Chapter 3: It's Complicated

Date: Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Edited: December 7, 2019

Characters: Bonnie, Marcel, Klaus, OC (from another series), Damon, Caroline, and Stefan

A/N: Before you pelt me with tomatoes, know that I'm sorry for abandoning you all for a damn year. My life was a train wreck and I'll explain later. Just know that I'm back for now, [I hope :(]. For those that are back to read this installment, thanks for not giving up on me. Seriously, it means a lot. Before you begin reading, I edited the first two chapters. (Mostly grammatically, but I did change one thing and that was how Bonnie escaped Klaus when she first saw him) The other way didn't make sense to me when I went back and reread it so if you want you can skim that part before you read this installment. (If you happen to be re-reading this, I went back and changed some minor discrepancies.)

Caroline Forbes brought her hand up to her mouth, smearing blood on the sleeve of her Banana Republic sweater. With a smirk, she pushed the lifeless body off her own and watched as it dropped to the ground with a loud thump. She felt nothing as she came to the realization that the man she drank from hadn't survived.

Oh well. The fucker was a bit handsy anyway.

As she stepped over his body a hand met her shoulder, causing Caroline to pause with a perked brow. Whoever dared to approach her in the middle of 'snack time' was a brazen one. Turning on the heels of her boot-clad feet, she smirked at the face before her realizing it was a friend and not another meal.

"Stefan." She smirked, following his eyes to the dead biker that lay between them.

"Care. I know Liz taught you to clean up after you eat," Stefan chided earning an eye roll from the immortal seventeen-year-old. Her mother's face flashed in her head briefly but she barely spared the woman a second thought before responding to Stefan.

"Ugh, who cares Stefan? We're about to blow this Popsicle stand in a few hours anyway. Let's just go." Her patience wearing thin, Caroline turned to leave once again but was halted by Stefan's arms around her waist. Caroline grinned as her back met his sturdy chest.

"Just because you don't feel anything anymore, doesn't mean you lost all of your brain cells. Clean it up. We don't need any annoyances spoiling our fun." Stefan reasoned as he let go of Caroline and took a step back. He watched the blonde-haired beauty as she effortlessly picked up the three hundred pound biker and hefted him onto her shoulders. In the blink of an eye, she was gone. Stefan's enhanced hearing told her that she ran off in the woods, probably to dismantle and disperse the corpse throughout the forest. He smiled. He taught her well.

With an almost bored look, he extracted his phone from his pocket and fiddled with it, contemplating whether or not to give his brother Damon another call. It was early morning in New Orleans and without a doubt, he'd be pissed at him for waking him from his undoubtedly 'drunken slumber'. Grinning to himself, Stefan found his brother's number and swiped his finger across the screen as he held the phone to his ear. At the groan from Damon's lips, Stefan knew he was right about his assumptions and smiled with ease.

"This had better be good, baby Bro," Damon spat venomously, coaxing an even brighter smile from Stefan's lips.

"I take it last night didn't blow over so well. Details." Stefan didn't have time to beat around the bush. He wasn't sure when Caroline would be coming back and he wasn't up for a war of words between his brother and his… Caroline.

"I ran into Bonnie. It seems like our little blue bird is all grown up, and an even bigger bitch than before. She cracked my spine in about forty different places. If I close my eyes, I can still feel it," Damon confessed, briefly reliving the events of the night before. Stefan laughed at his brother's agony.

"Pics or it didn't happen," Stefan joked, earning a scoff from Damon.

"Believe me, Brother, it happened." Stefan could hear Damon shuffle in the background, followed by his gruff voice and the murmurs of at least two different females. Stefan grinned to himself as he envisioned two naked females prancing around a hotel room, mentally making plans for the near future. His trance was broken at the sound of Damon's voice cutting back in. "You were right. Klaus is here. I found out where he was staying and that's where I ran into Bennett. I'm not sure what she was doing there but I'll figure it out. She was with some guy though. I followed her when she left; some vampire. They seemed… close."

