Chapter 3: There Are Others

Caroline looked at the boy from the bench, from the elevator, her mind going a mile per minute. This isn't happening, this isn't happening…

"Nice work, Klaus," Mr. Saltzman said and Klaus winked at Caroline. She narrowed her eyes at him, not one bit amused.

Although she was doing a pretty good job at maintaining a cool exterior, she was going over every event she had gone through in the last twelve hours. How could she have been so careless, so sloppy? Klaus had been there, watching her and Kat as they sat on the park bench, he had been there when they were going down the escalator, and she had practically told him everything he needed to know to make sure she didn't achieve her mission objectives.

He was still smirking, and she was still fuming.

Alaric seemed to notice the tension and cleared his throat. "The van will be at the back entrance. I'll see you in five minutes." Then he disappeared.

"Your mission was what, exactly?" Caroline said as soon as Alaric was out of the room, crossing her arms over her chest. "To stop me from completing my mission?"

There was a glint in his eyes as he stepped further out of the shadows, his hands in his pockets. "Something like that."

Caroline raised her eyebrows and he seemed to take the hint that she wasn't going to accept anymore vague answers.

"I thought I could just make you late," he said. Caroline thought back to him offering to get her something to eat, how he would try to delay her with conversation. "I didn't think you'd actually tell me where you were going and walk me halfway there."

Caroline huffed. She thought he had been chivalrous, and cute and flirting. But he wasn't, it was all part of his cover.

Just then, a group of tourists came into the shoe exhibit, cameras flashing as they saw the slippers. Caroline looked back at Klaus, who was staring at her, still smirking, but there was something in his eyes that she couldn't exactly make out.

She was jostled to the side as someone tried to get closer to the glass case that held the slippers. She lost her footing slightly, and when she was able to regain her balance, Klaus was gone.

She shook her head and made her way through the crowd, slipping out of the room and heading toward the back of the museum.

She reached the van and sat down, not looking around at any of the other girls.

They drove for about twenty minutes before the van stopped and the doors swung open. They all got out and onto the helicopter, climbing in and fastening their seat belts. This time, they didn't have to wear blindfolds.

That's when Caroline finally looked up and took in the scene of eleven other girls who had not completed their mission. And she had to hold in her laughter.

In an effort to make themselves less tailable, Megan and April had traded their school uniforms for jumpsuits from the National Park Service maintenance staff.

Anna had fallen down the stairs at the National Gallery, so she had to sit with her ice-packed ankle propped on the seat next to her.

Elena and Bonnie, both with towels around their shoulders, huddled together. Apparently they had fallen into the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

Even Kat had picked up a tail leaving the Metro station and wasn't able to make it to the museum on time.

So that's why the senior CoveOps class from the Mystic Falls Academy for Exceptional Young Women sat in silence, watching as the Washington Monument faded into the dark night while the helicopter rose, carrying them home.

Caroline played with her ring as she thought- about Klaus.

He wasn't much older than her- maybe even her same age. And he was trained. Like her.

That begged the question- was the Mystic Falls Academy the only school for young spies in the world? How many more were there? And the question that bothered Caroline the most- were they better?

Anna had been talking about an all-boys spy school for years. But Anna was the school gossip, and people had learned to tune her out most of the time.

Caroline felt the helicopter touch down and watched as the grass below them swayed in the night under the force of the turbulence.

Mr. Saltzman reached for the door but paused and looked back at each and every one of them.

"Today I asked you to do something that maybe fifty people in the world can do," he said. Caroline looked down as he added the last part, still a little embarrassed. "By the end of the year, there had better be sixty-two."


Caroline pulled on a pair of pajama pants and a tank top, grabbing her towel and turning off the light as she left the bathroom. She sat on her bed, brushing out the knots in her wet hair as she looked around at her roommates.

Elena laying in bed, her laptop on her knees, Bonnie was sitting in what looked like a rather uncomfortable position, immersed in a book, and Kat was sitting at her desk, painting her nails a deep shade of red.

They all seemed so focused that Caroline didn't expect them to look up when she spoke.

"I know what White Oak is," she said, and all their heads snapped up at the same time.

Of course they would be paying attention, they were spies in training, practically real spies already.

"Well, what is it?" Kat said. She looked kind of funny with her hair in rollers but no one was going to tell her that.

"I think it's a school…for spies." Caroline said carefully, gauging their reactions.

"You mean like this school?" Elena asked and Caroline caught the "No duh" look that Katerina threw her.

