Work Text:
England, 1533
Never let it be said that Caroline Forbes weeped over her fate. While her parents sobbed, bemoaning their actions and the future which they had damned their only child too, Caroline held her head tall, kept her composure and accepted the future with steel in her eyes. Some would say she didn’t fight - but Caroline would go towards the inevitable with the knowledge that she was doing what was best for her family, and with grace. In the time it took for her future to be finalized, Caroline was every inch the highborn lady that she never thought she’d be.
Well, she was certainly going to be a lady now.
“Be safe, Caroline.” Her mother’s lips were cool on her cheek, but Caroline willed herself to remain composed and not give into the tears that threatened to spill. She turned to her father, and he gathered her in his arms, pressing a kiss to her hair. He might have murmured something comforting, but Caroline couldn’t hear past her own pounding heartbeat.
When she pulled away, she managed a small smile. “Goodbye,” she choked out, turning on her heel before she could say anything more, anything more scathing that would mar the moment. It would be nothing they didn’t deserve, but for now, Caroline was the bigger woman and a small part of her knew they would live with the guilt for far longer. It would be punishment enough.
Besides, she couldn’t spare time on her anger, not when her mind was fixated on her new husband.
If the carriage waiting for her was any indication, she would want of nothing for the rest of her days. A footman helped her inside, and Caroline didn’t know if it was relief or disappointment she felt when she saw that it was empty. She wasn’t particularly excited to meet the man she was now betrothed to, but the anticipation only heightened her nerves and the facade of calm she tried to keep wouldn’t last for long.
“How long will the ride be?” she asked the footman, but he didn’t answer her, closing the door instead and leaving Caroline alone with her thoughts. It didn’t bode well, she thought, that the people in her future husband’s employ were so reticent, it warned of a house of fear and not for the first time, Caroline was well and truly afraid for what kind of man she might find waiting for her.
The carriage trundled along, and afforded no opportunity for rest, Caroline was too anxious to do anything but stare out at the rapidly darkening sky and try to discern where her future home lay. There were stories, whispers and half-truths of the Lord who held more power than the earls and dukes of the land, even more powerful than the king himself - no matter how treasonous it was to suggest that.
All of these stories were said to be just that-fanciful tall tales spread by traveling bards for the sake of an audience and free pitcher of ale, but Caroline could now count herself as one of the few lucky ones who knew the truth. Such men did exist, and held the power to do even the impossible, such as alleviate the debt of a desperate couple, who had nothing to offer except their only child’s hand in marriage.
Caroline could not imagine what that sort of man could want for in a wife, least of all her. With that sort of wealth and power, she had no doubt that he could find any eligible rich noblewoman, so why he took a lowly daughter of a merchant was beyond her sensibilities. It made no sense, but nothing good could possibly come of this, she was sure.
The sky was pitch dark by the time the carriage jolted to a stop, and Caroline had long since given up on trying to make out where they were. She only knew that when the forest around her became thicker and thicker still, she was sure that they could not possibly be heading towards an estate, for there was nothing in these parts.
Apparently, her scant knowledge of the world was very, very wrong.
The trees gave way to well kept grounds, beautiful in the day, Caroline was sure. The door opened again and the surly footman from earlier helped her down, and mutely led the way, carrying her rather light trunk. There were few possessions she cared enough to bring with her and she had been told that the necessities would be more than adequately provided for.
The house loomed in front of them, large and stately. Caroline craned her neck, but the closer they came, the larger it seemed and in the dark she couldn’t tell just how far it sprawled. Already her heartbeat picked up, waiting for the inevitable, forcing herself to walk forward, not run.
Show no fear. Show no fear.
It didn’t matter how many times she repeated that mantra in her head. She was still so scared.
They approached the massive front doors which were opened of their own accord, leaving Caroline to enter the large foyer, her mouth dropping open at the opulence.
“Welcome, love.”
Her blood ran cold and she fisted the fabric of her skirt so tightly that her knuckles went white. The sound of her heartbeat pounded in her ears but with every inch of willpower she had, Caroline forced herself to turn on her heel and face the lord of the manor.
“Who are you?”
Caroline blurted out her question before she could help herself, curiosity overtaking good sense. The man in front of her was nothing more than myth to most folk, but standing in front of her now, he looked no worse than any other gentleman she knew. Certainly dressed much more finely, but nothing that seemed to warrant the mystery around him.
