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THE DAY OF RECKONING

THERE HAD BEEN AN ITCH BENEATH CHARLOTTE'S SKIN ALL MORNING— ONE SHE COULDN'T QUITE SCRATCH.

The significance of the day didn't slip from her mind, though: it was the day of the full moon, and subsequently was the day that a certain Original vampire was going to enact his plan.

Charlotte had felt like a sitting duck, twiddling her thumbs as she tried to call Caroline for what seemed like the thousandth time. The Lockwood boy was still a bust, and she couldn't even leave anymore messages due to his answering machine being full. Her work, no doubt, but it still made a pit of unease open in her stomach.

Caroline was quite literally always on her phone. That was how the Henry girl first clued into the fact that she was being purposefully ignored whilst Caroline was getting the hang of the whole vampire thing. The fact that the blonde was once again missing in action raised alarm bells for her, of course.

So, under the guise of going to run some errands, Charlotte set out to see if she could find anyone— really, anyone, who could fill in the details she was so clearly missing.

However, because that would've left Joshua alone with their eldest brother, he practically begged Charlotte to tag along. She thought it was strange, his lack of desire to spend some quality time with Nathaniel now that he was home, but she could prod him for an answer as to why that was the case while they were out.

Her search of the main square was leading them nowhere for the first hour or so, until Joshua complained about his growing hunger. With a begrudging sigh, and with her own stomach rumbling at the sight of the Mystic Grill, she tugged them in the direction of the restaurant.

Though, as she ventured through the door she had just pulled open, she bumped into a sturdy figure whose arms caught her biceps before she could even take a stumble back.

Those eyes that haunted her dreams were now staring at her, now for the second time in just a matter of days. "Well, if it isn't the lovely Charlotte."

His voice sent a chill up her spine as she tried shuffling out of his grip, happy that he'd willingly relinquished his hold when she took a step back. Immediately, she was standing just in front of her brother, the boy's eyebrows furrowed as he looked at this complete stranger with a British accent stood before them.

"Klaus," she greeted, arms crossing over her chest. "Shouldn't you be anywhere but here, right now?"

The Mikaelson man shrugged, a smirk toying at his lips. "Figured I could use a drink before this evening's festivities have me... occupied," he responded. His eyes drifted over to the boy behind her, his head tilting by just a fraction. "And who might this young lad be?"

The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, not loving the way he suddenly seemed all too inquisitive about the youngest Henry. "This is my brother," she said stiffly.

Something dark flashed in his eyes for a split second. "Not quite twins, are you?"

That made Joshua scoff. "She's my older sister," he responded with an annoyed huff, and under any other circumstances, Charlotte would've slapped his arm at the old comment. He turned to her and nodded towards the tables with his head. "I'll grab us a seat while you... yeah."

Joshua was off, Charlotte watching him the entire time before she looked back to Klaus. He seemed calmer, all of the sudden, and his shoulders weren't nearly as taught as they just were.

"They won't let you get away with it," she told him with her lip curl upward.

Klaus' eyes narrowed in her direction. "What do you know?" he asked, taking a single step toward her.

She didn't falter, only squaring her shoulders. "Not much," she responded with her voice kept low, and it was the truth, "but I know the others. Enough to know that they won't let you kill Elena. Not without a fight."

He was quiet for a beat before the smirk took over his features once more.

"I've been at this a long time, Charlotte. I've prepared for the worst."

Then, he was gone.

And had she been paying attention to anything other than the empty spot in front of her, she would've felt a distant set of blue eyes on her— eyes that were seated at the bar, amber liquor in their glass.

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Charlotte couldn't sleep.

How could she, when Elena Gilbert was actively being sacrificed to lift an ancient ass curse, and there was absolutely nothing she could do to help?

The book she picked up had been thrown aside, the lamp on her nightstand emitting a faint glow as she merely stared out of the window closest to her bed. It was like she was playing the waiting game, each tick of the metaphorical clock passing her by as she sat idle in pyjamas that were covered in pink hearts.

A notebook on her vanity caught her eye, an empty one she hadn't used this year like she planned on. She used to write little diary entries when she was younger, though more than half of the pages were littered with details of her reoccurring dream and the imaginary friend within it.

Though, as one could imagine, it was taken away from her in an attempt to get rid of her childish delusions.

Charlotte climbed off of her bed in pursuit of this one in particular. It had remained empty, a spare, up until just two days ago when she decided to put it to use the very same night she snuck onto her mother's computer. Taking a seat on the plush chair, she aimlessly flipped through the pages. The first few were what she deemed as 'fake' pages: pages with details about her school life and anything that could bore someone who was too nosey for their own good.

They covered up the contents that lurked on the ninth and tenth pages— the ones that included jot notes of every little thing she could remember about Lottie, paired with every little thing she could find about her. Parts were highlighted, starred, and the details of the Saint–Jermaine girl's demise were circled in a bold marker.

It was daunting, reading over the words once more. Her thumb slid over the phrase animal attack as her free hand itched at her forehead haphazardly.

"What are you still doing up?"

Her hand instinctually flipped to close the notebook, wild eyes looking at the presence stood in her doorway. Her eyes closed for a beat, a hand going to cover her racing heart. "We need to get you a bell or something, shit," she fumed in a whisper, and it made the man chuckle.

It also made the man step into the room, closing the door behind him. He wore plaid pyjama bottoms, his hands tucked into the pocket of his bulky hoodie as he looked around the room. "You really haven't changed a bit since I've been gone."

Her eyebrows furrowed. "Was I supposed to?" she asked, discretely slipping the notebook into the drawer of her vanity when his back was turned.

Nathaniel hummed. "Suppose not," he responded, before he was turning to take a seat on the edge of her bed. "I saw your light on... was wondering why you were still up this late."

"I could ask you the same thing," she retorted, a pointed look on her face.

Her brother scratched at her arm, shrugging. "I've been having trouble sleeping," he responded, before tacking on a quick, "but if you tell Mom, I'll deny it."

Charlotte smiled, shaking her head. "It must run in the family," she chuckled, knowing she had her own fair share of sleeping issues.

Rather than join in on her hushed laughter, his eyes averted to the window she had only just been gazing out of.

"Yeah, I guess so." He was suddenly rising, a weird discomfort oozing out of him that made Charlotte instantly confused. "I'll see you in the morning, yeah?"

Before Charlotte could even muster up a response, Nathaniel was walking out of the room, careful enough to slowly close the door behind him with a click.

The Henry girl turned toward the mirror of her vanity, the bewilderment clear as day on her face.

What the hell was that about?

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[ wyn's note ]

sorry for the wait, but here we go!!

klaus' acting weird, nate's acting weird, josh's acting acting, everyone and their mama is acting weird.... time will tell LOL and if you've been keeping up with my tiktok, perhaps you have a clue as to where im going with this (or not and this is all a ploy to confuse u guys teehee)

thanks for 26k!! all my love x