rebekah, Finn and Kol were still in the room and we pulled away to turn and look at Rebekah, who was staring at us looking a little irritated, while Finn was looking a bit uncomfortable. "Could you both do that somewhere else? I don't recall asking for a free show." She bitched, and I flushed out of embarrassment while Nik glared and reluctantly lowered me back to the floor; but left his arm wrapped around my waist.
"Speak for yourself, Bek. It was just starting to become good." Kol taunted us both, deliberately trying to get a rise out of us. I threw him a withering glare. This was something that I didn't miss about Kol.
"Don't be a pig, Kol." Rebekah warned him.
"I second that." I agreed.
A door opened in the distance, and we all turned towards it in time to see a newly revived Esther calmly walking into the room, dressed head to toe in her old-fashioned 10th Century dress. Nik suddenly went rigid; his blue-green eyes wide and fearful as he immediately pushed me behind him for protection.
"Mother?" Rebekah breathed, looking shocked to see her mother alive.
Esther seemed to be completely fixated upon Nik, and I scowled and immediately stepped in front of him to shield him despite his protests.
"No, Grace! Don't!" Nik begged me. But I ignored him, focusing completely on Esther.
"You stay away from him!" I hissed at her, hatefully, drawing confused and suspicious looks from everybody in the room. Esther paused for a moment and focused upon me with a blank expression, before a small smile appeared on her careworn face.
"It is nice to see you again, Grace." Esther's matured European voice greeted my ears.
"Wish I could say the same, Esther. But we'd both know that I'd be lying." I responded, waspishly. I felt Nik's hand gently wrapping around my wrist, and I fought the urge to look back at him.
"A pity that you should feel that way, sweetheart." I bristled at the term of endearment and clenched my fists. "But we should talk about this later. For now, I would like to greet my son." Esther stated, looking directly at Nik standing behind me.
"Over my dead body." I stated, and Esther merely sighed as the others all immediately objected.
"That really won't be necessary." Esther insisted, before raising her hand and clicking once. I instantly felt a strange sensation that strongly resembled somebody hooking my insides and jerking my sideways. I let out a startled scream, before coming face to face with the dining room door.
"NO!" I snarled, realising what she had done and immediately turned and attempted to come back; momentarily ignoring Rebekah, Kol and Finn who looked incredibly shocked and confused by what was happening, even more so by my reaction upon seeing their mother. However, I was immediately stopped again by Elijah who had chosen now to return, with an equally serious Henrik at his side. "Let go of me!" I urged, desperately.
"That's enough, Grace!" Elijah whispered, sternly. I was forced to watch as Esther continued walking towards Nik, now that I wasn't blocking the way. Nik immediately avoids direct eye contact with his mother; but I could tell that he was enraged at the way I had been dismissed. Esther stops before him, no emotion on her face.
"Look at me!" Nik reluctantly but obediently locks angry eyes upon his mother. "Do you know why I'm here?" She asks him. My eyes widened when a single tear trails down Nik's cheek.
"You're here to kill me." Nik stated, sounding almost defeated. Esther gives him a maternal smile and cups his face. I smirked triumphantly and proudly when I noticed that Nik had to stop himself from physically pulling away from his mother's touch.
"Niklaus, you are my son and I am here to forgive you." Nik's eyes widen in shock, as does Rebekah's, Kol's and Finn's. You would be pleased to note, that Elijah's eyes narrowed with mistrust the very second Esther proclaimed that she was here to forgive Nik, not kill him. I wasn't the only one, thank god, who did not believe her for one second; considering that it had been Nik who had murdered her in cold blood. "I want us to be a family again. That includes you too, Grace." Esther declared, turning to look at me before turning to leave the room.
"I do not trust her." I whispered.
"Nor do I." I jerked my head and looked at Elijah with surprise at his confession. It was the very last thing that I expected to hear coming from his lips; and Elijah was all about family and the loyalties that went with family. "We will discuss this later." He promised, as Esther suddenly stopped and turned back to us as though she had forgotten something, she needed to tell us.
"In order to celebrate our reunion as a family, and to start over the right way; I am planning a ball tomorrow night, to introduce ourselves to the town." Esther announced, much to all our astonishment and suspicion.
"A ball?" Henrik blurted out what we were all thinking, causing everybody to look at him. Some for the very first time in a thousand years. Esther immediately beamed at the sight of her baby boy.
"Henrik! You cannot believe how overjoyed I am to see you again, my child." Esther exclaimed, opening her arms in expectation that he'd come running towards her to hug her. This earned her a frown from Henrik, who gave her a withering glare; much to almost everyone's surprise.
"Mother." Henrik greeted her curtly. "You haven't answered my question: why a ball?" He asked, bluntly. Esther's smile almost became an annoyed frown before she recovered, maintaining the calm façade she obviously wanted to project to us all.
Not at all suspicious.
"I've always been partial to the classics. Come all; we shall make our preparations in the morning." Esther then immediately walked from the room, followed closely by Rebekah and Finn, who paused only to glance back at Henrik before leaving.
"Are you okay, Grace?" I glanced at Henrik who was staring after his mother with distain. I immediately leaned back into the welcoming warmth of Nik's embrace, as he came up behind me and hugged me.
"For the time being." I responded unnerved by Esther's reappearance, as the last time I had seen or spoken to her, she had placed a torturing spell upon me that would cause me unimaginable pain if I told Nik that it was his mother who had figured out that my blood was part of the Hybrid Ritual as well as Elena's.
As though sensing my uneasiness, Nik kissed my temple which allowed me to relax and smile. "Esther is up to something, this much is obvious." I stated, confidently.
"I agree." Elijah piped up, walking over to stand beside Henrik, brooding.
"What do you mean? What am I missing here?" Kol demanded.
"Mother seemed to forgive Niklaus a little too quickly. I had been expecting a little more anger from her." Elijah pointed out, which caused Kol's eyes to widen in realisation.
"Yeah, now that you've pointed that out. I did notice that. That's really peculiar." He agreed. I noticed out the corner of my eye, Nik looking really irritated that his brothers were disappointed that he hadn't been punished by their own mother. I turned my head and planted a kiss on his cheek, that caused a smile to spread across his face.
"Thanks, darling." Nik whispered into my ear, lovingly. I grinned back coyly.
