A/N: Hi. This is my first story here and although I love Klaroline and Steroline (I'm kind of a ship-whore when it comes to Caroline Forbes, I ship her with everything and anything!) I decided to try writing something for one of my favorite crackship of all time, Carlijah. I think Elijah and Caroline would be amazing together and this is my tryout of seeing how that would be like if it those two were to happen. I hope you guys enjoy it and do leave me a review so I could improve my writings better and the story itself. English is not my first language so do bear with me if there's grammar mistake or anything.

Pairing: Caroline/Elijah

Summary: Elijah must admit, of all the years he had woken up from a sleep since the day he became a vampire, he had thought that there was nothing in this world that could ever surprises him anymore. That's what Elijah thinks eternity is, a sense of inability to be surprise by the world. Only of course, with eternity comes the knowledge of how naïve for him to think of such thing. The realization of it hit him hard right to the core of his unbeaten heart when he look down at the naked Caroline Forbes sleeping in his arm.

This Is Our Fairytale

PROLOGUE

ELIJAH knew that going on a trip was not a good idea, not when his mother, father and two scornful brothers are back from the dead. It was an awful idea if you asked him but after everything his mother had made him go through these past few days, Elijah feels that he deserve this, that for a few days, he could escape New Orleans and hope no one died whistle his absence. It wasn't as if he was going on a trip for fun – he had business, stocks, company and partners to tend to – this wasn't just a trip, it's a necessity. Contrary to popular believes, the Originals does not acquired all of their wealth through compulsions, threatening people's life or killing them, they work for it, at least he works for it. To keep and managed their wealth always requires Elijah to travel once in a while hence why he would go out of town for a certain amount of time. Only this time, he picked a particularly not a good time for such trip.

Elijah expected Klaus to be furious of his request, to throw a tantrum and dagger threats here and there, but imagine his surprise when his younger brother agreed to it without much fuss. It almost stopped Elijah's unbeaten heart when Klaus said that Elijah needed a good time-out vacation away from all of their family dramas. It was sort of his way of saying he is sorry for not coming after Elijah sooner. In that moment, Elijah knew that all the pain he'd went through during his time with Klaus was worth it, that all of the sacrifices he made was not for nothing. Deep down that complicated twist of a man, his little brother still actually do have a heart. Thank God for that!

Now Elijah is traveling around – Chicago, Nashville, DC – anywhere his business takes him. Somewhere along the way, the Original ends up in a town near Mystic Falls, somewhere close to Whitmore College. Elijah own a bar there and though he knew there was a high chance he might see someone from Mystic Falls, he'd never thought that person would be the infamous blonde baby vampire, Caroline Forbes, whom ex-boyfriend had come to New Orleans once in seek of retaliation towards one of Niklaus' many transgression. She was sitting at the bar, drinking her sorrows away with each tequila shot she downed as if determined to get so drunk, she would forget her own name. He wouldn't blame the blonde if that was her purpose. If he was still living in Mystic Falls, he would probably turn to alcohol too, in hopes of forgetting it all. He was tempted to do so right now.

Though the blonde and Elijah aren't technically friends – only once did he have the pleasure of working with her to save Niklaus – he knows she's the light of Mystic Falls and its people. Elena, the Bennet witch, the Salvatore brothers and even his own brother would took a stake through their heart just to keep the light in her shines brightly as it usually does. However tonight, that light tonight of hers is nowhere to be seen. It seems that life had managed to beat even the sunny, sunshine, Caroline Forbes. The girl he acutely remember was no longer there, just a vessel of her looking so gloom and doom with a drink in hand and more lining up right in front of her, ready to be devour. This wasn't the Caroline Forbes everyone love and adore, this is the girl who had been defeated by the evils of the world and somehow that disturbs Elijah more than it should.

Against all of his better judgment, Elijah finds himself walking towards her and ordering a glass of scotch from the bartender that had come to know him after years of working there.

"May I?" The Original asked, as he stood beside an empty stool next to Caroline.

The blonde looked up. He could see the shock in her eyes and maybe a little bit of fear but due to the large amount of alcohol she had induced – Elijah could smell it all on her – she just shrugged and took another gulp of her drink.

The older Mikaelson unbutton his suit and slide gracefully onto the stool. Once his drink arrived, Caroline finally spoke up. "What brings the noble Mikaelson here in my presence?"

"Business." Elijah answered while he took a sip of his drink.

"Of course." The blonde said as if she was annoyed with herself for thinking he was there for anything else.

Elijah took a moment to savor the taste of alcohol in his mouth before turning his attention back to the blonde beauty next to him. "And what of you, Miss Forbes? I would've thought that you'd be with the Salvatore brothers or Elena and the witch."

