𝟓𝟏

a/n: Cher's outfit for the chapter is above!

☆═━ 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐈𝐅𝐓𝐘 𝐎𝐍𝐄━═☆

Charlotte sucked in a deep breath, typing away on her laptop, "And...sent!"

The brunette took a sip from her lemonade right after sending an email to her English teacher with her last assignment. He had told her last year that if she continued with that effort then she could do extremely well as an English major. Honestly, Charlotte wasn't interested in that but she didn't want to fall back as well.

"If anything could be as easy as writing essays," She sighed, picking up her doughnut off the plate. The only thing that had been on her mind for the past few days was Serena Bernard and how she may have lost her forever.

Sure, she could have explained what happened again and list out all of her apologies but she knew Serena...and what happened between them wasn't something any normal person would forgive, let alone Serena, herself.

Charlotte just didn't want to pressure her with that. She had every right not to forgive her. Hell, even Charlotte couldn't forgive herself.

Her train of thoughts was cut off when she saw Serena walking up to the Mystic Grill's doors. Was she back at work? Charlotte silently wondered before shaking her head at herself. It's none of my business.

The vampire called over someone to pay the check before closing her laptop screen and pulling out her bag from the ground. She wanted to be out of there as soon as possible now that Serena had arrived.

The waiter came over, leaving her the paycheck, he went to walk away before she shook her head, "No, wait! I will pay now. I am...I am in a hurry—" She cursed under her breath when her hand knocked over her lemonade, the glass shattering on the floor, "Damn it."

Charlotte pulled a couple of tissues, bending down to clean it up before a voice called, "You really don't want to do that, you could hurt yourself," She looked up and Serena folded her arms together, stating, "On second thought, maybe you want to do that."

"Serena...I am sorry. I am leaving," Charlotte rose to her feet, placing the glass shards she collected back on the table. She pulled out the bill from her back pocket and quickly pulled her bag off the table.

"Wait...so now you get to run when I am in a place? Like you are the one with the right to?"

God, I really didn't want it to look like that.

Charlotte shook her head, "I know that me being here...in your place of work would make you uncomfortable and I don't want that," She said, pursing her lips together, "I didn't know you were working here again but now that I do, I am sorry. I won't come here again if you don't want me to."

Serena rolled her eyes, shrugging her shoulders, "It's not like I can control where you hangout, Charlotte. It's not that big of a deal."

"Yes, it is," She responded, insisting.

Serena nodded, running her tongue over her bottom lip. She didn't entirely know what to say before she commented, "So...you turned it back on?"

"Finally... the worst part of my life is gone, mostly."

"Good...I am glad," The brunette human smiled, replying as Charlotte raised an eyebrow and she rephrased, "That you are not a cold bitch anymore...I am glad about that."

"Me too," Charlotte gave her half a smile, nodding, "Well...I will go now. Good luck with your work."

"Eh, yeah...yeah," Serena looked down at her shoes, sighing before walking back inside.

✵ ✵ ✵

Charlotte walked out of the locker room after changing into her sportswear to try out for the cheerleading team. The brunette decided to fill up her plate this year. It was the last and second year of school for her. She intended to make it the best. Plus, more extracurricular activities and AP classes, less time to think.

Caroline furrowed her eyebrows, a small smile making its way on her face as she watched Charlotte walking up to her with her hair up in a ponytail, "Where did that spirit come from?"

"Well...," Charlotte trailed off before shrugging her shoulders, "I think I have the body and spirit to be a cheerleader and it would look good on my college application, according to Miss Gray."

"That's great!" Caroline grinned, clapping her hands, "I know you don't really know any moves but I know you, you are a fast learner. You will get the hang of this faster than you think."

Charlotte nodded, smiling, "Thank you...I really needed that kind of support."

"Okay, stretch on the floor, now!" Caroline instructed as Charlotte raised her eyebrows, chuckling, "Just because you are my friend doesn't mean I am going easy on you, nah-uh, not me."

"On the floor, Bernard!"

✵ ✵ ✵

Serena declined Damon's call once again before turning to Matt as he asked, "Damon giving you a hard time?"

