New Beginning

Chapter Forty-Eight

* This chapter is currently the end of New Beginning - I know I said fifty chapters, but this simply felt right to me. There is an A/N at the end, revealing the upload date and title of the sequel. I want to thank everyone who has stuck with me and Ellie through the years, without each commenter, I would have been lost. Let me know how you like the chapter, and see ya soon. *

Numb. It was more than a mere word today - it is the entirety of my being. Never in all my years upon this plane of existence had I felt so frozen in time. My limbs were cold and stiff, likening myself to a corpse well into the throes of rigor mortis. The hardest to come to terms with was the hollow chasm of emptiness in my chest, where only moments ago my heart had been so full and alight with love and comfort.

I stretched my body out on the empty bed, reaching for a presence that was long gone, and grasped the paint-covered sheets roughly. If I tried hard enough, I could just make out the spiced aroma that clung to his skin. Twisting my head to examine my exposed flesh, I stared at the bright wildflowers steadily growing up my thigh. Some of the petals were so perfect that they seemed unnatural, while others were smudged and dripped down my leg as though tears streaked through them. It certainly suited the moment, I thought with rising panic.

The tightness in my chest was the first warning of oncoming hysterics. Hastily, I covered the flowers with the top sheet. My time here was coming to a close, but I couldn't find the strength to stand, to do anything besides stare longingly at the place where he had abandoned me. Instead, I found comfort in counting down the days until my birthday. Two weeks, there were only two weeks left to mourn the loss of my old life. Then I would put away the past, and completely submit to a new life.

The emptiness grew, pulling at my heart hungrily; I flinched at the feeling. There was something there, begging for release, and every new thought only made it worse. Regardless, I continued to hold on. My mind found a solid memory to grasp onto and I basked in it. Cerulean was a heavenly color when mixed with love and passion, but deadly when combined with ice and callousness. I grimaced as my mind shifted again to sadness.

Sitting up on one arm, I glanced around the empty room. Beautiful portraits and still lifes lined the walls but just as many were lying in an unfinished mess of brush strokes. My gaze lingered on the incomplete abstract portrait sitting atop an easel, and I realized that it was what Niklaus had been working on when I'd interrupted. Slowly, I stood, pulling the sheet around my body like a robe. I walked over to the painting with pessimistic uncertainty. From a distance, the beautiful strokes of paint merely looked like shapes and curling lines, but up close, I could see a distinct image. The primary colors used were red and blue, in different hues and shades. Together, they formed the body of a woman with flaming red hair. Was this supposed to be me?

My brows furrowed, confusion coating my spine as it straightened to a painful degree. It couldn't be - if it was, then Niklaus would have stayed. We would have finally been...happy. Images of a favorable past twirled in my mind like a hurricane, and I trembled, taking hold of the easel to remain upright. It was a shiver of something concealed, and it slipped down my spine, foretelling a new future. I gasped, lowering to my knees, filled with heartache and betrayal.

I closed my eyes against the pain, and ground my teeth together. White-hot anger built in my chest, burrowing deep and inescapable. I stood, opened my eyes, and flung out my hand — blue fire spread from my fingertips, blasting the painting across the room. If he wanted to replace me, leaving behind our love for something new, then I would become the villain Esther wanted. This would be the last time I was hurt by someone I loved. Smirking, I bared my teeth in a truly wicked grin. I would show the Original Hybrid the meaning of true evil. Lifting my hands, I lowered my head as an electric-charged wind wrapped around me. The sheet on my body twirled, writhing across my skin like a snake. It shimmered slightly as the magic washed over it before it transformed into an elegant high-waisted onyx dress. Glittering sparkles flickered in the pale light from the balcony, like stars on a black night. Across the room, the painting called out to me once more and I snarled in fury. The red curls mirrored in the painting straightened, turning into a gleaming silver. I brushed the silken strands from my face and walked toward the door. It was time to leave Mystic Falls.