American Gothic

In his art room, Klaus twists in pain and discomfort as he looks into the mirror, trying to get the piece of white oak stake out of his back that Silas attacked him with. He is scratching at his own skin to remove the stake yet cannot reach it. His breathing becomes erratic as droplets of sweat form on his skin, he screams out in pain whenever he moves, feeling the stake move closer and closer towards his heart.

"Klaus, we need to talk." Lola announces as she walks into the room, her eyes widen as she looks over to Klaus hunched over in agony, "What happened to you?"

"Silas." Klaus mumbles, "He attacked me. He stabbed me with the white oak stake." He pushes himself off from the fireplace, attempting to regain balance but holds onto the piano in the room for support, "A piece of it is still inside me."

"Oh my god, Klaus, that could kill you."

Klaus laughs humourlessly, "Well, I certainly feel like I'm dying."

Lola closes the gap between the pair, "Hey." A hint of a smile appears on her face as she runs a hand through Klaus' hair. The pair lock eyes for a moment, Klaus begins to calm down at Lola's touch but can't help but feel like there is something not right which becomes more apparent when Lola's warm eyes turn cold, "As much as I would love to watch you die, you still haven't found me that cure."

"Silas!" Klaus pushes Lola/Silas away from him resulting in him falling to the floor.

Lola/Silas turns away before looking back over to a fearful Klaus, "That's right. Last night I looked like Shane, today I look like Lola, and tomorrow-who knows?"

Klaus glares at them, "Show me your real face."

"Now why would I do that when I can look like whomever I want you to see?" Lola/Silas slowly steps closer to Klaus, he moves back slightly, eyes full of fear, "Resist me all you want, Klaus, but until you bring me the cure I will bring you nothing but misery. Maybe I'll pay Lola a visit next. Or maybe I already have and that's why you're all alone."

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At the boarding house, Lola is pacing around the kitchen, tapping her phone against her hand as she waits for a text from Stefan about any updates. It's not that she particularly cares about their hunt for the cure but it's something to keep her mind off Klaus. She's angry at him and angry at herself about their argument the previous night and doesn't want to make things worse.

She sighs with relief she when gets a text back from Stefan,

"Found Damon's car. About 100 miles from next stop, Willoughby. You okay?"

"I'm fine, I hope you're gloating for the both of us."

Lola places her phone onto the countertop and switches the coffee machine on, she rests against the countertop as she waits for it to brew until she watches Klaus walk into the kitchen, "Have you come to apologise?"

Klaus shrugs nonchalant as he steps closer to her, "I didn't realise I had to."

Lola rolls her eyes as she turns his back on him, pouring herself a coffee, "Of course you didn't."

"Where are Stefan and Damon?"

She can't figure out why but there is something that doesn't feel right about what's going on so Lola continues to have her back to him as she shrugs her shoulders, "I don't know."

Klaus hums, "Lying comes so naturally to you, doesn't it? I know they're on their way to a town where they believe Katherine is."

The last sentence alone proves that the feeling Lola was feeling in her gut was right. Her breath halts in her throat as she freezes in her spot, trying to think what to do next. She lets out a scornful laugh as she turns back around to face him, "You're slacking, Silas. If you wanted to keep up the whole you're Klaus then you probably should have done more research and you'd have realised that he doesn't call her Katherine."

Lola watches as his expression shifts ever so slightly, but enough for him to be unrecognisable as he scoffs, "You're a lot smarter than Klaus. Took him a while longer to realise I wasn't actually you."

Lola's entire body stiffens as she straightens her back, "What have you done to him?"

"I have to admit, Lola, it was quite difficult to get inside your mind. But then I thought to myself, what is your greatest weakness?" He gestures to himself with a malicious grin, "Your hybrid love."

Lola crosses her arms against her chest, looking over to him emotionless, "Is that the best you can do? Showing up as Klaus? You don't scare me, Silas."

He steps closer to her as she steps back, "Oh, that's a lie." Before Lola can react, his hand grasps around her throat pushing her against the wall, "I could just kill you right now."

Lola laughs slightly, struggling in his grip, "I wouldn't recommend that."

