Chapter 4

Caroline had flashed to the quarry and jumped in to get the hunter's blood off of her before she went and tracked down a deer; not wanting to mix the hunter's blood with the deer's when she cut into it. She had used her vampire speed to cut all the meat away from the deer and placed it in the kitchen sink until she could start a fire to burn the carcass. Then she went about washing off the different pieces of meat and either putting them in a marinating baste to soak or wrapping them up to go in the freezer. Counting off how many people she would likely have to cook for she started baking the meat in baking pans with more spices on low so she would have time to get her shower in. When she came out of the kitchen she saw everyone in the living room and warned them to stay out of the kitchen before going up to the guestroom to gather her clothes and get her shower. Once again using her vampire speed her shower didn't last but a minute and she was attempting to dry her hair when she heard a knock at the door; seeing it open to reveal Stefan so she motioned for him to come in.

"Why did you look like a drowned rat when you came out of there?" Stefan asked and she turned her hair dryer back on.

"Didn't want to mix the hunters blood with dinner by accident so I kind of went swimming." She eluded with a small smile. "It'll be a while so do you think you can keep everyone from killing each other while I make dinner?"

"I can try." Stefan said nervously and she thought she'd cheer him up.

"You know you're my favorite, right?" She asked with a bigger smile and they heard Damon shout from down below since she had said it loud enough for him to hear.

"I HEARD THAT!" Damon shouted and she and Stefan laughed.

"GOOD!" Caroline shouted back and they heard him mumble before his footsteps could be heard on the stairs. She turned off the hairdryer and ran the brush through her hair as the door opened and Damon stepped in.

"And why is Stefan your favorite? I'm the fun one." Damon spoke; feigning hurt feelings as he waved a hand over himself.

"You're both fun… but you Damon like to be an ass and you do things that you know get me mad." Caroline replied and he laughed before throwing his arms out.

"That's what nephews do Blondie…" He said as if it was obvious.

"And you wonder why I always break one of your bones when I see you? Get downstairs and stalk the doppelganger." She said playfully and made a shooing motion with her hand as Stefan tried to keep from laughing. Regardless Damon gave a smirk before flashing out of there and they heard Elena yell his name before they heard a slap. "Better go down and mediate Stef… I feel the urge to snap some necks." She said and he chuckled before flashing downstairs. She finished getting ready walking at a human pace back to the kitchen; ignoring the stares they were all giving her.

She took her time checking each piece of meat as she flipped it over before moving over to the counter to start preparing the vegetables. She loaded her iPod into the dock she saw and let her music fill the kitchen to try and block out some of the noise coming from the other room. Remembering there would be humans eating with them she stepped back out to ask if any of them had allergies; finding out none of them had any food allergies she went back to the kitchen. She cranked the music up a little louder as she let her movements fall into rhythm with the music until she had the potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic cloves, and cabbage ready to go into the different stock pots she had pulled out. Dividing all of the ingredients up she poured them into the stock pots to wait on the meat to finish so she could use the broth that had been created in the baking pans to further flavor the rest.

When the meat was finally finished she drained all the broth into the stock pots, adding water and more spices, before cutting the meat up further and adding it. She knew it would be at least another hour at least before it was done so she went out to the dining room and started setting it up. She could see everyone out of the corner of her eye but ignored them until she saw Stefan come into the room to help her set up. She felt a little nervous around him since he had seen her kill the hunter; she had always made sure neither him nor Damon ever saw her make a kill. He seemed to understand though because he walked over and put a hand on her shoulder to give her a gentle squeeze. She gave him a small smile in return as she placed the last plate down.

"Are you really alright Care?" Stefan asked quietly.

"Yeah Stef… I'm more worried about you. You're not exactly squeamish when it comes to that sort of stuff…" She replied as she grabbed the silverware and started placing them.

"I think it was more shock than anything… but I understand why you didn't ever want us to see that; you thought it would change how we saw you." He said knowingly.

"Doesn't it?" She asked sadly as she stopped to look at him. "All you've seen is what I've chosen to show you… and the part of me you saw today; that isn't going to go away."

