Everything, Everything

by Anya-Paradox

Caroline and Klaus wake up human in another reality due to a spell. Oh, and they're married, which is absolutely the worst, until it isn't.

4. Secrets

A/N: Hey everyone! I'm sorry for the long wait, I was in Disney World and I thought I would have time to update there but it was too busy! Anyway, this chapter is a whopping 37 pages or 16k, so at least you'll have a big update :) A lot happens in this one! I will warn you that there is sex in here, and it's a little rougher than usual, but it's not dub con by any means. Also, there is one more official chapter after this, then an epilogue. Hope you enjoy :)

---

Coming home to an empty house is worse than Caroline remembers it being. She's gotten used to Klaus being somewhere inside, even if they don't immediately see each other or talk. The house is dark, and when Caroline gets home from work three days later she toes off her shoes and eats ice cream out of the carton because it seems like something she should do.

It's stupid to miss Klaus this much when he's only been gone a single weekend. He's even scheduled to get home tomorrow, since it's the full moon, and Caroline can't wait. He's called her a couple of times over the weekend, just updating her on what he's doing with Henrik. Matt, Rebekah and Hannah arrived there yesterday, and all of them went out for a large family dinner.

Caroline spent her day at work, and then headed to Matt's house to make sure all the lights were off and the plants were watered. She's so bored she's going to go crazy; Elena's barbecue had been fun, although she hadn't had much of an appetite. Caroline had enjoyed having the next day to relax for a bit, she even slept in. After that, she didn't have much to do. She visited her mother, cleaned the house from top to bottom, and then did work from home.

Caroline's realizing just how boring her life would be without Klaus; especially now that she's not even a vampire. Nothing happened in Mystic Falls until the vampires arrived, and Caroline is really reliving the old days of absolute boredom.

She's been unusually tired all weekend, and is just about to head to bed when her doorbell goes. It's not even that late, although she's in ratty pyjamas and a messy bun, and Caroline heads for the door to see who could possibly be bothering her.

The sight that greets her on her front porch is so ridiculous Caroline can't help the smile that spreads across her face. Klaus is holding flowers, and smirking at her, and Caroline wonders how many women in the entire history of the universe can say that Niklaus Mikaelson brought them flowers.

She throws herself forward, narrowly missing the bouquet, and he wraps her in a hug.

"You weren't supposed to be here till tomorrow!" Caroline says, muffled in his shoulder.

He shrugs, "I came home early."

Caroline pulls away to smile at him, "I'm so glad. I was so bored without you."

He gives her the flowers and leans down to kiss her, whispering: "I found myself missing you an irritating amount."

Caroline smells her flowers, covering her blush in the coloured petals. "I missed you, too."

She pulls him inside their house and sets the flowers up in the kitchen, where they brighten up the entire place. Klaus takes his suitcase upstairs to their bedroom, and Caroline has never felt more domestic in her entire life than when she sets a cup of tea in his hands and sits down next to him on their couch.

He snags one of her feet with his free hand, covering it completely and rubbing gently. Caroline wants to kiss him, wants to hug him, wants to keep him.

"How was Henrik?" She asks instead, because it's important, and she's genuinely curious.

Klaus sighs, "He's good. He was glad to see me. He looks just like he did all that time ago."

She smiles, "I'm glad you went. Especially if this is another reality. You can at least get home and tell your family that Henrik lived to be older in this reality, and he's happy."

"Yeah," Klaus says, "it was good. You were right about Finn and Sage by the way."

Caroline laughs, "No way! They're together!?"

"Yeah, apparently I have a nephew. I don't think I've ever met him." Klaus sighs, "From what I gathered, Finn and I don't get along here."

Caroline shrugs, "You barely got along in our reality. But I'm glad he's happy here."

"Me too, love." Klaus confesses, "Henrik mentioned that Kol was somewhere in New York, but hadn't contacted him yet."

"Really?" Caroline scrunches her nose, "That's odd. Why wouldn't he phone him?"

Klaus frowns, "You barely knew Kol, love. He doesn't like to be pinned down anywhere. Caused more trouble than me his whole life. He'll phone Henrik right before he decides it's time to move on."

"Do you think he'd come here?" Caroline asks, "You could see him! It might be good for you."

"I don't know about that. He might. Kol will do whatever Kol wants." Klaus' smile falls, "While, we're on the topic of brothers: it seems like I'm still cursed. I found out who I killed."

Caroline sets her tea on the coffee table, focusing entirely on Klaus, "Who? What happened?"

Klaus stares down at where he's still rubbing her foot, "Turns out I did kill Elijah, although you were right about this body being innocent, because it was an accident. Elijah sided with father when he found out about Esther's affair, and even though he wasn't cruel to me, he was no longer my brother. Henrik loved us both."

Her heart hurts; how foolish, for one family to be so torn apart by one man's cruelty and power. "Of course he did," she murmurs, mostly to keep him talking.

"We all got in a fight last time we were in New York. Just after we got married, I went to see them because they didn't come to the wedding. Elijah and I got into a fistfight, and Henrik tried to stop it. In the end, Elijah went towards Henrik, and I shoved him."

Caroline covers her mouth, because she knows how this particular scenario ends. "He died?"

"Yeah. He fell funny. We called an ambulance, but it was too late. No charges were laid since both Henrik and I said he fell; we didn't want to get in trouble. Still, it was my fault, and apparently Henrik and I haven't spoken much since."

"And that's what triggered the curse." Caroline finished, "That's terrible, Nik. It's not your fault, it was just bad luck."

He's silent for a long moment, then squeezes her foot and says, "How is it that I managed to kill two different brothers in two realities? How come it's always me?"

He sounds absolutely heartbroken, and Caroline pulls her foot away only to swing her leg around his, straddling him gently. She takes his tea and sets it aside, letting her hands come to rest on his shoulders. His heart is thundering so loud she can feel it in the pulse of his skin.

"Niklaus Mikaelson, you are not allowed to feel guilty for things that were not your fault." Caroline orders, "You are only allowed to do your best to make things better while we're here. I'm glad you saw Henrik, and patched things up with him. I'm proud of you."

His eyes are blazing when he looks at her, and Caroline feels her body light on fire, "Caroline, you are remarkable."

She grins, "I know."

"Did you also know the full moon is tomorrow?" Klaus asks.

She nods, a little more somber now. "I did know that. I mark it on my calendar. Are we headed back to the Lockwood cellar?"

"I'll go alone, you have work the morning after."

She leans forward and kisses him, tugging on his bottom lip gently with her teeth. He growls into her mouth, and Caroline pulls away only enough to breathe, "Not a chance, Nik. I'm coming with you. No arguments."

Klaus frowns at her, but instead of arguing as she expected he only reaches out and lifts the hem of her shirt enough for her to slide out of it. She's grateful the curtains are closed, because she's bared to him now, not wearing a bra in her pyjamas.

Klaus lets his fingers trail over her breasts, teasing the skin. Caroline can feel desire pool in her belly, and she pulls his shirt over his head as well. She missed him more than she can say, and she runs her hands across every plane of his chest in appreciation.

"What do you want, Caroline?" Klaus murmurs, leaning forward to lick and suck at the skin of her collarbone. Caroline's knees feel weak and she is immensely grateful that they're both sitting.

"You," she breathes, "I just want you."

At those words Klaus pulls her head forward and kisses her, begging entrance at her mouth. The moment she grants it, he slips his hands into her hair, taking control of every movement. Caroline's never been kissed like this before, like he'll die if he can't kiss her, as though she is the air he breathes.

He pulls away, but doesn't go far. He kisses her between words: "Pants," —kiss, "off," —kiss.

Caroline stands just long enough to yank her pants off, and help Klaus do the same. He's hard and watching her with volatile eyes. Caroline doesn't hesitate to climb back on top of him, kissing him deeply as she guides him into her body. When she's fully seated on his lap she starts off small, just rutting back and forth, her hands travelling over Klaus' skin.

His hands have wrapped around her, holding her as close as he can while still granting her movement. It's only when they're both panting and sweating that Caroline finally moves faster, letting her lips and teeth seek out the skin on Klaus' neck for her to bite and kiss.

Her name falls from his lips when she tightens around him and lets go, and he doesn't hesitate to snatch her up and plunge into her three more times until he's coming inside of her. When he finally relaxes his grip on her, Caroline refocuses on the sound of his breath in her ear, and the pounding of her heart.

Klaus' hands draw patterns on the skin of her back, and Caroline thinks that she could get used to this. If she could keep Klaus forever she would, and everyone else could just go to hell.

"Carry me to bed?" She asks, quietly. She's mostly teasing, but when Klaus stands up with her in his arms she doesn't object. He adjusts her so that he's cradling her head and her legs, and Caroline wraps her arms around his neck and kisses his cheek when he makes it to the top of the stairs.

He slides her into the blankets of their bed, getting in behind her and caging her to him with wiry arms. Caroline, for once, doesn't feel the need to speak.

Still, she's got a new plan now, one that doesn't involve staying here, or Klaus' death, or even getting home.

She's going to make Klaus love her. She's going to make Klaus keep her.

"I love you," she whispers into the dark, and when Klaus stiffens up she runs a soothing hand down his arm, "I'm glad you're home."

There's still no response, but he relaxes after a while, and Caroline falls asleep and doesn't dream of a past with him she never had, but instead of a future with him, and it's the best thing she's ever seen.

---

Work is tedious the next day, and Caroline isn't feeling well; her head is pounding, and she's sure it's got something to do with the fact that she woke up before the sun rose and couldn't fall back asleep. She does her best to get ahead in her work since she's told everyone she has an appointment the next day and can't make it in. She imagines she'll spend the day in bed again, recovering from a sleepless night in the Lockwood Cellar.