She shook her head, forcing a smile on her face, "I just...I need a break from everyone and what better than work?"

"Is that why you are taking extra shifts? I thought it was for the money..."

Serena tied her apron, claiming, "No, it's not. I am living off Nana Izzie and Dad's savings for me and— I just...I don't need the money," She sighed, putting on her gloves to do the dishes, "But my mom is coming back soon and I want nothing to do with her. I need to be out of the house as much as I can."

"Yeah, I understand," Matt nodded, patting her shoulder, "But if you need anything, you will tell me, right?" She sighed, rubbing the scuff marks off the plate, "Rena?"

"Hmm...?"

"If you have any problem or need anything, you will tell me, right?" Matt repeated himself, raising his eyebrows as he looked at her in concern. Her head was in the clouds and knowing Serena, that wasn't something usual.

"Yeah...yeah, Matt...of course."

✵ ✵ ✵

Charlotte sighed, walking out of the school. God, cheerleading was exhausting and Caroline had so many expectations. Like she had to make the best cheerleader out of Charlotte Bernard in three hours.

The brunette adjusted her bag on her shoulders before her phone rang. She reached inside her bag, pulling it out. The caller's number wasn't saved so she shrugged her shoulders, pressing answer.

"Hello, darling," Came the accented reply as she furrowed her eyebrows together.

"Hello, I am sorry...who is this is?"

She tucked a loose hair strand behind her ear as he responded, "Oh, you don't recognize my voice? You wound me, Charlotte."

"Kol...?" Charlotte assumed slash asked. She hadn't exactly expected him to ever call her and according to Paulina, Kol should have been daggered by now. Maybe Klaus decided to keep him around for a while, "How...How are you?"

She heard his chuckle from the other line as he answered, "Oh, I am fantastic. I should be asking you. Bekah mentioned you turning it back on, how is that treating you?"

"Good...I guess," Charlotte sighed, answering before walking ahead, "It hasn't been a picnic but I am fine."

"The I am fine for real or the I hate myself and everyone around me kind of fine?" Kol asked before the brunette chuckled in response to that, "I take it, it's the first one."

She smiled, answering, "I am hanging somewhere between fine for real and trying to be...but I will get there," Charlotte sighed, folding her arms together, "So, what about you? Lina said you and Klaus are not exactly best friends."

"He is tolerable," Kol huffed out the reply, "And Portland is boring. It has bad...well, everything!"

Charlotte stated, smiling, "I am sure it's not that bad...At least you are alive so that counts for something, right?"

He paused for a few seconds before agreeing, "Yeah, I suppose it does," Kol smiled shortly, commenting, "Look at you, being an optimist."

"I try, maybe if we don't look at the negative side long enough, it will disappear," Charlotte claimed, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly, "Or widen, still contemplating that."

Kol chuckled in amusement, "Ah, you are something else, Charlotte Bernard."

The brunette vampire smiled, biting her bottom lip, "I will take that as a compliment."

She heard some noise in the background before Kol spoke up, "Hold that thought, I will call you later, darling. You don't sleep early, do you?"

"Nope."

"Alright, I will call you tonight."

"I will be waiting."

✵ ✵ ✵

Serena waved goodbye at Matt as he proceeded out of the Grill. She still had so many things to finish, collecting empty plates and glasses, cleaning tables, washing the empty plates and glasses. Of course, closing the Grill on her way out and she had two waiters left with her, considering there was still two hours and a half before the Grill is closed off for sure.

She sighed, walking back to the kitchen before Amanda, a waitress, called her over, "Hey, Serena, could you please take that table? My dad is calling."

"Ah, yeah, sure," Serena nodded, patting her shoulder before passing by the counter and pulling a notepad and pen, "Hey, how may I help you today?"

"Serena, baby...what are you doing here?"

Her lips parted looking over at her mother and the young man, presumably her husband, accompanying her. "Wow...that's your daughter, Cora? Working at a public restaurant...is she really that poor?"

Serena bit her lip, holding any sort of comeback at the tip of her tongue. She really needed this distraction and any sort of debacle would surely get her kicked out, "What would you like to order, please? We have other customers to attend to."

