The Original Who Loved Me:
Final Part

New Orleans, December 1891:

There's a ringing sound going through Lola's head as she slowly opens her eyes, adjusting to the lights with blurred vision. She cringes slightly at the brightness of the ceiling lights, squinting her eyes to adjust. She groans at the sharp feeling coming from her neck, the dryness from her throat as though she's swallowed broken pieces of glass.

Thomas is kneeled beside the fireplace within the room, poking at the fire when he hears Lola waking up, he smiles broadly over to her, "You're awake, that's good."

Her eyes widen when she sees Thomas kneeling beside the fire, she attempts to move from the chair she's on but gasps at the burning sensation of the vervain ropes tying her arms around the back of the chair, "What did you do?"

Thomas chuckles, placing the poker onto the floor as he stands up, "My sweet Lola, I can understand the fuzziness you're feeling right now but you know what I done." He continues smiling in a sadistic way, he gestures towards the table to the side and then to the smashed tea cup on the floor, "I put vervain in your tea then broke your neck."

"Why?"

Thomas remains standing in his spot, he sighs shoving his hands into his pockets. He tilts his head slightly before stepping closer towards Lola. He reaches a hand out towards Lola, making her flinch, "If I tell you," Thomas pulls some of Lola's hair out from her face, his hand slowly grazes along her face, resting underneath her chin and raises her face to look up at him, "You have to promise me you won't go crazy."

Lola scoffs, she throws her head back to get out of Thomas' touch, "Are you serious!? You give me tea that has vervain in it, you break my neck then have me tied up with vervain ropes. And you're telling me to not go crazy!?"

"I don't want to kill you straight away, Lola." Thomas crouches down to be eye level with an expressionless Lola, Thomas wears an evil smile, "We need to have some fun first so please don't test me."

Thomas exhales heavily as he stands up straight, he walks towards the table in front, pulling a chair out from underneath it and turning it to face Lola. He pulls a stake from his jacket before sitting down, looking over to Lola, pointing to stake towards her, "Can you remember the name Victoria Campbell?"

"Victoria Campbell?" Lola echoes getting a nodded response from Thomas which makes her scoff, "Am I suppose to know who that is?"

Anger consumed Thomas immediately, he jumps up from his seat and rushes towards Lola, "Do not lie to me!" He seethes, he presses the stake against Lola's chest, "You know exactly who I am talking about."

"Do you honestly think I'm going to lie when you've got a stake against my chest?"

"You killed her." The once hideous mask that he formed, now slowly breaking away revealing a broken soul. His teeth are grit, breaking is erratic as he stares down at Lola with tears pooling in the corners of his eyes, "You killed Victoria."

Lola releases a long breath when Thomas moves the stake away from her chest, as though she had been holding her breath this entire time. Still with the stake in his grip, Thomas begins to pace around the room, "Georgia in 1886. She was visiting her family," Thomas has his back to Lola as he takes deep breaths, leaning against the table, "Victoria was going to tell her family how we were to be married. I said I would go with her but she wanted to do this on her own. The night she was going to see her parents, she thought she would take the long way and enjoy a walk through the park." A hint of a smile appears when Thomas remembers stories that Victoria would tell him, "She would tell me that her mother would always take her to the park when she was younger."

His face turns cold once more, turning his head slightly, "But she never left the park, did she?" He turns to face Lola, his grip against the stake is so tight his knuckles turn white, "She never got to see her parents." Lola inhales sharply as she tries to break out of the vervain soaked ropes as Thomas steps closer to her, "Our wedding day never arrived."

Lola screams out when she feels a sharp pain through her stomach caused by the wooden stake. With his other hand, Thomas grabs hold of Lola's face, forcing her to look at his darkened eyes, "Because you killed her."

"Thomas, I promise you–" She screams out again when Thomas rips the stake out of her stomach. Lola's breath becomes ragged, catching her breath, "I promise you, I didn't kill her."

"There was only one name that came up whenever there were talks of vampires in Georgia, Lola! Salvatore."

Lola brows join together as she glances down at the floor, looking confused as she tries to think back to that time. She swallows harshly, closing her eyes, "What was the date?"

"August 15th, 1886." Thomas scoffs, "Did you kill so many innocent people in that year you need the specific date?"

"Thomas, it wasn't–"

"If you say one more lie, this is going straight through your black heart." Thomas threatens, he presses the stake once more against Lola's chest, "You don't have the power to continue these lies–"

"I wasn't in Georgia then!" Lola blurts out, she looks up at Thomas, eyes wide, "I swear to you, August 15th, I wasn't in Georgia then!" Lola takes a deep breath as she looks away from Thomas, her eyes start to become glossy, "I left days before then."

