Liz halted on the way to another sip from her coffee, she glanced over to Caroline who watched her with a heavy frown and resting her chin on her hand, she was keeping track of every move and breath that her mother took.

Liz was almost certain that she was even counting every beat that her heart gave away. "I said that I'm fine Caroline, if there is any Silas' influence in town it's not affecting me at all."

"If you were under his compulsion, that's exactly what you would say…" Caroline lessened her eyes in suspicion.

The expression made Liz laugh and she ended her coffee still shaking in laughter. "I'm not compelled Caroline."

"Prove it." Caroline said without moving an inch but slowly tapping her fingers on the table.

"If he is turning off emotions like you said, I would use all that money that we are spending on a college that apparently you abandoned and use it to buy the saddle pistols that belonged to George Washington."

Caroline ventured a small smile. "I know that I'm slightly slacking but I will go back to college soon."

Liz tilted her head a bit to look at Caroline serious, in return her daughter cunningly gave her a giant smile.

"And thank you, now I know what you want for Christmas."

"They are prized around 2 million dollars, are you asking the handsome murderer who was at my doorstep last night for the loan?"

Caroline lost the smile and entwined her fingers resting her hands on the kitchen table. "I got the message, you are not being controlled by Silas."

"Nope, just taken by good old motherly concern. What are you doing Caroline?" Liz asked with a grave shrug.

Caroline sighed. "I don't know."

"How is that possible? Caroline Forbes always knows everything." Liz teased her a little.

"I know, right? I'm on top of my game, there is nothing that I can't do or fix and I had everything planned and organized for the next 150 years…" Caroline huffed her golden bangs upset. "Then Klaus shows up and he messes with everything, he saves me and then I try to kill him but he's the smart one and he tries to kill me instead but Klaus can't do anything easy, oh no, he always has to top everyone else and he decides to save me again. He goes after Tyler just that he doesn't and then he chases me and does stuff for me that no one ever did. And I hate him for stalking me and for getting me all the expensive stuff but then I don't really hate him for it…." Caroline slumped a bit before a new wave of anger filled her. "And then he says all these things and I know better than to believe them but come on…" she threw her hands in the air. "It's hard ignoring how hot he is and how everything sounds like he is Reth frigging Buttler and I'm Scarlett O'Hara watching him leave and I just stand there hearing the epic music coming and the credits rolling and I don't want my movie to end like that." Caroline bit her lip fearing that her outburst got out of hand.

Liz left the empty mug inside of the sync and sat with Caroline, she sweetly took her hand and smiled. "Everyone wants the epic love sweetie, I wanted one as well but it never happened to me. I loved your father but the only epic event in our marriage was the birth of a little know-it-all."

Caroline smiled trying to conceal how smug she was about it, she was fairly sure she was doing an awful job at it though.

"Perhaps because it just wasn't meant to be or I just settled for the one man who didn't mess too much with my head or my heart. It was easy being in a relationship with Bill, there were no major hassles or fights and everything was always just… simple."

Caroline chewed the inside of her lower lip slowly as she attentively listened to her mother.

Liz chuckled. "It didn't work out because he had his heart somewhere else but if it wasn't for that we would simply be stuck in a life that neither found interesting, challenging or remotely passionate. I know that you are young Caroline but I think that you are starting to understand that passion isn't just physical attraction or sex. It's the fights and wanting to shoot someone in the head because they literally make you question everything that you ever took for granted. It's about not taking the easy way out and settling."

"Klaus is going to be a dad, he magically made Hayley pregnant…" Caroline took the moment of vulnerability with her mother serious.

"How is that even possible?"

Caroline softly smiled with the stunned look on her mother's face. "Everyone is going around asking that question…"

Liz reached out to touch a few golden locks of Caroline's. "You just turned 18, are you sure you want to dive into a mess with a magical baby on the way and all that surrounds Klaus? With Tyler, you wouldn't have to worry about being in danger all the time and I would sleep soundly throughout all my nights. Think about it honey..."

Caroline smiled a bit as her mother left the table and kissed her head before leaving the house for work.

