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𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐒𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 - 𝐂𝐡. 34
"they've called me a villain,
I'm just proving them right."

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— "HEY NIK." Skyler called curiously as he got ready in front of the mirror while she sat on the couch in his room, she licked the blood off her lips and threw away a blood bag she had been absentmindedly drinking before she continued, "Where are you going all dressed up anyway?"

Klaus narrowed his eyes at her in the mirror, "You have been sitting there bugging me for an hour and now you ask?" She only arched a brow at him in response, he sighed, "I'm going to the pageant. I have a date with Caroline." He smirked.

She hummed and stood up decisively, "I'm going with you."

"What?" He asked in disbelief and exasperation.

She rolled her eyes, "Relax. I won't cock block your date, I just want to get out of this house."

He scowled and pointed out, "You're supposed to be laying low since you decided to threaten your brother."

"Oh please," She rolled her eyes once more, "You threaten people every day. Why can't I?" She responded petulantly, "Anyway, I'm going to get ready. Don't wanna be late."

"If you're not ready before 2, I'm leaving without you." He called after her as she walked out of the door.

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"HI everyone, I'm Caroline Forbes." The blonde vamp called as she stood on stage with a smile, "As the reigning Miss Mystic Falls, it is my honor to introduce this year's, Miss Mystic Court." Everyone around Skyler began to clap for the girl, Skyler glanced around and slowly began to clap awkwardly. She had been inside way too long, she decided.

"We begin the procession with Valerie Fell accompanied by Dylan Clark." There was a round of applause for Valerie as she walked down the stone steps to her date, Dylan, meanwhile Skyler began to regret coming, "Next we have Amber Wolvertine accompanied by Hector Lindsay." Another round of applause as Amber walked down, and then another girl was introduced. How long would this last? Skyler wondered as she faked a polite smile and clapped rather than daydreaming about killing everyone here. "...And finally we have a last-minute entry, April Young accompanied by Jeremy Gilbert."

April walked down the steps but stopped when she realized Jeremy wasn't there, Caroline seemed to also notice this as she began to look around. She hid her worry with a big smile when, as if on cue, Matt stepped up. Drama in Mystic Falls, Skyler thought bored, who would've thought? She rolled her eyes and made her way through the crowd and over to the bar where Klaus was hanging out, "Not with your date?" She asked after she ordered a drink.

"She's with the doppelganger and I'm supposed to be on my best behavior so." He grinned mockingly which made her laugh.

"You must really like her huh?" She asked with a fond smile. She took a sip of her drink, "Speaking of looks like your date may need some help now." She nodded to where Caroline was about to go off on Elena.

Klaus cleared his throat, "I'll be right back." He said before he stood and walked away.

Skyler settled into the barstool with her drink as she watched from afar, listening in to the conversation out of curiosity, "And the thought of you two together really makes me want to barf."

Hmm, maybe Klaus and Caroline were better together than she originally thought, Skyler thought, with that temper... it reminded her of well... "Easy love, you're making a scene." Klaus said.

Elena scoffed as she looked at the unlikely pair, "Wow Caroline, thank you for making this very difficult time so much easier."

"How did I become the bad guy?" Caroline questioned after her friend walked away.

"Let's get you a drink," Klaus replied. He moved to stand in front of her and smirked teasingly, "I'll tell you all about being the bad guy."

ೃ⁀➷

"KOL, darling, love, and light of my life," Skyler called once he answered the phone. She leaned back against her bed, thrilled to be out of her formal dress and back into her comfy clothes which consisted of a tan shirt and black sweats.

"I could get used to that kind of greeting." His response came with an audible smirk in his voice.

"Hey, this is serious." She scolded halfheartedly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, darling, what's wrong Skygem, sweetheart, light of my life?" He responded teasingly.

She narrowed her eyes and shook her head, "I need out of Mystic Falls. Like yesterday." She told him seriously.

"So come back." Skyler paused in surprise. After he had told her his plan, he had mentioned it would be useful if she stuck around in Mystic Falls to get information, and with her complaints only being half-hearted she didn't expect his response to sound so serious. "What?" She asked.