"What about all the times you came to me or Damon and told us that you didn't see us any different or think any less of us when we were creating bloodbaths? You were there for us… not because you had to be, but because you wanted to be; and you reminded us of who we were." He replied and she put down the last of the silverware before walking over closer to him.

"Now when did you get so intuitive?" She asked jokingly since it usually WAS Stefan that could figure out she was feeling down about something.

"When my normally bubbly and neurotic aunt becomes the broody one I don't have to think too long to figure it out." He answered with a smile and she smiled back before pulling him into a hug. When she pulled back she messed with his hair with a smirk.

"And that's why you're my favorite." She whispered but Damon still heard her and he approached the dining room.

"Yes you're both broody… now how much longer do I have to play nice?" Damon spoke and gestured behind him towards the Mikaelsons.

"How about the rest of eternity?" Caroline replied sarcastically. "Seriously Damon… it's not that hard."

"They've been after Elena…" Damon started but Caroline cut him off.

"And now they won't be because she's a vampire… her blood is no longer an issue." She pointed out.

"It doesn't erase the fact that Jenna and Alaric are dead because of them." Damon cut in and Caroline moved over to him.

"No it doesn't… but if everyone is going to stay in this town then from here on out there has to be some kind of truce."

"And what happens when someone leaves town?" He asked and she could see he was already trying to figure a way out around the rules they hadn't even set yet.

"The truce stands… no matter where anyone is; but with everyone being here at the same time it's important to get started coming up with one." She answered and he huffed before she stepped back and told Stefan to go find some wine for dinner and then went to see how long the food would have before it was done; not really wanting to argue with anybody until at least after dinner. After stirring the pots she realized it would be a little while so she decided to go lay out some ground rules for dinner and get them started with thinking about a truce. So she went out to the living room and poured herself a drink from the bar. Bonnie and Rebekah came up to her and sat on either side and she could see Elena seething because her friend had come to talk to her. Suppressing her reaction she leaned back so she could see both of them; deciding it was better to discuss whatever they wanted before she spoke her mind. "Good job today… the hunter is gone. And you Bonnie, you have your magic back."

"Thanks by the way… and I hope it didn't hurt as bad as everyone says it did." Bonnie spoke up and Caroline took a drink before looking at the girl.

"Whoever releases the hunter abilities has to feel every kill that hunter ever made… I knew what I was in for; hence I said I would do it."

"You said you've done it before; how many times?" Rebekah asked and Caroline turned to look at her.

"More than a few… but I didn't kill all of them; not all of them were like the man today." She explained and poured another drink. "He was a killer before he was a hunter… he deserved worse than he got."

"Why did he keep asking what you were? He couldn't tell you were a vampire… and then you both mentioned another name…" Rebekah asked but Caroline cut her off.

"I'll explain that after dinner… all the serious conversations can wait until then or later. I know everyone wants to find out how everything connects, but establishing some kind of truce is what matters first. After that we'll cover one subject at a time."

"You always prioritized like crazy… it drove me mad sometimes." Rebekah answered with a smile as she looked in front of her, lost in memory before turning back to her. "But we were always close; friends and sisters. The same goes for Henrik though… he was the youngest; you were always watching over him. At the festivals you and I would dance with him the whole time so he wouldn't have to find a dance partner."

"That sounds like it was fun." Caroline replied as she looked down at her drink. "Although… it probably explains why I like dancing so much. When I hang out with Stefan or Damon I usually drag them out with me… or I go when I'm undercover and my friend Lissie tries to get me drunk." Caroline explained with a laugh.

"Oh good god… you didn't tell that girl you were coming here did you?" Damon asked in the background and Stefan cut in.

"Care… I cannot take her staring all the time… don't let her come here." Stefan begged and she laughed at the two of them.

"Guys… she got married."

"What?!" Both Stefan and Damon said in shock.

"Yeah… it was on my voicemail. The last job I did I didn't take anyone from work with me and I was gone for months; hence I didn't answer my phone. Anyway… she and Paul got married while I was gone."

"I thought that was just a casual sex thing?" Damon asked confused and Stefan started chanting 'thank god' as he went to his room.

"Well it was… but I guess after 50 years they decided to step it up."

"Didn't they skip a step in there?"