Stefan noted the disdain in his brother's voice and grinned. When it came to Bonnie, Damon always tried hard to separate the witch from her 'sexuality'. Back in Mystic Falls, Damon barely acknowledged any guy that took interest in Bonnie simply because Damon had watched her grow up and claimed he couldn't see Bonnie in that light. Stefan always thought Damon was jealous but that was his personal opinion. If he was, Damon sure hid it well, or maybe not well enough.

"Jealous it wasn't you?" Stefan chuckled. "I thought Bonnie hated Vampires. What's she doing with one? Something's not adding up." Every Bennett he had ever met had a strong dislike for vampires. It started with Katherine and Emily and from there it only grew. That's not to say they weren't above sleeping with one, however. Back in the Twenties, he ran into one Vanessa Bennett and despite her mean streak, the little witch was very shapely and very bendy. Remembering that Bonnie was once a cheerleader, Stefan briefly wondered if the same rang true for the younger Bennett.

"Yeah well, either Bonnie completely lost her mind or that witch is up to something," Damon surmised, saying the word witch as if it was a cuss word. Stefan laughed. Only Damon and Klaus could make the word obscene. The thought of Klaus quickly reminded Stefan why he called.

"I think it's about time we all had our Mystic Falls Family Reunion, don't you?" At Stefan's words, Damon's brows rose over his forehead. Stefan continued before he had a chance to ask him to elaborate. "I'm on my way, keep it tight until I get there," Stefan joked causing Damon to frown in disgust. Before the older vampire could retaliate Stefan had already hung up leaving Damon to shake his head.

Damon tossed his phone on the bed, running his hands over his face. After seeing Bonnie disappear into the house with some mystery vampire Damon made a beeline to the nearest bar which wasn't too far away and picked up two vacationing students. He didn't even have to compel them; his charm and brutal honesty about what he was worked well enough to coerce them to his hotel room. After a wild night of sex and blood sharing, Damon passed out with both girls on either side of him where he remained until Stefan brutally interrupted. Both girls were now long gone with their memories intact but compelled to never utter a word about what happened. Usually, he'd wipe their memories completely but Damon felt that night was too awesome to have been the only one to remember it. How cocky.

Stefan's last words rolled around in his head and for a moment he was annoyed that his brother would simply insert himself into his mission but another part of Damon was glad that Stefan even wanted to be around him. Ripper Stefan was so much more fun to be around sometimes but there was a part of him that missed the broody, more sensible Stefan as well. At least he knew without a doubt that regular Stefan would always fall through for him and not feed him to the wolves. Maybe when this was all over, Broody Stefan would return and maybe even Annoying Caroline. It's been over two years since he's seen either of them but somehow Caroline is even more annoying without her humanity; if that was at all possible. He hoped for all their sakes Stefan left her behind.

Standing up, Damon made moves to get ready. Today he had to put his feelers out and figure out just what the fuck was going on around this crazy-ass city.

-X-

Bonnie's eyes fluttered open only to snap close when they were met with a ray of golden sun. From where he stood, Marcel marveled at how the sun-kissed her skin, giving her an almost surreal glow. Though her vital parts were covered by the sheets on the bed her legs, spread eagle, jutted out from both sides of the sheet and so did her arms which she currently used to shield her eyes from the light. Leaning up off the doorjamb Marcel, fully dressed, made his way to Bonnie's side of the bed and sat, pushing a strand of hair out of her face. Bonnie instantly rolled on her side to face him, curling her body around his and leaned up on her elbows to kiss his lips. Marcel grinned and leaned forward to reciprocate her before pulling back.

"You are exquisite little Bennett," Marcel complimented, causing Bonnie's cheeks to heat.

"And you…" Bonnie trailed her fingers up his bicep, cupping her hand against his jaw where he leaned into her touch. Smirking, Bonnie leaned in close to him and waited for him to lean in as well. "Should feed me because I'm starving," she giggled wickedly, earning an eye roll from Marcel. Patting the side of his face, Bonnie sat up, pulling the sheet with her and ran a hand through her blonde hair. Her green eyes skimmed around the room and from the way the sun was shining, she hadn't slept through the morning which meant breakfast was still on the menu.

