I sat alone in the backseat of Bonnie's car, staring aimlessly out of the window at the line of evergreen trees that seemed to never end. My fingers tugged at the end of the sleeves of the shirt I wore, pulling them further down. It was an off white colored henley shirt, that was a few sizes too big for me, and wasn't mine.
It was Klaus's.
Wearing his shirt was a feeling I never thought that I'd get tired of. It felt like I was wrapped up in him, draped in his familiar scent, and I felt so safe, like he was right there with me, like he was part of my skin ; an extension of me. And I missed him. I missed him so much.
Days had gone by, days of ignoring his phone calls and texts, days of feeling nothing, but helpless. I was angry at him, but part of me wanted to run right back into his arms, to forgive him, but I knew that I shouldn't - it was just so hard, not to.
I'd always thought that my relationship with Klaus was far different, more complex than any two other vampires I'd seen. Damon had turned Isobel, and they couldn't care less about one another, just like Katherine hadn't cared about Damon, and yet, she was the one that turned him. She turned Caroline, and Care hated her guts just as much as we all did. That was how I knew something about Klaus and I was different.
Everyone only hated him more now, once they found out about the sire bond. Elena didn't want me anywhere near him, Bonnie was trying to figure out what we could do to break it, Damon was doing his best to be there for me, Stefan hadn't spoken to me since that night, and Jeremy was gone. Elena had Damon compel him to go live in Denver with the little family that we had left, to keep him away from the mess that everything was in Mystic Falls.
"Cute house." I heard Elena comment from the front seat beside Bonnie, and I glanced over to see that we were pulling up to a small red house, with an old barn beside it.
We had found Bonnie's mother's address, who she hadn't seen since she was little, after she walked out and dumped her at her grandmother's, because Bonnie had found out that one of Klaus's coffins was sealed shut, with a spell. That meant that she was now fully involved, which was why we needed to see her mother, who was also a witch.
Elena was worried that maybe Klaus would call and ask me about his coffins, about what we were up to, and that I would tell him everything. But, I knew he wouldn't do that. Besides, he had his hybrids looking for his coffins day and night.
"Yeah," She scoffed, before parking the car. "in the middle of nowhere."
"You ready?"
We fell into a short silence, before Bonnie popped her door open, and got out of the car. Elena and I followed, walking to the house, when a boy around our age walked out and greeted us.
"Hey, there."
"Hey, we're looking for Abby Wilson."
"She's not home." He responded, noticeably suspicious of us, unable to take his eyes off Bonnie. "Something I can do for you?
"It's okay, we can come back."
"I'm sorry," He spoke up before we got to walk away. "but you look so familiar."
"Ehm, Abby is my mom."
"Oh... I'm Jamie. You guys want to come inside?" He opened up the front door, stepping aside to let us in. "Right this way."
___________________________
"You guys sure, you don't want anything?" Jamie asked the three of us, as we stood inside the kitchen, in a slightly awkward silence. I was pretty sure all three of us had the same question on our minds ; was Jamie Bonnie's brother? "We got fresh OJ, coconut water, some mango guava something."
It made me think of my brother, and what he was doing right then, if he was having a good time in Colorado. I still couldn't believe that he was gone, that Elena had sent him away without asking me. I understood she had nothing but good intensions, but it still hurt not having said goodbye to him.
"Water is fine."
"Cool." Jamie got Bonnie a glass of water, which she took, taking a few sips.
"So, are we..." She trailed off. "like related?"
"Oh, no." Jamie shook his head, chuckling a little. "Abby is not my mom. She dated my old man back in the day. He's kind of a deadbeat, so when they broke up she took me in. Put me through school. Didn't freak out when I totalled her car. Twice."
"She sounds...great."
"Jamie?" We heard a woman's voice call out, walking in through the front door. "Whose car is out front?" The woman that walked in resembled Bonnie, easily deducing that it was Abby.
"That's mine." Bonnie answered, turning to face her. "I'm Bonnie. Your daughter."
"Hello, Bonnie."
___________________________
"How are you holding up?" I asked Bonnie, who stood beside Elena in the living room, holding a framed photo of Jamie in her hands. I could remember like it was just yesterday when I met my birth mother, and what a total and complete disappointment it had been to find out that she didn't care.
"I'll be fine." She sighed, glancing at me over her shoulder, before looking at Elena. "I'm not here to get my mom back, I'm just here to get her help."
"So I hope you guys are hungry," Abby called out from the kitchen, before the three of us decided to walk back in. "cause food has always been my go to ice-breaker."
"You have a really beautiful home." Elena said upon entering the room, glancing around at the decor, the smell of freshly cooked food emanating.
"You're so sweet." Abby smiled at Elena. "Just like your mom."
"You knew our mom?" I curiously asked, folding my arms over my chest.
She nodded. "Miranda was my best friend."
"So, you had a daughter and a best friend and you still left?" Bonnie snapped, and I could understand just what she was going through, exactly how she felt. Her mom left her, started a whole new life, and became somebody else's mom.
