皆さま、どうもありがとうございます!

Arrived in NYC and spent almost two hours in queue at immigration, check. Went straight to hotel room to make sure The CW is working, check. Still not believing that I actually got to watch 4x16 live, check. Getting unnerved about the sheer number of commerical breaks, check (seriously, how do you guys stand that?! ;)). Totally freaking out about how Klaus shagged the most unlikeable character on the show and still managed to be so beyond hot/beautiful/ooooh, check. ;)

Sorry I'm updating so late but the travel crap took forever. And I would also like to apologize... usually, I answer your reviews before posting the new chapter, so please forgive me if I don't do that today, but I'm bone tired and have a couple of meetings tomorrow. But I'll get to it in the evening! :)

So here we go. The epilogue. We can't let them go without some more smut, can we? ;)

Hope you'll enjoy! Author's note coming up right behind the chapter. :)

XXX

EPILOGUE

MYSTIC FALLS

THREE WEEKS LATER

Caroline awoke in the middle of the night. She had not had a dream or nightmare, but something woke her. A nagging feeling inside her head, a whisper in the back of her mind that something was going to happen. Change was ahead. She couldn't tell whether it was good or bad, she just knew that it was going to come to pass. Had anyone asked her, she couldn't have explained where the sudden feeling came from, but it was something similar to what Elijah had told her about the way he sometimes woke up and just knew things would be shifting.

Her eyes fell on the peacefully slumbering figure to her right. Klaus was sleeping calmly tonight for which she was immensely grateful. The nightmares still haunted him frequently and Caroline supposed no one could expect something to abruptly stop that had been going on for six hundred years. The third time it happened, she had been sound asleep and only woke when she turned around in her sleep to snuggle into his arms and found the bed empty. He was sitting in a chair by the window, his face a stony mask, trying to put the images back into the depths of his dungeon. He was slowly starting to learn to live with the events of his past, but at times, it was simply easier for him to stow the memories back down into the dark pit inside his mind. She had asked him to wake her every time it happened, and although he had been reluctant at first, he began to do it after a while. Whenever he woke from a bad dream, he pulled her close and caressed her hair until she stirred and wrapped her arms around him. He searched her face for a very long time when she was awake, and whatever it was he was looking for, he seemed to be finding it. His breathing always steadied and the disturbed gleam left his eyes after a while. They never talked on those occasions, but they did make love afterwards. Well, they sort of always made love, but after his nightmares, it was more about comfort and closeness than about desire and passion.

But tonight, everything was quiet. Caroline started to smile. She was wide awake now, and that needed to be put to some decent use. Carefully so as not to wake him ahead of time, she moved out of his protective embrace. He stirred for a second, but he never woke as long as she didn't actually leave the bed, which he seemed to have some sort of built-in antennae for. Very slowly, she slid downwards. They were both naked, as usual. Ever since she had first moved in with him, she had never worn anything to bed anymore, and neither had he. She loved the feeling of his skin against hers, and neither of them was willing to let so much as a piece of fabric come between them. It also reduced the staggering count of torn clothes and underwear to a minimum.

A quick look at his face told her he was still sleeping soundly. With another smile, she began to place soft, open-mouthed kisses on the velvety skin of his cock. At her second kiss, she felt him twitch. A low sigh escaped him in his sleep, making Caroline give a quick excited shiver. She continued to gently kiss him, her tongue now coming into play, tasting, caressing. He was unconsciously moving his hips to meet her mouth, and his low, sleepy moans made her arousal go haywire. Gradually, Klaus began to emerge from his deep slumber, rocking against her lips and trying to find his way into consciousness. The second he opened his eyes, Caroline slid his now fully erect cock into her mouth and was rewarded with a small outcry.

Suddenly wide awake, he groaned and ran his hands through her hair. "Yes, my love… ah… please… don't stop!"

A burning rush of desire coursed through her entire body. She adored it when he begged, and his arousal turned her on just the way it had on their first night together, if not more. She took him deeper into her mouth, running his tongue all around his rigid length. Then she sucked him in as deep as she could, increasing the pressure of her lips and roughening the flicks of her tongue.