"Anytime." I said.
Somebody's throat cleared, and both Nik and I were pulled out of our little bubble to see a partially annoyed and amused Elijah looking at us.
"If you are both through, we're about to retire for the night. We'll figure out what mother is up to in the morning." He told us. Nik and I realised that both Kol and Henrik had already left.
"Sounds like a plan." I agreed.
"Good night, Grace." Elijah bid me pleasant dreams and gave Nik a pointed look, before turning on his heel and leaving. When Elijah was out of sight, I turned in Nik's embrace and smiled.
"I'm gonna check on Jeremy and let him know that we have extra housemates for him to be aware of. Then I'm gonna turn in too." I told him.
"I'll be up in a minute." Nik promised me and leaned down to give me one last kiss before I broke away and headed straight for the staircase.
On the landing, I wondered unhurried down the corridor towards Jeremy's room. When I got there, I knocked firmly on the wood.
"Just a minute." I heard Jeremy mutter from behind the door and winced when I realised that he had been sleeping. Whoops! The door opened a crack and a bleary-eyed Jeremy glanced out at me with a frown. "Grace? Everything alright?" He yawned, and I felt like kicking myself.
"Yeah, everything's okay. But I can come back tomorrow morning." I told him.
"Nah, it's fine." Jeremy said, and opened the door wider. "Come in." I hesitantly stepped past the threshold. "How'd it go tonight with Damon and Stefan?" Jeremy asked, closing his bedroom door and heading back over to his bed, flopping down onto it.
I hesitated, "Uh—"
"That bad, huh?" Jeremy guessed, sympathetically.
"Sort of. We've gained four extra housemates that you need to be cautious around." I told him. Jeremy made a face.
"Seriously?" He complained.
"Yeah, but don't worry. They won't harm you, unless you piss them off." I reassured him. "Just be wary of Kol." I suggested.
"Who's Kol?" Jeremy yawned.
"Nik's second youngest brother, before Henrik." I responded. "In my former life, he was my 'twin'." I added, earning a weird look from Jeremy.
"Your twin? But I thought you said you're Klaus's girlfriend?" He stated, looking confused.
"I am. When I say that Kol is my 'twin', I meant that we were born on the same day within minutes of each other, and to two different mothers. Kol is older by about five minutes." I explained.
"Oh, right." Jeremy still looked confused.
"Speaking of mothers, Nik's mother is here." I said, no hint of humour on my face. Jeremy frowned.
"But I thought you said she was dead."
"She's supposed to be. If you see her around the house, do not trust what she tells you. We suspect that she is up to something. Okay? This is very important." I urged Jeremy who suddenly looked wary.
"Sure. I'll watch my back." He promised, looking suspicious.
"Good." I suddenly yawned, which caused Jeremy to join in also. "Now, I'm going to bed. You better get back to sleep too." I suggested as I hopped up from the edge of the bed and headed for the door.
Jeremy nodded, "Goodnight, Grace."
"Night, Jer."
I headed back down the corridor towards bed. I was looking forward to sleeping undisturbed and safe in Nik's arms, but at the same time feeling on guard because of Esther's reappearance back into our lives. I really hoped it wouldn't be a repeat performance of what happened when we dealt with Mikael, but only time would really tell.
The hybrids that Nik had assigned to help maintain the mansion had already been in here and gone as the fireplace was crackling away, emitting a lovely warmth that went right to the bones. While I had been yawning obscenely while filling Jeremy in on what happened this night, I wasn't quite ready to rest yet. So, I wondered over to where I had put my purse for safe-keeping and fished around inside it for my sketchbook and went to my art supplies to grab a new pencil, since I had broken my previous one.
I headed back over to the sanctuary that was the fireplace and turned to the page that had all members of my Original vampire family drawn on there by my own hand. It was time to finally complete the picture, now that I had reunited and regained my memories of both Kol and Finn. I would complete the canvas version of this drawing later when I finally had access to Nik's study where he did his paintings. Presumably to limit the amount of drippings that can sometimes happen when using paint to create a masterpiece.
I grabbed one of the large, soft cushions on one of the couches and set it down in front of the fireplace, so my ass wouldn't get numb sitting there overtime while I completed my sketch.
"Shouldn't you be sleeping, love?" I didn't glance up from my page, when Nik's slightly disapproving voice suddenly spoke up from the bedroom doorway.
I shrugged in response.
"There was something I had to do first." I admitted, even though my eyes were practically watering in my bid to keep them open. Nik chuckled, and the next thing I knew he was joining me on the floor in front of the fireplace, positioning himself so that I was sitting between his legs with my back leaning against his chest. His chin rested on my shoulder as he wrapped his arms around my waist. There was a content silence between us, with only the sound of my pencil scratching away on the paper as it filled in the intricate detailing that I was meticulously focusing my attention on.
"You've finished it then?" Nik indicated towards the drawing where I had just finished filling in Kol's smirking face. I turned my head to look at him over my shoulder and nodded, kissing the end of his nose playfully.
"Finally."
"I really hated how my hair looked back then." Nik grimaced, as he tapped the picture of himself in the drawing with thick, shoulder-length hair.
I raised an eyebrow.
"Since when have you been vain about your appearance?" I questioned him and Nik smirked, playfully.
"Didn't you know I've turned into Kol?" He teased.
"I hope not. I don't think we'd survive with both your egos in the same room." I teased back as I lightly swatted him, which only encouraged him to start tickling me mercilessly in payback. I decided to immediately change the subject before I keeled over from a lack of oxygen due to laughing too hard. "So, what do you think about your mother's plan to have a ball tomorrow night?" I asked, curiously.
Nik's face immediately darkened, "I think it's a waste of time and money to be perfectly honest." He then sighed. "But mother is going to expect that all of us attend, to make a good impression on our family."
I made a face, "You're joking. I mean, she can't be serious."
"Mother has never been known for her sense of humour, sweetheart. Even when I was a boy." Nik stated, casually. "So, I'd safely suggest she's completely serious."
I groaned, "I don't have anything suitable for a bloody ball. I'm not sure I even want to go." I told him truthfully, which caused him to frown.
"Well, if I'm going, you're going too." He stated, firmly. "Besides, I'm pretty sure mother's probably hired people to take care of everything. Plus, I think Rebekah might actually kill you in your sleep if you don't come."
