A/n: Edited on 12/26/2015.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 13: Carnival of Rust

Mystic Falls

Present - February 12, 2011

There comes a point in our lives where things are so muddled and gray that you don't know where you stand. Everything would be simpler with all of it just painted black and white, nothing in between. Once you have that kind of mindset, it should be easier.

Ah, but here's another question: do we truly ever get what we want?

The answer to that is no. Life's too difficult and nothing can change that with its vicissitudes, and all we can do is learn how to roll with the punches. Damon Salvatore learned that lesson very harshly; it also proved more to that example as he became a vampire. Most people don't know half of what it takes to be a vampire and actually survive the process.

Vampirism now is such a botched up piece of commodity in the fantasy world, which is too humiliating to think about. Back in the day, vampires were portrayed better. Sure, they had their cheesy myths of turning into bats and who were allergic to garlic, but at least they were the classics. Now, people think vampires are all sparkly, gay pixies or whatever the anti-Twilight fans joke about these days. No way in a million years had Damon seen or ever will see a vampire who sparkled in the sun.

What the fuck?

The fact is that vampires are undead immortal beings who survive on the blood of the living. They're predators. A typical vampire's taste runs on human blood. Of course, reports of rarer flavors were noted, though it would take a while to look. Still, reality is harsh, vampires aren't the kind of creature to take lightly onto one's naïve imagination. They're killers. They hunt and prey on the weak, the unspoken motto among was kill or be killed, but that's not always the case.

This is where the gray area truly starts. On one hand, it's true that the most basic nature of a vampire was to hunt for that temporary substitute to the insatiable hunger. On the other hand, there were those who were exceptions to the rule. The ones weren't governed by that hunger in their mind. They had to satisfy it, but they went through other means to do that.

Then there's the part where things get sticky. Finishing the change from a human to a vampire is never an easy process. When completing the transition, the emotions they had felt as a human are heightened in great lengths, sometimes overwhelming if they are not used to it, depending on which feelings came up resulting in how strenuous keeping up to the change would be. With the emotions finely tuned, some combinations can be very deadly. Thoughts grow into emotions, emotions grow into actions, actions lead into the aftermath, and the aftermath leads to memories; whether they were filled with happiness or regret.

The forest of Mystic Falls was older and more meaningful than most people believed. Thousands upon thousands of memories and emotions were imprinted into the old woods for supernatural and human alike. For Damon Salvatore, it was a whole array of good and bad, but sometimes it seemed mostly bad. Not that he even cared now, he had matters that are more important currently. Like eating his breakfast.

Speaking of breakfast…

"What are you doing? Stop this! Stop-" His pleas went unanswered as Damon sunk his fangs into the male's neck. The succulent taste of blood was the only thing that he thought about. It was time for a change, it was a good change to be back to his normal self. He was a vampire. People might as well get over it.

Dragging this guy out here better be worth it.

"Got room for one more?"

His hearing picked up a female voice, a lilt of a southern accent coming through. He shortly stopped drinking from his victim letting the human fall to the ground. He turned around and seeing that the only plausible owner of the voice was the person in front of him. The crunching of dead leaves was heard as she walked around Damon, studying him. The tall golden brown-haired woman had her arms were crossed on her chest as she watched with bemused eyes as he fed. Fan-fucking-tastic. As if he didn't have enough problems with his current girlfriend.

"That depends on what you're here for," he replied suggestively.

The woman rolled her eyes, scoffing at him. "Trust me, hotshot. You're not my type so you can cut out the flirting. Anyway, I'm only wondering if you're willing to share the human. Every girl needs some blood now and then."

"Be my guest." He extended the invitation to her, shoving the human victim in front of her before he resumed in feeding, he noticed the woman not making her move. "What are you waiting for?"

Her almost matching eyes narrowed. "What kind of man is he?"

"What's up with the twenty questions? It's just a human. Free junk food, it's always the best or are you one of those vegetarians?" Damon's patience was running out, he didn't have time for this.

She scrunched up her face in disgust. "Oh, hell no! Gross! My taste isn't that bad. I'm still to this new vampire stuff, but I'm not such an amateur. I know the good stuff when I see it."

"If you must know, I didn't pick some innocent pitiful human. This douche here is an abusive drunkard I picked up in an alley. Let's just say he'll get what he deserves." He explained, indicating to the older male gasping for air on the muddy ground, his eyes flashing between these two unknown creatures.

Damon watched with interest as the woman's face contorted to something expressively wicked. The mischievous smile she had on before shifted something more demonic, partially revealing her true nature. Weren't there always demons lurking underneath? Dark veins from the corner of her eyes emerged. "Only if you let me do the honors."

"With pleasure." He resumed his drinking, letting his fangs taste the human blood once more. He almost jolted when the woman flashed over to the scrambling victim, taking the delight of greedily tearing into his flesh in full, Damon backed away taking in his fill and watched as the brown-haired woman took her turn.