"Gods, Caroline," he grated when she let both of her hands grasp his shaft and move up and down in harmony with her mouth, "let me fuck you. Now!"

Another flash of heat gripped her body. Ever since they had grown more and more intimate, they had also both begun to be much less guarded in each other's presence. When the sex was rough, so was their language, and they both enjoyed every minute of it. Caroline couldn't help but think that even when he talked dirty to her, which he did at times, it still sounded like a love declaration. Then again, when they made love slowly and tenderly, their language grew soft, gentle, loving. But this was no such time.

Caroline hummed against his massive cock, releasing him just long enough to hiss, "Not yet. Maybe later. Maybe when I'm done with you, I may consider letting you fuck me." His groans grew desperate when she increased her speed. Klaus was writhing beneath her hands and mouth, his hands fisting in the sheets, his legs quivering. Caroline watched him in his ecstasy, fleetingly admiring just how beautiful he was – his full lips parted, his eyes darkened by desire, his hair still messy from his sleep. She moaned around him, sending him into a series of growls. From the familiar way his body tensed, she could tell he was very close now. Suddenly, his back arched from the bed and he all but roared her name as he found his release. I just love the way you come for me, Klaus!

Very gently, she continued to lick and caress his throbbing cock until he dropped back onto the mattress, panting. His hand searched for her, and with a last tender kiss to the tip of his length she made her way up his body, showering him with open-mouthed kisses and loving caresses. He sighed when she was finally up in his arms, and his lips were on hers immediately.

"Sorry to wake you," she whispered teasingly when he released her mouth for a moment. "You can go back to sleep now." She smiled inwardly, knowing perfectly well he would never go to sleep before he had made her come at least twice.

"I feel so cheap. Waking me from innocent slumber, using me to live out your perverse fantasies on my helpless body and then tossing me away… you are one vicious creature, Mrs. Mikaelson," he said, trying to keep his face straight, voice full of mock hurt. "It would seem I will need to show you your place."

"And where is my place, oh Mighty Hybrid?"

He traced a finger along her neck and down to her shoulder, then further south until he had reached her breast. He circled her nipple once, then, with a lewd grin, he raised his finger to her face. Her lips parted, and he slipped his finger into her mouth, letting her tongue moisten it. Then it was back on her nipple, teasing and pinching lightly. Caroline shuddered. Klaus bent down to swish his tongue over her breast, making her nipple harden further. Then he softly blew on the wet traces his tongue had left, and she moaned loudly, feeling more wetness pool between her legs. Unconsciously, her thighs moved apart in anticipation.

"Your place, my adorably lascivious woman, is on the constant verge of release." His voice lowered to a husky whisper that even sounded a tad menacing. "I will make you almost come, over and over again. Oh, how you will be begging me to let you climax! And when I will finally allow you to, you will come for me so hard that it is going to make you black out." Caroline stared at him, open-mouthed, her breathing quickened, heat flashing through her. He let go of her breast and moved to kneel between her thighs.

"Spread your legs," he ordered, and Caroline gladly obeyed. She would never tell anyone, but she secretly loved being all exposed and open to him. She had no idea if that meant she was the shame of global feminism, but she really couldn't care less. It turned her on. Big time.

"Wider," he whispered. When her legs were so far apart it almost hurt, he bent down and leisurely ran his tongue along the length of her thigh. When he had almost reached the apex of her legs, he suddenly sunk his fangs into the sensitive flesh of the delicate curve, and Caroline cried out. There was the slightest pang of pain, but it was immediately replaced by raging desire. Klaus was drinking from her thigh, his stubble grazing her sex ever so slightly as he gently sucked the blood from her, at the same time licking her flesh clean of rogue drops. Oh, this is… good! He moaned against her leg, and his hand sneaked up to cup her breast, squeezing, caressing, kneading. He goes on like that and I will black out in about twenty seconds!

