Disclaimer: I do not own the Vampire Diaries.

Four

Klaus had started a fire when they'd returned. AJ stared into it now as she sat once more on the log bench. She watched as the flames danced about; the light projected onto the trees surrounding her, creating an uneasy feeling in her stomach. Night had fallen completely, and the full moon sat high up in the sky. She could remember the days when, back home in Michigan, she could look up at it and feel peaceful. Now, she only felt on-edge and fretful.

The hybrids had almost all raised to their feet. Some stalked about in a manner that reminded AJ of the way zombies would walk; setting one foot in front of the other, their backs and shoulders hunched, their fingers curled and their faces twisted up in pain and uncertainty. Others fared better, walking with more surety and balance or sitting. But every single one of them looked terrified, to some extent. Most shuddered in fear.

AJ couldn't look at the madness surrounding her. But Klaus was across from her, on the other side of the fire. Her glaze flicked to him, and her hand absently found his necklace lying at the base of her throat. The fire had warmed her completely, but the wooden sun pendant somehow managed to maintain its cool surface. Magic. It was very puzzling.

In the flicker of the fire, Klaus's features were shadowed. She watched with clenched fists as he grabbed Derek by his shirt and barred his fangs, preparing to sink them into the poor man's neck. She was on her feet in an instant, her hands falling to her sides. "Klaus," she said crisply. Klaus retracted his fangs and turned to her, still gripping Derek's shirt. "Leave him be," she pleaded. "He let you make your hybrids, didn't he? You don't need to kill him."

Klaus didn't blink. "There is the factor that I'm rather thirsty, dear." Dark veins surfaced around his eyes once more, and his fangs protruded from his mouth. He raised an eyebrow. "Now unless you're willing to take his place, I'm quite content with just finishing him off."

The girl with the dark hair, whose name AJ had yet to learn, began stepping towards Klaus. Her eyes were lit with hatred, and her steps, although rather slow, were determined. Klaus smirked. "Careful, love," he warned the hybrid, "There's only one alpha here."

AJ walked around the fire to the girl, a frown on her face. She suppressed the want to shiver at the sight of her. The girl's face was a bloody mess, and she looked to be in excruciating pain. AJ held her hands out toward her, to stop her. The girl had moved so quickly, AJ didn't realize what'd happened until she felt sharp human teeth pierce her neck. Her scream sliced through the cool night air, high and shrill.

Not a second later, Klaus had interjected. Standing behind the hybrid, he plunged his hand into her back and yanked her heart out, throwing it into the fire. The hybrid's body fell, and with it went AJ. He took a firm hold of her arm and pulled her close, away from the dead creature.

Tears had instantly surfaced in AJ's eyes, and she held a hand to her throbbing neck. Her balance was shot as she swayed on her feet. Blood seeped into her hand where the hybrid had torn a wide gash. AJ had never before been bitten by human teeth, but it was quite possibly the most disturbing feeling ever.

Klaus turned her around so that she was facing him. She averted her eyes, applying more pressure to the wound. "I'm fine," she said steadily, aware of his eyes intent on her. "The bleeding will stop in a few." She tried pulling away from him, but he held her stationary.

"You've lost too much blood already," he pointed out. "You need mine."

AJ's head shot up, her eyes widened. "Excuse me?"

Klaus didn't answer but put his hand over hers, pulling it away from the wound. He turned his head so he could examine it, and frowned. "You need my blood," he urged. "This isn't going to stop on its own. It's much too deep."

"No," AJ shook her head, but cringed when pain shot through her neck. "No, that's unacceptable. I won't."

Klaus looked at her frankly. "You would bleed to death because you don't want to drink my blood? I'm told it's not that terrible."

AJ bit her lip. She stepped to the side, away from him. "I'm fine," she said with little confidence. "I'll be fine. My backpack has a first aid kit in it. I'll just—"

"You'll just hike back down the mountain to get it? Because you left your backpack in the truck," Klaus pointed out again, crossing his arms. A ghost of a smile suddenly appeared on his lips. "You think I'm trying to trick you into this, don't you? Do I look that desperate, love?"

AJ turned back to him, glaring. "Don't call me that."

