This was written for Klarosummer bingo using the prompt, "Summer intern." The event is hosted on tumblr by Uppity Bitch (supremeuppityone), a fantastic author and excellent sounding board. Definitely check out her work and look for the event on tumblr at klarosummerbingo and me at eliliyah. Enjoy and leave me a review if you like it! (No concrit, please!)

Dancing on Razor's Edge

"If you realize what the real problem is - losing yourself - you realize that this itself is the ultimate trial." - Joseph Campbell

Who knew the thump of an old woolen blanket hitting the cement floor would be the sound of salvation? Caroline Forbes greedily snatched up the graying fabric, wincing at the way it made every inch of her bare flesh itch as she wrapped it tightly around her nude body. "It's about fucking time you got here," she snarled as her handler flipped on the lights to the tiny cell where she'd been confined for an unknown period of time without so much as a steel bedframe for comfort. The low watt institutional lighting burned her eyes after so long spent in the dark and she instinctively slammed her lids shut. Blinking a few times as her irises adjusted, the world came back into focus. "How long have I been here? Weeks? Months? What year is it?"

"Sweetheart, it's been two days," came the voice of Klaus Mikaelson, a hint of amusement coloring his British accent. "Are you decent?"

"No, I'm not decent!" the twenty-three year old shrieked as she finally got a good look at her surroundings. She was in a tiny room with cement walls and floors that had seen cleaner days. The compulsive neat freak in her tried not to scream as her eyes fell on a stain in the corner where she'd just been curled in a ball. "I've been trapped here in the dark with nothing but a steel toilet/sink combo to keep me company and that water tastes like desperation."

The senior agent rolled his topaz eyes at her theatrics. Baby agents could be such drama queens. He'd been with the Drug Enforcement Agency for eleven years and at thirty-three was in charge of a major undercover operation. He and Caroline had successfully infiltrated the Augustine Women's Correctional Facility in rural Illinois some months prior. He'd maneuvered his way into a position as manager of Unit C, a cellblock reserved for violent offenders. She'd assumed a new identity as Candice Morgan, a hardcore junkie prostitute who shot her heroin dealer for shorting her a dime bag and took a plea deal for twenty years.

Together, they were working to bring down The Travelers, a notorious group of drug traffickers the DEA had been investigating for years. It was rumored that their leader, Katherine Pierce, was still running things from the inside while serving a life sentence for killing her husband, Damon Salvatore, with a rusty meat cleaver after catching him in bed with her twin sister, Elena… who she also killed in cold blood with a slightly more sanitary golf club. They had enough proof to prosecute her for dealing inside the prison itself, but if they could figure out which correctional officers Kat had working for her, they could take down the entire trafficking ring and bring everyone involved to justice.

"I meant have you covered yourself," Klaus explained, shaking his head. He knew as soon as he checked his email Saturday morning that Caroline was going to give him hell come Monday. He received a report that 'Candice' had a fight with another inmate during shower time and both women had been isolated. As much as he wanted to get her out as soon as possible, they had to maintain appearances and his hands were tied. It was her first undercover operation and while he was convinced she was perfect for the job, adjusting to life in prison had been a rude awakening for the former beauty queen. She had curly blonde hair, perfectly porcelain skin without a single blemish and a sunny disposition that made most of the inmates want to gouge her sapphire blue eyes out with a plastic spork. Reminding her that she was supposed to be a hardened killer was a daily chore.

"Oh." Caroline wrapped the itchy fabric tighter around herself, grateful for even that scrap of basic human decency. It was a large blanket and was enough to go around her slim frame almost twice and dragged on the cement floor. "Yeah, you can come in."

When Klaus walked in and closed the door behind him, his smirk was so arrogant that she wanted to slap it right off his smug face. Leaning one shoulder against the cement wall, he crossed his arms over his chest and raised his eyebrows as he looked at her wearing nothing but a blanket. Enjoying her situation far too much, he began conversationally, "So, how was your weekend?"

The baby agent practically growled at him. "Long, Klaus. It was fucking long. Where in the hell have you been?!"

"Home. Unit managers don't work the weekends unless there's an emergency." He bit back a grin at the way her eyes bulged in anger. "We get emails when someone is transferred out of our unit along with incident reports explaining why, but that hardly qualifies."

"I've been trapped in here naked!" Caroline shrieked. "You don't think that counts as an emergency?!"

"Not nearly. If I came in every time a woman got sent to ad seg, I'd never get a day off. If I rushed in to get you out, I'd have to do it for the eight-eight other girls I'm responsible for." he chuckled, clearly highly entertained. "Although, if I'd known you were naked, I might have come sooner."

Too irritated to acknowledge his flirting, she ignored that comment and reminded him fiercely, "I am not just a girl." Stomping her foot, she stormed up to him. "I'm a federal fucking agent and you're supposed to be my handler! So, make with the handling already!"

Klaus looked her up and down, letting his eyes linger far too long to be considered decent. "What exactly would you like me to handle?"

A blush crept up the baby agent's cheeks when she realized they were standing chest to chest. Clutching the blanket protectively, she began to pace in angry circles. "You know, when I originally applied to the DEA, it was just to be a summer intern. I really thought I'd be filing paperwork and if I was super lucky, listening in on a sting from a nearby utility van." She paused and pointed a finger at him accusatorially, holding the wool up with one hand. "But then you came along and offered me a job as a real agent. You made it sound so glamorous and exciting. The next thing I know, I'm in training eighteen hours a day for some super secret undercover op. At no point did I consider that part of the job would be spending two days naked in a cement box." Scoffing, she glared at him hatefully. "Talk about a bait and switch."

"Well, that's exactly the point, sweetheart. You are the bait and switch," he replied with a twinkle of amusement in his eyes, upper lip curled. "Sorry you didn't get the memo."

"Just get me out of here," she fired back haughtily at his completely unapologetic tone. "And knock it off with the smirking. Your dimples are not that cute."

Klaus intentionally smiled wider. "I'm told my dimples are adorable."

"You've been misinformed."

"And you've been sent to segregation." Letting his dimples recede beneath his gruff stubble, he raised a brow and asked seriously, "What happened?"

The sudden lack of flirtation in his tone gave her pause and she stopped her pacing. Looking off to the side, she mumbled, "You got the report."

"Yes, but I want to hear it from you." The agent shifted his weight, bending one knee so he could rest a boot against the back of the steel door. "Tell me about the fight."

"It wasn't my fault!" Caroline blurted out defensively as her cheeks flushed, obviously embarrassed by the incident.

"I didn't say it was," Klaus clarified calmly, hoping she would settle down. "I asked you to tell me what happened."

The younger girl rolled her eyes as she dodged the question. "Does it even matter?"

The line of his jaw tightened; his patience was waning. "Yes, it matters."

"Why? Can't you just get me out of here?"

"You're my operative and everything that pertains to your cover identity matters." His tone was clipped as he pushed off the wall and walked over to look her in the eye. "So while I can get you out of here using my cover, I won't until you. Tell. Me. What. Happened."