"It sounds more fun." I muttered sourly.
Nik pretended to be disappointed.
"That's a pity then." I looked at him questioningly, then warily when I noticed his smirk. "I was hoping you'd go as my date. We can suffer through this together." Nik attempted to sweeten the deal and I couldn't help but smile at the idea.
"No fair." I whined, before sighing and getting to my feet. "You drive a hard bargain, but I'll let you drag me to this stupid ball." I gave in.
Nik grinned like a Cheshire cat.
"Excellent. I do have a couple of surprises for you, even if you didn't go tomorrow night." Nik told me, and I raised a curious eyebrow.
"Well, then. I'm definitely coming along. If only to see these surprises." I responded, as I extended a hand towards him to help him and Nik automatically accepted it, springing nimbly to his feet and then leading me by the hand towards the bed.
"Good answer." Nik said, tenderly.
I was roused from my sleep by the sounds of dogs barking off the distance and birds squawking in trees, the wind rushing through the trees outside, the occasional car driving past on the street and Nik's deep breathing behind me as he continued sleeping, cradling me close in his arms undisturbed by the sounds coming from outside.
I sat up slowly, dislodging Nik's arms from around my waist and registered the early morning light filtering in from underneath the heavy curtains drawn across the windows, and the popping and hissing of the fireplace across the room which had slowly died during the night. Blinking like a newborn, I turned my head towards the bedside table and saw the time on the clock radio.
6:30am.
Ugh, great.
I hate waking early, because I already know for a fact that I'm never gonna be able to fall back to sleep. Yawning, I carefully flipped the duvet off my legs, making sure that I didn't let any cold air in and disturb Nik from his sleep, before flipping my legs over the side of the bed and got up to pad towards the bathroom. After I relieved myself, I walked over to the mirror above the sink and took in my slightly puffy eyes with shadows underneath them and splashed them some cold water to partially wake myself up, but to also cool down my slightly flushed skin. I changed into a smoky grey pair of leggings, black T-shirt and a pair of socks before searching through my belongings for my yoga mat, tucked it underneath my arm and headed downstairs for the living room.
Times when I woke up way too early and couldn't go back to sleep; yoga served as good way to both wake myself up and help me unwind against potentially stress inducing activities. Esther's 'housewarming ball' counted as one of those bullshit activities that I was forced to mentally and physically endure tonight. I had never seen Nik look as resentful as he did when he declared to me that if he was forced to attend this farce of a ball tonight, I had to go too.
Fair enough.
But it didn't mean that I had to like it. About an hour into my morning yoga routine was when I finally heard some spark of life within the mansion, in the form of the doorbell going off like an air horn. It nearly caused me to break my neck as I was in the middle of a particularly difficult yoga pose.
"I'll get it!" I heard Henrik shout, and I frowned in annoyance.
"Lower your voice, Henrik." I heard Elijah admonish his brother as he walked into the living room. I knew that he had seen me when his footsteps paused, and he cleared his throat.
"Good morning, Elijah." I greeted my brother after a few minutes when he didn't speak.
"Good morning. I didn't know that you did yoga." He said, sounding surprised. I slowly stood up and stretched, smiling at him.
"Every now and then." I responded. "I'm surprised you even know what yoga is, to be honest. What's the commotion at the front door?" I asked him, indicating with my head and breathing in and out deeply. Elijah came over and took his seat on one of the couches inviting me to sit down with him. I rolled up my mat and set it aside as I came over and sat down beside him, waiting for him to answer my question.
"It appears that mother has hired some tailors and dressmakers to help us prepare for her ball tonight." He responded and I raised an eyebrow.
"Whatever happened to physically going out to a boutique or suit shop and shopping the old-fashioned way?" I asked, cynically.
"Mother prefers to remain anonymous. At least, until tonight's festivities commence." Elijah responded.
"Uh-huh." I said, shaking my head and rolling my eyes.
Just then a group of stylishly dressed attendants came barreling into the room followed closely by Esther who was giving curt instructions to them. Elijah and I were forced to our feet as several of the attendants picked up the couch we were sitting on and the other furniture, and moving them to one side while at the same moment setting up a large circular stool, a privacy screen and a set of three mirrors so that you could see yourself in three different angles.
"Mother is this quite necessary? We already have formal tails." Elijah questioned her, as a female attendant wheeling in a mobile rack with numerous gowns hanging from it in zipped up garment bags, darted by me and set up nearby the three mirrors.
"That are probably out of style and far too old. You'll need to be fitted for some new ones alongside your brothers, and Grace and Rebekah will need to choose a dress so the dressmakers will have time to alter them before tonight." Esther explained, abruptly leaving the room as I gaped after her in sheer disbelief. Especially when an overly glammed up woman came in also carrying all the equipment needed to give professional manicures.
"Why do I get the feeling that was Rebekah's idea?" I muttered at an annoyed looking Elijah, indicating towards the beautician.
"Probably because our sister likes to be pampered and spoiled for occasions such as this. Something that hasn't really changed about her." Kol stated, sauntering into the room and smiling warmly at me. "How are you, darling?" He asked me, coming over and wrapping me in a tight hug before stepping away, leaving only his arm draped around my shoulders.
"Overwhelmed. I'm not used to being told that I'm about to be pampered within an inch of my life." I confessed, feeling revolted by the very idea.
"I know what you mean. Don't worry, we can both suffer through this in silence." Kol told me, looking also irritated by what was about to take place. I reached up and squeezed the hand wrapped around my shoulder.
"I'll hold you to that." I muttered, as one of the attendants suddenly stepped forward and tugged me over to the rack of dresses. I let out a startled yelp that immediately put Kol on edge.
"Hey, easy on the goods." He growled on my behalf and I smiled weakly at him.
"It's fine, Kol. I'll just grin and bare it." I stated, as I reluctantly perused the collection of dresses. But none of them really grabbed my attention. They were pretty, but none of them really me. Finn, Henrik and Rebekah chose that moment to make their entrance, with Finn and Henrik looking just as enthusiastic as Elijah, Kol and I did about all of this.
Rebekah appeared to be the only one who looked in her element.
"Why don't you get your nails done first, Grace?" Rebekah suggested all chatty like, obviously seeing how uncomfortable I looked. I glanced over at the beautician who smiled at me politely and gestured to her seat.