She was definitely confused as she was left alone inside of the house where she grew up and Caroline searched for the albums with her childhood pictures, she wasn't sure why the sudden urge came over her but somewhere along the extensive notes under every picture that she made, she found the picture that she was unconsciously looking for.

Under the tag of my very best friend and I, was a picture of her and Bonnie at age 11 striking a silly pose and looking absolutely adorable.

Caroline detached the picture from the page and put the album away, she focused on the picture and closed her eyes. "Bonnie, if you are here… let me see you and talk to you. I'm not sure how this works but give me a sign, something… please…" she pleaded into the empty house and waited for anything to ease her sadness.


"Hey sexy thing…"

Bonnie woke up with a distant voice and a gentle pad on her cheek and she battled her heavy eyelids to push her eyes open, the pair of hazel eyes in front of her came with a lazy smile and she fought with a nauseated taste of blood inside of her mouth. "What happened?" her voice was tied up and she forced herself to sit, Bonnie instantly frowned recognizing the cave where she was. "Why have you brought me here?"

Kol was crouching in front of her and gave his shoulders a move. "I've been told that you brought my mother back to life inside of these caves."

Bonnie's green eyes searched for the symbols engraved on the wall telling the story of his family. "You shouldn't be allowed in here."

"Because I'm a vampire?" he smiled amused. "I can do a lot of things now that I'm dead. Who said life ended once you went to the other side?" he wiggled his eyebrows.

"Is this really the other side?" she asked standing up, wanting to gain some control over her situation.

Kol stood as well facing her on the same level but with a dark smile that she couldn't match. "Silas likes playing games, he kept us both around. Almost part of the living world but never truly able to cross it and be one with reality."

"Stop talking in riddles." she demanded.

Kol paced around, he knew that she was scared of him and that she wouldn't try to take him down again, at least not so soon. "We are stuck in a place that is neither the other side nor the world of the living. It's an illusion and where we are able to change clothes and walk around like we are actually alive, yet we are not."

"If you don't stop being so ambiguous I will torture you again." she snapped.

"You can certainly try." he smirked.

"What does Silas want with us?"

He liked the fierce way that she was commanding answers and lost the easy smile, he halted on his walk around her and came clean, at least as much as he was able to. "He is keeping us here because he doesn't want us to cross over and leave this realm."

"Why?"

He had his head to the side and his eyes were covering all the wonderful curves in the petite woman, his eyes met hers with ablaze and he actually made her feel uncomfortable with the way that he did it.

No one had ever looked at her this way, if she had to describe it in one word she would easily narrow it down to desire, never before Bonnie actually saw herself as a woman who would stoke that much raw desire in a man and she was undeniably shaken that she would cause such an effect on an Original.

Kol's look of lust was very dissimilar from Jeremy, he still looked at her with innocence and Bonnie wasn't sure which she liked most.

"I asked you a question Kol, can you please for once answer it?" she uttered in a low voice but courageously leaving her eyes on his.

"He wanted us away from her."

She squinted at once. "Who is her?"

"The only one who can harm him."

Bonnie gasped involuntarily taking a step closer to him. "You mean Qetsiyah."

"Brains and looks, what a wonderful sin…" he shamelessly relished his eyes on her cleavage.

She was too struck with the news to be bothered with it. "How do we get to her?"

"And bold." he said with a low purr.

It should have disgusted her but she was too focused on her new mission, Bonnie fiercely halted only a few inches away from his face. "I need to talk to Qetsiyah because Silas wants me to do something and all of a sudden you can practice magic so I'm not entirely sure why he needs you as well, only that all this is looking a lot like he plans to unleash hell on everyone we have left alive and that we care about."

"Ummm…" he constricted his lips into a very slim line. "If only I cared about whoever was left back there…"

It was her chance to return the smug smile. "Cut the act tough guy, you wanted your family to mourn you because you would mourn them and that is love. Cold-blooded and unreturned love but still, it's love."

"You are perceptibly confusing me with your boyfriend." he said turning his back on her.

"Aren't you even curious why Silas is giving you witchcraft abilities?" Bonnie tried to stop him from leaving the caves.

