Chapter 16: An Original

Des Cendres

Southern Tibet

January 1477

Niklaus Mikaelson strode rapidly through the tangled web of stone corridors. Guards and students nodded to him as he passed. He certainly could have sped, but he was not overly eager to face what was on the other side of the door he had just reached. He sighed before unlocking it and entering. He only just managed to duck in time as a giant tome flew at his head.

"Caroline, my love, would you please, listen," he began.

"Ha! Like you listened to me before holding me prisoner in my own home!" His wife snarled from the corner. She wore the same dress she had been wearing for three days, since she had been locked inside. Her long hair was starting to look quite disheveled, but Klaus had been married for over seventy years – he figured it best to not point this out to her.

"I am sorry, woman, but I wanted you to stay alive!" he growled and then twisted as she whipped a series of shurikens at him. One slashed through his left sleeve and another sliced off a bit of hair.

"I'm over three hundred years old! I can take care of myself," she snapped.

"Can you, Caroline? Because just two nights ago, you nearly died from a simple werewolf bite. If Elijah hadn't found me in time…" Klaus challenged.

"So what, you're going to keep me locked up here forever? People die, Nik, it's a fact of life," she implored him, turning away from him and plopping facedown onto their enormous bed.

"We are not people, we are more than that. How do you think I would be able to survive your death? Our family is immortal," he moved towards the bed.

"But I am not as indestructible as you and your siblings. You just have to accept that," came her muffled response.

"I refuse to accept that," he said gravely. He sat down beside her on the bed.

"Which brings me to my previous question, which was supposed to be rhetorical. Are you going to keep me locked up here forever?"

"Of course not. Only until Mariko finds a way to make you one of us."

Caroline lifted her head to gape at her husband. "She's been working on that for twenty years. What if she never figures it out?"

"I believe her capable."

"And what do I do in the meantime? Weave a tapestry?"

He grinned at her. "I'm sure we could find plenty of activities for you. And me."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm not your goddamn concubine; I have a school to run and a life to lead. I've let you keep me in here for the past couple of days because I knew you were so upset. But I'm not waiting for Iki. If she figures this out – great. If not, I'm not walking on eggshells around werewolves and waiting with bated breath for Mikael to appear out of nowhere. If you try to keep me here another day, I'll divorce you."

Klaus bowed his head. "I know and I would deserve it. But you know how crazy I get when something happens to you. If you were as indestructible as I am, I would have no need to get so agitated."

Caroline snorted and rose from the bed. She slid her dress off as she spoke. "Shows how much you know. You think I never worry about your safety? Do you think I don't consider that whenever we part, it may be the last time I see you? Yes, I'm not indestructible, but neither are you. Mikael, White Oak, and who knows what else," she grumbled as she stripped.

He stood as well, stripped, and placed a gentle kiss on her shoulder blade.

She shivered at his touch. He traced a finger from her earlobe down her neck to her hand. He caressed her wedding band.

"I wouldn't let you do it anyway. You're mine," he whispered.

She stepped out of her chemise and turned towards him with her fangs out. "Is that a threat?" she purred.

"There is no such thing as a vampire divorce," he said throatily.

"Says who?" she laughed, throwing her arms around his neck and biting down into his skin.

He growled again and picked her up. She sucked in his blood as he carried her back to the bed and placed her down. She stopped feeding and teasingly scooted away from him. He grabbed her ankle roughly and pulled her towards him, entering her with one hard thrust. They both moaned.

"Says me," he groaned out. And then he bit into her ivory skin.

Six months later.

Klaus paced the length of the cold, stone hallway frantically, hoping the witch would be able to give him news soon. He hated waiting, and his wife's life was in danger. He wasn't used to feeling useless. He knew he was partially to blame: he wanted this. But now that the spell was being cast, he was fully realizing how difficult and risky it all was to try to make Caroline an Original.

Elijah appeared at the end of the hallway. "Any word, brother?"

Klaus shook his head. "No. And she's cast a silencing charm, so I can't even hear anything."

"Bekah said Mariko was worried you would be affected by anything she did to Caroline?"

"Yes. I told her I'd be fine. She insisted I stay away so there would be no interference."