He raised an eyebrow. His gaze dropped to the blood dripping from her hand, splattering down onto the dry leaves that covered the forest floor. "I won't call you that if you allow me to give you blood," he said seriously. "I am not joking, AJ. That's a nasty wound."

"Hm, I seem to remember you saying precisely the same thing to Stefan earlier. And did you offer him blood? No. Besides, it wouldn't have happened if you would have listened to me." She turned around, suddenly, eyes searching for Derek. They widened when she saw him dead on the ground, next to his girlfriend. She shook her head slowly, turning back to Klaus. "If you hadn't killed him, she wouldn't have done this."

"You're right. Which means that I owe you, and the only useful thing I can offer you is blood. Now, will you accept it?"

AJ pressed her lips together, hard. Searching his eyes, she didn't see any kind of deceit within them. But what would Elijah think? Wouldn't he be furious? Wasn't drinking a vampire's blood supposed to be intimate—not something you did with just anyone? She sighed, removing her hand from the wound again. It was sticky. Elijah would be furious if she allowed herself to bleed to death. He wouldn't want her to die, even if Klaus's blood was the only thing that could make her better. "Fine," she looked up at him, defeated. "But only a little bit. And since you owe me, you can't ask for anything in return. Got it?"

Klaus rolled his eyes dramatically, but she could see some sort of spark in them. "Of course." He went over to a bag and picked it up, shucking the things out of it. Dropping it to the ground, he reached down and picked up a knife. He returned to AJ as he held it over his wrist, just about to cut it open. Then he stopped, and his gaze pinned on her.

AJ's eyebrows pulled together. Her vision was beginning to go funky because of the blood loss. "What? Why aren't you, you know, cutting your wrist?"

Klaus pouted a little, sighing. "I grow tired of that—that's all I've done all day."

"Okay…" AJ squinted at him. "And the problem is?"

He looked to the ground, just barely suppressing a smile. "I was curious if you'd be willing to try another spot."

Her eyes widened. "Klaus, I swear to God, if you're insinuating what I think—"

"Relax," he held his hands out, but his smiled graced his lips. "I was merely suggesting if maybe, say, near my neck, or somewhere else that doesn't involve slitting my wrist for the hundredth time."

AJ stared at him. Her knees felt weak, like they would give out. She wished for the world that the ground would stop tilting. "You're trying to take advantage of me," she crossed her arms, despite her weakened state. "Not cool, Klaus."

Klaus put a hand on her arm, keeping her balanced. "No, I'm merely being practical. How would you feel if you had to cut open your wrist as much as I've had to? Not great, I can tell you that."

AJ shook her head slowly. It was really the only way she could, without causing herself any more pain. "Suck it up, Original. I'm sure you've had worse. Or are you really that girlish?"

Klaus gave her a hard look. "It was only a suggestion." In a swift movement, he'd slit open his wrist once more with the knife. Dropping the knife to the ground, he held out his wrist for her. "Well," he said expectantly, "Are you going to drink?"

AJ swallowed hard before stepping closer to him. Her eyes met his once more as she took his arm in her hands. She closed them when she dipped her head down, and her lips pressed onto his wrist. His blood was warm and sweet; it was like honey, but with a little spark to it. Her tongue slid out over his wrist, gliding over the shallow wound almost seductively. She didn't realize she was doing it; the urge took over her the moment she'd tasted his blood.

Suddenly she jerked back. Her boot caught on a root sticking up out of the ground, and she stumbled backwards. Klaus caught her easily, cradling her gently in his arms. He gave her a questioning look. "What's wrong?"

AJ shook her head, pushing away from him. Her vision had returned to its normal clarity. Raising a hand to her neck, she found that the wound had cleared up. "Nothing," she breathed, "It's nothing."

"It doesn't look like nothing," he observed, his voice insinuating his suspicion.

AJ looked at the ground. "Forget it, okay? Thanks for the blood—I'm healed and all. Now can we just—"she stopped short, her eyes landing on a hybrid bent over on the ground. Without a second thought, she backed up to Klaus.

