Fixed Points

The Doctor and Donna were the first ones out of the TARDIS, but Caroline was only one step behind. They had landed in some curtained alcove, but outside there was sunlight and a street lined with vendors selling their various wares.

"Ancient Rome. Well, not for them, obviously," he nodded to the people. "To all intents and purposes, right now, this is brand new Rome."

Donna gave a little turn. "Oh, my God. It's, it's so Roman. This is fantastic." She hugged him tightly.

The Doctor laughed, grinning.

"I'm here, in Rome. Donna Noble in Rome. This is just weird. I mean, everyone here's dead."

"Well," the Doctor shrugged, "don't tell them that."

Caroline frowned. "Wait. That sign," everyone else turned to look at it, "it's in English."

Donna sighed. "Are you having us on? Are we in Epcot?"

"No, no, no, no. That's the TARDIS translation circuits. Just makes it look like English. Speech as well. You're talking Latin right now."

Caroline's eyes widened. It helped, when it came to talking to people, that the Doctor was there. He was quite easy to talk to, she'd discovered. Like he focused her attention so it was like there was only him and no one else. Otherwise, since they were in a crowded area, she wouldn't have been able to speak a word. "Seriously."

"Mmm," the Doctor nodded.

Donna pointed at her. "You just said seriously in Latin."

"Oh, yeah."

"What if we said something in actual Latin?"

"Like veni, vidi, vici?" Donna added, nodding. "My dad said that when he came back from football. If I said veni, vidi, vici to that lot, what would it sound like?"

The Doctor frowned. "I'm not sure. You have to think of difficult questions, don't you?"

Donna smiled at Caroline. "I'm going to try it." She walked up to one of the stallholders, a fruit seller.

"Afternoon, sweetheart. What can I get you, my love?"

"Er, veni, vidi, vici."

The fruit seller frowned. "Huh? Sorry? Me no speak Celtic. No can do, missy."

"Yeah." Donna walked back to the pair of them. "How's he mean, Celtic?"

"Welsh," the Doctor shrugged. "You sound Welsh. There we are. Learnt something."

They continued to walk through the streets, simply taking in the sights and sounds of the city. "Don't our clothes look a bit odd?" Donna had changed from the more professional outfit she'd been sporting when dealing with the Adipose, but Caroline hadn't had anything. Thankfully, she'd been wearing heels, so her and the Doctor's height difference wasn't as noticeable as it could have been.

"Nah. Ancient Rome, anything goes. It's like Soho, but bigger."

Caroline glanced at him. "You've been here before then?"

"Mmm. Ages ago. Before you ask, that fire had nothing to do with me. Well, a little bit. But I haven't got the chance to look around properly. Coliseum, Pantheon, Circus Maximus. You'd expect them to be looming by now. Where is everything? Try this way." They walked through a gateway of sorts onto a more open street.

"Not an expert, but there's seven hills of Rome, aren't there? How come they've only got one?" it was true, this city only had one, large, bare mountain. Just as Donna finished, the ground started to shake, making vendors clutch their wares. "Wait a minute," she continued. "One mountain, with smoke. Which makes this-"

"Pompeii," the Doctor finished. "We're in Pompeii. And it's volcano day."

Immediately, the three of them started running back towards the TARDIS, the Doctor leading the way. Now Caroline was regretting those heels.

However, once they reached the spot where the TARDIS should have been, they found themselves running into empty space. "You're kidding. You're not telling me the TARDIS has gone."

The Doctor nodded. "Okay."

Caroline frowned, reaching out a careful hand. Could the TARDIS turn invisible. "Where is it then?"

He glanced down at them. "She told me not to tell you."

Donna sighed. "Oi. Don't get clever in Latin."

"Hold on," he left the curtained alcove and found the fruit seller Donna had spoken to before. "Excuse me. Excuse me. There was a box. Big blue box. Big blue wooden box, just over there. Where's it gone?"

"Sold it, didn't I?"

"But it wasn't yours to sell."

The fruit seller shrugged. "It was on my patch, weren't it? I got fifteen sesterces for it. Lovely jubbly."

"Who'd you sell it to?"

"Old Caecilius. Look, if you want to argue, why don't you take it out with him? He's on Foss Street. Big villa. Can't miss it."

"Thanks." The Doctor ran away, only to return to the man a second later. "What'd he buy a big blue wooden box for?"