Thomas' eyes darken as he starts to walk towards Lola, gripping hold of the stake making Lola panic even more, "I was due to get married too!" Lola blurts out causing Thomas to stop in his step, frowning towards her as she continues, "August 6th I was due to be married, but it never happened. That night I left Georgia and I've never returned since." Lola's eyes are wide, full of fear and panic as tears stream down her face, "It wasn't me, Thomas. I promise you."

Thomas' entire stature is stiff, his breathing is sharp as he tries to fight back angry tears on the verge of slipping. There's one small moment in his mind where he realises he doesn't want to do this, he doesn't want to kill Lola. However that moment doesn't last long before he starts to imagine his beloved, dead in his arms and the anger builds up once more.

His grip tightens even further onto the wooden stake, pointing it towards Lola's chest as he marches closer to her making Lola continue to try and break free but it's no use. She's panicking, "No, wait! Please, wait." Lola begs in between her panicked sobs, "Please don't do this. I'll do anything." She gasps at the sharp feeling of the tip of the stake slowly going into her chest, she looks up at Thomas with pleading eyes, "Thomas, please. You don't want to do this, I know you don't."

"I have to." Thomas whimpers as he tries to convince himself this is the right thing to do, "Victoria needs her justice so I have to kill you."

Lola's panicked posture changes within an instant, to a more calm yet cold one as she looks him dead in the eyes with no expression, "If you want to end up as bad as whomever may have killed her then fine. You can live with this for the rest of your life that you killed someone innocent."

Her hands intertwine with themselves, tied with the vervain ropes against the back of the chair. Her nails dig into the skin of her palms as she tries to not scream out at the pain of the wooden stake pressing into her skin, the littlest motion will make it pierce into her heart.

"You're not a killer, Thomas. You've told me yourself you don't kill. You're a good person." Lola swallows harshly, her expressionless stare doesn't leave his conflicted stare, "But if you want to destroy everything that you've worked at then go for it. See if I care."

Lola closes her eyes, waiting for the force of the stake to go deeper into her chest, all she can picture in her mind is Klaus. That night in the gardens on her birthday, every single moment they've spent together were flashing before her; the pain of the stake wasn't the only thing that felt like it was piercing through her skin. The thought of not telling Klaus exactly how she felt weighs over her, a sense of sadness she may never be able to tell him.

Lola gasps loudly at the feeling of the wooden stake being ripped from her skin, her eyes remain tightly shut, not daring to open them. She flinches slightly when she hears the wooden stake fall onto the floor beside her. Slowly opening her eyes she sees Thomas in front of her completely breaking through his anger facade, staying in his spot and staring down at the stake in horror.

"I'm sorry, I–" Thomas paces around, mumbling incoherently.

"It's okay," Lola tries to assure him, "If you cut these ropes off my wrists then we can just take a breath and talk about it."

Thomas breathes out heavily, as though he had completely forgotten he had Lola's wrists tied up with vervain soaked ropes. He nods as he takes the gloves from the table, immediately putting them on before walking behind Lola and ripping the ropes off her.

Lola sighs with relief as her wrists are free, she breathes in a sharp breath as she comes to a stand. She takes a few steps towards the fireplace, leaning against is for extra support as her strength slowly builds up once more. A guilt ridden Thomas attempts to step closer to Lola but she puts her hand out to stop him. She turns her back to him as she takes deep breaths.

Thomas turns around, frowning as he looks towards Lola. Her deep breaths soon turn into laughter, she's doubled over as the laughter continues to increase. She breathes out an amused breath as she stands up straight, still with her back to him, "Wow, I am such a liar." A twisted grin appears on her face as she turns round to face a confused Thomas, "I said you were a good man but that was a complete lie, wasn't it?"

Thomas slowly raises his hands up, taking a cautious step towards her, "Lola, I truly am sorry about what I've just done, but–"

"What? This?" Lola gestures to her blood stained dress and towards the vervain ropes on the floor before she scoffs, "Oh, please. I wasn't talking about this." Her eyes turn dark as she steps closer towards Thomas, "Deep down you know exactly what I am talking about."

Without having a moment to think about Lola is talking about, Thomas screams out in pain at the sudden feeling of something piercing through his stomach. He stares down in horror at his abdomen with the poker from the fire impaled into him before slowly looking up at a grinning Lola who's hands are wrapped around the poker, "I believe we have some catching up to do, don't we? This is what you get, Thomas." Lola lets go of the poker, causing Thomas to fall down onto the floor and slowly slipping into unconsciousness.

—✤—

Klaus stands within his art room, the doors leading to the outside balconies are open. Distant sounds of jazz music can be heard as he works on a new art piece, feeling more relaxed than he has in days.

His mind has been constant of Lola, ever since their kiss only a few weeks prior. Something had changed between them both since then, it hasn't been as hostile as it has; Klaus had hope that things may slowly improve between them both.