Sensing her sudden shift in mood, Klaus looked around. The hybrids were all on the ground now, their knees pulled up to their chins as they shivered and convulsed. He knew this was exactly what had happened before Ray had lost his wits. "Bloody hell," he cursed. His arms wrapped around AJ, encircling her. "I'm going to take you back to the truck—"

"No," she protested immediately. "No, I'm not going back." Not when Elena and the others could still be out here. If all the hybrids lost it at once, they'd surely go after fresh blood. And AJ wouldn't be the only one.

"AJ, now is not the time for your feelings of obligation to other people. I'm taking you back to the truck, and you'll wait there for me," Klaus said, and his voice left no room for arguing. AJ could always make room, though.

"Yeah? And do you really think leaving me alone down there is such a great idea? Stefan hasn't returned with Ray, which means Ray is still out there somewhere. As much as I hate to admit this, and I mean really hate to, but I'm safest here. With you."

Klaus stared down at her. "Not now, you aren't," he forced himself to say. Then he picked her up, one arm under her knees and the other supporting her shoulders. AJ pounded her fists against his chest, furious. "Klaus!" she screamed angrily, and then gasped. He was speeding down a trail, on his way back to the truck. The world was a blur, and AJ held onto him tightly, her arms circling his neck, clinging. Vertigo erupted in her stomach, and she pinched her eyes shut. Then everything stopped so abruptly, AJ felt like half of her had been left somewhere else. A door opened. She opened her eyes, dizzy, to see Klaus staring down at her from where she was settled into a leather seat. "Stay here," he said. Then he slammed the car door shut, closing her in.

"Klaus!" she screamed out, putting a hand to the window. But it was useless. He was gone.

AJ had fallen asleep in the truck against her own volition, and woken up to the sounds of the morning birds chirping outside. As she now looked overhead at the purple-pink sky the color of amethyst, a surge of panic washed over her. It'd been hours, and Klaus hadn't come back down to the truck for her. Neither had Stefan. Which meant one of two things: Stefan had been killed, and Klaus had been, too, although he really couldn't die, or something else had gone terribly wrong. Or, perhaps, they'd just forgotten all about her. She presumed that was always a possibility.

But her worry lasted as she trudged up the mountain. She didn't know the exact way back to the campsite—she'd been unconscious most of the time they'd gone up—but she let her instinct guide her. Her thoughts were reeling. Several times she considered just taking the truck and leaving, to go back to Elijah and Elena where she'd be one-hundred percent safe, but in the end she couldn't bring herself to. What'd happened with the hybrids? Did Klaus manage to contain them, or were they running wild through the forest? Would she come across one? Was Stefan okay, and Elijah and Elena? AJ felt like tearing her hair out, but she just took in deep breaths. Everything would be fine, she told herself. It had to be.

Her legs were growing weary, and she wished she had some water. But the smell of smoke made her heartbeat quicken. It had to be from the fire last night—she was close. Picking up her pace, she pushed through foliage, snapping twigs and crunching leaves without much care. She just wanted to see if everything was all right.

She broke through some shrubbery, and found herself back at the campsite. The sun had pulled up farther in the sky, and light now spilled down into it; golden and bright. But as her eyes scanned over the area, she sucked in a silent gasp. The hybrids—or whatever they were supposed to be called—were sprawled all over the place. Some were messes of organs and blood, and others were just mangled bodies. In the center of the clearing, on the bench, sat Klaus. His eyes were as dull as AJ had ever seen them, and his shoulders were drooped.

Stefan, too, walked back into clearing just then. Ray's body was perched over his shoulders, and he bent and threw it to the ground. It landed with a sick and hollow thunk. Stefan kneeled over, holding onto the bite wound on his arm. He grunted in pain. There was a long silence. AJ knew Klaus was aware of their presence, and when he finally chose to speak, she held her breath.

"They went rabid," he said detachedly. AJ could see right through it. He looked pained; absurdly pained. "Some of them I killed, the others just… bled out." Klaus stood, approaching Stefan; there was a bottle of beer in his hand. He glanced over at AJ. "In the end, they're all dead." His scary calmness shattered in an instant. He turned and chucked the bottle at a tree, breaking it into tiny shards. "I did everything I was told!" he screamed with anguish, making AJ cringe. The veins in his forehead popped out, and he clenched his fists until they were completely white. "I should be able to turn them," he said through clenched teeth. "I broke the curse, I killed a werewolf, I killed a vampire, I killed the doppelganger." Klaus looked up at Stefan suddenly, his expression hard. Stefan pressed his lips together, anxious. "You look like hell," Klaus observed sardonically, his mood changed like flipping a coin.