They quickly agreed on a plan to find where Old Caecilius lived. Each of them would go in a different direction and then meet up at the street they'd originally arrived at. Caroline was thankful that all she needed to do was run through the streets of Pompeii and not speak to anyone.

The fact that every single person she saw was about to die a fiery death was quite unnerving and Caroline tried to ignore them. If she knew anything about time travel, and that wasn't much, it was that once an event had happened it was very dangerous to try and alter it. Especially something as big as the destruction of Pompeii.

She wanted to save them, she did, she hated the thought they were all going to die. But it had technically already happened, at least for her.

She'd seen Back to the Future, after all, and terrible things had happened with that ripple effect. She'd prefer not to be responsible for large chunks of humanity either fading into and out of existence.

That would just be too much.

She'd just arrived at the street, having failed to find Foss Street, when the Doctor and Donna physically collided in front of her. "Ha. I've got it. Foss Street's this way," he gestured over his shoulder, turning to go on his way.

"No. Well, I found this big sort of amphitheater thing. We can start there. We can gather everyone together. Maybe they've got a great big bell or something we could ring. Have they invented bells yet?"

The Doctor frowned. "What do you want a bell for?"

"To warn everyone." Donna looked to Caroline like she wanted back up. "Start the evacuation. What time does Vesuvius erupt? When's it due?"

"It's 79AD, twenty third of August, which makes volcano day tomorrow."

Donna nodded. "Plenty of time. We could get everyone out easy."

"Yeah, except we're not going to."

"But that's what you do. You're the Doctor. You save people."

He shook his head, glancing at Caroline to ensure she wasn't going to say anything. "Not this time. Pompeii is a fixed point in history. What happens, happens. There is no stopping it." Caroline nodded, which made the Doctor briefly smile. It made sense that such a big event would be fixed, unable to be altered.

"Says who?"

"Says me."

"What," Donna scoffed, "and you're in charge?"

"TARDIS, Time Lord, yeah," Caroline was going to have to ask him what a Time Lord was. It sounded important.

"Donna, human, no. I don't need your permission. I'll tell them myself."

"You stand in the market place announcing the end of the world, they'll just think you're a mad old soothsayer. Now, come on. TARDIS. We are getting out of here."

"Well, I might just have something to say about that, Spaceman."

"Oh, I bet you will." The Doctor turned a corner.

Caroline had managed to match his pace when he'd left Donna. "Fixed point means it can't be changed, correct?"

He glanced at her. "Yes."

"Alright then." She nodded, preparing herself.

In a richly decorated villa, a family of four prepared for another quake. "Positions!" Caecilius ran for a marble bust, but the Doctor reached it first.

"Whoa! There you go." He righted it smoothly.

"Thank you, kind sir. I'm afraid business is closed for the day. I'm expecting a visitor."

The Doctor didn't miss a beat. "But that's me, I'm a visitor." He shook Caecilius's hand. "Hello."

Caecilius frowned. "Who are you?"

"I am Spartacus."

"And so am I," Donna added.

Caroline took a breath and spoke as well, truly a very impressive feat given how extremely fast her heart was pounding. "And me."

"Mr, Miss and Mrs Spartacus." He looked at them in the order of the Doctor, Caroline, and Donna, making it clear which title he was applying to each of them.

The Doctor widened his eyes. "Oh no, no, no. We're not," he gestured between himself and Donna, "we're not married."

"We're not together." Donna agreed, and Caroline wondered who Caecilius thought she was.

"Oh, then brother and sisters?" Caecilius nodded. "Yes, of course. You all look very much alike."

The three of them looked at each other. "Really?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not open for trade."

"And that trade would be?" the Doctor leaned forwards slightly on the balls of his feet.

Caecilius looked quite proud. "Marble. Lopus Caecilius. Mining, polishing and design thereof. If you want marble, I'm your man."

"That's good. That's good, because I'm the marble inspector." He held up a small pad of paper that looked almost like a wallet. To Caroline, it looked blank, but apparently it said something to the family, for they ushered the three of them in immediately.

"By the gods of commerce, an inspection," Caecilius's wife gasped before her gaze landed on his son. "I'm sorry, sir. I do apologize for my son." She snatched the goblet from the boy's hand and dumped it away into a fountain.

"Oi."