The housekeeper, Mrs Hughes, stays standing in the doorway to the art room, clearing her throat causing Klaus to glance over to her, "What is it?"

"It's been a while since you've been this relaxed." Mrs Hughes comments as she steps further into the room, hands crossed against her chest, clutching onto a white envelope, "Though I don't know if this new piece of information will help you continue to being relaxed."

Klaus lowers his brush, raising an intrigued brow towards her, "Have you found something?"

Mrs Hughes grunts sarcastically as she nods faintly, "I'm not just a good housekeeper." Mrs Hughes hands Klaus the sealed white envelope, "I loathe seeing your ego grow, however, your doubts were not doubts after all."

Klaus watches as Mrs Hughes leaves the room, closing the door behind herself. He stares down at the white envelope, sealed with a maroon wax stamp. Not wanting to wait a moment longer, he rips the envelope open and begins to read the letter sealed within. His jaw clenched reading the words written down, his grip tightens on the letter as his eyes darken.

"Kol!" Klaus' booming voice, laced with anger erupts as he storms down the stairs towards the courtyard where Kol is sat reading. Kol frowns, looking over to an enraged Klaus heading straight towards him, gripping hold of the letter, "You've known all along haven't you?"

Kol wears a smug grin as he shuts the book, folding his arms, "You'll have to elaborate, brother."

Klaus' anger grows even further, he grabs a fistful of Kol's shirt, pulling him up from his seat and pushing him again the brick wall. He presses the letter into Kol's chest, his grip releases from him.

Kol takes hold of the letter, his entire smug stature disappears within an instant, the colour drains from his face as he looks back towards Klaus, "Where did you find this?"

Kol takes a sharp inhale as he feels the tip of a dagger pressing against his chest. Klaus grits his teeth, blood burning with anger as he presses the dagger further, "If anything has happened, Kol–"

Elijah appears suddenly, pushing Klaus away from Kol, standing between them both, "Niklaus!"

"Nothing is going to happen!" Kol protests making Klaus' patience lessen even further. Klaus attempts to step towards Kol once more but Elijah pushes him back, his hands stretching out as he stands between both brothers. Kol sighs as he hands the letter towards Elijah but his stare doesn't leave Klaus, "You're just going to have to trust me on this."

Rebekah rushes into the courtyard, giving each brother a confused glance, "What's going on?"

It's silent between them all for a moment until Elijah looks up from the letter towards Klaus, his face is cold, showing nothing but a pensive expression, "We need to find them both immediately."

Klaus takes the letter from Elijah's hold, shaking his head, "I'll find them myself."

Elijah takes a step forward as Klaus begins to walk away from them all, "Brother, if you-"

"It wasn't a suggestion!" Klaus bellows as he turns to face his siblings, "This ends now."

—✤—

The sun has set by the time Thomas regains consciousness, he is now tied up against the same chair he put Lola against, vervain ropes keeping him there. He awakens at the sound of movement within the room. He slowly opens his eyes to see Lola crouched down beside the fire, placing a pot over it before she smiles towards him, "Good evening, sunshine."

Thomas attempts to break free but gasps when he can feel the poker that is still pierced through his abdomen. His brows furrow together as he looks over to Lola with a feeling of betrayal, "You tricked me."

Lola begins to laugh maliciously as she stands up straight, cocking a brow up in amusement as she steps closer to him, "Tricked you? No." Lola lowers herself slightly to be at eye level with him, "I just played the game better than you did."

"What are you talking about?"

Lola rolls her eyes slightly as she stands up straight, walking away from him, "Let's take our minds back to May 1890, shall we?" She sits on a chair opposite Thomas, "You can remember that, can't you? That was when we first met. I bet you think to yourself that you're the one who planned our first ever meeting, didn't you?"

"As soon as I learned there was a Salvatore in New Orleans, I made sure I'd be able to do what I had to in order to avenge Victoria." Thomas seethes, "It was the plan all along."

Lola tilts her head slightly, pursing her lips as she hums, "That's your side of it. My side of it was that it had been my plan the entire time." Lola sighs, noticing Thomas isn't catching on to what she is saying, she stands up and starts to walk towards him, "You see, you think all of this was entirely your plan but that's not the case at all. I knew who you were long before we crossed paths in the park that day."

Thomas winces when Lola takes hold of the poker, not pulling it from him but instead turning it around, "That day at the art exhibit, my dear friend Rebekah came over and was gushing about this new man who arrived in New Orleans. She couldn't believe the similarities between us both, that we were destined to meet. Poor dear had no idea what I already knew." Lola begins to circle around him, hands behind her back as her tone fuels with smugness, "Then you have Kol. You assumed that when you met Kol the night previous that he knew nothing about you but that was completely false too. We've been working together all this time to make sure that you get what you deserve."