She had her back to him, but hearing the hissing and muffled screams Damon could tell she wasn't holding back. In fact, she went full out vampire mode, with acute precision and brutality, her own fangs tore into the alcoholic's neck as she had the victim in an unbreakable hold. Her hand was covering his mouth, the bawling screams and shouts became louder, though it was muffled. This only made the brunette vampire's smirk widened.

"So, you're an abuser, huh? That's great for me because you're just my favorite flavor."

She drank his blood as the coppery, metallic taste enticed her taste buds. The thrill of the kill pulsed through her veins furthering her desire to make him suffer.

The brunette let him out of her clutches, only to smash him against a huge oak tree making him yell pathetically. She could smell the reek of alcohol from his clothes, only feeding her determination. His back hit the wall with a sickening crack and the bastard couldn't stop the shriek of pain that was wrenched from his throat.

"You know, I hate people like you, no, scratch that. I loathe people like you. You think you own the world like it's indebted to you just because you exist. Well, guess what. You're so damn wrong, you son of a bitch." She growled, irritated by the man's pathetic wails of pain. Damon observed the torture the other vampire administered as if she had a personal vendetta against the man. She was definitely more powerful than he had anticipated, couldn't be just some amateur newborn vampire.

The poor bastard tried to glare up at her, but the agony in his back increased tenfold as she augmented more for him to suffer. She had experience with suffering and pain, which could only make her an expert of overseeing such a specific delivery. This was actually real, and she made sure this would be the last thing he would remember. And every time he tried to move, his spine would shoot out more spasms of torment.

"W-what do you w-want?" He asked, but she was numb to his supplications.

"Nothing that you can provide me with." With that, she broke the vertebra in the man's spine and neck, affectively ensuring his death. She knew the hollow look of death all too well. She was a killer after all.

Throwing his useless body away from her onto the forest floor, she exhaled loudly. "It's not all fun as it used to be."

She wiped the still fresh blood from her mouth with the back of her hand, licking the red liquid as she went.

"I agree with you there, sister." Damon said. It's more of a hassle these days trying to feed as a vampire, especially now that a whole load of vervain was dumped into Mystic Falls' water supply. "You killed him so it's your job to bury him."

"Oh, don't worry. I brought a shovel just in case." She showed him the proof behind her words as she picked up the wooden handle of the long shovel. Tossing it over her shoulder, she walked up next to the dead body and started digging.

"So, does a pretty, testy thing like you have a name?" Damon asked leaning his shoulder against the tree watching the woman do her dirty work.

She didn't even pause, digging as she replied. "Cut the flirty-questioning crap out and get to the point. I know what you really want to ask me."

"And what would that be?"

She's never going to get anything done with him around. Annoyed, she slammed the shovel down into the dirt, and strolled over to the elder vampire almost seeing him eye to eye. "Here's the answer for you. Since you know every vampire in town, why have you never met me? That's what you're trying to figure out."

"You're different for a vampire," Damon stated as he checked her out as she kept digging.

"No shit, Sherlock," she retorted. "But, I know you're not as different as a typical vampire. Then yet again…maybe you're not."

"What doesn't fit is that you know who I am yet I don't know who the hell you are." Damon explained wanting to get more information.

The female shrugged her shoulders. Typical. "But, I know a lot about you. Just from your body language earlier, I could tell your taking your frustration on the asshole I just killed earlier. Normally, we just compel them to be quiet and forget. Now that we don't have that luxury anymore, you resorted to your natural roots in wanting to drain him."

"You can't read minds, little girl, so don't even try to figure me out." Damon was wasting his time chatting on. So what if there was a new vampire in town? It made no difference to him. As he was about to walk away, the vampire sped in front of him blocking his path.

"But, Damon. I already figured a lot about you," she said as she stepped closer. "And I bet you're having girl trouble. What's wrong? Are you grumpy because you're not getting laid?"

Now, she found herself with her own back against the hard wood of the tree. Her slightly tanned skin was centimeters away from getting stinging splinters, the only thing protecting her from that was her red and white plaid shirt that covered her white tank top. It's somewhat funny, what goes around comes around. Playful light brownish eyes stared back at harsh icy-blue ones. She must have hit a sensitive spot of his.

"Aww, did I hurt the wittle Salvatore's feelings?" Her southern accent mocked him, talking him down as if he was a small toddler.

Damon broke off a branch as a stake and he held it in front of her heart. "What will stop me from killing you right here?"

"Information." She simply answered. Her eyes held no lies for him to find. "Well, are you going to let me go or not?"

He hesitated for a second, unsure whether to trust her.

"How do I know you're not going to try to get away?" Damon pondered aloud.

The brunette exhaled noisily, blowing air to her bangs. "It's not like I'm gonna pinky swear for you. Now, will you let me go or is this going to get nasty?"

Reluctantly, the elder Salvatore released the brunette from his restraint. She backed away, eager to get out of his bubble. He had been hanging around in hers for too long. Glaring at him a little, she brushed the dirt off her jeans from the scuffle.

"So, whatcha gonna do? Stand there like an idiot?"

"I'm waiting on you, you're taking and wasting my precious time." Damon snorted with his infamous smirk that she wanted to slap off his face.