Caroline flinched at his words. A silent minute passed before she swallowed another round of alcohol. Once she put the third glass down, her blue eyes finds his brown one and he saw misery in her. "Bonnie's dead, so is Damon, Stefan left without saying goodbye and Mystic Falls has been cleansed out of magic which means I can't go home. That's why I'm here."

Elijah's face soften and his eyes glimmer with sympathy. "I am truly sorry for your loss, Miss Forbes." He might not be Damon Salvatore's biggest fan nor does he care that much about the Bennet witch and the ripper his brother was so obsessed with, but Elijah do however know how much they meant to the baby vampire and losing them, the people which she had call her family and her home at the same time must be hell for her. He can relate to that.

"Yeah, well, life's a bitch." She simply said.

"It is indeed." Elijah down the rest of his drink as a salute to what Caroline said and ordered another one.

Once Caroline finished another drink, she turned to look at Elijah, her eyes carefully stare at him, as if she was trying to see through him. "There's something different about you." The blonde quieted down for a while before her eyes glimmer in realization. "You're…"

"Broken?" Elijah offered.

Caroline nodded. "Yes."

"It takes one broken soul to recognize another."

"Yes it does," the blonde agrees and silently went back to her drinks.

The night certainly didn't turn out the way she had expected it to but Elijah's presence was a welcome distraction from all the weight burdening on her shoulders. Losing home, losing Stefan, Bonnie and even Damon took a toll on her that she hadn't expected. Naturally, losing Bonnie gives her an endless pool of grief and Stefan leaving would affect her but it shouldn't drive her crazy, obsessing over where he is and why he's not answering any of her calls. And then there's the part of losing Damon that somehow leave a gaping wound on her heart. All of that pain, all that agony came rushing through her all at once, catching the blonde completely off guard.

Caroline was not used to this gripping emotions rushing through her like a freaking thunderstorm, especially now that she no longer has the comfort of her home to help her cope with the grief. Home is where the heart is and Caroline's heart is in Mystic Falls where, despite everything, still manage to make her feel safe and sound.

Looking at Elijah from the corner of her eyes, Caroline couldn't help but to wonder about a certain Original hybrid who once offered her the world. He must still be in New Orleans, undoubtedly enjoying his new life as a father. The universe has some sick humor, Caroline has decided. Out of all the people that deserve to have a miracle, a family and a second chance, the universe chooses Klaus, the murderous hybrid and Hayley, the backstabbing were-slut as the recipients of that miracle. She would have laugh at the universe's joke if it didn't remind her of all the things she had lost the moment Katherine smothered her with a pillow.

"He is well." Elijah suddenly spoke up, cutting off the blonde's chain of thoughts.

"I don't care," Caroline answered without looking at him, already knowing who Elijah's talking about.

"Yes you do," Elijah's tone told Caroline she should know better than to lie to Elijah Mikaelson, the Original big brother.

"It doesn't matter. We're done."

"But are you?" Elijah prompted, tilting his head a bit to look at Caroline.

"Yes, we are. I may be a vampire but I'm not a homewrecker. I will never let myself ruin a child's chance at having a functional family." Her being there with Klaus would just be an obstacle for Hayley and him to be together and Caroline is not going to do that. She lived most of her life not having a real dad to lean on – when he came back, he tortured her and when their relationship was starting to work, he died – and a mother who was always so busy with work to give any attention towards her, she will not let Klaus' child suffer the same fate as her. Caroline knows what a broken family does to a child and she will not let it happen to any other child if she can help it.

Elijah wanted to tell Caroline that it doesn't matter, that Hope is not with Klaus and Klaus is certainly not with Hayley and their family is already too dysfunctional to be functional again but it was not his story to be told, it was Klaus' so he kept his mouth shut. Deep inside, he understood what Caroline felt. He felt it too, whenever he stood between Klaus and Hayley. It is as if he's intruding on what could've been Hope's happy family. Maybe Klaus didn't feel a thing for Hayley but he knew that if his brother open up his heart, he would be able to learn to love the girl. She did carry his daughter. Klaus might be a monster but he is not an animal, he knows family when he sees one.

"It seems that I had been mistaken to overlook you, Miss Forbes. You are a rare thing, even among humans. That heart of yours, that humanity and kindness even to your enemy, is one of the rarest thing about life that always seems to appall me. I truly understand why your friends and the Salvatore brothers would do anything to protect you and why my brother seek your love. You are a ray of sunshine in this world of darkness." The older Mikaelson spoke, his eyes never leave Caroline.

When the young girl turned to look at Elijah, her watery eyes made Elijah's feelings swirled in a way it had never been before.