His grip tightens around her throat, with a fiendish grin he leans closer to her towards the side of her face, she flinches as he gets closer to her, "Make no mistake I will get the cure and I will destroy everyone in my path. Shall I start with you or with your beloved?"

With every ounce of strength, Lola pushes away from him and runs out of the kitchen, gripping hold of her throat as she chokes trying to catch her breath. She goes straight into the living room, grabbing a stake out of the hidden box within a chair.

Lola flinches when she hears something drop near her, she straightens her back and tries to make her breathing less erratic and more quiet. Her grip becomes so tight around the stake her knuckles are turning white as she slowly steps through the living room to see no one there.

She stands in the hallway, not daring to blink as she stares down it towards the kitchen, fearing Silas will appear again. Lola slowly steps backwards towards the front door but spins around when she feels a hand against her shoulder, "Get away from me!"

Adrianna looks at Lola dumbfounded, "Wow, I didn't think my surprise visit would be greeted with such hostility."

Lola laughs spitefully as she points the stake towards her, "You think this is just some sick game where you can pose as the people I care about?"

Adrianna's brows knit together, narrowing her eyes at Lola, "Are you drunk?" Lola steps backwards away from her making Adrianna step closer, "Hey, what's going on?"

Lola's fearful eyes try to figure out whether this is real or not, her trembling posture steps back as she narrows her eyes, "Ade?"

Adrianna smiles as she steps closer to Lola, "Stefan called and said he was worried about you so I got here as soon as I could." She pulls Lola in a hug, Lola relaxes slightly but still feels weary about everything. She yells out in pain when Adrianna grabs her hair, pulling with force, "You have to admit, I'm getting better at this."

Lola pushes away from Adrianna/Silas still with the stake in her grasp, she jumps back in shock as she opens to the door to see a worried looking Caroline standing there, "What's going on?"

"Leave me alone!" Lola exclaims as she shoves the wooden stake through Caroline's stomach and runs towards her car.

Caroline hunches over as she screams in pain ripping the stake from her stomach, "Lola, wait!"

Lola rushes over to her car, her shaky hands drop her car keys. She crouches down to grab her keys when she sees Caroline running towards her, "Motus!"

With magic Lola pushes Caroline away with force making Caroline fall against the ground away from her. Caroline chokes as the wind gets taken out of her lungs from her back hitting against the hard ground. She slowly sits up looking over to Lola confused, "Why are you doing this? I came to make sure you were okay after yesterday."

Lola laughs spitefully, "Create a new scenario, Silas! You already tried that on me and it's not gonna work again!"

The colour in Caroline's face fades when she hears that name, "Silas? What are you talking about? Lola, it's me!"

Lola shakes her head in disbelief, stepping further away from her, "I don't believe you."

Caroline's heart breaks when she sees how scared and vulnerable Lola looks in this moment, expressions she has never seen Lola possess until now. She takes hold of both her hands, "Lola, it's me. It's Caroline. The girl who held your hair back when you were drunk, the one who you stood up for against my dad."

Lola watches Caroline's features, waiting for them to turn cold and for Silas to come forward admitting he fooled her once more. However, the coldness never comes, instead she recognises Caroline in front of her as the same person that she has seeked comfort in many times before.

Lola sighs with relief as she pulls Caroline in a hug but then her eyes widen when she realises what she has just done to her friend, "Oh my god, I hurt you." She pulls away from the hug, looking down at Caroline's now bloody shirt which has pressed some of the blood onto Lola's shirt, "Caroline, I'm so sorry. I just-"

Caroline shakes her head, dismissing what happened a mere few minutes prior, she takes hold of Lola's hands again, "Tell me what happened."

"It was Silas. He got in my head, he shown himself as Adrianna and Klaus." Realisation hits her as she remembers that Silas mentioned he has seen Klaus as well as her today, "Klaus. I need to see him. I have to go."

Lola turns to open the drivers seat but Caroline gently places her hand against the door, blocking Lola from stepping into the car, "Woah, hey. You're not driving when you're like this. I'll drive you."

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Lola frantically rushes into the mansion once Caroline has driven her there, she runs through each room shouting after Klaus but doesn't hear any response back. Until she rushes into his art room, her heart drops when she sees a frail looking Klaus on the floor against the piano, "Nik?"