"Well, not exactly. I think it's a school for boy spies." Bonnie put down her book and turned so that she was facing Caroline completely. Elena shut her laptop and sat up straight. Kat capped her nail polish and turned in her chair.

"Spill," Katerina said.

So Caroline did. She talked about Klaus and how he had been in the elevator at the Metro station, how he had walked her halfway to the museum before she shooed him off, and how he had appeared out of the shadows at the slipper exhibit.

"So was he as cute close up as he was thirty feet away?" Katerina asked, the look on her face telling them that it was a genuine question.

"He was…" Caroline trailed off. He was cute, actually more than cute, he was hot. "...okay," she finished lamely. Kat didn't say anything but a small knowing smile spread over her lips as she nodded.

"Wait, wait, wait," Bonnie said, holding up her hands. "How okay are we talking here? Like baby face cute okay or ruggedly handsome okay?"

Caroline looked at her in disbelief, but Kat was the one who answered. "Ruggedly handsome, definitely. And you should have seen his friend."

"He had a friend?" Bonnie said, her eyes wide.

"Okay, so," Elena started, interrupting the hormone-fest. "How do you know that White Oak is a school for male spies? Did Klaus or Mr. Saltzman tell you anything?"

Caroline shook her head. "I just feel it, you know. It's a hunch."

That night, Caroline didn't sleep again.

She looked over at her alarm clock, but it wasn't necessary because she already knew that it was 3:56 a.m. She sighed and sat up, slipping her feet into a pair of tennis shoes and carefully making her way to the door.

She walked through the corridor which would have been completely blacked out if it weren't for the moonlight coming in through the window at the far end. She walked down the steps that lead all the way to the first floor, not knowing exactly where she was going.

Well, that was a lie. She knew where she was going. She made a left as she got to the first floor and made her way over to the East wing.

The sound of steps on the stairs made her turn around quickly. A beam of light landed on her face and she covered her eyes, looking at the three figures that stood at the second floor landing.

"You didn't think we'd let you go without us, did you?" Elena said. She turned off the flashlight and Caroline's vision adjusted. She could see Bonnie smiling, her trusty lock picking kit in her hand.

So that was how Caroline ended up watching as Bonnie fiddled with the lock on the East wing's doors while Elena and Kat kept watch.

"Got it!" Bonnie said thirty seconds later, her own personal record. She turned the knob and pushed the door open. Caroline grabbed the flashlight and stepped through the doors first.

She moved the beam around the room, scanning everything in sight. The hallway looked the same, the classrooms even looked the same. When she reached the end of the hallway, she started up the stairs; Kat, Bonnie and Elena close behind.

There was something different about the second floor.

Caroling shone the light down the corridor, looking at what used to a a hallway but now just looked like one large…

"A common room?" Kat said from behind her.

They continued down the hallway slowly. All the classroom door were closed and Caroline heard Bonnie and Elena begin to wander around behind her, opening doors.

"Caroline?" She heard Bonnie call out behind her. "You should check this out."

But Caroline had her hand on a classroom doorknob. She turned it and pushed the door open, shining the light inside.

Instead of desks there were two beds, two desks, and two wardrobes. She walked out of the room and moved on to the next one- instead of a classroom there was a bathroom.

Caroline frowned as she walked out, meeting her three roommates in the hallway, all of them wearing a similar expression.

"They look like…" Elena started but trailed off. "Suites?" she said, her genius mind trying to wrap itself around such a simple fact.

The air smelled of saw dust and fresh paint as Bonnie said "You know what this means?"

There was only one thing it could mean.

"Boys," Kat said looking around. "Boys are coming to the academy."

"Yeah," Caroline said, unable to stop the smile from spreading over her lips. "And we're going to get a rematch."


It was a week after the CoveOps assignment that Caroline made her friends swear they would never speak of again. A week after Caroline, Bonnie, Katerina and Elena had gone into the East wing at four in the morning and confirmed their suspicions that White Oak may be a school for male spies in training.

A week where nothing had happened.

Caroline sat on her bed, tying her shoes. When she was done, she stood up and grabbed her bag, slinging it over her shoulder and making her way over to the door. She stopped, checking her appearance in the mirror that hung on the back of the door.

She had woken up early to curl her hair and had tied back her bangs, letting her curls cascade over her shoulders. Since the day was only mildly fresh, she had settled on a white long sleeve cotton blouse that bore the Mystic Falls Academy emblem on the left breast. She wore the uniform red plaid skirt and a pair of black boating shoes.