A speechless Thomas watches as Lola walks around him to stand before him once more. The smug grin has never left her face until she purses her lips and frowns, "I wonder, Thomas, did you do your full research on me? I can't help but think you didn't because if you did then this confused stare wouldn't be living on your face right about now." She starts to laugh, shaking her head, "I've just realised I never told you my aunt's name, have I? Cordelia Whittaker, does that ring a bell to you?"

The colour on his face completely drains as Thomas' eyes widen, "You're part of the Whittaker family."

"Don't you just love a twist?" Lola pulls the poker out of Thomas' abdomen making him scream out, he lowers his head as he breathing becomes erratic. Lola takes the poker, placing it under his chin and forcing him to look up towards her, "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this."

"So now what?" Thomas spits out, glaring up at Lola, "Kill me for something my father done?"

Lola laughs before slowly pushing the poker through Thomas' throat, he chokes on his own blood, spitting it out as he tries to breathe. Lola's grip tightens on the poker as she pushes it further in, "But it wasn't your father, was it? It was you."

She pulls the poker out making Thomas continue to choke on his own blood. Lola scoffs as she throws the bloodied poker onto the floor, "Kol and I had this bet going, wondering how long it would take for you to reveal your true self. I have to admit, there was a part of me that wanted to stop our plan because I thought you'd never show your true motives." A sadistic grin appears as Lola lowers herself once more to be eye level with him, "But look at you, perhaps you're not as much of a coward like your father after all."

Thomas leans forward in the chair as much as he can, his anger pulsates through his veins, "You bitch."

Lola frowns in fake offence, she pets his cheek, "Oh, touchy subject." She walks back towards the table and chairs, taking a seat opposite him, "1855. You remember what happened that year, don't you? It was the year you turned, it was the year that your family was ran out of New Orleans, however, there was something else that happened. Care to share it yourself?" Thomas remains silent, his jaw is clenched, breathing heavy as he continues to glare towards Lola making her scoff, "That was also the year I lost my aunt."

"What ever you think you know–"

"Oh, you'll be astounded by the things I know." Lola cuts him off, "Maybe I shouldn't have brought up 1855 first, perhaps I'll start speaking about 1836. Back then your uncle, Frederik Wetherby, was living in the next town next to what would soon be called Mystic Falls. During his time there he met a woman called Violet Whittaker and she fell completely head over heels for this man. He would go on to say that he felt the exact same way but that wasn't actually the case. Even if it was, he had a poor way of showing it."

"Violet Whittaker was my grandmother's sister, she was the fourth sister so she didn't get the witch gene, sadly." Lola continues to explain, "Your father, Malcolm, hated that Frederik was in love with a woman who wasn't a witch, he thought it was unnatural. He needed to find a way to get your uncle back to New Orleans but couldn't think of any way to do so. Until one day, he sent a letter to the mayor of the small town Frederik was living in, explaining how he fears there were witches living amongst them. He even named a witch, can you remember whom he named?"

Thomas remains silent, he scoffs as he looks away from Lola making her grin wider as she bites further, "You were only four at the time so it's understandable if you don't remember. Allow me to refresh you, your father named Violet as that witch. Quite ironic considering he didn't agree with your uncle being with her when she wasn't actually a witch. The town captured Violet, then burned her at the stake despite her and my family's pleas into saying she wasn't what she was accused of."

"My aunt would tell me stories of when she was growing up, talking about the close bond she shared with Violet. My aunt who was seventeen, then had to watch her aunt getting burned alive. My mother, my grandmother, everyone, had to watch someone innocent get murdered because your selfish father didn't wish for your uncle to live the life he chose. But what made it worse was your uncle just stood back and allowed for this to happen. When he found out what your father had planned, he never tried to stop it from it happening, he never fought for her, instead he fled. He went running back to New Orleans like a coward." Lola scoffs as she stands up from her seat, "I suppose being a coward runs in your family."

"Just like being an evil bitch runs in yours!" Thomas snaps, "You cannot punish me for the sins of those before me."

"I'm not finished." Lola deadpans, no emotion in her voice as she glares down at him, "Now I can begin to talk about 1855. See, ever since that night that Violet was killed, my aunt Cora grew more and more angry as the years went by. Before that she wasn't particularly interested in her witch heritage until she found a way to channel her anger and when she realised who her anger should be directed at; your father. There was one thing she wanted to do and had made sure she was powerful enough to complete what she wanted but something got in the way of doing so."

Lola walks towards the one of the large bookcases within the room, she hums in thought until the book she was wanting caught her eye. The corner of the lips switch up into a smirk as she grabs a large brown book from the case, she turns to face Thomas, "A bit odd to have a book on here that has no title or anything on the front, don't you think?" Lola opens up the large book, revealing it's been hollowed out and there is a smaller, purple book within it. She gasps slightly as she takes it from the brown book, throwing the brown one onto the floor. She clicks her tongue, shaking her head as she waves the purple book in her hands, stepping closer to Thomas, "Hiding a book within a book, aren't you clever? What does it say in this book?"