When he finally stopped drinking from her, he lifted his head for an instant to search her face. Her breath caught at the sight of his fangs, his yellow eyes and the dark veins. With an eerie smile, he lowered his face to her sex. Wait a minute, he will do this while he's turned? What… ahh!

He was letting one of his fangs run over her clit very carefully, his tongue following the path. Caroline was short of losing her mind when he repeated the move. The feel of his cool fang followed by the moist hotness of his velvet tongue was mind-numbing. For a second, she wondered how he still managed to come up with all those new things after the countless times they had made love by now. He was a walking encyclopedia of eroticism. Her hands gripped the sheets when she saw his fangs retreat.

"No," she rasped, "keep doing that!"

He chuckled lightly. "Not to worry, my darling. I haven't even begun to ravish you yet. My fangs would only be in the way, and will not let anything come between me and that delectable wet – very wet – softness of you right now."

With that, his mouth was back on her sex and his tongue found its way into her, moving in a new rhythm, alternating between fast and hard and slow and languid. For a moment, Caroline heard music in her head. 'Euphoria' – how fitting! Klaus' hands danced over her thighs while his mouth did unspeakable things to her. Caroline moaned, her voice coming from some deeply buried place within her. They were primitive, dark sounds she had never heard from herself. Neither had Klaus, it would seem, as his answering groans sounded almost surprised. His eyes were on her face, transfixed as she burned with ecstasy under his unrelenting onslaught. The moment his tongue left her, his fingers were inside her, continuing the same rhythm while the tip of his tongue circled her clit, soft and strong.

"Oh God, Klaus!" she panted, her legs now shaking uncontrollably, her hands buried in his hair. She was close, so close! And then his tongue and fingers moved away from her sex and he began to gently kiss her belly, her thighs, her hips. How dare he?

"You bastard!" she grated, very slowly coming back from the edge but still shivering.

"Guilty as charged," he chuckled. It seemed his entire body was moving over hers – his hands and tongue covered every inch of her while both of his legs were continuously touching hers, his feet caressing her calves. The man was simply incredible. When she least expected it, his mouth was back on her clit and he continued his sweet assault until she was almost tumbling over the edge anew. And again, he withdrew for an instant right before it happened, making her scream in frustration. He let her almost reach the peak again and again, no part of him ever leaving her completely. After the umpteenth time, she was close to tears.

"Please, Klaus, please! I can't… no more… please!"

He was beyond turned on himself, she could see that, but he was rigidly controlling his desire. "Oh no, my love. Once more, I believe," he whispered with a vicious grin and began to lick her again until she pulled his head back and forced him to look at her. She had turned and was looking at him with a hint of madness in her vampire's eyes.

"Fuck me. Now. Now. Now!" she panted.

With a deep groan, Klaus was inside her and began to thrust wildly, his hips rocking against her in circles, changing direction with every other thrust. He grabbed her arms and pinned them over her head, crashing his lips to hers. Caroline was so sensitive and raw after all of her almost-climaxes that everything was a blur. She sensed something building inside her now, something so powerful she started to feel a little anxious. Klaus' eyes were on hers, and she knew he could read everything she felt. With a growl, Caroline sunk her fangs into his neck and began to greedily drink his sweet, delicate blood. Klaus moaned deeply and slammed into her for all he was worth, making her scream against his neck in turn. He thrust into her mercilessly while she kept his neck trapped in her iron grip and feasted on him.

Then his lips were at her ear. "Now, my baby. Now. Let go." And she did.

Caroline had never exploded like that. The pent-up orgasms seemed to have joined forces and multiplied into one gigantic climax that erased everything from her. She did not even notice how Klaus cried out her name in his own powerful release. She didn't hear herself scream. There was nothing left but ecstasy. I… this… too much… oh GOD! And everything went black.

Klaus was smiling when she regained consciousness. He had her in his arms, her head resting on his chest, legs entangled. With some effort, she lifted her gaze to meet his.

"If I wasn't married to you, I would need to seriously start fangirling over your… ah… talents," she muttered feebly. He laughed, ruffling her hair.