Realizing he was going to make her talk about it, Caroline huffed and resumed her pacing. "Fine. Since your ability to read a report has obviously been compromised, I will tell you," she sassed, avoiding making eye contact. "So there I am on Saturday morning getting ready to take a shower. I turn on the water and suddenly this girl pokes her head in my stall and steals my bra right off the top of my pile of clothes. I asked her to give it back. I even said please. She said no because I had another in my cell and her only one was worn out and she didn't want her boobs to sag. I told her that wasn't my problem, but she said it was hers now and walked off. So, I waited until she got in the shower to go get it back. That crazy bitch jumped out of the stall soaking wet and slapped me in the face."As her blood began to boil, she had to stop and close her eyes for a moment and inhaled a deep breath before she could continue. "And that's how I got here."

Klaus raised a dubious eyebrow. "She slapped you and you both ended up in the hole?"

Crossing her arms over her chest, the blonde glared daggers at him. "Well, no. I may have slapped her back."

"You may have?" he asked, upper lip quirking. "One slap?"

"Okay, fine!" Rolling her eyes, she finally admitted, "It started with a slap, but then she grabbed me by the hair. I scratched at her hands, she kicked me in the shins, we went down and the next thing I know, I'm on top. She went for my eyes, so I decked her and then she was bleeding." Biting her lower lip, she added, "I'm not sure, but I think I might have broken her nose."

"Oh, you definitely broke her nose," Klaus interjected, an amused smile on his face. "Split her lip, too. I got the report from the hospital wing. Took three stitches and a splint to patch her up."

Caroline stomped her bare foot against the cement floor dramatically. "How was I supposed to know that taking my bra back that she stole was apparently enough to start a blood feud?"

Klaus pressed his lips together as he thought about it before conceding, "I admit, they probably didn't think to include that in the manual."

"I didn't get a manual!" she shrieked, waving her arms wildly about for a brief moment before the blanket began to slip. Clutching it protectively to her chest, she began to pace in circles, her voice echoing off the walls. "I was a prom queen with a perfect GPA and class valedictorian in high school. I landed a full scholarship and graduated from UPENN summa cum laude with a double major. I haven't spent a whole lot of time around women with a skillset that involves making toilet hooch and sharpening toothbrushes into shanks!" Turning on her heel, the young agent glared at him spitefully, spittle flying off her lips. "I wasn't prepared for this at all. You assholes just threw me to the wolves because I was the right age with a fresh face and dumb enough to take this assignment. You suck and she sucks and those COs who pulled me off suck, too. They wouldn't even let me get dressed before they dragged me here! Fucking bitches."

The graying blanket nearly slipped again when she wagged her finger at him and Klaus had to resist the urge to stare at the swath of creamy skin above her breasts. "Now, sweetheart, mouthing off to the unit manager is no way to get out of segregation," he taunted her playfully as she seethed.

"Klaus, I swear to God, if you don't get me out of here…"

"As eager as I am to hear the rest of that statement, you should know I've already arranged for your transfer back to the unit." She seemed to settle at that but her piercing stare was no less hateful. He had a soft spot for his young protege; her anger bothered him more than it should have and he couldn't help but want to comfort her. His face softened as he sighed. Reaching forward, he tucked an oily tendril behind her ear, touching her only briefly before she could slap his hand away. "And I didn't pick you for this assignment because of your looks or age," he promised, the antagonism gone from his tone and replaced with sincerity. "I picked you to become an agent because you hold degrees in criminal justice and forensic psychology with a minor in drama. Once you'd begun training, you showed an excellent ability to adapt under immense pressure and dedicated yourself to the job in a way I've not seen since I was a rookie myself, vastly exceeding every expectation I ever had for you. I have absolute confidence in your ability to complete this operation, but if you need to be pulled out-"

"I don't," Caroline replied quickly, shaking her head and pulling the itchy wool blanket tighter around her body. "I've never quit anything before in my life and I'm not about to start now because some dirty ho is pissed that she has saggy boobs." As tempted as he was to laugh at her ridiculous phrasing, he resisted and flashed her his dimples with pride in his eyes. As her shoulders slumped in relief that she was getting out, she felt some of the anger melt away. "I just really need some clothes. And a bed. And a shower."

"Oh, you definitely need the shower," Klaus agreed, a smirk curling his upper lip as he took a step back and waved the air in front of his nose.

"Jerk!" She stomped her foot for good measure, but the amusement dancing in his eyes had her relaxing. As long as he was here, she was safe. The relief was overwhelming and she felt herself starting to tear up just knowing she wasn't as alone as she'd felt in the dark. Burying her face in her hands, she shook her head and mumbled, "You'd stink, too, if you'd been in here all weekend."

Hearing his baby agent sniffle tugged at something deep inside of the older man. Stepping forward, he patted her on her bare shoulder. "Sweetheart, don't cry-"

"I am not crying!" Caroline spat out, head snapping up defensively. Despite her protestations, it was clear her eyes were red and when he pulled her in for a hug, she let herself give in and buried her face in his chest as he stroked her back and shushed her. Their tender moment didn't last long before she pulled away and wiped the moisture from her eyes. "God, this is really inappropriate. You shouldn't even be here while I'm not dressed. If someone looked in right now-"

"Oh, they won't," Klaus assured her, rocking back on his heels as she pulled the disgusting blanket tighter around her body. "I let it be known that I was coming to see you. We won't be disturbed."

"Klaus!" the young agent squealed, nostrils flaring and eyes flashing. "People are going to think something is going on! Why would you tell people you were coming in here alone?"

"Because I want them to think something is going on," he replied bluntly, looking at her like she was very slow. She opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off. "Caroline, the entire purpose of this operation is to identify who Katherine has on her payroll. Discretely letting it be known among the staff that I was coming to see you with the implication that my goal was to bargain for sexual favors is the best thing that could have happened."

"What the fuck!" the blonde screeched. "What planet are you from? Do your people think your logic resembles earth logic?"

"My logic resembles that of a criminal." Crossing his arms over his chest, Klaus tapped his foot impatiently. "As I was spreading the word, I was paying close attention to who appeared either admonishing or approving. I had my suspicions, but now I unequivocally know that Castle and De Martel are on the take."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I saw De Martel hand Castle something in the break room. On the walk over here, Castle tucked this into my pocket as he passed me in the hall." He pulled out a condom and held it up, eyeing it with distaste. "Gave me a wink, too. It was quite unnerving. I'm going to enjoy arresting him."

Jaw dropping, Caroline snatched the paper packet from his hand and held it up to the light to make sure her eyes weren't playing tricks on her. "Seriously?! What kind of girl do they think I am?"

Klaus gently took her hand and drew her focus from the condom wrapper clasped between them, keeping his voice low and soothing as he tried again to explain. "They think what we want them to think. We need them to believe that you're the kind of girl who killed a drug dealer in cold blood, fights with women over bras in the shower and will fuck a unit manager to get out of the hole. If they think that low of you, word will get back to Katherine that you can be trusted."

The faux prisoner knew that he was right, but the truth was a hard pill to swallow. She'd always seen herself in a certain light and this was definitely not who she wanted to be. "Those certainly aren't reasons I would trust someone," she replied with a frown bordering on a pout he found oddly adorable.