"Get dressed then. I'll take you to Laveau's." Marcel kissed her shoulder before standing to his feet and exiting the room. He waited to hear the shower cut on before pulling his phone out of his pocket and placing a call. A few seconds later a man with a heavy southern accent answered.

"Did you find out anything," Marcel asked immediately.

"Not at first. This Bennett of yours led a pretty quiet life, 'till 'bout a year after her best friend's parents died. That was six years ago. After that, bodies started popping up all around her. The girl, Elena Gilbert, was a doppelgänger so you know what that means. Just about everyone around her was in danger. They lured in some big bad hybrid that tore their little lives to shit before leaving after the Doppelgänger died somehow. The doppelgänger dated two vampires., brothers, at that. Some real kinky shit. Anyway, Bonnie disappeared after this Elena chick died and so did the brothers. I reckon that's when she ran into you and her life has been quiet since." Marcel nodded once the man was done and took in everything, going over the details. The little he knew about Bonnie seemed to match what he'd just learn... except one part.

"This hybrid. What's his name?" Even as he asked, Marcel had an inkling what his informant would say.

"Klaus. Niklaus Mikaelson. Why, does that ruffle your feathers?"

"No, but it does answer a few questions. Stay posted. Call if you find out more." Marcel hung up and ran a hand over his mouth as he tried to reassess what happened the night before. He knew by the way Klaus and Bonnie looked at each other that they had seen one another before and he was right. He still didn't know the nature of their relationship but based on what he knew about both of them, they more than likely hated one another and if Klaus was after Bonnie's friend, she most definitely tried to kill him once or twice. That made Marcel relax just a tad. He didn't have to worry about Bonnie's loyalty then, however, he'd still keep an eye out. He still had to figure out for sure what Klaus had up his sleeve and he couldn't do that and worry about who he was sleeping with at the same time. Klaus was a task all by himself.

The running water in the background ceased bringing Marcel back to reality. He didn't feel bad about checking up on Bonnie's past; that was usually the first thing he did when someone new came into his life and with Klaus back, he didn't believe at all in coincidences so, to stay on his toes, he did what he had to. And it wasn't like he never asked her. He did, several times. But Bonnie was the most stubborn, tight-lipped person he's ever met besides himself, and as far as she was concerned, she didn't exist at all before she came to this city.

The sound of Bonnie's damp feet hitting the floor prompted Marcel to jog down the stairs where he would wait for Bonnie for another forty minutes before leaving with her arm linked in his. He'd give her the benefit of the doubt but if she knew what was best, she'd better start talking, soon.

-X-

Klaus Mikaelson strolled down the sidewalk of The Quarter with a bounce in his step, smiling at no one or nothing in particular as he passed tourists and locals who had no clue about what he was. Just the thought that he could kill all of them with a bat of an eyelash was enough to place him in a good mood. As he walked, he kept an eye out for any signs of Marcel or Bonnie. He wasn't worried so much about Marcel, but the Bennett Witch had come too close to taking him out and the look she had given him the night before let him know that she wouldn't give up on killing him no time soon. All that meant was that he had to keep her close, extremely close, and he'd use Marcel to do it.

Klaus smiled at the thought as he arrived at his destination and opened the door, pausing to let a blonde woman walk in before him. The woman smiled at his chivalry and kept walking, allowing Klaus to check her out as he waltzed in behind her. She was cute, but he had other things to worry about, like the death stare he was receiving from having the gall to enter this vicinity.

"Klaus." The steely voice came from a middle-aged African American woman with long braids that flowed down her back while the top twisted into an intricate bun. Her eyebrows had a perfect natural arch and her skin, despite her age, held no flaw or wrinkle. Her deep red lipstick coated her full lips and her shapely body filled out her jeans and tank top nicely. Her high cheekbones raised high on her face and her mahogany skin tone glistened with sweat. Klaus smiled. The woman looked just as good now as she did a hundred and fifty years ago. Even as she glowered at him, her skin remained unscathed and her forehead held no creases.