"You should know," Thomas grunts, refusing to look at her, "It was your twisted family that written it."

"This is what Cora needed to get revenge on your family." Lola shrugs slightly, flicking through the pages of the book until she finds what she needed, "Ah, here it is. Prison worlds." Lola harshly shuts the book before smiling down at Thomas, "This is exactly what Cora wanted to create to put your family in. This is where your father and my aunt are different, she didn't want to be like your father, she didn't want to kill him. No, if anything that was the easy way out. She wanted him and the rest of your family to suffer for eternity just like our family suffered because of what happened to Violet. But, Cora would never find the book. That was because your uncle stole it from Violet, this was his way to try and make amends with your father."

Lola purses her lips as she flicks through the book once again, "There was something in here that I think you'll recognise. Ah, yes."

Lola turns the book into Thomas' direction. He continues to look away making Lola kick him harshly against his shin. He groans out in pain before turning his attention towards the book until he scoffs, "This is what needed to happen. To shut that woman up."

Throwing the book to the other side of the room, Lola closes the gap between her and Thomas as her rage pulsates through her veins. She harshly grabs Thomas' face with her hand, digging her nails into his skin, "Admit what you done."

"Fine." Thomas throws his head back to remove himself from Lola's grip, the cruel and wicked mask he's wore previously shows once more, "I did what I had to do. Your aunt was never going to give up on her pathetic revenge fantasy. I was the strongest one in our coven so I took the responsibility."

Lola's jaw is locked, her eyes begin to sting trying to not completely break down at Thomas' confessions, not wanting to look weak in front of him as he laughs maliciously, "Your aunt was a fighter, the hex took longer than it has for anyone else. It's a shame she wasn't able to fight it longer than she did."

"So, you admit it." Lola practically whispers, her hands have formed fists, her nails digging into her skin, "You cursed my aunt."

"I cursed your aunt and felt absolutely nothing." Thomas wears a wicked grin as he leans forward in the chair, "It's just a pity I never got to watch the light leave her eyes."

The corner of Lola's lips twitch up into an amused smirk before she harshly grabs Thomas' neck, digging her nails into his skin, "Oh, but it will be such a treat for me to watch the light leave your eyes."

"Lola!"

Both of their attentions go to the doorway where a panicked looking Klaus appears, he looks into the room to see Thomas tied up and Lola standing before him, "What's–"

"Do you mind?" Lola groans cutting Klaus off, glaring over to him, "I was just about to get what I wanted!"

Klaus' eyes land on Thomas, his eyes darken as he storms towards him. He grips tightly against Thomas' neck, "I know what you did."

"Get off of him!" Lola pushes Klaus away from Thomas, "What are you doing here?"

The darkness in Klaus' eyes leaves as he looks over to Lola, his face softens before exhaling a shaky breath, "I needed to make sure you were okay."

"Well as you can see, I am perfectly fine." Lola takes hold of Klaus' hand and starts to guide him out of the room, "You should go and let me finish what I have started."

Klaus ignores Lola's request, instead gripping his hold against her hand and guiding her into a different room off the foyer leaving Thomas tied up in the music room. Lola scoffs as he lets go of her hand and closes the door behind them both, "What are you doing?"

His breath soon becomes shaky as he takes in Lola's stature, blood stained dress, hair out of place and dark circles underneath her eyes. Klaus takes a step closer to her as his eyes soften, "You said you were okay."

Lola frowns at Klaus' expression before realising the state she is in, she sighs shaking her head, "There was a small moment that he was in control but as you can see I was in the middle of taking care of that."

Klaus doesn't say anything, he takes the folded piece of paper out of his jacket, holding it out to Lola who takes and reads it. Lola clears her throat as she folds the piece of paper up and presses it against Klaus' chest, "I already know about this."

Klaus takes hold of the paper, looking confused at her, "How long have you known?"

"I've just had him confess what he done to Cora. It's been mine and Kol's plan all along." Lola confirms, she stares at their hands intertwined against Klaus' chest with either of them not even realising, she smiles faintly, "You came here to tell me about that?"

"Of course I did." Klaus laughs breathlessly, frowning towards Lola, "You know it has been no secret that I haven't trusted that man from the moment he came into our lives." His demeanour changes, he cups Lola's cheeks, his eyes turn serious, "You don't have to do this."

Lola lowers her head, she removes Klaus' hands from her face as she nods, "I do need to this." She gazes into his eyes for a moment, as though she is trying to to urge herself to saying something to Klaus. But instead, she leaves a soft peck against his cheek and brings her lips towards his ear, "You should go."