In fact, (and though she was loathe to admit it), the infamous lord was rather handsome. Well-built, with golden curls and dimples that deepened as he smirked at her, looking her over carefully. He didn’t seem offended by her blunt question, merely amused.
“Klaus Mikaelson,” he finally replied, reaching for her hand and pressing a soft kiss to her knuckles. Caroline stuttered, completely unsure how to deal with him. It only seemed to further his amusement, his smirk widening.
“How was your journey?”
After all the time spent wondering and worrying about what her future held, his banal questions only heightened her irritation. “What do you want with me?” she spat, countering his question with one of her own, ripping her hand away from his.
Klaus’s brow furrowed a little, and he cocked his head to the side, considering her with a terrifying stillness. “What do I want?” he repeated. “I wanted the debt your parents owed me paid in full. Failing that, I suppose you’ll have to do.”
Caroline felt her bravado slip away and she took a step back, not trusting that he wouldn’t be upon her any second. Not that she knew where to run, the manor was large and imposing and the forest was worse. There was no where no run, no one to help.
“Get on with it then,” she whispered, trying her hardest to meet his eyes with strength.
Klaus kept his heavy gaze on her before his mouth split in a wide grin. “Such a naughty mind you have, love.”
“I don’t need to be mocked,” Caroline replied darkly.
“Forgive me sweetheart, but your hostility is quite unfounded.”
Caroline blanched, not believing the height of his arrogance. “You took me from my family!”
“As far as I remember, your family gave you up quite willingly.”
“You preyed on their desperation!”
“They’re the ones who took money from me,” Klaus said, prowling closer, hands clasped behind his back. “They knew the terms, they knew what they had to repay.”
“And when they couldn’t, you decided to find a wife,” Caroline muttered bitterly.
Klaus smiled to himself. “I confess, the confines of marriage aren’t particularly appealing.”
Caroline’s mouth twisted up in distaste. “A mistress then?”
Klaus’s leer sent the hairs on the back of her neck standing. “If you’re willing to warm my bed, by all means sweetheart.”
He was crude, but something in his words gave her pause. “If I’m…willing?”
The lord put a hand over his heart, exaggerated offense on his face. “Such a low opinion of me, Caroline, and here we’ve only just met.”
Caroline only gaped and he rolled his eyes, sighing dramatically. “It would hardly befit me to start taking unwilling maidens to bed. I’ve certainly never had to before.”
A wave of relief washed over her and Caroline released a breath she didn’t even know she was holding. There was no fear of him forcing himself on her, or even forcing her to give her hand. But it didn’t erase the fear completely. He may not be as monstrous as she’d assumed, but a touch mad all the same.
“You haven’t answered my question,” she said, straightening her spine, trying to regain her wits. “If you don’t want a wife or a whore, or do you want with me?”
“Perhaps I wanted a beautiful acquisition,” he said, pulling at a stray curl that had fallen on her neck and twisting it idly. “I have a good eye for these things.”
“I’m hardly a possession,” Caroline snarled, any goodwill he might have earned slipping away.
“Perhaps not, but you’ll certainly be interesting,” he said. “Now, may I show you to your room?”
There was nothing Caroline could say to that, her mind was too busy wrapping itself around her new reality. She followed his lead to a large bedchamber, lavishly decorated. Her earlier fears abated completely as he simply bade her goodnight and left her alone with her thoughts.
There were clothes, more than she’d ever had, all made from fine material. The bed was soft and inviting and Caroline wasted no time stripping off her traveling clothes and choosing a soft cotton shift, sinking into the plush bed and drifting off into a deep sleep.
She would never admit to it, but her dreams that night were filled with golden curls and a dimpled smile.
xxx
Adjusting to her new life was an easier task than she’d anticipated. Days slipped into each other, and for much of them, Caroline was left to her own devices. It would seem that Klaus had been truthful when he said she was simply a beautiful addition to his ‘collection’, one that included all manner of art, books, weaponry, anything that had caught his eye. It littered the large manor, and in the weeks that it took for Caroline to explore it all, she wondered how one man could have acquired so much.
But then, she was starting to think Klaus was no ordinary man.
The man who was not to be her husband after all left her to wander the the house and the grounds, under strict instructions that she make no attempts at leaving. He didn’t have to make promises or threats, Caroline was no fool and she could only guess what the consequences would be. None of them seemed appealing. So she walked the rooms, the hidden passageways, trying to keep herself occupied. Servants treated her with the utmost respect, but kept their silence.
