Thank you for the reviews on the previous chapter! I really do love reading them!

CHAPTER 4

When Caroline woke up the next morning she was confused for a few seconds because she was in an unfamiliar room. But then the events of the night before came rushing back to her and she knew she was at Klaus' mansion.

She tossed the blanket off her body and scooted to the edge of the large bed so she could slide out. She hoped she would be able to sneak out of the house unnoticed but since there were at least two Original vampires living here that was very unlikely. She reached the grand staircase without seeing anyone. It was a beautiful mansion; Caroline admired it very much, it looked quite different when there wasn't a fancy ball being thrown. Caroline headed towards the front door but stopped short when Klaus appeared in front of her.

"Good morning, Love. How are you feeling this morning?" His face didn't hold the usual cockiness or smugness He was completely serious and completely honest in showing concern for her.

Caroline was going to give a sarcastic answer but something in her told her not to when she heard the concern in his voice. "I'm fine." She said with a very small smile. "Thank you for helping me last night. I didn't know where else to go." She said quietly.

"Of course, Sweetheart."

Silence fell over them for a few moments before Caroline sighed. "I should go."

"Of course. May I offer you a ride home?"

Caroline's first instinct was of course to say 'no' and walk home but it was on the other side of town and she wasn't too big of a fan of using her vamp speed right after waking up and she was still not back up to her full strength from the bite. "If you don't mind." She said as she tried her best to convince herself that she was accepting his offer for a ride home just because she was not one hundred percent back to normal yet.

Caroline and Klaus walked outside to his car. He opened the door for her then once she was inside he closed it behind her. He pulled up to the front of her house and turned to look at her. More than anything he wanted to ask her if she would attend the decade dance with him but he didn't want to mess up the civil morning they seemed to be having.

"Rebekah is forcing me to go to the awful dance this evening. So, I guess I will see you later tonight." She nodded and opened her door. Just before she got out she was stopped at the sound of Klaus' voice again. "Be careful." He said then handed her a piece of paper. "Call, if you get into anymore trouble."

"Thanks." She said softly. She took the paper and went inside.

Caroline went directly to her room and collapsed on her bed. She held up the paper that Klaus handed her just moments ago and stared at the seven numbers he had beautifully written on it. She sighed and grabbed her phone to program the number in it.

It was an hour and a half before the dance and Caroline hadn't even begun to get ready yet. She was sitting at her kitchen table nursing a blood bag for the past twenty minutes. She sighed and decided that she should probably start to get ready. She had already taken a shower so she grabbed a dress from her closet that she luckily had from a few Halloweens ago since she had no time to shop since the theme was changed.

Caroline dressed quickly then pinned her hair up and did her makeup. She looked in her full length mirror; she wasn't completely thrilled with her red flapper dress but she really didn't have a choice. She looked at her cute blue flowered dress she had purchased months ago for the dance, when it was supposed to be the seventy's. Part of her felt foolish to be upset about something like a high school dance but the girly Caroline part, the part she so desperately tried to hide did care and was upset about it. Caroline grabbed her car keys and headed to the decade dance.

Caroline had to admit the gymnasium was nicely decorated and she decided then and there that she was going to at least try to have a fun time. She spotted Elena dancing with Stefan and Bonnie dancing with Jamie. Caroline headed to the refreshment table to grab a glass of the usual fruit punch they served.

"Hey, Care." His voice went right through her and she immediately felt scared.

Caroline turned around to spot Tyler just a couple feet from her. "What do you want?" she asked.

"I want to apologize. I am sorry, I don't know what happened…"

Caroline decided that she didn't want to hear his lame ass apology so she cut him off before he had a chance to finish. "Don't." She said holding up her hand. "I don't care what you have to say Tyler."

Tyler grabbed her arm and began to pull her towards him. "Just come talk to me for a few minutes." He said

"Stop." She said as she tried to pull free from his grasp but was unsuccessful.

"I suggest you release her arm." Tyler turned around but did not release my arm and I looked up. Klaus was standing behind Tyler with the most serious look on his face that I had ever seen. "I said…" Klaus placed his hand on Tyler's arm and pulled him away from me. "…to release her."

"Don't touch me!" Tyler said.

Klaus took another step towards Tyler so he was right in his face now. "The next time you lay a hand on her I will rip your heart from your body."

Caroline's eyes darted back in forth between the two hybrids that stood before her. She was slightly nervous that a huge battle was about to break out. Tyler finally walked away and Caroline let out a small breath of relief.

"Are you alright, Sweetheart?" Klaus asked after a few moments.

"I'm fine." Caroline said before she walked away without another word. She knew he was just trying to help and look out for her but it was all just too much. He wasn't a good person, and she couldn't be anything remotely close to friends with him.

The dance was coming to an end. Klaus wanted at least one dance with her so he walked over to where she was standing. "Caroline, may I have the honor of dancing with you?" Klaus asked as he held his hand out to her and smiled.

"Sure." Caroline said. She surprised herself with how quickly she accepted his invitation.

Caroline let Klaus lead her to the center of the dance floor. Klaus placed one hand on her back and held her hand in his other. They swayed to the music without saying a word. A new song started and they continued to dance.

"You would have loved the nineteen twenties, Caroline." He said with a smile on his face as he recalled his favorite decade; well his favorite since he met the beautiful women he was dancing with. "They were reckless…sexy." The way that Klaus said the word sexy made a small shiver run through Caroline's body which was something she had never felt as a vampire.

"Well obviously you enjoyed the decade, from how you speak about it anyway." Caroline tried not to meet his eyes, much like the first dance they shared but it was difficult and her eyes did slip a few times and gazed into his.

