Author's note: Sorry for the long wait; I've been working on my KC gift exchange and finally clawed my way back out of deep research mode. Thank you for all of your reviews and favorites! It's so gratifying to see the positive response and how so many of you keep coming back for more! We're finally getting a few answers here...and some new questions arise...
Warning: Some violence.
"We could never go back to the way things were." It's what she knew in her heart the day she'd arrived home after several weeks at HALO training to catch Damon rifling through her jewelry box. She'd realized something was wrong when she spied the broken window in her living room. Fueled by anger at the thought that someone would dare break in, she immediately drew her Ruger, the gleam of the silver-topped barrel reassuring her. But when she discovered her little brother in her bedroom, stoned out of his mind, she quickly holstered her pistol.
"Damon, what the fuck?!" Her broken shout sounded like a wounded animal, but it contained enough authority to make him jump, a vaguely guilty expression flitting across his pasty, sweating face.
Blinking rapidly at her as though not fully processing her presence, Damon slurred, "Car-Carolineeee? You're here? Why are yooouu here?"
"I live here, dumbass," she said in irritation, "Christ, Damon, that junk you're on didn't even leave you enough brain cells to remember my schedule and steal from me properly?" She noted the scabs on his face and arms, hating how she could barely recognize her little brother underneath the damage the heroin had caused.
He waved one arm wildly around the room, the gesture oddly disjointed from the rest of his body, almost like a marionette's. Bloodshot eyes studied the empty space next to her as he tried in vain to focus, mumbling, "Wasn't stealing, Bitch. Always such a bitch to me."
The metallic glint in the shadows of her bedroom caught her eye and she flipped on a lamp, scowling as she accused, "Seriously?! Then what's that in your other hand?" When he tried to hide his clenched fist behind his back, it angered her even more and she lunged forward to pull him into a loose wristlock hold, a shrill whine escaping him as he struggled in her grip. As she glanced down at his arms, she registered the numerous needle tracks, some infected and oozing. The faint, sickly-sweet smell turned her stomach, but she forced herself to pry apart his sweaty fingers to reveal small pearl earrings set in gold.
That had belonged to their mother.
Caroline hated how the sight of the simple earrings made her breath catch and she fought back tears as she roughly yanked them out of his reach. "Goddamn it, Damon," she seethed, "You were just going to steal our mother's jewelry and pawn it for drugs? What the hell is wrong with you?!" At his guilty expression, she felt another surge of anger as she asked suspiciously, "What else, Damon? What else did you try to steal from me?"
Not waiting for an answer, she kept his wrists in one firm grip while she quickly gave him a pat-down, pausing when she yanked the narrow edge of a metal clasp hanging out of his back pocket. With a gasp, she realized it was their father's old watch, the familiar, tarnished piece of jewelry the only thing they had left of him. A coldness settled in the pit of her stomach as she realized that Damon was willing to take away the remaining pieces they had of their parents. Selfish bastard.
"Heyyyy," her brother slurred, "I need those...to get meeee...to get what I need!"
Disgusted, Caroline spun him around, tossing the jewelry on the shelf behind her before telling him spitefully, "You know we never had much growing up. Odds are Mom's pearls aren't much more than polished marbles and Dad's watch is mostly steel and there's no way in hell your dealer was going to give you shit for that." Shaking her head angrily, she added, "But what their jewelry meant to me? To our family?! That's all we have left of our parents!"
She watched Damon shift awkwardly under her gaze, furiously scratching at his neck and arms. She lowered her voice, dejectedly saying, "But you don't care. About any of it. So just get out." When he hadn't moved, she lost her temper and screeched, "Get out!"
Once he finally shuffled away, she slammed her front door, knowing in her heart that they'd crossed a line. She told herself again, "We could never go back to the way things were." Curling protectively into herself, she leaned against her door, finally allowing herself to cry.