She hitched her bag further on her shoulder before pulling the door open, making her way to the dining room. She could smell the scrambled eggs and bacon as she bounded down the stairs.

When she reached the dining room she looked around, watching as the entire student body sat and talked over a well prepared meal (it was rumored that the Academy had a retired Iron Chef in the kitchen).

She went to the buffet table and grabbed a plate of scrambled eggs, bacon and toast before making her way over to the senior table.

The dining room consisted of seven long tables, one of which was reserved for the teachers and staff. The other six were for the seven through twelve graders, respectively.

Caroline sat down between Bonnie and Anna, slipping into conversation with Elena and Kat in no time.

She was reaching for an orange off the plate of fruits that had been placed at the center of the table when she saw her mother standing up at the teachers and staff table. That was usually the signal for everyone to quiet down, so about ten seconds later, the entire dining hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

"Excuse me, ladies, but I have an announcement to make," her mother's voice rang through the room, clear and strong.

The back doors swung open.

Forks dropped, heads turned, and Caroline caught Bonnie picking up April Young's jaw off the floor.

They all stared as a group of boys started coming down the center corridor- the space between the ninth grader's table and the tenth grader's table. The only ones who probably weren't surprised were Caroline, Bonnie, Elena and Katerina. But that didn't stop them from staring.

Boys were looking at them. Boys were walking towards them. Boys were in the Academy!

Caroline knew the day would come, she just didn't know when.

"The Mystic Falls Academy has a proud history…" Elizabeth started, but Caroline was sure no one was listening. "For more than a hundred years, this institution has remained secluded, but last week, some of your classmates were able to meet another set of exceptional students from another exceptional institution. Members of the Mystic Falls trustees, along with the board of directors from the White Oak Institute, have long thought that that our students would have a lot to learn from each other."

Elizabeth Forbes was smiling. She brushed her short blonde hair behind her ear and looked across the massive room. "And this year we're going to see it happen."

Anna looked like she was about to pass out; Megan was holding her mug between the table and her mouth.

"When Katherine Pierce was a girl, this hall had been home to balls and cotillions, friends and family, but it hasn't had many guests in the past century," Liz said. "I'm so glad today is an exception."

Then for the first time, Caroline noticed that the boys weren't alone. There was a man ushering them to the front of the room. He had short blonde hair and a pretty sturdy build.

"It is my pleasure to introduce Dr. Wes Maxfield…" Liz started, but trailed off as the blonde man walked behind the staff table and tilted the microphone toward his mouth, and said, "Dr. Wes."

"Excuse me?" Caroline's watched as her mother looked over at the man now standing next to her.

"Call me Dr. Wes," he said and waved at the girls.

"Of course," Liz told him, the turned to the room again. "Dr. Wes and his students will be spending the rest of the semester with us, and depending on how things go, possibly the whole year."

A low chorus of whispers grew inside the hall, but the headmistress continued. "They will be attending your classes, eating with you at meals." Sleeping in the East Wing, Caroline thought.

"Ladies, this is a wonderful opportunity," Liz said and Caroline knew she was about to wrap it up. "And I hope you will use this as a chance to forge bonds of friendship that you can carry throughout your lives."

"I wouldn't mind forging a bond with him," Caroline heard someone say at the end of the table. She looked up at the boy they were gesturing to. A boy with sandy curls and broad shoulders.

A boy who crossed his arms and leaned against the head table.

A boy who was smirking right at Caroline.


Caroline sat in class, not really paying attention as she played with the corner of one of her notebook papers. She didn't need to look around to know that every girl's eyes were shifting around, not really paying attention to the lecture.

Elena was looking around, Bonnie was twirling her pen around her index and middle finger while Kat tapped her foot rapidly on the floor.

Someone knocked on the classroom door and every girl in the room jumped up, unconsciously flattening their skirts and fixing their hair. Caroline sat back, straightening her feet out in front of her, crossing her ankles.

As she thought, Dr. Wes came in, a procession of boys behind him.

"Good morning, ladies," Dr. Wes said with a smile, and Caroline couldn't disagree more.

"How can I help you, Dr. Wes?" The teacher said, seeming rather annoyed that their lecture was being interrupted.

"I was just taking the boys to their classrooms. They'll have to find guides for their first couple of weeks here," Dr. Wes said, rubbing his hands together excitedly.

Every girl in the room perked up- except Caroline. She stayed back in her seat, hoping that a certain boy with a British accent didn't notice her.