"Go away." Klaus grunts as he hugs his knees to his chest, looking away from Lola.

Lola cautiously steps closer to him, her tone is soft and calm, "Hey, it's me. What did Silas do to you?"

Klaus looks up at Lola, his eyes full of fury, "I need more time. Stop hounding me!"

"I'm not Silas." Lola kneels in front of Klaus, softly placing a hand against his knee, "It's me."

"Lola." Klaus croaks, his voice is as weak as his stature, afraid to believe that it could be Lola before him right now, "Is it really you?" Lola nods, taking hold of one of his hands. Klaus moves his hand out of Lola's grasp, cautiously trying to read her, "Prove it to me."

Lola sighs as she runs a hand through her hair, sitting back on her knees, "Proof? Okay, which one do you want? Do you want me to go into explicit detail about that one time Elijah walked in on us in 1902?" She leans closer to him, with a mischievous grin, "Or shall we skip the foreplay and go straight to me stabbing a fork into your hand?"

The smallest hint of a smirk appears on Klaus' face as he takes hold of Lola's hand once more, sighing heavily, leaving a kiss against her knuckles. Lola takes her free hand, running it through Klaus' short curls before is finding place against his cheek, "What did Silas do to you?"

"He stabbed me with the white oak stake." Klaus sits up, moving to the chair against the piano as Lola helps him up, "There's a-- a piece of it stuck inside me. How did you know it was Silas?"

Lola hesitates for a moment as she stands up straight, not letting go from Klaus' hand, "You're not the only one he paid a visit to today." Klaus' eyes fill with worry as he looks up at Lola which his eyes widen when he notices blood on her shirt. Lola squeezes his hand slightly as reassurance, "It's okay, it's not my blood. What do you need me to do?"

Klaus squirms in discomfort feeling the stake move inside him once more as he looks down at the floor near Lola, "Well, it's quite simple, really. I need you to cut the stake out of me."

Lola follows his gaze for her stare to be met with a pair of bloody pliers. Her face fills with a perturbed expression only for a moment before nodding, "Okay, stand up."

With a painful grunt, Klaus stands from his seat and leans against the piano as Lola grabs the pliers. She stares at large gash on Klaus' back, mentally preparing herself she is about to dig through his back for a piece of white oak. She softly places one hand against the other side of his shoulder, "Okay, deep breath."

Klaus yells in pain through gritted teeth as he feels the pressure of the pliers going into his back, one of his hands holds onto Lola's still against the other side of his shoulder. Lola cringes at the feeling of the pliers going deeper into his back, absolutely hating that she's putting Klaus through more pain, "I'm sorry."

Klaus' hold against Lola's hand becomes more tight as he takes a deep breath, "It's okay, keep going."

Lola nods, mainly to herself, as she continues to dig the pliers through his back trying to find the remains of white oak but doesn't have any luck. Hating the silence between the pair as she tries to concentrate and Klaus tries not to yell, she clears her throat, "The next time you were going to be shirtless, I didn't think it would where I am digging through your back with pliers." She shrugs to herself, fighting back a grin, "At least I know you've definitely got a heart in there."

Klaus grunts with a mixture of pain and annoyance, "Well I'm glad you're finding my misery so amusing."

"Just trying to diffuse the tension." Lola sighs as she digs further into his back, "Nik, I swear there is nothing in here that resembles white oak."

Klaus scoffs, "If I remember rightly we were in a similar situation to this back when your brother almost killed you. You know, your brother who you'd side with over me."

Lola rolls her eyes, biting her tongue to not snap something back, she moves her hand away from his but in doing so she accidentally digs even deeper into Klaus' back. He yells out in pain, slamming his hand on the piano top making Lola flinch, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry." She sighs, "I'm sorry."

She scoffs to herself, "You know what?" Lola yanks the pliers out of his back causing Klaus to yell out in pain once more, "I'm not sorry. I am so sick of you accusing me of so easily turning my back on you! I was just going to forget about everything, I wasn't going to be petty." Klaus turns to face her, his eyes full of rage as Lola takes a step closer to him, "But I guess petty Lola is here to stay for a while longer."