She knows Klaus is dreading the night; he'd barely spoken to her all morning, even when she'd handed him coffee and kissed him goodbye. He'll probably spend the day painting, maybe even sneaking in a nap so he's not too tired, and Caroline doesn't really blame him.

"Caroline?" A voice interrupts the email she's sending out to a bride-to-be on the other side of town. It's her boss, an older woman with steely blue eyes whose hair is more grey than black. Her name is Charlene, and it's easy to see how beautiful she was when she was younger. Caroline likes her; she's firm with her employees, but friendly and fair too, and Caroline wishes she existed in their reality and she could still work for her.

"Charlene," Caroline replies, "come in. What's up?"

Charlene heads into her office, sitting down on her chair. "Nothing really, I was just wondering how everything is going. You seem more… relaxed, recently."

Caroline laughs, she can't help it. She feels like she's so tense she could explode some days, and yet it seems like alternate reality her was even worse. Maybe just being a vampire helped her calm down some.

She goes with an easy lie, "I am more relaxed, actually. I'm sort of… settled."

"It's that husband of yours, isn't it?" Charlene's eyes glint with mischief, "Klaus has always been hard to pin down, but he sure loves you."

Caroline flushes at the thought, even though Charlene is talking about other Caroline-and-Klaus.

"Yeah, I guess," she manages, "we're just doing really well."

Charlene leans in conspiratorially, "No baby on the way yet, though?"

"Oh, god, no." Caroline says, "No babies yet."

Charlene smiles softly, "It'll happen. And, Caroline?"

"Yes?"

Charlene stands up, still grinning, "Please don't hesitate to tell me. This position is yours as long as you want it, and a maternity leave wouldn't change that. You're the best we've got."

Caroline nods at her as she exits the room. It's a nice feeling, being wanted and needed at work and at home, and Caroline wonders if the alternate her knows how lucky she is. Caroline hopes that other her is dreaming about all the shit Caroline's been through in Mystic Falls in the last few years, because then she'll come back to this paradise more relaxed and grateful.

She finishes her email, and phones Klaus to tell him she's coming straight home since they can stop at Rebekah's on their way to the cellar and check on everything. Klaus doesn't disagree, just answers her questions with monosyllables, and Caroline tries not to be frustrated at how difficult he's being. She supposes if she was going to go through unbearable pain and have every bone in her body broken in a matter of hours she would be testy, too.

Still, when she picks him up Klaus is stone faced and terse with her. The car ride over to the old Lockwood mansion — now Rebekah and Matt's house — is filled with cold silence. She can feel her tears trying to push through and she hates that; she feels like her emotions are out of control. It's impossible for Caroline to understand how they went from how they were last night to this. Her whole plan of making Klaus love her is starting to seem far away and stupid.

Caroline Forbes does not give up.

So she fills the silence with chatter about work, and what Charlene said, and even though Klaus doesn't respond she notices that his shoulders eventually relax.

They eat in Rebekah's empty house; Caroline heats up macaroni and cheese because it's easy and they're on a strict timeline. They eat it on the couch, and Caroline lets herself press into Klaus' shoulder, offering silent support. When he finishes his food he sets it on a side table and lays down, head in her lap.

They stay like that until it's nearly nine, and the sun is starting to go down. Caroline hates that she's the one who has to stop carding her hand through Klaus' hair, and make him get up and face what could only be described as a torturous night.

"I'm sorry," she murmurs, "we gotta go."

He sighs, "I know."

She washes the dishes quickly and they get in the car and drive through the backroads until they can get close to the cellar. It's colder out this time than it was last time, and Caroline's glad she thought to bring warm clothes and extra blankets this time.

The chains that wrap around Klaus' limbs are heavy, and he eyes them with absolute hatred.

"Caroline," Klaus says when she's locking in his right arm, "did you know you might be the only person ever I've ever let chain me up?"

Caroline smiles sadly when the lock clicks into place, "Does it make you feel better to know that I would rather never do it again?"

"That is precisely the only reason why I allow it." He tells her.

She leans forward and kisses him softly, trusting him to keep his fangs to himself for the moment, "I should go, the moon is rising. I'll be outside the door in the morning."

He doesn't say anything when she stands up and shuts the cellar door, leaving the lamp just out of reach of the bars. Caroline curls herself into the sleeping bag she brought and tries to get comfortable on the pallet of blankets she made.

After what seems like hours of snapping bones and moans of pain, all she can hear is the rustling around of the wolf. This time, Caroline can't hold back her curiosity, even though she knows from experience that her presence will only anger the wolf.

She knows what Tyler looks like as a wolf, and it only seems right that someone should be able to tell Klaus what he looks like too.

At first, he doesn't see her, standing behind the door. She's far enough away that he couldn't reach her even with human hands, but she wants to be closer. Klaus as a wolf is huge. He's bigger than Tyler by far; though where Tyler was black, Klaus is a tawny brown that nearly matches his human hair colour.

When Klaus finally sees her, Caroline can't help but wonder if they just naturally look like their human counterparts — Klaus' wolf eyes are the bluest things she's ever seen, just as piercing as they are when he's human.

He lunges at the door, snarling, but Caroline holds her ground. He's terrifying like this; every human instinct in her is telling her to run, but she seems frozen.

The real surprise is when he stops growling, and instead stares at her intelligently from the doorway. He's pressed against the bars, but he doesn't even look like he's going to attack her if she came closer.

Caroline lifts her hand, reaches out; she's still too far for him to reach. She's been bitten before, and she doesn't want to repeat the experience, even if his bite isn't poison to her in this place.

Still, even with her palm a foot from his face, Klaus' wolf just looks at her. Caroline wonders if she could touch him; and she decides that at absolute worst he could take a chunk of her hand and she'd have to go to the hospital.

It's not even really her body.

She leans forward, and her hand makes contact with Klaus' pelt. It's close to his muzzle, close enough that she's shocked the wolf didn't just take her hand off, but instead her fingers just sink deeper into his fur. It's softer than she expected, and Caroline can hardly hold herself together as she scrambles closer and lets both of her hands travel into Klaus' pelt.

The wolf doesn't move an inch as she pets him. If anything, he lifts his head higher, absolutely preens at the attention. After a while, he pulls away and does a lap around the cellar before coming back to the door and laying in front of it.

Caroline hesitantly drags her blankets over and lays beside him, separated only by bars. Her hands find his fur again, and he doesn't even move when she cards her fingers through it, similar enough to what she had done to Klaus only a few hours before.

She falls asleep like that, curled around a werewolf that could kill her in a second.

She dreams she runs with wolves at Klaus' side.

Caroline has never slept better.

---

"Are you crazy?"

The harsh whisper jolts her out of sleep, and Caroline lets out a little shriek when she sees Klaus' all too human face behind the bars of the door.

"Oh my god, you scared me!" She hisses.

Klaus scowls, "I scared you!? What the hell, Caroline!?"

Caroline sits up and stretches, her bones aching and a heavy feeling in her gut. Being human sucks. Klaus, for all his bluster, hasn't moved from where he's curled in front of the door and shaking. She snatches up some blankets, unlocks the door and lays down beside him, wrapping him in the blankets.

"You weren't going to hurt me."

Klaus rolls his eyes, "Oh, right, yeah, of course, because werewolves aren't killing machines or anything. How ridiculous of me, love."

Caroline laughs and rubs his arm, "I tested the waters first! You didn't even snap at my hand when I put it in front of you!"

"I don't remember." Klaus murmurs, "I just woke up and you were lying in front of me and I thought you were dead."

Caroline flushes. She hadn't even thought of that, "I'm sorry. I didn't think—"

"Of course you didn't think!" Klaus snaps, "Can you imagine if I killed you!? First of all, I'd be stuck here without you, and who knows how many people I'd kill. Secondly, when we do get home, who knows if you'd be dead there, and then can you imagine how other me would feel when he found he killed his wife."

Caroline scowls, "Okay, okay, I get it. I messed up. But — on the bright side, can you imagine how happy other us will be when they realize he won't hurt her and she can calm the wolf!? It'll make the change so much easier."

"But what if he does attack her? What if I didn't attack you because—"

"Because why?!" Caroline snaps.

Klaus closes his eyes and visibly tries to calm himself down, "Because I have better control. Because I didn't want to hurt you."

She smiles, "Klaus, I don't think he'll hurt her. It's still the same bodies, remember? But also — why the hell did Tyler attack me?"

Klaus' expression blackens, "What do you mean, Tyler attacked you? Other than the one time he bit you… that was… my fault."

Caroline's jaw drops, "Wow, admitting it is the first step to forgiveness, Nik. Good work."

"Shut up. What do you mean he attacked you?" Klaus asks again.

"I stayed with him on his first change, and the minute I came into his view he tried to kill me. He did that every time."

Caroline hates that even though she doesn't love Tyler anymore it still hurts that somehow Klaus was able to make the wolf not attack her, and yet Tyler couldn't. Maybe Tyler never loved her.

"Stop." Klaus commands, "Whatever you're thinking, just stop. Tyler couldn't help but attack you because you were a vampire, Caroline. Werewolves hate vampires."

Caroline never thought she'd live to see the day where Klaus defended Tyler, but she supposes there comes a time for all things. "You think so?"

Klaus reaches out, and his hand is trembling until he sets it against her neck, "Yes. I think so. If you were a vampire, I have no doubt in my mind that I would have tried to kill you. Honestly, I can't believe I didn't try to even if you're human. Werewolves don't actively hunt humans, but they… well, they'll kill them if they find them."

Caroline internally chastises herself; of course Klaus was scared he'd killed her. Henrik had died from werewolves, and he hadn't been a vampire. She leans forward and lets her head rest on Klaus' chest, and his heart is still pounding from the change. He's less shaky than he was, and Caroline hates to see him weak probably as much as he hates being weak.

"I'm sorry," she whispers, one more time, before falling silent. Klaus doesn't respond, but he lets his hand rest in her hair, and she tries to ground him with her presence.