"A couple but it's not my business… they're not too happy that they have to quit doing field work and assignments now, but it's the rules."

"You have family… you do all that."

"I'm hard to kill… and since neither of you are involved in my line of work it's allowed." She explained and tossed her tumbler to Damon. "Now… I'm going to set a few ground rules. There will be no fighting or killing during dinner; and if you can't say something nice then don't say anything at all. This is the first vacation I've had in years and I'm not going to spend all of it breaking up fights. After dinner we can start coming up with a truce and further rules to follow but these are what everyone will follow today; if you don't like it then there's the door." She said and pointed towards the door as she looked around to make sure each person understood.

"What happens if someone breaks your rules?" Damon asked cockily and Caroline glared at him.

"Then I will handle it and I can guarantee that they are absent for the remainder of dinner." She replied as she walked up to him in warning. He nodded before going and taking a seat next to a glaring Elena. She rolled her eyes before walking back and making another drink. Bonnie looked over to her as she glanced back at Elena and then turned her attention back to Caroline.

"How do you do that?"

"Do what?" She asked seriously.

"Get Damon to shut up?" Bonnie replied really wanting to know.

"Easy… he knows I know witches… and the last time he got me angry I kind of retaliated; he couldn't get laid for a decade." She stated nonchalantly as she twirled the liquid in her glass and everyone looked at him as Bonnie and Rebekah laughed at him.

"That wasn't funny Blondie…"

"I thought it was… be glad I don't do that again over my car." She replied with her own laugh before getting serious again. "Seriously… you have cars of your own…"

"But Smokey is a chick magnet and a total guy's car." Damon replied.

"Smokey?" Rebekah asked and Caroline looked back at her.

"Yes I name my cars… Smokey is a Trans Am; like in Smokey and the Bandit."

"What?"

"It's a movie. I liked the car so I got one and it's still my favorite; hence I'm plotting revenge if I don't get it back."

"Oh come on… it's a guy's car… a muscle car should be driven by a guy."

"Not the point Damon… you have your own cars; plenty of them are muscle cars so leave mine alone." She said as she turned back to the nephew annoying her. "I've got to go check on dinner… it's probably at least close to done so everyone should go to the table and sit away from people that they fight with." She said and looked around before walking back into the kitchen. Stirring all the pots before checking them she was glad to find they were all done and pulled a dinner cart over to the stove to put the first couple pots on it. She was glad she had thought to make rolls to go with dinner and quickly mixed a salad together; pulling every salad dressing out of the refrigerator and putting it on the dinner cart. When she wheeled the cart into the dining room she saw everyone bickering over the seating arrangements and cleared her throat.

"Need help?" Stefan asked and she shook her head before crossing her arms and waiting on everyone to take a seat. She held up the salad first to see who wanted that and quickly dished out servings to those who did. When the salad was given out she placed all the dressings on the table and told Stefan to pass what was needed on to whoever asked for it. Seeing him listening she turned and got the serving bowl she had placed all the rolls in to hand to Stefan and telling him to start the line before telling everyone else to just pass it around while she was dipping out the stew. She didn't look at anyone in the face as she pushed the cart around and grabbed the soup bowls from each person; dipping out a full bowl each time and setting it in front of each person. When she was done she picked up the salad dressings and put them back on the cart before dipping out her own dinner and putting it at the place setting with an empty chair before pushing the cart over in the corner of the room in case someone wanted more.

"There's plenty more left in here and in the kitchen so eat as much as you want." She said as she took her seat and pulled her napkin out to cover her lap. "And before anyone asks… it's not poison nor is it all from the store so try it before asking what it actually is." She continued before taking a bite herself and watching as Stefan rubbed his hands together before digging in. She could hear the others either saying it was good or trying to guess what it was, but she ignored most of it since she was just ready to eat and go to bed; knowing the day wouldn't be over that easy.

"This kind of taste like deer meat." Matt spoke up as he looked nervously towards Caroline.

"Good guess… you would be correct." Caroline replied with a small smile, knowing the vampires would be aware but the humans would have had to guess.

"What?" Bonnie asked around a mouthful.