As Lola begins to walk away, Klaus takes hold of her hand to stop her from walking further, she turns to face him as Klaus closes the gap, "I'm not leaving you."

When the pair walk back into the music room, Thomas quickly straightens up in the chair he continues to be tied to. He scoffs, glaring over to Klaus who remains behind Lola, "Couldn't continue this on your own, could you? Or are you just trying to show off in front of an original?"

Lola and Klaus both laugh slightly as Lola shakes her head, "I don't need anyone to help me with anything, I don't need to show off in front of anyone. In fact, I said Klaus should leave."

Klaus stands behind where Thomas is sat, he pulls Thomas head back as he wears an evil grin, "I want to enjoy myself, mate. Seeing you getting what you deserve will be at the top of my favourite moments."

"You Whittakers are all the same." Thomas spits, glaring towards Lola who stands in front of him, "You all act like saints to those around you, thinking you're superior to everyone else. But underneath that fake persona, darkness runs through your veins. The angel masks crack to reveal the true monsters within."

Lola purses her lips as she glances up at the ceiling as she hums in thought. She takes a few steps to the side and picks up the bloodied poker off the floor before standing in front of Thomas, her eyes darken as she smirks, "From what we've spoken about earlier, I would think it was your family who are the darkness within this world. After all, you were to blame for an innocent woman getting killed. Several innocent women in fact."

Thomas begins to choke on his own blood as Lola slowly punctures his throat with the poker, "Unlike you, I won't take any shame in admitting what I've done." She pulls the poker out with force and drops it onto the floor once more, "Which brings me to my next topic. I'll admit, there was a fib I may have told you today, regarding Victoria Campbell." Thomas' eyes slowly move up, his angry glare locking with Lola's smug one, "It's true I never killed her, however, I do know exactly who killed her. My older brother, Damon." Lola dramatically sighs, her hands intertwine together against her back as she paces in front of him, "My brother and his anger issues do work in my favour sometimes. It was just sheer coincidence that he killed your beloved. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time." Lola starts to laugh slightly before covering it up by clearing her throat, "That may be how you see things, I, however, believe it was the right place and the right time."

"My father was killed in 1858, drained of all his blood." Thomas' tone has no emotion, just as his expression looking up at Lola, "The attack was so brutal that his head was on the opposite side of the room to his body. Am I to assume that was you as well?"

Her face lightens up slightly with amusement, narrowing her stare to Thomas, "What is with all the accusations? I never killed your father. You said it was a vampire, yes? You're lowering the bar, Thomas. You just said that your father was killed in 1858. Six years before I became a vampire, so it definitely wasn't me. Although I wish it was. But, that doesn't mean I didn't get to you in another way."

"You may not have been a vampire then but I'm confident in thinking you will have had someone perform your wickedly acts."

Lola scoffs, her amused grin doesn't leave her face, "I don't need anyone to do anything on my behalf."

"Wait." Thomas breathes out, he stares down at the floorboards, frowning in thought before slowly moving his stare towards Lola, "What did you mean by saying you got to me in another way? If you didn't kill my father or Victoria, then what did you do?"

Lola's face turns blank, only for a split second before she wears a sadistic grin, "I killed your mother."

Thomas breathes the remaining air filling his lungs, his entire body slumps, "You what?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, did you still think her death was an accident?" Lola frowns as she begins to pace around the room, "I really do despise it when that happens, don't you?"

Klaus can't help but grin at her malice, he joins in on her fake concern as he sighs, "It certainly isn't the best thing to discover."

"Oh my, what an awkward situation." Lola purses her lips, quickly shrugging away the fake concern, "But, karma does work in mysterious ways. I had to make it look as though it wasn't obvious a vampire killed her, so draining her blood was out of the question. But then I found out that your mother suffered with asthma, I do love it when people go all breathless. They make it really easy to create something so deathly, it only took three little ingredients. I poured them all into a perfume bottle, disguised myself as a maid within your mother's home and switched the perfumes."

Lola steps forward towards Thomas, showing no emotion whatsoever on her face, "I stood and watched as your mother sprayed the perfume onto her skin, breathing it in; then I watched as she looked at me with pleading eyes, begging me to help her as all the air within her lungs evaporated. I must admit, there was a strange feeling of satisfaction as I watched the life slowly drain from her eyes. It was only fair to make you go through the pain of what it felt like to lose a mother. Granted Cora wasn't my actual mother but that was the unbearable pain you made me go through."

"It's not possible." Thomas shakes his head profusely in disbelief, "You'd have never been allowed into the home, you have to-"

"Tu dois parler couramment le français?"

Thomas' eyes widen towards Lola, she grimaces slightly as she shrugs, "Luckily for me I do. Getting invited into the home was the easy part, because I didn't even have to be invited in. Your mother didn't have the deeds to the home in her name. They were in the name of your father and once he was killed, anyone could walk into that home."