"I've been thinking." He says after a while, when his heart has calmed down a little, and he's warmer to her touch.

"Yeah," she murmurs, almost asleep once again on the stone floor. It's not very comfortable, but she's starting to think that she'd sleep anywhere pressed against Klaus.

"I am a thousand years old, and arguably the most powerful vampire on the planet," Klaus starts, and Caroline rolls her eyes, "and in all that time I have met kings and queens, and more famous people than I can name, and yet…"

"What?" Caroline asks, because Klaus never starts a train of thought without a point.

He leans down and his voice is muffled by her hair, but she still hears it. "I've never met anyone like you, Caroline Forbes."

She flushes with pleasure from the roots of her hair to her toes, and she thinks that maybe she'll never have Klaus' love, but she definitely has his full attention.

"I'm only a baby vampire," she replies, "but I can't say I've ever met anyone like you either."

Klaus huffs a laugh, his breath landing warm on her skin, "I should think you haven't, love."

"Tell me about the people you've met." Caroline requests softly, and Klaus does. He whispers tales of Kings she's never heard of into her hair, and he tells her about how Galileo was an idiot, and that Catherine the Great was the bravest women he'd ever met, until now.

He tells her about the time he was courting Katherine — and Caroline burns with hatred of her for getting to touch Klaus first, for getting to kiss him — and he tells her about how he hated Elijah for his betrayal for a long time.

He even tells her about a woman named Tatia, and how it was the closest he ever came to loving someone who wasn't blood, and Caroline hates her, too.

He tells her he's never told anyone the things he's telling her, and suddenly Caroline doesn't hate that her leg is cramping and her side is sore from lying there. She doesn't even hate Tatia or Katherine, or any of the countless women he's been with over the centuries.

After a long time he falls silent, and Caroline leans up and kisses him. He looks surprised by that, but Caroline just smiles at him.

"Thank you for telling me," she says, "I wanted to know."

He eyes her, a little suspicious, a little wary, but mostly pleased, "I think I trust you." he says.

Caroline feels her eyes go wide, because with Niklaus Mikaelson trust is more than she could have asked for. It's probably even worth more than love to him, and Caroline knows it, she knows what she's just been given.

She wants to trust him too, she does, and she decides that she could try: "I trust you too," she finally replies.

It feels powerful, to say it. It feels permanent, and it feels like it seals something into place, not just with them, but with the universe.

"I don't think we're going home," Klaus tells her. "not anytime soon."

Caroline's eyes fill with tears: she's mourning and celebrating, and she hates both of the emotions warring within her, "I'm starting to get that."

Klaus pulls away from her and starts pulling on the clothes Caroline brought for him, and Caroline has visions of him walking away from her. It's one thing to trust her, one thing to play house while they figure out a way to go home. It's entirely another thing to realize they're never leaving, and for him to stay.

Thoughts of him killing again, finding a vampire to change him, and then conquering cities, all with someone else at his side flash through her brain. Her heart breaks, and Caroline has never felt any type of pain like this before, and she's suddenly absurdly grateful she's not a vampire, because she doesn't think she could handle it, doesn't think she could face this type of heartbreak and not turn it off.

"So what are you going to do?" She says, a little more teary and angry than she initially intended. She wants to be strong.

He glances at her, surprised, "What do you mean?"

"This life isn't you, Klaus," she hisses, "you don't want this. You've never wanted this. You want power and revenge and the world at your feet. You want to take over cities and make yourself a king. You want everything. So what? What's your first move?"

Klaus rolls his eyes, but he looks oddly nervous and uncomfortable. It's a strange look for him, but he crouches in front of her and pulls her up to stand in front of him, and Caroline follows, because there's no other option anymore. She'll follow Klaus anywhere — hell, she'll probably follow him into whatever mad plan he's cooking up.

"The way I see it, love, in this reality I only have another… say, forty years before I'll be dead, or at least too old to even do anything. That's hardly enough time to take over any cities worth mentioning, especially since I'm mortal."

Caroline can't quite comprehend the words he's saying, but she manages to choke out, "So we're going looking for vampires? To change you? You'll have eternity, then."

Klaus shrugs, "I wouldn't be opposed to finding a vampire eventually."

"Eventually." Caroline repeats, nonplussed.

Klaus lifts a hand and rubs at his hair, and it's the most human gesture Caroline's ever seen him make. He even does it unconsciously, and she wonders if it's something leftover from when he was young. "Yeah. Eventually. You aren't exactly the worst thing that's ever happened to me, you know?"

Caroline's entire world fades away at that, and all she can see is Klaus' face; the way his eyes are locked on hers, and how she could have this.

"You want to stay? With me?" Her words are barely audible over the pounding of her own heart.

Klaus frowns, "I mean, the rest of forty years with you isn't that long, Caroline. I doubt I'll tire of you in this lifetime. It's just the rest of our lives."

"What about… what about if we find a vampire? What if we choose that?"

Klaus shrugs, "Then we figure that out then. Why make problems out of nothing?"

Caroline feels tears spill over her eyes, and Klaus is absolutely shocked by her crying, and Caroline can't get the breath into her lungs to explain that she's not sad, she's not, she's happy.

He grabs at her arms, shakes her just a little, "What?! I thought this was… Caroline, what is going on?"

She throws herself into him, the same way she had on the porch only yesterday. "I am happy," she chokes, "I am so happy."

"You are a peculiar creature." Klaus says, but his tone is fond and he wraps his arms tightly around her.

"I am so in love with you." She breathes, "I want this, I do. I want this. And I want to find someone to change us, because I liked being a vampire. But, you're right. We can do that eventually."

Klaus doesn't move for a long while, just strokes her back gently. When he does speak again, his voice is unsure, and Caroline thinks that maybe being human again has made him more like he was when he was human. She's now one of only three people in the world whose seen him mortal.

"You're sure?" Klaus murmurs, "You've never been sure before."

Caroline pulls away to stare into his eyes, and clears her throat, "I want this. I want you. I'm sure."

Klaus reels her in again, holding her to him. Caroline manages to get her tears under control, and the next time she pulls away she grabs the blankets on the cellar floor.

"Let's go home, Mr. Mikaelson," she says coyly, "I think I want to make love to you in your studio again."

Klaus scrambles to follow her up the stairs to their car, and Caroline laughs when he throws her over his shoulder and puts her in the passenger seat, kissing her furiously before making his way to the drivers side.

---

Caroline spends the next week playing house with Klaus — only this time, they're not playing. She wakes up in the morning to him, and he tickles her with stubble until they're kissing recklessly on their bed. She stumbles to the shower while he makes her breakfast, and Caroline never wants it to end.

It's nearly the weekend when Caroline finally decides she's got to make an effort with more people than just Klaus. If this is her life, she needs Elena and Bonnie and Rebekah. She plans a date with them after work at the Grill, and even though Klaus grumbles that she's going to be away for an entire day and evening she stays strong.

"Caroline, come on, the doppelgänger can't be that exciting."

She laughs, snatching the toast he's made for her, "She's my friend, Nik. I need friends, too."

He pouts a little, and Caroline kisses him gently, letting her body fall into his in a way that's becoming familiar.

"You don't need friends," he says earnestly, but his eyes are mischievous.

Caroline laughs, "You should look into getting together with Stefan, maybe. You two were friends once. Or, better yet, phone Henrik and ask him if he's heard from Kol. I know you want to figure out where he is."

Klaus grumbles, "Do I have to?"

"Yes, you do. You'll have time while I'm at work." Caroline declares, "I'll be home later than normal, dinner with the girls, don't wait up."

He waves at her from the window, and Caroline can't help but grinning all the way to the office. She greets Charlene when she walks into work, and she leaves the door of her office open because she wants to try to make friends now.

It's a few hours later that Caroline goes to eat a cookie from the staff room and starts feeling sick only a bite in; she garbages the cookie and heads back to her office with water. She sits down, dizziness making her head spin, and suddenly, Charlene pops her head in to ask her something about her newest client.

Caroline answers, easily, and the nausea subsides, but after Charlene leaves Caroline can't help but thinking about her boss. More specifically, about what her boss had said to her only a week before.

She lays her head on her desk, the cool grain of the wood soothing her, and she tries to imagine her life with a baby who looks like her and Klaus. She tries to imagine them making the spare bedroom a nursery, and naming a baby, and — fuck.

Caroline honestly thought that the whole children thing would take a little longer.

She leaves work, the nausea returning full force, and makes her way to the pharmacy. She buys three pregnancy tests, some herbal nausea tea, and finally drives back to work because it's the only place she can think of that no one will interrupt her. She shreds the packaging in her shredder, and takes her time in the bathroom where she pees on all three tests, even though it's probably overkill.

The next five minutes are the longest in Caroline's life, but she forces herself to stare at the door instead of at the three white sticks lined up on the sink. She thinks about calling Klaus, and then she thinks that's an absolutely terrible idea, so then she debates on calling her mom, but she knows her mom will just be excited and then tell her to tell Klaus.

In the end, Caroline procrastinates so much she wastes fifteen minutes without looking at the tests, and she doesn't call anyone.

When she finally sees the tiny pink plus sign reflected on three of the tests Caroline manages to swallow all of her panic down, and put all the evidence into a tiny bag that she takes back to her office.

She's pregnant.

Caroline sits in her office chair and cries her eyes out, and she's pretty sure it's because she's 90% happy and 10% scared, which seems like pretty good odds. By the time she forces down the lunch that Klaus made her, Caroline is resolved.

She's going to get rid of the tests, keep her secret to herself at her dinner get together with the girls tonight, and tomorrow, she's going to tell Klaus. She can't even imagine how he'll react; she can't even imagine him with a child, except that she keeps having images of him with a tiny baby. He'd killed more people than she'd ever known, and yet she knows he'll be a good father. Family is everything to him, and their child will be the only family he has that's unrelated to Mikael too.