"Awe, boo hoo for you. I'm playing my sad little violin," she sneered, tired of him wasting her time. "Let's cut to the chase, shall we? You and the Idiots and Company are stuck in the dark in this twisted game of cat and mouse. It's not as if you can wave a magic wand and the plan will come to you on a silver platter. Therefore, maybe if you get a few clues then you can understand more of the game more, get my drift?"

"Come again?" There he went yet again. The other vampire frowned, face-palming herself of the sheer stupidity of people. Geez! Is there some mental condition only the people in Mystic Falls can get? They have to be retarded or something.

She groaned a bit, tired of explaining everything around here. "Let me give you a little tip on the food chain around here. You have your first level, which are the humans obviously. The second level would start with the newborn vampires. The people you know who would fit that category would be Caroline and Elena."

Damon's shoulders tensed at the mention of Elena. This was bad. He didn't need another one on his list who maybe after Elena. It always seemed like he had to add more names to that list every day. Still, how did she know about her?

"Why are you so interested in Elena?"

"All I can tell you is that old habits die hard. Besides, word spreads like hellfire in a small town. I would think you would have known by now living as long as you have, and this "Elena" I keep hearing about, she seems dull to me and I haven't even met her. What is she? The next new shit or something? She surely has you and your brother wrapped."

The brunette truly didn't get the whole attraction with the Petrova bloodline. What's up with the obsession? Oh well, a question for another time. Her sharp eyes landed on the Salvatore who was boiling underneath the surface.

"Oh," she asked, glowering with an innocent face. "Did I hit a nerve?"

But she knew just what she was doing, it was all part of the game.

"Are you just going to keep yapping or are you going to say something actually worth listening to?" Damon snapped at the female's ramblings.

"I admit, I'm a talker, my bad." She sent a half-apology his way. "Anyway, after the second level you have the upper partakers of the food chain. Of course, there's you and Stefan. Then we have the hunters who can hold their own against us, however, then we have the big baddies of them all. The Originals, which are preceded by the big doom bringer, Silas. I'm sure this is old news for you, am I right?"

"Where does that place you? You seem pretty eager."

"This isn't about me, Damon. What does have you vexed is the wolf that bit you in the ass, and the only witch in town who still has her magic. The barrier spell as the proof of that said magic." Bingo. She hit the nail on the head. She smirked to herself as the elder vampire's eyes shown a flicker of surprise.

"You're not the only one who knows then." Damon stated, looking for any sign of dishonesty or weaknesses in her guard, but couldn't find any. She had her emotions under control. The woman had experience under her belt, though the she drove him crazy only after a first meeting.

"I have my ways." She answered vaguely.

"Then what's your point of being here if you don't even want to flirt with me?" Damon asked with one eyebrow raised in curiosity. The brunette fixed her gaze on him, her hands itching just to get an attack in, but she held her ground. No need to cause a scene. It was too early for that, but soon such a time will come.

"My point is that instead of worrying over such trivial issues, focus on what you need to do. This is only the beginning, Damon. It's going to be one hell of a ride." She gave a little wave with her hand showing a naughty grin, flashing her white teeth. "By the way, here's your last hint. What you need to find is closer than you think. Keep that fresh in your mind. And you might want to finish burying the body of the poor sap I killed because something just came up for me. See ya." That was the last thing she said before the brunette vampire zoomed away before Damon could have the last word.

"You're not getting away from me." Damon declared, determined not to be outdone. Using his own enhanced speed, he zoomed through the forest trying to scout out for any sign or scent she could have left behind. He couldn't find one footprint or smell anything of her, she was gone before he even tried to start.

Damon didn't know long he stayed out there searching. Realizing he had wasted time, a shout of frustration reverberated through the woods as he punched a hole through the nearest tree. Loud caws of scared crows echoed as they fled from the sudden action.

The elder vampire decided that if he was going to find answers, he needed to find his brother, it was a good place to start from.

{Louder Than Thunder}

Outside of New Orleans...

Past - February 20, 1910

"Dammit, Caroline! Keep your heels down!"

"What did I do wrong? I'm doing everything like you told me to."

"Except that! Trust me, it'll help you because not only does it make you more secure, it also stops your foot from being caught in the stirrup. If you don't, the horse is gonna get spooked!"

"Whatever you say, Jean."

"You tell me that later on when you fall off of Zari's back, and then I can have the privilege of telling you 'I told you so.'"

"Oh, shut up!"

Klaus continued to listen in on the conversation as he watched with amused eyes. From afar, he could see all the girls riding on their respective horses. In a way, the horses represented their riders' personalities.

The horse he was least fond of was Trouble. Oh, that infuriating stallion lived up to its namesake well. That bloody horse always got on Lucifer's nerves much to Klaus' annoyance. The only reason he hadn't sent the infuriating mule to the glue factory was the horse belonging to the werewolf.

His eyes shifted to the dark spotted mare taking its time walking leisurely along with the blonde witch as her rider. He didn't know what compelled him to buy these horses; the Appaloosa was just an unforeseen bonus that had come along in the packaged deal. He had been keeping up with Charlene's progress in her natural trade and he had to admit that he's pleased, which did not happen very often.

