Five: Road Trip

Caroline got up early the next morning, feeling fidgety and wanting to get to New Orleans. She couldn't believe that she practically wanted to run into Klaus' arms. But if anyone could save Caroline from the mess that Bonnie had created it was Klaus.

Klaus had never been the biggest fan of humanity and since Klaus was practically obsessed with her, he wouldn't have wanted her to remain human. Caroline paced around impatiently Damon, her, and Elena were supposed to drive to New Orleans at exactly 7:00 AM.

It was now 7:18AM and Damon and Elena hadn't bothered showing up. She gave an annoyed huff when Damon and Elena finally showed up. "There you guys are, what took you guys so long?"

"Relax blondie, New Orleans is hours away." Damon said though a flicker of his hair. "We will get you home to your boyfriend in no time."

Caroline flushed. "Klaus is not my boyfriend. Look, I just want to be a vampire again and we can't waste any more time." Elena shifted uncomfortably. Caroline didn't know if she was nervous about becoming a vampire again or if she was nervous about being in contact with Klaus again.

"Maybe I should stay." Elena said shifting her feet. "You and Care should go."

Damon scowled. "I'm not leaving you alone, Elena."

"Can we discuss this in the car?" Normally Caroline would be more gentle, but she wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone to be honest. Damon and Elena could have their lovers' quarrel some other time. A time when her vampirism wasn't hanging by a thread.

Elena could probably sense this because she simply grabbed her purse and found herself in the passenger seat. Damon offered to drive because as he stated rather sassily he had more than one life.

Caroline didn't care because at this point, Caroline felt too paranoid to do anything really.

"Hey," a whiny voice said. "I was going to call shot gun. I get carsick in the back seat." Katherine was dressed in an old pair of Elena's jeans and a bright red Mystic Falls High sweater. Her curly hair was blowing in the wind and she had pink lip gloss instead of red lipstick.

Caroline wondered how anyone could remain pretty, especially in such a horrible time of their lives.

"No," Elena shook her head. "She's not going with us. She's going to ruin everything."

Katherine scowled as she squeezed herself in the back seat. "Oh, please stop being such a drama queen, Elena. Besides don't sweat about it. Stefan has gladly offered to come with me as my very own guardian angel." She fluttered her eyelashes in Stefan's direction.

Stefan rolled his eyes. "Don't ask." He ignored Damon's glare as he took the seat next to Katherine.

Damon raised an eyebrow as he looked in Caroline's direction. "Well, Blondie, are you getting in or not?"

"Will you roll down the window?" Katherine popped her hair in between the seats three hours later. "It's so hot in here." Damon was driving and Elena was sitting in the passenger seat next to him. Somehow Caroline, Stefan, and Katherine had managed to squeeze in the back seat of Damon's tiny car.

They still had hours to go, but Katherine was already driving all of them crazy.

"Maybe you'll suffocate to death." Elena grumbled under her breath. She shifted uncomfortably. "Damon, I need to pee. Can you pull over?"

"Oh, me too." Caroline replied.

"I want pretzels," Katherine chipped in.

"Great, your bladders turned into the size of a walnut." Damon grumbled as he parked inside a gas station. "Will you guys hurry up, please?" Elena and Caroline scrambled over to the restroom as fast as they could without vampire speed.

The only one that stayed behind was Katherine and she was staring at Damon with that vixen look in her eye that had made him putty in her hands back in 1864. "What?" he quipped. "You're not expecting money for pretzels, are you? Because that's not going to happen Kitty Kat."

Katherine crossed then uncrossed her arms, before deciding to rest her hands on her hips. "Let talk about something Damon, there is some groundwork that I want to cover." Katherine swallowed. "Elena and I are human now and we both know that Klaus loves doppelganger blood so you better not throw me under the bus for your precious Elena-"

Damon pursed his lips. "Oh, you're scared aren't you? That's why you brought Stefan over for protection. Well Mr. Hero hair won't be able to help you for long. Katherine. If we have to decide between you and Elena, we will always choose Elena."

Katherine pursed her lips trying to hide the nervousness in her eyes. Stefan got out of the back seat of the car. "Hey, no one in throwing anyone under the bus. We all want the same thing. The ability for you girls to become vampires again, let's stick to that for now."

"Tell that to your brother." Katherine snarled. Even she was not a complete idiot, she knew that Damon was stronger that Stefan. Stefan still thought that bunnies and foxes were part of a complete diet.

Katherine and Damon stared at each other for a long time. Damon thought that Katherine didn't look like Katherine anymore. Her features had rounded slightly and there was softness around her pretty face. But Damon was no longer that human fool. Human or not Katherine would be an evil bitch to the end.

"Ready." Caroline chirped as she and Elena came back to the car.

Elena saw the storminess between Damon and Katherine, and she gulped. "Is everything alright?"

"Fine." Katherine said with a flicker of her once curly hair. "Can we switch seats? I get carsick in the back seat." Elena opened her mouth to argue. "Oh, I'm sorry do you want the whole car to smell like vomit?"

When Rebekah stepped inside the compound she immediately smelled the vanilla perfume and candles. If Rebekah closed her eyes she could see herself in New Orleans in the early 20th century.

"Sister," Klaus greeted her with a kiss on her cheek. "You arrived before our guest. Good. it will give you time to get settled."

"Guests?" Rebekah question. "There is no one here besides myself and Elijah."

Klaus curled his lip, like he always did when he knew a secret. Like the cat that ate the canary. "You don't know? The gossip from little Mystic Falls hasn't arrived to your delicate ears?"

"Know what?" Rebekah was starting to feel annoyed. "Klaus you did not drag me from Europe to play your stupid guessing games-"

"In a day or two we are going to have a couple of guests. You remember the famous cure? Well it finally found a home."

Rebekah raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" she could feel the jealousy settle in the pit of her stomach. That cure should have been hers. Her dream of humanity and the white picket fence seemed like a distant dream. "With who?"

Klaus leaned forward and whispered in her ear. "With Elena and Caroline."

-End of Chapter Five-

Thank you for your kind reviews!