Caroline cleans up her makeup, finishes all of her work, and spends the last hour of her day searching up baby names for girls, since she's pretty sure she knows she'll end up naming the kid after one of Klaus' million brothers if she has a boy.

She's kind of okay with that.

Caroline packs up fifteen minutes earlier than normal because she can't focus any longer; her secret thrums under her skin, and she keeps resting her hand on her still-flat stomach. She gets to the Grill with twenty minutes to spare, and nearly falls over when Tyler is the one she runs into at the doorway.

He steadies her with an arm, "Hey, Care, how are you?"

She gapes at him, "Oh, I'm good. How are you? What are you doing here?" He's wearing business clothes, and he looks incredible.

"I own the Grill?" he looks at her curiously, and Caroline supposes she should have known that in this life.

She laughs, "Of course, I just wondered why you were in so late?"

"Oh, I was talking to the new manager, actually. I'm just heading out," he sighs, "I don't suppose you want to grab dinner?"

Caroline flushes, "Um, sorry, I'm meeting the girls?"

Tyler nods, and he looks sad, "Oh, okay. No problem. See you around?"

"Definitely!" Caroline agrees.

She wonders why Tyler's ended up owning the Grill, and not living in his house. She wonders why he's alone, when in this reality he's not a werewolf since he's never killed anyone, and he's a great guy.

"Caroline!" Elena's voice breaks her out of her thoughts, and Tyler is nowhere to be seen. Caroline spins and finds Elena and Bonnie staring at her, both of them looking fancy in dresses and heels.

"Oh, hey!" Caroline responds, just a beat too late, "Sorry, I was totally in another world there! Where's Rebekah?"

Elena frowns, "She's on her way. You sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, definitely! Let's grab a table."

They make their way to a corner booth, one Caroline has memories in both in this reality and in her other reality. She even remembers watching Klaus from across the Grill in their normal reality, and wanting him but not being allowed to have him.

"I'm so glad we could all get together," Bonnie says, smiling wide, "it's so tough with the kids these days!"

Elena grins, "I can only imagine! Is my brother at home with them?"

"Yeah," Bonnie laughs, "Jeremy is my saviour, as always."

Caroline smiles a little sadly at that, because sometimes things don't change no matter what reality you land in, and Bonnie and Jeremy had deserved better. They'd deserved this, "Jeremy's a good guy."

"Speaking of 'good guys'," Elena hisses, "why were you talking to Tyler!?"

Caroline feels blindsided, "Because he's our friend? And he was here?"

Elena scowls, "He asked you to dinner."

"So?" Caroline retorts, "I said no."

Bonnie laughs, breaking the tension, "Elena, chill out. Tyler is harmless, he just needs to find someone to finally get over Caroline."

"It's been like… ten years!" Caroline objects. She's not sure about the math, but she knows that her and Klaus have been together a while now, so it seems a safe exaggeration.

Bonnie shrugs, "Yeah. Turns out Tyler does not get over things easily. He'll always love you, I think."

Caroline struggles to think of something to say, but Rebekah arrives and saves her. She slides in beside Caroline and turns to the waitress and orders a margarita without blinking.

"Good idea," Elena says, "I'll have one, too."

Caroline panics, mostly because she knows she's a terrible liar despite how often she's had to do it, and there's no way they won't notice when she doesn't have a drink.

Bonnie saves her when she declares, "Just water for me, I'm driving."

"Me too." Caroline adds quickly, "And I think we'll start with wings."

The waitress walks away, and even though Elena side-eyes her, Rebekah's the one who speaks first.

"What's this about Tyler?" she asks, "Nik will absolutely murder him if he thinks he's been chasing you again."

Caroline has to remind herself that it's a figure of speech in this reality, and she almost can't hold back the hysterical laughter that threatens to overtake her because Klaus would murder Tyler… literally.

"Oh my god, guys, no. He was here and I asked him why he was working so late. Also, since when does Tyler own the Grill?" Caroline asks. She's hoping her friends just think she's forgotten that knowledge, and answer her.

Rebekah laughs, "Well, after you two broke up and he moved away, as you know, he left Matt in charge of the house. Of course, that's when Matt and I got together, and I moved in. When Tyler got back he really had his shit together, and I think he just wanted to spend his inheritance money on something. It was terrible when his mom died, and Tyler never really got over it."

"So when he got back why didn't you and Matt move out of his house?" Caroline wonders, absolutely enthralled by the similarities her two realities are starting to have.

Rebekah frowns at her, "He didn't want it… memories or something, and Matt and I bought it from him. You know this, Care. Are you okay?"

Caroline shakes her head, flustered, "Sorry, I'm fine. Work has been pretty tough so I've been stressed out. Just forgetful, I guess."

Their drinks come and they finish ordering their dinner, and Elena sends glances at her from across the table.

"Are you sure it's just work?" Elena's grinning, and Caroline forces every single fibre of her being to be a good liar for this moment, because even though Elena is her best friend, Klaus deserves to know this secret first.

Caroline rolls her eyes, "I'm positive."

"You know," Bonnie adds, "I was super forgetful when I was first pregnant with Grayson! I barely got sick, I just felt kind of emotionally unstable, and I'd forget stupid things and beat myself up over it."

"Yeah!" Rebekah beams, "Maybe that's it! After so long, maybe I'll be an Auntie!"

Caroline swallows heavily, "I'm not pregnant, guys." Their faces fall, and Caroline feels terrible for lying, but she knows Klaus would never forgive her for keeping this from him and telling others, "But we're trying again." She adds, because she wants to give them something.

Rebekah smiles, "Oh thank god. When you said you put that on hold, I was so concerned! Hannah needs another cousin."

Caroline laughs, "I'll do my best."

After that, the conversation flows easily. Caroline lets herself cut in whenever she's sure of a topic, but sometimes she just listens and learns about the world they've found themselves in. She purposefully doesn't let her hand drift to her stomach, but she drinks her water dutifully as she watches Elena get drunk, and she thinks that of the two of them, she's the luckiest.

It's nearly ten at night when Caroline finally looks at her phone and finds messages from Klaus that start out annoyed, and end in concern. She's so full she can barely move, and Elena and Rebekah are in similar states. Bonnie's already headed home, and Caroline can't blame her since she was starting to fall asleep before they even ordered dessert.

"I'm just going to call Nik," Caroline declares, "and then I'll drive you two home."

She slides out of the booth and dials a now familiar number.

"Caroline," Klaus sounds furious, "where the hell are you?"

"At the Grill, where I said I would be?" Caroline replies.

Klaus growls, "You're still there!?"

"Of course," Caroline laughs, "Where else would I go?"

Klaus is silent on the other end, and Caroline scowls before repeating, "Klaus, where did you think I went?"

"I didn't know." He says, quiet.

The anger goes out of Caroline instantly, because she's starting to realize that Klaus is afraid of her leaving him. He doesn't believe she could be loyal to him, doesn't believe she could love him. Caroline hates Mikael for everything he did to Klaus, for everything he made him believe about himself; she hates Esther too, because she didn't do anything to fix that.

But Caroline can.

"I'm at the Grill. I've been here all night," Caroline explains gently, "I should have texted, I'm sorry. I'm going to drive Elena and your sister home, and then I'm coming straight to you."

"See you." Klaus says gruffly, and then hangs up on her. Caroline tries not to be annoyed, since she was the one who messed up in the first place, so she swallows her anger and heads back to the table.

"Alright, let's go!" Elena and Rebekah follow her to her car, stumbling only a little when they hit the steps.

The drive home is hilarious; Caroline falls into it easily, because it feels familiar. They blast old songs and sing their hearts out, and Caroline laughs so hard she cries. Rebekah gets dropped off first because the Lockwood Mansion is farther out of town, and they turn down their music because Hannah's definitely asleep.

Rebekah grins lewdly at her from her window once she gets out of the car, and she whispers, "I'm going to go have wild sex with my husband now."

Elena cringes, "Oh my god, don't talk about Matt that way!"

Caroline laughs, "Don't wake up my favourite niece!"

Rebekah flips her off and weaves her way onto her front porch and into the house. Caroline leaves when the light goes off, and Elena clambers into the front seat to control the music, although she turns it quiet.

"Care?" Elena says.

"Yeah?"

Elena sighs, "You can tell me anything, you know that, right?"

Caroline glances at her, "Of course I know that, why?"

"Well, it's just that — you were really concerned about Klaus only a month or so ago. You kept saying he was always away for business meetings with new galleries… at least once a month, and you wouldn't stop talking about it! Now you haven't mentioned it at all, and I know you were afraid that—" Elena cuts herself off, but Caroline can fill in the blanks.

"I was afraid he was cheating on me."

"Yeah." Elena says miserably.

Caroline smiles, because this she knows about. It makes sense, that other her had no idea about the werewolf thing, that she thought Klaus was sneaking around once a month. Caroline would jump to the conclusion that he was cheating on her.

"It really was meetings, Elena." Caroline says, quickly, "I confronted him, and he told me all about them. He even took me on his last two. He's not cheating on me."

"Oh, thank god." Elena murmurs, "I thought it was ridiculous. I mean, Klaus adores you, he would never… anyway. I'm happy for you."

Caroline parks on the front drive of the Salvatore house, thanks all the stupid vampires in her other reality for making her a better liar, and thanks Elena for the fun night out.

Elena smirks at her, "Now I'm going to go have hot sex with my husband."

"Ew," Caroline rolls her eyes, "I so did not want to know that about Damon."

Elena laughs all the way to the front door, and Caroline drives home, the music quiet. She lets one hand rest on her stomach, and she thinks about the fact that Klaus could probably hear the baby's heartbeat with his werewolf hearing one day soon.

She wonders if he'll be scared, or if he'll regret it.