Klaus watches as Lola begins to walk out of the room, "Where are you going?"

"This level of pettiness is going to require some snacks and maybe a fork!"

When Lola walks back into the room she finds Klaus crouched beside the sofa, attempting to dig his hand into his back to grab the stake. She slumps down onto the sofa opposite him, "You know what's rude?" She takes a cookie out of the packaging, holding it up, "I got Hayley her favourite cookies when she stayed here and she never even touched them." She laughs slightly as she takes a bite out of the cookie, "I mean what's also rude is the fact you put words in my mouth that I never said but...I think the cookies trump that at the minute."

Klaus groans in pain, "I can feel the splinters moving towards my heart. Help me!"

Lola shakes her head as she looks up towards the ceiling, laying down on the sofa and mimics the sound of a buzzer before looking over to Klaus who's rage continues to build more and more, "Must you always be so stubborn?"

Lola shrugs, "It's one of my trademarks. Back on the subject of these cookies, because if Hayley appreciated that I got her these cookies I wouldn't be eating them right now. So I guess it sorta turned out as a positive."

"Enough about the bloody biscuits!" Klaus snaps as he slams his hand against the sofa, "Get this white oak out of me!"

Lola purses her lips and she sits up straight on the sofa, "Hold that thought. First, indulge me. I'm needing a recap from yesterday, I was trying to think back to when I said I wasn't on your side but I just couldn't figure it out. Care to enlighten me?" She raises her brows slightly awaiting for a response but gets nothing but a deathly glare from Klaus, she shrugs as she leans back into the sofa, "No? Okay."

She sighs as she glances down at the ring on her finger, twisting it around slightly, "You're doing it again, you know?"

Lola glances up to see Klaus clenching his jaw, trying not to snap, "What might that be? That I'm in pain and you are refusing to help me? Just like 1898."

Lola rolls her eyes as she flicks a crumb of cookie towards Klaus, "That was just because you hated that I was beating you at darts so you cheated and cheaters get a dart in the part of their back they can't reach. Count yourself lucky there were no forks nearby that day." She clears her throat as she sits forward, "But I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about the fact you are letting the fear and paranoia take over. Why do you always think I'm going to leave you?"

"It wouldn't be the first time."

"I thought we moved passed the twenties and fifties?"

"I'm not talking about those times." Klaus grunts, gripping hold of the sofa, "I'm talking about 1892."

Lola tenses at the mention of 1892, she swallows harshly as she glares over to him, "That was different and you know that."

"It was because you were afraid." Klaus corrects her, a hint of smugness in his voice, "The night you left in 1892, you had the same expression on your face that you had when you lied to me about not wearing the ring."

Lola scoffs, rolling her eyes, "Okay, fine. I lied and I am sorry about that. But you jumped down my throat without giving me the chance to explain my actions and that needs to stop!" She stands up from the sofa, stepping closer to him, "We are always doing this to each other, Nik, and it needs to stop!"

Klaus stands and approaches Lola quickly, making her step back slightly as Klaus' rage fills his words, "I wonder did you make it this difficult for the other one?" He begins to raise his voice without realising, "He only met one of your brothers so perhaps it wasn't this aggravating!"

Lola's breath halts in the back of her throat, seeing red she slaps Klaus across the face with force. He looks over to her as Lola's eyes sting with angry tears, she steps closer to him clenching her fists, "New rule, you can't just throw one of your infamous Klaus Mikaelson tantrums whenever you don't like how I deal with my brothers! I don't give a shit if they don't agree with us, I really don't. I already know they don't and yet I am still here because I love you! I'm not letting anyone order me around or make decisions for me and that includes you!"

She turns away but Klaus vamp-speeds to block her way, "Don't turn your back on me!"

"Don't turn your back on me!" Lola echoes in a much harsher tone as anger pulsates through her veins, "After everything we've been through do you honestly think I'm going to leave you over something as irrelevant as my brother's opinions?! Just because I haven't told them about this does not mean I'm going to leave you!" She laughs bitterly, "The fact that you think I'd let them fill my head with doubt infuriates me!" Her hands meet his chest as she shoves him away from her, "You infuriate me!"

