Hi :) Just wanted to say thank you to all of you who took the time to write a review. I'm so happy you're reading this story and I hope you're enjoying it a lot so far.


The conversation with Stefan went well. He wasn't angry with her. He was extremely concerned and worried about he safety. They'd never really had an argument before, but apologies were completely unnecessary. Caroline admitted to over reacting. Stefan promised to never snap her neck again. Then they laughed, joked around, and got along effortlessly like they always did.

According to Elena, Klaus had compelled a nurse to drop off some blood bags for them. They were all B positive, Caroline's favourite. But Stefan didn't comment. Like a gentleman he fetched her and Elena glasses and poured blood bags for them to drink. Everything was fine and dandy, until a few seconds later she and Elena were throwing the blood back up.

By that time, Rebekah and Matt were back. Rebekah volunteered to bring them some animal blood. The Originals had a stable full of horses on the far end of the estate property, but Caroline tried hard not to think about that. The horse blood was rich and tasted a lot better than bunny blood, but they couldn't keep it down either. They tried and tried again, all night long, but they still couldn't keep down a single drop. It was frustrating.

Matt offered that maybe she and Elena would have to drink straight from the vein, but Caroline wasn't having any of it. And Rebekah was vehemently against them drinking Matt's blood anyway. Human blood was human blood, whether from a blood bag or straight from the vein. But the last time Damon and Stefan fed, so did Elena. Elena said she had couple blood bags this morning and it stayed down. What had changed in a few short hours?

The witches on the other side were doing this. Making them suffer. It was the only explanation. They wanted she and Elena to be weakened, easy to kill. It was a hopeless situation they found themselves in. Caroline couldn't help but think about Bonnie. She knew Bonnie was still alive, the connection was still there. But unlike her and Elena, Bonnie was all alone. Who ever took her, could be hurting her right this second.

Things just kept getting worse. With a frustrated sigh, she went straight to bed, leaving them there. Only a few minutes passed before she found herself wrapped securely in Stefan's arms, resting her head on his chest. Caroline felt even more weak and exhausted than she had been before. Stefan gently stroked her hair, trying to comfort her, but it was futile attempt. Once again, she drifted off into a fitful night's sleep.


"You must be Caroline Forbes" a lovely melodious voice came from behind her. The accent was British like Klaus'. But had a hint of French?

Caroline startled, nearly dropping the bowl of pancake mix. She had snuck out of bed and busied herself making breakfast for Stefan. She was intent on finding some renewed confidence that everything was going to be okay. It had to be.

Turning around, Caroline saw Klaus' daughter standing at the entrance of the kitchen. Dressed in a long white lace nightgown and robe. Her long curly raven hair mussed up. Her crystal blue green eyes were staring straight at Caroline. There was all too familiar smirk plastered on her face. Her scent was too alluring and energy rolled off her in waves. Hybrid. Deadly. Like her father. And Caroline had never been more afraid.

"I'm Ivantika Rose" she said, walking up to Caroline. Klaus' daughter was the epitome of beauty. And not stereotypical beauty. She had the sort of captivating beauty and timeless elegance. Big bright eyes, full pink lips, and a gorgeous figure. She exuded confidence and held an air of superiority. Even her movement was graceful. Caroline felt a pang of human insecurity shoot through her.

There was no hostility, only mild amusement. Though Caroline was reminded of a predator stalking her prey. Caroline didn't even realise she was moving, until her back hit the kitchen counter. Ivantika stopped a comfortable distance away, but Caroline still felt stifled.

Caroline swallowed. "Klaus' daughter" she choked out. Taking a deep calming breath and forcing a smile "It's so nice to finally meet you" she said. Her voice sounded weak even to her own ears and she knew her smile must have looked fake.

Caroline noted that the entire kitchen had fallen silent when Ivantika walked in, carefully listening to the conversation taking place.

"Well aren't you just sugar and spice, and everything nice, wrapped up in one pretty little package" Ivantika commented, giggling. The sound was music to Caroline's ears.

Everything about Ivantika was inviting Caroline in. Caroline felt an incredible need to touch her smooth porcelain skin. As Ivantika reached over for a strawberry in the fruit bowl on the counter, Caroline flinched.

Ivantika frowned. "Don't be afraid," she said softly, soothingly, "I won't hurt you" trapping Caroline in her gaze. Caroline couldn't look away. She didn't want to look away.

"Daddy made it very clear I'm strictly forbidden from killing you. Or compelling you. Or harming you in any way" she listed, giving Caroline a sweet smile. "I'm to be perfectly polite and hospitable at all times."

She looked away, releasing Caroline from her gaze. Caroline took a grateful, deep steadying breath. Ivantika reached for a bowl from the cabinet and proceeded to fill it with strawberries and blueberries. Caroline stood still, watching her carefully.

