Caroline did not stop running until she reached Elijah's villa, foolishly pretending that the walls and doors would be any sort of barrier that would stop Niklaus from chasing her.

She knows that as the Emperor's son, he wouldn't even need an army, he could simply command a door to be opened or demand that Elijah bring her out.

Still, there is comfort to be found in winding her way deeper into the villa, moving into the study where Elijah sat pouring over a parchment, his hand on one corner and the asp asleep on the other, holding it in place for him.

"Is something the matter?" he asks, barely glancing up as she sits down on the couch,

"You are breathless."

Caroline runs a hand through her hair and tosses her palla to the floor,

"Your brother was nearly murdered today," she begins and he turns around to face her quickly, pulling on the parchment and the asp hisses as it wakes up, sensing its master's distress.

"He is fine, unharmed," she assured him, "I escorted him back to his father's home."

"I shall visit him," he murmurs, standing up and ensuring that his robes were in place before striding to the door, "Shall you come with me?"

Caroline purses her lips and shakes her head, she does not doubt for a moment that if she returned to Klaus' side tonight that she would not leave him before morning.

Elijah frowns a little at her refusal but nods and scoops up the asp, striding from the room as it still made its way up his arm.

Caroline found a slave and ordered wine, drinking deeply as she returned to her chamber and lay down on her couch, trying to calm herself after the day's events.

Niklaus' lips had tasted sweet, she had never kissed a man who had not tasted of wine or meat.

Thinking of those few men, those soldiers, makes her wonder where Enzo is.

She could use his level-head and counsel tonight.


In his concern for his brother, Elijah does not see anything around him but the Emperor's villa, he hurries inside, pushes past a person and strides to the gardens where his little brother was want to retreat whenever his thoughts consumed him.

He finds him sitting on the rim of the fountain, with Rebekah's head in his lap as she weeps,

"You…could…have…died." she sobs and he strokes her hair,

"I am fine," he assures her, looking up as Elijah kneels before him, putting his left hand on his shoulder, "I am well, brother."

"I thank the gods for that," he tells him, giving him a little shake before he sits beside him,

"I came as soon as Caroline told me."

Niklaus' hand stills and he looks at him out of the corner of his eye, "She made it home safely then?"

Elijah frowns, trying to figure out why his little brother suddenly looks so guilty, "Yes, why should she not have done so?"

Niklaus shrugs, "No reason."

Elijah is about to inquire further when the Emperor steps out onto the terrace, "There you are."

Rebekah is made to sit up and handed over to Matron Ayana, who begins fussing over her as Niklaus is embraced by his father,

"I would have come sooner," the Emperor apologizes,

"If Elijah had not knocked me against the wall as he stormed inside."

Elijah bows his head in mortification, "Forgive me, I did not realize."

Ansel snorts, "Your devotion to your brother needs no explanation," he says with a wave of his hand, "I am glad of it."

"Do we know what happened?" he asks, "Who was behind the attack?"

Niklaus shakes his head, "Caroline killed the man where he stood."

Elijah notes the way the name of his old playmate falls from Niklaus' tongue, the manner in which he seems to leave him breathless after speaking it.

"Where is she now?" Ansel asked, looking around, "I wish to speak with her."

"She is at my villa," Elijah informs, "Shall I send for her?"

The Emperor frowns, obviously displeased, "She left Niklaus alone? After I tasked her with his protection?"

"I sent her home," Niklaus says quickly, his voice overly relaxed as it was wont to be when he lied, "The praetorian guards are here, I could not be safer."

Elijah sees a puzzle before him, a secret that he wants to get to the heart of but he can hear people gathering inside the villa and leaves his brother to his thoughts and Rebekah's comfort so he can follow Ansel inside.

He sees several senators milling about, a slithering of senators he thinks to himself and takes his position behind the Emperor. He holds no position in the Senate but with his knowledge of the law, history and philosophy he was granted access and permission to speak.

Senator Tristan was watching him avidly and he has to practice keeping his disgust off his face.

The man sought power with more desperation than a man in the desert sought drinking water.

"My son is well, the assassin is dead," Ansel announces, "Yet, I will not rest easy until I have those responsible in the dungeons."