"Deer meat; a doe to be more specific. It has less of a wild game taste than a buck so I figured it would be better for all the humans here to have something that wasn't too overpowering in taste." Caroline supplied as she looked to Bonnie and Jeremy spoke up.

"Me and Matt eat it… I've tried to get Bonnie to try it but she wouldn't."

"I didn't say I didn't like it… I just thought it wouldn't taste good; but it actually does."

"Well there's 2 more stock pots in the kitchen plus the freezer has the parts I didn't use; feel free to help yourselves because it really doesn't take long to get one and clean it." Caroline offered as she looked at everyone again before going back to her meal.

"Okay quick question… I know we have to wait until after dinner to have serious conversations, but me and Blondie has a long-standing bet going and I want to know." Damon spoke up and looked over at the Mikaelsons. "How old was she when she became a vampire?"

"17… almost 18." Klaus answered and Damon started laughing.

"Pay up Blondie…" He insisted as he reached his hand out and she smacked it away.

"Give me my car and I will." She said before going back to eating.

"Oh it's priceless… you were 17… and married on top of that." Damon said around laughing and she huffed before glaring at him.

"Damon… not now. Just eat your food." She scolded and he pulled himself together before going back to eating.

"I actually have a good question for you Caroline." Elijah said and Caroline glanced in his direction for him to continue. "How come none of us could ever locate you with a locator spell?"

"I've had my location blocked since the day I woke up; I'm untraceable."

"Why?" Klaus asked and looked at her as she looked at him.

"Ayanna said it would be a good idea because of Mikael and Ester; even if she was dead. I mean she was able to possess Ayanna and take my memories away… she could have done something else if I was more easily found."

"Fair point sweetheart." He returned before going back to eating. He hadn't had her cooking in a thousand years but eating it now took him back to those days; and he wondered when his mother took her memories away. What bothered him the most was that he had wanted to go back and beg her to reconsider but he hadn't; and when he and his family had left he wanted to go back again but he hadn't. He wondered if his mother had taken away her memories and it was the reason she had not found him like she had said she would; or just changed her mind and left with them. "Where did you wake up?"

"In a meadow-like clearing above the falls." She answered and he dropped his spoon in his bowl. "What?"

"Do you remember what you were wearing when you woke up?" He asked as he stared at the food in front of him.

"A dress like every female wore back then…" She started to answer but he cut her off.

"What color?"

"Um…" She started but stopped to think back. "Dark blue… and the cloak was a lighter blue." She answered and he sat back in his chair; he wouldn't ever forget what she had worn the last time he'd seen her. "Why?"

"I was the last one to see you… you just described what you were wearing then." He answered before looking back to her. "So Mother would have had to get to you right after." He finished and she shrugged.

"I don't know… Ayanna said the spell took 3 days to get all my memories away." She added before looking around the table again. "I think this falls into the category of after-dinner discussions." She noted and went back to eating.

"Aren't you the least bit curious about yourself sweetheart?"

"Of course I'd like to have the first 'almost 18 years' explained; better yet I'd like to actually remember them, but I've had a thousand years to learn to be patient. There isn't a reversal spell to get my memories back… there are steps to take; steps that Ayanna couldn't tell me so she told me what she could and set me on a path to get them back. I may not know who I was then… but I know who I've become since then. And I know things that I wouldn't have known in my human days because it took centuries to find out; things that no one knows." She stated and looked around the table to see if anyone was going to argue against her or ask anything else. "So if everyone can please just stick to small talk right now… we can all fill in the gaps later." She stressed before going back to her food; she knew she wouldn't eat all of it but she still wanted to enjoy the first dinner she had with her nephews in years. And it lasted until Stefan got curious and looked her way.

"Hey Care… how many vampires have you made?" Stefan asked and everyone looked back to her so she decided to answer.

"None; the same as the last time you asked me."

"Why haven't you?"

"That is a complicated and multiple response answer Stef. One that I'll tell you one day but not today." She answered and picked up her bowl to take back to the kitchen; all appetite lost. She was grateful no one followed her as she dumped out the remains of her bowl before washing it out and putting in the dish drainer. When she went back out she could see a few people getting up for seconds so she went to pour herself a drink before retaking her seat. She could hear everyone else involved in idle chit chat so she kept quiet unless she was taking someone's dishes back to the kitchen; letting them get their own drinks if they wished for them. When they were waiting on the remaining humans to finish she felt her phone buzz and looked down to see it was Lissie calling so she excused herself to the living room.

