"Get out of my way!" Hayley demanded and tried to get passed Caroline, but she kept blocking her path.
"I can't do that Hayley, even though I would love to see you disappear... Sorry! I promised Elijah I would help." Caroline explained and held her ground.
"Fine, you want to help - well you can help by moving." Hayley replied angrily and tried to get past her again – this time moving closer towards her.
"You are really starting to piss me off wolf-bitch; you aren't even giving Klaus a chance. You're just running away. Under any other circumstances I would let you leave, trust me. But I'm doing this for Klaus, however weird that may sound." Caroline said annoyed and pissed off. It was a strange feeling that lingered inside her; she never thought that she would want to help Klaus…ever. But here she was in New Orleans standing up for him, helping him and for some reason looking forward to seeing him again. She hadn't seen him since that day in the woods, he had kept his promise and left. So now, she would keep her promise to his brother and do what she could to open up Klaus' eyes.
It took every bit of Hayley's self-restrain not to go physical on the blonde vampire, especially now when she was in this hormonal-state. The baby wasn't exactly helping to calm her down, she understood what everybody meant about newbie-vampires having heightened emotions – she sensed it from her unborn hybrid. Caroline had always had the ability to infuriate her and for some reason they had always considered each other as competition.
A people-knower was something Hayley had become after having to take care of herself since she was a little girl, she had to learn by herself how to trust people – that's why she recognized a liar when she saw one;
"You are such a hypocrite, you stand before me and preach about how much you want to help Klaus when it's sooo obvious that that's not the real reason you are here... Do you miss having someone constantly hovering over you now that Tyler has left you?… Besides, redeem Klaus? That's a load of crap and you know it."
"Well, at least I didn't sleep with a guy I barely know." Caroline yelled close to Hayley's annoyed face.
That was the one sentence that brought Hayley over the edge and it caused her to slap Caroline.
Caroline reacted instantly and slapped her right back with a death-glare. Hayley was about to punch Caroline but she was too late; Caroline grabbed her arm and twisted it making the wolf groan out in obvious pain. The brown-haired girl managed to overlook the pain and backhand the blonde, causing her to fall down to the ground. Hayley sat on top of Caroline, holding her down when a sound from a car made her turn around. The distraction gave Caroline the room she needed to squirm away.
The battle for dominance continued when they got up and even though it wasn't a full moon Hayley was very strong, perhaps the baby gave her more strength – she grabbed the vampires arm and held it tightly as she used her other hand to grab Caroline by a choke-hold, making her gasp for her breath.
Being a father was not something Klaus had thought about because it wasn't supposed to be possible. The frustration was eating him up and his conflicted mind was unbearable. He had been driving around for a while alone to get some distance from everything and everyone. Elijah's constant nagging about the wonder-baby was beyond annoying and the only way he could get some peace and quiet was to leave the plantation.
It was with a heavy heart that he decided that it was about time to get back, he couldn't drive around forever – he would just have to in dour his siblings' objections about his choice not to be a part of "Operation Save Klaus". As he was cruising down the drive-way he heard voices screaming and instantly he recognized Caroline's voice. A thousand thoughts were running through his head as he vamp-sped out of the car – the vision of Hayley's hand around Caroline's throat made his blood pump fast through his veins and the need to protect her washed over him causing him to push Hayley hard against the front-door.
"What madness is this?" Klaus yelled. He could almost feel his fangs pushing their way down because of his anger.
"Hayley love, I would advise you to contain yourself!" He warned while helping the blonde vampire regain her composure. He looked deep into Caroline's eyes searching for answers as to why she was there. Had she finally accepted his offer to come to New Orleans? Maybe she needed something from him, if so... why couldn't she just have called? He couldn't help but let his mind drift back to that day in the woods when she had given him her confession, just the mere sight of Caroline was enough to make his knees weak – she had this strange effect on him that no other person had...
Of course…she was there to try to persuade him into accepting the child…
Klaus was no fool, he knew that Elijah would do everything in his power to change his mind and the fact was that everyone knew that he had a soft-spot for Caroline Forbes. The lengths people would go to, to have control over him was equally surprising every time – but it only made him want to "rebel" even more because no one was allowed to make demands.