Stefan was no less tense. "Last I checked, I'm dying," he pointed out carefully. The wound on his arm was nasty; it'd spread since the last time AJ had seen it. It looked veiny and rotting. "You don't want to heal me." Klaus's gaze dropped down to Ray. Stefan looked down reluctantly. "I had to take him out. I had no other choice. I failed you," he stated, looking back at Klaus. "I am sorry. Do what you have to do."

AJ held her breath, and her stomach tightened, staying away from the two vampires. But she didn't want to see Stefan die. After everything else that'd happened, it would be the postage stamp on the letter sending her deep into depression.

Klaus was impassive. "It should have worked," he said simply before turning back around and grabbing an empty beer bottle beside the log bench. He used his fangs to tear open his wrist, and squeezed the blood into the bottle. He stepped towards Stefan again, holding it out. It reminded AJ of the way someone would hold something out as a sign of truce. But this was Klaus. There was no truce to be made with him. "Bottoms up," he said, and all traces of his previous anger had dissipated except for the dark gleam in his eye.

Stefan took the bottle warily.

"We're leaving," Klaus said and turned to walk off towards another path. Before he took even three steps, he stopped again. His eyes roamed over the bodies of the hybrids with a twinge of sadness. He looked like a soldier leaving behind his brothers-in-arms, AJ thought with a bizarre sense of understanding. Then he glanced from Stefan to AJ, guarded and impassive. "It appears you two are the only comrades I have left." He left then, heading off towards the opposite side of the campsite, disappearing behind some foliage. AJ stared after him. The way he'd left tore at her. She could finally see what was wrong.

Stefan stole a sidelong glance at AJ before taking a swig of the bottle. He held out his injured arm, and watched as skin formed on the sides of the gash, filling it in until there was no longer any wound.

"Better?" AJ asked quietly, crossing the small bit of space over to him. She crossed her arms over her chest to fend off the coolness of the morning.

Stefan nodded. "You good?"

AJ blinked at him a moment. It was the first time he'd ever asked her if she was okay, through the whole summer. Like he even cared. "Yeah," she nudged some sticks in the ground with her boot. "I'm fine." She wanted so badly to ask if he'd seen Elijah. Was he okay? Had he actually bothered to come and try to save her? But she couldn't. Not yet.

"About that problem yesterday," Stefan said in a low voice, not meeting her eyes. "It's no longer a problem. I handled it."

AJ searched Stefan's face raptly. He was trying to tell her without actually telling her. So he had the others go home? They were okay? After a moment, AJ nodded. "I see." She glanced off to where Klaus had been, not moments ago. Absentmindedly, her hand found the necklace he'd given her. "Before we leave, I want to talk to him. Give me a minute?"

Stefan nodded. "I was going to head back to the truck. Want me to stick around?"

"No," AJ said confidently, "I'll be fine. You should go back down."

He looked at her, pressing his lips together. "All right."

AJ watched Stefan leave before heading over to Klaus. He hadn't gone to the trail the led back to the truck; he went to the other side that she wasn't very familiar with. She picked her way over corpses and rocks, careful to remain detached about it. But she couldn't help but think how terrible their deaths were.

Ducking under a low branch, AJ stepped onto a large rocky surface. Klaus was here, overlooking the ridge he stood not a foot away from. Below them stretched miles and miles of forest-green tree tops, from pines to other deciduous vegetation. Peaks of the Smoky Mountains rose up beyond them in the distance, only slightly concealed by a fine mist manifested by the cool morning. With the added sunlight, the view was beautiful. She wished she had her sketchbook with her, but that wasn't what she was here for. She turned her attention back to the Original.

Carefully, AJ stepped towards Klaus, nearing the edge of the ridge. He hadn't moved since she arrived.