"No, of course they aren't." Klaus' thumb brushed against her knuckles, the warmth of his hand a stark contrast to the cold cement cell. "We aren't dealing with people like you or me. These are deviants with distorted values, corrupt morals and a rationality entirely their own. Standard societal rules do not apply. We need to think and act as they think and act. The girl you fought with, Hayley Marshall, was one of Katherine's sworn enemies. The only reason she's still alive is because she has a deal going with one of the COs herself."

"Seriously?" Caroline gasped in disbelief, lips parting and eyes widening. "Someone is banging that skank?"

The older agent nodded as though this news wasn't shocking in the least. "Jackson Kenner, that backwoods guard from Unit D. He smuggles in cigarettes for Katherine and in turn, she keeps her hands off Hayley. But they are far from friends. You getting into a fight with her-"

"She picked a fight with me," the blonde corrected him fiercely.

"-was a brilliant strategy that will reflect well upon you in my next report," he continued as though she hadn't interrupted, his praise giving her pause. Augustine was a rough place to call home. She didn't hear kind words very often. "She'll be in segregation for the rest of the week. Kenner doesn't have the same kind of pull as a CO that I do as a unit manager. When you return after allegedly bargaining your way out with sex, you'll get Katherine's attention for sure. I imagine she'll either approach you herself or send one of her cohorts to fetch you by day's end. This is our biggest break in months. You should be very pleased with the progress you've made. I know I am." Even in the low light, when she peered up at him from beneath long lashes, she could see just the vaguest hint of his dimples. "I'm very proud of you, Caroline."

A small smile graced her lips at his words and when he reached forward to tuck another stray tendril behind her ear, she leaned into his touch. "Really?" she asked almost shyly as she worried her lower lip, conscious for the first time that she was naked and alone with the one man in the world who truly believed in her.

"Really." Klaus grazed her cheek with the soft pad of his thumb before pulling back. "And I think you're doing an excellent job." Giving her hand an affectionate squeeze before he released it, he tore open the condom wrapper.

"What are you doing?!" Wrapping the blanket tighter around herself, she took several steps back.

Ignoring her reaction, he unrolled the latex and tied it in a messy knot before tucking it back in the packet. "I'm making it look like we did what I came here to do." There was a mischievous twinkle in his eye when he looked over at her with a sly smirk. "Unless you'd prefer we go for a more authentic approach."

"W-what?!" Caroline's cheeks blushing furiously as she clutched the wool protectively to her bare breasts. "That-that's just- That's-"

"The best offer you've had all year," Klaus finished for her, chuckling low under his breath while she sputtered incoherently. "And not the only one you'll receive now that word's out you're willing to play the game."

"Wait, what?" A chill ran down her spine as she sucked in a deep breath. Gulping warily, she asked tentatively, "What are you talking about?"

The seasoned agent's tone was suddenly serious as he addressed his protege. "When I get back to the unit, I'm going to make sure I'm seen disposing of this." He held up the unused condom. "Once the other COs confirm their suspicions that I've had my way with you, some will come to you wanting the same. You need to get them to expressly state exactly what they want from you and what they are willing to give you in return. There's no room for ambiguity. It'll be important when I need someone to flip. Once they've made their intentions abundantly clear, let them know you and I already have an arrangement and politely decline."

"And who's to say they'll listen?" Caroline demanded haughtily, straightening her shoulders and glaring at him.

"Because that's the way things are," he explained, the line of his jaw tightening. "At least half of the guards here have arrangements with one or more of the inmates. Once someone has been claimed, they're considered off limits to the rest of the staff."

"That's what you think," the blonde huffed, trying to maintain a tough disposition despite the terror coursing through her veins. Life in a women's correctional facility was far from pleasant, but she hadn't truly been afraid before. Disgusted, humiliated, degraded and dehumanized, yes. Terrified, no. The more she thought about it, the more that fear morphed into anger. "What if they just take what they want anyway? Do you have any idea of the danger you've just put me in?"

"Undercover work is dangerous by definition. You knew that when you signed up," Klaus replied firmly. He liked her, he did, but his patience was waning and he could coddle her only so much. "We spent six months getting you ready for this and establishing your cover, and it's been that long since I first inserted myself into this facility. I wouldn't take this approach if I didn't believe this was our best strategy to achieve our goals. I am intimately familiar with the way things work around here because I have made it my life's mission to learn the ins and outs of this place. I suggest you start doing the same since you clearly haven't been paying attention if you didn't know this already."

Caroline turned her head to the side, jutting up her chin defiantly as she crossed her arms defensively over her chest, the wool scratching her skin. Part of her wanted to lash out, but she hadn't succeeded at everything she'd set her mind to by refusing to listen to reason and she knew Klaus had a reputation within the DEA as the best of the best. He was estranged from most of his family and didn't have much of a life outside of the job. When he said he'd made their operation his life's mission, she believed him. Still, she was twenty-three and terrified and felt like she was in way over her head. It was hard not to react but she forced herself to stay still and hear him out.

Klaus had been expecting her argument, but when it didn't come, he tilted his head to the side and examined her closely in the dim light. Noting the way she shivered and pressed her lips tightly together, he softened his tone. "Hey," he said gently, taking a few steps over to the corner where she'd retreated. "Look at me." When she didn't, he tentatively reached out and tilted her chin to face him, waiting until she reluctantly made eye contact to continue. "I won't lie and say that you're not in any danger because you are. We both are. I told you when we first began training that this job will test you in ways you never thought possible and push you to limits you never knew you had. This is what I was talking about and it's only going to get harder the deeper we go. I need you to understand that-"

"I do understand that."

Pressing a finger to her lips to silence her, he continued, "I need you to understand that if I thought your safety or life was at risk, I'd pull you out immediately. And if you think you are, you can request to be relieved from duty, no questions asked. If you tell me you can't do this-" he pushed his finger down harder when she tried to open her mouth- "the agency can arrange for Candice Morgan to be transferred to another facility by the end of the week and Caroline Forbes can be reassigned to standard field duty. Working deep undercover is not for everyone. It's not for most, truth be told. Agents twice your age have asked to be pulled out. There's no shame in it and I won't think any less of you." He slowly pulled his finger away as his eyes bore into hers, the cold institutional air between them thick. "But I need to know, right now, what you want to do. Are you in or are you out?"

"I'm in," Caroline replied a little too quickly considering they both knew she didn't feel the same confidence in her abilities that he did. At his raised brow, she sighed and dragged her fingers through her snarled and oily curls. She looked down at the smooth cement floor worn down by years of use and tried not to cringe. "You want to sit?" she asked as she sunk down and pulled her knees up to her chin, back to the wall.

Klaus eyed the cold, hard ground with distaste. "Not really, no."

"You and me both," the faux prisoner scoffed, blowing a strand of hair out of her face. "But at least you have clothes." She narrowed her sapphire eyes at his obnoxious smirk. "Then again, if you have to go, don't let me stop you. You've been in here a whole five minutes. That's enough time to sell it that we bargained and banged, right?" She bit back a wicked grin at the way his face dropped and couldn't resist poking at him. "I mean, I'm sure lots of guys like to get in and get out-"

"It would be longer than five minutes, I assure you," he replied in a clipped tone as he sat down beside her. He draped his forearms over his knees as he eyed her up and down lasciviously. "A lot longer."

