How To Ruin A Wedding (an introduction)

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The weeks that followed were a blur of mundane routine, woven with the threads of ordinary life. Hailey, ever the social butterfly, somehow managed to snag an invitation to Katherine's birthday gala. It was a feat that baffled Katherine, who couldn't fathom how Hailey, with her penchant for ex-boyfriends, had persuaded the one who worked at Mikaelson Pharmaceutical to secure a coveted invite. 

"Did you seduce him or something?" Katherine had asked, her voice dripping with playful skepticism. "Maybe bribed him with the possibility of... you know, sex?"

Hailey, with a dramatic gasp, had feigned offense. "Me? Never!"

Hailey had taken a job at a flower shop a few streets away, a fragrant sanctuary where she spent her days surrounded by blooms. Katherine, in her moments of inactivity, would often venture to Flora & Fauna, lending a hand to her friend and escaping the confines of the apartment. 

When she wasn't at the shop, Katherine would wander the streets, a ghost revisiting her childhood haunts. The town had undergone a metamorphosis, its streets modernized, the old shops replaced by sleek, new ones, with only a handful of familiar faces remaining from her youth. 

She walked with sunglasses perched on her nose, a baseball cap shielding her face, hoping to avoid the prying eyes of the town's inhabitants. She didn't want to be the subject of another blog post, another anonymous picture uploaded to the internet, another reminder of her fallen status. The whispers, the pointed stares, the hushed conversations - they were a constant reminder of her exile, a perpetual echo of her disgrace. 

One day, her aimless wandering led her back to her childhood home. It had fallen into disrepair, a stark contrast to the vibrant memories she held dear. The house, once a haven, now stood as an eyesore, abandoned and forgotten. It was a testament to the fickle nature of time, how even the most cherished places could become ghosts of their former selves.

The peeling paint, the overgrown weeds, the broken windows, all spoke of neglect, of a past that had been abandoned, a story that had been left untold. The chipped paint on the front door, the rusty swing set in the backyard, the cracked sidewalk leading to the porch, all served as grim reminders of her family's struggle, their desperate fight for survival in a world that seemed to have turned its back on them.

No one lived there anymore. Katherine had ensured that her family moved away, escaping the clutches of poverty and settling into a home befitting their newfound wealth. A home that didn't reek of hardship, a home that didn't scream of their past.

She wondered why her mother had never sold the land, why she clung to this dilapidated relic. Perhaps there were too many memories, too many ghosts haunting the halls. But Katherine dismissed the thought quickly. Her mother had never been one for sentimentality, for anything that didn't benefit her in some way.

Her mother had never cared for the constant friction between Katherine and Caroline, their sibling rivalry a perpetual storm that raged throughout their childhood and adulthood. Instead, she had chosen a side, a daughter who mirrored her own personality.

Caroline.

It was evident where Caroline had inherited her narcissism, a trait absent from their father. He had been a gentle soul, a man who had loved his daughters fiercely, despite their flaws. He had always been the voice of reason, the calming force in a tempestuous household. But he had been taken from them too soon, leaving Katherine and Caroline adrift in a sea of their own making.

Katherine tore her gaze away from the crumbling façade of her past, the memories too painful to bear. She hailed a cab and rode to the Mikaelson manor, the grand estate where her life had once been a symphony of luxury and love and ironically, suffering.

She wasn't sure what compelled her to stand a distance away, her eyes fixated on the imposing structure. Perhaps it was a self-inflicted punishment, a way to relive the pain of her expulsion from paradise.

Or maybe, just maybe, she hoped to catch a glimpse of Castiel.

A voice, dark and insidious, whispered in the recesses of her mind, a constant reminder of her loss, a relentless tormentor. It spoke of betrayal, of abandonment, of a love that had been snatched away, a life that had been shattered. It taunted her with the memories of their shared laughter, their stolen kisses, their whispered promises of forever.

She watched as maids, servants, and bodyguards buzzed around the compound, their movements a ballet of efficiency, a testament to the meticulous order that reigned within the walls of the manor. 

It was her home, her sanctuary, the place where she had shared her life with Castiel, where their love had blossomed into an intoxicating symphony of passion and devotion. But now, it was gone, stolen from her, a cruel reminder of her fallen status.

She wondered if they slept in the same room she and Castiel had shared, if they lay in the same bed, their bodies entwined in the embrace of a love she had once claimed as her own.

The thought of Castiel in the arms of another woman sent a wave of nausea crashing over her. She couldn't even fathom the intimacy that must exist between them, the shared whispers, the stolen kisses, the whispered promises of eternal love. 

It was all hers once. 

But now, it belonged to Caroline.

The mere thought of it twisted her insides, a physical manifestation of the pain that gnawed at her soul.

She imagined them together, their bodies intertwined, their lips meeting in a passionate embrace, their laughter echoing through the halls of the manor. She could almost hear their whispers, their shared secrets, their unspoken promises.

And the anger, a burning ember in the depths of her soul, flared into a raging inferno.

How could he, the man she had loved with all her heart, the man who had promised her eternity, the man who had sworn to love her forever, betray her in such a way? 

She had been blind, naive, a fool who had believed in the power of their love, the strength of their bond. She had been a pawn in a game she had never understood, a victim of a betrayal she had never foreseen.

Katherine sighed, the weight of her loss settling heavy on her chest. The birthday gala was only three days away, a grand spectacle where she would be forced to confront her past, to stand in the shadow of the woman who had taken everything from her.

She would walk into that gala with her head held high, a façade of composure concealing the tempest raging within. She would wear a smile, a mask of indifference, a shield against the world that had cast her out. 

But inside, the pain would be a constant companion, a reminder of her loss, a testament to her broken heart.

And the anger, a burning ember in the depths of her soul, would continue to smolder, waiting for its moment to ignite, to consume her, to become the fire that would guide her back to her true self, the fire that would fuel her revenge.

Now she felt ready. 

She felt ready to face Caroline, to confront Castiel, to reclaim her life, to rebuild her shattered world, to rise from the ashes of her defeat. 

The birthday gala was not just a celebration of some random rich guy's life, it was a battleground, a stage for a showdown

that had been brewing for years. 

And Katherine was ready to fight.