Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries / The Originals, or any of the characters, plot-lines, dialogues from the shows or books

However, I do own Catherine Matthews/ my very own Katherine Peirce, her backstory, the storyline, and any additional characters that do not belong to The Vampire Diaries or The Originals. Characters in this story may not have the same opinion as you. These characters are all fictional.

The Salvatore Boarding house was house-full once again. After Isobel kidnapped Elena out of nowhere and took her to a cemetery where she said her last words, "I tried my best Elena. Sorry for being such a disappointment to you," and turned to dust, literally and figuratively, indirectly conveyed a clear message that Klaus is in Mystic Falls, everyone went nuts.

Caroline, who was blissfully aware of these matters, and still searching for Matt who ran for the hills, when he learned his girlfriend was a blood-sucking Vampire, was informed about Isobel's death the next day afternoon. It was then she broke it out for the Salvatore's that, Katherine arrived at Mystic Falls 2 nights earlier. That's when all the hell broke loose.

"Why didn't you say anything about it?" Damon growled at the blonde Vampire.

"She asked me not to," was Caroline's angry reply, "Why didn't you inform me about this a little earlier?"

"Elena asked us not to, as you were chasing after your jock boyfriend," said Damon.

"Guys, will you two stay here shouting at each other or go and check if Katherine is still at Mrs. Flowers' place?" Stefan stopped the two from bickering.

"What if she is already dead?" Elena asked, which earned several glares, "I mean if Klaus is psychotic enough to compel Isobel to kill herself, in front of me, just to send us a message... what will he do to Katherine?"

Everyone was thinking the same thing, but they just didn't have guts to say it out loud and believe in the mere possibility of the situation. Though it's been only two months, everyone became close to the brunette in their own ways.

Unknowingly, Katherine made a good impression on everyone... maybe even on Elena, if you disregard the petty teenager jealousy sometimes, of course. I mean, what teenager would not feel insecure if the ex of her boyfriend returns and the said ex looks exactly like her and has a fantastic history together.

"Hey, let's be positive, guys, " said Rose trying to break the tense atmosphere in the room, "Let's just go and check out their house first, alright?"

And so they went. But by the time they reached the place, all they found were two dead bodies, which are of an Old lady, Mrs. Flowers, and a young man. Both human. Caroline identified the guy as Isobel's human blood bag, James or Jack, no one cared to learn. There was no sign of Katherine except for her suitcase and a carelessly thrown handbag. But the situation became more frightful when they saw a chair, ropes dipped in vervain tied to the chair handles, and blood that's not human's around it.

Damon immediately took out his phone and tried to call the doppelganger, only to realize that her phone is in the Prada handbag that's sitting on the couch in the living room.

Before elder Salvatore could go rampage on the people of Mystic Falls, Stefan suggested the possibility of the blood being Isobel's.

"Look, Isobel died due to compulsion. Maybe Klaus used this on her to get her off vervain."

"He used Vervain ropes to get her off vervain?"

"No, he may have used it to torture information out of her."

"Fine. Then, where do you think Katherine is? Clearly, she was here," Damon said, controlling his temper and waving his hands towards her baggage.

"Maybe she skipped town when she saw the situation here," Rose suggested

"Yeah. Maybe Kat decided to lie low for a while," Caroline said optimistically. "Maybe she will call us once she thinks it's safe."

"So, you want me not to do nothing and just trust your maybes,?' questioned Damon incredulously, anger in his eyes.

"Guys, how about we think like mature adults?' Stefan said before Caroline could open her mouth to retort something.

"Let's take a witches' help, okay?" he said, and everyone nodded their heads agreeing with the plan. They took care of the bodies and left to the boarding house, where the Martins asked them to meet at. However, they had another surprise when they went back.

"You have some guts to show up at my doorstep after trying to kill me," Damon growled when he saw John Gilbert in his house.

Klaus, who is possessing John stared at Damon for a second before clearing his throat and composing himself and said, "I heard about Isobel."

Catherine Matthews or Katherine Pierce, like everyone, knew her as is having a hard time concentrating at the moment. The constant urge to barge into the kitchen and rip into one the blood bags is getting on her nerves. Heartbeats of the neighbors raised her desire to tear into their jugulars and drain every single drop of their blood. The smell of blood in the refrigerator is driving her insane.

Sure, it's usually not that arduous for a vampire to live without blood for more than 4 days, but she isn't normal in any way. She is technically a newbie Vampire. The only way she adjusted to the hunger is by continually feeding from time to time, and just when she thought she is getting better at this by not feeding for 24 hours, the hybrid had to ruin it.

Catherine Matthews was not new to starving or pain. She had a hard life growing up. When she lost her parents at the ripe age of seven, leaving all their heritage to their only daughter, she understood how cruel the world around her is and how evil the people around her were. The people who came to her just wanted to use her for their own purposes. Friends are not really friends. They either used to bully her for money or pretended to befriend her for it. She remembered the days she used to sleep on empty stomach and heartache.

And one day, she had enough of the shit. She decided to put a full stop in the endless circle of betrayal and heartache. She realized that if she has to live among the wolves in sheep's clothing, then she should change the game as well. And she knows old ways won't open new doors. So, she went to the only person whom she could trust wholeheartedly for help. The person being her maternal grandmother, Helen Rivers, who took Catherine's custody after her parents died.