Kol looked back with a flawless smile. "Have you ever heard about the Greek Goddess Hekate?" As he expected she looked puzzled enough. "Hekate was the goddess of magic, witchcraft, the night, moon, ghosts and necromancy. I'll give you a hint little one, the Greeks got their inspiration from Qetsiyah's legend and Silas may not be the one giving me the powers."

Bonnie's chin fell with a loud gasp and she ran after him but he vanished leaving her alone in the dark woods, she angrily shouted after him. "Kol get back here."

She could hear him laughing, taunting her from the darkness but he was done talking for today.


"Where have you been Stefan?" Damon asked as soon as the blonde man came inside of the Boarding House.

He calmly sat on the sofa. "The town is acting very strange, I spent my night roaming around but I couldn't make much sense of what I saw. Everyone is acting like they couldn't spare a care at all." he smiled at Damon.

The blue-eyed vampire left his drink over the mantel and came to the sofa, he sat across Silas and tried to read him like he would naturally do with his real brother. "How was your summer?"

"I found a peaceful little town near Colorado, there was an outstanding cottage and nothing but silence around me. One couldn't hear me even if I screamed real loud." he said with hidden malice for Stefan's real fate.

"Why didn't you take our calls?"

"I'm sure that you had a lot going on in your bed and I didn't want to take any of your time."

Damon slowly pushed the sleeves of his shirt up. "Stefan… I love her but you are my brother."

Silas threw his head back and laughed, he startled Damon but the idiotic mind of the vampire was a lot to endure without breaking his disguise momentarily. "I'm deeply moved that you remembered that honourable love after you stole my girl."

"It wasn't like that…" Damon said between clenched teeth.

Silas quickly leaned over to Damon. "Of course not, you've only hassled and weaselled your way into her."

Damon shot his eyes with fury for the blunt way Silas was addressing Elena.

Silas decided to have just a little more fun and his voice was soft as pure malevolence. "While you are there giving her all the pleasure that you think I never gave her, does it cross your mind Damon that it was my name that she moaned first, my back that she scratched first while she heavenly proclaimed her eternal love for me?"

Damon gritted his teeth before flashing and burying his fist in Silas' face, he was about to punch him again when Elena showed up and pushed him away from Silas.

"What are you doing?" she confronted him but quickly went to check on the blonde one. "You're bleeding…" she sweetly looked at Silas.

He pretended innocence and shook her hand away. "It's ok Elena. I know my brother and I wasn't expecting any less from him… I don't even know why I bothered coming back."

Elena tried to hold on to his hand but Silas quickly fled to his room, she faced Damon with a hard face that he wouldn't take.

"Don't even bother." he said grabbing his leather jacket and leaving the house fast.


New Orleans

Klaus left the duffle bag on the table and removed his jacket swiftly diving his fingers inside of the pocket to take his phone out, he threw the jacket on the sofa and quickly searched for her new number but a distracting scent hit him, Klaus held his thumb in the air postponing the call to Caroline. "I hope that you are visiting to announce that you have decided to vanish from civilization and decided to go raise the baby demon in some forgotten mountain… or perhaps a jungle?" he squinted softly. "I recommend the Amazon, there are tribes that still sacrifice their children." Klaus smiled. "I find them terribly delightful."

Hayley left the lobby moving like a snake. "We need to talk."

Klaus locked his phone gripping it tight inside of his hand, he was restraining from gripping Hayley's heart instead. "Did Elijah sent you?"

Hayley shook her head and tried to be subtle as she came closer to him but there's so much one could ask from a girl like her, subtlety was beyond her limited abilities and Klaus decided to give her 10 seconds to explain herself.

"Your brother is very noble and I admire him for that but he isn't like us… he doesn't understand people like us."

"Are you for one second placing us so blatantly on the same level? Sweetheart, the table that witnessed our forgettable 10 minutes is worth a lot more than you, it is real mahogany after all." he gave her a delicious side smirk.

"And I'm just an orphan, I get it Klaus."

He pulled a pout and reached out sweetly taking her chin. "And again you are playing a dangerous game… you see…" his soft fingers moved.

She could feel his thumb pressing under her chin while his hand dangerously pressed her jugular.