Elijah was about to ask something else when the door to the room opened and Mariko popped her head out.

Klaus froze.

"Well?" he demanded anxiously.

"She is dead again. We can only wait now and see what happens. I believe everything went correctly with the elixir and spells," she explained somberly.

Elijah put his head in his hands, and Klaus wordlessly stepped past the witch and looked at the corpse of his wife, lying on the bed.

She wasn't desiccated, which was a good sign. In fact, she almost looked like she was sleeping: her hair was vibrant and her curls fell elegantly around her face and shoulders, her cheeks were rosy, and her skin was glowing. But she did not breath, her heart did not beat, and when Klaus took her hand, it was deathly cold: colder than his own. He lowered the sheet covering her body to reveal the gash in her breast where Mariko had stabbed her. He swallowed, trying to hold back tears.

"How long do you think, Riko?" he asked grimly.

"It's hard to say, but I hope not too much longer than a normal vampire transition. It was my intention to restore her old fae powers, which may speed up or delay the process," the witch said quietly from the doorway.

"Fae?" Klaus questioned.

"Caroline always thought she was a special type of witch, because her powers were different from the clan's. But she was actually not a witch at all. She is one of the Fae. Some of the others in the Auxor clan have these genes, but it was most apparent in Caroline and Alix in their time. I'm sure there are plenty more now. We only discussed this today, because I just realized a couple days ago," Mariko explained. She seemed to realize she was still holding Jeanne d'Arc's sword and quickly placed it back in its sheath, waving her hand over it to cast a protection spell.

"Is that the only way now?" Klaus breathed.

"Yes," the witch confirmed. "Where do you want to keep it?"

"Here."

Mariko nodded. There was a long silence.

"I would like to be alone with her," Klaus said softly.

He heard Elijah and Mariko shut the door and walk down the hall. He pulled up a chair and sat in it, holding Caroline's hand and pressing his forehead to it. He muttered in Norwegian under his breath.

"The only way to kill her now?" Elijah asked.

Mariko nodded. "She insisted it be Joan's sword and nothing else. Her cure and her death in one blade."

Hours later, Rebekah, Elijah, and Mariko were sitting in the library of Des Cendres. Rebekah was doing her best to hear anything from down the hall, while Elijah was attempting to distract himself with a book. Mariko was going over her notes, nervous she had done something wrong. Two stories above them, they could hear the girls running around the courtyard.

"Should someone check on the girls?" Elijah asked as he turned a page in his volume.

"Gita is up there with them; I'm sure everything is fine. They don't need to be babysat," Rebekah snapped.

Elijah sighed. She glared at him before looking at Mariko, who was now mumbling to herself.

"The blade, the willow, the sun, the moon…"

"Would you please stop doing that, Riko? You're driving me mad. You wouldn't have given her the elixir and done the spells unless you had prepared vigilantly, so stop second-guessing yourself. This was Nik's idea. He knows whom to blame if this unnecessarily risky spell goes wrong," she continued harshly, belying her anger and nervousness.

"You cannot blame Niklaus for wanting to protect his wife from our father," Elijah admonished.

"We can all protect Caroline!"

"Caroline was vulnerable. Whenever she wasn't with us, and sometimes when she was, she was at risk. This makes things far easier."

"If it works," Mariko added solemnly.

Elijah sighed again. "Yes. If it works."

Inside the room, Klaus had entered Caroline's psyche. He wasn't sure if it was his doing or Caroline's. Inside their shared reality, Caroline was sitting in a garden, humming to herself. She was on a bench and wore a soft lavender dress that flowed all around her. She was writing in a journal. Time was wrong; if he had to guess, it seemed like the future.

Klaus tread lightly over the dewy grass and realized he was human. He could feel the sunlight that dappled through the leaves in a way he hadn't in centuries. His heart beat strong in his chest. He looked at his hands, which were tanned and seemed different: aged. He shook his head and continued walking to his wife.

Caroline looked up when he was nearly ten feet away, and a large, glowing smile lit up her entire face. She, too, seemed tanned and older.

"There's my joys!" she exclaimed.

Niklaus furrowed his brows in confusion as something brushed against his leg as it ran past to reach Caroline.

A little human boy and a tiny human girl hugged their mother lovingly. Klaus could only stare in shock.

"Did you have a good time fishing with your father, little ones?" Caroline asked, grinning at Niklaus.

"Yes, Daddy showed me how to bait today!" the boy said.

The children both looked up at Klaus then, and his heart skipped a beat. The boy had Caroline's pale blond hair, but there were streaks of honey blond. His eyes were bright blue, but his facial features reminded him of… Henrik. The little girl was a near spitting image of Caroline, but her eyes were dark blue-green…like his own.

These were his children. Caroline's and his children. He never thought a family was something he wanted: Caroline and his siblings and their friends were family enough, he had thought. But seeing his children stare up at him with admiration and trust and love in their eyes was inconceivable. He did not know how to react except stare at them right back and fall in love with them.

"Are you alright, my love?" Caroline asked, a worried look on her face.

He shook himself. "Yes. I'm just admiring my beautiful family."

A shadow passed over her face. "We can never have this, Nik."

"I know. But it is a nice dream, isn't it?"

"I think so."

"Is it yours or mine?" he asked.

"Which do you think?" she asked slyly.

"Honestly, I thought yours. But I'm not entirely sure anymore."

"Nik. Nik, wake up. Wake up, my love."

He stared at his wife confusedly. She hadn't said anything, but he had heard her voice in his head. "Which is the dream, now?"

"Whichever you chose," dream-Caroline told him.

He blinked and tears came to his eyes. "I won't forget this. Little Henrik and Alix, I won't forget you. Human Caroline, I will always love you."

"Niklaus!"

He was pulled from the dream violently and woke up to see the face of his 17-year old wife staring at him. She was lovelier than dream-Caroline because she was real and alive and had lived lifetimes with him and now was back from the dead once again to live more lifetimes with him.

"Caroline," he whispered hoarsely.

She smiled at him.

"How do you feel? Are you in pain? Is anything different? Are you definitely a vampire? Do you need blood?"

She put a hand to his cheek. "I am fine, my love. I am not in pain, yes, I feel different, yes, I'm a vampire, or about to be, because, yes, I need blood," she listed.

He stood. "Mariko! Rebekah! Elijah! Caroline needs blood!" he shouted exuberantly.

He sat back down at her side as she tried to get up. "No, no. Do not try to do anything until you have blood."

"I'm not an invalid, Nik," she muttered, but begrudgingly settled back into the bed.

Rebekah appeared in the doorway. "You're alive!" she exclaimed.

"Of course I am. I have the best witch in the world."

Said witch appeared in the doorway herself, breathless from running after Rebekah. Klaus looked at her seriously.

"My debt to you is limitless, Mariko Kurosawa. You have my protection and loyalty until one of us dies," he vowed.

Mariko bowed her head and then looked at her mentor. "How are you feeling?"

Caroline smiled. "Good. I think my fae powers are back."

"Really?" the witch asked excitedly.

"Yes, I believe I projected a dream into Nik's head while he waited for me to wake up in a subconscious effort to soothe him. That was definitely one of my fae abilities when I was human," she explained, giving Niklaus a tender look. He nodded in understanding.

Elijah and Sameysa came to the doorway.

"We figured someone who had fae blood would be the best option, though it doesn't seem to matter now, since you already think you're Fae again," Mariko explained.

"Nevertheless, we should do it anyway," Elijah said.

"Are you okay with this, Sameysa? I promise I won't take too much. I only need a drop to ensure my transition."

Sameysa walked forward bravely. "Anything for you, my queen," she said, offering her wrist.

Caroline nodded and took the arm of her student. Her eyes went silvery black and her veins popped out. Klaus, Elijah, and Rebekah all noticed the difference.

She bit into the arm and sucked gently for less than ten seconds before releasing it.

Everyone waited. Nothing happened.

Finally, Caroline blinked. "I feel stronger than I was before. And… I think I want to try something."

"Already, love?" Klaus asked worriedly.

In a flash, she was out of the bed and on the other side of the room. "I haven't done this since I was human," she said excitedly, and before anyone could ask what she was talking about, she had disappeared.