She still remembers the words, the old woman said to the 12-year-old Catherine Matthews, "My dear, don't let others get to you. You are smart, beautiful, brilliant, and brave. Show that to others. Show them you are not someone they can mess with."

And that's what she did. She became the badass bitch that no one dares to fuck with. She owned up the title. She put everyone in their place. It didn't matter if everyone wants to be her or hates her. She didn't really care anymore. It didn't matter if she had trust issues. It didn't matter if she was not like normal teenagers who hangouts with their friends on weekends instead of watching Netflix. It didn't matter if she didn't have any best friends or boyfriends she could trust on. It didn't matter if she had to live under the same facade for the rest of her life. At least she will not be the one that ends up with heartbreak.

Just when she thought everything better, her grams died. It shook her greatly. The only family she had left her utterly alone once again signing off her heritage as well. Though Helen died before she turned 18, Catherine wasn't sent to any child services. Instead, she got legally emancipated.

She didn't let her guard down even at times like that. She grieved on her own, while her poise remained unflattered for outsiders. She completed the horrendous high school, got selected into Yale. She brought an apartment for herself to live in for the next few years.

Once again, when she thought things are finally getting back to normal, the universe proved her wrong... again, by magically transporting her to a fictional world of Vampires, werewolf, and witches as the baddest bitch of all, Katherine Pierce. Well, in her opinion, the sirens were worse than the canon, but everyone has their own view.

To say the least, the first month of her arrival was exciting and entertaining. She always knew the universe hated her, and it never shies away from showing it to her. But what she didn't realize is, the cosmos hated her a whole lot, that it kicked her out to a fictional universe. That too, in the worst situation possible.

It's like the universe wants to mock her. And all Catherine wished to say to it was, "Fuck you." She was never the one to back down. She has been doing it for a long time, and she will continue to do so. She knew it will be a battle of wits. So, she decided to use the only advantage she had...the knowledge of the future.

She put on a new facade and started her game. She made amends with the Salvatore brothers, and she succeeded in making them her allies. She got to the future potential hunter and blonde Vampire on her side. She made sure no one in the Scooby gang will have a reason to see her demise. She might have created a rumble with the doppelganger as she personally doesn't like the character.

She can't say the same to the Originals or their associates. She was quite wary of them since the beginning. Mostly, because of their age. They have been around for over a thousand years, and they had a lot of experiences with the way people work. They can smell lies and deceit in their sleep. One single slip up, and she is as good as dead. She didn't want to take any chances, and so she didn't plan to trust them.

However, something changed in her second month. She started to get along with fictional characters without realizing it. The new facade she put on to get close to the people worked two ways. They became close to her, as well. Though some annoy her from time to time, she somehow liked it. Maybe because she hasn't experienced that admiration or fondness from anyone other than her Grandmother, Helen. She started to enjoy the love they showed. And one day, she snapped out of it when she realized the walls she built around herself are breaking. So she did the only thing she could think of at the moment. She ran from it. Catherine Matthews ran for the first time since a long time.

She went to Greece. The place she went with her parents when she was five...and happy and innocent. Even with the change of scenery, she couldn't get her mind off the irresistible Vampires. She switched her phone off and decided to do something productive. She realized the travelers were from the same place and tried to do some research on it. She wanted to learn all about magic. Maybe there is a way to get back to her home.

That's when she saw her Melantha, an old witch in a voodoo shop. She resembled her grams so much that she came back there that night, drunk her ass off. That one week she spent with Old woman without any pretense, Catherine realized something. She realized how good it felt to live without acting. She realized that's the real her. She feared, she will forget who she really is anymore if she keeps on performing her whole life.

And so she decided not to run anymore. Not from others or herself. She chose to live the life she always wanted. She finally made friends, one who doesn't want anything from her, and she is not going to run away from that. It didn't matter if she had to stay in the bloody fictional world for the rest of her life. It's not like she has anything left in the previous world except for the heritage left by her parents and grams.

She could win a few more battles if she can ultimately get what she wants, a normal happy life without any facade. And so...she came back to Mystic Falls, where she faced her first battle...Niklaus Mikaelson. She hasn't expected to meet him this early, and it really came off as a surprise to see the change in the plot. Though the 'paranoid side' of her already expected it with the way things were going on around her.

She also expected to be tortured, and the supernatural side of her helped her lessen the pain. She knows she won't die until someone rams a wooden stick to her heart. And something told her, it won't be that soon. Niklaus will want to drag this out, and he won't let me or canon Katherine die that easily. Since everything is going on according to the show, one way or another, Klaus may let Katherine out, just to let her live in fear of him. All she has to do is wait until the sacrifice, which should take place after five days.

"Katerina," a voice shouted, getting me out of my thoughts.

"It's Catherine," I muttered, going outside.

"Looks like you made a lot of fans. People are very eager to find you," John/ Klaus said.

"Well, no one did until now," I stated

"That's because I had Maddox place a cloaking spell on this place, and it's linked to his life. So don't get your hopes up," he said, pouring himself a glass of Whisky.

"So no one can find me. It's like I am dead," I said, understanding the more profound meaning.

"Precisely," he said.

"And they believed it?" I questioned

"Not everyone, but it doesn't matter as you will one day," he said, and I rolled my eyes.

Again with the death threat.

"You look like the dead," he said.

"Vampire pun. Really?" I said, not amused. He smiled sarcastically and threw a blood bag at me.

"Drink up. We are going to have a long week," Klaus said.

You don't say...