"And this is my good wife, Metella," Caecilius came up next to his wife. "I must confess, we're not prepared for a-"

The Doctor shrugged. "Nothing to worry about. I'm…I'm sure you've nothing to hide. Although, frankly, that object looks rather like wood to me." He pointed to what was obviously the TARDIS, walking closer.

"I told you to get rid of it," Metella hissed to her husband.

Caecilius rushed forward. "I only bought it today."

"Ah, well," the Doctor rubbed the back of his head. "Caveat emptor."

Caecilius widened his eyes. "Oh, you're Celtic. There's lovely."

"I'm sure it's fine, but I might have to take it off your hands for a proper inspection."

"Although while we're here," Donna interjected, "wouldn't you recommend a holiday, Spartacus?"

The Doctor immediately looked at her. "Don't know what you mean, Spartacus."

"Oh, this lovely family," Donna nodded to them. "Mother and father and son. Don't you think they should get out of town?"

Caecilius frowned. "Why should we do that?"

"Well, the volcano, for starters," Donna spoke like it was painfully obvious.

"What?"

"Volcano."

"What ano?"

"The great big volcano right on your doorstep."

The Doctor grabbed Donna's shoulders. "Oh, Spartacus, for shame. We haven't even greeted the household gods yet." Caroline followed behind them, glancing at the family. At the alter, the three of them stood in a small row. "They don't know what it is. Vesuvius is just a mountain to them. The top hasn't blown off yet. The Romans haven't even got a word for volcano. Not until tomorrow."

Donna scoffed. "Oh, great, they can learn a new word as they die."

"Donna, stop it."

"Listen, I don't know what sort of kids you've been flying round with in outer space, but you're not telling me to shut up. That boy, how old is he, sixteen? And tomorrow he burns to death." She looked at Caroline, wanting the girl's support, but she was silent, as always.

"And that's my fault?"

Donna nodded. "Right now, yes."

"Announcing" a man called behind them, making the three turn "Lucius Petrus Dextrus, Chief Augur of the City Government." A man about the same age as Caecilius entered, already sneering.

Caecilius rushed forwards. "Lucius. My pleasure, as always."

"Quintus, stand up."

"A rare and great honour, sir, for you to come to my house," Caecilius held out his hand, but Lucius made no move to take it.

"The birds are flying north, and the wind is in the west."

Caecilius nodded. "Quite. Absolutely. That's good, is it?"

"Only the grain of wheat knows where it will grow."

"There now, Metella," Caecilius turned to his wife. "Have you ever heard such wisdom?"

She shook her head. "Never. It's an honour."

"Pardon me, sir. I have guests." He came over to where the trio were waiting. "This is Spartacus, Spartacus and, er, Spartacus."

"A name is but a cloud on a summer wind." This Lucius must be some type of seer, Caroline reasoned. She didn't actually know what Augur meant, but it must be some sort of title.

The Doctor stopped forward. "But the wind is felt most keenly in the dark."

"Ah. But what is the dark, other than an omen of the sun?"

"I concede that every sun must set." Lucius laughed. "And yet the son of the father must also rise." The Doctor held out a hand to Quintus."

Lucius lost his ever-present sneer. "Damn. Very clever, sir. Evidently, a man of learning."

"Oh, yes," the Doctor nodded. "But don't mind me. Don't want to disturb the status quo."

Caecilius leaned closer to Lucius. "He's Celtic."

"We'll be off in a minute." He turned to lead the way and Donna followed, though she seemed upset about it.

"I'm not going."

"It's ready, sir," Caecilius told Lucius.

"You've got to."

"Well, I'm not."

"The moment of revelation," Caecilius continued. "And here it is."

The Doctor was leading them to the TARDIS, more directing Donna then he was Caroline, when both he and Caroline glanced back. And then they stopped. Caroline didn't know much about history, it was true, she preferred science, but she knew for a fact that circuit boards had not existed in Pompeii.

"Exactly as you specified. It pleases you, sir?"

"As the rain pleases the soil."

The Doctor stepped back into the conversation. "Oh, now that's different. Who designed that, then?"

Caecilius held out a hand towards Lucius. "My Lord Lucius was very specific."

"Where'd you get the pattern?"

"On the rain and mist and wind."

Caroline took a deep breath. "That looks like a circuit," she whispered to the Doctor.

He nodded. "Made of stone."