"Come back." He repeated simply, "Everyone knows who you are now, love, you don't need to hide and you don't need to stay either."

She sat up, her brows furrowed, "But won't it be better if we know what's going on here?" She asked confused.

He scoffed, "With even Niklaus telling you to lay low?" He responded, "No. They won't tell you anything and I'd much rather have you by my side."

"Okay..." She said uncertainly, "Okay." She repeated more firmly and nodded, her frown melting into a smile as she grew excited, "I'll pack a bag, be there tonight."

"The less clothes the better." He reminded her just before the dial tone rang as she hung up. She chuckled and set her phone aside.

Looks like she had a bag to pack.

ೃ⁀➷

"AND where are you off to?" Klaus asked teasingly as she walked downstairs with her bag.

Skyler turned, looking at him seriously, "I'm leaving, Nik."

"What?" He asked, surprised.

"I'm meeting up with Kol, we're gonna travel for a while." She explained before she sighed, "I just need out of this town. I feel like it's suffocating me... and besides," she looked away and shook her head with a bitter chuckle, "my brothers both hate me, nothing is keeping me here. Not anymore."

"When?" He asked curiously, no sign of anger to be seen.

"Tonight." She told him, looking at her bag, she clarified, "Right now actually."

Klaus pursed his lips, "I don't suppose you have time for a drink before you go?"

"You don't want me to stay?" She asked confused.

"Of course I want you to stay, Skyler, but nobody can keep you from my brother, not Stefan or Damon, or me." He responded with a chuckle, "So how about that drink?"

Skyler smiled and nodded, "Sounds good." She agreed and set down her bag. Klaus offered a half-smile as he stood, grabbing two glasses he poured her favorite liquor into each before he handed one over to her and settled onto one of the bar stools. She took the other barstool beside him and took a sip, exhaling before she looked at him curiously, "So how was your date with blondie?"

"Blondie?" He questioned with a raised brow.

Skyler narrowed her eyes and deadpanned, "Would you rather me call her hottie?"

"Blondie it is." Klaus chuckled, "As for the date... apparently I was perfect."

𝐚 𝐟𝐞𝐰 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐬 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫

           "SOMETHING'S not right." Damon pointed out as he walked into the bar with Jeremy.

Music was playing in the background as they walked in to see a giant blood smear on the ground. They followed the blood trail into the back cold storage room where a giant pile of vampire corpses was found in the corner, Damon scrunched his nose up in distaste, "Looks like we're gonna have to find some new vampires. What a waste."

"What the hell happened?" Jeremy questioned as he looked around.

"I confess." Kol called in place of announcing himself as he walked in with Skyler by his side, unbothered by Jeremy pointing his bow at them, "I did it." He looked at Skyler and smirked, "Well... we did it."

"Kol? Skyler?" Jeremy called confused, his brows furrowed and his bow aimed.

"Jeremy good to see you mate." Kol greeted while Skyler offered a little mocking wave, "Sorry about the mess."

She nodded in agreement. Looking around at the pile of vampire corpses she told them, "It was a little crowded."

He wrapped an arm around her waist as he added, "And we prefer more... intimate gatherings." He told them, continuing steadily, "We four need to have a little chat." Holding onto his wife with one arm, he used his other to take a sip of bourbon straight from the bottle, "Care for a drink?"

"He's underage, and I don't like you," Damon told him and narrowed his eyes, "so let's just cut to it."

He hummed in consideration, "You know my brother bragged about his plan to complete Jeremy's hunter's mark. It was easy enough to track this lot down."

"They were all hiding in the shadows like cowards. They tried to run but..." Skyler licked her lips, licking away the last bit of blood that remained on her face after her meal, "I enjoy the chase."

"Now, killing young vampires is easy, or old ones, for that matter." Kol told them conversationally.

"Why? What's it to you either way?" Damon asked.

He scowled and responded, "Because you fools in your zeal to find the cure, you risk waking someone very dangerous."

"Oh... you must be talking about Silas."