Despite that, she was not always alone.
Every so often, Klaus would join her, sparking conversation over one of his collectibles, telling her stories of far away lands the people he’d met there. Half of them had to be tall tales, but Caroline listened to them all eagerly. He insisted she join him at dinner, and so she did, dressed in fine clothes. It was enough to make her feel like a proper lady, not simply a girl playing pretend.
Things were comfortable, and Caroline grew bolder, less afraid. Bold enough that when a hand wrapped around her wrist one day as she stood in one of Klaus’s private rooms, she didn’t startle, but met the lord’s gaze evenly.
“Who is this?” she asked, showing him the sketch of the girl she had found amongst some drawings. Perhaps she should have left it well enough alone, Klaus’s lips were pressed into a hard line and his eyes blazed in fury.
“A treacherous thorn in my side whom I shall one day take great pleasure in making suffer,” he snarled, ripping the sketch away from her.
The woman in the sketch had dark curls and a lovely face, Caroline could hardly guess what she had done to earn such ire. She wanted to press the matter further, but he stopped her before she could.
“Come love, I’ll have the horses saddled. The weather is too fine to waste.”
It really was, and Caroline dropped the matter, but his harsh response stuck in her head. He was not her husband, and perhaps he was her captor, but her life was no the hell she’d imagined it would be. Perhaps he was even…a friend?
It was a ludicrous thought, but it made her brave and she vowed to bring the subject of the girl up the next day.
Her plan never came to light.
It was the middle of the night when the door was flung open and Caroline was startled from her sleep by Klaus dragging her out of her bed. She could barely tell what was happening, but before she could question him, he was slipping a heavy necklace around her neck.
“Forgive me, love. It seems I’ve grown too attached to let you go.”
“Klaus, what’s happening?!” she asked, hearing a loud commotion from downstairs.
“It appears I’m saving you,” he said, and his eyes sparked with madness, she was sure of it. But before she could press him for an explanation, her world went black.
xxx
London, 1890
Her nightshift was thin and unsuited for the damp night. Caroline shivered against the brick wall, trying to get her bearings. Where she had moments before been standing in her bedroom in the manor, she was now in a dirty alley way, surrounded by unfamiliar buildings in an unfamiliar city. She tried staggering forward but found herself too weak to move very far.
Klaus was nowhere to be found.
“Hello lovely,” a rough voice called out.
Caroline looked up to see a coarse looking man coming towards her. He was dressed oddly, but as he approached it was obvious that he was a drunk, swaying slightly and eyeing her form. “What’s a pretty bird like you doing here all alone?” he asked, sniggering as he reached out a hand, only for Caroline to slap it away. He certainly didn’t like that and scowled, muttering an obscenity.
Caroline wondered just how she was going to fight him off in her current state, but salvation came in the next second as the man’s head was snapped to the side and his body dropped to the ground in front of her. She was too stunned to scream, but before she could resume fearing for her life, a familiar voice reached her ears.
“It’s been a long time love.”
Caroline looked up, and there was Klaus, staring at her with something akin to wonder. He too was dressed much differently, and Caroline stumbled backwards, her head aching.
“What is this? Where are we? How did I get here, I was just in my chamber…”
“Yes, you were. Klaus said evenly. “But you’ll find I’ve been waiting for quite a while.”
Caroline gaped at him, “Give me a proper answer!”
Klaus sighed heavily. “It was magic that sent you here,” he explained. “You’ve traveled through time.”
xxx
The fire in the parlour roared. Klaus had brought her to what he called a ‘townhouse’, in the city of London. She’d never visited, but the things that she’d seen were nothing like what she’d heard of. The home they were in was much smaller than the mansion hidden in the trees, but it was no less elegant. Decorated beautifully, of course.
Caroline sat in front of a fire, a heavy blanket around her shoulders. Klaus was watching her carefully, waiting for her to say something. But what could she say, in the face of magic?
Magic was real, and so were the monsters her mother had always warned about, apparently. And to think, she thought she might have been married to one of them.
Oh that had been fun to learn, the story of creatures who preyed on human blood, which apparently was what Klaus was. He’d hid it from her, but saw no need for secrecy anymore.
Caroline almost wished for the bliss of ignorance.
