"So, is it good?" Klaus asked Nat, who sat on a table in the parlor as he painted on a canvas. She tilted her head to the side and looked at the different colors with a small smile.
"Yeah, looks pretty good so far." She shrugged and he looked at her pointedly. "What do you want me to say? I'm not much for paintings, but I like your work." He shook his head and turned back to his painting.
"So, you'll be my date for this charity thing, right?" He asked her and she looked at her nails.
"Yeah, why not? I have nothing better to do anyways." He chuckled at her words and grabbed another brush from the table she was sitting on.
"So, what have you been up to these last few days?"
"Well, I actually went on an impromptu road trip to New Orleans." He whipped his head back and looked at her with raised eyebrows. "What?"
"Anything interesting there?" She opened her mouth, thinking about Marcel and Jane-Anne, the witch.
"Very lively city with good booze." She told him with a toothy grin. A smile curved on his lips and he turned back to his painting.
"Did you know we practically built New Orleans?" Nat leaned forward on her seat and looked at him curiously. "We arrived in the early 18th century, it was actually one of the only places we ever called home." He said the last part softly and Nat frowned.
"Then why did you leave?"
"Mikael." Nat's lips parted and she looked at him sadly. "He found us, so Elijah stayed back to trail him off of Rebekah and me." He explained. Huh, so that's when they got separated, Nat thought.
"What about Kol? Was he already daggered?" She asked him curiously and he nodded.
"In 1914." He said before switching brushes. "The sneaky little bastard was plotting against me, so I daggered him."
"Wonder why that could be." Nat said sarcastically and he rolled his eyes. "Will you ever go back there?" She asked after a moment and he paused, looking at the painting before glancing at her.
"I don't know. Even though we had good times there, it also became a place where we lost people we loved." He said darkly and Nat's eyes softened.
"What will you do after you find the cure?" She asked him, changing the subject. He pursed his lips, making Nat stare at him confused. "Aren't you gonna make more hybrids?" He looked at her for a moment before leaving his brush on the side and stepping closer to her, until he stood between her legs.
"Can I tell you something? Without you blurting it out to your annoying friends." He muttered and Nat giggled and nodded. "I don't want to cure your sister." Her eyes widened slightly and she looked at him surprised. "I know you don't want that either, you're a firm believer that she should adapt to being a vampire. It's written all over you."
"If you don't plan on using it on Elena, how will you make more hybrids?" She asked him quietly.
"I couldn't care less about hybrids. I want to find that cure and destroy it before anyone can use it against me." He said lowly and Nat's lips parted and slowly curved into a small smile.
"Why does that not surprise me?" She whispered, an amused glint in her eye. "You're using Stefan because you know that he wants nothing more than to cure Elena."
"He's under the impression that if he cures her, she will go running back to him." He shrugged and looked at her questioningly. "What do you think?"
"I think that's bullshit." He laughed loudly and she shrugged. "Elena had feelings for Damon well before she became a vampire. I truly think she broke up with Stefan because she's not in love with him anymore, not because she became a vampire." She rolled her eyes and he nodded.
"He will stop at nothing until we find that damned cure, which is why he's my most valuable player at the moment. I need him focused on the task at hand."
"Well, aren't you a little evil bastard." She said and he smiled mischievously before turning back to his painting.
"Sweetheart, would you text Adrian and tell him to come? Tell him it's urgent." He pointed at his phone on the table and Nat nodded, grabbing the phone and texting the hybrid quickly. After a few minutes of complete silence, Stefan walked into the room. Nat glanced at him and she noticed his eyes were glued to the painting.
"Looks like a giant snowflake." He said loudly.
"I prefer to think of it as an expression of postmodernism." Klaus said and turned to Stefan, leaving his brush on the table. "It's my donation to the Winter Wonderland charity event." Adrian entered the room in that moment and looked at Klaus.
"You said it was urgent."
"Yes, take this to the Mystic Grill immediately." Klaus told him as he pointed at the painting.
"You want me to be a delivery guy?" Adrian scoffed and Nat glanced at him curiously. Klaus walked forward and closed the space between them.
"What I want is for you to do whatever I say." He said lowly. "Without the attitude." He added. Adrian grimaced and walked over to the painting, picking it up before he started walking away. "And be careful. It's still wet." Adrian nodded and left the room wordlessly.
"Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves, you know." Stefan told Klaus and he smiled at the vampire.
"What is the point of my hybrids being sired to me if I can't maximize on the benefits of free labour?" He shrugged before narrowing his eyes. "What are you doing here?" Stefan walked down the stairs and into the room.
"Elena is sired to Damon." He told the hybrid and Nat looked at him.
