A/N: I love all the enthusiasm I've been getting from the reviews lately. I appreciate everyone who takes the time to read and review. You're fantastic!
This is probably a much anticipated chapter, so I hope I haven't let you down. I've been working like mad the past couple of days to get it out. I'm not sure I'm 100% satisfied with it, but I think it's time for me to move on. With that said, please skip over any spelling or grammatical issues.
Please enjoy and I strongly encourage you to leave me your thoughts! :)
The drive to the Founder's Hall had been an awkward one. Matt had barely said two words to her, but had kept exchanging knowing glances between her and Tyler. Tyler was obviously not himself. Klaus was caught off guard by her last words to him. Elena was trying to act as normal as she possibly could. Needless to say she was eager to get out of that car even despite the beginnings of rain outside.
Ever the gentleman, Tyler – or Klaus – lent her his jacket to cover her head. The thought of bringing an umbrella had never crossed her mind as they all left her house. Elena, however, had planned ahead and was shielding both her and Matt under a large white umbrella.
By the time they stepped inside, Tyler – Klaus – was soaked and so was his jacket.
Mrs. Lockwood was in the foyer of the Founder's Hall pleasantly greeting all the attendees with a glass of champagne in her hand. When she spotted the two of them, her eyes dug into Tyler – or Klaus. She was obviously displeased with the disregard he had given to the outfit she had purchased for him. She flagged him down, signalling for him to come over.
He gave her a slight eye roll before leaving her, Elena, and Matt.
As she took in the sight of the decorated Founder's Hall, she straightened out her Miss Mystic sash. The mansion was beautifully decorated with fresh flowers, linens, and candles, while soft music could be heard in the background. Surprisingly this was one of the simpler events in Mystic Falls. It was a dinner for all of the nominated Miss Mystic hopefuls and the town's benefactors. The dinner would be held and the top five Miss Mystic nominees announced. An auction would follow to raise money for the event, as well as all other Founder's activities. It was basically a night of building egos and tearing some down; an excuse for the girls to flaunt their social status and an excuse for the town's benefactors to flaunt their money. She had been so obsessed with winning the competition last year that she hadn't stopped to consider how futile it really was. Of course, nothing like that would come up in her motivational speech tonight, but that's how she felt now as she looked around at all the guests who were all staring back at her.
"Bonnie's here, she just texted me," Elena announced. "She doesn't have an umbrella and since I'm the only person who brought one, I'll go meet her," she said.
"Are you sure? I can go," Matt offered, clearly as an attempt not to be left alone with her.
Elena protested.
"I'll be right back," she assured the two of them before slipping through the people back to the front entrance.
She looked around aimlessly beside Matt searching for something to say to him.
"Have you told him yet?" Matt asked bluntly, his focus pointed directly towards "Tyler" and his mom.
"No," she answered.
She could see Matt shoot her a look of disapproval from the corner of her eye.
"Not for the reasons you think," she said finally.
He looked at her curiously.
"I'm going to tell him later tonight. You can hold me to that," she added, hoping this would be enough for Matt.
He seemed to accept her plan. He even seemed a little surprised that she would finally be coming clean.
"Thank you," she said.
"For what?" he asked confused.
She shrugged.
"You didn't have to keep my secrets. I appreciate you letting me be honest on my own time," she explained.
He nodded.
She was about to ask him how he was doing, but Elena rejoined them with Bonnie.
"Hey Caroline," Bonnie greeted her.
"Hey!" she replied, practicing her fake enthusiasm as she brought her friend into a hug.
She noticed a very bored-looking "Tyler" was still occupied by his mother and an older gentleman as she looked over Bonnie's shoulder.
"So I think Matt and I are going to find our table. Meet us when you're ready Bonnie," Elena cut in.
Both she and Bonnie nodded.
"Good luck Caroline," Elena told her as Matt led her in the direction of the large dining room.
"Are you nervous about tonight?" Bonnie asked her as they combed over the refreshments table.
She tensed. Was she referring to the spell or to both the spell and her relationship with Klaus? What did she know?
"I trust you," she said simply, hoping that would satisfy Bonnie.
Bonnie looked at her confused.
"Trust me with what?" Bonnie asked.