The room falls silent, the air feels as though it's frozen. Lola's brows knit together, her chest falls and rises sharply with heavy, shaky breaths. Klaus stays standing as still as a statue, frowning until his face drops with a realisation, "It's gone."

"What?"

"The pain." Klaus reaches round to his back, "The-the pain is gone. It was-it was never there. He got in my head. Silas..." He brings up a shaky hand and gestures towards his temple, "...got inside my head." He blinks away the fear as he releases a large pent-up breath, "You took my mind off it. You brought me back, Lola."

Lola takes her hand back gently and turns around, bringing her hands to her head and walking a few steps. She turns back to Klaus, "If Silas can make you think that you're dying, what can he do to the rest of us?" She collapses onto the sofa behind her, "He already tried to fool me in to thinking that he was you and Adrianna."

Klaus kneels down in front of her, "What did he do to you?"

Lola's first instinct is her hand goes straight to her neck, she tightly shuts her eyes as she tries to forget Silas' grip around her throat, "It was nothing."

Klaus takes hold of Lola's hand that was against her neck as he sits on the sofa beside her, "I'm sorry."

Lola faces him, with a weak smile, "I'm sorry too. But we still need to finish this talk. Maybe when you put a shirt on." A hint of a teasing smile appears on her face as Lola scrunches up her nose, "It's a distraction."

Klaus laughs slightly before kissing the top of Lola's head then leaves the room to get a shirt. Lola watches as he does so then buries her face into the palm of her hands as she takes a deep breath.

She doesn't realise how long she has sat in this position until she feels a dip in the sofa beside her. Lola lifts her head up as she runs her hands through her hair, staring out in front of her, "You always say that you know me better than anyone and yet you didn't think that there may have been an ounce of hesitation to tell Damon and Stefan. It has nothing to do with me and you, it's about them. I wish I had brothers where I'd be excited to tell them about big things in my life but I don't." Lola scoffs, shaking her head, "If anything I dread anything happening in my life because then they try to get in my head. I didn't want to tell them straight away because I didn't want them to try and ruin how happy we've been but that just resulted in the two of us ruining it." She stays silent for a moment before turning to face Klaus, "We can't keep doing this, Nik. It's going to destroy us."

Klaus bows his head for a moment, nodding slightly, "I agree." He looks up and meets Lola's tired gaze, he shuffles closer to her, his hands finding a place on either one of her thighs, "You tell your brothers on your terms, I shouldn't have tried to control that." He lowers his head once more as guilt begins to seep through as he remembers bringing up Dominic, "I know the full extent of your past and I shouldn't have brought it up and-"

Lola cups his cheeks, softly placing her lips against his to silence him. She breaks away from the kiss, both of their eyes remain shut as they rest their foreheads against each other, "Don't. It's okay." Lola pulls away slightly opening her eyes, "I should have been more vocal from the start."

Lola's eyes soften as her warm smile appears, "You drive me absolutely insane all of the time. But it's always going to be you. You're my last love, remember?"

Klaus pulls Lola towards his chest, pulling her into a loving embrace as he rests his chin on the top of her head, "And you are mine."

They both remain in the embrace, in a comfortable silence until Lola hums to herself, "Now that I think about it..." Klaus pulls away frowning at her, waiting for her to continue when he meets Lola's playful grin, "I much prefer you without your shirt."

Klaus matches the same grin as he leans closer to her, allowing his lips to brush against hers before standing up from the sofa. He takes hold of Lola's hand bringing her up to stand also before picking her up and lifting her over his shoulder.

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Night falls as Stefan and Damon walk towards the diner where Elena has asked them to meet. Both of them are silent, feeling defeated after everything that has happened today in regards to the cure.

"All right, you're right. I let Rebekah take the cure." Damon admits as he comes to a halt, he turns to face Stefan, "I thought for a second-I mean, literally just a second-If Rebekah takes this, then all my problems go away. And I couldn't think of one good reason to give it to Elena. And then Rebekah took it. And I realised how badly I screwed up."

"So what's your point, Damon?"

Damon shrugs, "My point is, I'm sorry, okay? I had a moment of weakness, Stefan. It's my thing. It's like you and I falling for the same girl. It's our thing."