Except, she hadn't. She had flashed out the window and was twisting, flying in the air. The group watched from the window in awe as she raised her arms up. Though it was not raining, a bolt of lightning cracked out of the clouds and Caroline directed it into the mountains. Her hair whipped around her and a wide smile spread across her face as she looked up into the sky.

"So Mariko has been most successful then," Elijah said unnecessarily.

Rebekah frowned at her progeny. She couldn't feel her anymore. She turned to look at Mariko.

"Riko, why can I not feel Caroline anymore?"

The witch stared at her in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, that's my progeny and we share a special bond. I always feel her presence, but not now," the vampire explained impatiently.

The others were still watching Caroline, who was currently shapeshifting into different birds.

Mariko shook her head. "No, Rebekah. Caroline is no one's progeny now. She has been reborn. I'm sorry, but my elixir has severed that tie."

Rebekah blinked in shock . Caroline fly back into the room. Her skin was glowing. Gita came into the room with her mouth wide open.

"My lady! We saw you from the courtyard! How - what?" she stuttered.

Caroline grinned at her. "I'm a Hybrid now."

"You're more than that, Caroline. We've started a new strain of vampirism," Mariko corrected.

Elijah nudged his brother, who turned to him. Elijah handed him a sheath.

"Caroline, it just so happens that today is call for another occasion," Klaus announced.

Caroline smirked at him. "Oh, it 'just so happens,' huh? I think we all know this was planned. You only wanted to remember one date," she teased.

Klaus held his heart in mock offence. "I'll have you know I keep a running list of many dates in my head, wife. But since this is a very special occasion, it calls for a very special gift, from my siblings and I."

He bent down on one knee and offered the sheath to her. Her eyes widened and she shakily grasped the proffered gift. Slowly, she unsheathed it to reveal one of the daggers that had been dipped in White Oak ash.

"I can use it now," she said in wonder.

"Happy anniversary, my love," Klaus said auspiciously.

"Happy hunting, Caroline," Elijah added.

She held the dagger to her chest and smiled at them.

The Cotswolds, England

March 1492

Elijah watched the flickering flames of the fire from his seat at the table, his hand grasping an untouched goblet of wine. Memories of a girl from long ago danced in the flames. His Tatia. The doppelgänger. And now there was a new one; Trevor had fulfilled his duty. The resemblance was uncanny and unnerving, and Elijah had been unable to rejoin the party once Niklaus had started a conversation with this Katerina Petrova.

Niklaus took that moment to burst into the chamber, an enormous smile on his face.

"Finally, Elijah! After all this time! She is mine! Pour me a glass and we will toast to my victory!"

Elijah sighed and reluctantly poured another goblet for his brother.

"If only Caroline were here to enjoy this with me!" Klaus flung himself into a chair and grabbed the goblet.

"Has she sent word recently?" Elijah inquired.

Klaus shook his head ruefully. "The last note I received was in December, when she told me she was following a trail to Persia."

"She's leaving quite the trail of her own," Elijah said with raised brow.

Klaus let out a sharp laugh. "And what can our father do to her if he finds her? Nothing is what. Ah, Mariko. If only my heart weren't already taken."

"Mariko sent word to me last week. She is joining a clan somewhere in Muscovy to learn their ways. I doubt we'll see her for many years."

"We'll reunite once Kol is daggered," Klaus waved his hand dismissively.

Elijah nodded absentmindedly.

"And Bekah is in Spain again! She followed that crazy Italian to Spain. Colombo, or something," Klaus said cheerfully. "Come, Elijah! A toast to our victory and all the exciting adventures and prospects for the whole family! Even Kol, who shall be enjoying a long sleep very soon, the lucky bastard!"

Elijah clinked goblets with Klaus and took a small sip while his brother drank liberally. When he finally put his goblet down, Klaus sent him a suspicious look.

"What is wrong with you, brother?"

Elijah took a moment to answer and kept his eyes on the flames. "Doesn't it make you uncomfortable, how alike she is to Tatia?"

"No," Klaus said nonchalantly. "All I see is my curse being broken."

"But they are the same person!"