"Do you mean you just dreamt that thing up?" Donna asked the collective group.

Lucius nodded. "That is my job, as City Augur."

"What's that, then, like the mayor?"

The Doctor laughed. "Oh, ha. You must excuse my friend, she's from Barcelona." He and Donna turned slightly away from the conversation, Caroline leaning closer to hear the explanation. "No, but this is an age of superstition. Of official superstition. The Augur is paid by the city to tell the future. The wind will blow from the west? That's the equivalent of ten o'clock news."

"They're laughing at us." The three turned to see a new girl, an extremely pale teenager, enter the room swaying. "Those three, they use words like tricksters. They're mocking us."

The Doctor shook his head. "No, no, I'm not. I meant no offence."

Metella rushed to the girl. "I'm sorry. My daughter's been consuming the vapors."

"Oh for gods, Mother. What have you been doing to her?" Quintus stared at his sister with a mixture of shock and horror.

"Not now, Quintus," Caecilius hissed.

"Yeah, but she's sick. Just look at her."

Lucius stepped forward, gaze fixed on Evelina. "I gather I have a rival in this household. Another with the gift."

"Oh, she's been promised to the Sibylline Sisterhood. They say she has remarkable visions."

Lucius laughed. "The prophecies of women are limited and dull. Only the menfolk have the capacity for true perception."

Donna and Caroline scoffed at the same time, though Donna's was both louder and accompanied by a statement. "I'll tell you where the wind's blowing right now, mate."

There was a small tremor, not enough to make the family scramble to hold onto their possessions. "The Mountain God marks your words," Lucius informed her. "I'd be careful, if I were you."

"Consuming the vapors, you say?"

Evelina nodded. "They give me strength."

"It doesn't look like it to me." Evelina looked week, even Caroline could see that, and that was saying something in itself.

"Is that your opinion as a doctor?"

The Doctor didn't adjust himself, but it was obvious to Caroline at least, who had a lifetime of reactions no one else was meant to notice, that he was bothered. "I beg your pardon?"

"Doctor. That's your name." She turned her eyes to Caroline. "You, a dweller of water."

"How did you know that?" the Doctor frowned, while Caroline tried to calm her heart.

"And you," now to Donna. "You call yourself Noble." The world around them started to tremor slightly, but no one seemed to give it much care, not that that moment.

"Now then, Evelina. Don't be rude."

The Doctor shook her head. "No, no, no, no. Let her talk."

"You all come from so far away."

"The female soothsayer is inclined to invent all sorts of vagaries," Lucius scoffed.

"Oh, not this time, Lucius," The Doctor looked to him. "No, I reckon you've been out-soothsayed."

Lucius did not miss a beat. "Is that so, man from Gallifrey?"

Now the Doctor did freeze, his reaction obvious. "What?"

"The strangest of images," Lucius continued. "Your home is lost in fire, is it not?"

Donna stepped forward, closer to the Doctor. "Doctor, what are they doing?"

"And you, daughter of London."

"How does he know that?"

"You," he looked at Caroline, "a home lost because of your actions."

"Doctor…" Caroline whispered, stepping even closer.

"This is the gift of Pompeii. Every single oracle tells the truth."

Donna shook her head. "That's impossible."

"Doctor," Lucius drew the Doctor's attention, "she is returning."

"Who is? Who's she?"

"And you, daughter of London." He looked at Donna. "There is something on your back."

"What's that mean?"

Evelina spoke again. "Even the word Doctor is false. Your real name is hidden. It burns in the stars, in the Cascade of Medusa herself. You are a Lord, sir. A Lord of Time." As she finished her statement, Evelina fell to the ground, fainting.

"Evelina!" her mother rushed to her.

Caroline would have gone to help, especially with her recent experience with fainting, but she was too busy trying to calm herself. Oracles were fake, they couldn't exist. They were impossible. Yet…

Alien. It had to be something alien.

"Doctor," Caroline whispered, touching the Doctor's arm and making him turn to look at her. "May I…stay with you?"

He glanced over at Caecilius, who had been going to show him where Evelina breathed in the vapors. "I'm going to be investigating…"

"Please." Caroline managed to smile. "I'm curious."

He grinned, thankfully, and gestured for Caroline to follow them. Donna was busy helping with Evelina and Caroline had considered joining her but…the soothsayers.