"Klaus," she said quietly. He still didn't move. But she could see his eyes wandering over the landscape before them. With a frown, she stepped closer. "Klaus, are you okay?"

His expression broke when he laughed without humor. He continued to keep his eyes on the tree-tops; anything so that he wouldn't have to look at her. "Okay? Am I okay? What a curious question you ask."

AJ blinked at him with confusion. "I don't think it's ridiculous to ask if you're okay. After what happened—"

"What happened," he interjected in a hard tone, "Is that something went wrong with their transition. I did exactly as I was told to do, and yet it still didn't work. But all problems have solutions. What happened can be fixed."

"Can it?" AJ asked, crossing her arms. "Because I meant that you had to watch other creatures like you die. You had to kill some of them. That is what happened."

Klaus regarded her finally, baffled. "Your point is? I've seen death, AJ. It's not something new to me."

AJ sighed. "My point is that I see it, Klaus. I see you. However strange that is—and believe me, I think it's beyond strange—I see you. Even if you can't properly see yourself."

"I still don't get your point," he said impatiently, looking away from her again.

AJ pressed her lips together, moving to stand in front of him. A surge of vertigo went through her stomach; her back was to the edge of the ridge, and it was a very steep drop down. Despite her uneasiness, she pointedly locked her gaze on him. He rolled his eyes and looked at her, annoyed. "What with your occasional clumsiness," Klaus began, "I would highly recommend not standing there. Wouldn't want you to fall." He smirked.

"No," she said confidently, "You wouldn't. You wouldn't let me fall, would you?"

Klaus's smirk fell into a glare. "Once again, I do not get what you're trying to say. You change the subject all too easily."

"Klaus, stop it. Stop pretending not to understand, or just not trying to understand. Because I do. I understand, perfectly."

He raised an eyebrow. "And just what do you think you understand? That your presence is rather annoying at the moment? I'd very much appreciate being left to my own company, thank you."

"No," AJ shook her head, her gaze intense. "I don't think so. I understand that what happened last night was hard for you, whether you choose to accept that or not. You finally created hybrids. You finally created other people like you. You weren't alone anymore; you weren't the only species of your kind. You weren't alone."

Klaus's mouth hardened into a fine line, and his eyes were dark. "You truly don't know what you're talking about. Stefan said he was going back to the truck. I advise you to do the same. I'll be there in five minutes."

AJ groaned in annoyance. "Why won't you listen to me? I'm trying to get through to you, Klaus. I'm trying to get you to see that I get it now. Why are you just pushing me away?"

Klaus closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, breathing. Behind him, a faint breeze rustled the leaves in the canopy and shrubs. She shivered involuntarily. "AJ," he said in a light warning tone, "Do not test me. Not now."

"Because you already feel like hell, don't you?" she pressed. "Because you feel alone? I'm not trying to upset you; I'm trying to talk to you."

"Why?" he asked harshly, his eyes ablaze with fire. "Why even bother? I disgust you. I'm a monster. A sick thing that isn't meant to exist, as you said in your own words."

AJ shook her head slowly, looking at him sadly. "No, Klaus. I didn't mean it. I was frustrated back at the bar, that's all. And I don't think you're a monster—not all the time. You gave me this, didn't you?" She fingered the necklace at the base of her throat. "And you killed the hybrid that tried to kill me. And I bet," she said, taking tiny steps back even as her brain told her to do just the opposite, "You wouldn't let me fall from here, either. Because you do care."

"AJ," Klaus said through clenched teeth, "Stop. Do not be stupid."

AJ looked up at him, eyes clear, unmasked and unguarded. Her stomach gave twists and wiggles of nerves. She could feel the wind on her back, shifting her slightly. "I'm not being stupid," she said as she continued to back up. She stopped when she felt the back of her boots breach the edge of the ridge, and she quickly shifted her weight to her toes. Butterflies suffused through her stomach. "You are. You aren't listening to me, so I'm just getting your attention and proving a point at the same time."

He glared at her with extreme intensity. Panic washed over her. Was she being stupid to believe that he'd care or not whether she fell? Had he gotten fed up with saving her and this was the last straw? AJ closed her eyes. She guessed she'd just have to find out.