"The spell," she said under her breath.
Bonnie's eyes widened.
"He told you?" she asked angrily as she glared at her suspiciously.
She nodded.
"Yes, Klaus, told me. He really didn't have a choice after I tried to make a move on him thinking he was Tyler," she confessed. "Thanks for the heads up Bonnie," she said in a light-hearted way to convey that she wasn't that upset about the situation.
Bonnie dropped her head guiltily.
"I'm sorry, but we decided it was best if no one else knew until he was put back in his body. I didn't expect he would be in Tyler's body this long," Bonnie admitted.
"He told me that too," she replied. "Do you think you'll be able to pull this spell off?" she asked.
"I'll have to tap into dark magic again, but it's pretty straight forward," Bonnie explained.
"I suppose the hard part is getting the body without being found out," she concluded, fishing for any details of Klaus and Bonnie's plan.
Bonnie nodded.
"Klaus and I will figure it out," Bonnie told her. "So you're not mad at me for what I did?" Bonnie asked.
She shook her head.
"If you didn't do what you did, Tyler would be dead right now," she reasoned.
Klaus would be dead.
She wanted to tell Bonnie the truth about her feelings, but she wanted to tell Tyler first. Bonnie would discover her true feelings soon.
"But Klaus is still alive because of what I did," Bonnie reminded her.
She shrugged, hoping her fake indifference towards Klaus was convincing.
"It's worth it Bonnie," she told her. "It's worth it if it means that all of the vampires closest to you are safe...and if I have Tyler back," she argued.
"Ahem," a throat cleared from behind them.
They turned around to see Tyler – Klaus – there staring at the both of them.
Judging by the sour look on his face, she knew that he had been standing there longer than she had hoped.
"I thought you were done fooling yourself?" he asked her nonchalantly with an arched eyebrow.
Bonnie looked at both of them quizzically.
"What's he talking about Caroline?" Bonnie asked her.
Her vision blurred as her nerves were on the verge of exploding.
"Nothing of your concern," Klaus interjected. "Come witch, let's go find my body so Caroline can have her precious Tyler back," he said snidely, his eyes piercing hers.
Bonnie's look of confusion remained, but she didn't protest when Klaus took her quickly, but discreetly, by the arm.
She swiftly took one of the wine glasses off of a passing tray, downing the contents behind an artificial plant so no one would notice.
Her fingernails dug hard into the palms of her hands from pure irritation.
How could he almost give her away like that, leaving her completely bewildered and unprepared? How could he be so immature? She was certain she had made her feelings for him clear. He should have known what she said to Bonnie was simply a front.
She sneered as she let her annoyance ruminate within her.
"Caroline, there you are. Mrs. Lockwood is looking for you," Elena said from behind her, provoking her to jump.
"I didn't mean to scare you," Elena laughed as she turned around.
Elena's face fell as she noticed her look of displeasure.
"Caroline, what's wrong?" Elena wondered.
She shrugged.
"Nerves, I suppose," she admitted with a light laugh.
"Nerves? You have nothing to be nervous about," Elijah chimed as he approached the both of them with Rebekah on his arm.
She noticed Elena go frigid immediately.
"Hi," she and Elena said in unison to Elijah while both of them stared daggers at Rebekah.
"You two look delightful this evening," he complimented.
Both she and Elena chuckled embarrassingly as Elijah studied them closely with his eyes.
"Thank you," they replied, again in unison.
"I'm gonna go find Bonnie and Tyler," Elena said self-consciously as she shirked away from Elijah and Rebekah, clearly uncomfortable being around her.
As Elena left, Rebekah scoffed.
"What's her problem? She's acting like somebody killed her," Rebekah smirked.
Before she could respond with a few choice words, Elijah griped his hand around Rebekah's arm.
"This is not the time or place, Rebekah," he hissed.
Rebekah rolled her eyes at Elijah as she pulled her arm from his hold, storming off without another word.
Elijah smiled faintly at her.
"My apologies, Caroline," he said sweetly. "So given that Tyler is here with you, I am going to go out on a limb and assume you haven't told him about my brother yet," he inquired quietly.
She shook her head.
"Tonight after this is over," she told him.