"And that's when I knew we could never go back to the way things were," Stefan told her, unwittingly pulling her out of the dark memory as he wrapped up his story about new research avenues he'd been pursuing. Not wanting him to realize where her memories had taken her, she smiled brightly at her brother, telling him, "Well, now you're just bragging. How does that ego fit in this compound and still leave room for your over-gelled hairdo?"
"The same way yours fits into your obscenely well-organized missions, Caroline," he answered with his usual cocky grin.
Suddenly, the door to the supply room banged open, Kol sticking his head in to announce gleefully, "Great news! My gormless brother's chat up lines are pure bollocks, but at least he's still good for something — he figured out a way to kill the werewolves!"
Caroline felt relief well up inside, allowing a tiny bit of hope to bleed through her constant worry. They had a chance. She enveloped Stefan into a quick hug, reassuring him, "We're getting out of here, Stefan. It's almost over."
As she pulled back, she noted a shadow cross his features before he gave her a quick smile. She recognized that petulant look — it was the same one he wore when he was little and Damon broke one of his toys. He was pissed they were about to destroy his werewolves — because despite the horrific things the creatures had done, he clearly still viewed them as nothing more than lab specimens. For fuck's sake. Refusing to fight with him about this, she pulled him back into Klaus' lab to find out what he'd discovered.
Klaus stood in front of a flat screen that covered most of one wall, pointing to an impressive series of equations and 3D diagrams of DNA sequences. She admired the way that his forearms flexed as he pointed to the different pieces of his research on display, the confident authority in his voice immensely appealing. She had no idea she had such a professor kink. As soon as this thing with the werewolves was finished, she planned on exploring it further with Klaus if he was interested.
From the way his gray eyes seemed to twinkle in her direction despite the seriousness of the situation, it looked like he'd be open to some experimentation. "Given the highly developed musculature, thick hides and fur, the werewolves are impervious to most conventional weapons. However, based on the lab's research, I hypothesize that chemical warfare is our best chance for success."
Carefully holding up a vial of amber-colored liquid, he explained, "VX is an odorless, tasteless nerve agent that initially started as an insecticide in the 1950s but eventually was deemed too toxic for agricultural use. It blocks nerve messages between cells, causing uncontrollable muscle contractions and death by asphyxiation." Sliding the cartridge into a small gun, he added, "The most effective delivery method is via tranquilizer gun through the creatures' mucus membranes."
Kol handed out guns to Stefan and Caroline along with multiple VX vials. "So, we just need to blast these bloody things in the eye. Good thing you haven't been skimping on your target practice, eh, Commander," he teased her good-naturedly.
"Honestly, Kol, a bit of decorum for the gravity of the situation," Klaus muttered as he set another rack of VX cartridges on the table beside him.
Before Caroline could weigh in, she was surprised by the undertone of suspicion she heard in Stefan's voice as he questioned, "How exactly did you reach this hypothesis? Your data analysis is haphazard at best."
Klaus replied acidly, "I finally ran the enzymatic tests that you never bothered to authorize. They led me to this conclusion." Underneath his defiant tone and authoritative stance, Caroline observed the way his jawline tightened and his gray eyes subtly flicked to the side. Klaus was hiding something.
A quick glance at Kol told her that he noticed his brother's odd behavior too. She was adept at reading her officer, from having spent years working side-by-side on dangerous engagements all over the world. Tensions already were too high between their brothers, and calling attention to whatever Klaus was withholding from the group would just make things worse. Clearing her throat, she took control of the situation, telling the group, "Nothing else we've tried has worked. Klaus' idea seems like our best chance to take these fuckers out."
Katherine's voice came through her and Kol's earpieces, effectively distracted them from whatever petty argument their brothers were having about Klaus' research methodology. "Tomb Dodger, online. Lab Rat and I have secured the four civilians in our transport."
"Fearless, online. Understood. Nicely done," Caroline praised her captain, adding triumphantly, "We have a plan for the hostiles and will head toward Spell Slinger." She returned Kol's giddy high-five with a smile, allowing herself a moment to celebrate her team's small success.