Before she could even step back, Klaus had roughly pulled her away from the edge. AJ opened her eyes in shock, stumbling into him. She smiled when she realized what he'd done. But it slowly diminished as she took in his furious expression. She took a step back, safe because they were now several feet away from the edge.

"I swear you have a death wish," Klaus spat, glaring at her, "It's either that, or you're testing your own mortality. I feel I must inform you that, yes, should you fall from a cliff, you will in fact die."

AJ's smile reappeared, but it was small. "You're choosing not to see it again; not to recognize it. But you care, Klaus. Not just about me, but about them. Those hybrids. Do you know why?"

He rolled his eyes. "Please, do grace me with your great wisdom."

"Because," her smile took on a twinge of sadness. "You feel alone, like I've said. Having the other hybrids—it was like maybe they could understand you, wasn't it?"

Klaus rubbed at his eyes, now completely annoyed. "What makes you think so? What makes you think you have the slightest idea of what's going on? No, I don't care for them. I don't care for you. I might be the only living thing of my kind, but I am stronger for that. You see things wrong."

"I don't think I do," she said quietly. "And even though you say you don't care—not about them or me—I'm going to tell you."

"Bloody fantastic," Klaus muttered.

AJ ignored the side comment. "Ever since the very first day I met Elijah, the day Rose and Trevor kidnapped me and I found out I was the Warrior, I have never felt so alone. I mean, I have. I've always been different from everyone else. I never see things the same way as other people do. No matter how many friends I have, I usually wind up alone anyway. But it was all very clear when Rose told me what I was. It was very clear, and very depressing. I hate knowing that there isn't anyone living who is like me. All the others are dead; long dead. And from what you and Elijah have told me, I'm not like them anyway. So in the barest sense of the word, I am alone. Like you. There isn't anyone else in existence like us. We might wish there was, just to have someone to relate to, so that we wouldn't feel so isolated from everyone else, but I've realized that I'm also glad it's just me. I wouldn't want to make anyone else suffer with what I've been through. I—"

"Stop," Klaus demanded, holding a hand up. He was as impassive as ever. "Just stop. This 'we'—there is no we. I do not feel whatever you do. I am an Original—I do not feel. So stop trying appeal to whatever it is you think I have inside me. Because I don't have it."

AJ stared at him, biting her lip. This was it. This was her chance to finally get through to him. But she was treading dangerous waters, and she knew it. She also knew that Elijah may not be very happy about this. But he wasn't here. Not now. And she could finally see the cracks in Klaus's nearly perfect composure. "But you do," she said quietly, stepping closer to him. Her eyes were glued to the ground, now, and she could feel her heartbeat quicken. "I know that you do. You feel things, Klaus. So stop pretending you don't. I remember back in Mystic falls, when you kissed me, and—"

"And nothing, AJ," he said harshly. "That was when I had to break the curse, and you would have been the easiest way to do that. The kiss meant nothing, and you're ridiculous to think otherwise."

"Klaus," she stressed his name, frowning at him. "Stop it. Just stop trying to keep the act up—the 'I'm a heartless hybrid, uncaring for anything and anyone,'" she spat. "I am trying to get through to you."

He scowled at her. "What does it matter? It makes no difference either way."

AJ looked up at him, and for the first time, she felt like she was seeing him entirely. She could see his beauty, the way she'd seen it back in the bar. She could see the tragedy, too. His eyes were once more dull, and he was frowning. He looked away from her, weary. But that wasn't all she could see. Slowly, she reached out and put her hand over his. It was warm and rough, but soft and smooth at the same time. Quickly, he looked back down at her.

"What—"

"Klaus," she said, "You and I, albeit extremely different, have our similarities. And you not trusting anyone—that's probably the worst thing, besides being isolated. Because you're isolating yourself. So… I guess I'm just trying to say that you can. Trust me, I mean."

Klaus stared down at her, all of his walls built high up. A silence came over them, and AJ pressed her lips together with nerves. Her hand was still on his, and it warmed her from the cool breeze. She could hear her heart pounding hard in her ears. A blush creeped onto her face; she knew he could hear it, too.