"Yeah, sure." I responded weakly and walked over, taking a seat at the table.
"What colour would you like?" The woman asked me. I racked my brains trying to think of the most neural nail varnish I could think of.
"Uh, French manicure. I guess." I replied and handed the woman one of my hands as she examines my nails with a slightly disapproving frown. "I've been trying to grow them out." I admitted, embarrassed. "I apologise for the state of them." I added, eyeing the dirty fingernails and slightly blackened condition of my fingers from the charcoal I persistently used in my sketching, that no matter how much I scrubbed at them, the colour stubbornly remained.
"Oh, honey. Believe me, I've seen worse." The woman spoke with a voice that strongly reminded me of bubbly blonde with pink bubble-gum. I sincerely hoped that I didn't shudder and glanced over at Kol and Elijah who were watching me with interest while a tailor pinned and cuffed some jet-black tails they had put on. But only Elijah shrugged sympathetically. Kol looked like he was struggling not to laugh; probably at the horrified expression that I was probably sporting on my face right now.
I scowled at him. "Grow up, Kol!" I muttered underneath my breath, and this time Kol really did laugh.
Elijah rolled his eyes.
"Enough, children." He requested, firmly. I looked over at the seat beside me when I saw Rebekah giving haughty instructions to her nail technician before turning to give me a cheerful smile.
"Have you selected a dress yet, sister?" Rebekah asked, casually, and I shook my head already feeling depressed and the bloody ball hadn't even commenced yet.
"Not just now, no." I admitted, glanced back down at 'bubble-gum' who was currently filing and shaping away at my nails. "What about you?" I asked, trying to steer the topic away from me and focus upon Rebekah, much as I didn't want to inflate her ego even further. My wish was granted as Rebekah swiveled her head towards the selections she had picked.
"I've narrowed my choices down to about three. It's hard to decide." Rebekah stated, before turning back towards her manicure.
"Mmm-hmm." I mumbled, only half-interested, then frowned. "We need some music." I decided and glanced at 'bubble-gum'. "Please excuse me for a moment." I said, before reaching into my pocket with the hand that hadn't been made up yet and grabbed my phone to access Spotify. I selected my favourite easy listening playlist and cranked up the volume. I perched my phone on the mantelpiece, angling it so the music could easily come through, before resuming my seat and giving 'bubble-gum' my hand again.
"What sort of music is this?" Finn piped up from where he was getting fitted in his tails and looking a little appalled. Unsurprising, considering that he had spent the last 900 years trapped in a coffin. Music had very obviously changed a lot over that time.
"Easy listening. Specifically, the latest songs from this year." I responded, calmly. Rebekah furrowed her forehead again.
"I still think it sounds like a cable car accident." She complained, sniffling a little.
I rolled my eyes, but let it go as I waited for 'bubble-gum' to finish up with my manicure. It took nearly another thirty minutes for 'bubble-gum' to finish up before I got up and reluctantly walked back over to the collection of garment bags to find a dress; being careful not to ruin all of 'bubble-gum's' hard work. Rebekah's manicure was taking a bit longer since she had requested something a little more extravagant than mine. I glanced around casually at how the rest of my family were fairing with their fittings and had to stifle a giggle.
This was technically Henrik's first formal suit fitting, and he looked extremely uncomfortable with having to stand in one spot while a tailor adjusted his tails. He had to be told repeatedly to stand still by the surprisingly patient tailor. A complete difference in comparison to Kol and Elijah, who were obviously seasoned veterans. This was also Finn's first fitting too, but being older and with more patience, knew instinctively what to do. I was halfheartedly examining a slinky royal blue off-the-shoulder number, when Kol suddenly spoke out to Rebekah.
"Rebekah? Tell me how handsome I am." He demanded, and both Rebekah and I snorted at his arrogance.
"Ah Kol," Rebekah pretended to give her answer some thought before she smirked devilishly at him. "You know I can't be compelled." I heard Finn chuckle softly and turned my head to look over at him struggling and failing to keep an amused grin off his face. He winked at me when he caught me staring and I smiled, shaking my head. Suddenly, the doors to the living room burst open and Nik walks in with a stormy expression on his face as he makes a beeline towards Rebekah.
"You went after Elena?" He said, in a controlled but fierce tone, causing all eyes to swivel in Rebekah's direction. I was surprised it had taken Rebekah this long to retaliate against Elena for her previous offences against her. "What is wrong with you?!" He wanted to know, as Rebekah looked bored.
"Here we go." She mutters, standing up and examining her completed fingernails as she walked over to where she had set aside her selections.
"Have you lost your mind?!" Nik fumed with frustration. Both Elijah and Finn sighed heavily, as Kol suddenly laughed in amusement.
"Oh, this is new. It seems you do have other tricks up your sleeve, Nik. For a moment there I thought you were going to threaten her with a daggering again." Kol taunted him, while also defending Rebekah.
"Oh, go back to staring at yourself." Nik snapped back at Kol, whose taunting smirk dropped, and a dangerous frown took its place.
"And who are you, my father?" Kol challenged him. This response caused Nik to take a threatening step towards Kol who prepared himself for a physical confrontation with him.
"Oi! Knock it off, both of you!" I snapped firmly, standing between them. Nik and Kol eyed me with hard eyes before backing down.
"No, Kol. But you're in my house." Nik had to remind him, and I sighed and closed my eyes in exasperation, raising my hands to my temples to massage away a threatening headache.
He always had to be the bigger man.
"Then perhaps we should go outside." Kol retorted, and both brothers stare each other down before Esther walks in, taking in the tense atmosphere and immediately scowling in disapproval.
"Enough!" She orders, and both immediately respond like they used to a thousand years before. To be honest, it was rather disturbing. Esther turns her attention towards Nik. "Niklaus. Come." She firmly requests, and Nik resentfully follows his mother into another room. Feeling concerned, I immediately abandoned the dress and wondered over to where I had placed my yoga mat and picked it up.
"Where are you going, Grace?" Elijah immediately spoke up, and I jumped like I had been shot.
I turned towards him.
"Nature calls." I responded a little too quickly, before darting from the room.