"Marie. It's been a while." At the sound of Klaus's accented voice, many patrons shifted their gaze from her to him.

"Clearly not long enough," she hissed. Her fist rested against her hip as she leaned her weight on one foot. She shifted so that she could stand straight up and gracefully walked from behind the counter, slowly. She closed the space between them until she was almost chest to chest with Klaus. Klaus smirked down at her as she glared up at him. After a few seconds, her glare shifted and she brought her arms up to wrap around his neck, pulling him into a tight embrace. Klaus smiled and held the woman tightly as he breathed in her scent which always consisted of Warm Brown Sugar, Vanilla and a pinch of Nutmeg, in all his years he had yet to smell anyone with a scent remotely close; except one other person.

"I always come back."

"Unfortunately for the rest of us," she chuckled as she released him from her hold. Her smile lingered but for a moment, before her face trained itself back to its seriousness. "Come to the back with me." Marie waved her hand above her head, causing everyone to act like they weren't eavesdropping the whole time, and turned to walk off down the hallway parallel to the bar counter, and led Klaus back to the back of the restaurant As she walked, Klaus scanned the restaurant for any familiar face but found none, however, something in him told him one would be arriving soon.

-X-

As they walked down Canal Street, arm in arm, Marcel stopped abruptly to answer his phone. He had silenced it once before but the caller was persistent. He excused himself and slid out of Bonnie's hold. She watched with a sideways glance as Marcel chatted with someone on his phone. Based on his stance, he didn't want her overhearing his conversation and while she had the means to eavesdrop, she refrained from doing so. She was more than alert since finding out that Klaus was his sire but she had to play dumb if she wanted him to believe that she had nothing to do with Klaus ever. She didn't like any of this. The very past that she ran away from two years ago somehow ran smack into her at full speed overnight. She wasn't prepared for this but she had to keep her cool. Marcel was smart as hell and it'd only be a matter of time before he put two and two together, (if he hadn't already), so she needed to brace herself for what was to come. Klaus would reveal his hand soon enough and she doubted he'd keep their past a secret from Marcel unless it benefited him.

And then there was Damon. Shit. She had been so unnerved by his reappearance that she nearly blurted his name out last night at the most inopportune moment. Marcel didn't seem to notice but she was more than sure she couldn't pass that off as a simple curse word if he were to ask. He'd been here less than a day and was already fucking things up for her. She didn't believe for a second that Klaus and Damon arriving was a mere coincidence. If she had to guess, Damon was here for Klaus while Klaus was clueless, or simply didn't give a damn about Damon's whereabouts. Damon was volatile, annoying, and a great pain in her ass but she had to give credit where it was due. He was smart; almost genius level. Whoever came up with 'know thy enemy' had Damon in mind. It was what made him both a powerful ally and a dangerous adversary. Of him and Klaus, she didn't know who was worse.

Klaus. Definitely Klaus.

Bonnie stood around as Marcel finished up his conversation. They had chosen to walk rather than drive, something she learned was common for Vampires here in the Bayou. Their walk was cut short however when Marcel's phone rang and while they continued to walk, their slowed pace eventually came to a halt as whatever the person on the other end said became more urgent. She watched as Marcel's thick eyebrows furrowed on his handsome face and tried not to smile at the tick in his jaw. Marcel was fine. It was that same 'fineness' that got her to give in to his advances. Now she wondered if that 'fineness' was just another trap.

"Bonnie..." Marcel's voice pulled her from her thoughts and by the look on his face, she knew what was coming. Still, she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah; Just go." Bonnie didn't move as he grabbed both of her arms and held her gaze with his. His taut eyes squinted with seriousness as he rubbed a thumb over her flesh. She tried to ignore how disappointed she actually was and convinced herself silently that she was just acting.