Lola lowers herself to be at eye level with him, not even bothering to hide her cold grin, "J'ai aimé regarder la lumière laisser les yeux de ta mère."

In a fit of rage, Thomas rips his hands out of the vervain soaked ropes he began to loosen when the pair left the room. His eyes darken as he aims towards Lola, however, Klaus being quicker than him, grabs Thomas by the throat and throws him across the room landing against the grand piano.

Klaus speeds towards him, his hand grips against Thomas' throat as the anger quickly ignites within, "How dare you."

Klaus pushes Thomas away from him before punching him with such force, Thomas hits against a wall and falls onto the floor. Thomas scoffs, spitting out blood as he attempts to stand, he glares over to Lola, "What were you saying about my family being cowards? And here you are having an original do your dirty work."

Klaus rushes over to him, kicking Thomas harshly in the stomach before pressing his foot against Thomas' throat, "The only coward in this room is you." Thomas winces in pain as Klaus applies more pressure against his throat, "And as for dirty work, I know for a fact that Lola is more than capable of getting the revenge she deserves. But this is just a little something from me before you depart."

With a fistful of Thomas' collar, Klaus drags him off the floor, forcing Thomas onto his knees and facing Lola. Klaus smirks over to her, "It's your turn, love."

She remains silent as she steps closer to them, face showing no emotion at all. Thomas scoffs as he glares up at her, "By doing this you are being just as wicked as you claim my family to be." His eyes gleamed with delighted malice, and his mouth spread into a mocking smile, "But go ahead, I'm sure I'll give Cora your regards when I arrive in hell."

Lola's jaw tightens as she pushes her hand directly into Thomas' chest, he gasps when Lola's hand tightens around his heart. Her hand stays within, for a moment as she takes in this moment where she is able to avenge the one person who made her feel like she was someone. Klaus watches as a hint of a smile appears on Lola's lips as she rips Thomas' heart out of his chest. She watches the light leaves his eyes and Klaus pushes his dead body onto the cold, hard floorboards. Her breathing becomes ragged as Lola continues to stare down at his body before throwing his heart onto the floorboards beside him. Lola stares down at her blood covered hand before wiping it across her dress, not saying a word.

"There's one more thing I need to do." Lola practically whispers, she rushes out of the room and returns within seconds with a bottle of bourbon, she breaks the neck of the bottle off and pours the liquor over Thomas' body and all over the room, "He's going straight to hell so it seems quite fitting to burn his corpse and his ugly home. Don't you agree?"

Lola scans around the room in search for the box of matches that always remain beside the fireplace until Klaus' low rumbled laughter makes her look into his direction as he holds up the box of matches, "It's certainly poetic." Klaus closes the gap between them both, holding the box towards Lola as he smirks, "It's your right to do the honours, love."

Not even realising, Lola matches the same smirk as she takes the box from Klaus' grip. Igniting a match before staring down at Thomas' greyed corpse, she scoffs, "I can't tell you how relieved I am to never hear his dull voice ever again."

Lola drops the match onto his corpse before intertwining her hand with Klaus' and walking out of the house for the very last time. They both stand on the grounds of the home and watch as the flames spread across the entire house. A sense of relief washes over Lola as though giving Thomas what he deserves after he killed Cora has helped her grieve just that little bit more. But a heavy feeling remains and most likely will for the rest of Lola's life that she'll never be able to see Cora ever again.

"You know," Klaus drawls out as he breaks the silence, he looks to his side where Lola stands, "You should really get into acting. That was a role of a lifetime, love."

Lola laughs for a moment until she looks back towards the burning house and a somber expression appears, "You do crazy things for those you love."

"Lola!" Rebekah's voice approaches behind them with both Elijah and Kol soon following, she breathes out a sigh of relief as she rushes over to her best friend and pulls her into a bone crushing embrace, "Thank god! Are you okay?"

Lola's eyes find Klaus over Rebekah's shoulder as she remains in the embrace, she smiles slightly locking eyes with him, "Never better."

—✤—

"This is where you've been hiding."

Lola looks towards the doorway of the library within the compound to see Klaus stepping further in. She turns her attention towards him and wears a teasing grin, "Have you come to join me in this hiding spot so we aren't forced to go out and attempt at enjoying the New Year festivities?"

It's been two weeks since the events that took place at Thomas Wetherby's home and much to Lola's despair, the Mikaelsons have constantly been checking up on her. Despite her constant assurance that she is perfectly fine. Now it was New Years Eve, the family has arranged to celebrate within the French Quarter which is why Lola seeked refuge within the library to avoid the celebrations.

Klaus smiles softly as he nods, "They've already left so we're safe." He raises a brow as he steps closer to Lola, noticing the book in her hands, "Jane Eyre?"