Nods of agreement, in perfect unison served to make this group of men look more ridiculous than usual and Elijah allows himself a small smile before he hears his name spoken.

"How can we not be sure that the guilty party is not among us?" Tristan continues,

"After all, Citizen Mikaelson left mere moments before the attack."

Rage quietly begins to boil in Elijah's veins but he keeps a calm façade,

"Where is the logic in this accusation?" he inquires, "Were I guilty of this crime, would I not have stayed to witness it? Or ensured that I was with someone at the time to allay suspicion?"

"That is what someone as wise as you would not do," Tristan suggests, "Too perfect a story would give the appearance of falsehood."

"Therefore, what proof do we have that it was not you?" he demands, pointing to Elijah,

"Acting on the orders of the Egyptian bitch?"

The asp rears its head, hissing dangerously and Elijah puts his thumb and fore-finger around its neck, ready to restrain it if it decided that Rome could manage with one less senator.

"I love my wife," he says quietly, "As she loves me, enough to never ask me to betray my brother or my people."

"Perhaps, Senator Martell," the Emperor says, "You would do better to find those at fault rather than accuse every member of my family, unless you should like to suggest that my step-daughter or even I could have been behind the attack?"

The senator bows his head, "Forgive me, but you cannot forget that it was my family that revealed the treachery close to your heart all those years ago, it would be a crime were I not to watch the traitor's daughter and her friends closely."

Ansel grips his robe and tangles it in his fist, "By all means, watch the legate Forbes," he permits,

"But do not be surprised if it costs you both eyes."

The senators are sent away and Ansel retires to his study, "I wish to speak to Caroline," he tells Elijah,

"I saw the fear in her eyes when she was accused today, I wish to assure her that she is safe."

He nods and waves to a slave, "Shall I send for her?"

"Please."

The two men settle down to wait, the asp making its way down Elijah's arm and curling in his lap, propping its head on his knee so he can watch the Emperor.

"Does the creature not disturb you?" Ansel asks curiously and the younger man smirks,

"He did at first," he admits, stroking his head, "But Katerina insisted that he shall protect me."

The Emperor hums in clear disapproval but does not say anything further, instead turning his attention to an agricultural report until the slave returns.

"Forgive me," the man stammers, "She is not in the villa."

Elijah raised his eyebrows, "Do you know where she is?"

The man scratched the back of his neck, "I asked and was told that she had gone to seek her men."

Elijah smothered his laugh before it even left his throat, "Considering this is Rome, it would be no strain to guess what kind of establishment her men currently reside in."


Caroline adjusts the heavy masculine mask on her face, she had taken it from Elijah's villa as the barest nod to modesty she could manage while walking through the dirtier parts of the city.

She'd had to ask a slave where the soldiers tended to frequent, having known the answer would be a lupanar, caupona or taberna but having also known that the number of those buildings in Rome would be greater than drops of blood on a battlefield.

The man had been horrified but had given her the directions she required to a general area, after which she was forced to walk the streets, her sword at her side as she ignored the calls of the men around her until she recognized her brothers-in-arms.

She hears them and then smells the wine they're drinking before she sees them.

Enzo is bent over a game of dice and does not even look up as she smacks him over the head,

"You are losing." she chastises as she sits down at the table beside him, helping herself to his wine.

"Says you." He retorts before rolling and drawing snake eyes, causing her to laugh as he does indeed lose his bet.

"What are you doing here, love?" he asks, taking his cloak and draping it over her shoulders despite the warm night, "This is Rome, should you not be on the Palatine?"

"My men are here," she points out, spreading her hands as she notes just how many of her battalion are in the caupona, there would be no chance of drilling tomorrow, "Where they go, I go."

Enzo makes a face, "In the savage lands, yes, but here…" he shrugs, "Will people not talk?"

She shrugs and motions for another jug of wine, "My family reputation can not get any worse."

She drinks deeply and draws her purse out, placing coins on the table and taking the die from her friend's competitor, "Double or nothing?" she offers.

After winning back her losses, she stands to stretch her legs and roam the room, taking note of which of her men are there and what situations they find themselves in.