And not often did he see the smile on Caroline's face. A smile that was never for him, all that she gave him was a scowl or a frown. It may not have been much, but he couldn't deny the radiant beauty of that smile and the laughter as she rode without care on the magnificent almost-white Arabian mare. Her blonde hair flying wild in the wind as she rode-

"Hello brother." Kol stole his attention. "I see you're rather occupied."

"Go find a mirror to keep yourself company, Kol. I'm busy." Klaus snapped.

"You're spying on the girls? Honestly, I don't understand what you see in that little blonde distraction." Another female voice added to the conversation. Klaus didn't even have to turn around fully knowing that his sister was there.

"Don't make assumptions of things you don't understand." He concentrated his sights on the girls again with his primary focus on Caroline. Whether Caroline liked it or not, nothing escaped Klaus's eyes.

"Essentially what they're saying is that you're busy stalking a certain blonde hybrid." Adelaide explained striding over to the three Originals, making sure unnecessary blood was not spilled.

As long as she had lived and dealt with the Originals, Kol was the one who she had socialized with the most. To be honest, she rather would take her chances with Kol than with the other siblings. Niklaus was a reason enough not to trifle in his affairs, but she was adamant to look after those she had given shelter too, even if that meant dealing with the ever trying Kol. The Creole witch only had a few encounters with Rebekah, but she knew enough of how much danger she can pose. Anyone with the last name of Mikaelson was the definition of 'danger' in the dictionary.

A cheeky leer spread on his face as he turned around facing the others. "Ah, the mother lioness looking after young, how touching."

Adelaide narrowed her eyes dangerously at him, but didn't say a word. She cared for them, it wasn't a secret, but it wasn't good to underestimate her because of her motherly heart; with a strong backbone and mind, she wasn't a woman to be trifled with. Adele didn't give into fear easily.

"Be careful of what words you speak of. There is truth behind them if you want to see it in action."

"How are your witches coming along?" Klaus asked.

Adelaide crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. "It's taking time, but they're getting better at their own pace. It's the best route for them to take with their magic."

"Surely your witches could progress a little bit faster? Time is of the essence." Impatience was clear in his face, but Adelaide didn't care for the childish and harsh haste that sprouted in him. She understood why he didn't like to waste time, but the best things come to those who wait. However, it would be forever before the elder hybrid grasped that concept. He was lucky she still hadn't incinerated him when she had the chance, the appeal of Klaus learning a lesson proved to be a very enticing one.

"I'm not going to repeat myself, Klaus. You know perfectly well what the situation is and how high the stakes are, I'm not taking any risks that would harm them. The girls, including Jean and Caroline, are my highest priority."

"But what about me? Don't I count?" Kol asked mocking the hurt in his face.

Adelaide shook her head and scoffed. "Excuse me for not showing any sympathy, but I'm out of that for right now. The little incident you caused to get the others caught in the fray is still fresh on my brain."

It was true. A hex bag for each of them was the best shot they had of eluding the beast successfully. Nevertheless, due to Kol's carelessness, that was shot to hell with Klaus winning as the result.

"That hurts, darling. I always thought you loved me."

"I merely tolerate you, Kol. You're lucky that you're even alive or otherwise you'd be stuck in a box with a dagger in your heart. Am I wrong?" Adelaide cast a sideways glance to Klaus and Rebekah seeing the intended looks of their faces.

"She's right, Kol. You should be thanking her for the favor. Nik wouldn't give you such a luxury." Rebekah said in agreement with Adelaide, which was a first. Vampires and witches never got along.

"Can we not dwell on that subject? What's done is done."

"Little brother, are you embarrassed? Do speak up if we're hurting your feelings." Klaus ridiculed his younger brother, taking in of the enjoyment.

"Very funny," Kol piped sarcastically. "Is all that we do in this family? Mock and scorn each other?"

"Only reason worth living for." Rebekah snorted with a smirk on her face.

"Frankly, I'm the only one here who doesn't care." It's the last thing Adelaide wanted to be a part of their never-ending arguments.

"If you excuse me, I have important business to take care of. My day is too busy as it is. Adelaide…" He called before Klaus decided to leave the premises, but not without looking at Caroline out of the corner of his eye one more time. That didn't slip past the other two siblings and the witch whose eyes were sharp. Adelaide followed him knowing what he had in mind to speak with her about.

"What do you think our brother is planning now?" Kol asked, his curiosity present.

"Is that even a relevant question? It's obvious, Kol. Knowing our brother, it's something that neither of us is going to see coming, and I don't know if either of us are going to want to find out." Rebekah blatantly pointed out. But she didn't voice her pressing concern for her brother's way of thinking. With this new blonde hybrid running about catching her brother's attention, she was either going to be the best or the worst thing for him.

Later that night...

"Well, I'll be damned. So it does exist." Jean mused as she slumped into her chair in shock.

Exhausted, Jean took another swig of her favorite whiskey, Jack Daniels, though she would prefer to drink shots, she certainly didn't complain drinking from the bottle. It didn't surprise her that she didn't have a low toleration for alcohol. Of course, Jean saw the ill effects of her father's alcoholism firsthand, but she didn't give a damn anymore. What's the point?