"I promise I'll make this up to you, okay?" When Bonnie nodded, Marcel leaned in to kiss her lips quickly before letting go of her and speeding off in the blink of an eye. Bonnie's hair blew against her shoulder as she gasped. She looked around frantically to make sure no one else saw and for the most part, no one seemed to notice him moving at supernatural speeds through the crowd; probably because everyone was minding their own business. After making a mental note to scold him for that later, Bonnie continued to stare into the space he once occupied before turning on her haunches to continue her walk down Canal Street. However, she had barely taken one step before she stopped suddenly.

"Hey there." Bonnie froze as she came face to face with Damon himself. The smirk on his face was ever-present but the look in his eyes was threatening. Bonnie glared at him. In an instant, his hand was around her throat and his finger was to her lips. "Nuh-uh uhn. Do it and your neck will get snapped to pieces." Furiously, Bonnie slapped at his hand which went nowhere and after a while of staring each other down, she lessened her glare, enough for Damon to feel comfortable enough to release his hold.

"You're more stupid than I thought. I told you to leave," Bonnie hissed.

"And you must have forgotten who you were dealing with," Damon retorted just as easily. Before Bonnie could strike against him, Damon spoke up quickly. "Help me get rid of Klaus and I promise I won't ever bother you again." Bonnie's brows raised high on her forehead. This fucker had balls.

"Why should I help you do anything?"

"Enemy of my enemy is my friend?" The hopeful tone in Damon's voice would have made her laugh any other time. Still, her face remained stony.

"Fuck you." Damon chuckled. This definitely wasn't the Bonnie that left Mystic Falls.

"You hate him just as much as I do. Let me help you keep what you have here and let's end this once and for all." Damon's voice took on an almost exhausted plea. Still, Bonnie wouldn't let up.

"Why?" Bonnie was failing to realize how she'd benefit from any of this. Yeah, if they succeeded, Klaus would be gone but what would she lose for that success? Everything. As always.

"Because he doesn't get to have the happily ever after! This is our story! We should come out on top. He wrecked OUR lives!" The passion in Damon's voice nearly made her reconsider.

"You wrecked my life and yet here you are. Still breathing. Bye Damon." Bonnie scoffed and rounded Damon, walking off towards her destination. She felt Damon following close behind her and got annoyed to the highest level. She ignored his rambling behind her and his smart assed comments until she'd had enough. Without turning around, she focused on the blood traveling to his veins until it started to heat up like hot grits, burning him like acid. The sound of Damon's screams made her smile as people all around ran to assist him. With a smirk, Bonnie kept walking until she turned down an alley, disappearing into thin air.

-X-

When she reappeared, it wasn't where she intended but it was close enough. She was across the street in an alley in front of Laveau's but something was off. She allowed her magic to scan the area around her. Everything seemed okay except for the warding spell around Laveau's keeping out magic and anything unwelcome from getting inside. She could smell a familiar scent that consisted of Blood, Death, and Chaos that only followed vampires but this scent had something else the others didn't. The smell of Myrrh. It was a heavenly scent which was odd considering the other scents that lingered with it. It was a scent that she only associated with one other person. A scent that only her magic could pick up on if she focused hard enough. A scent she missed last night because of distraction.

A scent belonging only to one other creature. Klaus.

Immediately put on alert, Bonnie marched across the street, dodging people walking along the sidewalk, a bicyclist who had to swerve out of the bike lane to keep from hitting her and a few cars who honked furiously at her. However, Bonnie's focus was undeterred. If Klaus tried anything with Marie she'd kill him. No matter who died in the process.

Once inside, a few patrons stopped to stare at the blonde-haired, green-eyed, scowling witch as she ignored them all and made her way to the back of the restaurant. As she neared, her magic picked up on Marie's which calmed her only a tad. She was still alive. Good. That meant Klaus needed something from her.