"Hey… no work talk; I'm with my nephews." She answered and looked back to the table before pouring another drink and sitting at the bar.

"Okay…"

"Use case names or code names if it's important." She offered in case she needed to know something.

"Well I don't know how long you can take a break; maybe a few months if you're lucky." Lissie returned and she put her drink down and looked to see Stefan and Damon standing at the edge of the dining room eavesdropping.

"Why?" She asked as she made a shooing motion but they ignored her.

"The case Paul and I have been working on… well we've had a bit of luck; we found some possible locations and suspects."

"Case 105763921 is a priority case… we can't let these things get made; or released if they've already been made." She stressed since she had been impatiently waiting on any lead they could find for that particular case.

"I know girl… we've already got scouting missions sent out but they haven't found anything yet."

"Well keep me updated… email would probably be best since I'm likely to always have company around me while I'm here." She stated as she gave Stefan and Damon a look and Damon smirked in return.

"And how are your darling nephews?" She heard Lissie say and she smirked in their direction to see them back up a little and raise their hands in surrender.

"Pleased to hear that you got married." She teased as she walked towards them and they went to go back to their seats and she stood where they had been.

"Sorry I didn't give you any warning… we would have invited you but we just kind of eloped directly after an assignment."

"As long as he's good to you I won't kill him." She said nonchalantly since she didn't really like the guy but it wasn't her business.

"Well I'm gonna go… we've got to do some more research; I just thought I'd call and check in."

"You know you two are strange right? You're spending your honeymoon doing research and work; go enjoy yourselves." She said as she rolled her eyes and started throwing her free hand out to the side as if Lissie could see her point better if she did.

"We are enjoying ourselves…"

"Ew… do not be mixing work with pleasure Lissie. I mean it; other people have to handle those case files when you get done with them." Caroline replied as she scrunched up her face; still remembering the last time she had walked in on them going at it on top of all the case files.

"We'll try not to… but what happens happens."

"I'll talk to you later… be careful." She said still grossed out but worried about them as well; the case was one of the most dangerous they had worked on.

"We will… you too." She heard before she heard the click and she pulled her phone down in front of her to lock it back up.

"How do you tolerate that girl? She's crazy… and I know crazy." Damon spoke and Caroline rolled her eyes at him.

"Well after being friends for the past 3 centuries I think it's safe to say I'm used to it; besides it gives me more patience for you." She said sweetly before removing the rest of the dinner dishes and letting everyone know they could go find a seat in the other room and get some drinks while she cleaned everything up. Stefan tried to help her but she smacked his hand playfully and told him to leave it to her. He waited until she was out of the dining room to try and clean up a little but she came back out with a shriek. "STEFAN! You're messing with my O.C.D. Just go sit down and let me do this or it'll drive me crazy."

"Alright… fine… I just wanted to help you." He returned with a playful pout; he knew she would want to clean up by herself but she had already went through a lot with the hunter and then made them all dinner.

"You can help me by getting everyone situated in the other room; I've got this." She gave in slightly at his slight pout as she gestured to the room they were in. He nodded and went out to the living room to get everyone a drink that hadn't gotten one already for themselves. She quickly went through the dishes and wiped off the table; sweeping up once she had everything put up and looking around to make sure it was perfect before going to join everyone else with her own drink. She could see everyone had dividing themselves into two groups; with the Mikaelsons on one side and everyone else on the other she chose to sit at the bar between the two in case she had to stop another fight and so she could look at everyone when they spoke. "Okay so I think the first thing to do is come up with a truce; and for that I think each group should pick the most level-headed person from each side to speak together and come up with a sort of rough draft to discuss with everybody so alterations can be made if needed."

"There isn't a level-headed Original." Damon said sarcastically and she raised her eyebrows.

"I wasn't asking Damon… I've spent centuries making sure everyone in this room was alive; you can at least appreciate the fact that I'm still doing that." She stated and looked at him seriously.