Suddenly, he shifted, his gaze dropping to their hands. Slowly, he turned his over and intertwined his fingers with hers. His touch was gentle and soft. He shook his head. "I want to trust you," he said in a low voice. "But I don't know if I can."

AJ studied his face. His walls were partly down, and she could see how torn he looked. It wouldn't take too much convincing. He needed this. "Klaus," she said quietly, "You can. I'm not asking you to change your plans or anything like that. I'm not trying to change you. I'm simply asking that you trust me. That's all."

He raised his eyes, searching her hazel ones for any signs of treachery. He sighed. "If I trust you, will you trust me?"

AJ was taken by surprise. "I—yes," she said, much to her own bewilderment. "Yes, I will. Because if you can try to trust me, then I can try to trust you."

Klaus nodded. There was a frown on his face. "Then are you willing to hear me out? About my brother, I mean."

AJ swallowed hard. Her heart began to beat rapidly again. She looked off to the side, studying the wildflowers growing in a small grove a couple feet away. She wasn't sure if she could hear him out. Wouldn't he be lying? But wasn't she supposed to trust that he wasn't? She closed her eyes. Her head swam with conflicting thoughts. But—couldn't she hear him out and pretend to trust him, anyway? That was the point, wasn't it? Something about that didn't feel right to her. And yet, she would have to go with it. Meeting his eyes again, she breathed in and out steadily. "Okay," she said with a tinge of reluctance. "I'll hear you out."

He released his hand from hers, and for a moment her hope sank. But he was pulling something out of his back pocket. His face regained its usual impassiveness, but AJ wasn't sure why. She held her breath.

"I do not deny killing the majority of my family because of conflicting… perspectives," Klaus began, keeping the piece of paper hidden in his hands. He was staring down at it though, as if it saddened him greatly. "But with Elijah, things were different. He had been by my side for centuries—I trusted him to be there for centuries more. To help me break the curse. But then Katerina escaped, and he couldn't bring her back because she'd made the transition into a vampire. My attempt to break the curse had been riddled, and Elijah was gone. Grief for the loss of our family overtook him, I suppose. And he was angry with me. I had threatened him… anyway, that doesn't matter now. Then this year, rumors of another doppelganger as well as a Warrior surface. It couldn't be coincidence that both rumors surfaced at the same time. So I prepared, sending out factions of compelled vampires to look into different areas for me. All the while, Elijah had already been with you. Yes, Rose and Trevor had taken you to him, but I believe he would have found you by other means without their help."

AJ was growing increasingly confused. "I'm not really understanding what you want me to get…"

Klaus nodded solemnly, expecting this. He held up the paper now, turning it so that AJ could see it. "Is this familiar to you?" he asked, tapping the paper with a finger. There was a picture in the middle.

AJ was wary. "Klaus, if this is one of your victims, I swear—"

"No," he said sadly. "Not one of mine. One of Elijah's. Please—just look."

AJ looked at him with confusion, but did as he asked. She examined it like it was a piece of evidence at a crime scene. It was regular white paper that could be printed off a computer, and she suspected that was what happened in this case. It'd been folded several times, and the creases ran deep as if he'd held onto it for quite a while. At the top of the paper in heavy black ink were the words MISSING. In the very middle was a picture of a girl. AJ cocked her head to the side, squinting at the picture. The girl had dark brown hair, pretty eyes, and a bright smile. She was holding a stuffed animal of some kind—it was too dark to make it out. There was information below the picture. From what she gathered from it, the girl had been eight years old when she'd gone missing, and she'd lived in Illinois. The little girl's name was Alexandra Jaeger.

She looked back up at Klaus questioningly. "Who is Alexandra Jaeger? Klaus—I don't get it."

The way he was looking at her could only be described as remorseful. Remorseful and Klaus never ever went hand in hand. An uneasy feeling blossomed in her stomach. "A J," he said the letters separately, his voice gruff, "Alexandra Jaeger—it's you. You're Elijah's victim."

A/N: So I totally wrote the whole 'Klaus, you feel alone' thing before that episode that revealed that aired. Weird? I think so. But cool? Yes. Anyway, please give me your thoughts! (-: