Caroline was still thinking about Klaus's revelations. She was a good listener, but she didn't know how to respond to that. She said she was sorry for his loss, but that sounded too bleak even to her ears. She could just remain silent, but she was afraid he would think she didn't care.
Did she care? It was a strange story, but it was clear that Klaus still felt the remnants of pain and anger. It was also strange that someone would try to redeem by righting the wrongs a monster did.
And then he said that Stefan was the friend that he allowed himself to get close too after all that time. Caroline remembered how Stefan had made it clear there was no friendship between them anymore. Now she could understand the look of hurt on Klaus's face at that moment.
He was a proud man, never showing that he needed a friend. But even if he was indestructible, he was lonely. She had told him herself that he wanted the hybrids not just as his slaves, but as companions. He hadn't denied it.
Once again that awkward silence came between them. Caroline thought she had him figured out, but then he would say or do something to change her opinion of him. So, she decided to swim on more familiar waters. Their relationship needed a balance, so it was her time to give.
Klaus looked more relaxed now, a little sad, but calm and kind of relieved to have shared such a big secret.
"You already know my friends, but I'm going to tell you anyway as long as you promise not to use this information to hurt them." She said with a take-the-offer-of-peace-I'm-extending look on her face.
He took the hint and placed his right hand over his heart. "I promise to hurt your friends based only on information I had before your confession."
Her heart skipped a beat, until she noticed the smirk on his face. If he was teasing her, than he was back to his usual self. Thank God, because she knew how to deal with that.
"You sound like Damon." She sighed. Guys ... "Do you want me to continue or not?"
Klaus tilted his head a bit, trying to understand her tactic. Why was she telling him about her friends? He already knew what he needed to know about those petty adversaries. Did she feel obliged because of what he told her?
And really, why did he tell her about Adam? The only person that knew about that was Elijah. What made him open up to this rebellious young woman who probably wanted nothing to do with him? Why was it so important that she knew there were times when he hurt and bled just like any human?
Now she wanted to talk about her friends. He didn't care about that, but he could see she was trying to be polite to him. He had shared something important, she might do the same. The longer he thought about it, the more he wanted to hear her sweet voice. It may be one of the few times she told him something that was not part of a plan to manipulate and seduce him.
He nodded for her to continue, his attention fully focused on the lovely blonde.
"My best friends are Bonnie and Elena. We grew up together and have never been separated for too long. We support each other in every way we can. When I started a diet, they would start it too to support me. We went to every class together, the Three Musketeers they called us."
She was unknowingly smiling, the memories of happy times calming her heart. He loved to see her glow like that, an angel to behold in this dark place.
"I can't say which one I prefer though. Our little team has a strange dynamic."
"If I threatened to kill one of them, which one would you save?" He didn't mean to shock her, but he wanted to know if she could be honest with herself. Somehow he knew that she had thought about it before.
"I would kill you." she replied furious at how insensitive he was. She was opening her heart to him and he was still thinking like the monster he was.
"I believe you would try. But still you would have to choose." Klaus knew he was playing with fire, but he didn't back up. What did he have to lose? It's not like she was a fan of him right now.
Caroline wanted to stake him at that moment. How could he think of such a thing? But deep down she knew he was right. When he first arrived in Mystic Falls, she was constantly afraid that she would have to make such a choice.
Caroline dreaded that moment. How could she choose? Whatever the choice, she would regret it later. The guilt would be too much for choosing one over the other.
"I don't know. I can't play God." she replied in a small voice.
"I am the Devil. You have no responsibilities over my actions. If you don't do something you lose both friends. I give you a choice to save one." He was trying to make it easier for her to sort out her feelings.
"You are the Devil. Why are we having this conversation anyway?" she didn't want to answer. She was afraid of her answer.
"Because you are not being honest with yourself. And it doesn't make you a monster, people make choices all the time." he replied calmly.
She knew he was right. She ... "I would save Bonnie." She said it so quickly that for a moment he thought he imagined the answer.
"Why?"
Caroline was about to cry, feeling as if she had indeed made a life and death choice between her friends.
"Because Bonnie is always sacrificing herself for us. We have a problem, we all run to her to do her magic. She never says No, even when it is killing her. Elena would do the same, I'm sure. It's just that I feel Bonnie is always alone, always suffering in silence while pretending to be the strong one. Elena has lost too much already, but she is strong and everyone is there for her. Stefan and Damon would kill without blinking to see her safe. Somehow I feel like they wouldn't run to save Bonnie with the same devotion if it was not for her powers. I may be wrong but that's how I feel."
