Welcome back! I might have confused some people with my last author's note and just wanted to clarify that this will always be a Klaroline fic and Caroline's own story of her past. The Kalijah will just be some side story to add in and will be minor. Also, if you notice previous chapters being updated in the next week or so, I will be going back to correct any grammatical errors and nothing to the plot will be changed. Enjoy!
As always, thanks for the reviews/favs/follows/guests.
Klaus wondered aimless through The French Quarter with a bottle of bourbon swinging from his hand and blood droplets staining his neck. The streets had gone bare since it was well into the night and the only few tourist to snack on were mostly drunk, so no fight left in them. None the less, Klaus was still leaving a trail of bodies in his wake so there was no doubt his big brother was playing clean up duty and that thought alone made him smile. Rebekah was most likely licking her wounds at home or fighting with her current boy toy about dirty secrets that Klaus' little blonde was keeping. Kol was probably in the middle of creating his own fun with the human girls and even if he wasn't Kol could hardly clean up his own messes much less someone else. Klaus' pulled strange looks from the humans that noticed him but one glared and they went running for the hills. Even if they wanted to give him grief they could be easily killed or compelled, thus the perks of being a vampire.
Klaus' thought wondered to a week ago with said little blonde and the fun they had with their own blood in the dark. Mental images of the beauty riding his fingers, hot breathe covering his face, and the taste of her blood on his tongue flooded his mind. There were a dozen or so new bodies that were compelled or buried in the past week since they had been together and none had come close to the taste of Caroline. Klaus muttered to himself for being so attached to the little blonde and almost emptied the Bourbon in hand. He was right when he said earlier that he didn't need this kind of weakness in his life for the hundred's of his enemies to take advantage of. There would not be a magical happy ending for Klaus, not after a thousand years of torturing the innocent as he took whatever he wanted from them.
It had been hours since Klaus left the club and he now found himself down the street from the old compound he once called home too many centuries ago. The other problem plaguing his mind tonight was the fact that he would have to kill his old protege, his son, Marcel for plotting his own death. Even when Klaus came back to reclaim his kingdom again, his intention was to never kill Marcel. It was going to be his choice to either hand over all control of the Quarter or be banished from the city. He didn't have physical proof that it was Marcel but there is no doubt in Klaus's mind he was behind it all. There was also the intense interest he held for Caroline since he saw her the first night and Marcel seemed to have far to much information about her then he should. That thought alone made his hands clench with anger at Marcel coming near Caroline and now they had this ridiculous party to attend. A plan had to be put in place in the next few days because Klaus was no fool and completely aware that this was more than just a welcoming party. He emptied the Bourbon bottle and deposited it in a near by trash can as he head familiar footsteps behind him.
"It will be ours again one day, Niklaus." Elijah stood at his side and they both stood to glance upon the three story compound that was once their home. "Marcel's gathering would be a good opportunity to regain it back."
"My thoughts exactly." Klaus smirked.
"We can put our heads together tomorrow and perhaps Ms. Forbes can enlighten us with her plans she has been keeping from us." Klaus shot him a glare but didn't respond so Elijah let the subject drop for now. "Do I need to finish cleaning your mess this evening or are you going to do it yourself for once?"
"It's been a thousand years Elijah why spoil the fun now?" Klaus patted his brothers shoulder and turned to make his way home.
"The one time I decide to leave early and I miss everything." Kol pouted from the couch as Rebekah and Enzo went over what happened after he left. "I suppose Nik isn't home because he is snuggled up with our sweet Caroline someplace?"
"I'm glad my personal business is the main topic of discussion this evening." Klaus strolled in half drunk to take his place on the couch next to Kol. "As a matter of fact I was politely kicked out of her hotel room a few hours ago. That's over with."
Kol had to laugh, "Nik you are an imbecile. Caroline is a bit miffed but she doesn't hate you, for some reason. I know what I saw when I was eavesdropping on your little date at the bar and that was not hate I saw radiating off you two. The sexual tension could be cut from the balcony."