She had told him the night of the nomination party that she would tell Tyler of her relationship with Klaus prior to his death. Elijah still didn't know Klaus was alive. She didn't like lying to him but she was doing it to protect his brother. Surely he would respect that once Klaus's survival was out in the open. In a way she wasn't really lying to Elijah, she would be telling Tyler tonight about Klaus; she was just omitting the context and the circumstances.
Elijah nodded.
"You're doing the right thing," he encouraged her.
"Thanks," she replied. "I should go find Mrs. Lockwood," she said.
"Good luck tonight," he offered, obviously referring both to the Miss Mystic event and Tyler.
She smiled at him appreciatively before leaving to search for Tyler's mom.
The dinner started without any sign of Tyler – Klaus. His seat remained empty throughout the entire meal. His absence had not only been noticed by her. Tyler's mother was also curious to know his whereabouts. She scowled to herself. His absence at dinner was so obvious; he should have joined her for dinner before storming off to get his body back. His lack of presence at the table was causing a scene – something he assured her would not happen tonight. More than annoyed, she was worried. What if the wrong person's red flags were raised and he and Bonnie were discovered?
There were several of those wrong people seated at her table. As Miss Mystic Falls she had the unfortunate pleasure of being seated at the table nearest the makeshift stage with Mrs. Lockwood, an absent Tyler – Klaus, and several prominent members of the town and Council members. While Matt and Elena seemed to be enjoying themselves at a guest table with several other high school classmates, she had to pretend to be entertained by the mindless chatter of egotistical adults who hated her.
As she picked at her food, she could feel their eyes boring down on her in severe judgement. Their whispers about her were deafening and she struggled not to listen in as they wondered if she could eat human food and where she got her blood. They all knew what she was thanks to Alaric. They were only tolerating her now because they believed they had her loyalty; that she had helped slay the strongest vampire turned hybrid in the world to protect the town she called home. If they knew otherwise, they would kill her, which is why she felt like she was sitting on pins and needles as she waited for any sign that the spell had been completed. She was in the centre of the lion's den; if there was a hitch in Klaus and Bonnie's plan, she would be toast.
As dinner came to a close, the rain could be heard hitting the roof and distant growls of thunder were sounding off in the distance. The small band in the corner tried to sustain a peaceful ambience, but the weather was too metaphorical for her to ignore.
If all that wasn't enough, she had been informed by Mrs. Lockwood that she had been entered into the auction to be held after speeches and nominations as a prize to be won. Okay, so she was being a little over-dramatic; the bidder would only receive a dance with her at upcoming Miss Mystic Pageant. Still, she didn't take kindly to her body being volunteered to be won by someone who was more than likely to be an old balding middle-aged man who wanted to brag and who obviously had some perverse fantasy about younger women. Worse, she might not be bid on at all. That was the price she paid for not bringing something in advance to be auctioned off. If anyone should have understood, it was Mrs. Lockwood, who had known how preoccupied she had been. Her resistance was met by a comment from Mrs. Lockwood that she would keep Tyler's jealous tendencies in check at the pageant. That was not reassuring at all.
She had tried to keep her glances out to the main hall as discreet as possible, but her worry grew as time ticked by.
At one point during a speech by a member of the Council and the Miss Mystic Pageant Committee – the speech before her own – Mrs. Lockwood had decided to go searching for Tyler. Thinking on her toes, she devised some bullshit story about her and Tyler getting into a fight in order to explain his absence. Thankfully, his mother backed down and she could breathe again – at least until her speech.
The speech itself didn't really faze her aside from the rattles of thunder that interrupted her occasionally. She knew all the right things to say. It was basically a regurgitation of the words she spilled for the hopeful nominees the other night at the Grill. She talked about growing up in Mystic Falls, she talked about its traditions, she talked about the significance of the Miss Mystic Pageant in the past, present, and future, she discussed what it took to be Miss Mystic, and finally she talked about what the pageant meant to her. The speech took her mind off of what was likely going on in some other part of the building with Klaus and Bonnie. Everyone gave her a round of applause – even Rebekah who was watching her enviously, eyeing her Miss Mystic sash with lust.
