AN: Day 2 of 25 days of Klaroline. Season 4 AU, some time after 4x07. In other words, how Klaus managed to get another date from Caroline.

"i broke into your house thinking it was mine because i was drunk af and now you are making me breakfast." au

The distant clattering of dishes and kettle chiming resonated across the kitchen all the way to the living-room, the vampire hearing of the blonde that was sprawled across the sofa picking up on it, the sound making her groan.

Caroline opened her eyes very slowly, wondering what her mother was doing that produced so much noise from the kitchen. Then it hit her. Her mother would not, in fact, be busy with anything at home, she was supposed to work a 24-hour shift at the station.

The next thing that hit Caroline was a massive hangover as she sprang hastily from the couch, the sudden movement wreaking havoc on her head.

She definitely shouldn't have drunk that fifth bottle of bourbon yesterday.

Or fourth, for that matter.

Taking account of her surroundings, Caroline realized she somehow ended up in the Mikaelson mansion and that couldn't mean anything good. Especially given she was missing her shirt and was sporting only a very flimsy bra and skirt.

Did anyone knew she was here? What the hell happened with her last night? Could she make an exit and pretend all of this was some weird hangover hallucination?

That last option sounded particularly tempting. But no, first she needed to cover herself with something.

The answer to that specific problem turned out to be quite simple, as she noticed a dark grey henley laid out on the coffee table next to where she was standing. She put it on instinctively, without thinking and only once a familiar spicy scent, unique to Klaus, enveloped her, Caroline recognized the shirt as his. Which did not stop her from inhaling in, reveling in the smell of sandalwood, musk and something that was so distinctly...Klaus. Then, as Caroline realized what the hell she was doing, she stopped abruptly, shaking off the sudden stab of arousal she felt in response.

Oh, denial, her second name.

Unfortunately, the fact Klaus had left her some clothing meant he was well aware of her presence and she wouldn't be able to leave undetected. Deciding to rip off the band-aid, she followed the noise and headed towards what was, probably, the kitchen. Perhaps, by some luck, Klaus kept an emergency stash of blood bags and she would be able to heal from the raging hangover that was troubling her. Also, finding out what the hell she was doing here would be freaking fantastic.

Caroline knew very well she shouldn't have indulged in that much alcohol last night, to the point where even her vampire healing abilities did her no good but, there were times in your life, you could do nothing but get royally pissed.

Like finding out your boyfriend may have been not as faithful as you expected, your best friend not only slept with devil incarnate but was also sired to him or stressing over what Klaus would do to the aforementioned most-probably ex-boyfriend once he learnt of yet another half-assed attempt at his life.

She was furious at Tyler - it didn't mean she wanted him dead. The truth was, him cheating on her did not hurt nearly as much as his constant fawning over Hayley and following her every word, no matter how dumb and short-sighted her plans seemed to be. He was not only her boyfriend but they had been friends before, helped each other through the worst of times for both of them and now he trusted the bitchy werewolf more than her?

That was the deal-breaker.

Sighing heavily, she stepped into the space of the kitchen, her eyes almost coming out of her sockets as she watched Klaus, who was busy smashing eggs in the pan.

"You can cook?" she asked incredulously, any awkwardness she had felt before at the situation forgotten.

Klaus turned around, wide grin on his face, his eyes flashing with satisfaction at the sight of her in his shirt.

"You sound so surprised, sweetheart, I'm almost offended," he retorted all chirpy, scrambling the eggs as if it was the most normal thing in the world for him.

"The Original Hybrid cooking? I just thought you would have staff for that sort of things,"

"Normally, I do. I know how to cook, though, You pick up certain skills, love, while being on the run for so long…," he fell silent for a moment, gazing in the distance but then looked back at her, cheerful gleam back in his eyes. "Besides, isn't it customary for a gentleman to make breakfast for his overnight guest?" he quipped, sounding way too jovial for Caroline's taste.

"I am not your anything, Klaus. What am I even doing here?"

"Oh, Caroline, only you can answer that question. All I know is I was woken up in the middle of the night to the banging at my door. I thought it was Kol and Rebekah, coming back from some silly college party they had gone to," boring his eyes into her, he licked his lips, gesture so erotic, Caroline gulped, tension coiling in her lower abdomen. Then, he spoke again, and judging by the expression on his face, her uneasiness hadn't gone unnoticed. "Imagine what a delicious surprise it was to see before I even managed to open the door, you flashed away and then crashed through living-room window."

Caroline felt a wave of embarrassment washing over her and was about to apologize, at least for her little breaking & entering stunt (Klaus was clearly loaded, he could afford a broken window) but before she could say a word, he continued.

"I must say, I was impressed, sweetheart, you didn't even cut yourself. My window and a 12th century vase you knocked on your way over while taking off your shirt were less lucky," he said while putting a plate of scrambled eggs on the counter, motioning for her to taste it. Reluctantly, she sat on the stool and reached for a fork he passed her, considering her next words.