"It was my Christmas gift from Elijah." Lola smiles down at the book in her hands, "I told him how this was my favourite book growing up and how my aunt would read it to me. I felt comfort in reading this once she was gone, it felt like she was still with me." She rolls her eyes, quickly shutting the book and placing it onto the nearby table, "Until my father ripped the book to shreds in front of me."

Klaus watches as Lola opens the balcony doors, stepping out and taking in the night's air and stares down at the bustling crowds below them, "So my excuse for not joining in on Rebekah's plans, as pathetic as it may sound, was all I wanted to do tonight was to sit in here and read Jane Eyre." Lola leans against the barriers of the balcony as she turns to face Klaus who remains standing inside, "What's your excuse?"

"I thought you may have wanted some company." Klaus admits, he wears a warm smile as he steps onto the balcony beside Lola, "If you'll have me."

Lola matches the same warm smile, "As long as you don't ask me if I am okay."

Klaus stares down at the busy streets of the Quarter as he laughs before locking eyes with Lola once more. His expression is calm, eyes are warm with a small hint of a smile; a look Lola is familiar with yet has only seen it when it's just the two of them, "Very well."

Lola's eyes light with mischief as she points towards him, "And don't give me that look."

Klaus continues to wear the same look, tilting his head slightly, "What look?"

She raises a brow towards him as her shoulders slump, "That look." She chews on the inside of her cheek to hide her growing smile and looks out in front of them, "Our look."

"Our look." Klaus echoes in a soft manner, he steps closer to Lola, leaning closer to her, "Is that our thing?"

Lola laughs slightly before looking back towards Klaus, with the same look that he continues to wear, "Perhaps it is." She sighs as laughter is heard from below them, "I used to be like them."

Klaus frowns as he looks down at the rowdy crowds, "What? Drunk?" Lola scoffs slightly, rolling her eyes. Klaus' expression softens, "You were never like them. You only thought you were."

"No. I had a life, a horrible life but still. That was all going to change until that piece of crap ruined it all. I was meant to live a happy life away from everyone, just me and Cora but he took that away from me." Lola's brows pull together with a sorrow look in her eyes, looking down at the crowds, "All I ever wanted was a normal life."

"Do you still want that?"

She ponders on Klaus' question for a moment before she turns to full face him, "What do you want?"

Klaus purses his lips, shrugging his shoulders, "Many things, world domination mainly." It's as though Klaus' heart skips a beat when he hears Lola's laughter, the most genuine laugh he has heard in months from her, "When I try and think of my future, all I can see is your face over and over again."

"It's a very beautiful face." Lola teases, her smile soon fades and she begins to frown staring out at the city, "Do you think what he said was true? Do I have a darkness? Am I a monster?"

"You're so many things."

Lola raises a brow towards Klaus, "That doesn't answer my question."

"I think we all have monsters inside of us." Klaus shrugs, "It's just that some people manage to keep theirs hidden."

Lola can't help but scoff, her shoulders slump, "Well I haven't."

Klaus chuckles, glancing down at the floor, "It's safe to say nor have I." His eyes light up with tease, locking his stare with Lola's, "I think my monster encourages your monster."

Lola laughs breathlessly, her skin prickling from the strange, electric charge in the air surrounding them both, "I think I wanted it to."

Klaus stands up straight, his lips part ever so slightly. Not caring about his heart that beats vigorously against his chest, "Lola–"

Lola closes the gap between them both, pulling Klaus in a longing kiss, her hand softly rests against his cheek. The other grips hold of his shirt, feeling as though the butterflies swarming around in her stomach will escape. Klaus wraps one arm around Lola's waist, pulling her as close to him as possible. His hand touching her neck, his lips parting hers in what feels like a somber opening of a goodbye letter; he just doesn't know that yet.

—✤—

i have been debating with myself for so long whether to rewrite how klola admit their feelings, and honestly...i'm still debating. i love how they do it but i never had these flashbacks planned when i first written it so i'm still undecided.

i began to rewrite it but i hated it and kept trying to write it but i just was never happy about it so as of right now, the way they do it in the first book will stay like that for the moment. i have sorta ended this flashback on a kind of cliffhanger as i've not yet spoken about when lola leaves new orleans in 1892 but that will be brought up in a few chapters to come!

but i hope you've liked these flashbacks! they weren't a walk in the park to write i must admit but when i have an idea in my head, i'm the sort who won't rush it because i'll never be happy with it so thank you for your patience!

i'm excited to get back into modern times and get ready for hope to arrive!!

pre-warning...i cried on the plane as i wrote the mini flashback that begins in chapter 18 so be prepared...

PS...we are less than half way there, ahhhh!!

PPS...i may have also already edited a teaser trailer kinda thing for season two and it's got me even more excited to start on that season, ah!!

ilysm,

holly x