Bonnie's voice interrupted their celebration, her voice trembling slightly as she quietly told them, "Spell Slinger online — send backup. One of the hostiles is near the northeast office—" A loud crash followed by an unearthly roar cut off the rest of her officer's statement, leaving the group in a stunned silence.
Bonnie was facing a werewolf alone. Caroline and Kol glanced at each other, a sliver of fear flashing across their faces before they settled into the iron-controlled stoicism needed for their missions. "Everyone, grab your guns and VX cartridges. Let's go hunting," Caroline briskly directed them, motioning toward the door.
Just as Kol's fingers brushed the complicated keypad, the door suddenly lurched under a powerful blow from outside. Fuck. The other creature had found them. Quickly examining the room for access points, she motioned Kol toward the large air duct in the corner. "You and Stefan go help Bonnie. Klaus and I will stay behind and deal with this monster." She could tell that he wanted to argue with her, but he respected her too much to defy a direct order from his commander.
Nodding once, Kol held his brother's gaze for a moment, telling him, "Be safe." Then, he used the nearby sink to vault high enough to punch out the vent cover, easily pulling himself into the duct.
Stefan, however, stubbornly protested despite how she and Klaus pushed him toward Kol's waiting hand. "Caroline, I don't think this is such a good idea..." he began warily, his face ashen as a muffled snarl came from the door behind them.
Touched by her baby brother's concern for her, she tried to keep her voice steady as she reassured him, "Everything will be fine. Go with Kol. Look after each other and Klaus and I will do the same. We'll come find you once we get rid of this thing." Ignoring the rest of his grumblings, she gave him a boost so that Kol could pull him the rest of the way into the duct.
Just as their brothers escaped, the werewolf burst into Klaus' lab, dripping foul-smelling saliva from its elongated snout as it growled at them menacingly. Sharp claws clattered along the tile floor as it advanced on Caroline, eyeing her intently. She purposely placed herself between the creature and Klaus, not wanting to risk him getting hurt. The werewolf tracked her movements, and she quickly ducked under its powerful claws as it swiped at her. She took advantage of the creature while it was temporarily off-balance, placing a swift kick to one of its hind legs.
As it threw back its head in an angry roar, she took careful aim, lining up her shot with the dark eye that glared at her. However, just as she pulled the trigger, Klaus bellowed, "No, Caroline!" She was so shocked by his outburst that she didn't realize he'd barreled into her until it was too late and her shot was thrown off. The cartridge of amber liquid shattered against the wall near the beast's head, enraging it further as it lunged for them.
"Seriously, Klaus?! What the fuck's wrong with you," she screamed, throwing him off of her as she narrowed her blue eyes suspiciously at him. She'd realized he was hiding something earlier, but it hadn't occurred to her that he'd try to prevent her from the killing the werewolves. What was she missing?
Klaus flinched slightly at her voice, the only outward sign he'd given that he heard her as he raced toward the monster, keeping his arm steady just as she'd shown him when they first met. Caroline instinctively followed him, prepared to pull him away before the werewolf could rip him open. However, he managed to fire off a shot just as the beast bellowed once more, the VX cartridge shooting straight into its mouth and causing it to choke.
The beast fell to the floor with a resounding thud, its powerful forelimbs shaking uncontrollably as it gasped for air. Wildly tossing its long, coarse hair as it struggled through the seizures the nerve agent caused, the werewolf gave one final shudder before lying still. Caroline watched as the creature's dark eyes glazed over, triumphantly acknowledging, "Looks like your theory worked."
Klaus collapsed next to the creature, his gray eyes studying the motionless body with an unreadable expression on his face that reminded Caroline of his bizarre actions. She angrily crossed her arms, her tone accusing as she asked, "Why did you stop me, Klaus? Why did you have to be the one to shoot it?"
His silence stretched uncomfortably between them until he finally looked at her, the sorrow in his voice making her heart sink. "Because you never would've forgiven yourself."