"Please do not strain yourself because of a wedding ring. Go right ahead and swoon," he snickered, sounding more than a little pleased with himself. She shook her head, bemused.

"How did you know I was going to black out, Klaus?"

There was another light snicker before he replied smugly, "Let's just say, I know myself."

"You're such a show-off. Have you done this to someone before?"

After a brief silence, he answered, "Yes." Caroline had the distinct notion that he would have preferred to lie. So would she. A hot wave of jealousy gripped her, which he noticed just the way he always noticed everything about her.

"Caroline, I've had a life before you. A rather long life. And if you ask me a question, you will get a straight answer. Have you not wondered why I never wanted to know any details about your past relationships?"

"Because you would be just as insanely jealous at the thought of another man's hands on me as I am at the image of you giving another woman what you just gave me."

"Precisely. So if you do not wish to know something, do not ask me. Be that as it may, it would seem I will have to reassure you of your hold over me. Of the fact that you are the only woman who ever had a hold over me at all. I have slept with a very large number of women. I haven't loved a single one of them. I may have liked a few, but I have never felt for any of them what I already started feeling for you on the night I first came to give you my blood. And with none of them have I ever had the crazily beautiful, intimate kind of sex I have with you. Because you mean so infinitely much more to me than all the other women in my life put together. Or do you seriously believe that there was any other woman in history I have been as eternally ready for as I am for you? Caroline, you know you are the love of my existence, but you're also the bloody best shag I've ever had!"

A warm, fuzzy feeling spread all through her and she gave him a radiant smile. "Ever?"

He groaned in mock despair, but he was smiling, too, flashing his dimples. "By a mile. Look, I will not lie to you. Of course there have been women who were good in bed. Very good even." Smiling at her frown, he kissed her lightly on the lips. "But you, my love, give me something none of these women ever did or could have. You love me. As I love you. That alone makes you a thousand times more desirable to me than a woman who knows the Kamasutra upside down and can do a triple Rittberger on my lap. Not that you lack anything whatsoever in that department. Sweetheart, you are a perfect lover. My perfect lover. Gods, you can't even begin to imagine just how you turn me on by your mere presence, let alone by that tongue and those hands. Not to forget…." He ran a finger over her still slick folds, making her give a little shriek.

She pulled his face to her and kissed him thoroughly. When she released him, he took her back into his strong arms.

"Okay, Klaus, come clean. Who on Earth has ever done a triple Rittberger on your lap?"

He laughed. "Oh well, you know, there was this redhead in Bangkok…"

She slapped his shoulder playfully. "The redhead! I believe both Bekah and Kol mentioned her at some point. That must have been some extraordinary talented woman indeed. I should probably go and ask Kol for details," she grinned.

"Feel free." He caressed her hair and kissed her temple. Caroline snuggled deeper into his embrace, sighing in utter contentment.

"Klaus, have I told you lately how insanely happy you make me?"

"So you have. I'm still working on believing."

She knew that. There were those moments when she found him staring at her, wonder in his eyes. It was still a mystery to him how someone could accept him so completely and give him all the love he had been craving for a millennium. In that respect, he was almost as insecure as she. His birthday had been extreme. After she had given him Caligula, he hadn't been able to tear his gaze from her all evening, prompting Damon to make all sorts of unsavoury remarks. It had not even ruffled his feathers. He had taken his revenge on the older Salvatore by giving him an angelic smile and asking him how he felt about trying out his new horse. Damon, never one to turn down a challenge, had been looking completely abashed when they returned after an hour, and although Klaus never said a word, the smug grin plastered on his face for days was broad evidence of how things had gone with Caligula and Damon.

Klaus wasn't the only one to find it hard to believe in miracles. Caroline asked herself frequently how she had come to be so wildly in love – wildly requited love at that – and suddenly found herself in the middle of a loud, dysfunctional and strange family. But they were a family, and they were her family now, too – something she had always wanted so badly. She knew they would probably not be living under one roof for all eternity the way they did now. But they would always stick together as one, whatever fate brought, and she took reassurance from that thought.