The second I made it to the foyer, I paused trying to locate where Nik and Esther might have disappeared off to. A nearby open door down the corridor beside the staircase caught my attention and I carefully eased my way towards it; praising my good fortune that I was only wearing socks and was less likely to be caught out by Nik. As I got closer to the door, I overheard Nik starting to rant at Esther.
"Rebekah is trying to ruin my life. What happened to peace, acceptance, family?" He questioned, sounding stressed.
"You put daggers in their hearts." Esther pointed out. "You want them to go down on their knees and kiss your feet for reuniting them?"
Nik scoffed in disbelief, "So, it's a crime to want our family to be as we were?"
"You need to give it time, Niklaus." Esther attempted to soothe Nik. But it sounded incredibly false to my ears. "I've had a thousand years on the other side to be angry and to heal. I'm here to make sure this family does the same." Now it was my turn to scoff.
"I just don't understand. I killed you, and still you forgive me." Nik stated, and I was pleased that my love was also finding it hard to believe that Esther was as sincere as she was making out.
"It's been my dream for a thousand years that this family could be as one. Forgiveness is not a chore. It's a gift." Oh, please. Dry that one out and you can fertilize the lawn. Please, Nik. Please tell me that you're not falling for this… "Now, are you escorting Grace to the ball this evening?" Esther asked Nik, as I flinched the second my name was spoken.
"Of course, Mother. Why would you suggest otherwise?" Nik asked his mother, suspiciously. "Besides, you're lucky we're even going tonight." He added, resentfully.
"Excellent. It is going to be a magical evening." Esther gushed enthusiastically.
I raised an eyebrow, hoping that that wasn't a euphemism for something else. I quickly turned and headed back down the corridor the way I came and headed upstairs towards my shared bedroom. I stepped distractedly through the door and threw the yoga mat in the direction of the couches.
Something red caught my attention, and I turned towards the vivid colour instinctively noticing something lying with obvious care on Nik's bed. My mouth fell open with shock when I realised that it was a dress; a very expensive looking blood red dress. It was an elegant strapless corseted A-line with a bell-shaped skirt in layers of wine-red tulle and blood red silk and bunched onto the right hip. It was also tastefully embroidered in crystal beading across the bodice and on the tulle.
It was indeed a stunning dress, but I was confused about where it could've come from. Until I thought back to my conversation with Nik in front of the fireplace the night before. I recall mentioning to him that I didn't have anything appropriate for a ball and knowing Nik; he must've taken this seriously. I didn't know whether I should kiss him or punch him for buying me such an ostentatious gift. I noticed belatedly that there was a note attached to the dress and I reached out to gently unpin it from the silk.
'Save me a dance. Love, Nik x' I read and let out a stunned laugh.
I carefully picked up the dress and hung it on the door frame of the walk-in closet before making my way back downstairs, almost walking into an annoyed looking Rebekah in the process.
"Where have you been? You haven't even picked out your dress yet." Rebekah scolded me and moved to wrap an arm around my shoulder to 'escort' me back downstairs. I easily sidestepped her.
"No need. Nik's already taken care of that for me." I explained, still shocked by the generous gift. Rebekah looked taken aback.
"I beg your pardon?" She blurted out.
"You heard me. Nik found me a dress for tonight, it's hanging right in our room right now." I said, turning and heading back with a suspicious Rebekah right on my heels. I walked back into the bedroom and gestured towards the beautiful dress that Rebekah looked at with wide eyes.
"It's beautiful." Rebekah begrudgingly admitted. "Nik has excellent taste, who knew?" She questioned rhetorically before turning and studying my hair. "Now what are we going to do with that rat's nest you call hair?" Rebekah said, slightly insulting me.
Rebekah concluded that it was probably best that I relocated into her bedroom so that she could personally oversee my makeover. AKA making me her personal barbie doll for tonight. Which was probably not a bad idea, since I only knew basic make-up and Rebekah very obviously had several lifetimes worth of knowledge in the field of hair and beauty.
She shoved me in the direction of her personal bathroom and practically ordered me to bathe while she got everything prepared to make me over. I decided that it was safer just to go along with it; I didn't want to deal with a pouty Rebekah for the duration of the afternoon as we both busied ourselves with dressing. I was quick but thorough and was just stepping into my black lacy underwear and matching strapless bra when Rebekah's voice suddenly burst in from behind the closed door.
"Don't forget to moisturise!" She instructed rather bossily. I raised an eyebrow, wondering why that was so important before sighing underneath my breath. "I heard that!" She shouted at me, grumpily.
"So did everyone in Mystic Falls!" I retorted back pointedly.
I glanced around for the elusive moisturiser Rebekah was so adamant about and located a surprisingly large plastic tub of expensive looking moisturiser that must've set Rebekah back a small fortune, especially if she used this stuff on a regular basis. I swear this family is going to give a complex if they continue flashing the cash about. I reached for the container and unscrewed the top, instantly getting hit by a subtle perfume and gingerly dipped my fingers into the cream and rubbing myself down thoroughly with it. When I was done, the bathroom door was abruptly swung open and something large, soft and white was flung at my face.
"Slip into this. Quick as you can, our guests are arriving soon!" Rebekah urged me, and I stood up and realised that I was holding a terry cloth robe which I obediently pulled on and securely tied shut as I stepped from the bathroom, nervously wondering what Rebekah had in store for me next. I saw Rebekah standing impatiently beside her dressing table and chair, waiting for me to take a seat.
"Don't go overboard, sister." I asked politely, causing Rebekah to look a little hurt.
"Have a little faith, darling." Rebekah encouraged me and I relaxed a bit before taking a seat and swiveling around to stare at my reflection in the mirror. On the dressing table was a large collection of Jurlique make-up and china dishes holding expensive jewellery. "Let's just pin back your hair for now, so I can get at your face." She stated, and I immediately felt her carding her hands through my hair and pinning it quickly back, so it was out of my face. Picking up a bottle of liquid foundation and a sponge, Rebekah spun me around on the chair and told me to close my eyes. "Don't open them until I say so." She instructed me. The next few minutes flew by before Rebekah finally told me to open and I looked into the mirror.
"Wow." I said, surprised. "This is great." I turned towards my sister and smiled gratefully. "Thank you." I said, getting up from the chair and hugging her.