“You’re a monster,” she whispered, more to the flames than the man.
“Am I?” Klaus replied quietly. “I would think you’d have a more open mind.”
“And why should I?”
“You seemed smarter.”
Caroline had nothing to say to that, so she settled for another question. “Why did you take me? Was it for my blood? Were you going to kill me when you were bored?”
“Oh I certainly considered it,” Klaus replied, taking the spot on the floor next to her. “But you surprised me. I’m sure I was going to tell you the truth eventually.”
“The girl…the one in the sketch…was she a part of this?”
Klaus’s face darkened, “Katerina was a hindrance to me unlocking my werewolf half.”
He’d included that in his earlier explanation, but it was no easier to believe, how a man could be not one monster of myth, but two. For now, Caroline didn’t ask more, but accepted it as truth.
“Was she the reason you sent me here?”
Again, Klaus was sullen as he looked into the fire. “No. That was a much more dangerous threat. My father, who would like nothing more than to see me dead.”
It stunned her, to think that he had a family at all when he’d never once mentioned them. “What happens now?” she asked him quietly.
“Well, I suppose you have many centuries to catch up on. Best to get started.”
xxx
The city was rich in art and culture, and Klaus took her to see it all. Museums and parks teemed with more people than Caroline had ever seen in one place and she took it in with wonder. The world had changed in the one night it had taken her to arrive in this time, and it had been difficult to adjust.
Klaus, surprisingly, had made it easier.
He was a monster, she kept telling herself. But whatever wariness she should have had tended to slip away when they were alone and he told her great stories of new lands and great wars. She willed herself to flee, forge a new life for herself, but the comfort of the only person she knew was hard to escape.
Everyone else was dead.
Her mama and papa, who had lost her for their foolishness but loved her all the same, gone in a night. The few friends she had, the servants who had been kind. All gone. And as much as she knew she had to fear Klaus, she stayed in his home, at his side. Still not a wife, or a lover…but a friend.
What a curious thing.
“What does it feel like?” she asked him one night, over dinner. “Being a vampire?”
Klaus stilled, setting down his wine glass. “Why do you ask?”
“I was just wondering.”
“Do you want to be one?” he asked bluntly.
Truthfully, Caroline had wondered if it wasn’t inevitable. Not that she wanted to be a monster, but she could not imagine growing into an old woman, living in this house with an immortal man. “If I wasn’t, would I have to leave?” she asked carefully.
“Are you planning on leaving?” he asked curtly, and Caroline could tell he didn’t like this line of thought.
“I wasn’t,” she replied, just as sharply. “But if I stay, will you…”
“Turn you? I suppose you’d have to ask.”
Caroline stared into her wine, wondering if she would ever work up the courage to do so. The question weighed on her for days, up until the night Klaus took her to the theatre. They sat in a private box and she watched the performance, enraptured. Midway through, she turned her head to find Klaus watching her and her heart leapt, a decision clarifying in an instant.
“Klaus, I need to tell you something-”
Screams from below cut her off and Klaus had his arm curled around her elbow in the next second, yanking her to her feet. A vampire in Klaus’s employ burst through the box’s curtain, face pale.
“He’s here sir- it’s definitely him.”
Klaus swallowed thickly, reaching into his suit and pulling out a familiar looking necklace. Caroline’s face fell as she realized what was coming next.
“No, Klaus, I could stay-”
“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” he whispered, leaning down and pressing a soft kiss on her cheek. “But you will be safe.”
The necklace was heavy around her neck again, and Caroline needed no warning for the darkness that followed.
xxx
Chicago, 1920
“Love, you are a formidable woman.”
“Took you long enough to realize it.”
Klaus chuckled as he spun Caroline around in his arms, her short dress swaying around her thighs. The clothing of this time had been a shock, but Caroline had quickly grown accustomed to the freedom. It was a liberating feeling that she’d never known, Chicago was addicting, and for the first time in her life, Caroline felt truly happy.
Klaus had found her hours after her arrival in the future, and how he’d managed it, she couldn’t puzzle out. She wasn’t in London this time, but America, and the thought made her head spin. A new world indeed, and Caroline relished every part of it.
The soft jazz music floated around them and Klaus pulled her closer. He was happier here, and Caroline couldn’t help but admire him. He was teasing and playful, wasting no time in showing her all this city had to offer.
Whether it was the city or the liqour, Caroline worked up the courage she needed to ask Klaus a simple question.
“Turn me into a vampire.”
He stilled mid-spin, watching her carefully. “What was that, love?”
“Turn me into a vampire, I’m ready.”
Klaus sucked in a breath. “Are you sure?”
Caroline was, and whether it was the booze, the music, or the man in front of her, she knew exactly how sure she was. And so, she proved it.
Wrapping a gloved hand around his neck, Caroline pulled him down to meet her lips, kissing him wantonly in the middle of the club with no care for who could see them. It was something that had played at the edges of her memory, even centuries before, (or months, for her.) The reality was so much more powerful, for Klaus wasted no time in wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her closer, deepening the kiss with much enthusiasm.
“I’ll grant your wish, sweetheart,” he whispered hotly in her ear when they finally pulled apart, “but first, I want to enjoy you.”
Enjoy her he did, and she him, as they haphazardly rushed back to the apartment, with completely unconcerned with who might see them. Klaus peeled the dress of her body in the comfort of him bedroom, eyes darkening as he took her in. “I knew you’d be willing to warm my bed one day,” he told her, muffled against the skin of her neck.
“You told me I had a naughty mind,” she replied cheekily, letting her hands wander. “Shall I show you how right you are?”
They lost themselves to each other, skin slipping against skin, sweat clinging to them as Klaus tasted every inch of Caroline, hands kneading soft flesh. They tumbled over the edge of ecstasy, and when they lay panting in the afterglow, Klaus bit into his wrist, offering it to the pliant blonde.
“Is this really necessary?” she asked, wrinkling her nose.
Klaus chuckled, dropping a soft kiss to it. “I’m afraid so. Just a bit, don’t be scared.”
She wasn’t, not really, but when Klaus snapped her pretty neck, he felt a brush of fear himself, irrational as it was.
His fear was unfounded however, when she gasped to life a few hours later. She was magnificent.
xxx
New Orleans, 2011
“He’s dead, love. Mikael’s dead.”
The news was almost too good to be true, and Caroline almost didn’t let herself believe her good fortune. She’d been forced to flee to the future, again, because of Klaus’s atrocious father. And to think, she’d loved Chicago. Her lover by her side and the high of vampirism was bliss that she’d never imagined, and Mikael had ruined it.
But now the monster was dead, and they were free.
“Where are we now?” she asked, looking around the bedroom.
“My home in the French Quarter of New Orleans.”
“Louisiana?” Caroline asked, stunned. “How do we always find each other so easily?”
“You be surprised what magic is capable of,” Klaus said with a wink, coming up to rest on the bed beside her. “Especially, the magic of a mated pair.”
Caroline pulled away, looking at him with wide eyes. “That’s not-you can’t be serious.”
“Oh but I am,” he said, threading his fingers through her mussed hair. “I unlocked my werewolf half, love, and there are legends of what mates are capable of. Finding each other through time, for starters.”
Despite every impossible thing he’d ever told her, Caroline still could not believe the enormity of what he was saying. “How long have you known?”
“Since I broke the curse. I had my suspicions.” He drew he closer, not wanting her very far away. “You would not believe the torture, waiting for you to appear and trusting that I’d find you when you did. Absolute agony.”
Caroline didn’t doubt it for a second, and burrowed further into his warmth, thinking over her odd life. It had been no more than a year since she’d made her way to his manor…and yet, it felt like so much longer. She felt the weight of time, the stretch of the years, even though she hadn’t lived them. She felt her mate’s pain.
Throwing off the yoke of the past, Caroline turned to the future. “You know, if we really are mates, then it only makes sense that we finish what we started.”
“Oh? And what’s that?”
Caroline looked up at him with a small smile. “I seem to remember expecting a husband when I first met you.”
Klaus’s eyebrows shot into his hairline, it was quite the sight. “You want me to make good on my demands?”
“I’m old fashioned Klaus, I refuse to live in sin.” She meant no such thing and he knew it, tickling her sides until she squealed.
“You might have a point love,” he said, looking down at her breathless face. “But allow me to ask for your hand properly.” He pulled her to sit at the edge of the bed, sinking to one knee.
“Will you marry me, love?”
Caroline laughed, throwing her arms around him and kissing him senseless, content in the knowlege that she would never have to leave his side again. And much later, when they were properly reacquainted with each other’s bodies, she gave him a simple answer.
“Yes.”