Flashing a beauty queen smile, she quipped cheekily, "Well, you already wrecked our one condom, so I guess I'll have to take your word for it."

"Oh, I can get more." Cocking his head, he pointed at the door. "De Martel's got a locker full of them. Should I come back?"

"That's disgusting." Grimacing, she shook herself off before their eyes met and both laughed out loud. "Those men are pigs and it would take a lot more than two days to get me to agree to that."

"That they are and I'll take that as a challenge." When she playfully slapped his shoulder, he tutted in faux disapproval and shook his head. "Abusing the unit manager is going to get you right back in here. You really should learn to keep your hands to yourself, love."

"Says the guy who just offered to go grab a truckload of condoms."

"I said it was a locker full, not a truck," Klaus corrected her lightly. "But if you don't think that would be enough…" The younger agent's sole response was to roll her eyes. Grinning with his dimples, he patted her knee and let his arm rest there as he scooted closer. Despite the teasing and the lecturing, he'd grown very fond of his baby agent. When she looked into his eyes, there was a warmth there she doubted anyone else had seen in a long time. Even as his tone grew serious, there was still a softness lingering behind his words when he asked, "Jokes aside, are you sure this is where you want to be?"

Caroline opened and closed her mouth a few times as she considered her predicament. He waited patiently as she gathered her thoughts. On one hand, she definitely felt underprepared for the job, but on the other, she really wanted to see all the corrupt officers extorting prisoners for sex end up in cells of their own. And she wanted to make Klaus proud. Pushing that thought aside, she rolled her head to the side and shrugged. "Well, I don't want to give up."

"But?"

Frowning, she turned away and pressed her lips together, cursing his ability to see right through her. "But this is the first time in weeks that I've heard my real name." Even she could hear that her voice sounded small. She wrapped her arms tighter around herself, his arm still perched on her knee. "Forget it. You wouldn't understand."

"Wouldn't I?" When she risked glancing over at him, she expected to be met with judgment, but there wasn't a speck of it behind his ocean blue eyes as he watched her contemplatively. "I was younger than you when I first went undercover. I've adjusted to my fake first name since I recycle it over and over, but it still threw me through a loop every time someone called me Joseph Accola for the first couple of weeks after I got here."

"Really?" Caroline eyed him skeptically. "You've been doing this for over a decade and you still get confused?" When he shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, she frowned and chewed the inside of her cheek. "Huh. I thought you'd be used to it by now. I just figured guys like you could change personalities like other people change clothes." Looking at her blanket, she narrowed her eyes playfully. "When you have clothes." She expected him to sling a barb at her lack of attire, but when he didn't respond for a long while, she realized she'd struck a nerve. "Klaus? You in there?"

The older man smiled ruefully and rolled his head against the wall to face her. "Sweetheart, I have spent more of my adult life pretending not to be Klaus Mikaelson than acknowledging I'm him. You never get used to it." He squeezed her knee affectionately. "It helps to hear my real name, too."

Caroline hummed thoughtfully. "I guess you do understand."

"More than you know," he commented more to himself than to her. "It isn't just a matter of pretending to be someone else. We have to live the life of the person we claim to be. For example, in addition to being grossly overworked, unit managers are vastly underpaid." He grimaced as though he really didn't appreciate that fact. "As a result, I've been living in a one bedroom flat, wearing clothes off the rack and driving a used sedan. My last cover was as a millionaire drug trafficker. I lived in a mansion, wore tailored clothing and drove a Lamborghini."

"I'd rather drive a Lambo than be an inmate," Caroline scoffed, making him chuckle. She shook her head and dragged her fingers through her hair. "Six months ago, if a girl didn't have a bra, I wouldn't have thought twice about giving her one of mine. Hell, I'd have offered to go out and buy her a couple. But two days ago, I was ready to fight to the death over it." She felt a wave of shame wash over her and had to look away. "I know it sounds stupid, but in that moment, I didn't feel like me anymore. I felt like Candice."

"Well, in that moment, you were," Klaus replied calmly. "We all have to do things we never thought we would. You wouldn't believe some of the things I've had to do to keep from blowing my cover. You wake up one morning and the strangest things seem suddenly routine." He shook his shoulders as though some unpleasant memory had just come to mind. "The trick is not to lose yourself in the process."

The baby agent hummed again, resting her head against the cold cement wall. "I know what you mean about strange. I punched a girl in the face like it was nothing."

"You punched a girl in the face because she punched you first," Klaus reminded her, wishing she would stop beating herself up over it. She wasn't going to last long if she was this hard on herself about everything. He'd done far worse without blinking. Then again, he didn't particularly want her to become a younger version of him, either.

Caroline huffed in annoyance. "Yeah, but she wouldn't have if I'd just let her keep the damn bra."

"Candice wouldn't have let anyone steal from her," he pointed out smartly. "She's a hardened criminal serving time for murdering a man over a few dollars worth of dope. You did what everyone expected you to do. I would call that the exact opposite of strange." His lip curved up in a slight smile. "I'd say that makes you a good agent."

The blonde looked over at him dubiously, frowning. "I might buy that if I'd been thinking like an agent at the time, but I was thinking like her. I hurt someone," she said emphatically, clearly disgusted with herself. "How can hurting someone ever be good? How do you keep from turning into the person you're only pretending to be?"

Klaus smiled at that and shook his head. "The fact that you would ask that question proves you will only ever be Caroline." She turned to face him, lips parted in a little 'o.' "That's the difference between them and us. We do what we have to do, but we have the good sense to question it later. I can promise you that Hayley Marshall is not sitting in solitary asking herself what she could have done differently." He held up a finger for each of his next points. "You had something she wanted. She took it and then it was hers. You tried to take it back, so she attacked you for stealing from her. That's the end of it." Shrugging one shoulder, he dropped his hand. "Case closed."

The younger girl thought about it for a few moments before exhaling hard through her nostrils. "Okay, I guess I can see your point this time," she conceded, clearly unhappy about admitting anyone was right other than her. "But defending yourself is such a small thing. How do you know when it's too much if you don't think about it until later?" It occurred to him that she was the kind of person who probably wanted a manual with every question answered and plenty of room to write notes in the margins. It was easy to see why she'd excelled in school where the answers were cut and dry. Unfortunately, his world was far from clear. "Like, have you ever had to do something you knew was really wrong but you did it anyway without even really thinking about it?"

"If you're asking if I've done things I wish I hadn't, the answer is yes," Klaus replied easily. "I've done many things I'm not proud of for this job." He made a face that left her wondering just how many things he'd done and if she would have to do the same. "We practice things like how to make it look like you're snorting something without actually doing it, but there are times I haven't been able to pretend. I've had to get close to women I didn't care about to get closer to my target. I've gotten into more fights than I can count and broken more than noses. I've committed crimes and done things that were flat out immoral to sell my cover. But if you're asking if I've ever crossed the line, then no." After hearing his list, she raised an eyebrow dubiously. Smirking, he conceded, "My line is admittedly a bit to the left of most agents, but I do have one. We all do, including you." He patted her hand reassuringly. "You may not have found it yet, but when you get there, you'll know."