Stefan scoffs, "Was our thing." Damon shrugs giving his brother a deadpanned stare until Stefan continues, "Look, we've been making the same mistakes for 150 years. We can judge Katherine all we want, but we keep repeating our own history just like she is. Nothing ever changes. It has to stop, Damon."

Damon frowns, "What are you talking about?"

"I'm done. I can't keep reliving my life like this. I owe Elena her shot at being normal again. Once we give her the cure, I'm getting her out of my life, and I'm getting a life of my own."

Damon scoffs, looking at Stefan, dumfounded, "You can't be serious."

"I'm dead serious, Damon. Life is too short, even for the likes of us and I don't want to spend the next however many decades fighting with you over Elena when we could be spending more time with our sister who now has a time limit on herself." Damon lowers his head at Stefan's words, agreeing with him. Stefan sighs heavily, "It took Lola dying in our arms to wake me up and realise how selfish we've been and I'm gonna regret that for the rest of my life."

"You don't think I regret it all as well?" Damon snaps.

"Who knows!" Stefan exclaims, stretching his arms out before they fall to his side, "You're hot and cold with her all the time! One minute you act like a brother but the next you turn back on your word. I've only seen Lola genuinely happy once and that was in the twenties when she was with Klaus; there were no arguments, no leverage, no us versus them. It's taken almost a hundred years but I can see Lola is getting back to that and I am done standing in the way of that. I don't care about everything Klaus has done, I really don't care. The only thing I care about is Lola."

"I care about her too! I care!" Damon seethes through gritted teeth, "I've tried my best to protect her since the day she was born! Don't you think it hurts me when I think about how we were when we were kids compared to now? I hate myself for it. I hate myself because I was so scared to lose her but as a result I've just been pushing her away. I'm selfish, okay? I'm the selfish big brother who doesn't want to be alone. Do you think I'm proud of what I've done? I'm not." He scoffs as he gestures towards Stefan, "I've seen how the two of you are getting close with each other again and it sucks because I know things will never go back to the way they were with Lola and me."

Stefan sighs, "It will take time but it will get better eventually, Damon." Damon laughs spitefully as he shakes his head, looking away from Stefan who steps closer to him, "Lola won't just make amends with me and not with you."

Damon's shoulders drop as he sighs, "That's not true, brother. Lola may be able to move forward from everything that has happened between us all since she came back to Mystic Falls but even then it still won't be how it was."

"Why? Because of what happened between you both in 1919? That's ancient history, you were both back to normal a few years after that."

"Something happened before that, before she went to New Orleans, before she met any original vampires. I've carried it with me for 125 years but Lola only found out after she came back to town." Damon glances over to his little brother as the guilt builds up more and more, feeling like a tonne of bricks on his chest, "And I know you're not going to forgive me about this either because this is why Lola has been angry towards you for so many years."

Stefan lowers his head, shoving his hands into his pockets, "Just tell me what you did, Damon."

"In 1883, Lola met a man called Dominic." Damon begins, "You said the only time you seen Lola genuinely happy was the twenties, well when she met Dominic that was the only time I seen her that way. He was her first love, completely besotted with him."

Stefan's mouth gapes open hearing Damon's words, his face fills with confusion, "Why did I never know about him? Or even meet the guy?"

"Lola wanted you to." Damon admits, he sighs before continuing, "A few years after they met, he proposed. Lola wanted you there for the wedding, thought it would be a fresh start for us all. A new beginning."

Stefan shakes his head, "But I didn't even-"

"I know." Damon interrupts, "I told her I would get an invite to you but I never did."

Stefan's eyes darken with betrayal, he shakes his head as he starts to pace before snapping his attention back over to Damon, "Why would you do that?!"

"Because I was angry, Stefan!" Damon snaps, stepping closer to Stefan, "I was angry about 1864, I was angry that you forced us both to turn, I was angry about Katherine. I didn't think about how it would have affected Lola, I just wanted to hurt you."

"That's not even the full story, is it?"