Her house calls to her when she finally parks the car. She doesn't think she'll ever love another house the way she loves this one, where it all started. Even her front door seems to welcome her in, and she hangs her coat up and turns on the hallways light.

"Caroline."

She shrieks and spins, knocking over a vase. It hits the ground loudly, but doesn't break. Klaus is sitting on their couch in the dark, and by the tall bottle beside him he looks to be drunk.

"What the hell!" Caroline hisses, "You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

He throws a hand over his eyes, "Oh, I nearly gave you a heart attack. That's rich. Forgive me, Caroline, for scaring you."

Caroline kicks off her shoes and scowls at him, "I said I was sorry."

Klaus stands abruptly, stumbles forward just a little and glares at her, "I've said sorry before and it's never mattered to you!"

Caroline takes the bottle from his hand, "That's because you killed people, whereas I forgot to text you. There's a big difference!"

"You could have been dead!" Klaus snarls, and Caroline steps back, realizing for the first time how comfortable she's grown with him. He's drunk and he's angry, and Caroline knows objectively that he wouldn't hurt her, but she's not willing to take any chances now.

"How much have you had to drink?" Caroline hisses.

Klaus steps forward, leaning heavily on the wall, "Not enough to deal with you."

It hurts more than she expects, and she turns to go to the kitchen, where she tosses the near empty bottle of bourbon. Klaus doesn't follow her, and when she gets back to where she left him he's sitting on the stairs and blocking them.

"Klaus, move," she says, "I want to go to bed."

She thinks bitterly of the way Elena and Rebekah said they were going to be spending their nights, and hates that she honestly thought that's what she was going home to, as well. Klaus doesn't move, despite her words, and instead he leans heavily into their banister.

"I didn't mean that." he says, and Caroline rolls her eyes.

"I know you didn't, but you still said it."

He frowns up at her, "I'm going to screw this up, you know that, right?"

"Yeah, Klaus, I knew that," Caroline snaps, "I just didn't think it would be so soon!"

"I'm drunk." He says miserably, and thunks his head against the wall, "I didn't remember what drunk felt like."

Caroline tries not to laugh, mostly because she doesn't want to encourage him since she's trying to stay mad, but he looks helpless, "Well, how about next time you get less drunk, and not alone."

She leans forward and gets her arms under his so she can help him stand, and he manages to make it to standing. He towers over her, standing one stair above her, and he's leaning heavily on the wall.

"Please don't fall on me." Caroline hisses, and Klaus drags himself up their stairs.

By the time they reach the top they're both panting, but Klaus smiles down at her, "Thanks for carrying me up the stairs."

"Yeah, well you get one free pass." Caroline says. "I'm still mad at you, though."

He rolls his eyes, but keeps his mouth shut, and by the time Caroline lets him fall into bed she's exhausted. She turns the lights off and gets in pyjamas, tucks herself under the blankets and stares at the ceiling.

"Did you have fun, at least?" Klaus asks, quietly. Caroline thinks that perhaps he feels bad, but she's not quite ready to forgive him yet.

"Yes."

He falls silent at her shortness, and Caroline wants to tell him, but he's drunk, and she can't.

"Nik — I just…" Caroline trails off, hesitant.

"What?"

Caroline turns to him and props herself on her elbow, "Look, I don't want to fight about it, but you can't do this. This isn't what we agreed on. If you want this, if you want to stay with me for the next however long, you need to be good. I don't want to come home to you when you're drunk and angry; you don't want to be angry with me, anymore than I want to be angry with you. I know that."

Klaus turns to her, and in the darkness all Caroline can see is the shine of his eyes, "I didn't know where you were, love, and I didn't particularly like that."

"I'm sorry I didn't update you," Caroline repeats, "but I'm not going anywhere. I already told you that. I want this, too."

Klaus doesn't reply, and Caroline lays down again on her back, and even though she's exhausted she's not sure if she'll fall asleep. It's been a long night, and the weight of her secret is heavy in her heart; she's angry and sad, and Klaus is the reason behind all of the emotions.

She's surprised, in the end, when Klaus' hand wraps around hers under the covers. He doesn't move close to her, and Caroline doesn't say anything other than to let him twine his fingers with hers.

"Don't leave me, Caroline."

It's as much of a warning as it is a plea, and Caroline's heart softens either way, because she knows that Klaus is afraid, and he's showing her.

She squeezes his hand, "I won't. Besides, even if I did, you once told me that you would hunt me to the ends of the earth."

Klaus laughs, "That still seems to be true, even if I am mortal."

She turns closer, lets him wrap his whole arm around her. His heartbeat is steady in her ear, and he smells like bourbon and she hates it, but she doesn't move.

"I'm not going anywhere, Nik." Caroline whispers.

---

Caroline is cleaning out the oven when the doorbell rings. Klaus is over at Rebekah's, something to do with talking about Henrik's new job in New York, and Caroline's not expecting anyone since it's late on a Sunday. She closes the oven and sets the cloth in the sink, smoothing down the old shirt she's been wearing to clean the kitchen.

Her door opens before she gets there, and she comes face to face with someone she honestly never thought she would see again.

"How's my favourite sister in law?"

"Kol," Caroline gasps, falling backwards into a wall. Her heart is racing, and she has to remind herself that this is normal, Kol is alive in this reality and he's not going to hurt her. He's not even a vampire.

Kol steps forward and shuts the door, "Sorry darling, didn't mean to scare you. You look positively stunning, as always."

Caroline straightens her spine and tries to smile at him, "Thanks. We weren't expecting you — Nik's over at Rebekah's house."

Kol kicks off his shoes and passes her into the kitchen, letting his hand rest for her waist on a second. Caroline had forgotten how much Kol flirted with everything that moved.

"It's fine, I actually came to see you," Kol says, and then sits on her countertop.

Caroline resists the urge to tell him to get off, since she's just finished cleaning her counters; instead, she sighs, "What did you need, Kol?"

Kol frowns at her, "You don't seem happy to see me, darling."

"No, I'm happy," Caroline says, "I'm just surprised. I didn't expect anyone, and it's been a long week. Sorry."

Kol smiles, and Caroline's strangely reminded of a shark, and then he declares, "It can't have been that hard of a week, it wasn't even the full moon."

The blood drains from Caroline's face, but she tries to keep her voice steady when she says, "What did you say?"

Kol's predatory grin drops, and surprise flashes across his face, "Holy shit… you know!?"

"Know what?" Caroline says, trying to play dumb.

Kol leaps off the counter, and grabs her wrists, "You know! You're telling me that Klaus actually told you!? I thought he'd never tell anyone!"

"Tell me what!" Caroline snaps.

Kol drops her wrists, "That he's a werewolf."

Caroline had been expecting those words, but still they seemed to suck all the air out of the kitchen. She had two ways to play it — she could pretend she had no idea what Kol was talking about, or she could own up to her knowledge.

Only one of those options could get her information on werewolves and vampires in this reality.

"What do you know about it." Caroline hisses.

Kol's eyes light up, "I figured it out because I asked mother who Klaus' real father was, and I was the only one who tried to track him down. I never found him, so I never told Klaus; but I found other things. After Elijah died it wasn't hard to work it out; but… I was angry. At Klaus. For Elijah's death." Kol looks ashamed for a second, "I wasn't there for him when I should have been, and I'm sorry for that."

"So why are you here now?"

Kol shrugs half-heartedly, "I wanted to help my brother. I didn't think he would ever tell you what he was, so I was going to."

Caroline scowls, "It wouldn't have been your place to tell me that."

"You're right," Kol agrees, "but I've seen the way you look at him. Nothing could make you leave him, not even the fact that he's a werewolf."

Caroline glances at the ground, because she had forgotten until this moment that Kol know them as the other Caroline-and-Klaus; she had forgotten that Kol was dead in their reality.

Kol laughs for a second, "Have you seen his wolf form?"

"Yes." Caroline admits, meeting Kol's eyes. He looks more like Elijah than any of Klaus' brothers, and Caroline thinks that maybe that's the reason Klaus is afraid to look for him.

Kol stares at her, and even though Caroline thinks Klaus' eyes are the prettier of the two, they both have the same raptor gaze that sees straight through her.

"He didn't attack you, did he?" Kol murmurs, and reaches out to tug on a curl that's escaped her bun.

Caroline steps away from him, bringing herself out of his reach but cornered against the fridge. "Klaus wouldn't hurt me." she snaps.

"Of course he wouldn't, not as a human." Kol laughs, "But you don't know why the wolf didn't attack you, do you?

Caroline wants to ask, curiosity eating away at her. Still, she doesn't trust Kol, and she doesn't like that Klaus isn't home yet, but could come back any second.

In the end, she doesn't need to ask, because Kol just smirks at her.

"You're pregnant." He says, loud, because he isn't afraid of her secret like she is.

Caroline glances around, "How do you know?"

"That's the only reason Klaus wouldn't hurt you. Even werewolves will kill humans, but they won't kill one of their own. You're carrying Klaus' kid. It's got the gene."

Caroline remembers Klaus' story about how he had taken Henrik out to see the wolves in their reality, thousands of years ago, and the wolves had torn his brother apart but left him alone. How the wolves had known, even then, that he had the werewolf gene.

"Please don't tell him," Caroline says, "please. I need to tell him."

Kol's eyes light up, "Tell him soon. Or I will."

"I will, I will, I just… I need more time." Caroline begs.

Kol shrugs, "Your call, little sister."

"Thank you," Caroline breathes.

"I'm outta here," Kol declares, "tell Klaus I say hi."

Caroline snatches his arm as he goes to head out the front door, "You can't leave — he'll want to see you! Stay for dinner, he'll be home soon!"

Kol smiles, but it's a smile she's never seen from this particular Mikaelson brother before. It's sad, and he pulls his arm out of her hold, "Sorry, I can't. I'm not quite ready to see Klaus yet. Don't get me wrong — I love my brother, and I'm happy for you two… but I just can't."