There, she said it. She wasn't holding a grudge against Elena, but she felt like she was the only one that would take Bonnie's side if it ever came to such a choice.
"You are not wrong." He reassured her. "I knew you would choose Bonnie."
"How did you know? Was it that obvious?" she was surprised at his declaration. If he guessed it, could the others guess it as well? Suddenly she felt anxious and guilty. She would give her life to save Elena as well, but Klaus had made it clear that she had to save only one.
"You killed twelve witches to save Bonnie. All the others were ready to sacrifice her because of the greater good."
"Thanks for making me feel great. I know I am a killer, don't need to mention it."
"All I am trying to say is that Bonnie should be grateful to have you as a friend."
Caroline was still feeling restless. She could see that he was trying to make her feel good about her choice. Or was he trying to divide and conquer?
"This was a hypothetical situation. If you ever try to make me choose, you'll regret ever meeting me." she said as stoically as she could.
"I'll never regret meeting you." His eyes confirmed his words and she felt her heart soften at the original in front of her. "So, you were saying about your friends."
"You ruined it. What can I say now that I saved one of them and condemned the other?"
"Come on love, now you know how you feel. I'm just helping you to see better into the depth of your soul." He was not mocking her.
"You just gave me nightmares." she said and crossed her hands in front of her chest as if trying to protect herself.
"Don't fret love. You can always blame me." The smile on his face irritated her.
"But it is your fault, I'm not blaming you unfairly." His nerve, pfff ... He was trying to pass for a savior now.
"What else do you fear?" he changed the subject.
"Spiders." She was too quick to answer, but it was true. "Now that I am a vampire, I don't have to be afraid of dying of a spider bite. I can flash away so no spider can ever get near me."
"That is if you can sense a spider near you. But what if ..." he stopped mid-sentence and raised his eyebrows.
Caroline saw his gaze shift from her face to somewhere above her head. She knew he was probably messing with her, but an irrational fear overtook her. Her palms began to sweat and no matter how brave she tried to look, she was white as a ghost.
He counted to two when she flashed away from the bed to the far corner of the room. She eyed the wall where she was standing mere seconds ago with dread. She searched for the offending spider, but didn't see one. She was mad at herself for falling for such a cheap trick. He would pay for it.
Klaus was trying desperately to remain serious and composed, but it was too hard. She was standing in a fighting position, but from a secure distance. And she was ready to kill him.
"Very low of you Niklaus Mikaelson." she said with a dangerously calm voice. "Someday you will pay for this." And she sat again at her previous spot, trying to look as unaffected of his little joke as she could.
"Oh, you addressed me with my family name. I guess I have to apologize." But she could see he was not sorry.
"I'm not saying anything else to you." she declared stubbornly.
"Oh come on, it is fun. We have nothing but time here." he insisted with an irresistible smile on his face.
She was doomed. He had had eons to practice that smile, she was too weak. "I'm afraid of not being good enough." She had never said this to anyone.
"Good enough for whom?" It was a giant leap from spiders to this heartfelt admission on her part.
"For the people I love." she said. "I wasn't good enough to keep my father from leaving us. I tried my best, but it wasn't enough."
"Is it why you applied for Miss Mystic Falls?"
"Yes. I wanted to be the perfect daughter so that he was proud of me. I am at the top of my class, I am cheer leading captain and have organized so many successful events. But none of this matters, he still tried to change me. He couldn't accept me for who I am." Klaus felt she wasn't talking to him, she seemed a little lost.
He knew about how her father had tortured her trying to fix her. It so reminded him of his own abusive father.
"You don't have to prove to anyone that you are perfect." he was looking into her eyes so intently she felt as if she was being compelled. But she knew he wouldn't do it.
"I know, but ..."
"No but. Your father probably wasn't good enough to stay by your side. It probably had nothing to do with you, he just needed to live his own life to the fullest." Klaus could have said much more, but there was no need to.
"I cannot forget his face when he learned I was a vampire." she said with a sad smile. "I never hated myself as much as in that moment."
"Your father tried to fix you because he loved you. Mine tried to kill me because he hated me." He thought about it for a moment and then added. "Actually I never knew my father. The one I was constantly trying to please was nothing close to a father. But then, nor did my mother love me." He ran his fingers through his hair. "Talk about dysfunctional families."
"So you're saying you became a monster because of lack of love?" she asked. "No offence."
"None taken. I don't know why I became a monster. I always thought it was because I had nothing to look up to. It was easier to grasp the power without the responsibilities."
"Would you change it if you could?" She asked breathless. For some reason, his answer was important.
"No, I wouldn't." he sounded so sure that her heart sank. "Because then I wouldn't have met you."