Klaus smiled. They were actually having a civil conversation…sober, and he was unbelievably pleased by that. "I enjoyed the decade very much."

The music ended and within a few minutes people began to leave. Before Klaus or Caroline could say anything Damon came walking over to them.

"Your mother is back." He said looking at Klaus. "She took Elena and we are trapped here."

"What are you talking about?" Klaus asked turning more towards Damon.

"She placed some barrier spell on the school. All vampires are stuck." He paused and gave Caroline a strange look, probably confused as to why she was hanging around Klaus. "We have Bonnie working on a reversal in the other room."

Damon walked out of the gymnasium. Caroline saw Tyler on the other side of the gym, it wasn't that she was really scared of him but when he was angry she knew he couldn't control his temper and that scared her. Caroline went with Klaus to one of the classrooms where Bonnie was working on the spell.

Bonnie was behind a desk covered with candles, her eyes were closed and she was chanting. Jamie was beside her, Stefan was by the door when we walked in and Matt was beside him. Damon walked in a few minutes later with Jeremy.

"People are leaving." Jeremy said. "I think Matt and I should go and find Elena, we can't sit and wait for the spell to be broken…it may be too late."

"Esther will kill you both without blinking." Stefan said showing no emotion.

"We don't have a choice. I won't sit around and do nothing while my sister is in danger." Jeremy said seriously. He walked over to the desk Bonnie was behind. "Can you find out where she is?"

Bonnie nodded. "Get a map." She said simply. Bonnie took some blood from Jeremy and continued with the tracking spell. "Here." Bonnie said.

Jeremy and Matt both looked at the map. "The cemetery?" Jeremy said.

Klaus dropped his head and slightly shook it before letting out a fake laugh. "I know where she is." Everyone turned to look at Klaus. "She will be at the Salvatore tomb."

"How do you…" Jeremy started.

"I just know." He said angrily.

Matt and Jeremy left, no one really agreed with them that they should go but they wouldn't just sit around while Elena was in trouble and they were the only ones that could go to her. Klaus had left the room, no one seemed to notice he was gone so about ten minutes later Caroline wandered out also and found him outside standing near the boundary line.

"Bonnie is still having trouble with the boundary spell." Caroline said quietly as she walked up to him. She was not sure why she was even out here, why had she left a room filled with her friends to come out and talk to the person they were trying to kill.

"She won't be able to break it until Esther wants her to." He said without looking at her. Caroline looked over to him with a confused face but before she could say anything to him he looked at her with his beautiful eyes. "She is drawing power from the spot where I killed her. Bonnie is not powerful enough to break any magic she is using."

Meanwhile at the Salvatore tomb Esther was busy at work making Alaric into a super vampire killer; by of course using Elena's blood. Matt and Jeremy showed up to try their best to save Elena, or at least distract Esther long enough to divert her plan and for the others to show up and rescue her. They weren't there a minute before Esther figured out she had company. Before she could hurt either Matt or Jeremy Alaric came up behind Esther and killed her.

Alaric looked down at his bare finger. He was confused as to why he wasn't wearing his ring since he could have sworn Esther had killed him earlier. "What happened?" He asked looking into Elena's tear filled eyes.

"Esther…she..." Elena paused and took a breath in trying to calm herself. "You're in transition."

Alaric stood in shock. He didn't even know what to think. He stared at Elena for a few moments longer then looked at Jeremy and Matt who looked almost as shocked as he was.

Back at the high school Klaus and Caroline were still standing outside when Bonnie came running outside. "It's done. The spell is broken." She said.

Stefan and Damon came running out soon after and ran at vamp speed to the Salvatore tomb. Caroline's phone began to ring and she reached into her purse to grab it.

"Hello?"

"Hey Care." Elena said holding back the tears that were building up in her eyes.

"Elena! Oh my god! Are you OK? What happened?"

"I'm fine." She took a breath in. "It's Alaric. Esther wanted to turn him into a vampire so he could kill the Originals. He isn't going to go through with the transition though."

Caroline felt numb. They had all lost people but this was the first time they were losing someone in their little group. "I'll be right there." She said immediately before hanging up the phone.

When Caroline arrived at the Salvatore tomb everyone was there. We all stood outside the tomb, Alaric was inside saying goodbye to Jeremy and Elena. Klaus showed up a few minutes after I did and stood in front of us all.

"I know what my mother tried to do to your friend." He said.

"He isn't going to turn." Stefan said.

"Well, forgive me if I don't want to take that chance."

"Klaus, please." Stefan said sternly. "Everyone here is about to lose someone very close to us. The least you can do is let him die with dignity."

Klaus looked around at us all and Caroline gave him a small pleading look. He walked over to Stefan so he was right in his face. "I better not come to regret this, Stefan." He grabbed Esther's body off the ground by the tomb's entrance and took off.

Alaric came outside after Elena and looked at each of us. I felt my heart breaking; besides seeing my dad pass this was the saddest experience I have ever had. Elena and Jeremy have lost so many loved ones. Elena has lost every parent she has ever known now. Part of her even felt bad for Damon; she knew how close their friendship had become.

Alaric gave us all a small nod to say thank you for being with him during his last hours. He turned and walked inside the tomb closing the door. We all stood around in silence for a while; before leaving. Damon refused to leave he was determined to stay until the end.

Hope you enjoyed Chapter 4! Please hit the lovely blue button below and send me a review! THANKS FOR READING!

I did my best with the Alaric scene…I really hated writing it because I still get teary eyed thinking about it…it was the worst TV character deaths I have experienced!