Pandemonium ensued like Charlotte knew it would.

All heads had snapped to her and if Klaus didn't have her leaning against his chest he would've pulled her around to face him. She could hear her blood pumping in her ears when she finally spat out the final command Alaric gave her before she passed out from the pain in the classroom, half relieved to have told them.

Damon was the first to reply, his face falling into a look terror as he shouted out half angrily and half anxiously, "What?"

Stefan was kinder, his eyes softening in concern. He felt sure now that Alaric had instilled fear into her that he'd come back for her and he knew all three of them would do whatever they could to keep her safe, "He can't get to you Charlie. We'll keep you safe from him. He won't touch you."

Klaus was speechless.

"It's too late," she told them softly, she didn't sound sad anymore, already resigned to her fate she'd accepted it, "It's going to happen at midnight tonight."

"What's going to happen," Klaus asked her softly, more gently than he wished he could yell out as his heart pounded with horror.

"I'm going to kill myself."

Of all the things that Klaus thought he needed to protect Charlotte from, all the enemies he knew would seek to hurt him this wasn't something he thought he needed to prepare for. He was so relieved when he saw her in the school with Caroline, so relieved when he came home and saw she was okay, if not fairly battered and bruised. There were many things Klaus needed to worry about when he thought of Charlotte but never had he thought to worry that it would be her own hand that would cause her death.

"You're not," Damon snapped, unwilling to even consider the option that Charlotte would die after everything they'd done to finally get her back.

"I am," she said gently, "he compelled me to do it myself by midnight, it's not long now."

"We'll just stop you."

"You can't Damon. He said to not stop until I'm dead, to try over and over and over until I succeed. It's happening, there's no way to stop it."

"Bonnie can break the compulsion with her witchy juju."

"Not in three hours," she replied sighing, "There's nothing we can do."

"Darling, you're not doing to die tonight," Klaus told her sternly, "You're not thinking straight you've lost too much blood, let me heal you and we can talk properly."

"If you give me blood I won't ever forgive you," this was the most stern she'd been with any of them but she needed them to know it wasn't even an option. She loved them, but she almost didn't trust them, she remembered Elena's face when Damon had fed her his blood before the ritual and she didn't want that to happen, "Any of you."

"You're not leaving us," Klaus finally snapped

You're not leaving me, is what he wanted to say. He couldn't give a damn about her brothers, he only tolerated them for her sake. Klaus didn't want her a vampire anymore than she did but he wasn't losing her now he'd just gotten her back. He knew her fears about the Other Side but he couldn't risk losing her again, he just needed to change her mind.

"It's not an option, I'm not letting any of you turn me."

Stefan had been oddly silent since her revelation and looking to him now she could see the fear on his face. The other two had masked their fear with anger but Stefan was letting it show through, he'd already run through every argument in his head and he knew how this would play out, either someone would force their blood on them and she'd die miserable and betrayed, or they would respect her wishes, and she'd die for good.

"Charlie," Stefan was the most gentle with his words, "If we can't heal you we need to get you at least cleaned up and bandaged so you don't fall ill. Maybe the compulsion won't hold true."

"Maybe," she lied, "Nik, will you help me change."

Klaus didn't say anything but he nodded, standing and lifting her into his arms. He tried to move slowly to cause her the least pain but he felt her flinch back and heard her breath catch in her throat. Her fist was balled in his shirt and her face was pulled into a grimace as she fought to override the pain that enveloped her.

Charlotte had expected Klaus to simply help her change but when they entered his room he placed her on the bed before moving to the bathroom to fill the bath. Returning quickly, he moved slowly as he helped her undress, so differently from the last time he undressed her, this time it wasn't with pleasure as he looked at her body, but with pain as he saw the blood that covered her, the angry red wounds on her leg and abdomen.

Klaus was more gentle with her than he'd ever been in his life, peeling the layers of clothes off as he lowered her into the shallow bath and used a cloth to slowly clean her wounds.

"Will you promise me you won't try to change what will happen?"