"I...I must have been more drunk than I realized. I…"

"Worry not. It warms my heart that you think of here as your home, Caroline," Klaus cut in, sounding way too cheerful while he fetched a blood bag from the fridge, poured it into the glass and put in the microwave.

If he hadn't been so damn smug about the whole thing, Caroline would've probably found it quite charming, the way he was taking care of her. But, he was Klaus and clearly he couldn't stop himself from arrogance to save his life.

"I certainly do not think that! It was just a coincidence…," her voice faltered as Caroline realized she was completely unable to find a reasonable excuse for why she would end up here. Having decided to buy some time, she stuffed her face with a fork full of scrambled eggs, hoping the greasy food would make her feel better.

It was good.

She hadn't noticed the dangerous flick of the hybrid's eyes. Only when he placed a glass of warm blood in front of her, saying, "Drink it up, Caroline. You're gonna need it," in a low husky tone, she looked up at him, shivers crawling up her spine because of the suddenly intense look on his face.

"I don't think it was a coincidence at all, sweetheart. Perhaps…," he said, weighing his words, "Perhaps you simply wished to get some things of your chest. And by things, I don't only mean your shirt, however glorious it was to watch. Funny thing, among all your drunken mumbling, I've distinctly heard something about hybrids, unsiring and some outrageous, if not extremely offensive in its inadequacy, plan to kill me."

"Klaus…," She gulped loudly, finding herself at the loss of words yet again.

She had really fucked up this time.

Thinking of a way to get out of the mansion as fast as she could to warn Tyler, she glanced quickly towards the nearest window, considering whether she'd be able to repeat the trick from last night.

Noticing the motion, Klaus was at her side in a second, swirling the stool so she would face him and then trapping her between him and the kitchen counter.

"Ah, ah, ah," he drawled almost playfully, "Don't you think sweetheart, if I were to kill Tyler, I'd have done so the minute you passed out on my couch? No, seeing the distress young Lockwood caused you with his actions, not to mention his indiscretions with this insolent werewolf girl, I've come to the conclusion I'll let you decide what happens with Tyler."

"What?" she stammered, completely bewildered.

"Again so surprised, love. I've been known to show some benevolence on a rare occasion," at that, she couldn't help but huff in disbelief, making Klaus approach her even closer. His mouth on her ear, making her quiver, she wished she could say it was in fear. "Obviously, my good will does not extend to all the other hybrids. They will die," he whispered viciously, chuckling at the outraged look on her face.

"You have a really twisted definition of benevolence, then," she bit, not able to hold her tongue. She'd never been, with him, whatever the consequences.

"I simply do not take lightly to someone threatening my life, love, why should I? As for Tyler, you have two choices. He can either die, rightly so, along with his idiot companions. Else, I could bleed him dry of vervain, or let Rebekah do it, she loves this kind of stuff. Then, I'd unsire him and compel him to forget all about Mystic Falls, hybrids, my family and me...you. And he'd live happily, wherever he chose to. I would do it gladly, Caroline...given the proper incentive, of course," locking his eyes with her, he flicked the loose strand of her blonde curls behind her ear, awaiting her reply.

"Incentive?" she croaked out, his ominous presence crowing her and making it pretty much impossible to think.

"Aw, yes, have I forgotten to mention that? So which one will it be, Caroline?" he mused, as if trying to sound innocent.

His smugness, once again, managed to break her out of her stupor.

"Cut the crap, Klaus. You know very well, no matter how things are left between me and Tyler and whatever your price, I will be willing to pay it. So get on with it."

Surprisingly, her brash response didn't anger him. Quite the opposite, he stroked her cheek with his thumb, in a gentle caress, looking at her af is she was the most precious thing in the world. Her breath hitched and she was unable to lower her gaze from him. As she was about to say something, he took a step back, allowing her more space and the spell was broken.

"I know that very well, Caroline. I can only hope that one day, you could show the same level of loyalty to me," he said and then grinned at her perplexed expression. "Is that so impossible for you to grasp, Caroline? That I would crave loyalty from you?"

That was, in fact, quite impossible for her to comprehend. He was the most powerful being in the world. Why would he need her loyalty?

"Oh, you will find out some day, Caroline," he quipped, as if reading her thoughts. "Now, as for this incentive...how do you feel about another date?"

It was only a decade and hundreds of dates later that Klaus confessed how he had known of Tyler's plans all along and used it to go out with her again.

Caroline knew should should have been raving stark mad that he had played her that way. But, basking in the sun of a private tropical island, her naked body sprawled on his, Klaus' hands travelling up and down her back, she found herself unable to care.

She wouldn't let him get away with manipulating her but…

It all turned out for the best, didn't it?

Hello, lovelies, how are you? I hope you're enjoying 25 days of Klaroline on tumblr, I sure am! So what did you think? I've always wanted Klaus to sneak his way into another date with Caroline after 4x07, how about you?

Big thank you to all of you who are reading these drabbles, your reviews, favs and follows always make my day!

Until next time,

Kate ;)