Coralie furrowed her eyebrows together before Jacob shrugged, answering, "I will have a beer."

Her mother shook her head at him, turning to Serena, "Honey, can I talk to you somewhere quiet, please?"

"I am working now," Serena responded, sucking in a deep breath, "Can I get you anything other than a beer?"

"Serena, I just—"

Jacob cut Coralie off, turning to Serena, "No, you can go now."

The Bernard girl forced a small smile on her face before turning away from the couple and walking straight to the Grill's kitchen. She bit her lip, taking in another deep breath, "It's fine...Nothing I can't handle. They are just staying for a few days, they will pass quickly."

✵ ✵ ✵

Charlotte swung Paulina's apartment door open, walking inside to find Elena and Rebekah. She frowned, asking, "When did that...happen?"

"Oh, we are not friends, don't worry about that part," Rebekah jumped in, clarifying as she looked over at the doppelganger at the end of the room, "Elena here wants to know a few things about me and my family...And me, being the nice girl I am, invited her and thought...well, why not?"

Elena folded her arms together before asking, "Are you gonna stall all night or are you gonna start to tell me your story?"

"Ah...you really are no fun," Rebekah rolled her eyes, sitting down on the couch, "What do you want to know?"

The Gilbert girl sighed, starting, "Well, Elijah said that your father was a landowner in Europe. How did you guys end up here?"

The blonde Mikaelson looked through some of Paulina's accessories on the nightstand before stating, "My parents had just started a family when a plague struck their homeland. They lost a child to it. They wanted to escape and protect their future family from the same fate."

"That's...awful," Charlotte shook her head, sympathizing with the Mikaelson.

Rebekah shrugged her shoulders, "Yeah, I didn't really know her so doesn't matter."

"So, how did you end up here?" Elena asked, adding reasonably, "This part of the world hadn't even been discovered yet."

Rebekah laughed ironically, "Not by anyone in your history books. But my mother knew the witch Ayana, who heard from the spirits of a mystical land where everyone was healthy...blessed by the gifts of speed and strength," She crossed her arms over her chest, continuing, "That lead my family here, where we lived amongst those people."

"The werewolves?"

"To us, they were just our neighbors," She confirmed that assumption, continuing, "My family lived in peace with them for over 20 years, during which time my family had more children, including me."

Charlotte smiled, sitting down beside her, "It must have been beautiful...peaceful."

Rebekah nodded, a small nostalgic smile on her face, "It was."

"Once a month our family retreated into the caves beneath our village. The wolves would howl through the night and by morning we'd return home...," She trailed off, sighing, "One full moon, Klaus and my youngest brother Henrik snuck out to watch the men turn into beasts. That was forbidden. Henrik paid the price..."

Rebekah looked down at her hands, saying, "And that was the beginning of the end of peace with our neighbors...And one of the last moments my family had together as humans."

Elena's phone vibrated, snapping them out of Rebekah's memories. The blonde smiled, advising, "You better get that. That'll be Damon checking up on you."

The brunette rolled her eyes at her, picking up her phone, "Hello?"

Damon greeted back, raising his voice over the music in the background, "Hey!"

"Damon, where are you?"

"No idea, but I'm pretty sure I'm overdressed...Still standing?" He sighed, answering.

"Yes, I'm fine, but I can't talk right now," She said, about to hang up before she heard Stefan's voice, claiming he will be at the bar, "Is that Stefan?"

"Yeah, I kinda went off a bit. Don't worry. I know what I'm doing," Damon stated over the phone as Charlotte's eyes widened and she rose to her feet.

She took the phone from Elena's hand, asking, "What the hell do you think you are doing?"

He paused for a few seconds, inaudible noises in the background before the familiar voice of her best friend said, "Relax, I have got this, Charlotte. Remember? I have experience."

"Lina, you don't—"

"Love you Charlotte, Bye."

The Bernard vampire bit the inside of her cheeks before handing Elena her phone back, "Can we...can we just pretend these two minutes did not happen?"

"Yes, please," Elena agreed, putting her phone in her back pocket.