"If they must," the teacher said and then sat back at his desk, waiting for the boys to introduce themselves.

Dr. Wes gestured for them to go ahead, the first one stepping forward being one that had rather large hair.

"Hi, I'm Stefan," the boy said with a wave. He looked around the classroom for a second before going to grab an extra chair and taking it over to where Elena was seated, sitting down next to her desk. Caroline watched as Elena smiled at Stefan and they shook hands.

"I'm Kol," the next one said. He had dark, messy hair. Not the type of messy that you get from waking up in the morning, but the intentional messy. He followed Stefan's lead, grabbing a chair and sitting down next to Bonnie's desk.

"My name is Elijah," the next one said, sounding rather proper and English. He grabbed a chair and sat down next to Kat. Katerina immediately flipped her dark curls over her shoulder and offered a smile. Caroline couldn't help but raise her eyebrows- was this how life was going to be from now on?

"Klaus," the last one said. Caroline didn't look up and she prayed he didn't do what she thought he was going to do.

But he did.

She looked up at him as he placed his chair next to her and smirked as he sat down. "And I think I've found my guide."

Caroline rolled her eyes, not caring if he saw.

Dr. Wes smiled. "Excellent. Well, I'll be on my way," he said, and excused himself from class.

The teacher stood up again and began lecturing on the manufacturing of poisons, but Caroline still wasn't paying attention. She could smell the same cologne on Klaus he had worn the week before. She took in his attire, noticing he was wearing black pants and a white Henley.

To her left, she could see Elijah wore black slacks and a white button down shirt (what was it with that guy and slacks?). They seemed to all have black plants and a white shirt- maybe their version of the Mystic Falls Academy uniform.

Caroline suddenly became very aware of how short her skirt was, leaving her completely legs exposed.

When the bell rung, Caroline closed her notebook and went to get her bag, only to find that Klaus had already picked it up. He had stood up from his chair and pushed it aside so that it wouldn't block her path. And had picked up her bag.

"Thanks," Caroline said, stuffing her pencil pouch and notebooks in her bag before slinging the strap over her shoulder.

"So we meet again," he lilted in his British accent and Caroline really just wanted to punch him.

Her violent thoughts were probably due to the embarrassment she felt when she saw him again. She had to give it to him- he was good. He had used her lack of knowledge against her when completing his mission the week before.

She had thought he was just a boy, just like she expected him to think she was just an ordinary girl.

She didn't hate him, she just didn't like losing.

So maybe that was the reason why she just rolled her eyes and didn't reply to his statement.

He smirked, opening the door for her. They walked out into the hallways and instantly the crowd of girls (and now some guys) pushed up against them from all directions. Caroline glanced momentarily a Klaus, already planning on ditching him.

But then she remembered that she was his guide, and she would have to stay with him whether she liked it or not.

From the corner of her eye she could see Klaus looking around, surveying the stone walls and ancient pillars surrounding them. "So this is the famous Mystic Falls Academy?"

"Yes," Caroline said politely. "This is the second floor of the south wing. Most of the senior classes are down this hall."

But Klaus wasn't listening. He was too busy staring- at her. 'And you're…" he started slowly. "...the famous Caroline Forbes."

Caroline looked at him and narrowed her eyes- how did he know her name? She had never told him her name.

He was looking at her with that glint in his eyes, the one she had seen the day at the museum. Tyler had used to look at her like he wanted to kiss her or take her to bed or get a psychiatrist to study her- all of which Caroline prefered to the look Klaus was giving her now. It was a cross between curiosity and smugness, like he knew something she didn't.

"Come on," Caroline mumbled after what seemed like a very long time. "Culture and Assimilation is on the first floor."

"Whoa," he stopped suddenly. "Did you just say you were taking me to culture class?" He asked, a mocking smile on his lips.

"Yes," Caroline said, grabbing his arm and pulling him along. Everyone was staring.

She let go of his arm when the reached the staircase. "Boy, when they say you've got the toughest curriculum in the world...they mean it." But it didn't take a genius to know that he didn't mean it.

"Culture and Assimilation has been part of the Mystic Falls Academy curriculum for over one hundred years, Klaus." They reached the tea room and Caroline turned.

"We're trained to blend into any culture- any environment. Assimilation isn't just a matter of social graces." She put her hand on the door and began pushing it open as she spoke. 'It's a matter of life and death."