"But what if I don't?" Despite his attempts to calm her, she still had her doubts and her voice was nearing a whine that was starting to annoy him. "What if I don't know until it's too late?"

"Well, that's what I'm here for obviously." Klaus rolled his eyes and shook his head. "I've been doing this a long time, love. There are always signs when an agent starts to lose themself in the role. If I think you're in too deep, I'll be there to reel you back in." She bit down on her lower lip, face etched in skepticism. He tilted her chin to face him and looked deep into her eyes. "And if necessary, I'll be the one to pull you out. I promise."

Caroline looked back at him and finally realized there was no handbook with the answer to every question. She felt herself deflate a little bit and sighed, nodding her head. "Okay." He let go of her chin and sat back against the wall. She didn't like not knowing everything. It was unnerving and left her feeling very unsettled. Wrapping the blanket around herself, she shifted so she was sitting with her legs crossed beneath her facing him. When she spoke again, her tone was softer and more inquisitive than demanding. "This line you talk about… Have you ever gotten too close to it?"

Klaus sideyed her and debated telling her the truth. Slowly nodding his head, he replied quietly, "Once." He noted the way she had to bite her lower lip to keep from asking; it was obvious she was dying to know. He didn't want to scare her off, but if she was as strong as he thought she was, she could handle it. "I was in my mid-twenties, not much older than you. I was working a case in New Orleans and I'd been under for close to two years. The target was Marcel Gerard. He ruled the city with an iron fist and killed anyone who got in his way. Cut off their heads and left them for their families to find. Several agencies had investigated him for various crimes, but no one had ever been able to make anything stick. Took six months to even get an introduction. He was cautious, bordering on paranoid. I kept at it and eventually, I worked my way up and became his right-hand man. He had a shipment of a thousand kilos of heroin coming into the docks. We had agents all over the place. All we needed was for him to show up and we'd have had him dead to rights."

Caroline watched him inhale a shaky breath as the line of his jaw tightened. Whatever happened, he was obviously still carrying around a lot of guilt. When he didn't talk for a long while, she gently nudged his foot with her knee. "But he wasn't there?"

Shaking his head to chase away the ghosts, Klaus cleared his throat and brought himself back to the present. "No. Someone tipped him off that it was a setup. I knew as soon as he didn't show that he knew who I was. Or who I wasn't, anyway. I should have called my handler and gotten out of the city the minute I knew my cover was blown." He got quiet again, but this time, she waited for him to go on without rushing him. "We had his entire crew, but that wasn't enough for me. I wanted him. So, I ditched my phone and went back to my flat. I knew Marcel would be there before I even got in the car. I'd spent so long studying him and learning his behavior that I knew that monster better than he knew himself and I wasn't about to throw away two years of my work. Stupid." He scoffed at his own arrogance and ran his fingers through his dirty blond curls.

"I didn't much care for that handler, truth be told." The seasoned agent huffed out a dry, humorless laugh as though that particular tidbit of the story really bothered him. "I have no idea why she was working for the DEA. Her name was Camille. Camille O'Connell, but she liked to be called Cami. In the beginning, I had to establish myself as a local dealer. We used other agents and local undercovers to act as my customers for as long as we could, but that never lasts forever. The first time I told her I made an actual sale, she tried to pull me out. Prattled on and on about why I'd done it and what that said about me as a person. She had this odd sense of hypermorality that didn't fit with the things agents have to do to maintain our covers. I stopped telling her everything after that. She called when everything went down at the docks, but I didn't answer. I didn't want to hear it."

Klaus dragged his hands down his face, rough stubble scratching his palms. "I was living in a fairly decent neighborhood. Everyone liked to party at my place. I had this back room setup with strobe lights and speakers, that kind of thing. Right in the middle was this coffee table with a mirrored top. Everyone liked it because it was easy to run lines from the surface. As soon as I got there, I knew Marcel was somewhere inside. I pulled out my gun and went from room to room. I'll never forget how the whole place reeked of blood. It's such a distinct smell - coppery - and it lingers on your tongue if you're around it too long. I could practically taste it." With a faraway look in his eyes, he held up his hands like he could still see something long gone. "When I got to the back bedroom, Cami's head was sitting in the middle of the table. I remember how the blood looked reflecting off the top. There was so much of it. I never knew heads could hold that much blood."

Caroline swallowed hard as she listened to him recount his darkest day. She moved closer until her knee was brushing the side of his thigh, but he didn't seem to notice. "I looked into her dead eyes, all milked over and unseeing, and I thought about all the lives he'd ruined. All the junkies who'd died from his products, the rival dealers he'd had killed just to send a message, the families he'd destroyed, the senselessness of it all. So many lives." He shook his head and swallowed hard. "I'd never known such rage. I could feel my heart begin to race and suddenly, it was like all my senses were heightened. I heard the click of the safety being switched off on a gun and knew Marcel was right behind me. I watched him approach in the reflection of Cami's blood and waited until I felt the muzzle of his Glock touch the back of my neck to make my move." The corner of his lip twitched in an evil smile. "I spun around and hit him in the jaw with the butt of my gun. I felt the bones crack and it was the most satisfying thing."

Klaus was pulled from the moment when the woman beside him sucked in a deep breath and he suddenly remembered who he was talking to. He let his palm fall on top of her knee and was relieved when she didn't shy away. If anything, she scooted closer as he drew her into his world. "He fell to the ground, but he got a shot off on the way. Went right through my shoulder. If my body wasn't pumped so full of adrenaline, I think I might have fallen. At the time, I barely even noticed and it wasn't until much later that I realized getting shot hurts like hell." His shoulder twitched involuntarily at the memory. "I slammed my boot down on his wrist and his gun went flying across the room. I held him still with a foot on his chest and stood over him with my gun pointed at his face, blood dripping down my arm. I had him and he knew I had him. I had just started to read him his rights when he started laughing." He shook his head like he still couldn't believe it. "Can you imagine? He'd just decapitated a woman and was being held at gunpoint by a federal agent and he was laughing. It was this evil, maniacal sound that bounced off the walls and it sounded so loud that my ears started ringing. And in between bouts of laughter, he was telling me to shoot him, calling me a coward when I didn't. And then he told me what he did to Cami and how she'd died screaming."

Klaus' eyes had that same faraway look as he stared at something across the room, something that wasn't really there. "And then everything got very quiet. It was like everything in the world just stopped and all I could hear was the sound of my own blood pulsing in my veins. I could see his mouth moving but I couldn't hear the words anymore. I clicked the safety off my gun and held my finger on the trigger." He held up his thumb and forefinger like they were a real gun and aimed at that imaginary spot on the wall. Caroline wondered if he could still see that severed head in his mind's eye all these years later and realized it probably wasn't something he'd ever forget. "I wanted to see him dead and I wanted to be the one to do it. My mind was spinning, already coming up with the story I'd tell my boss about how I'd had no choice. It wouldn't have been the first time I'd killed in the line of duty. My handler was dead, I'd been shot, and I just knew I would get away with it. It felt like the walls were closing in on me and everything in me wanted to pull that trigger."