"Because of Elijah?" Caroline whispers. "It was an accident, Kol. He regrets it… everyday."

Kol nods, "I know. But I can't yet. Say hi for me, okay?"

This time, Caroline feels like she's the one trapped as she watches Kol walk away, and out of her house. She doesn't move a muscle when she hears his car roar down the street, and it's only when she realizes that Klaus is going to murder her for not keeping Kol in the house that she sinks to the tiled floor.

She cries against the fridge, and Caroline thinks that she's spent more time in this reality crying than in her own. She blames it on the baby, but she feels guilty over that within minutes and takes it back.

"I'm so not ready to be a mom." Caroline admits to the empty kitchen, her voice barely more than a breath.

Her stomach growls underneath her hands, and Caroline forces herself to her feet. She needs to eat, she needs to take care of herself. She makes a stir fry, enough for two nights; it says something that she's started making leftovers, confident that they'll still be here at least for a few more days.

It's only once she's set out a plate on the table and sat down that she hears Klaus open the door and kick off his shoes, "Caroline, where are you?"

"Kitchen." Caroline replies, and her heart pounds with nervousness.

Klaus walks in with tousled hair and light cotton sweats on; Caroline wants to kiss him senseless. He grins at her boyishly and grabs a plate she'd left out and fills it with stir-fry.

"This looks nice," he tells her, sitting across from her, "Bekah says hi, as does Hannah. Henrik also said we should both come to visit next time."

"I'd like that," Caroline says softly, "Listen, Nik…"

He glances up from his food and frowns at her nervousness, "What happened?!"

"Kol came here." Caroline says.

He's angry, Caroline can tell, although to his credit he doesn't move or raise his voice when he talks to her.

"When? And when were you going to tell me?"

Caroline sighs, "About an hour ago. I just told you — I didn't want to call you because Kol said he wasn't ready to see you."

"What the hell does that even mean, love?!" Klaus hisses.

Caroline frowns, "It means that even though he loves you he's not ready to see you. He's mad about Elijah. He knows it's not your fault, but it's… hard."

"I didn't even kill him that was other me!" Klaus' voice gets louder, and Caroline cringes a little.

"I know, but we can't tell him that!" Caroline realizes belatedly she probably could have told him that since he had easily believed in werewolves. Still, a whole reality switch was hard to swallow.

Klaus stands up abruptly, knocking the chair out from under him. "You're telling my that you let me brother just walk out of here!?"

"What did you want me to do, Nik, trap him here?!"

The silence is heavy after her words, and Caroline wishes she could take it back.

"You've helped do it before." Klaus snaps at her, and Caroline's heart breaks, because he's never going to get over this. He'll never be able to look at her and forget that she helped to kill Kol, and Caroline hates that after everything he's done to hurt her and her friends, she can forgive him, but he can't forgive her.

It's not fair, and it's especially not fair that she can practically feel the weight of her secret between them; the beat of the baby's heart, and the way she's scared out of her mind but excited too, and Klaus doesn't fucking know.

Caroline stands up slowly, and takes both of their plates to the counter, cleaning them in the sink. Klaus doesn't say anything else, but he doesn't back down either, and Caroline's not expecting an apology this time. She doesn't really deserve one.

"You're just going to walk away?" Klaus yells, "Not even going to argue!?"

Caroline turns back to him, tired all the way to her bones, "What do you want me to say, Nik? I've said sorry."

"You killed my brother." Klaus screams, and Caroline feels tears spill out on her cheeks. They both know she didn't kill Kol, but she had enough of a part in it that she can't quite clear her conscious, and Klaus can't forgive her.

It doesn't even matter that Kol is alive in this reality, and that Klaus himself killed Elijah here. It doesn't matter that Caroline loves him, and she's pretty sure that Klaus is almost in love with her too.

"I never wanted that to happen, Nik, and I'm sorry that it did happen. I'm sorry for my part in it, and I don't know how else to apologize." Caroline tells him.

Klaus strides towards her, trapping her against the fridge the same way Kol had earlier, "It was your fault!"

Caroline scowls at that, annoyed for the first time. "I accept responsibility for my part, but you can't tell me it's all my fault. I was the only one who didn't want Kol dead, and I hated every part of it."

Klaus growls, "But you didn't save him."

"No, I didn't save him." Caroline breathes, "But I knew this would happen."

"What?" Klaus asks.

Caroline closes her eyes because she can't bear to look at him when he's so furious and so beautiful, "I knew that you would never be able to get past our past, even if I could, and we wouldn't work.

In the next second, Klaus is kissing her, and Caroline's not sure if it's because he agrees with her words, or he's trying to convince her they work. He slams her into the fridge, and it doesn't necessarily hurt, but Caroline's surprised by his rough treatment. Still, she hitches her legs up over his hips, because it's Klaus, and she can't not.

He drags his hands into her hair, pulling out her hair elastic and letting it fall over her shoulders. Caroline kisses him deeply, bites at his lip when he tugs at her hair, and when he drops his hands to lift her entirely onto the counter she doesn't hesitate to dig her fingers into his shoulder muscles and hold on.

"Fuck, Caroline," he breathes, and Caroline rips herself away from his mouth only to rip the t-shirt she's wearing over her head and behind him. She's not wearing a bra, and Klaus doesn't hesitate to take his shirt off and lower his mouth to her breasts.

Caroline cries out when he bites down on her; it stings for a second, but it mostly feels good, and Caroline wishes desperately that they both still had fangs because blood sharing is probably the most intimate thing a vampire can do, and maybe then he won't leave.

"Klaus, please—" Caroline chokes when he pulls her off the counter and tugs her pants down her long legs. He doesn't give her a chance to step out of them, just tosses her back onto her newly cleaned counter top.

It's cold, but she warms up quickly when Klaus suddenly grabs her head and stares straight into her eyes. He's still angry, and Caroline's a little angry too, but for just a second he holds her head gently.

"Tell me you don't think this is going to work out." Klaus commands.

"It's not." Caroline chokes out, tears and arousal battling for dominance.

Klaus flinches imperceptibly, "Tell me you don't want me."

They stare at each other, the air between them electric with tension, and Caroline lets her tears spill over once more because she can't tell him that. She can't say it — not only is it a lie, Caroline refuses to be one more person who told him they loved him and fucking lied about it.

"I can't." Caroline says, but what she means is I love you.

Klaus drops his hands and rests his head in the juncture between her neck and shoulder, and for just a second Caroline swears that she can feel tears, but then he's lifting her again, and pressing his naked body against hers to slam her back against the fridge. It's gentle, this time, and Caroline thinks that maybe he can't say he doesn't want her either.

"I can't give you up." Klaus murmurs into her skin — it's furious, the way he says it, as though she's trapped him in this, and he can't escape.

Caroline hisses, "Then don't. Just fuck me."

The growl Klaus lets out is feral, and when he lifts her up just enough to slide himself into her Caroline bites down on his shoulder hard enough to leave a mark. He doesn't let go of her legs, just pounds into her with abandon, and Caroline pulls him closer and closer to her as though she can hold him to her forever.

When he presses into her, pinning her to their fridge, he squeezes her so tightly Caroline knows he'll leave marks, but his breath is hot in her ear when he whispers, "We're going to work. I'll show you, I'll prove it to you."

Caroline can't help but believe him when they sink to the ground, and the cool tile brings some sense back into her head.

Eventually, Klaus looks at her, and even though he still looks angry, he says, "I don't think you killed Kol. I don't blame you."

"You mean you don't blame me entirely," Caroline corrects gently, "I know that I played a part in it. I know you'll always blame me for that, and I get that. But I didn't want that."

Klaus reaches out, and the gap between them on their kitchen floor suddenly feels too huge for her to cross. She lets her hand twine with his in between them.

"It's not your fault." Klaus says again, and this time Caroline thinks he's saying it more for his benefit than hers, but she doesn't correct him. "Did I hurt you?" he asks after a minute.

"No," Caroline smiles, "you didn't. But I could use a bath."

He stands up slowly, and extends a hand to her which she gratefully accepts. They pick up their clothes and head upstairs to their bedroom. Klaus runs her a bath as she sits on the ledge, and he doesn't say a word even when he puts in bubble bath.

"May I join you?" He murmurs. Caroline glances at him, surprised to find that he looks placid, and far less angry.

"Sure." The word falls unbidden from her lips, and Caroline doesn't stop to correct herself or think beyond the warmth of the water when she finally steps in. Klaus gets in behind her, and lays down first, and she doesn't hesitate to sink into the water, lying on his chest with her head on his left shoulder.

The bubbles cover them completely, and Klaus' hands stay at their sides, not touching her. Caroline wonders what's going through his mind, but decides she won't ask. She's keeping a secret now, and it's only fair that Klaus can have some space.

Still, she sits up a bit, "Will you wash my back?" Her voice seems loud in their little bathroom, but Klaus grabs the washcloth and scrubs her back gently, and then her sides. She huffs a laugh when it tickles, and only then does he reach around her to soap up her front. He spends his time on her shoulders and breasts, and Caroline doesn't rush him. It feels nice to be pampered, and she's sure that he's as vulnerable as she is now.

She leans against him again and he washes her hair, his fingers run through her locks gently, and Caroline can't quite believe that these are the same hands that have killed thousands of people.

"I'm sorry if I frightened you," Klaus finally says when he rinses out all the conditioner, "and I don't think that it was your fault Kol died. But I'm not sorry about anything else."

Caroline smiles, a little teary eyed, and she's glad that they can't see each other for this conversation.

"You didn't frighten me," Caroline says. "I'm sorry about what happened to Kol, but I'm not sorry about anything else, either."

Klaus is silent for a few moments, and Caroline objectively notes that the bathwater is getting cold, "You don't think this is going to work. Us, I mean."