"I must say, I find it quite curious that daddy is so fond of you" Ivantika commented, looking at Caroline intently. "You're quite, ordinary," she stated, matter of factly. "No offence."

"None taken" Caroline said, shrugging. She was not the least bit offended.

Ivantika walked back to the other end of the isle to sit down on a kitchen stool. "So I deign it most opportune for us to get to know each other a bit better" she smiled, politely. "Let's be friends Caroline" she stated, daringly.

Gathering up the strength and courage Caroline knew she had within her, "I'd like that" she stated sincerely.

"Good." Ivantika's expression gave nothing away. With that, Ivantika stood up and exited the kitchen, popping berries in her mouth.

Caroline watched her warily before turning around. Everyone was looking at her intently.

"You handled that quite well" Rebekah remarked, approvingly.

"Thank you?" Caroline muttered, putting the bowl of pancake batter on the counter. She took the seat Ivantika had just vacated, still trying to wrap her mind around what just happened. She felt a little dizzy.

Caroline prided herself on being perceptive and figuring people out, their hopes and dreams, hidden insecurities and fears. But Ivantika's confidence and fearlessness was unnerving. Her very presence flooded Caroline with insecurity. And fear. Caroline's flight or fight instinct had been on over drive.

Klaus had said Ivantika was strong and fast. His daughter was a hybrid like him. Did that mean she was stronger than Elijah, Rebekah, Kol too? Caroline's curiosity was piqued. She had so many questions to ask and tried to restrain herself from bombarding Klaus with questions as he and Elijah walked in the kitchen.

"Good morning" he said, smiling. When Klaus smiled, his eyes lit up brightly. He looked so young and carefree. He directed his full attention to her and it did not go unnoticed. Elijah was looking at her curiously and she could tell he had a few questions of his own.

"Good morning Klaus" Caroline replied, "Morning, Elijah."

"Good morning Caroline" Elijah said, smiling politely. "How are you feeling today?"

"Better, thank you," she answered cautiously. He frowned at her obvious lie.

"It has been brought to my attention that you, Stefan, Damon and Elena have been healing at a human speed?" he asked, looking to the others for confirmation.

"Yeah" Elena offered, "but since last night, Caroline and I haven't been able to keep down any blood at all, neither human nor animal." Elena wrinkled her nose.

"Curious" Elijah commented, sharing a look with Klaus. "Niklaus and I have come up with a theory. Perhaps now would be a good time to test it?"

"What theory?" Stefan asked, standing at the door, arms folded.

"Elena is the anchor to the vampire plane, therefore she would be sustained by vampire blood. Caroline is the anchor to the werewolf/hybrid plane, therefore Niklaus' blood would heal her" Elijah explained.

"She's not drinking his blood" Stefan nearly shouted. Elijah narrowed his eyes at Stefan's outburst.

Klaus looked smug. As though he were expecting such a reaction from Stefan. "Considering there aren't many werewolves wondering around, would you much prefer Caroline to take a bite out of my daughter instead?"

Caroline glared at him. Klaus was clearly baiting Stefan and she didn't appreciate it.

"It's just blood Stefan" she reasoned. Stefan did not look pleased. She didn't want to drink Klaus' blood either, but at the mention of blood, Caroline realised she was starving.

Caroline saw Elijah fill a glass of his blood and offer it to Elena who was now drinking it gratefully, while Damon gently stroked her hair and watched the deep gash on her forehead heal. A part of Caroline wondered why Stefan couldn't be as supportive.

Klaus was looking at her intently. Caroline hesitated. She had made up with Stefan last night and really didn't want to do anything to upset him.

"You need to heal, love" Klaus said softly, brow furrowing. "And unlike Damon, Stefan and Elena, you haven't fed in days." Concern was etched across his face. "You must be starving."

Elijah looked at curiously.

Caroline gums ached. The scent of Elijah's blood coupled with the memory of the taste of Klaus' blood had her teetering on the edge of her control. She looked at Stefan, hoping for some assurance but he wore a blank expression. Caroline needed to feed and Klaus' blood would work. Did Stefan really prefer her to start desiccating than to drink a bit of Klaus' blood? She couldn't understand why Stefan was acting this way.

Conquering her indecisiveness for her, Klaus bit into his wrist and offered it up to her. She knew he had done it purposefully, as her vampire features emerged, she sunk her fangs into his skin. Klaus' delicious blood flowed into her mouth, down her throat, pouring strength back into her. Instinctively, she wrapped one hand in his, fingers intertwining, holding his arm securely with her other hand, fearing he'd pull away. She leaned into him. He buried his nose in her hair, breathing in her scent. She felt safe. Memories of a happier time flooded her mind. Memories of being with him. It was too intimate. Closing her eyes, she revelled in his taste.

Caroline felt when Stefan vamp sped out of the house, but she couldn't bare to tear herself away from Klaus.