Caroline watched as his hand started to tremble and he didn't say anymore, just stared off into the distance. Slowly, she reached forward and wrapped her hand around his. "You didn't do it." She didn't bother phrasing it as a question; she already knew the answer.

Snapping back to reality, Klaus blinked a few times and cleared his throat. He let their clasped hands fall to her thigh and shook his head. "No, I didn't. I stomped that stupid smile off his face and then he wasn't laughing anymore. Knocked him unconscious and used his phone to call for backup since I'd dumped mine. He was arrested for Cami's murder and took a plea for life without the possibility of parole. He'll die in prison." Squeezing her hand, he smiled ruefully, eyes and tone full of remorse. "And that was the closest I ever came to crossing the line."

"Wow." It was a lot to take in and she didn't speak again for a long while. She looked down at where their hands were still clasped together and thought everything over. She had a lot more questions but wasn't sure asking them now would be appropriate. Instead, she settled on a simple, "Thanks for telling me."

"You're welcome, sweetheart." Watching the way she fidgeted with her lips pressed tightly together was amusing. Clearly, staying silent wasn't her strongest suit. "Go ahead and ask." He rolled his eyes. "You know you're dying to."

"How do you live with that?" she spat out a little too quickly, blushing. He chuckled lightly at her bashful expression. "Sorry. I didn't mean to be that blunt."

"It's okay," he assured her, shrugging lightly. He couldn't blame her for being curious, but it wasn't an easy question. They sat in silence for a minute as he thought about how to answer. "If you spend your life dancing on razor's edge, you're bound to get cut a time or two." She squinted her eyes and tilted her head quizzically, unsure of what he meant. Noticing her confusion, he realized he was going to have to spell it out for her. "Because I didn't go through with it. I may have wanted to - no, I definitely wanted to - but when it came down to it, I couldn't pull the trigger. I stayed on our side of the line."

"But why couldn't you?" Caroline asked in that same blunt tone. "You said yourself you would have gotten away with it. He killed your handler. He shot you. What stopped you?"

"I stopped myself. Wanting and doing are two different things, and that's what you have to remember if you want to do this job," Klaus replied firmly. He kicked one leg out in front of him, one arm draped over his bent knee as his other hand still lay atop her thigh, their fingers intertwined. "This job… It takes pieces of you that you never knew you had and don't notice are missing until you wake up one day and realize they're gone." Shaking his head, he dragged his free hand down his chin. It was 10:00 AM and he was already tired. "There are things we have to do even if we don't want to. I'd used my weapon before and I've used it since. I live with that because I know I had no choice. With Marcel, I did have one."

The seasoned agent looked over at the faux prisoner, eyes serious and tone emphatic, hoping he could make her understand what it had taken him years to learn. "If I'd shot him, it would have been because I wanted to, not because I had to. When we talk about the line, we're talking about the one thing that separates us from them." He slashed his hand through the air to demonstrate. "It's what they can do that we cannot. If I'd killed him, I would have become a murderer and there would be no difference left between us. That was the line I could not cross, the one none of us can. You can get close. You can stand right on the edge and look across to see your own monster staring back at you. But at the end of the day, we do not become them. As long as you never forget who you are and who they are, you'll be alright."

For once, Caroline didn't have anything to say. Staring down at their hands clasped together on top of the offensively itchy blanket covering her bare thigh, she nodded her head thoughtfully as she mulled it all over. He'd given her a lot to think about. She agreed that his line was definitely not where hers would be. She couldn't see herself going after a known killer alone, so it wasn't likely she'd end up in that exact same position. (And she doubted Klaus would ever let his head end up in the middle of a coffee table.) But where would she end up? What was her line and how would she know when she'd found it? How much of herself could she give to the job and still recognize the face in the mirror staring back at her? Exactly how far was too far?

With a sigh, Caroline pulled herself from her dark thoughts and looked up at him from beneath long lashes with her lower lip caught between her teeth. "Do you really think I'm cut out for this?"

With just a hint of dimples etched into his cheeks, Klaus replied lightly, "Sweetheart, I think if there was a book entitled Heavily Detailed Answers to Every Single One of Life's Infinite Questions, you would be first in line to buy it."

Narrowing her eyes at him in the dim light, she grumbled petulantly, "There's nothing wrong with wanting answers."

"There's nothing wrong with not always having them, either." Her jaw dropped like he'd just said the most offensive thing she'd ever heard. He barked out a laugh. "Nobody knows everything, love. You may not like it, but that's something you'll just have to accept. I can quote the policies and procedures that outline exactly what we can and cannot do within the confines of the law if that makes you feel better, but when it comes to undercover work, there's an awful lot of gray area."

Caroline picked at the blanket covering her, skin so itchy she wanted nothing more than to scratch every inch of her body. "I hate gray."

"I don't know," he mused, a taunting edge to his tone. "I think it looks good on you." The baby agent rolled her eyes but grinned anyway. "There are many things I don't know, but in answer to your question: yes, I do think you're cut out for this. If I didn't, I wouldn't have picked you in the first place. If I thought you weren't now, I'd pull you out. Whether or not you choose to accept that and believe in yourself is really up to you."

She smiled at the praise and looked over at him shyly. "So, you think I should stay?"

Smirking, Klaus let his eyes wander up and down her body. "Asking me whether I'd like to keep you around when I've got you trapped behind a steel door wearing nothing but a blanket may not be the best strategy."

"Ohmigod, seriously?!" She punched him lightly in the shoulder but there wasn't any malice behind it. "You are such a pervert."

"Me?" he retorted with a grin. "I'm surrounded by women in a correctional facility that doesn't allow conjugal visits. I see the way you all look at me, undressing me with your eyes." He tutted in faux disapproval, tone sarcastic and playful. "It's shameful. I'm not just an object, you know? I'm a person with feelings, yet you all treat me like a piece of meat."

"A person who wears perfectly fitted jeans and tight Henleys to show off your muscles," she countered, shaking her head as oily curls bounced against her bare shoulders.

There was a triumphant gleam in his eye as he wiggled his eyebrows. "So you have been checking me out."

"What?! No, that is not what I said,'' Caroline squeaked. "The other girls say that, not me. It's not my fault if I overheard them talking." Cheeks flushing, she finally pulled her hand from his to hold the blanket to her breasts with her arms across her chest. "Don't unit managers have a dress code? Shouldn't you be in a suit and tie or something?"

"It's not specifically in the handbook that I wear a suit and tie. I think the relaxed attire makes me more accessible to the women in my charge," Klaus replied professionally, as though this was not the first time he'd defended his clothing choices. "And besides, I think I'd shoot myself if I had to wear a tie everyday. I mean, look at me. Do I look like I belong in a suit?"

