The Allure of Darkness - Chapter Four
Klaus Mikaelson x oc slow burn series
Charlotte was immediately intrigued when she met the "Originals." She found them misunderstood - especially the hybrid, Klaus. Something about him was drawing her in... There was an undeniable tension between the two, something that Charlotte's friends absolutely hated. Is Klaus really as dangerous as he acts?
Warnings: Brief mention of violence
Masterlist | The Allure of Darkness Series Masterlist
Chapter Four - Dancing With The Devil
You arrived alone at the ball at 7:15, hesitating before going in. You were meeting the others there, Elena had already arrived with the Salvatores and Caroline. With a long exhale, you walked inside the large mansion and took in your surroundings. Music was playing and there were people everywhere. You didn’t recognize most people, and soon realized that most of them were human. So a decent portion of the town was invited…
But did they all receive a note or dress? Probably not, but suddenly your importance seemed to lessen. You fiddled with your gloved fingers as you slowly entered further into the mansion, looking for a familiar face.
The first face you recognized, however, was none other than Klaus himself. You locked eyes from across the room, where he stood chatting up the mayor. His face fell into a more solemn expression when your eyes locked.
He left the mayor’s side and approached you, and you physically felt your stomach twist and your heart drop. He stopped less than three feet in front of you, just a couple inches taller than you in your heels and he smiled what may have been the first genuine smile you’ve seen thus far. “Good evening,” he greets you in a solemn, sincere voice. You open your mouth to respond, but words fail you.
“I… need a drink.” you mutter and hurry away. You feel embarrassed, wondering why you even came to this stupid ball in the first place.
The next fifteen minutes dragged on until everyone was gathered to the main room and the entire Mikaelson family stood over everyone on the stairs. You made eye contact with Klaus, who stood near Elijah as he spoke. He held a drink and looked serious, but his gaze was locked on you. Elijah asked that everyone find a partner and go to the ballroom, and you watched as Klaus downed his drink and headed right in your direction. Oh crap. You started walking toward the ballroom, hoping to observe and not participate, but Klaus catches you and stands in front of you.
“May I?” he asks, offering you his hand. You look at his large hand then back to his eyes, before giving in and nodding, hesitantly placing your smaller hand into his palm. He grins and begins guiding you into the ballroom. Something about holding Klaus’s hand and being led by him… felt both the most safe and most in danger you have ever felt. You felt like no one in this room could hurt you… but also knew that was because he was the most dangerous one in here.
The Ed Sheeran song began and he stood beside you, taking the lead in the waltz. Neither of you speak, but he is watching you as you dance. You follow his lead and then he spins you and you face him, placing your other hand on his right shoulder and he cups your smaller gloved right hand in his own.
Klaus continues to look into your eyes, his face only inches away now, and you feel small under his intense gaze. Yet, you can’t bring yourself to break his eye contact. His other hand is on your back, and you feel it slide a little lower from your shoulder blade to closer to your waist. The feeling of his fingers touching your body sends shivers down your spine, something you wonder if he felt.
“I’m glad you came,” he finally says something, and you look down toward your feet to cover the small smile that forms on your lips. You don’t respond, unsure of what to say. When you finally meet his eye again, he is smirking. He knows what he is doing. “You look ravishing in that dress.” Your stomach turns with anxiety at his compliment and word choice, a blush warming your cheeks.
“Thank you,” is all you say, once again being failed by your words.
“You know, you’re quite the dancer.” he remarks, and you are rather surprised. You didn’t feel like a very good dancer, it was not something you particularly enjoyed. But right now, dancing with him… This was enjoyable.
“Well, I was in the Miss Mystic pageant last year… Against my will.” you inform him, and he grins.
“I know.” You look up at him in surprise. How did he know that? Has he been asking people about you? Your eyes drop from his intense blue ones down to his full pink lips twisted upward in a grin. He is very blatantly flirting with you. Why?
The dance ended and he let go of you, but you looked at each other for a moment longer. “Come with me,” he says, and he starts guiding you out of the ballroom. He slowly leads you further away from the party and you grow anxious, both from fear and interest.
He opens a door and steps aside, holding it ajar for you. You hesitantly walk in, looking around. It is some kind of art room, full of paintings, drawings, sketches. “What is all this?” you ask, taking it all in.
“My collection. Or, a portion of it, at least.” He allows the door to close behind himself and you are now alone together. You swallow a gulp and focus your eyes on the painting hanging in front of you. You can feel his eyes on you, but don’t dare turn around to look. You notice how the sketches seem like they were done here, not a piece of a collection from another artist.
“Wait, are these yours?” you are stunned that he would have a hobby like this, given his reputation. He comes to stand by your side and nods, his face the most calm and serious you’ve seen.
“Yeah. Um, some of my landscapes are hanging in various places, not that anyone would notice.” he trails off, almost seeming vulnerable. This is the first thing he’s ever said to you that didn’t sound arrogant, and you could feel something in his demeanor that had shifted. You ducked your head to hide the shy smile that formed on your lips and continued scanning his work.
“These are incredible,” you mutter, really impressed. “Did you paint the one of New Orleans?” you ask, and he nods with his lips pursed, like he is a little unsure of himself.
After a short pause, you hear clinking glasses and it sounds like someone is about to give a speech. “Should probably get back,” you remark, and he opens the door for you. You shyly smile at him and walk out, then follow him back to the main area.
He went off to be with his family as Elijah toasted and everyone shared a drink. You tried to stop looking at him, or for him, to find something else to occupy your mind. You went over to grab a refreshment from one of the waiters and ended up beside Rebekah Mikaelson.