Damon bows his head as he shakes his head, "The night before the wedding, Dominic came to speak to me. I never really liked the guy to begin with, there was always something that never sat right." He looks back up with Stefan, the guilt completely taking over, "But that night, he told me how he figured it all out that I've been lying about telling you about the wedding and he was saying he wasn't going to be the one to tell Lola but that I had to. He said that they were going to go to Europe and he would make sure they didn't come back so I panicked and-"

"You killed him." Stefan breathes out, Damon frowns at him, "I remember Lola mentioning that you killed her fiancée when we were at that dinner party with Klaus and Elijah." His hand rubs against his clenched jaw as Stefan grows more and more agitated, "Dammit, Damon, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"I wanted to punish you! Lola was ready to forgive and forget about you forcing us to turn but I was still so angry about it." Damon rolls his eyes as he starts to pace, "Then Dom just had to find out and threatened that he was going to make sure I wasn't going to see Lola again so I panicked, Stefan. Like I always do, yet again I had a moment of weakness and I killed him."

"What did you tell her?" Damon looks away from Stefan, making Stefan shove him, "Hey! You said she only found out the truth when she came back here so what did you tell her?"

"I said he left." Damon practically whispers, "I said that he didn't love her and he left."

Stefan laughs bitterly. He turns his back on Damon before rushing back over to him and punching him against his jaw full force, Damon falls to the floor from the impact.

Stefan glares down at Damon on the ground, "You made our sister think that I didn't care about her enough to be at her wedding and then you kill her first love the night before she was meant to marry the guy?!" Stefan scoffs as he watches Damon come to a stand, clicking his jaw back into place, "I've spent decades carrying guilt with me that the reason Lola hated me so much was because of 1864 but all this time she was willing to forgive me? You may be scared that you'll end up alone but it's through no ones fault but your own, brother. How many more times will you ruin Lola's happiness before you realise how much damage you've already caused our sister?" Stefan pushes past Damon, his shoulder bashing against Damon's as he storms away from his brother.

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The next morning, Lola walks down the stairs in the Mikaelson home with a spring in her step. She opens the front door about to leave until Klaus vamp speeds behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. He pushes her hair from her neck, his lips brushing against her skin, "Where are you going?"

Lola smiles as she wraps her arms around his, "To tell my brothers. I told them to let me know when they're back and they have just got back." She turns around in Klaus' hold to face him, cupping his cheeks, she kisses him, "I love you."

"I love you."

Lola walks into the boarding house to see Stefan and Damon already waiting in the living room. They look over as soon as the door opens, both standing up from their seats. Damon looks over to her anxiously, "Is everything okay?"

Lola clasps her hands together as she glances between her brothers, "Klaus proposed." She turns her attention to Stefan, "Yes, I have accepted. No, he did not compel me to do so. Yes, I am sure about this." Lola's attention then goes to Damon, "No, the ring is not made from the bones of his victims. Yes, I am happy, happier than I've been in years in fact. No, there is nothing you can do to talk me out of this." A smug grin appears on her face as she breaks her hands away and dropping her hands to her side, "We good?"

Both brothers stare up at her, speechless, not knowing what to say. Damon's brows knit together as he puts his glass of bourbon down on the table and walks towards his sister, she broadens her shoulders ready for the argument that's about to happen.

Damon stops right in front of her, "I'm happy for you, Lo."

"I-" Lola slumps her shoulders down as she looks at him confused, "Wait, what?"

Lola's face squirms with confusion as Damon pulls her in a hug, "I'm done being the controlling big brother." Damon pulls away from the hug, his hands remaining on either side of Lola's arms, "This is your life, not mine. Granted I'm not Klaus' biggest fan but I'm done getting in the way of what makes you happy." When he removes his hands, Lola stumbles slightly trying to regain her balance. Damon narrows his eyes at her now white as a sheet face, "Why do you look like you're gonna pass out?"

"I just wasn't expecting that response." Lola laughs awkwardly, "I came ready with a full argument to use against you."

"Why don't you save that energy for the next argument we have?" Damon jests as he playfully nudges Lola's shoulder, "Maybe when you decide to put vervain in my waffles again."

Stefan clears his throat as he stands beside Damon, "Is this what you wanted to tell me the other day?"