Caroline paused to really look at him. His stubble was overgrown like he couldn't be bothered to shave everyday and his tousled hair was just long enough to curl behind his ears. Around his neck were several necklaces that had a tendency to tangle around the rosary she knew he got from a victim's Catholic mother and never took off. She had no doubt that he was the kind of guy who rolled out of bed and walked out the door ten minutes later. Still, he looked like he belonged in a fashion magazine in the casual male section. It was unfair that anyone could look that good with absolutely no effort. But she certainly wasn't going to tell him that. His overinflated ego didn't need anymore stroking. He wasn't wrong that most of the women stared at him like he was dinner. She'd heard some very graphic descriptions of things they'd like to do with him that she wished she could unhear. To her, he was just the obnoxious and cocky agent, who was, on occasion, fun to flirt with to break up the monotony of prison life. But if she didn't know what a pain in the ass he could be, she would definitely have him in the "would bang" category.

No, he definitely didn't need to know that.

"Probably not a suit and tie," she agreed, pushing away her momentarily inappropriate thoughts. "But maybe you should think about doing something with your hair. Like, I don't know, brushing it once in a while?"

Klaus waved his hand dismissively. "Can't be assed. I've had enough women tell me I belong in a fashion catalogue to know I must be doing something right." His upper lip curled as he added slyly, "You're going to be the envy of the cellblock when the other girls find out we're sleeping together."

Caroline scoffed at his arrogance. He raised his eyebrows as though daring her to tell him he was wrong, but they both knew he wasn't. Smug bastard. Huffing out a dry laugh, she snarked, "Envy of the cellblock. That's one for the resume."

"So, we're in agreement that it's something to be proud of."

"I was being sarcastic!" Rolling her eyes at his grin, she added, "Has anyone ever told you you're kind of full of yourself?"

"Many people," he laughed. "I'm yet to change my roguish ways." Falling back into agent mode, he clapped her on the knee. "And you should not change yours. Landing yourself in here for a couple of days truly was brilliant, intentional or otherwise. Soon, we'll have Katherine Pierce right where we want her. When she comes to you - and she will come to you - do what you have to do to earn her trust. Report back to me whatever she asks of you and I'll do what I can on my end."

"When?" Caroline asked in a demanding tone. "When am I supposed to report these trust-earning things to you? This is the longest conversation we've had since I've been here."

"That'll change now that everyone thinks we have an arrangement. I had to keep my distance before when you were just one of the many, but getting you alone shouldn't be a problem anymore." Tilting his head, he added firmly, "And you should be grateful you've been seeing me as often as you have. You may not have noticed, but checking on you is the first and last thing I do everyday, and many times in between. That's more attention than I've ever gotten on a job. When I was undercover in a prison, my handler had to pose as my husband. I saw him once a week during visitation and we had to talk in code."

Caroline's face lit up at his unintentional admission. "You had to pretend to be gay?"

"I don't want to talk about it," he replied quickly, a flush creeping up his neck. She pressed her lips together but couldn't stop herself from giggling at his obvious discomfort. "It was for a brief period and our fake marriage was monogamous, I assure you. You can count that as another one of my lines."

"Good to know," the baby agent chuckled, trying very hard to compose herself. It took several minutes because each time she looked up, his annoyed expression sent her into another fit of laughter until she was doubled over. Eventually, she straightened up and pulled her head from her lap, lips still curved in amusement. "So, if it came down to it, this whole you and me thing is just an act? You wouldn't really…"

"Oh, if it were you?" Klaus' eyes took on a mischievous glint, his tone far too enthusiastic. "No, you I would absolutely take to bed if I had to. And I'd be exceptionally liberal when defining if I have to."

"What?"

"I'd do it. I'd enjoy it. I'd make sure you enjoyed it and then I'd never let you forget it." It was his turn to laugh out loud at her flabbergasted expression, lips parted and eyes wide as her cheeks reddened. She punched him in the bicep, but that only amused him further. "Well, can you blame me? Have you looked in a mirror lately? My handler then was a balding middle aged man with a weight problem and an affinity for garlic. You're a gorgeous young woman."

Caroline looked at him like he'd lost his mind. "I haven't showered in two days!"

"So?" he laughed, wiping a tear from his eye. "You're still the prettiest girl in here by far."

The blonde thought of the other women in Unit C. Most were missing teeth, couldn't afford acne wash from commissary and had never heard of the gym. With the possible exception of Katherine (and maybe Hayley if lights were low and she didn't open her mouth), none of them were entering any beauty contests. "That's not saying much."

When Klaus' laughter finally subsided, he conceded. "Alright, that's fair." He grinned at the way she was forcing herself to glare at him and not laugh, too. "Still, it's a compliment. Take it and say thank you."

Caroline shook her head, lips quirking despite her best efforts not to smile. "I'm not thanking you for that."

"You would if we slept together." He laughed so hard at the way her jaw dropped that he nearly fell over.

Throwing up her hands, she shook her incredulously. "How can one man be so cocky with little to no encouragement?"

"A little goes a long way." Wagging his eyebrows, he added mischievously, "And that's an interesting choice of words, cocky. You've got a dirty mind, Caroline Forbes."

"Klaus!" The baby agent blushed furiously, hiding her face in her hands in embarrassment at the slip. "Ohmigod."

"That's another thing you'd say if we slept together." Caroline's head whipped up and she punched him hard enough to make him fall over. He lay on the ground laughing at her ire until he realized where they were. Looking at the suspicious stain in the corner sobered him up. Had he been stuck in there all weekend, he might not be laughing, either. "Alright, alright. I'm sorry." He held up his hands apologetically and wiped his eyes as he pulled himself to a seated position. "But this is the most fun I've had in months. Can you forgive me?" He looked so sincere and his smile so genuine that she couldn't help but feel a little bit sorry for him.

"Alright, fine. You're forgiven." She was surprised that he actually looked a bit relieved at that. "You don't have much of a life outside of work, do you?"

"No, none," he admitted a little too easily. She wondered if she would ever get to that point. She hoped not. "And this unit manager job is far worse than I anticipated. The paperwork alone is enough to consider early retirement. I hate paperwork." His shoulders shivered and she could tell he was definitely not joking. "It's why I've never asked to transfer to a desk job. I'd rather pose as a homeless person and pick food from a dumpster than sit and type all day. Truth be told, your weekend was probably far better than mine."

"I sincerely doubt that."

"Do you want to know what I did? Hmm?" He looked over at her as though about to reveal the worst of human tortures. Rolling her eyes, she shrugged, curious as to what could be worse than her predicament. "I was up half the night both Friday and Saturday filing reports for this hell hole. Long ones with lots of checkboxes. Sunday, I slept half the day and then spent the afternoon writing a progress update for the DEA. Never even left the apartment." His shoulders twitched as he grimaced. "It was bloody awful."

"Sounds like torture compared to these luxuries," she commented dryly, gesturing around at the walls of cement surrounding them. "Did you have clothes?" Pressing his lips together to keep from laughing, he shrugged with one shoulder dismissively. "Yeah. That's what I thought. Spend a weekend naked and get back to me with those complaints."

"You wouldn't be complaining if you'd been naked in my apartment."

