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IX

Marcel did as Caroline asked and when he heard the sheriff was soundly asleep in her bedroom he knocked the front door softly knowing Caroline would be able to hear with her heightened senses.

It didn't take more than a couple of seconds for the door in front of him to open.

"Thank you for coming," she offered with a small smile, and he nodded, already seeing the small envelope in her hands.

"Could you find a way to give it to him, please?" she asked handing the letter to Marcel who looked at the words written in the envelope and frowned.

"I'm not sure I'm allowed to do that," he answered, but still he took it.

"Please," she begged and he sighed. He didn't know what Klaus thought of it. When the hybrid sent one of his minions to give him the letter he was supposed to deliver to Caroline, there was never any word about her ability to send anything back. Nobody knew why Klaus chose to write a letter instead of calling or even coming as he did the last time she needed him. But at the same time Klaus never said she wasn't allowed to communicate, and if she really wanted, she didn't need Marcel to make sure the letter would reach its destiny.

"Caroline, I'm here to assure your safety…" he started, but she interrupted him.

"And if he agrees with what is in the letter you won't be needed anymore, at least not here,"

"I'd have to ask…" he said, but once again she cut him off.

"Nobody can know about it, Marcel. Make sure one of your trusted people deliver it in his hands," she asked, her eyes pleading him to do as she asked.

"I would have to know your plan if I'm not allowed to tell anyone and see if it doesn't go against whatever Klaus has in mind," Marcel explained, his loyalty to his mentor screaming at him as if he was sired to Klaus, although the former slave wasn't. But he would be forever grateful – and loyal – to Klaus rescuing him from being just some rat in the streets in the unforgiving south centuries ago.

"My plan is very simple actually," she sighed tiredly, as he looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to continue.

"I'm going to New Orleans,"

Klaus felt like he was going insane.

He had his hands full with the witches that kept threatening him and his kingdom in New Orleans and other very inconvenient nonsense issues, but what was draining him was Caroline. More so his feelings for her. Not only he had to deal with them being unrequited, with the weight of his decision to keep his distance when he dared to have a glimpse of hope, but he also had to deal with her pain. It didn't seem like they were going to have a break any time soon.

There were many problems at once in New Orleans; still none of them took his peace away as the pain Caroline was going through.

He couldn't help, but feel fooled by Bonnie. He should have known the suicidal tendencies pertained to that group of people that were so willing to give their lives for the benefit of the ones they loved. He should have known sooner or later any of them would take that route because it was a route he could see himself taking if it meant Caroline was safe, sound and happy.

There was nothing he wouldn't do for her and he hated it. He didn't fight his father, mother and every other creature that tried to bring him down for him to simply choose to die if he had do just to make a girl happy. A baby vampire nonetheless. A part of him still fought his love for her, even if that part was small and only getting smaller as days passed. But still it was there and it only made his emotional battle even harder to fight.

He painted a lot these days. He tried to use his talent to release and relieve the emotions that were creating havoc in his normally composed life. Nothing ever affected Niklaus Mikaelson, not anymore, he didn't allow it. He buried all his pain and feelings about being rejected since his first breath. Way before Mikael even dreamed of knowing Klaus wasn't actually his son, his father despised him. The Mikaelson patriarch wasn't one to show love to his children while violence was present much more often, but still he treated Klaus much worse than his siblings even before he knew the blue-eyed boy wasn't his legitimate son. With the others Mikael actually needed an excuse to be rough. He punished them when they did what they weren't supposed to do. But with Klaus it was never like that. He didn't punish Klaus for the bad. He punished Klaus for anything, even the most innocent things.

When he turned the rejection was only heightened, and it only became worse when he turned into a werewolf for the first time. That was when the rejection turned into hate and his father's quest for his death started. His mother – who at least seemed more welcoming while they were still human – casted a curse on him, preventing him from being who he really was.

For everyone who ever crossed path with him, Klaus' obsession in breaking the curse was only about power and pride, but it was much more than that. Even after he turned into a vampire, his werewolf nature was the biggest part of him, the true part of him. And his mother's spell made him fated his true self to live cloistered behind the bars of magic for over a thousand years. It was suffocating and all consuming. It was like never being free, never being himself, never being true. He couldn't explain, but the moment he broke the curse, only a year ago he felt like he was breathing for the first time in so many centuries. He felt like his heart wasn't being held back, prevented from beating. He felt like he finally found himself. His search was done, but not only his search for power and control, but his search for himself.

And maybe that played a part in his newly found emotions more than he had initially given credit for. Werewolves were passionate creatures with deep sense of belonging, loyalty, and love. The love of a werewolf couldn't be compared to any other and it would always start with its family, then its pack and last, but not least its mate. That was why killing his hybrids in that ominous night had been so hard on him. Even if he treated his hybrids as his mere slaves and minions, even if he never showed much attachment to them as individuals, killing them was like killing a part of himself. That was also the reason that made him come from Chicago to Mystic Falls when he learned there was a hunter threatening Tyler's life. His first hybrid had long ago broken the sire bond and showed Klaus nothing but hate and contempt, but still the Original was drawn, even bound to Tyler's life and couldn't stop himself from making sure his hybrid was well protected and safe.

And then he found himself in a position where not only he was going to lose the remaining of his pack, but had to do it himself. It pained him, it nearly destroyed him, but he had been working on his cold, dark, unattached persona for too long for it to simply submit to his now dominant side. One year was nothing compared to a thousand and he still had a long way to go.

But now the gate holding back his emotions was open and the battle between his werewolf side and his persona felt like a catalyst and Caroline only made it much more overwhelming and difficult. There was no stop, no slowing down. He had completely lost control and that was the hardest thing for Klaus to deal with. The only reason why he had survived for so long running from his own father. The only reason why he had overcome all death and gory caused by his own hands. The only reason why he was not only standing, but also the most powerful creature in the world was the control he had over every situation.

The control that allowed him to be several steps ahead of his enemies. The control that allowed him not to care, not to regret, not to look back. The control that made him have his way no matter how long it took. The control he only lost in extreme cases when his impulsiveness took over and turned him into a savage, but even in that situation the beast inside him didn't do what he wouldn't have approved. But his beloved control that was now escaping through his fingers.

And the lack of control made him respond even worse to all changes in his life. Especially when it came to Caroline.

That was why Bonnie's death had such an impact in his life. In other times he would have seen it coming. In other times he would have been a step ahead, preventing things from taking a turn for the worse.

Not only the feeling of being powerless in that situation ate him from the inside, but the pain caused by her pain did so as well.

Her heart was broken and his had been shattered because of it. He broke everything in the den when Marcel informed him about the witch's death. He didn't need his mentee to tell him how Caroline was – although he knew Marcel was toning it down for him – he knew it. He could imagine – almost feel – her pain and desperation for her lost friend. He could imagine how it was consuming her, extinguishing her light, turning her life bitter, her laughter inexistent, her strength useless. He knew that everything that made her who she was, that made him fall for her was engulfed by pain and grief leading the things he cherished about her to just fade in the middle of the darkness of loss. He had been engulfed by it too many times not to know exactly how it worked, even in a creature of light like Caroline.

But he also knew she would recover. He knew she would overcome it and raise her head, for the next clash, the following battle, the unavoidable collision. Reality's collision. She would succeed where he failed completely.

Living forever was a blessing paved with inherent torment. Immortality in a world like the one they lived meant endless fighting, nonstop threats and permanent and constant losses. Because although they couldn't be die naturally nothing really lasted forever, even if he was challenging that notion more now than ever. And he needed to remind her – so young, so naïve and so inexperienced – who she was and how she was going to rise from it all. He knew a fighter when he saw one. Perks of living for so long and Caroline was more than a fighter, she was a survivor that would probably outlive them all.