"Can we move on to other subjects, such as what plans we need for Marcel's party later this week?" Klaus growled. "I know Marcel very well, I made him after all, so this party is a cover for something else. An attack would be the best bet or perhaps a distraction."
"Do we have a head count on his vampire army? Maybe we can get that Bennett witch to attend just encase since he has his own witch." Enzo asked.
"I have kept my distance since that lovely premonition of my death but I do have a compelled vampire on my side, Josh. I gained him a week or so ago so I always have ears on the inside. Marcel's numbers are still large but we can always change that."
"Like in the middle of a party when we rip all their arms off." Kol smirked, same as Rebekah.
"We still need to know who else he is working with and what they have that can kill us. I currently hold the only white oak in existence and any other trees have been burned." Klaus had checked the white oak's location several times this past week and was not letting it out of his sight.
"We also need to speak with that Sophie Deveraux witch again and have her place the spell to protect us from any further mind attacks from Marcel's witch." Kol mentioned. "That Bennett witch might be pretty but she is completely useless to us. She could at least give us the spell since Elijah was more than generous to let her peak inside Mother's grimoire or just have Caroline pop inside her mind a bit."
"That's Caroline's choice not ours, so don't start forcing her hand." Klaus ordered as he rose to get a drink to keep his buzz going and he felt Enzo's eyes follow him across the room. "That does bring another question to mind that we have yet to address as well. The hex that was placed on Rebekah had a very specific flower that was gained by Sophie's sister, Monique. She was also killed just days before by Marcel, perhaps we can use that against her to gain more information. After we left the cemetery that day, she must have remembered something more about her sister's apparent alliance with Marcel."
"She could help us find Marcel's little witch since we still have no idea what she looks like." Kol chimed in.
"Elijah also made a grand statement that we should use this gathering to our benefit to regain our family home once again." Klaus let the wicked smirk invade his face. He had been too kind to Marcel for too long.
"Speaking of our dearest brother, where is Elijah?" Kol questioned.
"Clean up duty."
They continued the conversation further while bickering about the best way to attack when the phone rang and Klaus received a call from his compelled informant Josh.
"It's late young Josh, this better be good." Klaus spoke without a proper greeting.
"It always is right." Josh laughed but cleared his throat when he heard no laughter. "OK so you know that hotel you have me keep an eye on, Rose's, where your blonde friend has been staying?"
Klaus' interest was peaked, as was the prying ears of the rest of the room. "Go on."
"Well I was hanging around a group of Marcel's guys at the compound when I overheard them talk about how Rose's was burnt to the ground. I figured it had to be the same place." Klaus instantly rose to his feet.
The scalding hot water felt amazing against her skin but it had been a eternity and Caroline had to leave eventually. She had contemplating going out to feed because the cheap plastic bag from earlier just wouldn't cut it. Actually no blood could compare since ... his. Quickly squashing the thought, she shut off the water and wrapped herself in the fluffy towel. She stepped out of the bathroom to search for clothes, flashing on a pair of sweatpants and tank top when a creak from the balcony sent Caroline flashing across the room to grip the neck of a vampire.
"You took long enough in there, I have been hiding in the shadows all night." Katherine slapped away Caroline's hand while stepping over to the bed to sit. "It was all I could do to try to avoid your Hybrid boyfriend long enough to not get my heart ripped out."
"Katherine what are you doing? You shouldn't be anywhere near New Orleans right now." Caroline ran her hands threw her wet hair, "Klaus was just here like an hour ago and in his true stalkerish form, he just randomly popped up. What are you going to do if he just randomly shows up again?"
"Klaus won't show back up tonight, I heard your little chat and I'm sure he is drowning in a bottle of alcohol right now." Katherine smiled at the thought. "But can we get back to you real quick? How hard is it for you to answer your phone or a text? That doesn't use too many brain cells does it?"
