A/N: Okay, so I said I might continue this, and I decided to make it a two-shot. But, I'm not done with this idea yet, that's for certain. So, I'm going to put up another story of interconnecting one-shots of the next generation of kids and their parents, that should be up tomorrow hopefully. It's hard to write a daddy!Klaus without making him completely out of character, but I tried pretty hard to try and keep him close to how he's portrayed on the show. Let me know how I did! :P Thank you all for the alerts, favourites and reviews!

Side note: Part two of this was inspired by tonight's episode, a virtual cookie to those who can pick out the scene that inspired this last part. And the whole story was inspired by the song Hooligans by Neighbours. :)

Summary: AU. Liam Salvatore and Jo Smith meet up after school to sit on his swing set, and Jo starts to compare and reflect on the differences between Liam's parents and her father. Dark. Klaus/unmentioned OC, Damon/Elena. Two-Shot.

Hooligans – Part Two.

"Expose your weakness."

The last thing she remembered was sitting on the kitchen floor, her eyes heavy and puffy from crying. How she got to her bed was beyond her, but she lay under the covers with her stuffed cat laying on the pillow beside her head.

And a box.

Jo sat up groggily, a frown on her face as she pulled the cardboard box towards her. It wasn't very big, only a little larger than her hand. There was a note attached to it, her eyes reading over the cursive writing.

From Dad.

She flipped it over, a few lines written there.

Should have gotten this to you two days ago, I apologize for that. Happy Birthday, Jo.

P.S. Out of all the places to sleep, why the kitchen floor?

Jo sighed, she wanted to feel angry that he hadn't bothered to tell her that he remembered, but she was too surprised and happy to be angry.

He remembered!

Jo peeled back the flap on the cardboard, opening it and pulled out the stuffed dog. No, it was a plush wolf.

She looked it over, a smile crossing her face. She ran her hands over the fabric of the stuffed animal, loving it already. She glanced at the alarm clock on her nightstand, exactly an hour before school started. She didn't want to be around Liam, still very upset with him, but she needed to go. She pulled the covers back and changed into a fresh pair of clothes, and got ready to head out.

But, her backpack was gone. Jo felt the sinking feeling in her stomach when she realized that she left it at Liam's. That meant that she would have to confront him to get it back, something she wasn't going to do.

She tucked the wolf under her arm, deciding to take it with her. It would give Liam some sort of proof, and she wanted to be the one that won the argument this time.

Jo walked the few blocks to school, her stuffed wolf tucked under her arm. She didn't know why, but she didn't want to be without it. She reached the grade school after an hour of walking, entering the school. The halls were a little crowded, the bell was a few minutes from going off.

"Jo." someone called from behind her, Jo not needing to turn around to know who it was. Liam walked up beside her, the black and red backpack hanging from his hand. "You forgot this."

"Thanks." Jo muttered, pulling the bag out of his grasp and opened it, tucking the wolf into the bag.

"What's with the dog?" Liam asked, Jo looking up as she finished zipping up the bag.

"It's a wolf, actually." Jo said, throwing her bag over her shoulder. "My dad gave it to me."

Liam shrugged, looking at his feet. "I'm sorry for pushing you and hurting you by saying mean things about you and your dad."

Jo sighed, nodding her head. "It's okay. I'm sorry for pushing you off the swing."

Liam smiled, "Apology accepted. Friends?"

"Yeah." Jo said with a smile, the two of them heading off to their classroom.

School had finally ended, Liam and Jo heading down his block. Liam was talking animatedly about the kickball game in gym, but Jo was lost in her train of thought. She had forgiven Liam, but she was still pretty hurt by what he had said.

"At least my dad loves me!"

Jo frowned, she had to wonder if the birthday present was really a way of showing he cared, or did he do it because he felt that he had to do it.

What if Liam is right? Jo asked herself, what if Dad is a cruel monster?

"Jo?" Liam asked suddenly, causing Jo to come out of her thoughts and look at him.

"What?" she asked, her voice shaking.

"You're crying." he stated, "did you hurt yourself?"

Jo touched her eyes, feeling the wetness gathering there. "N-no. I'm okay."

"You sure?"

Jo nodded, the two of them stopping at his front yard. She wondered if she wanted to stay at his house for a bit, but she really wanted to see if her father was at home. She wanted to ask him a few questions.

"I'll see you Monday." Jo said quickly, Liam nodding as he adjusted his backpack.

"Okay, I'll see you Monday." Liam said, turning and headed down his sidewalk. Jo stood at the end of the yard for a few moments, frowning before she turned and continued on her way home.

She wanted answers. She needed to know.

It was a while until Jo climbed the steps to her house, opening the door and set her bag down. Her gut wrenched when she saw her father moving around in the living room. He looked up when she closed the door behind her, giving her a sort of playful smile.

"Welcome home." he said as Jo walked past him into the kitchen, placing her bag down on the floor behind a couch.

"What, no hug?" he asked, Jo looking up at him with a scowl. She didn't know if she wanted to ask him anything, really. Maybe she would just thank him for the present and head upstairs to do her homework. But, she felt the words leaving her mouth before she could bite them back.

"Do you love me?" she asked, looking up at him as she stuck his hands into his jean's pockets. He seemed to look down at her with an odd expression, like she had asked him what sex he was, or some stupid question like that.

"Well, it's said that parents love their kids unconditionally." he said, "so the answer is pretty obvious. Why do you ask?"

"Liam told me that he heard his parents talking about you. That he said that you didn't love me." Jo muttered, starting to regret asking him at all. She should have just thanked him for the wolf and went upstairs.

"Ah, that Salvatore boy." he said, a smile crossing his face. "Did I tell you not to listen to them?"

"Yeah." Jo sighed, "but, he called you stupid."

"Oh, did he?" Klaus chuckled at the idea of an eight year old calling him stupid. "And how did you handle that."

"I shoved him off the swing." Jo said, "he got hurt, so he shoved me back. Then he told me that his father loved him, and that you didn't love me. I got upset and left."

"And you fell asleep on the kitchen floor?"

Jo smiled slightly, "yeah, I was tired."

"Hm. Well, you listen to me, Joanna." he placed a hand on her shoulder, making her look up at him. "You don't listen to what Liam tells you about me, do you understand?"

Jo nodded, her eyes locked on his.

"And to answer your question, yes, I do." he placed a hand on her head, "don't let those Salvatores tell you otherwise."

Jo smiled, feeling relieved. "Okay."

"Good. How did you like the wolf?"

"I love the wolf."

It wasn't until a few years later until she realized the irony behind the stuffed wolf, but for now she loved the stuffed animal more than anything else she owned, even the cat.