Klaus didn't reply at first, his lips pursed in displeasure that he tried to contain for her sake, "You're not dying."

"I am."

"You're not."

"This isn't a discussion," Charlotte grabbed hold of his hand that was wiping gently around the wound at her abdomen, "please Nik. I need your help, I need your help and I need you to be on my side."

"I would do anything for you," Klaus said, still not meeting her eyes, he didn't want her to see the tears welling up inside them.

"I don't want to die at my own hand, please Nik, if it comes down to it, can you do it for me?"

Klaus was shocked again, speechless for a second time that day. His heart clenched with pain again and his eyes finally rose to meet hers. He was looking for any hint of a lie, any hint that she wasn't being truly honest with her words, that somehow she wasn't saying the whole truth. Surely she couldn't want him to be the one to kill her, not now when he'd just gotten her back. It was hard enough for him to even believe himself that he would stick to his word and refrain from helping her transition but to really believe that he could murder her.

His throat was dry when he next tried to speak, "Darling," he trailed off, he didn't know how to answer her request, how to tell her he couldn't hurt her like that. He couldn't tell her what he knew she wanted him to say so he told her what he needed to say, "Charlotte I love you."

Charlotte smiled softly, pulling the cloth from his hand she used his arm to pull him towards her for a kiss, "I love you too."

Charlotte was finally clean, Klaus had carried her from the bathroom to the bedroom, he'd somewhat clumsily helped wrap bandages around her wounds so they weren't bleeding anymore and he'd helped her to dress. They were laying on his bed, Charlotte felt sure that she should be sobbing by this point, mourning the life she could've had but she'd accepted her fate and instead she felt at peace. Now she knew she was going to die and it was inevitable, she was relishing these last few moments alive.

"Nik," Charlotte pressed her lips to the base of his chin where he lay beside her, eyebrows furrowed as his arms held her tight to his chest, "Will you help me go downstairs, I need to talk to my brothers."

"In a moment," Klaus replied, he could hear Stefan and Damon arguing downstairs and didn't want her to know or hear. His eyes were screwed up tightly and his arms were encircling her, doing his best to memorise the feel of her pulled tightly towards him.

"Can I ask for another favour?"

"Mhm."

"When I die-"

"You're not going to die," Klaus cut her off stubbornly.

"When I die," Charlotte continued, "Will you let Stefan and Damon be for what they did against you, for Finn?"

Klaus sighed, "Let's go downstairs."

"Nik, I'm serious."

"As am I, your brothers might start drawing blood if we don't go down soon."

Charlotte sighed, she only had a few hours left and she was worried about spending her time making demands and wasting goodbyes. She wanted to talk to Matt too, he'd been her first friend here and she needed him to know how much he meant to her too. Charlotte felt like now she was bandaged she could walk with assistance but Klaus ignored her and simply swept her into his arms again.

Stefan and Damon were still arguing when they entered the room, Charlotte clean again with Klaus' sweatpants and sweatshirt on, curled up in his arms.

"Charlie, you're not dying," Damon told her angrily when she and Klaus were settled on the couch again. He had a glass of bourbon in his hand and although his voice shook with rage and fear, his face lay stony as he buried his emotions while he tried to fix her.

"I am," she replied softly, sternly, "Can I get a drink too? If I'm going to die I might as well go out with a light head."

Klaus sighed at her cavalier attitude but rose to fetch her a drink like she'd asked. He couldn't understand how she could be so determined but so light about the inevitable, he didn't want her to feel worried but he didn't like that she seemed to have so readily accepted her fate.

"There has to be a way around this," Stefan said, sitting beside her and grabbing her hands, "Charlie we just got you back."

"It's done, there's nothing we can do but say goodbye."

"There's something we can do," Damon said emotionless.

"Stop it," Charlotte snapped, "Don't you dare. You remember what happened when you nearly did that to Elena. You do that and you'll lose me forever."

"Charlie-" Stefan tried to calm her down.