Even though she knew she had just traveled back in time in blue box bigger on the inside, the concept of someone being able to see the future didn't seem possible. She wouldn't have bothered to believe them, since they hadn't done anything about what would happen tomorrow and, if they were real, they would have at least known. But, in another way, the reason they wouldn't know was because it was fixed, impossible to change.

She wouldn't have believed them if Lucius and Evelina hadn't known so much about the Doctor, Donna, and her. That made her wonder what was going on, because that was not natural, not possible.

For someone who had managed to avoid the alien encounters on Earth for the past few years, she found herself strangely drawn to keep investigating this one. Like she wanted to prove that she was right, which she was, about the non-existence of soothsayers and oracles.

Caecilius brought them to a sort of grill thing with what looked like fire underneath the grate. The Doctor removed it, wincing at the heat, while Caroline leant over him. "Different sort of hypocaust?"

Caecilius nodded. "Oh, yes. We're very advanced in Pompeii. In Rome, they're still using the old wood-burning furnaces, but we've got hot springs, leading from Vesuvius itself."

Caroline stared down at the grate. "Who thought of that?" she mumbled, but Caecilius heard.

"The soothsayers, after the great earthquake, seventeen years ago. An awful lot of damage. But we rebuilt."

The Doctor glanced at him. "Didn't you think of moving away? Oh no, then again, San Francisco." Caroline nodded.

Caecilius frowned. "That's a new restaurant in Naples, isn't it?"

There was a very loud roar, like some sort of creature was trapped in the rocks. "What's that noise?"

"Don't know." Caecilius shrugged. "Happens all the time. They say the gods of the Underworld are stirring."

"But after the earthquake, let me guess. Is that when the soothsayers started making sense?"

Caecilius nodded. "Oh, yes, very much so. I mean, they'd always been, shall we say, imprecise? But then the soothsayers, the augurs, the haruspex, all of them, they saw the truth again and again. It's quite amazing. They can predict crops and rainfall with absolute precision."

Caroline looked back up at him. It was difficult to stare into the steam for that long, she was shocked Evelina could do it for, what she believed, was long periods of time. "Have they said anything about tomorrow?"

"No." He frowned. "Why, should they? Why do you ask?"

"No, no. No reason. She's just asking. But the soothsayers, they all consume the vapors, yeah?"

"That's how they see."

"Ipso facto." The Doctor bent down to scrape something off the side of the grate.

"Look you."

"They're all consuming this." He held it up, letting it fall from his fingers.

"Dust."

Caroline nodded. "Tiny particles of rock."

He brought a little to his tongue, tasting it. "They're breathing in Vesuvius."

After thanking Caecilius, the Doctor pulled Caroline aside. "You should wait here."

She shook her head. "I want to know what's going on. Even if Pompeii is a fixed point, the fact that they started seeing the truth seventeen years ago means something happened then, right? Something must have changed their environment."

"Are you certain that it's not a coincidence?" the Doctor asked, but he spoke in the way you would if you didn't really believe what you were saying, just trying to get rid of one of the options.

"True coincidences are rare," she shrugged. "I don't believe this is one."

Now the Doctor grinned, turning and letting her walk beside him as they went over to where Quintus was lounging, drinking again.

"Quintus, me old son. This Lucius Petrus Dextrus. Where does he live?"

Quintus shrugged. "It's nothing to do with me."

The Doctor walked forwards. "Let me try again. This Lucius Petrus Dextrus." He produced a coin from behind Quintus's ear, a simple magic trick. The presence of payment grabbed Quintus's attention instantly. "Where does he live?"

Pompeii was quite deserted at night. Quintus led the way, torch in hand, while the Doctor and Caroline followed by walking side by side. They'd told Donna that they were going out, the woman choosing to stay and help Evelina.

Finally, they stopped outside a window. "Don't tell my dad," Quintus told them, gesturing to it.

The Doctor simply took a running jump up to the window and opened the shutters. "Only if you don't tell mine." He climbed inside before turning and holding out a hand to help Caroline. She took off her shoes in order to actually have any grip, and because of that she was a bit too short to actually reach it on her own. Thankfully, with the Doctor's help, she got inside smoothly. Then he leaned back out. "Pass me that torch."

It was quite dark inside, the only other light coming from another hypocaust. The Doctor looked around until he came across a sort of structure covered in a curtain. Quintus had climbed inside the building too and the Doctor handed him the torch in order to pull down the curtain.