The condescending look had just started to slip from Klaus's face when gentle strains of music came floating out from the tea room. Caroline heard Madame Sommer's voice. "Today, ladies and gentlemen, we will be studying the art… of dance!"

Caroline felt Klaus right behind her, his breath warm against her ear as he spoke. "Yeah… Life. And . Death."

Caroline stepped into the room, remembering to keep her poise and posture when in the presence of Madame Sommers.

The silk curtains had been pushed aside so that sunlight streamed into the room. The tables were draped with linen cloths and a vase of fresh orchids sat atop the center of each table.

Madame Sommers wore a flowy blue skirt, walking between tables, a gleaming smile across her face. "I have been saving this class for the arrival of our very special guests."

"Did you hear that?" Klaus whispered next to Caroline. "I'm special." He smirked.

"I don't-" Caroline started but was interrupted by Madame Sommers. "Oh Caroline, dear, would you and your friend like to demonstrate for the rest of the class?"

What she wanted to do was disappear, but how could she when Madame Sommers grabbed both of their hands and began pulling them to the center of the floor.

"You must be Niklaus Mikaelson," Madame Sommers said.

"Call me Klaus," he responded politely.

"Klaus,' she corrected. "Welcome to the Mystic Falls Academy. Now I must ask that you place your hand on Caroline's lower back."

Klaus smirked, sliding his arm around Caroline's waist. She wanted to wipe that smirk off his face.

She looked away from him as the music in the room got a little louder. She looked around the room, finding that Bonnie, Elena and Kat already had their dance partners.

Elena was smiling at Stefan like Caroline had never seen her, and Kat flipped her hair over her shoulder as Elijah slipped his arms around her waist.

Caroline saw that Anna also had a male partner.

"Alright now, girls, place one hand on your partner's shoulder- yes, yes some of you will have to take turns being the boy." Caroline placed her right hand on Klaus's shoulder and he held out his other hand, which she slipped her left hand into.

"Let the gentlemen lead, ladies," Caroline heard Madame Sommers instructing and soon Klaus started taking a step, and she was following his lead.

Her back was straight, her arms were stiff and she was practically holding her breath. It wasn't as if she hadn't danced with a boy before. But dancing with Klaus was...different.

"Hold your partners tightly," Madame Sommers said, standing right next to Caroline and Klaus. She placed one hand on each of their backs before pressing them closer together.

Caroline gasped slightly at the proximity. Klaus's face was a breath away from hers, their noses almost touching.

She was caught in his eyes again, two deep pools of crystal blue. She could sense that they had started moving again, dancing across the room, but their eyes never left each other.

He was taking in all her features- her milky white complexion, her pink lips, her blond curls that framed her delicate face. But one thing he kept coming back to were her eyes- her emerald green eyes that sparkled in the soft morning sunlight.

He kept his hand pressed into her lower back, giving a gentle tug and pulling her closer to his body.

Caroline adjusted her grip on his shoulder as he tightened his grasp on her. They were in their own world, the only external factor that penetrated their little bubble was the music, guiding their steps.

Caroline trusted klaus to lead and he didn't disappoint, , leading her across the dance floor with ease.

Klaus enjoyed how Caroline matched his steps, remembering how she had proven herself a worthy opponent the week before. She hadn't left one comment unanswered, not one point unrefuted. She had a fire in those green eyes he hadn't seen in anyone in his life.

They both became very aware that the music was fading, ending. If she had been a normal girl and not an operative in training, Caroline probably wouldn't have noticed how the music had been winding to close.

"Very good, very very good." Madame Sommers clapped and Caroline and Klaus let go of each other, joining in and clapping with the rest of the class.

Caroline looked away from Klaus, looking around the room again to all her classmates who were giggling and smiling.

She looked at Klaus who was clapping, but looking right at her. he wasn't smirking or looking at her condescendingly, he was just studying her, like he had been when they were in each other's arms.

Madame Sommers clapped her hands once more before asking everyone to find a seat. Caroline would have been ecstatic to get to sit down and not have to look at Klaus anymore, but he sat down right next to her.

That's right, Caroline thought, I'm his guide.

She didn't look at him the entire class, ignoring the way that he smirked as she crossed her ankles and kept her hands on her lap and her posture straight.

"Lighten up, Forbes," he leaned in and whispered after twenty minutes of class had passed. Caroline just rolled her eyes and was about to let out a very unlady like snort when Madame Sommers passed by their table, giving them the 'be quiet' look.

This was going to be a long year.


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And happy belated two years of Klaroline!

And TO was so good tonight like omg.

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