"No Stef. All of you need to listen up, I love you but if you try and force me to transition I'll hate you," she saw Damon open his mouth here and she barrelled on before he could speak, "I'm never going back there, I'm never going to the Other Side and I'll never forgive you if you let it happen to me."

"You'll get over it," Damon growled out, stepping forwards only to have Stefan rush up and push him back.

"I won't."

"Took me a few decades but I got there."

"I won't get over it because I won't transition. You feed me blood and all it's going to do is give me a hellish day filled with pain as I wait to die for a second time. I'm not transitioning and so I'll spend my last day half dead half alive. Is that what you want?"

Klaus had heard the argument but hadn't rushed back to the room, he knew that however determined Damon was he wouldn't do that to Charlotte until it was his only option. Instead Klaus spent his time gathering a drink for her, surprised when he returned to see her standing on her feet, chest heaving from the exertion of yelling as he returned to the room. He sped over, wrapping an arm around her waist to steady her he passed her the glass which she downed in a moment.

"What's the time?" she asked Stefan when her breathing steadied.

"10:30."

"An hour and a half," she whispered to herself, "Will you call Matt for me, I don't want to leave him without saying goodbye."

Stefan nodded and left the room and Charlotte passed her glass to Klaus giving him a pointed look at Damon. Klaus understood what she needed too and left the room beside Stefan, pulling his own phone out to call his family to see if they somehow could help him.

"D," Charlotte said softly, walking towards him as well as she could with her injured leg, "I'm so, so sorry."

"What're you sorry for?"

"I'm sorry I'm leaving, that I'm not choosing to stay. Damon I'm not strong enough to go back, I don't want to be a vampire. I've accepted it and it's going to be okay."

"It's not okay, Charlie," Damon yelled, throwing his glass against the wall where it smashed to pieces. Charlotte could see Klaus standing in the doorway from the corner of her eye but she shook her head and she saw him retreat. Damon's face was screwed up, he looked like a little kid and Charlotte felt all the worse for her decision, "It's not okay, you can't leave us. We can't lose you again."

"It's not okay," Charlotte agreed, wrapping her arms around his waist and leaning her head on his chest as he leaned his chin on her, "It's not okay. It sucks. It's awful. But that's life D. I shouldn't be leaving so soon but at least I got to see you again."

"Charlie you're the only good thing in our lives, in my life."

"Stop it, you have Stefan, you have Elena. God you guys have each other in a way you never did before. Damon I don't want to go but I have to. Don't make me die worrying about you, I need to know you're okay."

Charlotte could feel Damon shaking as he clutched her and she knew he was crying, she could feel the tears dripping onto her head and she felt them begin to gather in her eyes too.

"I really love you. I'm going to miss you Charlie, I don't want to lose you."

"I love you too Damon," she told him. They remained like that for a little longer before there was a knock at the door, pulling away, Damon quickly turned to face the wall as Matt walked in.

"Charlie," Matt's face looked awful, his eyes were red and his brows were furrowed, "This can't be happening."

"Hey Matty," Charlotte turned to give him a smile that didn't meet her eyes, "I'm sorry I'm leaving you guys."

"You make it sound like you're going on holiday."

Charlotte let out a snort of laughter, "Thank you for being my friend. I never had a friend who was a boy before," at this Matt blushed, "Thank you for being there for me even when it got you in trouble."

Matt didn't reply, pulling her into a tight hug. He should be used to this by now, saying goodbye to people, pain, hurt, but he wasn't. Charlotte was the first person he felt like he'd connected with since they all got wrapped up in the supernatural world and it hurt him that she was leaving too.

"I want some water," Charlotte told him, "Can you help me get to the kitchen, my leg's not that great for walking on right now," Charlotte let out a half laugh that Matt returned with a weak smile, looping her arm over his shoulders as he helped her walk towards the kitchen.