"My best friend is why I left." Abby pointed out. "Fifteen years ago a vampire came to town. Looking for you two." She looked between Elena and I. "Looking for the doppelgängers. No one could manage to kill him. So I lured him out of town and cast a spell to desiccate him in a crypt in Charlotte."
"Mikael." Elena realized. "He was an original vampire."
"It took every ounce of power I had." She continued to explain. "Almost killed me. I recovered, but my magic didn't. My powers never came back."
I let out a heavy sigh, inevitably thinking of Klaus, and just thinking of him felt like I was hit with a truck of emotions, with so much sadness, and bitterness, frustration and confusion. "I uhh - I need some air," I said, before swiftly walking outside.
Outside, I was met with the cool, crisp autumn air, letting out a sigh as I stared out at the open fields of land around me. Everything felt so still, and so calm, but the second that I shut my eyes, I was revisited by memories on top of memories, with chaos and conflict.
And I begged for it to stop, begged to be rid of every single memory of Klaus because now they were all...messed up. It was like every single happy, innocent moment with him was twisted, demented. He had been lying to me the entire time that we spent together, and still - after everything, he lied to me. But, it didn't stop me from missing him.
Must be the sire bond, I thought to myself.
My brows knitted at the sound of a car coming up the road, and I stepped out to get a better view, spotting a familiar red car ; Stefan. Before I could take another step, I suddenly felt a sharp stab into the side of my neck, and could immediately smell the strong scent of vervain.
"Stefan," I mumbled, hoping that he would hear me, before I fell into unconsciousness.
___________________________
I woke up inside the house, in a random room and realized that I'd been out for hours, the dark night now blanketing the sky. I walked around the house, confused, as I rubbed the side of my neck, still feeling slightly numb, before heading back outside. In the barn, I could see Elena, tied by her wrists to one of the poles keeping the second floor from falling, and on the ground I saw Stefan.
"Elena!" I shouted, hurrying towards them, wondering what happened.
"Lyssa!" She rejoiced, once I got to them, but instead of going to her first, I went to Stefan, who had wooden bullets lodged into his chest, right by his heart.
"Stefan," I breathed out, dropping beside him without a second thought.
I could remember all of the times that he'd been in danger, all of the moments that I'd gladly sacrificed my own safety for his, and this was just another one of those times. I thought that at least, I had those memories, that weren't clouded by anything, no other motive, no deceit, but I was wrong because Stefan had lied to me, too.
But no matter what happened, or how angry he was at me, it still struck at my heart to see him in pain.
Before I could do anything, I suddenly heard the loud sound of a gun cocking, behind me, and I froze in place for a second, turning around to see what was going on. Jamie stood with a shotgun, aimed straight at my head, waiting to shoot.
"I think he's been compelled by one of Klaus's hybrids," Elena spoke up, and I wasn't surprised a bit. He still wanted his coffins, and I could only imagine that threatening Stefan's life was his plan to get him to fess up and hand them over.
"Of course they did." I replied, before rushing up to Jamie, and tossing the gun out of his hand.
In an instant, my vampiric visage came to, biting into Jamie's neck. He screamed out in pain, and I fed for a few seconds, before letting him drop to the floor, weak.
I let out a heavy sigh, momentarily glancing down at the slight mess that I'd made of my shirt, before wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. I could see the disgust in Elena's eyes as she looked at me, no matter how hard she tried to hide it.
"Where's Bonnie?" I asked, that time moving to free Elena of the ties around her wrists, first.
"I don't know," Elena shook her head, moving to help Stefan. "Abby took her..I think she knew the hybrids were around."
I nodded, glancing over at Jamie who was barely keeping his eyes open, taking short breaths, and as much as the mean, and partly cruel part of me wanted to let him die, to send Klaus a message, I knelt down and bit into my wrist.
I slipped my arm beneath his head, and lifted him up to drink the blood that was freely flowing from my wrist. I realized that it must've been Jamie that had vervained me earlier, had a feeling the hybrids were instructed to keep me out of things.
Once Jamie came back to, he sat up on his own, and I grabbed his face in my hand. "You're gonna go inside, and get cleaned up," I compelled. "and if one of the hybrids, or hell, if Klaus himself comes and asks you what happened..I want you tell them that Lyssa happened."
I got up, glancing back over at Elena who was struggling to pull the bullets from Stefan's chest, before dropping down beside him to help. Elena glanced up at me as I shoved two of my fingers into the bullet wound nearest to Stefan's heart, a loud groan of pain escaping him, easily pulling it out.
I tossed the bullet away, as Stefan began to cough, and gasp for air. "Try to get yourselves home in one piece," I rudely said, before standing back up. I knew none of what had just happened was their faults, but I was angry and couldn't stop myself.
"Where are you going?" Elena asked.
"To murder my sire."
___________________________
I stormed up the driveway to Klaus's mansion, sticky with blood that had dried along the length of my neck, traveling down my chest, drenched into my clothes. I got up to the front doors, and stepped into the house, loudly slamming the door shut behind me. I glanced around the foyer, before walking into the parlor where I found Klaus, and another nameless hybrid, along with his missing coffins.