"I intuited as much." Klaus replied amused.
"Which means I need to find the cure now more than ever and yet here you are, making postmodern snowflakes." Stefan retorted with a glare.
"I've delivered." Klaus told him as he walked over to the table Nat was sitting and held out his hands. She rolled his eyes and grabbed the cloth beside her and started wiping the paint off his hands. "I retrieved the Hunter's sword from Italy, which we'll use to decipher the map hidden in the Hunter's mark. You're the one who is supposed to deliver the Hunter and his mark." Nat finished wiping the paint and patted his hands lightly, hopping down on the floor and staring at Stefan.
"Well, Jeremy is the hunter and he has to keep killing vampires to complete his mark, but we can't quite figure out how to keep him from killing us." Stefan replied seriously and Klaus smirked at him.
"Sounds like quite the chore. Which is why I feel perfectly justified doing a little charity work."
"Hmm, or maybe you're lying about having found the sword." Stefan said and Nat raised her eyebrows.
"Why would I lie to you, Stefan?" Klaus said as he strode past the vampire, he and Nat following him to a vault in the other room. "We're in this together." Yeah, until they found the cure and Klaus destroys it, Nat thought. The hybrid turned the dial on the vault and opened it up, taking the sword out. "The sword acts as a cipher which we'll use to decode the marks on Jeremy's tattoo when he's killed enough vampires to complete it." He placed the sword down on the table and took a seat on the sofa, propping his feet up on the table. Nat walked over and leaned on it, staring at Stefan as he picked the sword up and examined it. "I heard you moved out of your house." Stefan looked at Nat and she shrugged innocently. "Bit of a martyr move, hm?"
"I'm not here to bond, Klaus." Stefan told him and placed the sword back on the table.
"On the contrary." Klaus smiled at him. "I think right now I'm the best friend you've got."
"This is pathetic." Nat said quietly as her and Klaus walked through the crowd on the Town Square. People were laughing and talking, fake snow all around the place. "I know you're only here to get a glimpse at Caroline." She told him and he smiled down at her.
"Why else would I come to this annoying thing?" He shrugged and Nat laughed. "How is she?"
"Angry and frustrated because of the sire bond." Nat told him. "She's Team Stefan all the way."
"Are you?" He asked her curiously and she shook her head.
"I'm Team Elena. Whatever makes her happy, I'll support her. Whether that's Damon or Stefan or maybe she'll meet someone else later on in life. I just want her to find happiness amongst all this craziness." She told him as they entered the Mystic Grill. He hummed silently and they looked around the place, Nat spotting Caroline admiring Klaus' painting. "Would you look at that?" She told him and he rolled his eyes playfully.
"If you'll excuse me." He patted her shoulder lightly and walked away, heading towards Caroline's direction. Nat smiled and turned around, intending to walk in the opposite direction, but bumped into April.
"Nat!" The girl said cheerily and Nat smiled at her.
"Hey, April." She greeted her. "You look really pretty." She complimented her with a smile and the girl grinned at her.
"Thanks, Nat. So do you." She said. "Well, you always look pretty." She laughed nervously and Nat chuckled quietly. "Hey, you're, uh, friends with Rebekah, right?"
"Yeah." Nat nodded and looked at her curiously.
"It's just- well, she said that she would help me find out what happened at the Farm with my dad but then she just disappeared without a word." A frown etched itself onto April's face and Nat took a deep breath.
"Well, she's... visiting her brother. They haven't seen each other in a long time, so..." She trailed off, hoping the lie would appease her for the time being. April's mouth opened in surprise before she nodded.
"Oh, I understand." She fiddled with her hands and bit her lip. "Well, if you happen to talk to her, say hi for me." Nat nodded and smiled at her.
"Of course."
"I have to talk to Mayor Lockwood. It was nice seeing you, Nat."
"Good luck with your duties." Nat told her and the girl left. She exhaled in relief and looked around the Grill, spotting Matt serving a couple some drinks. She walked over to him and started walking beside him to the bar. "You need to keep April in check. She's asking about Rebekah again and I don't think we're gonna be able to lie about this anymore."
"What do you want me do?" He asked defensively and she shrugged.
"I don't know! She's obsessed with you, just try to make her forget about Rebekah and convince her the farm fire was an accident, okay?" He sighed heavily and nodded.
"Fine. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to work." Nat raised her arms up defensively and he left. She turned to the side and found Klaus standing there. Her brows furrowed and she looked at where he had been standing with Caroline and saw her standing there texting someone.
"Why aren't you with Caroline?" She asked him.
"I came to get champagne." He told her as he called the bartender and asked him for two glasses. "It's our thing now." Nat raised her eyebrow and looked at him amusedly.