For many hours, she had scoured through every page of her family's historic volumes, her brain crammed with more knowledge than she had ever anticipated. Her skills of reading and history paid off brilliantly.

"Might as well tell them now, it's the only plausible explanation." Standing up from her seat, Jean walked away from the library and headed toward the back of the plantation hoping to find Caroline somewhere. There was a certain way to speak such of an extensive truth. She was sure neither Klaus nor Caroline would ready to hear what she had to say.

It didn't take long for the werewolf to find Caroline. Jean caught a glimpse of Adelaide and Caroline speaking on the back porch. Her mind was too occupied with other things rather than her trying to peep in on their conversation. Jean never really opened up about her personal life so she didn't try to spy on them, giving them a common courtesy.

"Jean…" Adelaide addressed her as the witch paused in her conversation.

"I hope you don't mind. I need to talk to Caroline, it's kinda important." Jean said as she waited on them to finish.

Adelaide nodded. "Alright, both of you be careful." The Creole witch gave a second glance to both of the girls before she left to go back inside, tired from the long day.

Once Adelaide left, it was only Jean and Caroline standing outside on the back porch. Jean shifted her feet uncomfortably as her mind came up with a blank. The werewolf never really was like this when it came to socializing. She's usually a natural at it.

"Yes?" Caroline asked.

Jean was thankful that she didn't have to speak first.

"Listen, I'm not one for formalities. It's a waste of time, but I came here to apologize. I didn't mean to come off as a bitch the other day. I know I'm not always proper, but there's just certain things I...don't talk about." Apologizing came a little more difficult sometimes to Jean depending on the situation. She never acted contrite for anything unless she actually truly saw that she was wrong. Dammit.

"You don't have to, we all have our days." Caroline told her. "I'm not going to make you be sorry. It'd be bad of me if I did. Besides, some things are just meant to keep quiet unless you voice them on your own choice."

Jean averted her eyes away hearing that statement. She hated being nervous. It made her look feeble and weak, and she was none of that by any means. It still didn't help of what she was going to have to say to Caroline.

"I know what you mean." Jean agreed. She sat down on the wooden bench, patting the empty spot beside her. "Sit down with me."

Caroline stood there reluctant to oblige, she stared at the brown-haired woman in confusion, trying to see if this was some sort of trick. Jeanette, Jeanine, Jean - whatever her name was - had already proven to be more than a handful.

"Fine." Caroline grumbled as she parked herself next to Jean, but at a good distance. "What was the point of you of trying to make conversation with me?"

"The reason why I came was because I need you to understand something. If you're still mad at me about what happened, I get that. Trust me, I would've been pissed off too." Jean spoke.

"What happened to you that made you turn into a werewolf?" Caroline asked now that it seemed to be the proper time.

Jean paused for a moment trying to put it the most indistinct way possible. No one else knew about her family. It was unnecessary. "Let's just say certain things happened, and I got out of control."

"Could you show me more about the werewolf stuff?"

Here was Jean's chance. She smiled briefly seeing that Caroline gave it to her. "Yes, I'll be glad to. It's not going to be easy, but you're tough, and that'll be good."

"Let's go then."

Jean led Caroline the way to the library. Coming into the room, opened books laid upon each other creating a mess all over the desk at where Jean worked at. The smell of whiskey pervaded through the air, indicating the couple of empty whiskey bottles. Then there was scrambled notes everywhere, some unfinished and scratched out while others were more organized somewhat and had meaningful use to them. She had been working on this all night, and she had finally found the answer.

"I gotta ask this, though. How come Adelaide can't teach me more of the wolf stuff?" She questioned Jean as the werewolf went towards her desk, scouring for something important.

"Because she only knows so much as a witch, and I can tell that you and Klaus aren't close. I was raised in it so it makes me your best option. I can break it down for you to make it easier, at least the wolf aspect of it." Jean explained, her eyes popping when she finally found the book she needed. "Yes!"

Caroline watched as Jean carried a heavy book in her hands; she dropped in onto the table with a distinct slam.

"What is it?"

Jean opened the book revealing the old yellow and brittle papyrus pages filled in with inked written words and pictures that the average person wouldn't understand unless one studied it long enough. "It's the answer we've been looking for."

She semi-glared at Jean. "In English, please."

Jean laughed at the hybrid. "I like you, you're funny, and it doesn't take much to make me laugh. I think we're going to get along just great."

"So, where are going to start with?" Caroline was eager to begin.

"Actually Caroline, there's one more person who has to hear this too. I know you're not going to like this, so don't hate me for it." Jean gave a rueful glance as she pleaded.

Confusion appeared in the blonde's facial features. Jean sighed heavily as she grasped how this situation would escalate.

"Stop stalking from behind the door! It's not like I don't know you're here." The familiar stride in those boots came from outside his hiding spot behind the door. Caroline whirled around spotting Klaus coming towards them.

"You! What's he doing here?!" The words dripped like venom from her lips.