Neither of them spoke as they entered the kitchen, Matt busied himself for a moment pretending to reply to a text so he could catch his breath, overwhelmed knowing these were his last moments with his friend. Charlotte was fiddling with one of the drawers in front of her but he didn't notice, looking up finally to see a butchers knife being pulled slowly across her wrist.

"Charlie!" Matt yelled out in fright. In his panic to stop her, he threw his body towards her, knocking her against the counter while the knife clattered to the ground.

In moments Klaus, Stefan and Damon had rushed into the room. Klaus was the first to react, his brow furrowed in terror he pulled Matt roughly away from Charlotte who was whimpering in pain from her bleeding wrist and her wounded abdomen that had been pressed against the counter.

"Darling," Klaus said gently, his hand moved to her good arm and he used her fingers to wrap around her wounded wrist before scooping her up into his arms. He ignored her brothers and Matt as he pressed past them, carrying Charlotte back into the living room. Charlotte's face was furrowed as she clutched her bleeding wrist, looking between Klaus and her arm in confusion.

"What happened?"

"It's 11:15, it seems Alaric's compulsion is coming into effect," Klaus replied placing her back on the couch where he'd left her, "Don't let go of your arm, okay darling? I'm going to get something to wrap it in."

Charlotte nodded weakly, noticing Matt and her brothers standing anxiously at the door staring at her. Matt looked close to fainting and she could see blood on the white shirt he wore, her blood she realised. She hadn't really believed her brothers or Klaus when they'd assured her that the compulsion wouldn't come true but she didn't know how to react now it was.

Stefan was the one to approach her, he had his sweater in his hand and he was gentle as he pulled her fingers away from her bleeding wrist, wiping some of the blood away before pressing it tightly against her arm.

"Nothing will be the same without you," Stefan told her, his eyes locked onto hers, "I wouldn't have made it through the summer if you weren't there with me. You kept me grounded Charlie, I would've lost myself without you. I'm going to miss you more than you could ever imagine."

"I'm glad I was with you too, Stef. I love you, look after each other for me, will you?"

Stefan nodded and pulled her into a hug, his hand still holding the sweater against her arm. Klaus returned with a bandage in hand, he knelt down before her to wrap it tightly around her newest injury.

"Sorry for ruining the night," Charlotte joked softly as she looked around at the somber mood inside the room.

No one laughed, Matt's lips quirked up into a grin for a moment before a pang of pain shot through him again and his chest felt sore with what was coming. Charlotte wanted to ask what time it was now knowing she'd surely be making another attempt on her own life after the unsuccessful first one but she could tell no one in the room needed another reminder of her impending death.

"I love you guys," she told them, "all of you. I'm so grateful to have known you. You made my time in this century unforgettable. I felt happier with you than I had ever before, I don't want you to be sad, please don't be, it's okay."

The room was silent still after Charlotte's declaration, she was silent too for a moment before suddenly a pang of pain flooded through her body and she flinched back.

"What is it?" Klaus asked anxiously as he watched Charlotte shrink into her seat.

"I need to finish," her voice was emotionless as she tried to stand, Stefan and Klaus both pressing her back into her seat. Charlotte tried to stand again and when she couldn't her good hand reached desperately to her bandaged wrist, tugging at the covering before both her hands were caught by Klaus.

"Don't darling," Klaus told her as she whimpered, her eyes still glazed over as she tried to tug her wrists free.

"Let me go, let me go," Charlotte begged desperately, "I need to do it, let me do it."

All four men in the room watched as Charlotte writhed desperately in her place, tears were flowing down her cheeks and everyone could feel her pain threatening to break forth. Matt was the first to turn his head away in shame at his uselessness and soon Stefan matched him, eyes red as he looked at his brother who stood emotionless.

"Damon," Stefan said, snapping his attention away, "She wouldn't want us seeing her like this. Let them have a moment."

"How are you okay with this?" Damon snapped, rage was coursing through him as he watched his baby sister in pain, watched her writhe and struggle as she tried to hurt herself.

"I will never be okay with this. I know how this hurts, brother but if this is what she wants, that's all that matters. Come on."