The only thing certain in life is the uncertainty. The sky is blue only as much as the sun shine, the stars dissapear only because of too much light and the moon has no glimmer of its own. And every story has its seed of truth in it... or more.
Realisung the realness of it can make zomeone shiver with cold and feel lost. It may give a sensastion of living inside the an iceberg, like your whole being wrapped around itself, floating through the empty space in the ice. And that emptyness rose inside you too. This is how Celia Eous felt from the begging of her life to the present day. And her hopes of changing it drifted away a long time ago.
Of course, she couldn't say she wasn't happy, or never felt happiness. She did. But it never reached the depths of her. First, the guilt ate her alive when living in the Coven of Hell. Guilt for her sister forced to live in secrecety while she was allowed to roam free. Then, the death of her mother, followed up by the one of her siblings', pushed her in a neverending pit of despair. Once she got used to falling and falling and never stopping, even though still tired, she managed to find it in herself: joy. Not pure, not everlasting, but better than nothing.
Once Celia learned that Elijah didn't kill Klaus that eventfull night, as she expected, everything turned to normal. As normal as it could be. A full summer passed with not one single trouble upon them, so the teens relaxed and decided to live their best lives, with the originals far, far away.
Unspoken, the tension and the fear still layed in the air. No one wanted to adress it, but it was obvious. They all have been forced to grow up too fast and mature before time so when Caroline made her suggestion, her friends took some time to be convinced.
The first months of Celia's stay in the Forbes residence, she couldn't do anything right. Liz sent her to school starting in the second semester, but her focus and will to live rather than simply exist faded away in the grieving. Many nights the young girl would stare at the black sky, looking directly at empty shadows on the walls. Obviously she saw something more in them, her thoughts carried away by her poor mind.
The moment she started eighth grade, Celia became a stone faced ghost. People could see her, talk to her, and she would respond too. Though mostly absent. However, she exceled in school. Unlike most cases she choose to focus on making a path in life. Not for her own sake, but to cling to the hope that somewhere her family was proud of her. She choose to live – as well as she could – given that her mother and siblings didn't have that chance anymore.
Her hard work had payed off. Now, Celia and Caroline Forbes were both in the same year, about to graduate together.
"It's tradition!" Care has said. And wouldn't take 'no' for an answer.
Therefore, here they were: Elena, Stefan, Matt, Tyler, Bonnie, Caroline and Celia, plus some other kids in their year, alone at school on a Sunday night for the anual prank of the senior students.
"This is so much fun!" The blonde vampire squealed. Paying attention only to her chores – and occasionally ordering around to her friends about what to do and where to place what – she hadn't notice the slight slump in Celia's figure.
If her sister was the popular cheerleader, the witch could win an invisibility trophy. Not caring for making friends at the beggining, it turned to ne harder than usual for her later. Kids her agedismissed her while her classmates rejected her.
The youngest Forbes paced the halls to keep watch. Not that it was needed: no one could be there at three in the morning. Especially since the first day of school looked upon them brightly in but a few hours. But she felt that was the only thing fit for her to do. She couldn't possibly stay in the same room with her sister's friends if they don't like her. They only stand her for Caroline's sake. For them her presence would mildly be an inconvinience for. After all, Celia wanted Care to have fun with her friends. Even if that meant she would be all by herself wondering around the half lit alleys.
Wierd, she noticed, how the same lockers she knew all too well would seem new at that different hour for her to be at school. The blue tiled floor changed its plain colour into a dark-sick green. The walls seemed to move closer and closet to the middle of the aisle, dirty white turning grey. Adding loneliness to it, Celia felt a chill running up her spine, bringing her hair up and causing her skin to crumble in those coarse bubbles of chicken skin.
Walking aimlessly, smiling softly at the laughters of her sister and her gang, the girl wrinkled up her nose in confusion. She reached the locker rooms when she caught a glimpse of shadows moving fast behind the corner. Pure instict took over her as she ran inside the girl's locker room. A need to hide and stay hidden overwhelmed her already racing heart, but worry told her she had to warn the other of something. She couldn't quite understand it, the feeling that bad events would occure. She had it for weeks, even after Klaus and Elijah were officially gone and Elena supposedely safe.
"Calm down, Celia," she told herself. "Breath." Could it be just another panic atack? She had them frequently, troubled with guilt for surviving when no othe Eous sibling did, feeling left alone in the world she shouldn't be in in the first place.