"You're welcome, Grace." Rebekah smiled back before stepping away and heading over to where she had hung my dress. "Let's get your dress on." I nodded and dropped the robe where I stood, unintentionally giving Rebekah an eyeful. She gave me an appreciative eye sweep from head to toe. "Hmmm. My brother is a very lucky man." She observed and I blinked at her in complete astonishment, having not expected that kind of comment from her.
"Rebekah?"
She smirked at me, "What? I can appreciate a beautiful woman, just as much as I can a beautiful man." She winked at me and my face flamed out in mortification. Rebekah lowered the dress so I could step into it, before we shimmied it up and Rebekah tied it in place. Then she stooped down and helped push my feet into some elegant silver strappy shoes. "Now let's fix that hair."
Once again, I found myself being pushed onto Rebekah's chair and watched with deep fascination as my sister expertly brushed, pinned, twisted and sprayed my long chestnut brown hair into an elegant French Roll accessorising with a beautiful diamond butterfly hairpiece and leaving two strands of my hair loose either side of my face. There was a knock at Rebekah's bedroom door. "Come in if you must." Rebekah called out, and I rolled my eyes as Henrik stepped into the room; already dressed (and looking uncomfortable) in his brand new black formal tails. His well-groomed dark brown hair had been expertly slicked back with a sharp smelling gel.
"Henrik, what's the matter?" I asked him. Henrik took one look at me and smiled before holding out a large flat rectangular velvet box to me. "What's this?" I asked, taking the box and looking at it with confusion.
"Nik asked me to give that to you. Something about it looking nice with your new dress?" He responded, and both Rebekah and I frowned before I eased open the box and saw a single teardrop diamond strung on an intricate but good quality chain with matching teardrop earrings. Rebekah looked across between delighted and slightly jealous.
"That will compliment your dress very well." She stated, pulling the necklace free and pausing when she noticed Nik's silver wolf's tooth necklace still strung around my throat. She reached for it, but I stopped her.
"I'll get it. I'll just loop it around my wrist." I stated as I undid the clasp and then looped the leather cord round and around my wrist and secured it closed.
Rebekah grinned happily.
"You look beautiful, sister." She complimented me as I stood up, feeling awkward and walked over to Rebekah's full-length mirror. "Too bad it's all going to be wasted on my brother." She stated, resentfully.
I let out a long-suffering sigh.
"Rebekah. Enough." I said firmly, turning to face her. "This whole night is going to be tough enough without you bringing Nik down. Besides neither one of us wanted to come to this ball anyway." I stated.
"Then why are you?" Rebekah frowned.
"Your mother is making us go." I confirmed, bitterly.
"I'll meet you down at the party. Just gonna chat with Jeremy until then." Henrik announced jumping in before Rebekah could start ranting and raving, and made his way towards the door. Rebekah waved a dismissive hand at her brother, but my eyes widened in horrified realisation.
"Shit! I nearly forgot!" I followed a surprised Henrik to the door. "I'll be right back, Bekah." I called back to her. She merely rolled her eyes and nodded before heading into the bathroom herself to bathe.
Picking up my skirts, I followed a confused Henrik down the corridor towards Jeremy's room. Almost walking straight into Elijah, dressed also in his formal tails, in our pursuit.
"Oh! Sorry, Elijah." I apologised hastily.
"It's quite alright." Elijah responded, calmly. "Here's your phone, by the way." He presented my phone to me and I smiled and took it back.
"Thanks." I said, gratefully.
Then Elijah took a good look at me. "You look absolutely stunning, sister." He smiled brilliantly at me as I blushed.
"Thank you, Elijah." I said, before something suddenly occurred to me. "You wouldn't happen to be able to help me with something, would you?" I asked him, hopefully. Elijah frowned with concern.
"If it's within my power, of course I would." He responded. "Is everything okay?" He fell into step beside me as I continued walking towards Jeremy's room.
"Perfectly fine. It just occurred to me that Jeremy is likely to be stuck up here in his room tonight, and for obvious reasons he cannot show his face. However, I have a plan that if it's possible, can allow him to attend without being noticed by Elena, Bonnie or anybody else who believes that he should be in Denver right now." I babbled.
Elijah looked a little confused and doubtful. "I see."
We made it to Jeremy's room, and I knocked insistently enough to make Elijah place a calming hand on my shoulder.
"Jeremy, are you there?" I asked him, and I turned to Elijah for confirmation that the teen was in there. He nodded, just as the bedroom door opened, and Jeremy stuck out his head.
"Grace? Elijah? Henrik?" He mumbled, looking confused.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Gilbert. Might we have a moment of your time?" Elijah inquired politely on my behalf. Jeremy nodded and stood aside as the three of us walked into the slightly untidy bedroom.
"Why are you all dressed up in formal wear?" Jeremy questioned us, as he took a seat on his bed.
"There is a ball happening tonight." Elijah responded.
"The entire town has been invited including your sister, Bonnie and the Salvatore's." I added.
Jeremy frowned, getting to his feet and stretching.
"I get it. You want me to stay up here for the duration of this 'ball'." Jeremy guessed, but he looked a little put out. Something that I was trying to avoid.
"Actually, no. That's not what I've come up here to talk to you about." I corrected him. "With Elijah's permission, I was actually going to suggest that you come along as well." I said, causing both Henrik and Jeremy to look at me in alarm while Elijah continued to look a little confused.
"Of course. Jeremy would be welcome to attend. Why shouldn't he be allowed to go?" Elijah asked, frowning.
"Because as far as Elena, Bonnie and Stefan know; I'm technically supposed to be in Denver, Colorado." Jeremy reminded me, looking at me like I was nuts.
"Whatever for?" Elijah asked.
"Elena wants to selfishly protect me from everything supernatural in Mystic Falls, and asked Damon to compel me into leaving here for a supposedly better life with some relatives in Denver rather than letting me make my own decisions." Jeremy explained, still looking rather bitter about that.
"I see. Well, I cannot see why my presence was required here, Grace." Elijah said, frowning at me.
"To ask your permission for some help from any of your witches." I responded simply. "Would it be possible to cast a 'notice-me-not' spell upon Jeremy which would allow him to go to the ball and have some fun without his family and friends knowing he is there?" I asked him, and Elijah furrowed his head, thinking my idea over.