"Why am I not surprised that you would side with Caroline." Hayley said, sounding melancholy. The sound of her voice interrupted Klaus' thoughts and made him turn around.
"Love, you were attacking her." Klaus replied trying to contain his rage.
"I attacked her? Are you kidding me?" She answered the hybrid, remembering what Caroline had said to her just a few minutes ago. The truth was that it actually hurt inside that Klaus was willing to forcefully push the woman who was carrying his own child for Caroline and it wasn't because she was jealous, it was because she had secretly hoped that he would come to his senses and be there for her. Seeing Klaus' face warming up at the sight of Miss Mystic Falls made her sick and when she saw his eyes drifting away to look at her again she decided that it was time to leave.
Caroline had to admit to herself that she felt bad for Hayley even though she didn't like her, this situation had to be the worst and if it had been her she probably would have wanted to leave as well. But she couldn't let her leave; she had to get Klaus to see this amazing opportunity to get a second chance.
Klaus took a step closer towards Caroline and let his hand brush softly over her cheeks while asking;
"Couldn't stay away from me any longer now could you?" A smirk emerged as he said it…
Caroline saw that one coming. She knew Klaus; he was always putting out that strong side that made him seem very confident about himself.
"Trust me, that's not why I'm here… Hey, aren't you going to go after her? Where did she go?" Caroline asked nervously and upset.
"No, I am not and I don't know where she went." The hybrid answered carelessly.
"You don't even care?" The vampire asked shocked.
"Why should I?" He said like it was no big deal.
"HELLO? She is carrying your child Klaus." She said in a 'duh' tone.
"As I suspected, noble Elijah sought you out to come here and sweet-talk me… ok, so let's hear it." Klaus replied prepared for the lecture he knew was coming. He shook his head and laughed.
"Klaus... deep down you have to care about her and the baby. You can't hide behind this protective shell forever." Caroline proclaimed, reaching out to the side of Klaus she knew had a conscience.
"I gain nothing from this child." Klaus argued.
"You gain love, and family. I know that deep down you must want to have the child." Secretly it hurt for her to say those words because she couldn't fight that feeling of jealousy that crept through her. She did care for him, more than she was willing to let him know.
Fatherhood scared him; that was the reason he didn't want this. The fear of becoming like his own father terrified him, even the thought of it made him want to rip something into shreds. His damaged and wounded soul wasn't something an innocent child would benefit from. But deep down where his heart was buried, there lingered a whispery voice that told him to take a chance, to do the exact opposite of what his mind told him. His curiosity was starting to take over but at the same time it saddened him because he knew that his cruel behavior towards Hayley probably wouldn't favor him if he was to reach out a hand to her…
"What do you want me to do; I don't even think Hayley wants me in the child's life." Klaus said while gazing down.
"It's because she is hurting. She's scared too Klaus. I know that she wants you in the baby's life. I could see it in her eyes." The blonde stated trying to make him understand.
Klaus' eyes were still glued to the ground; he let out a sigh of disbelief because he didn't trust Caroline's words. Why would Hayley want him to be a part of her and the baby's life? He would only end up hurting them and that was a fact – he couldn't be trusted.
Caroline refused to give up hope that one day Klaus would become a better man and the baby was the reason why. But, if he didn't change his mind that would prove that his scars just ran too deep and that redemption had faded away – because what kind of a man wouldn't love his own child?
Her hand went up in a friendly gesture to stroke his cheeks; letting him know that she believed in him. The second her hand came into contact with his skin she could feel him withdraw, he turned around and opened the front-door and started to walk inside as he said;
"That's not going to work darling, not this time… I'm just too damaged."
Caroline tried to grab his arm but he walked inside so fast - like he was running away from her. Sometimes he acted like a child and his self-pity was beyond annoying, her mind drifted back to when Silas had tricked Klaus into believing that he had a piece of the white oak stake inside his back. She was the one who helped him, she was the one who had to sit and listen to his words of resentment towards everyone but himself and finally she was the one who had said that she should have given up on him ages ago because he didn't deserve her friendship or loyalty, so why even bother now? Maybe Hayley was right and the more she thought about it the angrier she got.
