The Originals One-Shots

The Painting

 England, Late 19th century
 
 London was one of Katherine Pierce's favorite cities. She didn't like it as much as Paris, but it was certainly filled with interesting people. It was there she met the mysterious Dorian Gray.

 They met at some high society party or something of the sort (those things were all the same to Katherine, one just as boring as the other). Each one was fascinated with the other. They met in public a few more times after that, and soon Katherine had been to Dorian's house for supper several times. Katherine usually found most humans boring, but Dorian seemed different somehow. She truly enjoyed his company.

 One evening when she had joined him for supper, she said, "I don't usually find anything fascinating about people, but I have found you  interesting, Mr. Gray."

 Dorian gave her a smile. "And I have felt the same toward you, Ms. Pierce. I have met very few people as lively as you."

 After supper they moved to the parlor, where Dorian began to play the piano. Upon the mantelpiece, Katherine noticed a drawing of a young woman. A sweetheart of Dorian's?

 "Who is this?" she asked.

 Dorian stopped playing, and looked startled to see it. "That...was Sybil Vane. She-she died, years ago. I...made a mistake." He went back to playing, though now it was a darker tune.

 Katherine sat down next to him on the piano bench. "You have a secret, don't you? A deep, dark secret."

 "Doesn't everyone have their secrets? Surely you must have something, Ms. Pierce."

 "I do," she replied. "I am a vampire."

 Dorian stared at her in disbelief for a moment before bursting into laughter. She had deliberately said it an a joking tone, knowing he was better off in believing it was a joke.

 His laughter quickly died down, and his face took on a more serious look.

 "My secret is no joke, Ms. Pierce. It is something I could never share with anyone."

 "You have already told me that a secret of yours does exist. What is it, Mr. Gray? Surely it cannot be as terrible as you say." 

 Dorian was silent for a long moment, staring down at the piano keys.

 "There is a painting," he finally said. "It was painted by a friend once, years ago. A portrait of myself. I...I did not know at first if it was the picture of myself that was evil. But now I know."

 "Can I see it?" Katherine asked.

 Dorian hesitated. "I have kept it locked away for years."

 "Mr. Gray, I do not believe that a portrait can be evil," said Katherine. 

 Dorian sighed. "Follow me."

 He led her up the flight of stairs to an old, dusty room near the top of the house. He opened a cabinet, revealing a figure under a sheet. "Remove the sheet if you wish, Ms. Pierce, and look at it in the light."

 Katherine did as he said, surprised by what she saw. It could have been Dorian, but...it looked almost nothing like him. The figure in the portrait was hideous and deformed.

 "Who is it?" she asked.

 "I told you, it is myself. My soul. How old would you say I am, Ms. Pierce?"

 "You can't be any older than twenty-five."  

 Dorian scoffed. "That's the problem. I am years older than that, yet I still look young. I have kept my handsome youth, while that picture holds the true horrid nature that lurks inside me."

 Katherine looked from Dorian to the painting. "You should get rid of it. Get rid of it, if it tortures you so."

 "I can't. I just cannot. And I cannot allow anyone to learn of this."

 Katherine had her back turned to him, but she knew he had a weapon in his hand. She quickly turned around and forcefully shoved him against the wall, knocking him unconscious.

 "If you had believed I was a vampire, you would know all the right ways to kill me," she said. "Goodbye, Mr. Gray."

 She exited the house without hesitation, not glancing back once.

~~~~~~

 I realized just now that if you haven't read The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, and don't know the plotline, this might not make much sense.