And reminding her of her full potential, letting her know things she may not be aware yet - but that he saw coming the moment he started to get to know her - he was also reminded of his own battles. And how challenging they were.

Elijah had brought one of the witches he trusted all way from Peru to cast a spell in their house to prevent the resident witches to go on a rampage against him. He didn't know what their plan was, but he knew they were gathering around, creating a covenant and Sophie didn't hide that they were going to resist his ruling. He had great plans for New Orleans now that his plans in Mystic Falls regarding one of its inhabitants proved to be unattainable. He had to focus his forces and energy into something else, into something emotionless because the turmoil of emotions going inside him was literally driving him insane.

So he spent days thinking of how he wanted the supernatural community to be in New Orleans. He was now a hybrid, a natural leader for both vampires and werewolves, even more so than he had been in the two centuries he reigned there before. He knew the species were natural enemies and could be lethal to one another and while Klaus was no pacificator, he wanted to resume his position as their leader. By force if he needed to.

He had expected resistance from vampires and werewolves, especially the latter, but he didn't see the witches playing against his plans. He had always had a good relationship with his witches. Whether by threatening or alluring them, it didn't matter; there had been few witches that had caused him problems in the past. He normally bargained with them, offering the protection they knew only someone like him could offer. The ones who resisted, he charmed, and the ones that failed to be charmed met the side of him they had only heard as bedtime stories.

So he was more than surprised – and annoyed – when the special gifted humans resisted his claim as the king of New Orleans when he explained what his plans were. He wanted freedom; he wanted the supernatural world to impose itself over the human population. He wanted vampires to freely feed on people in exchanging to keeping the human deaths to a minimum. He wanted werewolves to roam free in the full moon, living up their potential, embracing their true nature, being the predators they were. He wanted the ancient clans that abandoned the city to come back without fearing the now more numerous vampire population. He was offering the wolves protection from the vampires when they were vulnerable in their human form. He was offering vampires the protection from the eventual werewolf bite during full moons. A king needed his vassals and Klaus wanted everything that came with the title.

"Niklaus," Elijah approached his brother in his studio.

"Were you able to do what I asked?" the hybrid asked without looking from the painting in front of him.

"Yes,"

"Did you track all of them?"

"As much as I could as you didn't even remember their names,"

"I needed one thing alone from them, Elijah, knowing their names wasn't it," Klaus answered impatiently.

"You will have to pardon me if I couldn't find all of them," Elijah offered with a stern expression.

"Can't your witch make a spell and assure all of them are gone?"

"It would draw the attention from the local witches,"

"And why would I care, brother?" Klaus challenged his brother.

"Because they could think of it as a weakness and use it against you,"

"I don't care about those girls and I definitely don't care about whatever they could bear. If the witches find them and kill them, it would be a blessing in disguise,"

"So you have nothing to fear, brother," the oldest Mikaelson offered bitterly.

Before Klaus could say another thing, one of his minions entered the room, excusing himself for the interruption.

"It has just arrived, Lord Mikaelson," the young vampire handled the letter to the original that thanked him.

He opened the envelope carefully and started to read the small letter, while his brother observed him from some distance.

"I suppose that's all, brother," he announced after folding the letter and putting it away in the inside pocket of his jacket.

"I suppose that is," the other Original agreed.

He read the words over and over again thinking of what to make of them. For the first time in a long time he wasn't sure of which way to go. He could deny her, he should deny her. New Orleans was a dangerous place right now, especially for a baby vampire like Caroline and his first concern when it came to her was her safety. If anything happened to her he knew he wouldn't make it. He would die protecting that girl because she was probably his only chance of salvation.

I started this letter so many times, in so many different ways. Justifying why I was going there, why there, why now, apologizing for it, but all those things don't matter to me in the end, so even if I say I'm sorry, I'm not, so I'm not going to pretend to be. I'm done pretending, I'm done ignoring what's inside me. My nature, my feelings, my desires. I can't continue to deny them anymore.