"Help!" A loud whimper echoed. It probably didn't reach any other ears but Celia's. That part of school was being taken care of by a couple. The two of them wanted to be alone and after a change of meaningfull looks with Bonnie and Elena, Caroline allowed it. So, privacy they gained, but appearantly something went wrong.
Celia knew less than nothing about their love life, but she found it hard to believe he has hurt his girlfriend. As if on cue, the voice made itself heard once more: "Stop! Leave him!"
Before Celia could decide what to do, the girl screamed. She sensed a boy's tone somewhere in there as well. Weaker, but just as scared. The witch approached the door and peeked outside. She couldn't see much enough, but she managed to spot the couple heading to her friends. Celia frowned. Her fingers ran to her bracelet, fidgeting with it out of habbit. To take it off was not an option, but she found solace in knowing it's there. After so many years of wearing it, playing with the silver container of her magic calmed her nerves. Usually.
Now, though, her gut warned her loud and clear to watch out. And she couldn't ignore it no longer. As she made a step outside the locker room, a figure came closer. Celia's breath hitched in a muffled gasp of surprise. She swallowed hard and moved back a few steps.
"Well, hello, love." His voice came from behind her. Quiet and steady, but filled with power... and a hint of amusement. She didn't need to turn to see the taunting smirk on Klaus' lips, she didn't want to.
"Hi," Celia said in lack of anything better.
Klaus' grin widened. But before he could do anything, Celia asked: "What have you done to them?"
"Friends of yours?"
When the girl offered no response, the hybrid continued. "Do not worry, love. They simply aid me in a delicate matter." In a flash, he was standing in front of Celia. "In fact, why don't you join them? I could use your help as well."
She kept her gaze on the ground, avoiding his eyes. Fingers still wrapped around the silver btacelet untied it in a swift motion. Just in time, fo in the next moment his fingers lifted her chin up.
Klaus studied her face in detail. Her hair rested mostly on her face, hiding its shape, covering her meck and cheeks like a protection veil. Some strands fell in her eyes behind glasses, but Celia dared not move them. She was mildly aware of the light, involuntarily tremble of her lips. It seems it caught his attention too. The blonde original roamed her with his eyes, slowly, like a skilled predator would with its prey. Noticing weaknesses. Calculating potential risks. He saw a glimming on the ground, but paid it no mind. Instead, he focused back on the stone-faced girl in front of him who tried hard to keep her expresion unreadable.
"You will come with me now. Be a good girl and listen to my every order."
The secret witch gulped. She wanted to nod, but was frozen with fear. And doubt. If compullsion worked, how should she behave? What would happen if he realize it didn't? For a former almost actress on Broadway, her improvisasion game ran low. However, her scared deer eyes – big, round and dark brown – starring back into his deep, smart, shining blue ones uncapable to move must have convinced Klaus. Because he broke the eye contact and motioned for her to follow behind him.
She did.
They pattered the empty halls together, him faster than her, untill they stopped to enter the gym. There stood everyone: Elena holding onto Stefan (who looked quite collected given the situation at hand), Bonnie keeping a protective hand on her friend's shoulder, Matt blissfully passed out in a corner and a confused Tyler hugged by a fierce, yet unwary Caroline sitting beside him. The other people in the room were the couple sitting by the door, waiting their new orders and a woman Celia has never seen before.
"Good, you're finally back. I was beginning to bore here all alone." The woman spoke when she spoted Klaus. She had a strong accent, so much like his, and the blood covering her otherwise pretty, short, white dress gave away her nature. The blonde new comer was a vampire.
"Don't worry, sister. There will be plenty of fun tonight."Sister. Yes, the resemblance was uncanny. But wasn't she supposed to be dead? By Klaus' hands more so?
Caroline glanced quickly at her own sibling, asking her a million questions in one look. Celia did her best to answer. Yes, she was fine. No, she doesn't know what's going to happen. Caroline moved her eyes from Klaus to her. That plus a quick side glance at Stefan made Celia understand she wanted to know if the original hybrid compelled her. She didn't know how to answer that. So she glanced at her feet and raised her shoulders, biting the inside of her bottom lip. Kinda. Tell you more later.
"Elena! Exactly the girl I was looking for." Klaus was just saying. "So many troubles you've caused. You should have stayed dead. But no worries. I'll make sure everything will work as it should this time."