"Give me a moment to make few calls." Elijah eventually said, before stepping from the room and pulling out his phone from his pocket. Jeremy looked at me with surprise.
"You're doing this for me? Why?" He asked, slightly suspicious.
"You can't keep yourself shut up inside this mansion forever, Jeremy. You're gonna have to come outside eventually." I pointed out. "Besides, Henrik's gotta have somebody to talk to while at this party." I indicated towards a cheerful looking Henrik who seemed to relax once he understood my intentions. Elijah stepped back into Jeremy's bedroom after several minutes with a blank expression on his face.
"A witch of mine, who owes me a favour, shall be here shortly." He announced before turning towards Jeremy. "So, I suggest you'd better start getting ready." He stated, brusquely.
Jeremy hesitated. "Uh, I don't have any formal wear here." He admitted awkwardly.
"That shouldn't be a problem. Emma?" I called out, and there was a soft knock at the door that Elijah quickly answered.
"Oh! Uh, master. Did somebody call me?" Emma immediately went submissive.
"I did." I said, and Emma perked up a little. I turned towards Jeremy. "Where do you keep your formal clothes?" I asked him.
"Uh, my closet at home?" He responded, confused.
"Are you able to sneak in and out of the Gilbert's home without being noticed and grab Jeremy's formal wear for him?" I asked Emma, politely. The hybrid nodded, and abruptly blurred from the room. "Bring it back here when you come back!" I added to the retreating Emma. "When she gets back, get ready as fast as you can." I instructed the teen who nodded, looking bewildered.
By the time the evening finally sets in, Elijah's witch had come and gone; producing a special necklace that allowed Jeremy, once he put it on, to project a false image of himself as a stranger. And he could hide behind that disguise so he could walk among the people he knew without being detected. Something that delighted Jeremy completely.
Right now, he was showered, dressed in a formal suit his parents probably forced him to get just in case, and was projecting the image of a ginger-haired teen with green eyes. Or at least, that's the image the Mikaelsons and I saw whenever Jeremy stood in front of a mirror.
Apparently, the spell had the side-effect that only the people who knew he was under a spell, would be able to see his real appearance.
"This is so cool!" Jeremy gushed, excitedly. "Thanks so much!" He said to both Elijah and me, shaking Elijah's hand.
"You're welcome. Just don't bring attention towards yourself and you should be fine." Elijah warned him, firmly. Jeremy nodded before heading downstairs to join the party, which was only just starting. Rebekah rolled her eyes, as she fixed a loose strand of her hair into place. My sister had eventually settled upon an emerald green mermaid dress and pinned her hair to the side so that it draped over her shoulder in a blonde mass of curls. "Shall we?" Elijah offered his sister the crook of his arm which Rebekah immediately took, and both siblings descended the staircase, looking confident and completely underwhelmed by the entire commotion.
I, on the other hand, was a complete nervous wreck. I had never attended a soiree like this before, but I just thanked everything that was holy that I could remember the dance lessons Gráinne's parents had drilled into her head a thousand years ago. The last thing I really needed was to suffer a klutz attack and face plant on the ground. Drawing in a few deep breaths to calm myself down, I peered around the corner and down on the main foyer floor.
A live band was playing classical music in the ballroom, and here and there well-dressed guests were arriving in groups, or standing around talking and sipping champagne. I spied Damon, dressed to the nines in a formal suit, walking over to Carol Lockwood and handing her a glass of champagne. They begin some small talk until I noticed Kol walk over and kiss Carol's hand.
I rolled my eyes when she blushed.
Ewww… Kol, you have standards… I thought, a little revolted, and as though hearing my thoughts; Kol suddenly turns and locks eyes upon me, smiling warmly. He ignores Damon's hand when he offers it to him to shake and mutters something at him, before heading straight for the staircase.
My eyes widen in a panic and I hide behind the wall.
"Now now, Grace. Come downstairs and join us." Kol scolded me and held out his arm for me to take. I reluctantly reached out and took it, allowing him to escort me down the stairs. "You look exquisite, darling."
I leaned over and kissed his cheek, affectionately. "Thank you, Kol. I'm sorry for being a coward. I've never been to a ball before." I admitted.
"That's rather obvious, darling. You were, after all, hiding." Kol scoffed, not unkindly. We reached the bottom floor, and I realised belatedly that nearly everyone was staring at me. "Uh, uh. None of that. Where's my brave sister gone?" Kol scolded me, and I straightened up.
"Gagged and tied up in a closet." I deadpanned almost immediately. This caused Kol to snort in amusement.
"Ah, there she is." Kol said, jovially. "Shall we mingle with the commoners?"
I threw him a strange look, "If we have to."
Kol and I immediately turned and headed for the ballroom where the rest of the guests were mingling. We almost quite literally walked right into the Salvatore brothers who were escorting a distracted looking Elena into the room. Although when her eyes focused on me, they immediately become hostile.
I offered them all a regal smile, "Good evening, Gentlemen. I hope you enjoy yourselves tonight." I bid them welcome.
"Hello, Grace." Stefan replied stiffly, while Damon gave me a genuine smile back.
"You look beautiful." He complimented me, kissing my knuckles like the Southern Gentleman he used to be. Kol watched all of this with a cautious curiosity on his face. His eyebrow rose when Elena suddenly tightens her grip on both brothers' arms and forcibly walked them away from us.
"Rude much?" He breaks away momentarily and takes two champagne glasses from a passing waiter. "I take it that was the doppelgänger?" Kol asked me, handing me one of the glasses.
"Unless Katarina somehow managed to resurrect herself. Then yes, that was Nik's doppelgänger." I confirmed, taking a sip from my glass.
"Insecure little bitch, isn't she?" Kol looked unimpressed.
I shrugged.
"And then some."
Kol instantly looked interested, "Really now?" A nasty little smirk crept across his handsome puckish face. I giggled into my hand.
"Now, Kol. We mustn't play with our prey." I scolded him playfully. He looked at me with shock and delight.
"This kitten's got claws." He said with glee.
"You ain't seen nothing yet." I promised, clinking glasses with my brother as we dissolved into laughter.
"What sort of mischief are the both of you up to now?" A familiar voice spoke up from behind us. Kol immediately rolled his eyes and took a sip from his champagne as we both turned to face Nik, who looked really dashing in his tails.