As she rounded the corner to Marie's Alter, Bonnie stopped suddenly as she stared at the sight before her. There was Marie, sitting in her chair made of the skull and bones of her enemies; both human and vampire. The chair was always a bit much to Bonnie but she adored Marie enough to overlook it. The entire room had been lit with candles with melted wax, salted pentagrams and other sigils drawn out on the floors and walls. The place to anyone normal would have been creepy but not to a voodoo priestess, an original vampire, werewolf hybrid and a Bennett Witch.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Bonnie sneered at Klaus. Bonnie was taken aback by Marie's laugher and Klaus's smirk. The familiarity between the two of them was making her nervous. She didn't like where this was going.

"Should you tell her?" Klaus's voice irritated her very soul and it took everything in her not to unleash hell on him. Bonnie's gaze left him for but a second as she looked to Marie for an explanation.

"Bonnie. Klaus is an old friend of mine. I take it you've met." Those words were the last thing she wanted to hear, especially from Marie Laveau. The woman she's looked up too for the past year and a half. The woman who helped her grow a spine and taught her not to take shit off no one. The very woman who told her to kill or be killed to get what she either needed or wanted. Here she was, buddy-buddy with the one person she hated more than Damon Salvatore. Bonnie didn't know what to think now.

"A friend," Bonnie asked incredulously. Marie smiled and nodded gently. "A friend." Bonnie's voice thickened with hatred and accusation as Marie's smile faded just a tad before it returned to its previous splendor.

"Chile, sit down. I have much to teach you."

-X-

Stefan and Caroline had just arrived in New Orleans and while Stefan was feeling Nostalgic, Caroline was a bit indifferent. She had to admit that there was a lot of things to do, plenty of cultures to absorb and a lot of parties for her to explore, however, the town reminded her a bit too much like home. Thinking of home was the only thing that tickled at her humanity switch and she didn't like it. She was so used to caring about everything that now; she almost didn't know what to do with herself since she no longer had a care in the world. She didn't care that her best friend was dead. She didn't care that her other best friend completely vanished and she didn't care that her boyfriend was on the run because of some crazy, homicidal, maniac, vampire who used to have a thing for her. It annoyed her that Klaus had chased off her boyfriend, pined after her, only for her to give in to her desires, fuck him, and then had the nerve to drop her like a two-dollar hooker. It confirmed her belief that even though vampires could live forever, they were still men. Dirty, no good, rotten pigs. Oh well, at least her humanity was off when she banged him. He was a good lay. One of the best she's ever had, but in the end, he was just like a dog chasing a school bus. Once he caught it, he got bored fairly quickly.

Whenever she turned her humanity back on, she'd feel the sting from that one.

"So..." Stefan spoke up during the ride to Damon's place. She was less than thrilled to be seeing the older Salvatore but she also didn't give a shit about him or his smart ass remarks so it'd be either easier to deal with him or worse, depending on her tolerance for stupidity; which was nonexistent.

"Soooo, what?" Stefan managed to look brooding even with his humanity off which never failed to amaze Caroline. The only difference was now, whenever he looked that way, he was anticipating delivering bad news rather than dreading it. "Don't tell me, you two doofuses found a way to bring Elena back and that's what this family reunion is all about. The celebration of the return of the glorified Doppel-twat," Caroline brutally spat. Stefan chuckled and shook his head.

"God no. But you're kinda sorta on the right track, kinda not." Caroline waited for Stefan to continue with an irritated look on her face. Stefan smirked and waited a few more seconds just to fuck with her before continuing. "Bonnie's alive. She's here. In the city. Living her life and not giving a fuck about too much else. Who knew? I thought she was dead, to be honest. She's a trooper." Stefan's voice was jovial despite his choice of words nearly making Caroline laugh. She couldn't help the slight feeling of joy, relief, annoyance, anger and happiness that slipped through the cracks for just a second at the mention of her best friend being alive and well. She didn't realize she'd been waiting to hear word on Bonnie's wellbeing until now. When no one heard from her, they naturally thought she left without saying goodbye but a part of Caroline always wondered if she was okay. Now that she knew she was, she was slightly pissed. That bitch could have said something; although, that would defeat the purpose of vanishing without a trace. Still, they were best friends. She thought she was at least worth a goodbye.

Caroline scowled.

