A/N: I am writing this in response to Episode 5 of Season 4 and to that very weak excuse that Tyler had for his bond with Hayley and because the show seems to be going in a "let's fool Klaus and kill him" direction that I am NOT happy with. This is how I see this playing out in my head. Obviously anything that hasn't happened will be my own ideas. I do not own TVD. This is my first attempt at publishing fanfiction, please let me know what you think :)

Chapter 1:

"Care, are you sure you can handle this?" Tyler asked, knowing what he wanted of his girlfriend had to be hard for her to stomach.

"Yes. I'm not some helpless girl, Tyler. I can handle this. If this is what you want me to do." Caroline replied, going along with his plan but still not fully comprehending why he really felt the need to do it.

Then the nagging voice in her head questioned his bond with that bitchy brunette and wondered why Tyler had kept her in the dark about it the whole time. She brushed off the doubt and put on her bravest face, refusing to succumb to the insecurities that used to plague her before she became a vampire. She was different now. She was strong.

They continued laying out their plan of attack. Caroline and Tyler were going to pretend to break up, convince Klaus that he had an opportunity with Caroline and once he was fully immersed in his courtship of her, Tyler and Hayley would wrangle up the hybrids one by one and help them break the sire bond.

Caroline's job was simple. Keep Klaus distracted. Act like she was starting to have feelings for him. Pretend like she could stomach his affections. Tyler made it clear that she should do whatever it took to make Klaus believe what was happening. That admission from her formerly possessive and insanely jealous boyfriend made her cringe. He was basically okay with whoring her out and she wondered if his relationship with Hayley didn't, in some way, affect his sudden change in perspective.

XXXXX

Two weeks into their pretend break-up, Caroline was ready to face Klaus, she had practiced her speech in front of her mirror countless times and was finally sure she could pull it off without flinching. She hadn't really seen Tyler all that much because he had been spending all his time with Hayley, finalizing plans and tying up loose-ends. It almost felt like they were, in fact, broken up.

She shrugged off her doubts and insecurities again - she had been doing that a lot lately - and made her way to the Mikaelson mansion. For some reason, Klaus had been keeping his distance since the news of her newly-minted single status broke so she had to take matters into her own hands. She thought for sure he would have been at her doorstep 2 seconds after he found out but he hadn't and she couldn't figure out why.

"Klaus?" she said with trepidation as she entered his home without so much as a knock. She followed the sound of classical music that filtered softly through the air and the smell of paint wafting from his drawing room.

"To what do I owe the pleasure, love?" he drawled, keeping his back to her as she entered the room.

"I… um, had to talk to you." She squeaked softly in reply.

"About?" he said softly as he wiped his hands and turned to face her.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she offered sadly, turning her gaze to the floor.

"About?" he said again, confused at her vague question.

"About Tyler. About Hayley. You knew and you didn't tell me. I had no idea what was going on. Why he was acting so weird. You should have told me so I didn't look like such a fool." She looked up, anger in her visage as the words she rehearsed fell perfectly from her coral-colored lips.

"That was not for me to tell you, love. Tyler should have been man enough to tell you himself." He paused. "Besides, would you really have believed me?"

He stood up with his hands behind his back and circled her, like a tiger waiting to pounce on his prey. The sudden change in his demeanor scared her a little but she pushed the thoughts aside.

"Why did you come here, Caroline?" he asked as he inched closer to her. "Don't tell me you're actually upset that I didn't tell you. Don't you have other people you can talk to about your heartbreak?"

His voice was cold and blunt; the charming, slickness that normally laced his beautiful accent was gone. She thought for sure that he figured out what she was doing.

"I… I…" this part she did not rehearse, she had to improvise, "I thought you… fancied me? I thought you would jump at the chance now that Tyler was out of the picture, I was confused. I don't know why I came… I should… Go."

She turned on her heel abruptly and was about to speed away when he grabbed her arm gently and pulled her back.

"I do fancy you, Caroline. I wanted to give you space, let you heal a little… I told you I could wait a century for you to show up at my doorstep. What's 2 weeks in the grand scheme of things, love?" he paused, changing his tone, "You obviously know nothing about me." He added, almost sad in his reply.

"You don't exactly show much of yourself. Other than the evil, manipulative side." She countered.

"I told you that you could get to know me." He replied, pulling her closer so that he could look into her eyes.

She turned away, the sudden electric jolt from the eye contact shaking her façade.

"Well... this tension is all a little too heavy for my liking. Would you like to go for a walk with me?" Klaus asked softly, noticing her sudden bout of discomfort and motioning out to the gardens of his estate.

XXXXX

Caroline called Tyler as soon as she got home, eager to give him a minute by minute synopsis of what had happened with Klaus. She got his voicemail, twice. She texted him several times before she took a shower and 2 hours later, still no response. She was starting to get agitated. He was taking the whole fake break-up thing way too far. Angry and upset, she decided to just go to bed.

XXXXX

Klaus was unusually chipper as he walked up the driveway of the Forbes home in the middle of the night, velvet box in hand. The events that unfolded between him and Caroline earlier in the day still played in his head like a blissful symphony of memory. The way she looked as she softly questioned him, the close proximity of their bodies as they walked the grounds around his home, the way she laughed at his sad attempts at jokes. Now that he was able to experience those things with her, they would forever be tethered to the fibers of his mind.

As he quietly entered her room through her open window he was taken aback by her beautiful sleeping form, cocooned in the sheets, her face serene and calm. He placed the box beside her phone on the nightstand and gazed at her longingly as he softly brushed a stray tendril of hair from her face. She flinched slightly but smiled into his touch. He yearned to know who or what she was thinking of. He imagined what it would have been like to use his powers to invade her dreams but he decided against it, not wanting to win her that way.

After centuries of compelling women to do as he pleased, he finally found one that he wanted to fall for him by the strength of her volition. He didn't want to compel her or force her. He wanted her to want him just as intensely as he wanted her. He was tempted to kiss her as she slept, wanted nothing more than to touch her porcelain skin with his fingertips but he resisted the overwhelming lure, choosing instead to return home.