It appeared that Lucius had been collecting marble tiles. None of them looked the same as the one that Caecilius had made, but they looked similar enough that Caroline could tell it was meant to be some large circuit.

"The liar," Quintus whispered. "He told my father it was the only one."

The Doctor leaned forwards, snapping on a pair of glasses. "Well, plenty of marble merchants in this town. Tell them all the same thing, get all the components from different places, so no one can see what you're building." Caroline gently ran her finger along one of the circuits.

"Which is what?"

"The future, Doctor," Lucius told them, having emerged from a doorway with guards behind him. "We are building the future, as dictated by the gods."

Somehow, the Doctor managed to convince Lucius to let him rearrange the circuit boards. He was nearly done, Caroline knew it. "Put this one there," he grabbed one from Quintus, who was holding all of the ones he had discarded for a moment. "This one-"

Caroline pointed. "There." She didn't know what had possessed her to point it out, but somehow she'd known it would be right.

The Doctor flashed her a smile as he put it there. "Er, keep that one upside down, and what you got?" They stepped back from the circuits and turned back to Lucius.

"Enlighten me."

"What, the soothsayer doesn't know?"

"The seed may float on the breeze in any direction."

The Doctor shrugged. "Yeah, I knew you were going to say that. But it's an energy converter."

"An energy converter of what?"

"I don't know." He grinned. "Isn't that brilliant? I love not knowing." He glanced at Caroline, who gave him a quick smile. Not knowing wasn't that much fun. She preferred to know and, if she didn't, learn and understand it as quick as she could. "Keeps me on my toes. It must be awful being a prophet, waking up every morning, is it raining? Yes, it is, I said so. Takes all the fun out of life. But who designed this, Lucius, hmm? Who gave you these instructions?"

Lucius was sneering again. "I think you've babbled enough."

"Lucius, really, tell me. Honestly, I'm on your side. I can help."

"You insult the gods. There can be only one sentence. At arms."

The guards drew their swords, making the Doctor jump back to stand next to Caroline. "Oh, morituri te salutant."

"Celtic prayers won't help you now."

"But it was them, sir," Quintus pleaded. "They made me do it. Mr. Dextrus, please don't."

"Come on now, Quintus, dignity in death." The Doctor gave a little nod. "I respect your victory, Lucius. Shake on it?" He held out his hand. "Come on. Dying man's wish?" Lucius didn't move, but the Doctor really didn't need him to. He leapt forward and grabbed at the arm under the cloak, which Caroline had never seen move, and pulled. There was quite a loud cracking sound.

"Argh," Lucius moaned.

The Doctor leapt back holding a stone hand and forearm. "But he's-" Quintus gasped.

"Show me."

Lucius threw back the cloak, revealing the remainder of his right side. It was all turning to stone. "The work of the gods."

"He's stone."

"Armless enough, though. Whoops." He threw the arm back to Lucius, the distraction letting him, Quintus, and Caroline rush for the window. "Quintus!" The boy responded by throwing a torch at one of the guards while the Doctor soniced the circuit boards, making them fall.

"The carvings," Lucius called after them.

The Doctor waited until the three of them were on the street before shouting "run!" and taking off. Finally, they stopped at what looked like a street where merchants stored various things. "No sign of them. Nice little bit of allons-y. I think we're all right." He glanced over at Caroline, watching her with a frown when he noticed how she was clutching her head.

"But his arm, Doctor. Is that what's happening to Evelina?"

There was a loud rumble, but nothing like the earthquakes. "What was that?" Another rumble. Caroline let go of her head with one hand.

"The mountain?"

No, the rumbles seemed to have a pattern, and the mountain didn't have a pattern at all, at least not one Caroline had spotted. "No, it's closer." The ground kept shaking, getting louder and louder, and objects lining the street in front of them began to tumble down. "Footsteps."

"It can't be."

"Footsteps underground."

The Doctor pushed the two of them back, directing them to run, and fast. As they passed, the grates of the hypocausts blew off, the footsteps growing louder and louder.

A/N: Adventures in Pompei! Caroline is making some interesting conclusions, that's for certain. And what could Lucius have meant by his prophecy?

I am so immensely thankful to everyone who's read this so far; it means so much to me that people are actually interested in reading about Caroline.