"Is it?" She asked him. "I'm pretty sure she'll fight you on that." He laughed and the bartender came back with the champagne. Klaus took them and thanked him.
"Have fun." She rolled her eyes playfully and walked out of the Grill. She went over to the Town Square and walked around for some time, talking to some townspeople and classmates. She made light conversation, focusing on the holidays and what she would be doing with Jeremy and Elena. After and hour or two, she bumped into Carol Lockwood.
"Oh, Natalia. It's so good to see you!" The woman exclaimed with a happy smile and Nat returned it.
"It's good to see you too, Carol." She said as she looked around the place. "The Square looks beautiful, very... holiday-like." Nat said and the woman chuckled. Suddenly, an arm draped around her and she turned to the side, seeing Klaus smiling at the Mayor.
"Carol, did you know natives used to make sacrifices to their gods in this very spot?" He told her and Carol's eyes widened slightly. Nat tilted her head and smiled at him.
"I remember that, it was very creepy, actually." Nat wrinkled her nose and Carol looked at her confused.
"How do you..."
"Did Tyler never tell you about Natalia here?" Klaus asked Carol curiously. She shook her head slowly and looked at Nat. "Oh, well, she knew me and the rest of my family in her first life." At his words the Mayor furrowed her brows. "She was cursed by my wretched mother to be born again with no memories and no powers."
"You're a... witch?" Carol asked her cautiously and Nat nodded.
"Mhm. She broke the curse when she came back. So she remembers everything now." Nat could see how nervous and shaken the woman was getting, so she looked at the hybrid and gestured with her eyes.
"But that's a story for another time. We'll leave you, Carol." She nodded slowly and Nat dragged Klaus away.
"Poor woman, she looked a minute away from passing out." He laughed amusedly and Nat glared at him, but she couldn't hold it for long. Soon, she was laughing quietly.
"You are the worst! Next time she sees me, she's gonna look at me like I'm a freak." She said looking around as Klaus dropped her arm from her shoulder.
"Oh, cheer up. You don't need her opinion on anything." He muttered and she exhaled loudly.
"I'm taking this." She took the champagne glass from his hand and walked away. She walked to the side and saw the people around her, all happy and oblivious to the things happening around them.
God, how she wished to be able to enjoy life like that sometimes. They didn't know about vampires, witches, hybrids, stupid cures and what not. They didn't have to deal with sire bonds and vampire hunters. But she had to admit, even if she thought about mundane things, she didn't think she would be able to get away from the supernatural now. It was second nature at this point.
She finished her drink and placed it on a waitress' tray as she passed through. When she looked up, she found Stefan walking in her direction, making her eyes narrow at him. Where had he been all day? Caroline had supposedly forced him to come, so why hadn't he shown up?
"Hey." He nodded at her and looked forward. Nat followed his gaze and it landed on Klaus and Hayley, the latter seemingly upset. Stefan walked towards them and Nat followed him. When they arrived at Klaus' side, Hayley was already gone.
"She doesn't like me much." Klaus told them before his gaze landed on Stefan. "Where have you been all day?"
"I've been around." He said dismissively.
"I'm not interested in vagary, Stefan. You've been dodgy and Caroline's been lovely, which I've come to recognize as a tool of distraction. Now, do you have something to share with me or should I compel it out of you?" Klaus asked him and gave him an expectant look.
"I broke into your safe." He replied and Nat frowned at his words.
"Why?"
"Because I don't trust you." Klaus narrowed his eyes at his words and pursed his lips.
"I showed you the sword, I explained its value. I've been on your side the entire time. What do you want from me? A secret brotherhood handshake?" Klaus asked him sarcastically and Stefan rolled his eyes.
"I found the letters." Nat looked at him confused. "You've had a few pen-pals over the centuries."
"Well, is keeping my victims' letters really so different from writing their names on a wall?" Klaus asked with a smug smile and Nat shook her head slightly. "Like you did, Ripper?" He whispered the last part with a smirk and Stefan stayed quiet. Suddenly, his face fell when his gaze landed on Adrian. He walked past Stefan and towards his hybrid, but stopped midway, looking at Stefan. "Loneliness, Stefan." The vampire turned to face him while Nat looked at them curiously. "That's why you and I memorialize our dead. There's the briefest of moments before we kill where we literally hold their life in our hands and then we rip it away. And we're left with nothing. So, gathering other people's' letters or writing their names on a wall is a reminder that in the end we're left infinitely and utterly alone." He turned around and walked away with Adrian, leaving Stefan and Nat alone.