"You're not touching her, Klaus!" Bonnie made a step forward. If it had any effect on the hybrid's mood, he didn't show it.
"Wouldn't dream of it. You see, there is a little cruel joke my mother plannned for me. Or was it that Bennet friend od hers, Ayanna?" Klaus stopped, seemingly pondering the option, though making it look like he couldn't care less. "Anyway, she made sure I won't be able to create more like me. If I want to break free of that odious curse, I have to kill a doppleganger... whose blood I would later need to sire more hybrids. Therefore, miss Bennet, I have no intention to harm your friend. In fact, I need her with as much running blood as she has."
"You can't possibly think we're going to hand Elena over to you!"
"Ah, I thought you'd say something of that sort. But I am afraid you'll be rather busy tonight. Rebekah?"
The older blonde vampire acted on her cue with a pleased smile on her face that showed off her fangs and white teeth splashed with blood. Celia screamed when Rebekah got to where her sister was watching everything ready for a fight to protect her beloved. But the original girl (for she didn't seem much older than Celia) had no interest in Caroline. She yanked Tyler away and snapped his neck. It happened so fast, it took them all a few seconds to fully coprehend the meabing of it. And when it sank in, Caroline let out a throttled sob that covered the other's cries of protest.
"I need you –" Klaus started and pointed to Bonnie – "to work your magic so that my blood and Elena's will ensure Tyler's transformation."
Bonnie looked from Caroline to Tyler and than back to Elena. "Bonnie, please, you have to do something. You have to! You can't just let him die!" The youngest vampire in the room pleaded while craddling her boyfriend.
"Alright. But I am doing this for them, not for you!" The witch glared at Klaus and than willingly followed Rebekah – who picked up Tyler's body – out of the gym. Caroline wanted to go to. No one tried to stop her, but the thought of leaving Celia there alone...
"Go" Her sister mouthed.
"Thank you"
Niklaus Mikaelson was a proud individual. He felt cheated on, and by a couple of kids too. He couldn't let this go unpunished. No one disrespects the infamous Klaus and gets away unscratched.
"Stefan, old friend! Long time no see."
"What is that supposed to mean, Klaus? We're not friends!" The younger vampure spitted.
"Ah, yes. You don't remember yet. But you will."
And before anyone could even blink, Klaus held Stefan by the back of his neck, starring into his eyes and compelling lost memories to the surface.
"No! Don't touch him!" Elena screamed. The hybrid gave her what should have been a sweet smile and let go of her dear boyfriend. When Stefan came back to his senses, he eyed Klaus knowingly. The look of distaste was still there, but behind wide opened eyes, a flicker of fondness glimmered shamefully.
"So you remember than. Finally! All the fun we had back in the twenties. Don't you miss it?"
"That wasn't me. That was a humanity off ripper I hate."
"Hate? Is that so? Then why don't I remind you of the good time you had? Hmm?" He speeded to Elena, taking her forcefully in his arms and brushing her hair from her neck. The white, soft skin was fully exposed to Stefan, the blue veins visible and the pomping of fresh, warm blood loud in his ears. "Have a taste, old friend. I know you want to."
Elena whimpered in Klaus' arms, but once she caught Stefan's eyes, she begin to shout calming nonsense to him. Her encourragement stopped what so ever when the hybrid plaved two cold fingers on her neck, pressing right on the vein. "Well, if you don't want it, I'll have some." Klaus said, revealing his sharp fangs, yellow eyes and the black veins underneath.
"No!" Both Stefan and Elena screamed. The first one dsperate, the second – alarmed and scared.
"No? Well you can't exactly stop me, can you? You are both so weak." He laughed, gridding his fangs on Elena's neck tauntingly and threateningly at the same time. She cried out, not in pain, but in fear and disgust.
"Stop! I'll do wgatever you want, just stop!"
From her place, Celia sighed. It seemed Klaus got Stefan where he wanted him and there was no turning back now. Bad things are about to happen, she thought.
"Turn it off."
Hello guys! Merry Christmas! Or Happy Holydays! Rough times, especially with my mental health, but getting better. I'll spare you the details. I hope you liked this chapter, I'll wait for your comments.Oh, and a little surprise: there is something big coming up in the next chapter (or the one after that), the first Kleia cute, real moment.
*Kleia, ship name for Celia and Klaus. Feel free to suggest others as well :)