"… it would be so easy to just snap… you out of your conceited judgment that I actually care about your sad and pathetic little life. For all I know, I probably killed your parents and I can't relate to any childhood drama that you want to sell me. To me it's not even relevant that you are barely breathing evenly right now and that your heart is pounding under my touch, scared that I end your life. If anything, I have more respect for those who are not scared of me when I'm about to kill them."

"Look, I'm as happy with this baby as you are. This is not how I expected to spend my summer, this was only supposed to lead me to answers about my parents. I just wanted to know who I was and then this happened." she made sure that his eyes followed as she rubbed her pregnant belly. "I'm not asking for much Klaus but we are in this together. I flirted with you as much as you allowed me to and while you thought of someone else, I thought of Tyler the entire time so we are even."

Klaus twisted his lips elated with the small attempt to spike him and released her but not before slightly pushing her away from him like he was repulsed of her, which wasn't far from the truth. "Make your plea, wolf."

Hayley took a deep breath and arched her eyebrows in a look that he still wasn't sure if it was supposed to come across as sexy or simply idiotic.

"Protect me during this pregnancy, whoever comes after you will come after me and your baby." she made sure to remind him of that small detail.

"My baby? I'm not sure if appealing to the dead fatherhood instinct in me is the wisest thing to do, besides…" he touched his chest deeply emotional. "I have no enemies, I'm such a sweet amiable man."

"Elijah can't protect me like you can."

Klaus crossed his arms looking deeply thoughtful at her. "Most precise since he can't do a thing to stop me."

She ignored the cocky smile and turned her back on him pretending a sniffle fit.

Which was exactly where she finally lost him, he couldn't stand the fake dramatic display at all. "Leave my house, and this time make sure that you stay away." he walked over to the table.

Hayley pulled her fake tears back and moved her head to look at him, her cat eyes were piercing through his back, she was not about to walk out without leaving a taste of her venom behind. "You are ready to move heaven and hell for one woman who doesn't want you, who despises you and turns you down every single time you try to reach out to her but you can't bring yourself to lift a finger to protect me and your baby? Elijah is so right, there is nothing human left in you. But you know what Klaus?" she manoeuvred her slick body so that she could face him completely, she kept her head high as he turned to meet her eyes as well. "I'm not the weak one and unimportant here, she is, because I'm the one giving you a son and not Caroline."

And then she held her breath waiting, Klaus wasn't breathing at all, the room was filled with the most uncanny silence and she was aware that the only noise was her heart giving away how much the wait was taking on her.

She had a small step back when his tense body moved an inch but maybe it was her eyes tricking her as he seemed to drag the moment merely to torture her.

Suddenly he completely took her off guard as he smiled.

"My deepest apologies sweetheart, I forgot to tell you earlier when you were trying to win me over with petty version of your trifling life, that I met your family."

Hayley's eyes widened at once taken by shock.

Klaus promptly took the bag that he had over the table and opened it. "They send their regards." he removed a head from inside the bag, throwing it at her feet.

She yelped and stepped back horrified as the head rolled over to her feet and the face of a man stared at her with open mouth and eyes, the blood was still dripping from the clean cut around the throat, it was a horrible sight and she screamed when Klaus appeared in front of her.

Harshly he took her arm and dragged her across the room and near the table.

"Klaus, let me go." she successfully said before the tears started to choke her.

"Not before we get you acquainted with the family." he easily said taking a bunch of pictures covered in blood from inside the bag. "See that one?" he pointed at one picture. "That's your cousin, beautiful eyes that I dug out with a sword and that one beautiful old lady? I think that she was your grandmother but I could be wrong, although I wouldn't worry because I'm sure that one of the ten werewolves I slaughtered was the closest thing you had to a family."

Hayley caught the same birth mark symbol on the pictures of the dead werewolves and she looked at him horror-struck.

He simply grabbed her other arm so that he made sure she stayed right where she was. "That was purely for going to Marcel running your mouth and whatnot." his grip tightened around Hayley harder, just like his features. "Now, I will hunt down every single member of that clan and exterminate your entire lineage if you ever, and I emphasize on the ever part Hayley, open that mouth to speak another word about Caroline." he sounded as low and threatening as the devil about to rip a soul. "You are not giving me anything that I want Hayley and if you insist on going around town making deals with everyone I will be forced to stop being so nice to you."