You’d seen her a few times before, but never really spoken to her. She looks over at you from where she stood, physically looks you up and down, but says nothing. You are intimidated by her immense beauty, and the dark green ball gown she is wearing makes her even more stunning than normal.
“I love your dress,” you finally say something after casually sipping on your champagne. She looks back to you, a look of surprise on her face. She looks like she is trying to read your mind, like she doesn’t believe you’re truly complimenting her.
“Thank you,” she finally responds after what felt like an eternity. “I like yours,” she exchanges the compliment, and you blush. You don’t dare mention who gave you the dress.
“Thank you. I don’t think I’ve ever worn anything this nice before.” you remark, chuckling. “I don’t feel myself,” she smiles and shrugs.
“It suits you,” is all she says, and you return the smile.
“Do you like this sort of thing? Balls?” you make small talk, finding yourself at ease in her company. She seems standoffish, which is better than the pick-me-girls you are usually surrounded by.
“I do. I always have. We used to attend so many, a few centuries ago, when they were common. I do miss that,” she explains. You are envious that she has lived through so many eras. You’d love to hear her stories.
“What was your favorite time period?” you ask, taking a step closer, intrigued. She seems pleased by your interest and takes a moment to think.
“They all had their good and bad, but I greatly appreciated the 20’s.” You could absolutely see her rocking out in the 20’s Great Gatsby style. “Excuse me, my brother is looking for me.” Rebekah leaves her glass with the waiter and heads over to Elijah.
You decide to head outside for some fresh air, feeling overwhelmed by all of the different emotions you have been feeling tonight. You take a side door and end up on a back patio of some sort, where a horse is settled in an enclosed area. You are immediately excited and cautiously walk over to the large animal. You pet its mane and take in its beauty, admiring the elegant stallion.
“You like horses?” A voice you now recognize as Klaus asks, and you turn to look over your shoulder, watching him walk over to you. You smile softly and nod, returning your gaze to the beautiful creature.
“Always have. They’re so majestic… intelligent. I’ve always wanted one.” You look over to see him smiling as he listens. “So why did you invite me anyway?” you finally get the courage to ask.
“I fancy you,” he responds very blatantly, without any hesitation. Your eyes go wide and you stare at him, waiting for him to laugh or do something to show that he was not serious. “Is that so hard to believe?” he asks when you say nothing. His expression is soft and solemn, he looks very genuine.
“Yes,” is all you can muster up to respond.
“Why? You’re – you’re beautiful. You’re strong, you’re full of life…” he trails off. “I enjoy you,” he grins, but it is not his usual arrogant grin – this is confident, but sincere.
“I… thank you,” you stutter, tucking the loose hair behind your ear. He continues to grin at you for a long moment, making you anxious under his gaze.
He is intense, unlike anyone you have ever met before. He’s not a shy little boy who dances around his feelings or tries to play it cool. He’s honest, which caught you off guard, given his reputation for being merciless and cruel. Maybe this was one big joke? But what would be the point of that?
Neither of you speak for a minute or two, but it is not awkward. You enjoy the peace of the wind blowing in the trees and the sound of glasses and chattering off in the distance.
“Ya know uh, horses are the opposite of people… They’re loyal,” he starts, chuckling in an ironic sort of way, before continuing. “My father hunted me for a thousand years and the closest he ever came was the day he killed my favorite horse… He severed its neck with a sword, as a warning,” he explained. You watched him speak as he looked at the horse, listening intently. He finally meets your eye again, searching your expression like he was trying to decipher what you were thinking.
“I’m sorry,” you say softly. His blue eyes look sorrowful. His father really did a number on him… Maybe he’s not so evil after all. Maybe he’s just… broken.
You called it a night shortly thereafter, growing exhausted from all of the overwhelming emotions of the evening. You said a polite goodbye to Klaus before you left and thanked Elijah, then Matt drove you home. You made small talk about the evening, trying to leave out the parts that included Klaus and you noticed he tried not to mention how he was Rebekah’s date.
You let it be, respecting his privacy as he did yours. You practically threw yourself into your bed after getting out of your gown. You were emotionally exhausted, and the heels you wore didn’t help with your physical exhaustion. Curling up into your blankets, your mind wandered, replaying the events of the evening.
But no matter how hard you tried, the only thing you could really think about was Klaus. The way you danced together, how his hand felt on your back. What he told you about his father… Why was he so different with you than everyone else? Elena and her friends hated him, but you couldn’t really see why. Of course, you know that he tried to kill her and that he did kill her aunt. Yes, those were horrible and unforgivable. But you’d never know he was like that based on how he has been interacting with you.
You awoke the next morning to the sound of a knock at your front door. You trudged out of bed and rushed to get it, but no one was there. All you found was a folded piece of paper. Another invitation? You took it inside and went back to bed before unfolding it. A gasp escapes your lips as you stare at the beautiful sketch of yourself standing beside the horse from last night. The sketch was amazing, it looked just like you. There was nothing written on either side, but you knew exactly who this was from. This was the most romantic thing anyone had ever done for you, by far.
Your heart pounded in your chest as you wondered what this meant. You envisioned Klaus sitting in his drawing room, sketching the details of your face with the intent of surprising you. Butterflies soared through your stomach against your will, feeling yourself swooning over the gesture.
It was official now, there was no denying it.
You have feelings for Klaus.
And from the looks of it… The feeling is mutual.
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