"What do you know of him?" Kol questioned.

"Nothing." Damon shrugged, "Don't want to. Not our problem."

"Isn't it?" Skyler asked, Damon shook his head in response and she continued, "If he threatens your poor little Elena..."

"You know a few hundred years back, I came across a group that worshiped Silas. His followers told me that he would rise again, and when he did, he would trigger the end of all time." Kol explained, with an eyebrow raised, he continued, "You know being an immortal, you can see why I'm opposed to time's ending. So I murdered all of them. And now, here you are willing to risk raising him in your search for the cure." He tilted his head as he looked at his brother-in-law, "I can't exactly sit back and let that happen, can I?"

"We're not going to back off the cure 'cause you were told one too many scary bedtime stories, you idiot." Damon scoffed.

Kol's smirk dropped as his arm around Skyler fell. He pushed Damon with a scowl, "Jeremy, we were mates in Colorado. You're a smart lad." He said never taking his eyes off Damon, "Why don't you call off this imbecilic treasure hunt?"

Jeremy held up the bow and pointed it right at Kol as he responded, "I'm not calling anything off, mate."

Skyler let out a growl similar to one a werewolf would produce upon seeing his bow pointed at her husband. She would kill him -- kill all of them --if they hurt Kol. He hummed and took a step back, "Well, I could kill you. But then I'd have to deal with the hunter's curse. And I don't particularly feel like being haunted for the next century." He commented thoughtfully, "Better idea, I'll just rip off your arms."

Kol rushed at Jeremy however Damon rammed him into the wall, head butting him and continuing to wrestle with him afterward, "Jeremy, run!" Damon yelled while Skyler came up behind him and tried to pry him off Kol, he fought against her as Jeremy fled.

As Damon continued to hit Kol, Skyler began to punch Damon's back. Grabbing onto his arms, she tried to forcefully drag him off when he snapped back and threw her into the nearby wall which was inevitably his downfall as Kol snapped, catching the hand he used to throw Skyler away and putting him in a headlock, "You can do whatever you want to me," he began threateningly, holding Damon's neck tightly with no way to escape, "but the second you lay a hand on her, you're dead."

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"LITTLE brother." Klaus greeted once Kol answered the phone while he and Skyler were still in the back of the bar, "Just two days home, and I'm told you've already gone and made a mess with your little wife."

"That little wife can beat your ass, Niklaus." Skyler called with a huff as she drank from a bottle of bourbon. "Come on, Nik. I was only having some fun." Kol told him.

"Those vampires were for my hunter."

He rolled his eyes, "I'll make some more. There's no shortage of people."

"Where's Damon Salvatore?" Klaus questioned.

"I gave him a good and proper beating just for old time's sake." Kol said casually as Skyler sat down on a wooden box.

"Yes. Well, you two have had your fun. Now let him go and come home. Avoid any more trouble, or you'll find yourself back in a box." Klaus threatened sternly.

"Hey. No need to be nasty about it." Kol teased.

"On the contrary, I find nastiness to be essential whenever my siblings try to sabotage me." Klaus responded, "Listen closely, Kol. Stay away from the Gilbert boy. You understand?"

"Fine. I won't touch him. You have my word." Kol agreed albeit reluctantly.

"Good. Now put Skyler on the phone."

Kol rolled his eyes but pulled the phone away from his ear and held it out to Skyler, "He wants to talk to you." Skyler hopped off the box and took the phone. She walked to the door and turned although she didn't leave, "Yes brother dearest?"

"Don't call me that." Klaus responded immediately, "What are you doing beating up your brother with mine?"

Skyler shrugged, "I got bored."

"I thought you were supposed to be the good one."

"Well, I guess you thought wrong." She responded with an edgy tone as she was getting rather done with people assuming she was one of the good ones, "I have never claimed to be a good person, Niklaus."

"Now stab yourself a little bit further." Kol compelled Damon in the background.

"And why are you suddenly okay with him — or anyone for that matter — hurting your brothers?" Klaus questioned curiously.