Jean rolled her eyes.

"I should've known," she mumbled. Jean knew where the situation was heading if she didn't play referee to their spats yet again, much to her dismay.

"Seriously! What are you trying to pull this time?" Caroline's looks of hatred did no good on Klaus as they remained ineffective.

Klaus had already predicted her fiery reaction to his presence here. In fact, he found it invigorating in such a way that he hadn't seen in a woman for a long time. "I'm not here for tricks, I'm just as new as you are to this piece of wisdom, Caroline." Her name rolled off his tongue, sending unwanted thrills through the new hybrid.

"Okay, now all y'all are here. We need to get this going, but before we do this, I have whiskey here if anyone needs it." Jean reminded them grabbing a new bottle from under desk.

Caroline nodded. "Where are the glasses?"

"Over there." The werewolf specified pointing out the clear glasses on the other side of the room.

"Is it really wise for you to offer this to us considering you may need it more than we do? I'm sure there have been pressing concerns about you and your addiction to drinking." Klaus asked smugly with no concern in the supposed questions.

Jean smirked and chuckled, opening up the brand new glass bottle. "By the time this is over, y'all are going to need the whiskey more than I will. I already knew that from the beginning."

"I'll take much of what you can offer me." She waited for Jean to pour the amber liquor into the shot glass. Once Caroline's glasses were filled, she downed the shots one after another.

"Shall we get started then?" Klaus asked almost as if he could read Caroline's mind. He gazed back at Caroline, which she responded wordlessly with a glare of her own.

"Make yourselves comfortable, we may be here for a while." While Jean sat at her desk, Klaus preferred to stand in the corner casually with his renowned leer showing in his face. Caroline stayed as far as she could away from Klaus, by sitting herself down in one the armchairs by the window.

"I'll start from the beginning. With any species, an extensive history comes with it. That includes werewolves, everything has to have an origin." Jean began flipping through the pages of the book she had grabbed from before.

"Obviously. What relevance does this have to anything we've been looking for?" Klaus inquired monotonously.

"Well, it doesn't exactly say in the Bible.' And on the so-and-so day, God created the werewolves.' One of the main things about the werewolves is that it's a curse firsthand. Therefore, obviously who's the only one who can use curses? Witches." Caroline effortlessly explained in effort to outwit him.

"Damn." Jean astonished taking a sip of her drink. "You took the words right out of my mouth, I'm impressed."

She wasn't the only one who was. AKA, certain Original standing in the room.

"Well, I am not so empty in my knowledge of the supernatural." Caroline did her research.

"Like I said before, everything has an origin. When it comes to werewolves, people know the common facts: werewolves are the most dangerous enemies of vampires, they existed many years before vampires came into existence, and over a thousand years before the Originals were created. Moreover, from Caroline's accurate explanation, that only leaves the witches and werewolves as the two most plausible species to have lived before the vampires. That's where the story really begins." Jean leaned back in her chair with her feet propped up against the desk, the back legs of the wooden chair leaned back lifting the front of the hardwood floor slightly.

Klaus's impatience was evident with the loud exasperating sigh coming from him. He made no effort at all to hide it.

"Hey! I know you don't want to be here as much as I do with all your evil plans taking up your time, but can't I at least hear what she has to say before you deem her words unworthy of your utmost attention?" Caroline snapped at the vampire annoyed with his intolerant behavior, which earned her only more frustration since Klaus ignored her altogether like a silent statue.

"Anyway, our story here takes place a long way back. It starts simply with a clan. Everyone within the clan was like family to one another, practically producing an unwritten code of loyalty for them to follow. The leader of the clan was married to a witch, and the two sons who came from the marriage were Gershom and Silas."

Caroline clamped her hand over her mouth to stifle the audible gasp of horror She was lucky no one had heard it or otherwise she'd give herself away, Caroline looked to Klaus to see if he was watching her, but he was paying too much attention to Jean. She tried to focus on more of the story quietly, eager to calm herself down.

"Gershom was the oldest brother of the two. Both of them were human, but his younger brother inherited the witch abilities. When their parents died from old age, Gershom took over as leader with the help of Silas as his second. Soon enough, Silas fell in love with a woman, a human. She was welcomed among the clan. When it came time for both of them to be wedded, his love for her was so strong that he realized that he wanted to be with her forever."

"Oh, isn't that just romantic?" Klaus laughed callously.

"Hey! Don't get mad at me! I'm just explaining from what I could make sense of in those books. Excuse me if it sounds too romantic for you. I'm not making you listen to this." Jean snapped.

"I was just making a comment, love. Don't put me under fire."

"Maybe that's the problem," Caroline grumbled under her breath.

"Enough bickering! Dammit, I've had it with you two." Jean said annoyed. She leaned forward in her chair to snatch her whiskey bottle. Deciding to hell with using a glass, she just drank from the bottle. "Now, can I please finish talking without any more interruptions?"

"Continue then…" Klaus gave her permission.