"Well it's clear that Stefan is the most level-headed on our side." Bonnie said and everyone looked at her but she just shrugged her shoulders. "Plus one of the oldest… I think he'd represent all of us fairly." She explained further and Caroline watched as everyone but Damon and Elena agreed with Bonnie; which then led to an argument between Elena and Jeremy. While they were arguing she looked over to the Mikaelsons to see them watching with amusement so she cleared her throat and waved a hand in their direction to get their nomination. She knew it would be either Klaus or Elijah that decided to represent the siblings but she didn't know who it would be for sure; seeing them look between themselves before Elijah stood with a nod and she nodded in return before looking over at the doppelganger and Jeremy still arguing.

"Well at least one side could pick a person easily. Elena, do you have a problem with your boyfriend representing your group?" Caroline asked as she stood from her seat.

"My problem isn't with Stefan… it's that we don't want to have a truce; we want them gone." Elena replied as she gestured to the Mikaelsons.

"Elena… this truce is for whether or not everyone remains in the same town; with the majority of the people included being vampires, yourself included, it'll be an agreement that the fighting between the two groups stop permanently."

"And which side do you belong to?"

"I haven't picked sides because in all actuality there aren't sides anymore. And a little something for you to keep in mind; I was only told to protect the doppelganger line until the hybrid curse was broken… but since Stefan and Damon protect you then I do as well for them. I know you do not like the Mikaelsons whatsoever, but it would be best if you agreed to a truce because one day you will have to leave this town and I think you'd like to know they wouldn't come after you then; especially if you ever lost my nephews' protection." Caroline explained and looked between Elena, Damon, and Stefan before retaking her seat with another drink.

"And how are you so sure a truce between both groups would remain intact?" Elena asked as she crossed her arms at Caroline but she rolled her eyes in response.

"Because it would be bound in blood… and I would inflict the punishment for whoever broke it; and the torture I can give would make someone change their way of thinking." Caroline stated and Elena rolled her eyes that time so Caroline smirked and looked at Bonnie. "What do you say Bonnie? Do you think now's the time to do what Ayanna said; even a brief demonstration?"

"Are you going to hurt her?"

"I'm not going to lay a finger on her… I wouldn't have to." She stated and Bonnie looked between her friend and Caroline before speaking again.

"Would you kill her?"

"No… I wouldn't have bothered trying to get her to agree to a truce if I wanted her dead." She replied and Bonnie nodded while Stefan and Damon moved to stand in front of Elena. "Now boys… I haven't even moved from my seat. She wants to know what happens if the truce was violated and I think she should." She said before everyone heard Elena scream as she dropped to the floor. Stefan and Damon moved to try and help her while Bonnie put a hand on Jeremy and told him she wasn't really in pain; it was an illusion. Caroline didn't keep up her demonstration past a minute but Elena kept sobbing as the brothers helped her back to her seat before looking at Caroline.

"What did you do to her?" Damon asked and Stefan looked at her with the same question in mind.

"Made her think she was being tortured… it isn't really that hard."

"How did you do that?" Stefan asked and Caroline looked down for a second before looking back to them.

"I've been tortured countless times Stefan… all I did was make her feel a minute's worth; kind of like how vampires can influence dreams, but a little different. And once the truce is made… I expect it to be kept or I would do that for an hour; yet it would feel like years for the one I did it to." She explained and looked around the room so everyone could see the gravity of the situation. She could see the mixed looks of fear, surprise, and a little bit of awe but she ignored them as she poured another drink.

"Again… how did you do that?" Stefan asked and she looked at him sadly.

"Can't you see?" She asked and he stepped closer as she changed her face to let them see her vampire features; except instead of seeing black eyes they had a silver glow in them. When she made sure each person saw her she changed her face back and looked back to Stefan. "I'm not just a vampire." She hinted further and he stepped even closer, but Bonnie spoke up.

"She's a different kind of hybrid… a witch and a vampire." Bonnie explained as she stepped forward to explain what she had found out earlier. "It's how she's protected everyone all this time and it's the only reason we got rid of the hunter earlier; it wasn't just my magic doing the spell."