"Let's make one thing clear, Klaus." Skyler drawled as she turned to look at Damon, who was stabbing himself with a stake and groaning in pain while Kol watched, "I will always choose Kol over them. They've known that since the beginning, they've called me a villain from the second I showed them my ring, I'm just proving them right." She grinned manically as between the pain and anguish, Damon showed a bit of regret.

Without another word, she hung up the phone and walked out of the room leaving Kol to it. He called out to Damon, gaining the man's attention as the door swung close behind Skyler, "You should have never hurt her." They both knew that he didn't just mean physically. Damon's head fell, Kol took a moment to stab the man himself, "We could've been a family, you know," he mused casually, "would've made for an interesting family dinner, but you turned your back on her, and wound up with a knife in it." For emphasis, he stabbed the knife into him again with a bitter grin as he repeated, "You should've never hurt her. You're just lucky that you pissed me off and not her, she could do much worse."

ೃ⁀➷

"GOING somewhere? Perhaps on another honeymoon?" Rebekah asked as she blocked the married pair's way out, "I would if I were you. If Damon kills the hunter, Nik will not be pleased."

Skyler scoffed, "He's never pleased." Kol smiled, "I told Nik I wouldn't touch the kid. I didn't."

"Oh well, that was clever. I'm sure he'll really appreciate it." Rebekah responded sarcastically.

He scowled and grabbed Skyler's hand, he pushed past his sister to leave however before he could, Rebekah pulled out the white oak ash dagger and pointed it at his back causing Skyler to let out a gasp. Kol stopped, looking afraid for the first time in quite a while, his hold on Skyler's hand tightening, "You'd really dagger me?"

"If I do, Damon's compulsion ends and this is all over." She replied steadily.

"If you do," Skyler called, voice wavering, "I'm dead too."

"And then you're no better than Niklaus." Kol continued, "Daggering siblings when you disagree with them-- look at what this family has become. I mean Elijah won't ever show his face, he's so disgusted by our bickering. This cure has ruined us, and it hasn't even been found yet. Just imagine what would happen if it is."

Rebekah shook her head in disagreement, "This family was ruined long before we knew about the cure."

He glanced at Skyler once before he dropped her hand and sped around to face Rebekah, pointing the white oak stake at her heart, "Kol!" Someone called, Skyler wasn't sure if it was her or Rebekah though both were inevitably shocked by his actions. "I won't let you raise Silas." Kol told his sister, however before he could do anything, Klaus ran into the room, breaking them up.

"Enough of this foolishness. Put it down, Kol." He told them sternly. Kol glanced at his siblings before he grabbed Skyler's hand and ran out of the house to the sound of his sister yelling, "He was going to kill me!"

ೃ⁀➷

— "KOL." Skyler snapped sternly as they stopped at a safe space just outside Mystic Falls, "What the hell was that? Were you seriously about to kill Rebekah?"

"They're going to raise Silas, Skyler, I cannot let that happen." He told her sternly.

"So you're willing to kill your family because of something people told you years ago?" She shook her head and took a step forward, bringing her hand to Kol's face, he flinched away however she didn't hesitate, caressing his cheek as she stared into his eyes and spoke softly, "Kol, you cannot let your fear turn you into someone I know you are not."

"You don't know what will happen..." Kol trailed off shaking his head, "She already wants me dead and it hasn't even been found."

"No, I don't know what will happen." She responded sternly, "But I do know that we can get through it. Together."

He reached up, grabbing the hand that was caressing his face and taking it away as he looked at her, "Do you trust me?"

"Yes." She told him without a moment of hesitation.

"Good." He nodded and took her hand, "Then let me do this now before we lose everything because of them."

Skyler sighed but reluctantly nodded in agreement, "Okay. I trust you, Mio Cuore."

ೃ⁀➷

𝟑,𝟎𝟎𝟎 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬

Mio Cuore— my heart

— Between this chapter and last we did skip a few episodes that Skyler didn't really fit into (episodes 5 & 6) and halfway through this chapter (at the time-skip), we skipped a few more (episodes 8, 9, and 10) because Skyler isn't there.