"Don't you dare walk away from me! Stop feeling sorry for yourself and start acting like a grown man. This 'I'm so damaged' bullshit is really getting old. Aren't you supposed to be invincible? Unconquerable? Fearless? If so, how can a little baby make you so terrified that you almost pee in your pants? Big bad hybrid? I think not!" Caroline provoked and started to walk away from the mansion, she had had enough of Klaus already. She needed to get a drink so down town New Orleans was her goal.
If it hadn't been Caroline who had said those words to him they would've ended up with a snapped neck, he was still debating on whether to follow her or let her go. He was about to go after her to set her straight when he heard someone whooshed up behind him, he knew who it was without even looking.
"Save it brother! Surely there is another lost soul out there who is in desperate need for your guidance." Klaus sighed as he turned around to see Elijah standing there.
"Niklaus…" Elijah started to say but Klaus cut him off;
"I can't believe you brought Caroline here!"
"You gave me no choice brother; I had to do something to make you see clearly. I figured she was the only one who could convince you." Elijah replied with a soft tone as he walked towards the living room.
Klaus stomped after him and said;
"Well, I am sorry to inform you that your plan backfired. Young Miss. Forbes spoke quite forcefully to me before she left and let me just tell you, if anything it only made me more sure about my decision."
"Brother, I can assure you that you will regret this. I ask you once again, are you sure?" Elijah asked hopefully because he had seen something different in Klaus' eyes after he spoke with Caroline.
"Positive. Besides, how foolish can you be Elijah? I have too many enemies lurking around, Caroline will be in great danger here. Being around me is dangerous." Klaus pointed out while thinking that he should run after Caroline so he could make sure that she was alright.
"I know you care about Miss Forbes and that is why I thought she could get through to you, I still think she can." Elijah continued. Elijah knew that Klaus had feelings for Caroline, heck... everyone knew he did. He was pretty sure that she had hidden feelings too.
"You are pathetic Elijah. You're always trying to be noble, but one day you will have to give up on me." Klaus said, showing his signature smirk. Deep down Klaus liked that Elijah never gave up... But if Elijah kept pushing the chances of succeeding were high, but Klaus didn't want to be redeemed...or did he? - He couldn't figure it out.
"I will never give up on you, nor will I give up on your child." Elijah had a feeling it wouldn't be that easy to get Klaus to accept his child, but he had to keep trying... Always and forever.
Klaus let a silence fall before letting Elijah know that Hayley had left.
"Whatever Elijah, but the little wolf is probably long gone by now."
"What do you mean?" Elijah asked slowly
"Did I forget to mention that Hayley ran away? Oops." Klaus replied sarcastically.
"You let her leave? Have you forgotten that Sophie Deveraux is linked to Hayley? If the witches find out she left they will retaliate and possibly kill her." Elijah yelled furiously. Elijah knew that Klaus was not fond of the idea of a child, but he didn't think that he would actually be willing to let them die, or to be this careless.
"What's your point?" Klaus questioned and rolled his eyes.
"My point Niklaus, is that your child could die and along with that, the little humanity you have left." Elijah claimed while trying to calm down.
"I have no humanity." Klaus said frowning. Truth be told, Klaus was a little nervous that Hayley could be in danger, but he could not show it.
"You really expect me to believe that? What about Caroline? Everyone knows you care about her." Elijah stated and demanded answers. How could he care about some fling and not his own child? It just didn't make any sense.
"That's different." He replied while looking down.
"I refuse to believe that you are seriously willing to put Caroline before your own child and its mother!" Elijah said as he walked towards Klaus.
"Oh, for god's sake! Fine Elijah, I'll go look for her and then…you will shut up." Klaus yelled, clearly annoyed.
Elijah let a little smile appear when he saw Klaus leaving; there was still hope – because going to look for Hayley proved that he did care even though he wouldn't admit it.