"Caroline, I need to tell you something," he suddenly said. "I wanted to wait until the morning, but I might just as well do it now."

"What is it?" she asked nervously. She had never liked the phrases 'we need to talk' or 'I have to tell you something'.

"I know we have just settled down and that you enjoy the quiet times with your friends and your mother. And me, I hope," he added with a grin. "But something has come up. There is a situation Elijah and I will have to take care of, and as it is out of the question for us to be without our lovely wives for any length of time, we have considered moving residences for a while as this problem is somewhat intricate and we will require some time and effort to resolve it." He paused and waited.

Caroline had gone very quiet. She had known this moment would come at some point, but so soon? She thought of her Mom who wouldn't have anyone when she was gone. Well, there was a new Sheriff in the neighbouring county she seemed to have developed a certain interest in, but still… And there were Elena, Damon and Stefan. Her friends. Elena and Damon had been on cloud nine ever since they had finally managed to get together, and Stefan… well, Stefan seemed to be on his way to his own cloud nine. Things were peaceful for the first time ever since the supernatural had entered her world. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"How long would we be gone, what do you reckon?"

"That is a little hard to say, but an educated guess would be several months at the very least. I will leave Rebekah behind for your mother's protection. She would not want to leave anyway, what with her little tryst with the younger Salvatore," he scoffed. Caroline knew he didn't really mind. On the contrary. He had always cared about Stefan, and she doubted there was any man on the face of the planet whom he would prefer his sister to be with, especially since the two of them had started to carefully approach each other again. Stefan was still guarded towards Klaus, but the Original was persistent. Caroline knew that he truly enjoyed the banter with Damon, but there was a different kind of connection between him and Stefan.

"And what is this problem that needs to be taken care of?"

"Well, it would seem that an old acquaintance of mine – you could probably call him a former protégé – is lately becoming rather powerful, and a useful little bird has chirped about how he is getting funny ideas. Like challenging us, for example. As he has amassed a rather large number of followers, we will need to show a strong presence and… conquer lost territories. We cannot afford to let anyone question our power. Especially since both Elijah and I now have so much to lose," he added with a tender smile, caressing her cheeks.

"Just to be clear, Klaus. Whatever it is that is going on, I will not be left behind, I will not be sent away and I want to know everything. No funny Plan B business with Elijah. Silv and I will be let in on everything you two do and everything you plan, however much you think it may appall or frighten us. Is that understood?" she asked in a very crisp tone, expecting Klaus to start a major argument over her safety, his dark side, not wanting to corrupt her light, blah blah. But to her surprise, he just nodded with a light grin.

"Yes, Ma'am," he replied.

"What?" she exclaimed incredulously. "No speech on how I am so helpless and need to be protected, and how that is all none of my business?"

He smiled. "Nope. If there is anything you are not, it is helpless, my love. If your past isn't proof enough, then the fact that you are putting up with a horde of Originals on a daily basis is. As is the fact that you married me, by the way. As for the protection issue, well – tough luck, you will have to live with my protectiveness. You are the single most precious thing in my life, and I will never lose you. Never, do you understand?"

Caroline closed her eyes at the emotions that threatened to overwhelm her every time he showed his need like that.

"Niklaus, you won't. I promise. It's not only you, your brothers and that obnoxious horse of yours that can be badass." She kissed him for a very long time, their hands buried in each other's hair, their sighs the only sounds in the room.

"Caroline, I don't care about where we go or what I have to face as long as you remain by my side."

"Why do you always steal my lines? Now it sounds stupid if I say, same here." She chuckled lowly. "You give me more than I could ever have hoped for, Klaus. Most importantly, you give me you, and that makes me the richest, luckiest, happiest and most loved woman in the universe."

"Did I mention yet today that I plain adore you, Mrs. Mikaelson?"

It was only after she had screamed his name to the heavens for the third time that night that she remembered that one vital piece of information was missing.

"Klaus?"

"Hmm?" his sleepy voice came from somewhere in her hair.

"Where are we actually moving?"

There was a small chuckle.

"New Orleans."

THE END