Following her speech was Mrs. Lockwood's speech. She tuned most of it out in favour of checking her cell phone under the table for text messages. All of the messages were from Elena wondering where Bonnie and Tyler were, to which she replied her uncertainty. She knew there was the possibility that Elena or Matt would go looking for Tyler and Bonnie, but there was nothing she could do to stop them from across the room. She was hoping the impending final nominee announcement and auction would keep them seated. If that didn't work then she could only pray the spell was almost complete. When she wasn't texting, she was glancing at Matt and Elena's table for Bonnie's return.
She did, however, listen to Mrs. Lockwood's speech just in time for Rebekah's name to be announced as one of the final five in the running for the title of Miss Mystic Falls. She groaned under her breath and made eye contact with Elena who shared her displeased expression.
Rebekah and four other girls joined Mrs. Lockwood on stage to present themselves to the rest of the Miss Mystic Pageant Committee who would ultimately be deciding their fate from this point forward.
As much as it pained her to say it, Rebekah did look good tonight in a Barbie pink strapless dress. She herself had been eyeing that very dress at the boutique downtown the other day when she was shopping for her own dress. She would never tell Rebekah that. She could only wonder what Rebekah's reaction would be later tonight when she discovered that her brother was still alive.
The crowd of guests stood and erupted into applause as louder thunder erupted outside and the lights flickered abruptly. Chills ran down her skin as she shook. Could that be the result of Bonnie's work? Perhaps the witches on the other side were upset with her? She searched around the room, but there was still no sign of Bonnie. She huffed in frustration and fell back down in her chair.
Soon after the nominees were announced the scene was set for the auction. Despite the small size of the town, there were many items to be bid on, ranging from small frivolous items to more expensive ones. There were several old pieces of art. The town's travel agency had supplied two plane tickets to Europe. There was also jewellery to be won and electronic items among the selection. She wouldn't bid on anything, mainly because she could not afford it. She would wait until she was called as a prize, and then she'd stand up from the table like Mrs. Lockwood instructed her to do. Her number was not that far off so she wouldn't have to wait long. If Bonnie had not returned by the time she was bid on, she had decided she would leave then to investigate what was going on. The suspense of waiting was killing her. The weather outside wasn't helping either.
When her number and name were called she stood reluctantly from her seat as Mrs. Lockwood eyed her happily – as if she was her own daughter. She and Mrs. Lockwood had been on uneasy terms since she started dating her son, and now, just as his mother was beginning to accept her, she would ruin it by breaking her son's heart.
The auctioneer specified the nature of the prize before he opened bidding – in case anyone got the wrong idea. It was a single dance at the pageant for a good cause; nothing more. She supposed she could handle a dance with a stranger for charitable purposes.
She stood there anxiously, biting her lip while trying to muster a smile as the bidding opened. It opened at a modest twenty dollars before a few men she had never seen in her life upped it to fifty.
She laughed when Elena bid a hundred – thankful for her attempt to save her from embarrassment. An older man who worked with her mother bid one-hundred and fifty before Elena upped it to two hundred before mouthing apologetically that two hundred was all she had. She actually hoped someone else would bid. She'd feel too guilty knowing that Elena had paid the charity two hundred dollars for her in lieu of her indiscretions with Klaus that she was sure to find out before the actual pageant in a few months time.
Sweat was building on her forehead as the bidding and the storm outside dragged on. This could not be over soon enough. She needed to know what was going on; what was taking them so long.
There was another burst of thunder before one of the Council members who had been staring her down all night from across the table bid five hundred. She gave an uneasy glance in his direction while he smiled cockily back at her. She was startled by Elijah's voice who called out one thousand. Rebekah glared angrily at her brother in response.
She gave him an appreciative smile.
It was then that she noticed three figures at the back of the dining hall staring on with the rest of the crowd. Everyone had been so preoccupied by the bidding they hadn't noticed the new guests. Despite the lighting shining down at her, she could clearly see Bonnie standing with both Klaus and Tyler.
Her breathing hitched with relief, elation, and worry. He had promised her no scenes. Why the hell was he standing out in the open for everyone to see!?
She chewed harder on her lip as bidding continued, following Tyler with her eyes as he followed Bonnie over to Matt and Elena's table.