Caroline shrugs, "I think that eventually you're going to resent me for what we've done in our past, or maybe I'll resent you, and this just won't be enough to keep you here."

"But it's enough to keep you here," Klaus murmurs, "you're only afraid that I'll walk away. In no scenario have you mentioned that you'll be leaving."

Caroline pulls herself out of the bath and wraps a towel around her hair and body, then turns to face Klaus, whose gotten out of the bath as well, and is standing naked in front of her. He's magnificent, and he's hers, for as long as he'll allow it.

"I won't be the one leaving," Caroline admits, "I like it here. I like this life. I love you. I'm not the one who will be walking away."

She didn't mention that there was a heartbeat sitting under her skin that wasn't hers; she didn't mention that she would never walk away from their child, and while she didn't necessarily think Klaus would either, Caroline knew that this would be her life given the choice.

Klaus steps towards her, tugging the towel where she's tucked it into itself to stay up. It falls to the ground and leaves her bare to his gaze. His eyes are hungry again, and Caroline can feel her skin heat up even though they had only just finished their lovemaking in the kitchen.

"Caroline Mikaelson—" his voice chokes a little, "I would like the opportunity to redo tonight. Pretend I've just walked in. We haven't fought. In fact, you didn't even see Kol today."

"Okay," Caroline breathes, letting the towel drop from her damp hair.

Klaus raises a hand up and trails a single finger down the centre of her chest between her breasts, "You look stunning today, of course. You think we're not going to work, but I'm going to prove you wrong," he grins devilishly, "that part hasn't changed. I take you upstairs for a bath, and then I take you to bed, which I'm going to do now, and I prove that I want you."

"I know you want me." Caroline says.

Klaus rolls his eyes, "I want this."

Caroline smiles at him, and it's a little shaky, but she lifts her hands towards him and Klaus picks her up bridal style and carries them to their bed.

He lays her down in the centre of it, and he starts off kissing the inside of her ankle on her right foot, working his way up her leg. He bypasses the part of her that she wants him to touch the most, and instead lays ticklish kisses on her belly, across her rib cage, and in a line down her collarbone.

"Listen to me," he whispers into her ear, dragging his teeth hotly over the lobe, "I'm going to convince you to stay with me."

Caroline gasps when she feels his cock against her thigh, and Klaus takes advantage of her open mouth to kiss her filthily, his hands roaming every inch of her skin.

"I'm not going anywhere," Caroline says when he finally pulls off her mouth.

Klaus smiles, a little sad, and a little regretful, and then he murmurs, "I know. But neither am I."

This time when he pushes inside of her he's unbearably gentle, and Caroline almost wishes for the time agains the fridge, because it was so easy to forget why she loved him then. It was so easy to close her eyes and be mad at him.

It's impossible to stay angry when he stares in her eyes as he slowly thrusts into her, warmth pooling in her stomach.

It's impossible to stay angry when he lowers his mouth to her skin and whispers to her, as though he's sharing secrets her naked body can absorb.

"You're beautiful," he says when he kisses her.

Caroline swallows down tears, "I love you." she replies, because it's the only thing she knows how to say.

She falls apart under his touch when he reaches a hand between them and rubs against her as he pushes deep inside, and he follows her within seconds anyway, until they're both slightly damp and tired.

He rolls over, pulling her with him, and throws a fuzzy blanket over them instead of their actual bed covers. He kisses her temple, and doesn't say a single word when some of her tears track off her face and onto his chest.

"I'm going to make you believe me, Caroline." he promises again, his voice heavy with sleep, "We're going to be fine."

Caroline hates it, but she believes him.

---

She should have seen it coming. Nothing had ever been easy in either of their lives, and Caroline should have known when they spend the next week in paradise. Klaus uses most of his time trying to make it up to her that they fought; he makes her breakfast before work, and kisses her senseless when she gets home. She finds colourful flowers in her kitchen, and she makes dinner, and they make love on every surface of their entire house.

She hasn't told him about the baby — she wants to, but she's scared, especially after his meltdown. It's still early though, and Caroline wants him to grow to be even more attached to this life before she throws a kid in the mix.

He tells her more about his life — small stories, even inconsequential ones, things about his village, or his first trip overseas and how hard it was, or how Elijah and he used to get in sword fights. He tells her more about Mikael, and Caroline hates the man as much as Klaus did. She learns about Rebekah as a child, and about Henrik, and how heartbroken Klaus was when he died.

Klaus becomes someone she can understand, and even though there's so much more to him that she may never know, she knows him now. Probably better than anyone, maybe even better than his family.

In return, Caroline tells him about her life — she thinks it's boring, the stories of her parents and her, and growing up, but Klaus is enthralled by her. He even listens to her, which Caroline finds out when she tells him about how a small beach town in California named Pescadero is her favourite place ever, and she comes home from work and he surprises her with a ticket for them to go. It was the only family vacation she'd ever been on, the first time she'd been out of Mystic Falls. They leave in two weeks, and Caroline can't wait.

It's kind of absolutely perfect.

Which is why it all comes crumbling down with one phone call in the middle of the night.

Klaus wakes up and looks ready to tear something apart at the shrill sound, and Caroline thinks that it's a leftover reflex from his vampire days. She leans over and grabs the phone from the nightstand, and watches as Klaus relaxes by increments.

"Hello?" She says sleepily.

"Is this the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Niklaus Mikaelson?"

Caroline blinks herself wide awake, "Yes. This is Caroline Mikaelson. Who is this?"

"This is the Mystic Falls General Hospital," Caroline's heart plummets, "we have a Hannah Donovan here, and you two are listed as her Godparents and emergency contacts."

Caroline throws the covers off the bed, panic racing up her spine, "Yes, yes, she's my niece, what's wrong? What happened!?"

Klaus jumps out of bed at her words and starts throwing on sweatpants, "What happened, Caroline, what's going on?"

She waves him off, dragging on clothes one handed as the doctor explains, "She's in our care. We'd like you to come to the hospital, and we can discuss it further."

"Of course, we're on our way," Caroline pants, rushing down the stairs. Klaus grabs the keys, "What about Matt and Rebekah? Hannah's parents?"

"I'm sorry Mrs. Mikaelson, I can explain everything at the hospital." The doctor says, "We'll see you soon, just come to emergency and ask for Hannah. They'll page me."

Caroline doesn't say bye, she just hangs up the phone as she clambers into the car. Klaus is already driving away as Caroline shuts the door, and she's never seen him so panicked in her life. Her stomach feels like lead because she knows that tone, she knows, and she can hardly catch her breath.

"What happened?" Klaus demands, taking a left hand turn too sharply.

Caroline buckles herself in, "Hannah is in hospital, and they won't tell me anything else."

"Rebekah," Klaus breathes, and Caroline reaches over to set her hand on his thigh, stealing comfort but also offering some of her own.

She sets her free hand on her stomach, partly to help with the sudden nausea that's becoming more frequent, but mostly to comfort herself. They make it to the hospital in record time, and Caroline gets out while Klaus parks. The lady at the emergency desk pages a Dr. Ross, and by the time he arrives in a white lab coat, Klaus is already standing beside her with a warm hand on her back.

The first thing Caroline thinks is that the doctor looks kind — he's got grey hair and gentle brown eyes, and he shakes her hand softly — the second thing she thinks is that he looks sad.

"Mrs. Mikaelson," he says, "Mr. Mikaelson, I'm Dr. Ross."

"This is Caroline," Klaus introduces impatiently, "I'm Klaus."

Dr. Ross eyes them with grave eyes, and Caroline can feel the tears choking her already.

"Caroline, Klaus. I'm sorry to inform you that Matthew and Rebekah Donovan were in a serious car accident tonight with their daughter Hannah."

Caroline feels herself pitch to the side, and only Klaus' arm wrapping around her shoulders holds her up. "What happened? Where is my sister? Are they okay?" Klaus sounds more frantic than Caroline's ever heard him.

Dr. Ross shuts his eyes briefly, "Matthew died on the scene, and Rebekah died on the way to the hospital. Hannah has some injuries, but most are superficial. She's fine."

Caroline can vaguely hear someone crying, the kind of crying that she remembers from Elena when her parents died, or even her mother during the divorce. It takes a moment for her to realize that she's the one crying, she's the one who sounds like her world is ending.

Dr. Ross tries to smile, and it looks pained, "I'm so sorry for your loss. We'll let you know when Hannah is ready for visitors."

He walks away as easily as he'd arrived, and Caroline wishes he'd never called them, wishes they'd never even known about the accident. She turns fully to Klaus, and he looks blank. He's not even angry, or upset, he's just vacant, as though he's trying to process what the doctor said, and he can't quite fit it inside his brain.

Caroline wraps her arms around him, and falls apart. He holds her back, but he doesn't move, even when Caroline finally stops crying only to feel empty.

"I can't turn it off," he whispers, and it's shocking in the sudden silence from her tears.

Caroline pulls back and looks at him, and he looks wild. His eyes are shining with tears, "What do you mean?"

He stares at her as though it's the first time he's ever seen her, "I can't turn it off, Caroline, I can't turn it off, I can't — I can't, it hurts."

The way he says it breaks her heart all over again because he sounds lost. She grasps his cheeks and makes him look at her, and she says gently, "Humans don't get to turn it off, Nik. They just have to deal with it."

He stares at her, "I can't."

She pulls him down, puts his forehead against hers as though she can lend him her strength, "You can, and you will, and it will be terrible. But, I'll be here, and Hannah is going to be fine, and she'll be here."

He curls around her then, as though he needs her protection more than she needs his, and from his place in the crook of her neck she can hear him say, "She's dead."

Caroline struggles to breath through the lump in her throat, and she finally says, "In a thousand other realities Rebekah lived a long mortal life, or even a long immortal life. In a thousand other lives she was loved, and she was strong, and she was happy. In a thousand other places, she's still out there. She's even still out there in our reality."