It had been hours.

And Stefan still hadn't returned.

She had no idea where he was, but was mildly comforted that Damon and Matt were out trying to find him.

Caroline felt both ashamed and embarrassed by how she acted this morning. Her behaviour was beyond inappropriate. The moment she had her fill and got back to her senses, she tore away from Klaus, going straight to her room. A few minutes later, Elena joined her with a plate of chocolate chip pancakes for them to share. Elena tried to comfort her, telling her that her behaviour was purely instinctive, a need to feed. But Caroline knew that it ran much deeper than simply feeding from Klaus. She felt connected to him. Even now, as his blood flowed through her veins, she felt strong, powerful, capable. She had felt safe in his arms. The memory of their time together flooded her mind, an onslaught of emotions that she had buried deep, came to the surface, as though the past seventeen years they spent apart never happened.

She was so mad at Klaus. Why couldn't he have done the right thing and poured his blood in a glass like Elijah had done for Elena? Why did Klaus want her to drink directly from him? Klaus knew exactly what he was doing. He always did. Caroline couldn't understand why Stefan was acting so strange before, but she understood perfectly now. Klaus was trying to steal her from Stefan, the way he had stolen her from Tyler. It was all part of Klaus' sick little game. And Caroline had no interest in playing. She was not going to let Klaus ruin what she had with Stefan, not before she even gave Stefan a real chance. Caroline couldn't deny she felt something for Klaus, but what she felt for him didn't matter. Caroline would not risk losing Stefan, the way she had lost Tyler.

The moment she tore herself away from Klaus, she felt a strong sense of loss. Then she felt bad for being so rude, after he had graciously offered up his own blood for her benefit. But Caroline had quickly shaken off those feelings. She would not sympathise with Klaus, she would not worry about hurting his feelings, or try to figure him out. The moment she decided to get to know Klaus better, was the moment she let him in. This time, Caroline was not going to allow herself to make the same mistake. It didn't matter how much time had passed. It didn't matter that Klaus had a teenage daughter. Klaus would always be Klaus, with an ulterior motive and a hidden agenda, and she would not fall prey.

Caroline and Elena were in the beauty parlour getting their hair and make up done. Rebekah and Ivantika were in their own rooms getting ready. All day, decorators, interior designers, caterers were going in and out, setting up the courtyard, ballroom and parlour for the activities that would be held there in a less than 2 short hours. The splendour of the ballroom would be highlighted by a few rounds of traditional dancing throughout the night. Rebekah had showed Caroline and Elena a video, watched them practise and made sure they were okay, before several dresses were brought in for them to make a selection from. Mostly couture. Ellie Saab, Oscar De La Renta, Zuhair Murad, Ziad Nakad, and designer brands Caroline didn't even know.

Caroline sat as the hair dresser worked her hair in a messy braided bun. Getting a manicure and pedicure done, while the make up artist put the finishing brushes of gloss on her lips. She decided to go with black nail polish, dark smoky eyes and nude lips. She sat still, barely even paying attention, finding it hard to relax and enjoy being pampered. Caroline couldn't stop worrying about Stefan. She just wanted to see him again. Let him know that she wasn't going to let Klaus get to her, and neither should he. That Klaus didn't even want her anyway. It was just a game to him.

"Do you like this one, or this one?" Elena asked, snapping Caroline out of her thoughts. Elena's pin straight hair framed her face. She hadn't gotten her make up done yet, but her nails were painted gold.

"You're asking me to choose between modern day fairytale princess or Greek Goddess" Caroline said, looking at the dresses, "The gold dress with the purple and yellow crystal embellishments is stunning. You should totally go try it on."

Elena looked pleased by Caroline's choice and immediately took it off the rack to go try it on, big smile on her face. "Care, you haven't chosen a dress for yourself yet" Elena pointed out.

"I know" Caroline answered, "I really don't see anything I like." Caroline looked through the rack of dresses again. This was the most expensive and beautiful collection of designer gowns and dresses she ever had the opportunity to choose from, but Caroline honestly didn't see anything that suited her sense of style.

"Why don't you just pick one for me to wear?" It didn't matter which dress Caroline wore. They were all pretty. And the only reason they were attending was to try to find out who took Bonnie and how to get her back. Plus, at this point, Caroline wasn't even sure Stefan was attending the party, so she didn't have a reason to dress up.

There was a knock on the door, but not before Elena peeked behind the divider to give her a look.

"Can I come in?" a soft voice asked.

Caroline moved to open the door. Ivantika was wearing a long, white, long sleeved, silk robe. Her curly hair was now in messy knot at the nape of her neck. Around her neck was a chunky necklace with an intricately woven pattern of diamonds, sapphires, emeralds, blue topaz, rubies, set in what had to be either white gold or platinum. On her ears, matching earrings. The colours were magnificent and highlighted the colour of her eyes, which were framed by her naturally thick dark lashes. Her lips and nails, painted nude.