Caroline groaned, "Enzo was supposed to be taking your calls and clearly he hasn't. I left Klaus' house earlier this week after I stayed the night and took off so fast that I left my phone behind. It's still being held hostage since he apparently wants to give it back to me personally." She rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress the tiny smile.
"Please don't pretend like that doesn't make your little heart flutter." She smirked while patted the bed for Caroline to sit and she flopped down next to Katherine. "So what happened to your three day rule or did that go out the window along with your panties?"
"You have no idea the week that I have had and clearly I need to have another talk with Enzo about how to answer his phone like a good little boy." Caroline signed and threw her back against the bed with her arms over her head. "I have had my brain screwed with by a witch and the king of New Orleans, choked, and had another encounter with the gang from Mystic Falls."
"I was jumped by two vampires in Georgia that were looking for our little secret and I killed one of them. The other one was gone before his friends dead body could hit the floor."
"Marcel mentioned my sassy brunette friend that I left behind so Enzo and I killed four of his night walker minions. " Caroline shot up next to Katherine to give her a official once over. "But you are fine right?"
"I've had worse happen." Katherine shrugged, "It's good to know you still care."
"You do need to find another place to stay because I'm sure not even I could keep Klaus from killing you once he finds out you are not dead."
"Believe me, I have no intentions of revealing myself to Klaus or any member of his psycho family."
"Not even Elijah?" Caroline shot her eyebrows to the ceiling as Katherine rolled her own eyes and leaned back on her palms.
"Like he should matter anymore." Katherine mumbled while look towards the balcony.
"You know he still does. I mean you are not even going to tell him your not dead? Even after your hot fling years ago?"
"That hot fling ended with me putting my feelings on the line while Elijah Mikealson stomped all over them. He dumped me so he could stay by the side of your current boyfriend." Katherine sneered, not at Caroline but at having to relive the memory yet again.
"Ah stop calling him that! We are just friends now. We both decided it would be best to focus on our plans to take down Marcel versus whatever it was between us." Caroline stated, trying to convince herself of the statement.
"Please! From what I heard earlier it was you that wanted to put things on hold and judging from that kiss, I give it a week before you are back to screaming his name." Katherine's nose scrunched at the thought.
Voices could be heard from downstairs in the street, random laughter far in the distant mixed with shouting and bangs. It wasn't too much out of the ordinary, Caroline came to realize that maybe New Orleans was the city that never slept. At all hours of the night the streets held pedestrians, locals and tourists alike, enjoying the local culture. Caroline pushed the noise aside to dive into the happenings of the past week with Katherine and it felt good to have her in front of her once again. Katherine was a true survivor so initially there was nothing to worry about when leaving her alone in Atlanta but once Marcel taunted her, Caroline was all to happy to have her close by. That joy was short lived by the new threat of both Marcel's vampire army finding Katherine to finish the job coupled with Klaus Mikealson's own revenge against her. Caroline really needed a vacation away from anything supernatural when all this was over.
In a split second the vampire's teasing conversation went to ruin as a large glass jug came crashing down through the open balcony doors at their feet. Both cried out in pain as the clear liquid splashed their skin, a clear sign this was no random attack. The girls flashed to their feet but a second large glass jug sailed threw the air and broke at the doorway of the balcony. There were no stings of vervain but this liquid was just as deadly for the average vampire, gasoline.
"What the hell is going on." Caroline yelled as a third and finally glass bottle came flying in the room but this time was accompanied by a burning rag hanging out of the bottle. An explosion of flames spread throughout the room as Katherine yanked Caroline back as far across the room as possible. Katherine collapsed to her knees while frantically patting her legs at vampire speed to put out the flames. The burns across her legs came from the gas that soaked in her jeans mixed with vervain.