"Yeah. I couldn't do it without you both being here at the same time." Lola sighs as she fiddles with the ring, "I know Klaus has made a lot of mistakes, a lot of dumb mistakes but it's always going to be him. I have tried to fight it but I don't want to anymore, you both seen how miserable I was when I was fighting against it."

Stefan nods as he pulls Lola in a hug, "This is your life, Lo, and if Klaus is the one person you feel your happiest with I'm not going to stand in your way."

Lola pulls away, frowning at both of them, "Okay, who are you both and what have you done with my brothers?"

Stefan sighs, "With everything that has happened with Elena, the way we acted with you. You never once told us to choose a side or tried to stop us both from being with her." He glances over to Damon then smiles over to Lola, "I think it was about time we took a page out of your book."

Damon nods in agreement before his classic smirk appears, "Just know there may be a little white oak tree growing in the gardens that I will use against him if he ever hurts you."

Lola rolls her eyes as she scoffs, "Please, do you honestly think you'll get to him first before I do if he hurts me?"

Lola glances between both of her brothers, knowing something is up between them sensing the tension, "What's going on between you two?"

"Damon is just embarrassed because I damaged his ego with a swift right hook to the jaw." Stefan looks over to Damon smug, he clips his hand against Damon's shoulder, shaking him slightly, "Right, Damon?" Damon rolls his eyes, shoving Stefan's hand off his shoulder.

Lola's face pulls with disgust, "Are you both fighting over Elena again?"

Damon shakes his head, his lips pulls together, "We had a talk about the past."

Lola's shoulders slump as she looks over to her older brother, "Have I missed book club where we go through Stefan's diaries?"

"I told him everything about Dominic." Damon admits making Lola's brows shoot up in surprise, "And that Stef never came to the wedding because I never even told him in the first place. I've apologised about Dominic and I will apologise for the rest of my life."

Lola shakes her head, raising her hand up, "Damon, you don't-"

"But..." Damon interrupts her as he steps closer to her, putting his arm around her shoulder, "I've never apologised for making it look like Stefan was the one who hurt you. I'm sorry." He looks over to Stefan and smiles sincerely, "I'm sorry I made it so you guys didn't have a good relationship throughout our entire history."

"Honest truth?" Lola speaks up, "When Dominic told me everything that you did, I was so angry. I was ready to never speak to you ever again." Damon lowers his head as he removes his arm from her shoulder but she takes hold of his hand, "But I'm not angry about it anymore. I don't really have time to be holding things against you both anymore, I'm done with it. Dom wouldn't want me to stay angry over this either. So are we all on the same page?" Lola teases as she playfully nudges her shoulder against Damon's, "Team Salvatore has reunited once more?"

Damon rolls his eyes but can't fight back a grin as he bumps against Lola, "Team Salvatore has reunited once more." They both look over to Stefan who is shaking his head making Damon scoff, "Come on, if I say it you have to say it."

Stefan shakes his head as he laughs, "I'm not saying it. But do you know what I'm thinking, brother?"

The pair both match the same up to no good smirk before they look over to a confused Lola. Damon grins at her, "Yes I do."

Lola's eyes widen as she steps backwards from her brothers, "No."

Stefan vamp speeds behind Lola to block her from moving further away, "Yep."

Stefan hugs Lola from behind as Damon hugs her from the front. 'The Brotherly Sandwich' hug they would always do when they were children. Mainly when they knew something had happened between Lola and their father and they wanted to cheer her up. They would always refuse to break away from the hug until Lola had a smile on her face.

"Oh, come on!" Lola groans as she tries to break away from them both, "Why do you always do it when I am a fragile human who could actually crack a rib?" She rolls her eyes yet can't help but smile at their idiotic behaviour, "I hate you both."

"We love you too." Damon teases as both brothers break away from the hug.

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A/N: AHHHH THERE IS ONLY ONE MORE CHAPTER TO GO UNTIL WE MOVE TO BOOK TWO!!

Any predictions?!?!?!

There will be some flashbacks in the second book that show the five years from Lola and Klaus meeting to admitting their feelings. The mention of 1892 in this chapter will be a crucial part of one of them so remember that year ;)

Here's a picture of the ring I imagined; as I said before it won't be to everyone's taste but please be kind :) Holly x