Swan Diaries (crossover between Twilight and The Vampire Diaries)

S E V E N T E E N ∘ Klaus

As I took my first sip, a heard a utensil tapping a glass to my right. Eve and I both looked up to see a young man, maybe a few years older than Trevor, vying for everyone's attention. It took a second for the crowd to step away from their conversations and look his way.

"Thank you all for coming," he greeted. His accent was odd—kind of American, with a vague hint of English. I tilted my head, trying to decipher. "My name is Elijah Mikaelson. My siblings and I here are pleased to welcome you into our home..." He paused to glance at each of them, only to add, "Well, minus one of my brothers, I suppose... The Mikaelson Ball is something we do annually, so we hope to see you next year as well. Please enjoy the refreshments and music." He raised his glass. "Let us lose ourselves for a night, shall we?"

He stood on the stairs with the rest of his family, two sisters and two brothers. Apparently, one of them was missing. I couldn't tell who was the oldest or the youngest.

One brother looked utterly bored, and one seemed downright hateful. They were separated. The two sisters stood closest to the top and had their arms linked with bright smiles on their beautiful faces. Elijah stood in the middle of them all.

As I went to take my first sip, I stopped in my tracks and immediately threw my hand out to stop Eve, but I was too late. I gasped, a sound too soft for her or anyone else to hear.

Now that I was focused on the drink, I finally knew why I felt a sense of inquietude here.

I was able to siphon something from it.

Power. Danger.

Everything moved in slow motion. I'd never encountered anyone with power before, other than my own family. The one and only time I did... was when Jason Griffith killed my father two months ago.

I pulled it together and held onto Eve's arm. She turned to look at me quizzically. "We need to get out of here."

My words startled her, and she raised her head to look around. "Do you see my dad?"

I shook my head. "No, we just have to leave."

"What? Why?" She looked me over. "You don't look so good, Bell."

"Thanks. Let's go."

"Wait, wait! We just got here; we can't leave already. It would be such a waste."

I shut my eyes and sighed heavily. She wouldn't budge, and there was no way I'd leave her here alone. "Fine, but we're not separating."

She shrugged. "I wasn't planning on it anyway."

What was this family? Did I want to get close enough to find out when I didn't have my powers?

No, I shouted at myself. No, I didn't. According to our host, they were staying in town. I'd have time to get to know them.

Music started to play, and the guests began migrating to the ballroom. I forced Eve to stay with me toward the back. If she wasn't afraid of Giuseppe and Trevor seeing her, I know how hard she would've protested. She enjoyed being in everyone's front view.

"What are you waiting for? This is the best champagne I've ever had."

She drank both of hers and seemed fine, so I decided to chance it. It wouldn't kill me, and I needed something to calm down a little. It was gone in one gulp, and I realized why I was able to siphon it.

It was made of supernatural blood.

"Aren't you two a little young to be in here?"

I nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard his voice. I immediately knew it was one of the Mikaelsons. But unlike Elijah, his accent didn't have any American in it. Though, I did hear some Australian. What an odd family.

I turned around to see a younger version of Elijah. He was taller than him, and his hair was a little lighter with some spikes to it. His smirk was the epitome of trouble.

"Who wants to know?" I asked, no longer having to fight the urge to run away now that I had some magic back.

"Feisty." He scanned both of us. "I'm Kol Mikaelson."

My best friend perked up. "I'm Eve Salvatore. This is Bella Swan."

Curse my flirt of a friend. I rolled my eyes. He's, like, ancient, my mind screamed at her. A tad old for two fifteen-year-olds.

That intrigued him. "Salvatore? Interesting."

"I can be."

I rolled my eyes again, not liking where this was going. I glanced around to find another drink. I needed more to siphon.

"Would you care to join me on the dance floor, Miss Salvatore?" Kol held out his arm for her.

She, shockingly—I rolled my eyes—didn't hesitate. "I'd be honored."

"Eve," I hissed. I had no doubt that he heard me, but he didn't flinch.

"Don't have a cow. We're not going anywhere," she whispered back. What if Giuseppe or Trevor saw her? It would be my fault.

I watched her like a hawk the entire duration of the song. Everyone was everywhere, but there was some orchestration to it. He wouldn't be dumb enough to do something to her in a crowd this big, right?

I needed to find out which sibling was missing on the stairs earlier. How could I know who to protect us from if I didn't know what they all looked like?

That was my intention, anyway. When I turned around to search for another drink, my eyes met with a man across the room. He looked to be about twenty or so and was obviously related to Elijah and Kol.

He was gorgeous. His height was right between his two brothers, and his dark hair was curly. His mesmerizing eyes were a light shade of blue-green, and his stance was that of a leader. I couldn't look away. And I didn't want to.

Nothing else existed besides us. The room was silent and empty.

Even though I knew who he was—more or less—I couldn't deny this feeling. It was like a string was tied around him and me that bound us together, drawing us closer.

I didn't move an inch. As soon as he took his first step toward me, I turned around and darted in another direction.

That had to be part of what he was. Whatever that was, he did it. It wasn't real.

I hid in a dark library where no guests had found their way. Perhaps no one was supposed to be in here, but I didn't care. I needed to stay focused on the task at hand.

"Was it something I said?"

I whirled around to see him again. His grin was gleeful, with a hint of teasing.

"My apologies. Usually, I don't chase people off that quickly. Niklaus Mikaelson." He reached for my hand and brought it to his lips. After a light kiss, he squeezed it and held it between us. "Call me Klaus."

I shook the feeling away and met his eyes again. I raised my head high. "Isabella Swan." I shrugged. "Bella."

His answering smile was stunning. For a moment, all doubt was gone and all there was, was Klaus.

This was not going to end well.