"Hey babe," I sarcastically greeted, narrowing my eyes on him as he looked up at me from across the room. "I'm home."
I'd never hated the word, home, more, never felt so much disdain for a simple four letters. That mansion wasn't a home. It was a prison, decorated with luxury furs, stolen art, and dazzling diamonds as if that could lure me in, so that he could lock me up forever, so that I was stuck with him forever within those four walls.
Klaus wanted control, and in that moment, I wanted nothing more than to raise hell.
His eyes flickered from my eyes, down to observe me, shooing the hybrid away with his hand. "What happened?" He asked, walking over to me. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," I replied, sauntering over to a side table where I found a beautiful crystal vase waiting to be filled. "Jamie on the other hand..not so much." I noticed a large painting hanging on the wall behind him, and I smirked. "I love what you've done to the place.." I said, before picking up the vase and throwing it at the painting, satisfied when it fell, glass shattering to pieces.
He sighed, still and calm in my madness. "I built this for us.."
"And when were you gonna tell me that I'm sired to you?" I asked, nearing him. "Before or after I moved in?"
"I was going to tell you, Lyssa." Klaus pressed, and I could see the desperation in his eyes, how much he wanted me to hear him out, but I was so done with listening to him - I listened to everything, I heard everything he had to say, and I didn't want to do it anymore. "But, I didn't wanna hurt you - "
"Really?" I interrupted, shaking my head in disbelief. "Is that why you nearly had Stefan killed tonight? God, y-you say that everything you do is for me - for us - but it's not. It's all for you. All of it."
"You know that's not true - "
"What have you done for me?!" I snapped, raising my voice over his. "I mean, you turned me, so that you wouldn't be alone." I finally said, and I could tell it hurt him, made him feel vulnerable, but I didn't stop. "You were so afraid of being alone, that you turned me so that you could have me around forever, so that you could force my loyalty - "
"I turned you because I wanted to give you the life that you could've never had as a human, the life that you really craved." He spoke up over me. "This small town - it wasn't enough for you ever. It limited you and you hated that, so I'm sorry sweetheart, for giving you a forever, for giving you the world right at your fingertips." Klaus moved to close the space between us, and I swore I could hear my heart thrumming in my ears. "I'm sorry that I gave you the strength that you couldn't find within yourself all those nights you cried yourself to sleep."
I nodded, clenching my jaw as I took in a breath, unable to stop myself from slapping him hard across the face. "You had no right to make that decision for me." I bitterly spat, as he lifted his head to look at me, eyes flashing golden ; he was pissed.
But, he didn't scare me.
"You're right, love." He calmly said, though I could tell that he was just trying to hold back his anger. "I had no right to give you the life you wanted, to make the choice that you were thinking of making for yourself. I had no right to give you and your Salvatore the opportunity of a future together - "
"Ugh, there was no future!" I shoved him, smacking my hands against his chest. "Not with anyone else, nobody but you!" Klaus caught my wrists, my fight faltering as tears welled up in my eyes. "From the moment," I breathed out. "that you turned me, there was no one else - no future with anybody, but you - you made sure of that.."
I fell silent, before I looked back up to meet his eyes, the gold gleam fading. Part of me hated him, hated his entire existence, despised him from the bottom of my heart - whatever was left of it - and the other wanted to drown in him, and everything that he was.
"Lyssa," I suddenly heard a familiar voice, one that I didn't expect, and until I looked over Klaus's shoulder, I thought that maybe I was dreaming ; that everything had been one crazy dream.
Across from the room, standing at the entryway, was Elijah.
A/N - Hey guys! SOOOOO, I'm gonna explain some things about the story rn.
First, in the last chapter, when Lyssa went to the psychic and she told her about her soulmate, and that she's basically gonna get knocked up - she was talking about TWO different people!!! I thought it was clear, but looking back on it, I could've worded it better, and I prolly will go back and tweak it a little bit to get rid of confusion. I thought it would be obvious bc she told her that her and her soulmate have met in past lives, and then when she asked about the father of her child, she said they'd already met. So, there are 2 different people, just an FYI.
And second, when I write and say Lyssa loves someone, it doesn't mean that she is in love with that someone. For example, in the first book, she has said that she loves Stefan and Damon, both in one chapter AND HOLY SHIT DOES EVERYONE FREAK OUT. Back in the first story, when she would say that she loves Stefan, it was a different type of love from Damon. She admires Stefan, and her love for him was platonic for a very long time, and is more platonic than it is romantic. She doesn't need to be romantically involved with Stefan to be in awe of him, to have love for him. None of that made her love Damon any less, because with Damon it was romantic from the start, they were never truly just friends. So when she says she loves multiple people, it doesn't mean she wants to be with all of them.
I just wanted to put that out there.
But anywayyyyyyssss, thank you guys for reading the chapter, and thank you for reading this long ass author's note!!!