✵ ✵ ✵

Rebekah was lying on the bed, looking through one of the old picture books she found in Paulina's luggage. Charlotte looked over, finding Rebekah staring at an old picture of her and Stefan. She scoffed, taking the book from her hands.

Rebekah smirked, looking up at her, "Why would he leave you, again?"

"I told you, he didn't, he was compelled to," Charlotte said, putting the book back in its place, "And now he is in love with Elena. They both make each other happy," She finished, exchanging a smile with Elena.

The blonde Mikaelson raised her eyebrows in confusion, looking over at Elena, "Honestly, I don't get you two as a couple."

"Why would you?" Elena shrugged her shoulders, stating, "You don't know anything about who he really is."

Rebekah smiled, shrugging her shoulders, "I know exactly who he is. He's a vampire. We're a predatory species," She leaned closer to Elena's face, "We don't have time to care about humans and their silly little lives."

"Rebekah—"

She cut Charlotte off, continuing, "And even if there was a little part of him that cares about human emotions like love. It would be for someone that will last long enough to continue it."

Elena pretended to ignore her last statement before asking, "Is that why you did that runway show earlier? 'Cause you don't care about the Homecoming Dance...You know what, I'm just gonna go."

The doppelganger got up, ready to leave before Rebekah said, "You haven't even heard half the story."

"And you are not going to tell it. You're just bored and looking for someone to push around. Find someone else to play with...maybe you can compel yourself a friend."

Charlotte furrowed her eyebrows together, not expecting such a response from Elena as Rebekah spoke up, "The necklace wasn't Stefan's to give. It belonged to the Original Witch."

Elena stopped in her tracks, putting two and two together, "The one who put the hybrid curse on Klaus?"

"Not just the hybrid curse," The blonde shook her head, adding, "She's the one who turned us into vampires."

She dropped that bomb before standing up, "I'm thirsty. Do you two want a drink?" Rebekah walked out of Paulina's room and into the living room to the liquor cupboard.

"So, vampirism was a form of protection?" Elena asked, following her outside.

"What else would it be?"

Charlotte shrugged her shoulders, "A curse?" She noticed Rebekah's raised eyebrows, "At least that's how I see it."

"My parents only saw a way of keeping their children alive," Rebekah sighed, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly.

"Yeah, but why stay, if they were so afraid of the werewolves?" The Gilbert girl asked, suggesting an alternative, "Why not...leave?"

The blonde pursed her lips together, "Pride...," She poured herself a glass of bourbon, continuing, "My father didn't want to run anymore. He wanted to fight and be superior to the wolves. Where they could bite, we had to bite harder. Where they had speed, we had to be faster. Agility, strength, senses..."

"It's hard to imagine that all of this was out of pride because centuries later, vampires are hiding in the shadows addressed as demons...," Charlotte's expression fell as she shook her head, rubbing her hands together.

Rebekah nodded before stating, "The witch Ayana refused to help us so my father told our mother that it was in her hands to finish it."

"In her hands? How could she do anything?" Elena questioned, shrugging her shoulders.

The blonde Mikaelson clarified simply, "Because my mother was also a witch."

"What?"

"The witch of the Original Family. The Original Witch?" Rebekah shrugged, huffing out.

Charlotte blinked back, exchanging a look with Elena, "Makes sense."

"But if your mother was a witch, then—"

She cut off her obvious question, "Am I? No, a witch is nature's servant; a vampire is an abomination of nature," Rebekah sighed, explaining, "You can either be one or the other, never both. My mother did this for us. She did not turn."

The Gilbert girl inquired, "How did you turn?"

"She called upon the sun for life, and the ancient white oak tree, one of nature's eternal objects, for immortality. That night, my father offered us wine laced with blood," Rebekah said, her mind dozing off to that night's unfortunate events, "And then he drove his sword through our hearts."

Charlotte whispered in disbelief, "Your father?...he killed you?"

"And he wasn't delicate about it either," She took a bottle of wine, broke its neck off with one motion of her hand, and threw it into the fireplace, "We had to drink more blood to complete the ritual."