Klaus finished off the goblet and poured himself another. "They are not the same person, Elijah. You aren't getting second thoughts on me, are you?"

"No, no. It's just… Unsettling. I've been remembering things from the past I hadn't thought of in such a long time."

"Come, brother. The wine will stopper that," Klaus grinned wickedly.

Elijah glanced from the flames to his full goblet to Klaus and back to the flames. He saw Tatia dancing joyfully at a festival, flowers in her hair.

"The past is done, brother," Klaus said quietly.

Elijah held up the goblet to his lips. "To the future."

Pembroke Castle, Wales

January 1500

At long last, Caroline's horse trotted out of the endless, tangled forest and came to a halt at a vast moat. Caroline stared at her destination with one hand holding the reins and the other on her thigh, where she had strapped her favorite possession. She gazed behind her at her entourage. This was what vengeance felt like. She was so close now.

"I will swim across tonight. Wait for my signal and you will now then that it is safe to come across the bridge," she instructed to her captain.

"Yes, Your Grace," he bowed his head.

She slid off the horse and removed her cloak. "Come," she beckoned a young soldier.

He strode forward and offered his wrist. Her veins popped out as she bit down and drank until he fell to the ground. He still had a pulse, but it was slight. He may not make it. She frowned at his weakness and looked at the moat again in distaste. Why should I swim when I can fly? An especially nasty smell wafted across and she made up her mind.

"On second thought, I will fly across. Where are my spies?" she demanded.

Two young ladies and one man came from the back of the entourage and bowed.

"He suspects nothing?" she asked.

One of the ladies raised her head. "No, Your Grace. When I met with him last year, I was careful to mention the eight virgin daughters very casually."

"Are any of the girls talented? Witches, or Fae?"

"No, Your Grace. Simple things," the other lady supplied.

Caroline nodded and dismissed them. She sat down to meditate. Soon, so soon.

At nightfall, she fed once more, this time from a woman who did not faint as the man had. It looked like he would actually survive, Caroline noted apathetically.

"Await my signal," she reminded the captain before flying into the air and soaring over the moat.

She landed less than minute later in one of the towers. Two guards stared at her in astonishment. She could smell the vervain in them, but it mattered not for her.

"Your allegiance is to me and me alone now. Where is the master of the castle?" she ordered with dilating pupils.

"My Lady, he is hosting a feast in the Great Hall for our honored guest," one of them said obediently.

Caroline grinned. "And where is the Great Hall?"

"If you follow the staircase over here down, you make a right and then a left," the other guard said swiftly.

"Thank you, gentlemen. And it is 'Your Grace,'" Caroline corrected before gliding down the staircase serenely.

As soon as she stepped out of the tower, she could hear the sounds of the feast. It seemed like a grand party. As she approached, she picked out the words.

"It is with great honor to announce the betrothal of the Lord Rhys with my daughter Ffion," a deep voice announced to loud applause and cheers. "He has proved himself loyal and worthy and it was with his leadership we were able to defend this duchy!"

The Lord Rhys sounds like a real catch, Carline thought to herself with a laugh. She had reached the doors of the Great Hall and took in a deep breath. It is time, old friend. She pushed the doors open and strode into the hall with a passive look on her face.

A hush came over the hall as the inhabitants turned to look at the beautiful newcomer. She was wearing a beautiful purple velvet dress with brocade-lined sleeves and her blond hair was twisted into an intricate plait pinned with gold and precious gemstones. They had never seen such an open display of wealth before.

"My Lady, can we help you?" the duke asked in astonishment.

The so-called Lord Rhys stood from the high table abruptly, his knees banging into the wood loudly. His betrothed was a pretty girl with very dark hair who looked just as surprised as the rest of the hall. She was no more than nineteen and her seven sisters were all sitting at the table. They were just as pretty as their eldest sister and most likely, just as enamored with her betrothed.

"You may, my Lord. I was hoping to have a chat with your soon-to-be son-in-law," Caroline purred as she walked to the table with her eyes burning into Kol's. His eyes darted around the hall, clearing checking for his siblings.

Caroline smirked.

"And your name, my lady?" the girl inquired politely.

Caroline kept her eyes on Kol. "Your beloved could answer that question for me."