Stefan is so deep into his wine that he is at risk of drowning while his brother has two actresses on his lap and another standing behind him, massaging his shoulders.

He would find his purse empty tomorrow but she knew that no matter how great a woman's beauty, he would not be too distracted to protect himself from the pimp lurking in the corner.

A courtesan walks past, running a hand down her arm and Caroline smiles, "Thank-you but no."

"Such beautiful hair," the woman sighs, wrapping a curl around her finger, "And natural too,"

"There is a man looking for one such as you," she continues, "He looks wealthy."

Caroline rolled her eyes, "He can continue searching," she tells her, "My talents lie in wielding the sword, not being the sheath."

The courtesan laughs and makes her way over to Enzo, Caroline notes that the woman looks clean at least and continues her search, wondering where Matthew had got to.

She hears her name and frowns, certain that she must be hearing voices as she stretches to look over the heads of the crowd, shrugging it off, she delves through a curtain into a room of couches where some of the women were dancing but most were with customers in various stages of undress.

A hand appears out of nowhere and fastens hard on her arm, pulling her into a corner before she can even cry out. She reaches for her sword before her captor hisses her name,

"Niklaus." She stares at him incredulously, standing before her in a worn cloak which covers his rich robes, casts his face into shadow and hides his golden curls,

"What are you doing here?"

"Me?!" he snaps, his blue eyes shining in fury, "Do you not know what this place is?"

She nods, "It's a tavern," she jerks her head, "The whores were the first clue."

He gapes at her like a fish out of water and she resists the urge to giggle at his innocence,

"I drink where my men drink," she tells him, "One of the many duties of my position."

His hand gripes her arm even tighter, "You are a daughter of Rome and friend to the first family," he spits, "You cannot cavort in a tavern."

He makes a path to the door, tugging her along with him and she allows this, still a little surprised and breathless from being in his presence again,

"I have a litter to take us back to the Palatine."

To the Palatine.

To his sleeping couch?

"No," she digs her feet into the badly cobblestoned path outside, "I want to stay with my men."

He laughs, "With what?! That pathetic mask to protect your modesty? You are being foolish."

She glares at him, her ire quickly rising and tries to break his hold without hurting him but she is either too gentle or drunker than she realized because he is able to pull her to the covered litter before she can shake his grip and when she does, he instinctively tries to stop her.

In the tussle, she falls into the litter, her back hitting the cushions and she goes to push herself up before he captures her wrists in his hands, squeezing them as his knees press into her legs, hanging off the edge with her feet firmly on the ground.

"Caroline," he growls, "I am your friend."

Except he is not her friend.

She does not know what he is to her exactly, but she does not care for him in the same manner she cares for Enzo.

And she knows that if she allows him to put her in this litter, that they will not make it to the Palatine before she has surrendered herself to his touch.

She can see it now, the rocking of the litter, shards of light making it through the curtains, Niklaus' propped on his hands as he moves above her, their clothes pushed up to their waists, their legs tangled together.

She stills as the dream overwhelms her and glancing upwards, she can see her eyes have betrayed her thoughts to Niklaus. His touch has softened and his tongue darts out, wetting his lips before he begins bending over, his mouth barely an inch from hers when he whispers her name,

"Caroline."

Suddenly he is gone. A shout as the only thing above her is the night sky and she sits up hastily, looking about her for the threat and sees him staggering backwards, clutching his nose as blood splatters to the stones.

Enzo is standing in front of her, a small scattering of her men hurrying from the tavern as he grips a dagger in his hands, "You piece of…"

"No!" she shouts, pushing herself to her feet and striding across the space, "Stop now!"

Her word is law to her men, even as drunk as they are and she puts herself between Enzo and Niklaus. Her friend glares and holds his dagger up, pointing it over her shoulder,

"Are you mad?!" he demands, his bloodlust up, "He was going to…"

"He's the Emperor's son!"

His fury morphs into mortification as the others stand to attention and he realizes that he's forfeit his life. Caroline gestures for him to lower his dagger and turns to Niklaus,

"Let me see," she orders, pulling his hands away from his nose and running his fingers along it, even as he winces, "It is not broken," she sighs in relief.