"Thank you for saying that," Caroline said. For the first time in many years, she was truly grateful. That's exactly what she needed to hear, that at least one person in this world acknowledge her persistence to keep her acts together, to stand by her moral codes and not give into the temptation of darkness. She needed to hear that her effort of being good, of keeping her humanity in tact is not a futile effort that would go to waste. Elijah seemed to give her just that and more.

The Original vampire is giving Caroline hope again, hope that the world is not truly lost, that darkness is not what is left for her in the future.

This is why she and Klaus would never work, because Klaus bath in the allure of darkness, calling for her to give into the temptation of it but at the same time, he expect her light to keep shinning even in there. Klaus was telling her that there is truly no good and evil, there's just a blurry lines that they all live in. As much as Caroline knew that is true, she needs to have hope that life won't always be this blurry, that eternity won't always be a constant fight.

Caroline Forbes needs hope that there's a chance of light in this sea of eternal darkness.

Elijah was caught off guard by the emotions behind those simple words. It seemed that Caroline Forbes was indeed, broken but his words had managed to somehow fix her. He had been trying to fix his family, his life for what feels like an eternity and not once did he managed to do so. Things would just keep going downfall and worst for him but now, just when he thought there was no more hope for himself, he sees Caroline and unintentionally help fixing her and hope blooms inside of his heart.

Life certainly have a funny way of working things around, doesn't it?

The two of them stared into each other's eyes for a while, both experiencing feelings that words could never explain, when suddenly Caroline's phone went off, effectively ending the moment between the two of them.

The blonde vampire quickly took out her phone from her jean's front pocket to answer the call while Elijah politely turn away to give Caroline a sense of privacy even though they both knew Elijah could perfectly hear every words that were being said.

"What's wrong, Ric?"

"Have you talked to Elena lately?" The older man voice was lace with worry. Lately his fatherly instinct had been up and kicking, more so than usual – it was probably one of the side effect of vampire's enhance emotions – which is why Alaric is constantly worrying over Elena's weird denial-land behavior, Jeremy's refusal to leave Mystic Falls – or Tyler's house that now belongs to Matt – and Caroline's hardcore determination to single handedly safe the town and refusal to go back to Whitmore. It is honestly a sweet gesture, especially since Caroline had always been lack off father figure but if Alaric keeps worrying about them, she's afraid he might die of a constant concern.

"No, I haven't talk to Elena. Why?"

"It's probably nothing but there's been reports of vampire activities around the town's borders and since I know you have your urge perfectly controlled, I'm afraid that it's Elena that's been feeding off people. She's in a bad place right now, her emotions must be everywhere. I wouldn't hold it against her if she's went a little bit out of control."

"I'll look into it."

"Thanks, Caroline. I'll update you on Stefan's finding when he calls." Alaric knew how much the blonde had been worrying about Stefan and wondering why the younger Salvatore hadn't been answering her calls. She's hurt, truly by him for leaving her and Caroline's way of dealing with it is focusing on saving the town. Alaric hopes that his constant information of the whereabouts of Stefan will help lessen the girl's agony. If anyone deserves to be happy, it would be Caroline.

Caroline tried to ignore the feelings she had when Alaric said Stefan's name. This is a common recurrence now, how she reacted to even a mention of Stefan. She kept trying to ignore it even though lately, it was getting harder and harder for her to do so. "Alright. We're still on for lunch tomorrow right?"

"Yes. I'll bring those books." The teacher confirmed. "And, Caroline, be careful. Elena might not be a threat but there's no guarantee that it's even Elena that's doing this."

"I will."

"Bye."

"Bye, Ric." The blonde ended the call and instantly slipped that slim piece of technology back into her jean's front pocket. She then turned to Elijah and let out a smile. "I'm afraid I have to go. Duty calls and all that stuff."

Elijah nodded with an understanding smile. He, of all people, should know what family is and Elena and Alaric – whom he had been informed had risen from the dead – is Caroline's family, thus why she is needed to be there for them.

"It is a pleasure spending the evening with you, Miss Forbes." Elijah smiled, a genuine smile he had not let out for a while now.

Caroline took his kind smile to heart and extended him an equally warm gesture. "Please, call me Caroline. Miss Forbes sounds too… formal-ish."

"Very well. It's a pleasure spending time with you, Caroline. I do hope that the next time we meet, it will be under a much better circumstances." Elijah was taken aback by how sincere his words were. He did want to see Caroline again, more so than he would have ever thought he would.

The blonde girl simply let out a smile that sends a thundering pounding to Elijah's unbeaten heart. "Goodbye, Elijah."

"Goodbye, Caroline."

The Original's eyes never left Caroline's figure as she swayed out of the bar. Elijah might have not expected to see Caroline tonight but he was certainly glad he did.