"We have to leave before we get burned alive." Katherine spoke through gritted teeth to push past the pain. "Check the hallway." Caroline flash to the door, almost ripping it off it's hinges, and was stalled by flames making their way slowly up the stairs. She dashed to the wooden railing and the entire main level was engulfed with flames. Caroline's eyes went mad as she searched for any signs of an exit but there was none. The once quaint little hotel was now a crumbling pile of ash and there was only one name that came to mind.
"Marcel." Caroline stated with a deadly tone to her voice and sent splinters into her palm from gripping the railing. She dashed back to see her friend who was now on her feet and leaning against the doorway, clearly struggling to stay on her burnt legs. Caroline went to steady her friend but was met with the smack of her hands to keep her away. If they weren't in such dire circumstances she would have rolled her eyes at Katherine's bullheaded attitude but opted to rip the sheet from the bed before it caught fire.
"We're going to have to jump from the balcony. Wait here." Caroline balled up the sheet and speed to the bathroom as she tried dodging the flames near the door. She tossed the sheet in the tub while running water over and flashed back to her friend. The flame couldn't kill Caroline, just burn the skin from her bones but they could kill Katherine. She was met with a loud crash from the end of the hallway to signify the foundation of the building was crumbling. The flames were licking the ceiling now and the only way to get past them was to jump straight through. Without giving her time to protest Caroline covered Katherine with the wet sheet, flipped her over her shoulder, and dashed over the balcony railing. Caroline flashed them to a nearby alley and dropped Katherine to her feet. She flung the sheet off her in disgust, immediately fixing her brunette curls.
"Courtesy of your newest pal Marcel? " Katherine shifted on her bare feet, her heels flying off in the scuffle, as she tried to pull her jeans higher off her skin to keep from burning from vervain. " I have got to get these things off."
"Come on lets go find somewhere to crash."
Elijah had spent the better part of his evening roaming the streets of the Quarter cleaning up after Niklaus' blood binges. Thankfully the bodies were not in grant numbers but were just enough to keep Elijah from returning home at a reasonable hour. Niklaus was toying with him. It was currently after three am on this side of Bourbon Street and most of the tourist traffic had made it's way home. He had nearly made it home, just a few blocks away, when he turned his last corner to pause dead in his tracks. He just couldn't understand the sight before him which was Caroline standing outside of a filthy liquor store, peering past the advertisements that littered the door and windows as if she was watching someone. The oddest part was she appeared to be wearing pajamas and the outfit was a far cry from the stunning dress he saw her in just hours earlier. That wasn't even the oddest part and what sent his feet moving forward again had been the fact that the clothes she wore had been burnt severely. As his steps drew closer the distinct smells of vervain and gasoline infiltrated his nostrils.
"Caroline." Her head whipped around from looking in the store window and her entire demeanor changed the moment her eyes met his. For the first time since he knew Caroline she had a look of terror in her eyes as she stood frozen looking back at him and her entire body was rigid. It was as if she had not been acquainted with Elijah the past several weeks and he was a total strange to her. Even with their first meeting, Caroline still held herself with such confidence where as most people would cower in fear at his presence. The same fear that was plain as day across her face and it unsettled him. He narrowed his eyes at her, stopping a few feet away as Elijah waited for her to speak or perhaps even move. Caroline must have noticed her delayed reaction when she suddenly snapped back from whatever trance she was in.
"Elijah. What are you doing out so late? Never pegged you for a party animal." Caroline laughed, almost nervous like and shifted her eyes multiple times towards the door.
"What's happened to your clothes and why are you standing here?" Elijah cut right to quick.
"I .. uh.. I was.." Caroline stammered trying to form a coherent thought but was cut off by the door swinging wildly open and nearly knocked Elijah in the side. He took a step to the side as a stumbling vampire steadied herself against the door. This time it was Elijah who stood immobilized as his and Katherine's mouths hung open in what was probably the first speechless moment of either of their long lives. She was a ghost back from the dead and Elijah wasn't sure what to feel in the moment. Glee that she was alive after all these years or anger for being tricked again by Katherine Pierce. She stood before him in the same tattered appearance as Caroline which only drew the question of how they were actually acquainted. Elijah straightened his sleeves on his still immaculate suit to compose himself.