When he released his grip on her, her legs and knees simply gave in on her and she fell to the floor. "Would you really kill me and your heir, are you that emotionless?"

Klaus easily looked down on her. "If you were lying on the ground bleeding and needed my blood to survive and to save that child inside of you… I would turn my back on you and walk away as if you never existed in my life, much like I'm doing now." he stopped near the grotesque head and pointed at it. "Please take your family with you when you leave my house."


Caroline asked for a bottle of Scotch and searched for a table to occupy, she ignored Damon who was sitting alone in another table, hoping as well that he would have the decency of staying away from her.

She wasn't as lucky with Elena who stormed inside of The Grill and went straight to her table instead of Damon's.

"He just assaulted Stefan." she said taking the bottle and the glass for herself before Caroline even had a taste of it.

"Stefan? He's probably not even real, he's probably just our imagination working because Silas is having a play day again."

Elena dropped the glass slowly on the table. "You think so?"

Caroline rubbed the back of her neck tired. "I don't know… maybe? Someone messed with my head and sent me to kill April and he looked just like Stefan, so I don't know about the one you saw…"

Elena shook her head determined. "No, the man back at the house was Stefan. I know him."

"No one can refute the sordid facts." Damon's grumpy voice came closer and he sat next to Elena, defying her with a bastard smile. "You two have this deep connection and all."

"Are you even serious? Why are you jealous of Stefan now?" Elena confronted him.

"I must be out of my mind. Oh, it has to be Silas." he dropped mockingly.

"I love you." Elena shot back fast like she always did, like she was afraid to think about her words too much.

"And I love you but I'm not sure I can handle Stefan reminding me of what I had to endure while you were with him."

"Damon…" Elena cradled his face sweetly.

"Seriously…" Caroline whispered from her end, when they looked at her, she was holding her head with her hands and simply shrugged. "I can't believe that I'm back to the back and forth Elena drama with the Salvatores."

Elena trapped her hair behind her ear troubled.

Damon gave Caroline a scowling look. "Ease up on the candid filter, Barbie."

"Bonnie is dead and you still can't move your eyes away from the triangle that you are stuck in." she sneered at Damon.

"Yes, she's dead, she's not here anymore so what exactly do you want us to do about that?" Damon snapped.

"Something else besides this." she moved her hands to prove a point. "It all revolves around which brother Elena is sleeping with every other week."

"Caroline!" Elena breathed out.

"I'm sorry but Bonnie is gone and we are still talking about Damon and Stefan when we could actually be doing something for her."

"We are holding the service in two days…" Elena said sad.

Caroline lost it and left the table fast, she pushed the door of The Grill open making a loud sound as it crashed against the wall.

"Caroline wait..." Elena begged and quickly caught up to her. "I loved her as well and it's not fair that you think I'm not mourning her just because I'm happy with Damon."

Caroline simply walked around her friend but Elena wasn't about to give up that easily and caught up to the blonde again.

"She was my best friend as well."

Caroline took the picture from her back pocket and showed it to Elena. "See this girl right here?" she pointed at Bonnie. "She died for you… for me, for all of us."

It was a hard blow for Elena and she looked away but Caroline moved to stand in front of her with the picture.

"No, look at her Elena. Look at the friend we killed."

"Why are you talking like that?" Elena asked as she started to cry.

"Because we did this." Caroline focused on the picture that she turned around and held with both hands. "We killed her grandmother, her mother and then she died just to keep us all safe and to bring your brother back and what did we do for her Elena?"

Elena quivered her head not knowing what to say.

Caroline put the picture away and held her tears for a little longer. "We will give her the best funeral we can think of and wear black for one day, share nice stories about the good friend we lost and then we'll move on. We'll go back to our lives, carry on like she was never part of it at all…"

Elena covered her mouth crying and Damon finally moved taking her into his arms, she cried harder once inside of his strong embrace and he looked at the other vampire speaking in a low voice.