"Spoil our fun, why don't you?" Kol muttered, as he immediately drains his glass and kisses me chastely on the cheek. "I'll talk with you later." He walks away as I turned to face Nik, smiling warmly.
"Hello, love. You look gorgeous." Nik greeted me, taking my hand and raising it to his lips as his blue-green eyes smoldered happily.
I smiled back, blushing. "Thank you, Nik. And thank you for the dress. It's beautiful." I gestured to my gown, smoothing out any wrinkles.
"You're welcome. Would you like another drink?" He asked, gesturing to my empty glass. I glanced down at it and nodded.
"Please. But maybe something a little stronger?" I requested, feeling more relaxed than I had before.
Thank you, Kol… I thought gratefully, as Nik took my champagne glass and headed for the bar. While I waited for him to return, I glanced around at the mingling couples and paused when I spotted Finn approaching Elena over near some French double doors that lead out onto a balcony. They seemed to be talking urgently with each other.
Oh, shit…
"Uh, if everyone could gather, please." Elijah's loud voice calls out to everybody and we all head towards the staircase in the foyer. I position myself in the background, while the rest of my family stand on the staircase looking down at their guests. Henrik stands in front of Finn who wraps an arm around his shoulders, and he waves enthusiastically at me when he catches my eye. I waved back then faltered when I noticed Esther walking slowly down the staircase from the upper floor.
"Wonder what Finn was talking to Elena about?" I turned and looked at Jeremy who had sidled up beside me, still in disguise and frowning curiously at Finn.
"No idea. But whatever it is, it can't be good." I responded as Elijah raises his hands for silence. Jeremy and I focused on him immediately.
"Welcome, thank you for joining us." Neither Jeremy nor I notice Damon and Stefan coming to stand not too faraway from us. "You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this, it's tradition for us to commence the evening with a dance." Jeremy groaned, and I lightly nudged him with my elbow and giggled.
"Do you see who I see?" I glanced over at Damon, who was staring up at Esther who was watching her children and their guests with a blank expression on her face.
Stefan nodded. "Oh, yeah."
"Tonight's pick is a centuries-old waltz, so if all of you could please find yourselves a partner, please join us in the ballroom." Elijah instructs us all, before stepping down from the staircase and walking over to a pretty middle-aged woman in a tasteful lilac ballgown to ask her for a dance.
"Have fun." Jeremy bid me as he started to walk over to Bonnie Bennett of all people who seemed charmed by him, the moment he asked her for her hand. I smiled, happy for him even though he could so much better than the judgmental and arrogant Bennett witch. I refocused upon Esther who turned and retreated upstairs, and noticed Elena going to follow her. Thankfully, Damon blocks her way.
"May I have this dance, Sister?" I glance up in surprise as Kol offers me his hand. I smiled at him and curtsied like I was from the 1800s.
"You may, dear brother." I replied and placed my hand in his. "I just hope that I remember the steps." I fretted a little, chewing my bottom lip.
"I wouldn't worry, it's like falling off a log." Kol brushed aside my fears as he guided me onto the dance floor where everybody else was standing with their dance partners.
"That's what I'm afraid of. I was terrible at this a thousand years ago, and I daresay I haven't improved." I joked back.
Kol snorted with laughter once again, probably remembering this also, as I noticed Nik standing in line beside us with Caroline Forbes of all people, who looked less than happy paired up with my boyfriend, and was probably also glaring over at Matt Donovan who was paired together with Rebekah. He winked at me when he noticed me staring and I smiled back and smiled politely at Caroline when I caught her eye. Thankfully, Caroline smiled back, indicating that there was no ill-will between us, then returned her attention back over at Matt and Rebekah.
The music started, and the crowd began dancing after we curtsied and bowed to each other. The music, oddly enough, was modern for a centuries-old waltz and I immediately recognised it as 'So Close' sung by Jon McLaughlin from the 2007 live-action Disney movie Enchanted.
I frowned, "Uh, Kol. Do you know who oversaw the music tonight?" I asked, curiously.
"Mother designated that chore to Rebekah, I think." Kol responded, frowning at the randomness of the question. "Why?"
"No reason. Just surprised at the choice." I responded, honestly and questioned when Rebekah had the chance to see Enchanted.
Kol and I marched along the floor together in parallel lines, with left hands holding left hands, and right hands holding right. We let go our hands, then turned to face the other line of dancers and nodded to Nik and Caroline in greeting.
The facing partners marched towards each other, passing through the gaps between the facing pairs and lining up again facing in the same direction. Kol spun me under his arm then pulled me in closer as I placed my left hand on his shoulder, and he places his left hand around my waist. We clasped our right hands together as Kol began to weave us through the crowd, fading into a more traditional waltz: step, step, step, lift. Step, step, step, lift.
"I don't know what you've been worried about, Grace. You're dancing excellently." Kol remarked, and I grinned at the compliment.
"Shush! Don't jinx it!" I joked back, and Kol chuckled as we continued the same step, step, step, lift around the room until we extended our arms while still holding hands as faraway from each other as possible. Kol then pulled me back in and let me spin under his arm. Only this time, we were required to switch partners. I immediately started to panic, but Kol leaned in and whispered reassuringly into my ear.
"Relax, Grace. Just let your partner lead." He told me, before letting go of my hand and I spun straight into Nik's arms.
"Hello, darling." He smiled at me, and I relaxed in relief and smiled warmly up at him. "Did you enjoy dancing with Kol?" He asked.
"It's bringing back some good memories." I admitted, rolling my eyes when I overheard Kol laughing from across the room. "Are you enjoying your evening?" I asked him, and he nodded.
"Surprisingly, yes." He responded as we continued the step, step, step, lift move around the room. "It's improved a lot more now that I'm dancing with you." He added, staring deep into my eyes. Pretty soon the dance was over, and I bobbed down into a curtsy and he bowed. "Shall we get that drink now?" He asked, escorting me from the dance floor.
"Absolutely." I agreed. "Let's make that a double."
Nik chuckled.
A/N: I've got a happy surprise for you lot in the next chapter. I've just got to revisit some of my old chapters to get the info first, since it has been awhile since I last wrote it.
Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please give detailed reviews about which was your favourite part. The next chapter will be out soon.
TTFN xx