Kol swallowed and seemed to come to a decision. "This woman is named Caroline and she is a threat to the castle. I recommend arresting her at once," he declared.

"Indeed?" Caroline's smirk deepened as the soldiers looked at each other in surprise.

"My Lord Rhys?" the girl questioned.

"First off," Caroline began as she flashed to the girl's chair, tore into her chest, and ripped out her heart. "His name is not Rhys."

She licked the blood off the heart as the hall burst into an uproar with revulsion and terror. Kol flashed to the doors and tried to open them. Caroline waved a lazy hand towards the soldiers and they all were swept into the stone walls and knocked out. Kol turned around in grim defeat when he realized the doors had been spelled shut. Caroline flashed in front of him and dropped the girl's heart at his feet. It made a sickening plop as it hit the stone floor.

"Oops," she giggled.

Kol lunged at her, but she was quicker and snapped his neck easily. She smiled triumphantly at his body before turning to face the hall. She had a lot of compulsion to do.

An hour later, the castle was completely compelled, the daughters had been instructed to bury their sister, the soldiers had locked Kol in the dungeon, and Caroline had sent the signal to her entourage to enter the castle. Kol would wake soon and she had a show to put on. Her ladies were unpacking her effects in the grandest chamber. She ruffled through the chests of clothes until she found what she was looking for.

"Take me out of this gown and undo this plait," she instructed. She brushed a hand against the dagger strapped to her thigh and smiled.

The ladies removed her many layers of cloth and dressed her in the gossamer sleeping gown. Her hair was brushed out to fall freely down her back. Caroline left the bedchamber and glided through the halls of her castle and down to the dungeons. Kol had just awoken and was trying to bargain with her men.

"I know she's quite the dish, but ultimately, she's taken, so there is no real future there for any of you. I know the husband; he is not the kind of guy you want to get on the wrong side of," he was saying as she entered the dungeon. He was wrapped in vervain-soaked ropes. The enemies stared at each other through the bars of the cell.

"Leave us," Caroline ordered quietly.

The guards left immediately and Caroline unlocked the cell door and stood before her brother-in-law. The was a deep, permeating silence that made all the noises of the dungeon seem all the louder. The steady drip of moisture in dark crevices. The creaking of a distant door. The rats scurrying in the walls. Kol's uneven and unnecessary breathing.

"I know how I will die and it is not here, not like this," he said suddenly.

Caroline cocked her head to one side. "Ah, yes; of course you know that. Your death has always confused me. But I'm not here to kill you, Kol. Your siblings would never forgive me. And besides, I do not possess the proper stake."

Kol did not answer.

"It's been a long time, old friend," Caroline continued smoothly.

Kol let out a gasping laugh.

"Darling. You missed me. I know you missed me."

"Oh, I've missed you, Kol. I've missed you every day. Never once did a day go by in which I did not think of you, dearest."

"I'm quite flattered, darling. In truth, I also spent a lot of time thinking of you fondly," Kol agreed easily.

Caroline responded by smiling at her prey. He looked unhealthy, like he had not been drinking enough blood.

"You know, you set the perfect trap," Kol tried. "A promise of young virgins, ready and waiting. I could never resist."

"I know. I know you. You're very simple."

Kol shrugged. "I can't disagree," he choked out.

Caroline decided to tease him a bit before delivering the final blow. "Have you been to Spain lately, dear Kol?"

"I have spent the last several decades in the Middle East. It's quite an interesting place to be these days."

"Oh, no doubt. I'm so sad you've missed the strides the Spaniards have made in their investigatory instruments. Religious intolerance is such a shame, but I am so very fascinated with these innovations."

She could see Kol relaxing slightly.

"Excellent, darling. Tell me about these devices," he implored, as if they were exchanging gossip.

"You know, I would. I will. Most definitely. In fact, maybe you'll read about them one day. In the very, very distant future."

Kol's face betrayed his disappointment and anguish as her words.

"Dearest. I did think this business was betwixt us two. I am deeply saddened you felt the need to involve my brother."

"Brother? Your brother's only involvement here was a gift. A gift bestowed upon me as an anniversary surprise many years ago."