"Incorrigible. You are absolutely incorrigible." Shaking her head in admonishment, she kept her tone stern despite the smile trying to curve her strawberry lips. "You're like a dog with a bone!"

"Oh, come off it," he laughed. Shifting so his legs were crossed beneath him, he faced her and took both of her hands in his, chuckling at the way she tucked her arms tightly at her side to keep the blanket from falling. "Look me in the eye and tell me you're not enjoying yourself. Tell me you don't feel a thousand times better than you did an hour ago." She looked away defiantly but didn't deny that it was the best time she'd had in months. It wasn't just that she enjoyed their banter. Being around Klaus made her feel like herself again and it was a relief to know she was still in there. "You can't, can you? Admit it. You like me. You think I'm charming."

It was getting harder and harder not to laugh. "I did not say you're charming."

"But you didn't deny that you like me."

Klaus' dimples were etched into his cheeks and there was something so adorable about the way he was trying so hard to make her laugh that she couldn't help but feel flattered. He had a reputation for being taciturn, unsociable and damn near impossible to work with. Yet, here he was doing everything to make her smile. "I guess you're… tolerable."

"Tolerable?" he teased, raising both eyebrows in challenge. Damn him.

"Alright, fine. I like you. Whatever." His eyes and face lit up like he'd just received the highest of honors and it was then that she realized she really did. She'd been furious when he hadn't immediately come to her rescue, and the inability to keep track of time in the dark hadn't helped soothe her rage. He did have a point that it wouldn't have looked good if he'd rushed in on her account considering they weren't supposed to know each other, though. And he had been honest from the beginning that undercover work was dangerous and grueling and definitely not for everyone. But maybe it could be for her… as long as he kept up his side of the bargain and got her the hell out of the hole. "I would like you a lot more if you could get me some clothes and get me back to the unit." Squeezing his hands, she smiled and added with resolve, "We've got work to do."

"Oh, right." He shook his head like he'd momentarily forgotten they were on the clock. Reluctantly, he let go of her hands and got to his feet. "Yes, I suppose it's been long enough that we can go now." He banged on the steel door several times until a loud buzz sounded and it slid open. There was no one in sight, but a pair of pink scrubs were on the ground right by the door along with a pair of white sneakers designed to slip on instead of tie. Shoelaces were deadly weapons in the Augustine correctional facility. Picking up the shirt and pants, he tossed them to her and set down the shoes.

Catching them in the air as the door closed again, Caroline's jaw dropped in outrage. "You had them out there the entire time?!"

"Well, it would have looked odd if I brought them in right away," he explained nonchalantly. "Thought it'd sell it better if someone saw them sitting there."

"I thought you said no one was coming?" she demanded accusatorially, carefully pulling the pink pants up her legs without dropping the itchy blanket.

"Yes, I did say that, didn't I?" The senior agent's grin was cheshire and totally unapologetic as he added, "Oops."

"You jerk!" Lunging forward, Caroline banged both fists against his chest, dropping her top. It was light enough that she clearly wasn't really trying to hurt him and he batted her away, laughing. Suddenly, the blanket fell from beneath her arms. With lightning reflexes, he grabbed it before it could reveal her bare breasts.

Klaus wrapped the blanket back around her, careful to keep her covered. "You see?" The younger girl stood there clutching the fabric to her in shock. He easily could have let it fall and stolen a peek at her, but he didn't. And he clearly didn't even consider it if how fast he moved to cover her was any indication. "I may get close. I may stand right on the edge. And in some cases, I may even enjoy being there." Smirking, he reached down and grabbed her top. "But when it comes down to it, I wouldn't cross the line with you, either."

Caroline snatched the top from his hand and playfully slapped him with it. "No, you'd just be exceptionally liberal when defining where it is." He flashed her his dimples and didn't bother to deny it. Pointing a finger at the door, she ordered him bossily, "Turn around!" Holding up his hands innocently, he did as she asked. She tugged the pink scrub top down over her chest and let the blanket fall to the floor, idly wishing he'd brought her underwear and wondering if she'd have any left when she got back to her pod. She pulled on the simple white sneakers and fluffed out her hair. Straightening her shoulders, she exhaled hard and let the smile fall off her face. "Okay. I'm ready."

Klaus banged on the door again and pulled a set of solid steel handcuffs from his back pocket. A tiny smirk curled his upper lip as it opened with a loud electronic buzz. "Ready to behave yourself, Miss Morgan?" he asked in an American accent as he cuffed her wrists behind her back.

"Only if that bitch keeps her hands off my stuff, Mr. Accola," she quipped in a graveley version of her real voice, a scowl plastered on her face. Handcuffs were high on the list of things she wouldn't miss.

"Still sounds strange. I liked it better when I was Joey the Stick. I miss my Lamborghini," he muttered wistfully in his real accent, shaking his head as they stepped out of the cell. They shared a small smile as they set foot in the hall.

"I miss apple pie and cookies with real sugar."

"I may be able to do something about that," he commented as they rounded the corner.

Caroline's eyes lit up at the prospect of food that wasn't coated in grease and prepared in a thousand servings. "Really?" she asked a little too brightly, missing that a guard was within earshot.

Klaus let his hand wander from her lower back downward, pinching her ass enough to get her attention. "Play your cards right and I'm sure we can come to an agreement," he whispered loud enough for Officer Castle to hear him as they turned another corner, his hand still on her ass. The officer tossed him a dirty wink which he easily returned. Once they were clear, he moved his hand back to her lower back and turned to glare at her sternly, lips pressed tightly together in a thin line. She looked at him guilty and mouthed that she was sorry. Shaking his head tersely, he pulled a plastic ID badge from his back pocket and used it to open the door to Unit C.

Uncuffing her, the fake unit manager pushed her forward roughly. "Let the last two days be a lesson to you, Morgan. Next time you get in a fight, it'll be a week."

The faux prisoner rolled her eyes as she walked past Katherine and her gang of misfits playing poker. "Whatever. Bitch had it coming."

Noticing that we were being watched, he strode over to her and spun her around by the elbow. Wagging a finger at her, he scolded sternly in his fake accent, "Hey, you watch that mouth or you'll be right back in the hole." He eyed her up and down lasciviously, the edge of the condom wrapper sticking out of his pocket. "I'm sure you wouldn't want that, would you?"

Batting her eyelashes, she leaned forward flirtatiously while their target watched their interaction with interest from behind her cards. "Sorry, Mr. Accola. I've never been very good at keeping my hands to myself. I'll work on it." She spun on her heel and walked away with a sly smile.

The brunette woman raised an impressed brow as the blonde passed the poker table. "Two days isn't bad for a fight."

"I know the way the game is played," Caroline replied with a wink, noticing out of the corner of her eye as the senior agent disposed of the condom in a nearby trash can. Head held high, she kept on walking. Katherine got up a minute later to follow her new best friend.

Klaus had never been prouder.

A/N Whew! That was a long one. It was originally supposed to be smutty, but then Cami went and got her head chopped off and it got all dark on me. I hope you liked how it turned out anyway. Let me know what you think if you did! (No concrit, please.)