Title: Moments of Clarity
Author: mystic_blue17
Summary: "Caroline is going to learn this valuable lesson: Sometimes when you get what you want, it's not actually what you want." –Candice Accola. She claimed he could go but they just couldn't, wouldn't leave it like that. (based on 421 and going forward)

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters or plots nor do I plan on receiving any profit from writing about them.

A/N: So I have been patiently waiting for the premiers to see how the writers would deal with certain outstanding questions (Bonnie is dead but no one knows it? Tyler is allowed to come back but does he? Is anyone going to notice that Stefan isn't really Stefan?). I watched the epis and legit said huh. I am trying to write parallel to canon as much as possible so if I can, I will pick events on either show and have Klaus and Caroline talk about them. Given the way the premiers played out I'm already very off course so I am just going to try and work it out to get where the show is. I hope this works out to go with the show. If not then committing it to be AU has always always worked for me. ;)


"Wait your favourite type of blood is B+ and you were a cheerleader?" He asked his tone full of amusement. "Wait there is a joke in there! It's coming to me."

"Har Har. You are so funny." Caroline responded sarcastically. "I assume your favourite is all."

He made a face at her awkward sentence and started to correct her when Tyler walked through her doorway.

"Care, I know you said you had some stuff you needed to do but I thought I would-" Tyler took in her wide eyes and frozen posture "-see if I could help. What's going on?" He said distracted by what he found. His eyes darting to Klaus on her computer screen.

"Hello mate. I see Caroline's graduation present finds you well." Klaus said jovially.

"What?" Tyler asked. "What is he talking about Caroline?" He shook his head. "Better question why are you talking to him?"

She dropped her head in defeat. She had hoped to keep their conversations just between the two of them. "Tyler I know you are upset." She started.

"You're damn right I'm 'upset'!" he said gesturing with quotation marks.

"There is no need to yell at her mate. You know it just makes her more stubborn." Klaus interjected in a faux friendly tone.

"Don't tell me about Caroline." Tyler said his voice dropping dangerously.

Klaus practically smiled in satisfaction at his visible tension. "I think we have gotten to know each other very well during these little talks. Haven't we Caroline?"

"Talks as in more than a once?" Tyler asked. His head was spinning with implications. "This is such garbage Caroline. I can't believe you would sneak behind my back like this."

Klaus started "Well I for one think it is fairly obvious -"

"Enough! Enough with your stupid wolf territory bull." Caroline said in her no nonsense voice. The men promptly shut their mouths. She turned to her laptop and said "Stop stirring up trouble Klaus. I have to sort this out with Tyler now. Good night."

Klaus sighed reluctantly. He almost looked petulant that 'his' time with her was getting cut short because of Tyler's actions. "Fine. I expect you to call me back when you are done talking to him. We haven't nearly talked long enough." He finished shooting her a sweet smile.

"Fine." She said rolling her eyes at his charming words and demeanor. "I'll talk to you later." Caroline forgot for a moment that Tyler was in the room until he strode purposefully towards her laptop and shut it deftly. "How about not?"

"Tyler!" Caroline yelled.

"Seriously what the hell is going on?" Tyler ranted.

"Tyler," she took a moment giving them time to compose themselves. "I know you weren't expecting this."

He snorted.

She pointedly ignored his derision. "But we were just talking."

"Caroline when you said I could come back, I thought he was gone." He said solemnly.

"He is Tyler. He left." She answered.

"He obviously isn't really gone Caroline!" He said pointing to the laptop. "This doesn't look like he was gone at all. He isn't done with you." He finished. There was definitie anger in his words but there was also something very heartborken in his tone.

"Tyler," she asked "what can I do to calm you down?"

"Don't talk to him again. Please Care. He has brought so much misery. I just know that he will hurt you too." Tyler asked genuinely.

"Come here." She gestured with the curl of her hand. They met at the foot of her bed. She wrapped her arms around him. "You know how I feel about you." She reassured him.

"I do."

"And you also know me pretty well." She felt him nod against her shoulder. She took a breath preparing herself for what she was going to say. "So you know when I say I'm not going to do that it's not coming from a bad place."

Tyler tensed up still in her arms and pulled away, no doubt to start yelling.

Caroline cut him off before he could even start. "I don't want to fight with you Tyler." She stated calmly. "You are finally here and we can really be together," she said bringing their hands together. "I'm saying no not because there is some big conspiracy going on here but because I am my own person and I can't just let you make that decision for me. I know that Klaus has done some truly horrible things and you can't get past that. And honestly I would never ask you to. But in the same way I'm asking you to let me do this my way. I promise that if this blows up in my face you can tell me 'I told me so' until you are blue in the face."

He searched her eyes seeing her pure determination. "Caroline I thought… I thought he was out of here for good."

She softened at his words and pressed her forehead to his. She said "I hope you can understand why I'm doing this."

"Not really. But I do know that you are a strong and super stubborn and you won't let me stand in your way."

"Thank you Tyler." She said sincerely.

Much later that night, Caroline dialed Klaus' number.

"I see you were able to call me back." He answered with no preamble.

"You are such a pompous British prick sometimes!" Caroline exploded at him.

"Love, I'm afraid that's old news, literally centuries old." He said with humor in his voice.

"Urgh!" She grumbled. "I can't believe you acted like that. I'm not some thing for you to fight over."

"Thing no. But a prize maybe?" He suggested.

Caroline practically felt the steam coming from her ears. "I can't believe you! To think that I actually chose to call you right now."

"Believe me that fact is not lost on me, love. But I think you have taking the connotation of prize in the wrong way. You are someone I would treasure, you are certainly worth all the hard work it takes to win you over."

"Really Klaus?" She pulled the phone back staring at it as though it would explain his words. Her ire transforming quickly into disbelief. And she outright laughed at him. "Sometimes you are so cheesy."

He laughed. "Let me assure you that while cheesy, it comes from a very real place." He took a moment to listen to her giggles. "So back to our conversation, tell me more of your favourite things."


A/N: Alright the bubble is broken. Now we are really in for it. Klaus and Caroline now have to deal with the reactions of their friends/family to their blossoming relationship. This should be fun! Please review and let me know if this worked. This chapter has been planned out pretty much since 422 but in the wake of 501 I had to make some adjustments. Let me know if you think it worked or if it was entirely too confusing. TO 102. I will try to be as unspoilery as possible but there is a moment that comes in the epi that I totally called. When I finally post the Rebekah chapter of TAE let it be known that I was ahead of the curve with that guess lol. As always please review. Love to know your thoughts on this chapter and in general how the shows are going. I'm always looking for more fan friends lol And in case anyone is dying for the next update on any of my fics, I'm going on a two week vacation relatively soon. Sadly without internet so I won't be able to post anything but I will probably be writing up a storm. So early November hopefully I will have a bunch of new chapters/fics to post. Fingers crossed.