There's nothing left for me in Mystic Falls. There is no threat here and my mother is going to be safe – although I wouldn't mind if you assured that. Silas is how a stone statue, dropped somewhere in the ocean, but this place… it's not enough for me anymore.

The problem is I didn't apply to any colleges in New Orleans, but I don't mind getting into Tulane through compulsion. I will never lose my humanity and I will fight for it until the end, but I can't keep fighting my nature either and I would feel safer and more comfortable if I were to be guided by you. My emotions… I don't even know where I stand and before I finally acknowledge and address what has been growing within me for so long, I need to find peace with myself and what I am, I need to grieve my losses, to put the pieces together until I finally resurface. My spirit may still be unbroken, but everything else is shattered in more pieces I could care to count. There's no more strength left in me. I need a new start, I need to face the life I'm going to live forever, but right now I can't do it by myself… I shouldn't ask for your help, you owe me nothing, but New Orleans is where I should be now, it's where I WANT to be now. I don't know how to reconcile myself with that idea, but I know if there's someone that could help me through it, to help me understand everything that a decision like this could entail, that's you.

There's so much art, music, culture I want to see and there's only one person I believe could show me those things, or maybe the only one I want to show me. But I don't how to get from where I am now to the place where I'm ready to do those things. I don't know what to expect along with those things. I don't know the man that expects me and I need your help with both things.

Either way, I'm leaving to New Orleans tomorrow, but I hope you'll help me and prove me I'm right about the idea I have of you.

Hopefully we'll meet soon.

Caroline

Debating with himself a little longer he weighed the pros and the cons. He could say no, but would that stop her from coming? She could compel her way through Tulane all by herself, she could buy the tickets, and find her place in New Orleans and never cross ways with him. Or he could help her through it all. Keeping his distance, but providing everything she needed to be safe and to reach whatever it was she wanted. And he hoped that place was the Mikaelson manor as more than a guest. She was the key, she was the one that could change it all, she was his last hope. She could fix what he couldn't. She could put together what nobody else could. And that was worth risking everything.

Taking his phone from the nearby nightstand he dialed the numbers he needed to.

"Marcel, how are you today?" he asked politely.

"I've got the letter. I want you to do as the girl requested, but I don't want you to bring her to the manor," he instructed.

"She's going to live with a human and everything she needs to start at Tulane on Monday is going to be taken care of," he completed.

"No, no one can know her whereabouts. I want you to leave your best men behind to protect her mother and friends and you're going to come back here. We need you here,"

"Thank you, I'll be waiting for you tomorrow. I'll send you a message with the address where you're supposed to take her," he offered before ending the call.

"I hope this isn't the worst decision of my life," he sighed tiredly as he felt that although he was doing the right thing he was also bringing Caroline to the lion's den.

AN.: I've been wanting to write a Klaus' centric chapter for a while now. I think he's a fascinating character and to dessicate all those layers, to look inside his brain, his heart, his soul is always a pleasurable trip for me. So Caroline is going to New Orleans, but not to Klaus. It's one step ahead the right direction?

Thanks a lot for all reviews I've got. You guys are amazing. And for those I can't answer through PM's there it goes the answers to your questions.

Guest: I don't have plans to watch TVD next season, but I said I would watch season 4 and look how well that worked for me :P I don't ship DE in the show anymore, but I'm still a huge Damon fan and if they write DE properly I can see myself being a shipper again. I'll start a new canon story following this one where I plan to have DE as a couple, but I won't focus on them.

Justine: a chapter that touches the readers is always a great chapter imo, so I'm happy last chapter touched you. Hayley won't make another appearance in this story, so don't worry about her. And Caroline won't lose her humanity. First because she's still fighting to keep it, and second because Klaus won't allow it to happen. He won't allow her to break to that point. He'll save her before it happens.

kacomu: Klaus never slept with Hayley in this story, but he slept with a lot of girls in the first month when he was back in NO as an attempt to forget Caroline. He failed miserably.

Have a nice weekend!