"Hayley." Nat bumped into the girl as she walked through the crowd in the Town Square looking for Klaus. He had been gone for some time now and she was getting kind of worried.
"Natalia." The werewolf said, clearly not happy to see her. Nat suddenly remembered her heated conversation with Klaus hours earlier and her eyes lit up.
"I know it's a weird question, but have you seen Klaus?" She asked her as she looked around worriedly. She heard Hayley's sharp intake of breath and whipped her head back, seeing her all tense and nervous.
"No." She said, her voice trembling and Nat's eyes narrowed at her.
"What was that?" She asked her suspiciously and Hayley shook her head.
"What was what?"
"Don't play dumb, it doesn't suit you." Nat scowled at her and Hayley sighed. "Where is he?" At her nervous stare, Nat frowned. "What did those stupid hybrids do?"
"He's gonna be fine, Natalia." Hayley said quietly and Nat looked at her confused.
"What does that mean?"
"I'm telling you that he's gonna be alright, so you better go to his house and wait for him there, because I'm sure he'll need you when he's done."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Nat asked hotly, worrying even more for the Original now.
"Just do it. I don't have time to explain." Hayley said quietly before leaving her in the Square alone. Nat looked at her go and grumbled loudly before storming off to find a cab. When she did, she got in quickly and gave the man directions to Klaus' house. After a few minutes, they arrived and she paid him, getting out after. She walked inside the house and immediately went to the parlor, hoping to find him there, but it was empty.
"Damn it!" She swore loudly and sat down on the couch, tapping her foot impatiently on the floor as she waited for him to arrive. After a few minutes, she stood up and started pacing as she bit her lip nervously. Her heart was beating loudly in her chest, scared at what might be happening. After half an hour, she got her phone out and dialled Klaus, but got his voicemail instead. "Nik, call me as soon as you get this, I'm worried about you. Please just call me and get home." She said on the phone, her voice trembling, as well as her hands. She ended the call and took a shaky breath.
Suddenly, she heard the door open and immediately ran to the entrance. When she got there, she stopped in her tracks, eyes widening and a gasp coming out of her throat. In front of her stood Klaus, but his clothes were covered in blood, as well as his face and hands. He was carrying the sword on one hand and a bottle of champagne on the other.
"Nik!" She cried out and ran to him, immediately cupping her hands on his cheeks and checking to see if he had any injuries. It was pointless, she knew, but she couldn't help but worry.
"I killed them all." She looked up at him in shock and noticed his eyes were brimming with sadness. "I killed the twelve hybrids." He confessed and Nat's eyes softened, knowing how much it must have hurt him.
"L-let's just... let's just g-get you out of these clothes." She stammered and wrapped an arm around his shoulder, leading him gently to his room. They walked in silence, Nat astounded by his actions. Once they got to his room, Nat took the sword and the champagne from his hands, leaving them on the bed. She led him to the bathroom and took his jacket from his shoulders. After that, she unbuttoned his dress shirt and grabbed a towel from the rack on the side. She opened the faucet and placed the end of the towel underneath it, letting the water fall on it.
Once it was wet enough, she looked back up at him, his blank expression sending a pang of hurt to her heart. She gulped nervously and raised the wet towel, wiping the splatters of blood on his neck and shoulders. Once she was done there, she started wiping the blood on his face, his eyes never leaving her face.
"I killed her." Nat looked at him confused and he tilted his head a little to the side. "I killed Tyler's mother." Her blood ran cold at those words and her breath cut short. She stopped her movements and looked at him in shock, not knowing what to say. After a moment of just staring at each other, she shut her eyes and let out a deep breath, raising her hand again to continue wiping the blood away. "I drowned her. She fought for her life and I didn't care." He said and Nat frowned at him.
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because I'm a monster and you shouldn't be here." She shook her head and looked at him in disbelief. "I just killed your friend's mother along with twelve hybrids in cold blood."
"If this is some pathetic attempt at pushing me away-"
"Why are you here?!" He shouted all of a sudden, startling Nat. "Why don't you just leave, like everyone else has?!"
"Because I love you!" She shouted back. "And I made a promise, Nik. I'm not leaving you, okay?" Her eyes softened and she threw the towel on the floor, stepping closer to him. "You're my friend, my family. I'm not leaving you now or ever." A lonely tear suddenly fell from his eyes at her words and she threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly.
At first, he just stood there with his arms at his sides, but after a moment, he slowly wrapped them around her waist. Soon, they were hugging tightly, Klaus nuzzling his head in Nat's neck and letting out silent tears. She ran her hands through his hair, trying to comfort him and assure him that she wasn't leaving. She made a promise, and to hell if she broke it.