"You'll be fine."

But he ignores her, instead, looking over her head to where Enzo is standing, his hands at his sides, tense as he awaits his fate.

Caroline puts a hand on his chest as he goes to step forward, "He is family to me," she says softly, pleadingly, unable to look into his eyes, "Please."

Niklaus manages to appear offended even as blood is drying around his mouth and chin,

"You do not know me at all, Caroline." He murmurs in reply, placing a hand on her waist as he moves around her.

He faces Enzo, who to his honor, does not lower his eyes, or shrink back but stands facing him.

"You would have killed me," Niklaus states, his voice void of emotion, "To protect Caroline."

Caroline cannot bring herself to turn around and face her friend, she cannot bear to watch his suffering, so she closes her eyes and hears his ragged intake of breath,

"Yes," he admits, "I would have."

A moment of silence in which all Caroline can see are steps covered in falling snow mixed with fresh blood.

"If ever you need a favor," Niklaus begins, "Ask, and if it's within the power of myself or my family, it will be granted."

Caroline cautiously opens her eyes and looks over her shoulder, through the curtain of her hair and sees the two men clasping forearms, Enzo's expression frozen in shock before Niklaus turns back to her,

"My father wished to speak with you tonight," he tells her, "Come."

He walks to the litter and after a moment, she follows him, stopping only when Enzo grips her elbow in passing, "I will be fine," she assures him, "And will see you tomorrow."

This time, she climbs willingly into the litter, nodding to her men before closing the curtains. She leans on her elbow as the carriers lift it onto their shoulders, glancing at Niklaus surreptitiously as he wipes his blood onto his toga.

She reaches for him, taking the hem of his toga and dabbing at the blood he'd missed, careful to avoid the darkening bruise. She is not afraid now, because whatever risk there had been before of her surrender had been lost amongst the blood and fear.

"Are you his lover?" Niklaus asks, keeping his eyes on the cushion under her knees and she scoffs at the idea,

"No, Enzo is my second-in-command and a brother to me,"

"Not that it matters," she continues when she catches him smiling, "I will not take a lover while in Rome."

He laughs at that, the sound surprising in the quiet of the enclosed space, "You are certain of that."

She opens her mouth in confirmation when he puts his hands on her waist and throws her onto her back, causing the litter to sway dangerously as the carriers tried to adjust the sudden weight and in terror of falling, Caroline grabs onto Niklaus' shoulders.

He takes the chance to kiss her, delving his tongue into her mouth as he pushes a knee between her thighs, she automatically closes her eyes and kisses him back, her body thrilling at the weight of him atop her.

For a wild moment, she thinks the insanity of earlier can be recaptured and her heart races at the thought of lifting her stola and letting him take her.

Thank fortuna that instead, she tastes blood on his lips and it brings her back to the moment.

She breaks the kiss, turning her cheek to the side and when Niklaus strokes her hair back to kiss her neck, she bucks her hips but pushes him away,

"You cannot keep kissing me." she tells him, using the same tone when commanding her men but he only grins,

"Then perhaps you should stop kissing me back?"

She shakes her head in frustration, slapping him when he leans down to kiss her again, but he switches tactics and brushes her hair out of the way,

"I want you in my bed, Caroline," he murmurs in her ear, running his tongue along the shell and her eyelids flutter closed, "And I believe you want to be there."

He was right.

But she still pushes him away and when he shifts back onto his knees, she takes the opportunity to part the curtains, seeing that they are already on the Palatine, she throws him an apologetic look before pushing herself down, dropping the six feet with ease and hurrying out of the way of the stunned carriers.

"Caroline!" Niklaus shouted as she picked up her stola and began moving quickly, darting around the bewildered pedestrians, "Stop running away from me."

For some reason, the annoyance in his voice has her laughing and she turns around to wave to him before resuming her walk to Elijah's villa.

It is only when she is curled up on her sleeping couch that she recalls that the Emperor had wished to speak to her and she sits back up before noting how late it is and resolves to speak to him first thing tomorrow.


Lupanar- secret tavern where men could go to dine, drink and gamble.
Caupona- low class inn