Empty Crown ⚜ Klaus Mikaelson

9. 𝙍𝙪𝙣

Stefan collided with the metal door, flying forward and leaving it open wide enough for Imelda to shove Elena through before running after her. Imelda kept Elena in front of her, breathing heavily as she heard Stefan force himself into the walls behind them to slow himself down.

"You need to stall him!" Iris appeared, running alongside her twin. "There's a cleaning cart in the cafeteria with a broom, use that!" She vanished once more.

"Don't stop running, Elena!" Imelda shouted watching her vanish through a door and slam it closed.

"Stefan, let's take a snack break!" Imelda called over her shoulder and ran toward the lunch room. She faintly heard Stefan choke out a laugh as he forced himself to chase her and not Elena.

Entering the lunch room, Imelda spotted the cart Iris told her about. The broom snapped itself in half, the handle flying to her and smacking her in the face as Stefan flung himself into some tables.

"What the actual fuck?" Imelda grumbled. Picking up the makeshift stake and spinning. She thrust it into Stefan's stomach just as he lunged at her. He groaned, blood spurting from his lips as he collapsed onto the floor.

"Keep it in." Imelda ordered, backing away and picking up the other end of the broom.

Stefan groaned. "Again. Stab me again." He jerked the handle from his stomach and rushed Imelda once more.

This time she pierced his lung, knocking him back onto his back and driving the wood as far as she could without nicking his heart. He gasped, his vision blurred as his eyes turned to their normal forest green.

"Now this is fascinating." Klaus's voice caused Imelda to scowl as she stood over Stefan's body. He rolled over onto his side, gasping and struggling to breathe. "And here I thought she had forgiven you?"

Klaus moved forward and crouched in front of Stefan and wiggled the broom. "Doesn't much look like it to me, huh mate?"

"Where's Elena?" Imelda snapped. Her question was answered as she saw Elena sat on a table, her ankle was twisted at an odd angle. "Never mind." Imelda sighed.

"I am curious, Love. Why are you so dead set on annoying me?" Klaus stood, momentarily ignoring the groaning Stefan and the soft whimpers of Elena.

Imelda blinked. "Klaus, when I woke up this morning, pissing you off to the point of death was not the first thing on my mind." She wanted to make that very clear. Iris appeared, standing next to Klaus.

"Push him and he'll turn you here and now." Iris warned.

"Isn't that what you want?" Imelda snapped, ignoring Klaus's confused expression. "Make up your mind, Iris! Whose side do you want me to be on?"

Iris sighed. "I want you where you'll be the happiest. Which is endgame, the road to it just sucks. So for now, you're with Team Mystic Falls."

Imelda shook her head. "I'm done. I'm going home." She spoke to all of them.

She stepped over Stefan's body and bumped against Klaus as she stomped past Elena. Before she could leave the lunch room, the door slammed closed and Iris shouted her full name causing her to growl and stand next to Elena.

With a haunting look Imelda only watched. She didn't speak, not even as Elena pleaded with Klaus to not force Stefan to turn his humanity off. She didn't cry out as Klaus slammed Stefan against the wall, shouting at him and telling him that he wasn't as strong as he thought.

"Stefan without his humanity isn't what I was expecting." Iris spoke. She stood on Elena's other side. Imelda had her arm wrapped around Elena's waist, keeping her up right and from running to Stefan.