"I love your necklace" Caroline complimented.

"Thank you" Ivantika replied, smiling politely, "daddy had the set especially made."

"So what do you think?," Elena asked, walking out from behind the divider, obviously distracted, not having noticed Ivantika at the door. She looked nervously between her and Caroline.

Elena's dress was strapless, form fitting and lined until the upper thigh, giving a clear view of her long legs. She paired it with strappy gold high heels.

"You look great Elena" Caroline complimented.

"Enchanting" Ivantika agreed readily, "the gold suits your complexion nicely."

"Thanks" Elena said a bit shyly.

"You should have your hair curled and put in a deep side part" Ivantika added.

Elena put her robe on over the gown and instructed the hair dresser.

Caroline was a little surprised. Elena hated her hair curled. It reminded her too much of Katherine. But Elena had immediately gone ahead with Ivantika's suggestion.

Caroline turned back to look at the girl who was now eyeing her curiously. After a moment, "come," she said, taking Caroline's arm in hers and steering her down the hall, into what had to be her bedroom.

Ivantika's bedroom was huge, almost as big as half of Liz Forbes' house. A king sized canopy bed stood in the middle, with one large window on one side, on the other, a door leading out to a terrace. On one side of the room was a walk in closet, on the other an en-suite bath. In the walk in closet were over a dozen racks of clothes, drawers fitted from floor to ceiling, a vanity, a floor length mirror, a plush white sofa and a coffee table covered in books, a lap top, cell phone, iPod and Caroline noticed a sketchpad and a set of pencils. Besides from being lavish and tidy, it was a typical teenage girl's bed room. The whole room was white and airy. The atmosphere was serene. Caroline quickly caught herself from wondering what Klaus' bedroom must look like.

Ivantika went to the further end of the closet, obviously looking for something.

"Happy birthday, by the way," Caroline said, trying to make conversation. There was no tension between them, but Caroline still felt uncomfortable being alone with her.

Ivantika smiled, slipping what had to be a gown under a white cover from the closet.

"I noticed you didn't fancy anything from the collection I sent over, perhaps you'd like to wear this, or something else from my collection?" she said, walking over to Caroline, offering up the dress.

Caroline dumbly took it from her, unzipping the bag. The dress was dark blue, almost black. A thick lacy material, covered in delicately woven black and dark blue crystal embellishments. It was long sleeved, form fitting until the lower thigh, then hanging loosely. The dress appeared to be relatively modest, but for the plunging neckline. And between the transparent pieces of fabric and unlined thick lace, it was just as alluring as Elena's, if not more.

If Caroline had gone out shopping, this one would have definitely caught her eye. It called to her inner Goddess. It was the kind of dress she would want to wear, but be too afraid of not being able to pull it off, to buy it.

"Daddy said that blue's your colour" Ivantika commented, "and I'd have to agree with him."

Caroline immediately handed the dress back to her. "If this is a gift from Klaus, I can't accept it" Caroline stated firmly.

"It's not" she stated, "It's a gift from me."

Caroline was confused. What had Klaus told his daughter about them? Ivantika said that Klaus told her to be perfectly polite, but she was being beyond polite. Why would Ivantika offer Caroline a dress?

"If you don't want to wear this one, you can choose another," Ivantika continued.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Caroline asked, accepting the dress, but it sounded more like an accusation. Caroline didn't bow down to Klaus. And she was not going to be intimated by Klaus' daughter. Even if it killed her. But Caroline was genuinely interested to know.

"Consider this me keeping an open mind" she said, airily. After a moment, she elaborated. "You seem to know an awful lot about my father. While I wasn't even aware of your existence until two days ago" Ivantika said, walking over to the vanity. "It's just a dress, Caroline. Don't read too much into it."

Ivantika opened the top draw of the vanity, collecting a pair of long waterfall gold earrings with yellow and purple gems. Then dark blue diamond studded earrings and a hair clip. Picking up a pair of black strappy high heels from a shelf, she walked over to Caroline.

"These should fit," she said, giving Caroline the shoes. "These are for Elena" Ivantika said, handing Caroline the gold earrings, "and for you," offering up the diamond studs and hair clip. Caroline accepted them gratefully.

Whatever reason Ivantika had for making sure she and Elena looked good tonight, was greatly appreciated. If they had any hope of finding Bonnie, they needed to fit in with this crowd, get to know these people, and get some answers.

"Well if you'll excuse me, I'm going to get dressed." Ivantika waited patiently and it took a moment for Caroline to realise she was being kicked out. Caroline quickly made her way out of the room, shutting the door behind her.


Elena's dress- Zuhair Murad Haute Couture Spring Summer 2014 #41

Caroline's dress- Ziad Nakad Haute Couture Fall Winter 2014 #22