"That's enough Caroline…"

She couldn't agree with him. "No, we can change that."

Damon pulled his eyebrows together. "What do you want us to do? Resurrect her?" he sounded a bit in a joking tone.

"Yes." Caroline responded with too much excitement.

"You just lost it… we can't bring her back Caroline. The last time I checked the only powerful witch we had… died." he tried to make the reality hit Caroline permanently.

"What if there was a chance to bring her back to us, to keep her here with us?"

"Silas really made a number on you Caroline." he took the crying girl in his arms away.

Caroline didn't carry on with her fight, there was no use for it anyway, instead she walked away on the opposite direction and missing the blonde man spying on them.


New Orleans

Katherine uneasily opened the door as he spoke from the other side announcing himself. "What are you doing here?"

"I intended to ask what are you still doing here but as always, you were quicker." Elijah said politely waiting to be asked inside.

Katherine reluctantly moved. "Do come in."

Elijah took a quick look inside of the nice hotel room but he was always more interested in her features. "If you insist on staying in New Orleans at least let me be a gentleman about it and offer you my house." he faced her.

"A room in the corner of Bourbon Street with the French Corner sounds perfect but I gently decline because I'm insulted that you would even consider making me share a mattress with the girl pregnant of your brother."

He stopped her at once by taking her face between his hands. "Don't do this to me Katerina. Don't give me hope of listening to you say how much you love one more time to only have you play me like I mean nothing to you."

"I didn't play you. I did everything right this time and it still wasn't enough..." she caved under his touch.

"There is nothing between Hayley and I, she is only a way to make Niklaus reconnect to his lost humanity. I just want my family back Katerina."

"And I want you..." she whispered.

Elijah leaned his forehead touching hers and his hand was lost in her wonderful curls before he rested his lips against hers, it was a soft kiss that quickly became nothing but an urgent need for one another.

Katherine pressed herself to him answering the deep kiss and closed her eyes as he picked her up carrying her to the bed, Elijah sat her there and she took his jacket off pulling him down by the tie that she pulled from under his suit vest.

She released a harsh breath as his hand rested on her leg pushing the dress slowly up and then finding its way inside, becoming one with her soft and warm skin.

Katherine moaned his name very aware that he was taking his time with her, she laid back in bed with a chest rising and falling watching him as he took his tie slowly.

Katherine stretched her arms above her head smiling in anticipation for what she knew was coming and she locked her wrists waiting for him as he undid the tie.


Caroline reached her house wrecked, she closed the front door already dialing his number, she couldn't hide the frustrating groan when it went to voicemail after a few rings but she still decided to leave him a quick message. "Hey… it's me. I really needed someone to talk to…" she cringed her lips changing speech quickly, she hated coming off weak before him. "Call me when you hear this, I want to know more about your crazy plan to bring Kol back…"

She turned around fast when she heard the sound of the safety of a gun being unlocked and softly gasped before her mother shot her right in the chest.

"Mom?" she asked with a horrible pain spreading fast to the rest of her body.

Liz dropped the gun crying. "I'm so sorry honey…"

"That's ok Liz… go back to work now. I'll take care of your daughter." Silas said touching her shoulders.

Liz nodded and left numbly.

Caroline fell to her knees dropping the phone and looking down, she touched her bleeding chest and then looked at the man squatting in front of her.

"The bullet was laced with werewolf venom…" he took the gun from the floor and rested it against her shoulder. "Now tell me about the hybrid's crazy plan, I'd like to know more about it as well." he smiled before squeezing the trigger.


New Orleans

Hayley closed herself inside of her bedroom, she was thankful that Elijah wasn't home and dropped the bag on the bed, she opened it avoiding the head inside and took the phone that she stole from Klaus instead.

There was a missed call and a voice message that she immediately listened to, it was such a dark smile that took over her features when she heard Caroline being shot and she took the phone from her ear with a grin, her gruesome day turned out to have a nice little twist at the end.


Soundtrack:

Corner of your heart - Ingrid Michaelson

I'm on fire - Gabrielle Aplin

Whispers - Dave Baxter