And the Moth Danced With the Flame

And the Moth Danced with the Flame (Until They Burned Out Together)

"Are we going to do this forever?" he wonders, his voice nearly a shout over the heavy fall of rain.

She's walking down a cobblestone street, her heels clacking beneath her, but his voice makes her pause. She'd known he was there; she always knows when he finds her. He was across the bar, a glass in one hand, that knowing smirk playing at his lips, a silent invite for them to catch up, for this conversation to play out. But she'd left, stepping out into the rain soaked streets, no umbrella in reach, deciding to put off destiny a while longer. Apparently Klaus wasn't so accommodating.

Stopping, she turns on her heel to face him, her lips pressed in a firm line. "We have forever, don't we?" she returns flippantly.

He raises an eyebrow, but the wry twist of his lips is absent. He's not playing games tonight. "I've lived forever, Caroline… I've chased you for as long as I can remember… Am I ever going to catch you?"

Her eyes fall to the ground, where puddles are collecting, splashing with the onslaught of raindrops. Her skin is soaked through, her hair hanging long and heavy. Water sluices down her face, clinging to her lashes. If she was human, she'd shiver, but she's not and so it's only a minor inconvenience. It's a fleeting thought. She's long past wishing for anything humanity has to offer her. Unlike most of her friends, being a vampire has more ups than downs for her. Especially since she left Mystic Falls, since she started traveling and seeing the world, leaving behind the Elena/Salvatore triangle and the freak of the week out to destroy them.

She's been happy, she's seen more than she ever expected to. Compulsion means she gets the best of the best, wherever she wants, whenever. She can vaguely hear Stefan's chastising voice in the back of her mind telling her not to use her powers for evil. She doesn't think free anything is evil, it's not like she's really hurting anybody.

With great power comes great responsibility… Hm, maybe she's mixing up movie wisdom with Stefan wisdom. She should probably call him. She usually does after an Encounter of the Klaus Kind. He's always warning, exasperated, telling her she should stop playing with fire. She's not sure how to tell him that she can't, that maybe she doesn't want to, that she likes fire. Stefan's her best friend, but there are some things she just can't explain to him.

It's been decades since she started traveling, decades she's spent living every moment to the fullest. But every few years, she finds herself here, within touching distance of him, and she has to question herself again, she has to question her life and whether or not it's as fulfilling as it can be.

The thing is, once upon a time, she was the girl who never felt like she was enough. The girl always looking for a boy to love her. And she found them, over and over again, until they realized she wasn't normal and they couldn't deal, or they found someone more their speed, or her insecurities got the better of her. She's stronger now. She doesn't need a man, but… does she want one?

Klaus is not average. He can be dangerous, scary even, and she thinks sanity should discourage her from getting too close, but it never does. So they find themselves here, two travelers meeting at random; he tells her it's serendipitous, but she sometimes wonders if he plans it. He fancies her, he tells her, he always has. Never stops. He goes back to his life when she tells him she's not done searching; for what she doesn't know, but she hasn't found it yet. He gives her space, reminds her that they'll find each other again, with that nagging grin of his that promises one day he won't walk away alone, one day he'll leave with her hand tucked in his.

"Have you found it yet?" he asks her.

She stares at him, the rain has soaked him through; his shirt clings to his chest, his arms, and she bites her lip. She's always been attracted to him; not just physically, but emotionally and mentally. He's more complicated than just the cruel villain title he's usually given. Daddy issues, mommy issues, whole family issues, and don't even get her started on that wholetrust thing. It's not an excuse really, because she's had her fair share of crap, but she gets it. She gets him.