Caroline slid the dagger out of its sheath and held it at her side. Kol spotted it as she slowly walked closer.

"He knew this was between me and you. He isn't even in the country right now. I'll send for him when this is all finished up. Such a good husband."

"You cannot use that on me; you'll die!"

Caroline grinned. "A century ago, that certainly would have been true. But the gift I was referring to was not the knife, dear Kol. It was the ability to use it."

"How-?"

"Do you really think your mother was really the only witch who knew how to create a vampire? Ever? The only one who ever dared?" If only he knew it was his dear Mariko, she thought smugly.

"You can't be – it – it's not possible," he stuttered, flabbergasted.

"I assure you; it is," Caroline said shortly.

"But you had already been turned."

"A small hindrance, but nothing that couldn't be worked around."

"You could still die. You can't be positive it will work," Kol argued desperately.

"I think I'm willing to take my chances, brother. I've waited too long. I would love to stay here and torture you for hours, but I think you'd only get a sick pleasure out of it, and though I would too, I am determined to end this. I differ from my beloved in that aspect. I want to finish it, and I want to finish it with my own hand. I want to watch your eyes as the light leaves. I want to see you face the idea that you're going to be stuck in a box until I see fit. Who knows how long that will take? You're going to miss so much. So many inventions, and wars, and pretty virgins. What a shame. I'd almost feel sad about it – if I wasn't so absolutely ecstatic."

"Please. I know he will miss me. I know he will not be able to look at you the same!" His eyes were wide with fear now. Good.

"Of course he will. You won't be dead. You'll be very safe, in fact. He can bring you back at any time. He won't, of course. I would see it as a great betrayal. Nevertheless, the option is there."

Caroline saw in his eyes that he was thinking of when she was a fragile human girl who adored him. Of when they were living together in African wilderness and the best of friends. Of when she had helped him try to become a witch again. She glared at him with hatred.

"What you did – I can never forgive. I hope you think about what you've done while you nap, Sleeping Beauty."

She raised the dagger.

"CAROLINE! PLEASE! CAROLINE!" he roared.

It was too late. It struck home with a satisfying crunch. His skin darkened to an ashy grey and blue veins burst all over as he fell to the floor.

Caroline stared at him for a long minute, savoring the moment. She leaned in.

"The worst is yet to come," she breathed lightly into his ear.

She kissed him on the cheek, swept up her robes, and glided out of the dungeon. Her guards were waiting just outside.

"He is to be placed in the special coffin I made for him and laid to rest deep in the catacombs," she told them before exiting the dismal place.

Gita was waiting for her in her bedchamber.

"Is it done?" she asked anxiously.

"Yes," Caroline said simply, letting it sink in.

After sixty years, she finally felt at peace. It was time to find her husband and help him track down Katerina Petrova, maybe reek some havoc on the world while they searched.

And they had reunited mere weeks later, in the Channel Islands. They began a new campaign of violence and savagery, giving in to their baser instincts. Klaus had not been so barbaric since his marriage and Caroline had not since her time with Kol in Egypt. The following near ninety years of bloodshed were what established them as the king and queen of vampires, feared as no other could be feared. They weren't so much looking for Katerina - it was much more important to get under her skin. They wanted her to crawl across the continents, never able to feel safe, never knowing if a Mikaelson would appear in her home at any moment.

While her brother and sister-in-law ravaged the Old World, Rebekah Mikaelson sailed across the Atlantic Ocean with Christopher Columbus on all of his voyages. She later followed Pizarro to Peru, where she set off on her own into the mountains. It was there she found the Incas and joined their society. Caroline took a small vacation from killing and maiming and went to visit her in 1532. What she found surprised her.

A/N

Sorry for such a long delay! Last year was crazy busy. I had a lot going on in my career and then I moved a couple weeks ago. I'm really determined to finish the story this year; I have so much of it written and know what has to happen, but it's a matter of connecting what I have and fleshing out what I haven't written yet. Thanks for staying with me! The next chapter is going to continue the action in the present - Klaus has just created his Hybrid army to take on his parents. After that, I will finally tell Rebekah and Pacari's story, as is hinted here. Happy reading and happy new year!