Jean inclined her head and continued to disclose the information. "So, we all know now about Silas falling in love and what not, but this is where it all goes rolling downhill. Since Silas was a witch, he and the help of his best friend, Qetsiyah, who was another witch, created the first immortality spell. When she found out that Silas didn't intend to spend the rest of eternity with her, the phrase of where "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned" actually became literal. The other witch in spite killed his lover, disfigured him so no one else would love him, and imprisoned him. She also created a cure for immortality, and left that for Silas so that if he drank it, he would join her on the Other Side. However, he was stubborn so he still remains in sleep refusing to take the cure."

To Caroline, she couldn't help but think about how similar to this was to the tale of Beauty and the Beast. Except this is a rather more evil and twisted version of it.

"Where do the werewolves come in?" Caroline started to get antsy.

"You actually asked at the right time. I was just getting to that," Jean replied. "Thank God my father was a history fanatic. If it weren't for all this junk he had kept up with, I wouldn't have been able to explain this all to you."

"Are you going to get at it then?" Klaus cocked an eyebrow at her.

"I am your Royal Highness." She spat with a sarcastic tone. "When Gershom heard the news of his younger brother's imprisonment, he rallied with the other clan members to avenge his brother. The only way Silas would be avenged was with the witch's death, but Qetsiyah wouldn't have any of it. So she cursed them. They came at her like dogs so she made them suffer like dogs. The wolves were their loyal companions until she made them rabid, and they bit their masters. Therefore, it created a completely new species of the supernatural. Werewolves."

Jean paused letting all of her words sink in. Jean's own brain took a while to get used to the enormous load and still be able to function. How many hours and whiskey bottles she went through searching for this?

The sound of cackling from the fire was the only thing that could be heard. Caroline was stunned, seeing how well all the pieces were starting to fit together, it made sense, but one thing didn't add up.

"Why wasn't I given knowledge of such facts?" Klaus nearly shouted, hating to be left out.

"This is where we get more in depth within this werewolf business. It even goes back to the way I was raised. You can ask Adelaide. Knowledge of witches would only be exclusive to those who are a witch or warlock. Werewolves are very selective of who they want knowing of their history and secrets. No one who was an enemy of a werewolf or not of the same species was permitted of knowing their secrets. To make this clearer, I came across something that should help out." Jean flipped through several pages of the worn book as she skimmed. After a few minutes, she had finally found it. Laying the book wide open on the table for all of them to see, she motioned for Klaus and Caroline to see this for them.

"This," Jean said pointing at the picture, "is a genealogical tree that dates all the way back from the time of Gershom and Silas. There was always a role in the clan or family where that person would keep record of all werewolf history that took place. The reason why I'm able to share this with you now is because my father was the historian in my family."

"You still haven't answered my question. The clock is ticking, love." Klaus repeated.

"A few minutes won't kill you, I think you can manage waiting a little bit longer." Caroline responded firmly.

Jean ignored those two altogether and kept explaining. "Gershom wasn't the only line of werewolves that descended in his time throughout the years, but his line was the most prominent. Skip a couple or rather several generations, and then you will come across something very familiar. This is your answer, Klaus."

Klaus stepped forth leaning over the table to see for himself of what she was speaking about. As he read quickly through the obsolete names, one name struck out from the rest. His name.

Niklaus.

"How? How is this possible?"

Those were the only words that came out of his mouth as he stumbled back alarmed.

Jean sighed. "Surprisingly, Mikael didn't do his dirty work as thorough as he thought. There were only a few survivors left from the massacre around that time, but they moved on further. Though no one else knew the name of Klaus' father, only the werewolves did. No one knows much of him except that he had an affair with the witch, Esther. That's the only knowledge they had of him besides his name, which is Lukas. He was a descendant of Gershom's bloodline as some others were too."

Klaus was fuming. How dare they exclude him from this? His own family secrets, he had every right to be acknowledged! "WHY WASN'T I TOLD ANY OF THIS?!"

Both of the girls remained undeterred by his rant. To Caroline, he only seemed like a child throwing a tantrum. For Jean, she was used to the emotional outbursts from growing up and being around Klaus long enough.

"Because werewolves don't accept enemies knowing their secrets, that's just the way they were. You never knew of your heritage until it was too late. When you became a vampire as also with the werewolf gene inside, you became something else too, even though your wolf side was suppressed. Werewolves are notorious for keeping out outsiders. They wouldn't accept a hybrid of something that was of their highest enemy. They're some still like that to this day, but I hope that will change in the future."

"What counts as secrets to them?" Caroline asked. It was truly reveling how an entire secret that was supposed to be locked away and here Jean was, just speaking like it was an old scary tale that her parents would speak of at night to get their children into bed faster.

"Anything that deals with a werewolf counts as such, but that's another story for another time. What I'm going to explain to you now is why both of you are here." Jean stated, mentally preparing herself for the truth that would shake them to their core.

She went through her pile of books on the desk again, revealing a smaller book, she flipped through the pages until she came to the right one.

"I'm going to ask this bluntly, do any of you know about blood-sharing?" Jean's eyes shifted back and forth between Klaus and Caroline. Her eyes widened seeing the knowing look in Klaus' face and Caroline avoidance of him.