"Oh great. Just lovely. Fucking peachy." Stefan watched as Caroline fumed beside him. A small smile encroached upon his lips as he chuckled, shaking his head.

"Finally, one of those pesky emotions rears its ugly head. Y'know I was wondering when it'd happen. I'm surprised you went this long, honestly." Stefan was surprised to this day that Caroline flipped the switch on her humanity. Caroline was synonymous with her emotions. She wore her heart on her sleeve like it was the newest fashion. She never let anything get past her and if she felt slighted, you'd know about it. But that wasn't the Caroline he'd spent the last two years with. This Caroline snapped necks and didn't bother to ask questions later. She was shallow and very materialistic, even for her. Nothing you said to her could ruffle her feathers, but when she was pissed, she left a body trail in her wake. She was the polar opposite of herself and it was his entire fault.

He loved it.

"Fuck you, Stefan. It's just kind of nice to hear someone made it out of that fucked-up town of ours." That much was true. Nearly everyone was dead. Jeremy, Elena, the entire Gilbert Family. Matt's sister Vicki, Tyler's uncle Mason a few classmates, Katherine. Matt survived but barely. Emotionally, he was scarred for life. Everyone who wasn't dead or fucked up forever had left. Some like her, Stefan and Damon, was all three, dead, fucked up forever and long gone from that town. Bonnie was at least one of those if not two. "Well, where the fuck is she?"

"Don't know exactly but Damon said he ran into her last night and she fucked him up majorly. I'm still waiting for a video," Stefan grinned causing Caroline to chuckle.

"At least one thing's still the same. They still hate each other."

"Damon isn't too thrilled. He thinks she'll help him with his new plan to kill Klaus... Oh yeah, he's here too, but I think he should just hang that up." Caroline mentally agreed. It took a lot of begging and pleading to get Bonnie to do something she didn't want to do and if her mind was made up, it was usually set in stone until she said otherwise. At hearing Klaus was here as well, Caroline rolled her eyes. Klaus was like a goddamn spider; never really noticeable at first but always lurking in the damn corner.

"Remind me again why we're here," Caroline asked, not seeing a reason for crossing paths with the man that had ruined their lives and could kill them all in a single bite if he wanted. At her question, Stefan paused before shrugging his shoulders.

"To raise pure hell, if nothing else." As Stefan drove, he looked over at Caroline with an amused glint in his eyes which she returned with a smile of her own.

"That's good enough for me."

A/N: So. On to the full explanation of why I was gone. Days after I posted this chapter. May 11th to be exact, (The last chapter was posted May 1, 2013) my grandmother that lived with me and my mom was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma which is a form of Blood Cancer.

Everything came to a halt and while she was in good spirits, it was hard to cope with. She was fine for a month or two but then she was hospitalized on and off for the next few months. She got to the point where she needed around the clock care and that, along with going to school full-time and working took a lot out of me and even when I had time to write, my mind wasn't there mentally.

Long story short, she passed away Monday, May 5, 2014. I was there with her and it hurt like hell. Before then, I had pieces of a chapter for this written from months ago but never finished and since I finished school on the 28th of April, I was trying to ease my way back into writing because I was suddenly flowing with inspiration. Anyway. She's gone now. And while I'm still trying to deal with this all, writing is a means of escape, always have been for me and this time is no different. That said, I'll have days of inspiration and days where I can't do shit but be sad lol.

The fact that you're back and still reading my crappy story says a lot and I thank you for that and I apologize for leaving abruptly. I wouldn't have started this story if I knew what would happen. I say I'm back for now and I mean that but if I leave again, know that it's for a good ass reason and I'm so sorry for dicking you all around like this but I don't want to quit the story because I hate when stories are given up on. That said this story will probably move more quickly than I originally planned. Anyway, enough of me rambling. I hope you enjoy. If there are any discrepancies, grammatical or plot-wise, I'm very sorry. It has been one long-ass, fucked up year and I forgot a lot of stuff. Point them out to me and I'll fix them as I go.

Thanks again, Nia.