"Surprise." Caroline tried to cut the tension with a joke that fell flat.
"It looks as if we need to have a little chat." Elijah never broke eye contact with Katherine.
Elijah grabbed both vampires by the arm and flashed away from sight. There was nothing but bare glimpses of brick and busy street lights of New Orleans before being stopped minutes later at the doorstep of a traditional New Orleans home. The sudden motion made Caroline grab her head a moment to keep from getting dizzy at Elijah's thousand years of speed and her weakness from the fire. The house was elevated off the ground several feet on concrete planks to keep flood waters away and was in a typical shotgun style that ran from the from door to the back of the house in one single line. It certainly did not scream Elijah but Caroline assumed that was the point.
"This is a home I have for storage and housing things that I don't want my siblings to destroy in one of their many tantrums." Elijah walked up the stairs and unlocked the door with the key from his pocket. "Plus it also doesn't hurt to have a safe house or two around the city just encase we need it. None of my siblings know of this place, more specific Niklaus, so no harm can come to you when you are here. You can even compel a local to have it placed in their name if you must." His eyes floated to Katherine and back to Caroline.
"Thank you so much for this. I can't exactly walk back into your home with Katherine Pierce on my arm." Caroline smiled appreciatively. "I will stay here for the night and figure out what my next move is."
Elijah nodded his head in agreement, "There is no running water or electricity since it has not been used since we came to New Orleans but I can have it on by tomorrow. I assume you will want to stay here Katherine?"
Katherine nodded her head but kept it fixed on a object across the room, refusing to meet the Original's eye line. It was the least talkative Caroline has known her friend to be since she has met her again fifteen years ago. From what she was told of their relationship she couldn't exactly blame Katherine's cold shoulder but this wasn't the time for a former lovers quarrel. Deciding to just dive right in, Caroline recalled what happened with the fire and her immediate suspicion that it was in fact Marcel's vampire that started the fire. She also gave a brief history of how the two met out of courtesy but had no intentions of explaining the whole story now, not at 4 am. There conversation was cut short by Elijah's phone and she could guess it was one of the other Originals calling at this hour. Her assumptions were correct when she heard the panicked voice of Rebekah on the other end.
"Caroline is safe sister don't worry ... No she doesn't want company right now and I was sworn to secrecy of her location." A silent blessing was sent Elijah's direction and relief overcame her but that was short lived as the next voice fill her ears. The voice that made her riddled with panic but still made her chest tighten at knowing he was on the streets looking for her.
"If you know where Caroline is big brother I suggest you tell me unless you want that dagger back in your heart for the remainder of the century." Caroline jumped at his statement although it made no impact on Elijah's relaxed stance and stuck her hand out so she could motion for the phone.
"Klaus." Her voice was hesitant but still strong. "I guess you heard about the fire and I made it out just fine. It takes more than a little gasoline to kill Caroline Forbes." She chuckled to lighten the mood.
"Love tell me where you are." It was easy to hear that Klaus was barely keeping his emotions in check but Caroline couldn't help hear the relief in his voice once she spoke.
"I'm fine really and I'm sure Elijah will be back soon to help reassure that fact for me." Caroline's voice was much softer as if she was trying to comfort him. "I just need to be left alone tonight and we can discuss this tomorrow or something when we have a chance to think rationally about what happened."
"Caroline..." His rage springing back to life.
"It's not up for discussion." Caroline's annoyance was wearing thin with Klaus' persistence and she smashed the end call button on the phone. Elijah took back his phone and with one nod he flashed away before either vampire could speak.
Author's Note:
No face to face Klaroline this chapter but we have some coming next and how long do you think it will take Klaus to find Caroline? My guess is not long and Caroline's plans to ensure her own well being will be reveled in the next few chapters.
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