Klaus hands clench and unclench, and Caroline thinks that he must be trying harder than he's ever tried to be human. He wants to hunt down anyone who could have been involved, he wants to tear the world apart, and save her, and he can't.

Caroline holds his hands, "It's okay," she whispers, over and over, even though she hardly believes it. As long as it anchors Klaus, it's okay.

Mikael arrives with Esther before Hannah's ready to see visitors, and Caroline thinks that this will be the last straw for Klaus, that he'll lose it and they'll be a massacre.

Luckily, though, the nurse at the front desk explains that Hannah isn't ready for visitors. Esther throws them dirty looks, and Caroline can literally feel Klaus' rage behind her.

Mikael approaches them after a long time, "Why are you here?"

Caroline squeezes Klaus' hand, "We're Hannah's emergency contacts."

"I suppose Rebekah was always a fool, to trust Niklaus with her daughter." Mikael hisses.

Caroline can feel Klaus flinch imperceptibly, "If you don't have anything kind to say, then go away, Mikael. I have absolutely no problem with calling the police on you for harassment."

Mikael glares at her, and it's so glacial that Caroline feels like she's being threatened without him uttering a single word, but eventually he goes back to Esther and they leave. It feels like a victory, even though Caroline is positive they'll be back.

"Come on, Nik," Caroline murmurs, "let's go sit down."

They make their way to the seats where they press against each other and shift on the hard surface until finally, finally Dr. Ross comes back. It's morning now, and Caroline absolutely aches in every muscle in her body, and all she wants is to see her niece. The stress and exhaustion can't be good for her, but she can't help it. She jumps to her feet when the doctor approaches them, and he greets her with a wan smile.

"Caroline," Dr. Ross greets, "Klaus. Hannah has been given some pain medication and a cast for her broken arm, and is now able to see visitors."

Caroline shuts her eyes for a grateful moment, "Thank you."

They follow him through a maze of doors until they're finally just outside a small room. Dr. Ross pauses and turns to them, his face morphed with seriousness.

"You two do understand that since you are Hannah's next-of-kin you will be given the first chance at adoption before she goes to foster care?" Dr. Ross says gently.

"We want her," Caroline stumbles out immediately, "please. We're her family, we're her godparents."

Klaus sighs, "It'll be in their will, I would guarantee it."

Dr. Ross eyes them, and Caroline can almost sense the pride coming off of him in waves, "Are you two sure? This is a big responsibility, and—"

Klaus snaps, "We want her."

Caroline lays a hand on his arm, calming, "Dr. Ross, we don't have any children yet, but it isn't because we don't want them. Hannah is our niece, and we love her more than anything. Of course we want her."

Dr. Ross nods after a moment, "I'll go get the paperwork while you two go see her. She's been asking for you. She can be safely taken home today since most of her injuries were superficial. Her mother — Rebekah — saved her life, you know."

Klaus goes rigid, but when he speaks his voice is gentle, "She would like that. That she died to save her."

Dr. Ross smiles at him, and heads off in the opposite direction, gesturing that they should go into the room. He leaves them at the doorway, and Klaus turns to her.

"We have to take her, or else she'll probably end up with Mikael and Esther."

Caroline smiles thinly, "I know, and they're probably going to fight us for her. She's ours though."

Klaus doesn't say anything, just presses a gentle hand to her back to lead her through the door to find a small room painted with different zoo animals. It's brighter than any hospital room has any right to be, but Caroline supposes it's meant for kids.

Hannah is lying on a bed, deathly pale and covered in scrapes, but awake. When she finally sees them, she reaches out with a casted arm and a hand with an IV, and bursts into tears. Caroline rushes to slide into the bed next to her, covering her with kisses. Hannah clings to her, and Klaus sits on the other side of the bed and rests a hand on her leg.

"Where's mom — mom and dad — I want — mom," Hannah can't even get the words out she's crying so hard, and Caroline thinks that they probably have already given her enough medication to calm down a horse, so this can't be a good thing.

"Hannah, sweetheart, I'm so sorry," she murmurs, and Hannah stops trying to talk, "I'm so sorry, your mom and dad are gone."

"But—"

Caroline kisses her hair, "It's not fair, I know. I know it isn't. But we're going to take care of you."

Hannah pulls back and tries to wipe her eyes, but her cast keeps getting in her way, "But I want Mom and Dad."

Caroline thinks that perhaps there's something that's just born within adults who are suddenly responsible for children, because Caroline wants to cry, but she can't because she has to be strong for Hannah.

"I know." she tells her, "I want them too. But it's just us."

Hannah looks over at Klaus, "You too, Uncle Klaus? Are you gonna take care of me too?"

Klaus nods solemnly, "Of course."

Hannah falls back into Caroline's arms and cries herself to sleep. It's the hardest thing Caroline's ever had to watch, and by the time the little girl has stopped shaking in her arms she's exhausted.

"We need a car seat." She says when it's been silent for long enough that Hannah is truly asleep. "We need to get things from her old room."

"We could just stay there, in their house."

Caroline frowns, "No, no, I don't want to confuse her. Just things she likes. Her backpack, blankets, toys. You know."

Klaus doesn't even roll his eyes at her, and Caroline realizes how tired he is. It's not fair of her to ask that of him, even though she's exhausted and none of this has been fair.

She slides out of bed and settles Hannah back in gently, and then drops a kiss on the top of Klaus' head, "I'll go get it. I'll set it up. She'll be knocked out for at least a few hours, she had enough painkillers in her IV to put us both to sleep. I'll be back before she wakes up, promise."

Klaus catches her wrist before she can walk away, and she turns back to meet his somber eyes, "Caroline, just… be careful?"

It's nice, knowing that even when the world falls apart he's still beside her.

"I promise," she whispers.

---

Hannah sleeps even on the car ride home when Caroline finally picks them both up a few hours later, and Caroline is so grateful. They make it to the house before she wakes up, and Caroline feeds her some more medicine before getting her out of the car seat. She's mostly unresponsive, but she's not crying anymore.

Caroline gets her to eat a sandwich before she takes her upstairs to where the spare bedroom has become hers. Her blankets are on the bed, and Caroline has put as many toys as she can around the place. Hannah stares around the room in silence, though she does get into her bed and snuggle with a stuffed bear beside her.

Caroline thinks a little hysterically that they're going to need to buy a bigger house. They're going to have two children — they're parents.

Klaus shuts the curtains on the window, but turns on a small lamp so there's a little bit of light in the darkness. Caroline is amazed he even managed to think about how Hannah's so young and probably afraid of the dark, and her heart swells because she loves Hannah more than she ever thought she could love anyone, and she loves Klaus, and nothing about this reality makes sense.

She leans down and kisses Hannah's forehead, "Try to get some more sleep, sweetheart. We're just across the hall, okay? You just come in or call us if you need us."

Hannah turns away from her, and Caroline's heart breaks. Klaus is the one to finally pull her away from the bed and turn her toward the door.

"Hannah," Klaus says, soft and gentle in a way Caroline's never heard him be before, "I know you miss your parents. But we're not going anywhere."

Caroline shuts the door behind him when he leaves, and leans against the wall. She feels out of control, hysterical and shaky; she can't help the half-laugh, half-sob that escapes her mouth. Klaus crowds her in, and she rests her head on his chest so the beat of his heart can calm her.

"How the hell are we ever supposed to leave now?" she whispers, nearly silent in the dark hallway.

Klaus sighs, "I am… torn."

"Hannah is… important." Caroline says, "We can't leave."

"I know. That's why I said we weren't going anywhere," Klaus replies, "Hannah is… my family."

Caroline thinks about the way Klaus fell apart at the hospital only a few hours ago, and how Hannah's eyes are the exact same shade as Rebekah's were, and she suddenly understands. Klaus loves Hannah in a way he didn't expect either, and there's no way he would abandon her now.

"What do you propose we do?" Caroline asks.

Klaus pulls away from her and kisses her, desperately as though he's trying to tell her all his secrets at once. Only once he pulls away does he catch his breath, "Caroline-"

"Yes," she breathes, because she knows what he's about to say.

"Caroline, we… we stay. We stop looking."

Caroline steps away from him, searching him for tricks or lies with her eyes alone. "You're telling me you want this life to be ours? You want Hannah to be ours."

Klaus nods slowly, pulls her hand until she follows him to their bedroom. She tucks herself into her side of the bed as he collects his thoughts, and by the time he's sliding under the comforter, she's wrapped around him.

He pets her hair, "I think I do want this; though you must be patient, love. This isn't… exactly what I had in my plans, as you know. Still, I want to stay."

Caroline kisses him, savage in the face of her sudden happiness; she's dizzy with loss from Matt and Rebekah, and overjoyed at the thought of staying and the baby, and distraught over Hannah's devastation, and she can't decide what emotion to feel.

In the end, it's Klaus who takes hold of her and pulls away, panting into her mouth. His eyes are soft, and he takes a moment to clear his throat.

"Caroline," he murmurs, "don't worry. We have time. We have a whole lifetime."

She kisses him again, but gentle this time, because he's right. She can sort out what she's feeling; she can wake Hannah up with pancakes, and she can take however long Hannah needs to get her smiling again. She can take flowers to Matt and Rebekah's graves, and go to their house, and spend her time mourning.

Klaus can mourn, maybe for the first time in his life, and she can help.

She can tell him about the baby soon; they can look for houses, they can paint and decorate and buy things for a nursery, and things for Hannah's new room.

She can spend every morning waking up to Niklaus Mikaelson, and every night falling asleep in his arms.

This is theirs. They've got time.

That knowledge is probably why when Caroline wakes up, she's in the Salvatore mansion, and there's no hint of patchouli and cedar in the air, and her bed is cold where Klaus once was.

She's alone.