Son of a bitch.

"It's just what I thought," Jean said to herself.

"What's wrong?" Caroline noticed the werewolf's face of worry, it didn't help the inner turmoil of waiting for her answer. Klaus just stood silent with his infamous smirk just waiting for the dreaded truth that he had come to suspect.

"I'm going to have to explain this as best as I could. Blood sharing doesn't just deal with vampires. Werewolves have their own…mating rituals." As soon as the word "mating" came out of Jean's mouth, Caroline stiffened. No, it couldn't be.

"That's impossible, what does it have to with me and him?" Caroline asked in confusion.

Jean closed her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose with her hand. "There's a specific reason why blood-sharing is intimate and personal, it only happens between two people willingly, but what I'm about to say to you is a result of blood-sharing."

"Spit it out then."

"Maybe this will explain better than I can. I wrote some notes when I was reading these books. I think it's better for you to see yourself." Jean handed Caroline her old notebook. "I had to make separate notes because there was a lot to cover, take your time."

"Am I going to see this anytime soon?" Klaus said as he sauntered over to Caroline to nose over the notes.

"Klaus! One thing at a time!" Jean argued, her patience wearing thin with the matter.

Jean and Klaus' dispute was drowned out as Caroline read Jean's notebook.

Blood sharing is considered intimate for a reason. It's a completely new experience. This only happens among the supernatural like us. Primarily, it happens if someone is a vampire or has vampire qualities. It doesn't happen with a human and us, it's impossible. It brings out both parties' inner most feelings and attraction for one another; if there is any to begin with. Depending on the people involved, both of them could exchange blood many times and nothing can happen between them. There are three stages before the result comes into play.

First Stage - At this stage, it's the easiest to withdraw, but it depends. Each case is different. When one offers their blood, and the other party involves drinks from the provider, if there is any mutual attraction between them, those feelings are heightened in small portions.

Second Stage - This happens when the provider drinks from the receiver instead. This makes it more difficult to pull out if one of the parties involved wants nothing to do with the other. The side effects of the second exchange include magnified feelings, sometimes-empathic vibes of each other's emotions, and greater sexual tension.

Third Stage - Last and final stage. The receiver has to drink from the provider again. This last exchange seals everything between the two that are involved. Now that both of them have exchanged blood three times, the relationship between the two has increased to the maximum. The pull and call of their blood is strongest amongst the two. This is called the "blood bond."

Although it is a bond, the blood bond is not the same as the sire bond. A blood bond is a whole different thing entirely. The sire bond is the link between creator and creation, which is rare too. Creation complies with the direct and indirect orders of the Creator in order to show its loyalty. The blood bond happens between two willing people (or in some rare circumstances, forced.) Of how much time they have known each other is irrelevant, but the bond will happen faster if they've known each other for a while, the blood bond deepens the feelings the two people involved.

However, this isn't easy as it can be assumed. The blood must be drunk on three separate occasions (three separate nights), and once it is done, it cannot be broken unless if one of the two involved dies. Though it's supposed to create stronger feelings, it does not remove hate or fear. This can lead to some of the most passionate and complicated relationships between the drinker and the donator.

Blood bond? Those two words echoed in her brain repeatedly. Caroline didn't know what to feel or what to think, she was far from ready to understand this.

No.

This was impossible. Improbable. Inconceivable.

She can't be linked to him, not to that monster.

"Caroline?" Jean beckoned, waving her hand in front of the motionless blonde hybrid, but she stopped in her tracks. Caroline's head was bowed, her face hidden away from their gazed behind the blonde curtain of hair, she was still sitting in the armchair with the notebook in her hands, her uneasy and sweaty palms made the notebook slip from her hands with Klaus effortlessly catching it in his.

"Come on, love. Surely, you're not this quiet," he purred in his Welsh accent.

She didn't look at him, that devil's beautiful blue eyes were the last things she wanted to see. Everything about him went unwanted to her. His looks, charm, personality, everything about him, she abhorred. She despised these inklings of emotion that would bubble up when she was around him. Erasing her mind of this reality seemed to be the only bliss she could think of to remedy her situation. Yes, a memory-wipe would do just fine.

Desperate, she bolstered up fleeing the library away from the werewolf and the other Original vampire, Caroline made it to her bedroom thankfully before Klaus could get to her. Locking the door frantically, her vision became misty with clear tears burning, she breathed in heavy pants, each mouthful of air becoming more labored. Trembling, Caroline placed a hand over her heart as it pounded inside of her, making her chest ache. She swallowed the hard knot in her throat. Everything became numb all around her, creating more difficulty to navigate herself to make it to the bed.

Yes, rest was the best thing for her. Her steps became more difficult to take, but she managed it well enough, her eyesight became darker with black spots appearing into her gaze. Somehow with a stroke of luck, Caroline was welcomed to the unfeeling dreamless darkness that she desperately claimed, hoping that this would be the end of it tonight.

But, that wouldn't be in Caroline's favor. Just when she thought she'd caught a break, fate threw another hindrance in her path for their own amusement. It was only the beginning.