Hayley held a cup of tea mixed with wolfsbane in her hand and looked down at it trying to convince herself to drink it – what could she offer the baby? She had no place to live, no one who cared about her, no family and most importanly, the baby didn't have a father who cared. Also, bad people were already involved without it even being born yet, so the possibility was huge that it would be hurt. She couldn't bring a child into a life like that. It wasn't an easy decision, she still wasn't sure…
"Come on, Hayley. One upset stomach and all this stupid drama is ancient history." She whispered to herself.
As she raised the cup up to her mouth she heard a twig snap. She stood up immediately and looked around. When she turned she saw a vampire standing there. Was there nowhere she could be without being bothered?
"Dumb move, coming into the Quarter. You're coming with me, wolf." He said stalking towards her.
"I have had it with vampires telling me what to do." Hayley said throwing the cup in the guys face.
When she turned to run she was faced with two more vampires blocking her way. Suddenly their hearts were ripped out and they fell to the ground.
"Thats no way to treat a pregnant lady." Klaus said dropping their hearts to the ground.
She stared at their lifeless bodies and then looked up to see Klaus. Where did he come from? And why was he here?
"Klaus?" Hayley said questionably…
"Hello, love. Now would you mind telling me what the bloody hell you are doing in the French quarter?" He walked towards her as he said it, but she stepped back. Klaus found it difficult to control his anger, why couldn't this girl stay out of trouble?
"Why should I answer to you?" She asked him confidently.
Klaus gave her a death glare warning her to answer him.
"You think I'm afraid of you?" She said lightly laughing.
"You should be." He stated angrily.
"Fine, you want to know what I was doing? I was buying poison, so I could put your little baby out of its misery." Hayley admitted. She had no reason not to tell him, he didn't care anyway – he would probably be happy.
"Excuse me?" Klaus whispered, shocked.
"Oh don't pretend to care. We both know you don't give a crap about the baby. And I don't want you to. All you will do is bring danger and I don't want that for my child. I want my baby to grow with someone telling them they are loved every single day, someone to protect them no matter what." Hayley said trying to hold back tears; it was very hard telling someone who didn't care, her greatest desire.
"We are leaving." Klaus growled and grabbed her arm to guide her away, but she pulled away causing her to stumble forward… Klaus caught her before she could hit the ground.
"I'm not going anywhere with you. Leave me alone." She said trying to escape from his grasp, he reacted by letting her go.
"Oh come on little wolf, we both know you need me." Klaus preached while rolling his eyes at her stubbornness.
"No, we don't." Hayley replied and touched her belly.
"Please, love. I'm just trying help." His voice sounded softer when he offered her his help…
"Why? You don't care. Two hours ago I was having a little dispute with Caroline and you took her side right away, not even asking if I was okay… or if the baby was okay. I wish you could care about someone other than just yourself, it would've made things a lot more easier" It hurt more than she thought it would and for the first time, in a long time she could feel a tear trailing down her cheek.
"Are we talking about the baby, or you?" Klaus asked the crying wolf and walked towards her - putting a hand very carefully on her shoulder; not letting anyone see his comforting side.
"Maybe... both." She reluctantly admitted after a while and gazed down.
Klaus didn't understand, what did she mean about both? Wasn't it enough to claim that he should care about the baby? He had to care about her too? He tried to search for the truth in her eyes, but he couldn't read her. As he looked intently at the girl standing before him he remembered that she was in fact very beautiful, he hadn't slept with her for no reason. Besides, it was something about her…something charming but at the same time cunning – there was more to her than what met the eye, it intrigued him. He didn't want her to notice what he was thinking about so he only shook his head and said:
"I may not care but my family does for some reason. So let's go before someone tries to kill you... again."
Hayley rolled her eyes and went with him, reluctantly…
A/N: Thank you all for reading. Sorry it took a while to update but this chapter was really long and took a long time to write. I would like to thank vampireSusieQ who is writing this story with me for doing a lot of the work in this chapter. Please review and tell us what you like, didn't like, and want to see in the future. Thank you!