She continued, explaining, "It was euphoric! The feeling of power was indescribable...but the witch Ayana was right about the consequences," Rebekah sighed as though remembering every part of it, "The spirits turned on us, and nature fought back...For every strength, there would be a weakness..."

"The sun became our enemy. It kept us indoors for weeks...," She looked down at her daylight ring, stating, "And though my mother found a solution, there were other problems; Neighbors who had opened their homes to us could now keep us out."

"Flowers at the base of the white oak burned, and prevented compulsion," Rebekah declared, hinting at the vervain, "And the spell decreed that the tree that gave us life could also take it away...so we burned it to the ground."

"But the darkest consequence was something my parents never anticipated...," She sucked in a deep breath, recalling, "The hunger. Blood...had made us reborn and it was the blood that we craved above all else. We could not control it."

"And with that, the predatory species was born..."

Charlotte rubbed her sweaty palms on her jeans, relating to the very last of Rebekah's story before Elena asked, "Why did Mikael start hunting Klaus?"

"When Nik made his first human kill, it triggered his werewolf gene," She said, her hands falling at her sides, "With that, he became my father's greatest shame."

Elena nodded, remembering just as well as Charlotte, "Yeah. Elijah told me this part of the story. Your mother had had an affair with one of the werewolf villagers. Klaus wasn't his son."

"She tried to make it right. She put the hybrid curse on Nik to suppress his werewolf side, and then she turned her back on him," The blonde sighed, downing the last sip of her glass, "But Mikael's greatest weakness as a human was his pride. As a vampire, that was magnified. He went on a rampage and killed half the village. Then he came home and killed her."

Elena whispered out, "Mikael killed your mother?"

Rebekah nodded, adding, "He said she broke his heart so he would break hers. He tore it from her chest as Nik watched," She folded her arms together, "Afterwards, my father took off in a rage, and the rest of my family scattered. Nik stayed, so he could help me bury her. He knew I had to say goodbye to my mother."

"We stick together as one. Always and forever..."

Charlotte smiled at the sentimentality of that vow before Elena spoke up, "Always and forever...even though he locked you in a coffin for ninety years?"

"We're vampires. Our emotions are heightened. I'm stubborn, Elijah moral, and Nik...Nik has no tolerance for those who disappoint him," Rebekah justified, not moved by Elena's surprise, "Over a thousand years as a family we've all made that mistake at least once. I've made it several times."

"But you still love him?"

"You can never truly turn your back on family, Elena," Charlotte said, shrugging her shoulders, "Elijah didn't at the end of it and it shouldn't be a surprise that Rebekah wouldn't."

Rebekah nodded, speaking after her, "Lottie is right. He's my brother. And I'm immortal. Should I spend an eternity alone instead?"

"You've heard the story, it's time to go," She rose to her feet, looking at Elena, "I said leave, Elena! I don't know what you're up to, but I'm no longer playing along."

Elena shrugged her shoulders, sighing, "I'm just looking for one good reason why we shouldn't wake Mikael."

"And I've given you a thousand! But you will anyway. I know you want him to help you kill my brother, I'm not stupid," Rebekah scoffed out.

"It's no secret that I want Klaus dead. He has a hold over Stefan's life, and over mine."

"Guys, maybe you could just—"

"No, you stay out of this," Rebekah warned her before turning to Elena, venom lacing her words, "Do what you need. Wake Mikael at your own peril. But make no mistake, if you come after my brother, I will rip you apart. And I get my temper from my father."

"Now leave!"

✵ ✵ ✵

Serena unlocked her house, walking after Coralie and Jacob. She had kept her mouth shut the whole drive home but the rules of the house wouldn't set themselves for unwanted guests.

"Coralie, you can sleep in your room," She said, folding her arms over her chest before turning to Jacob, "You, on the couch."

He scoffed out, reminding her, "We are a married couple."

She nodded, smiling reluctantly, "Yeah and this is not a five-star hotel. It's my house and you are not sleeping in my father's bed. You got that?"

"Serena—"

The brunette turned to her mother with a heated gaze, "There's no discussion in that. Either the couch or the streets and if he tries to get upstairs in the middle of the night, I will kick him out of my house."

"Some manners you have," Jacob whispered out, rolling his eyes.

She chuckled humorlessly, turning to him, "You have got something to say? Say it louder, or are you just not that much of a man?"

"Serena, that's enough," Her mother cut in, exclaiming out, "Look, Jacob will sleep on the sofa bed, alright? Now we need to talk."

"About what?"

"The Grill, what the hell were you doing there?" Coralie questioned aloud, shaking her head as a tone of disappointment took over, "Please tell me that that was a joke or charity work."

Serena huffed out, shaking her head, "No, it's a job and there's nothing in it for me to be embarrassed about."

"But honey—"

She interjected, stating, "If anyone should be embarrassed it's the woman who married a boy that is fifteen or more years younger than her."

"By the way, get your own groceries and don't touch my things," Serena finished before pulling her jacket and walking upstairs.

✵ ✵ ✵

Rebekah was pouring herself a glass of scotch as Charlotte put her homework in her bag. A knock to the door made her rise to her feet and get it, "Elena...I thought you went home."

"Didn't I tell you to leave?" The blonde Mikaelson asked, turning around, "Twice."

She ignored that, questioning as she walked inside, "How do you know that Mikael killed your mother?"

"Nik was there. He told me."

"He lied to you."

Rebekah asked, raising an eyebrow, "And how do you know that?"

"The cave where you carved your family's names is covered in symbols," Elena showed her the photos, "The story of your family: how your parents arrived, how they made peace, the spell that turned them into vampires, and this. This is the symbol for hybrid. It's a combination of the werewolf and the vampire symbol. And this is the one for your mother."

She recognized, "Her necklace."

The doppelganger added, explaining, "And this is the story of her death. The hybrid killed the Original Witch. Not Mikael. Klaus."

Charlotte's eyes widened, placing a hand over her mouth when Rebekah denied, "No! No, he wouldn't."

"She put the curse on him, made it so that he would be the only one of his kind, and then she rejected him. With the werewolf gene comes aggression and violence...when he turned, all of that was heightened," She reasoned, sighing, "He killed her, Rebekah. And then he made up this entire lie about your father so that he wouldn't lose you."

"These mean nothing! They're just stupid drawings, done by stupid people who had no idea who my family was!" She took the photos, tore them to pieces, and threw them into the burning fireplace.

Elena paused, asking, "Then why are you so upset?"

"Why are you doing this to me? I've done nothing to you!" Rebekah screamed out at her.

"Elena...I think you should go—"

The brunette human continued nonetheless, "Klaus killed your mother. He has a hold on you, on me, on everyone. He has for a thousand years. We have to make it stop—"

"Elena, stop, okay?! You are hurting her!" Charlotte grabbed her hand, pulling her to the door, "I am sorry but she can't hear this. Okay? She is in shock...and you need to go, now."

The Bernard girl didn't wait for a reply before slamming the door shut after her. Rebekah gasped, falling onto her knees and started sobbing.

Charlotte ran her tongue over her bottom lip before moving to hold Rebekah, "Hey...hey, it's okay. It's okay to hate this and it's okay to cry. Just let it out. Don't think about anything else."

She didn't know how long had passed of holding Rebekah as she cried on the floor of the living room but before the latter could fall asleep. Paulina had come in, picking her up.

She turned to Charlotte, nodding, "I can take it from here."

Charlotte sighed, looking after Rebekah as she clung onto Paulina as if it was for dear life, crying her heart out. It hurt to see someone in pain but over family, that was a different kind of pain, everlasting of sorts.

She walked back into her room, shut the lights, and laid in bed. Minutes away from falling asleep, her phone rang on the nightstand and Charlotte leaned over to get it, reading Kol's name on the screen.

"Hey...you actually called," She smiled shortly, greeting.

"Did you doubt it?"

"To be honest? A little," Charlotte answered before reasoning, "It's not every day you sleep with someone and then get to know them."

Kol chuckled, replying, "Well, there's a first time for everything."

"True."

✵ ✵ ✵

damn, it's a crowded chapter