Both the intimidating man and Elijah bid once more, effectively bringing up the bid to fifteen hundred. Neither had noticed Klaus leaning casually against the arched entranceway. He was staring directly at her but she ignored his gaze – her constant stare would give him away.
Why was he doing this? Why was he being so stupid? She just wanted this auction to be over so she could give him a piece of her mind. Did he not realize how dangerous this place was? If someone recognized him everything would be over for all of them.
Tyler's voice echoed across the room calling out a bid of twenty-five hundred. Her eyes widened and she shifted on her feet uncomfortably. Tyler's mom seemed annoyed by his generous bid, but was clapping and smiling at her son nonetheless.
"Fifty-thousand," his deep accented voice rumbled as lightning flashed, thunder boomed and the electricity went out.
She gasped at the bid, but more at his audacity and the perfect coincidental power-failure that had probably saved their lives.
The power was out before the auctioneer could place the source of the bid, and at that point it was no use since everyone's initial reaction was panic.
Klaus was also out; she saw him dart to one of the exits under the dim hall emergency lighting.
With the absence of electricity effectively putting the auction on hold, she used it to her advantage to slip through the crowd of people, exchanging knowing glances with Elijah as she did so.
She used the dim light offered by the candle-lit centre pieces as her guide through unfamiliar and darkened faces. There was no sign of Matt, Elena, Bonnie, or Tyler, and she was grateful for that. The last thing she needed was to be stopped by them right now.
A few people had now spilled out into the foyer, but they were all too preoccupied by the power-outage to notice her walk past towards the same exit as Klaus.
Once she was out of sight she used her vampire speed to propel herself outside to catch up to him.
Luckily the rain had died down when she made her way to one of the secluded back garden patios.
She could sense that he was here.
The now distant and faint lightning illuminated his figure. He was standing against the stone railing that overlooked more gardens with his back towards her.
He had obviously wanted her to find him. He could have been long gone from here by now if he wanted to.
Bonnie must have brought him body a change of clothes, she thought as she noted the grey pants black button up shirt he was wearing.
He was back...
That realization only sustained the euphoria she felt for so long.
Another sharp groan of thunder reminded her of his most recent beyond irresponsible actions.
She gritted her teeth and exhaled sharply as she pushed herself down the stone steps and charged towards him; her heels tapping angrily against the wet walk-way with every step she took.
He had to know she was there, but he remained still.
She was met with little resistance when she grabbed the damp material of his shirt and tugged him around to face her.
"What the hell were you thinking?! You agreed; no scenes!" she scolded. "Do you know how stupid that was? The whole damn Council was in there; had it not been for that coincidental power outage everyone would have known it was you!" she hissed nearly breaking holes into the fabric of his shirt as her fingers dug into it for dear life.
She was looking at him with utter consternation and fear, waiting impatiently for him to respond.
"Why would you do something like that? Even standing out here is dangerous!" she chided as she shook him. "You just got your body back and now you want to go around playing hide and seek with the Council?" she gasped. "What the hell was that?" she demanded on the verge of tears.
His eyes turned dark as he glowered at her. She shook as the ground shook from the thunder.
"Perhaps you'd like to tell me what the hell your little conversation with Bonnie was about hmm? I thought we weren't fooling ourselves anymore?" he retorted.
She scoffed with a complete frown.
Shaking her head, she laughed to herself as she pushed herself away from him.
"So that's what your stunt in there was about? You were mad so you thought you'd do something reckless?" she mocked. "Was that supposed to be some sort of revenge? Get me back by getting yourself killed? Or getting me killed!?" she exclaimed. "How could you even risk doing something like that to me again?" she cried. "You should trust me enough by now to know that what I said to Bonnie meant nothing," she explained.
Throwing her head back, she stared up at the cloudy night sky. She slowed her breathing and exhaled.
She wiped a few rain drops off her forehead and shrugged as she looked back down at him.
He went to speak, but she interrupted him.
- "I just wanted to tell Tyler before everyone else," she reasoned. "I mean, were you not even listening in Tyler's body when I so much as told 'him' that I love you!?" she wondered expectantly.
He looked like he was at a complete loss of words; utterly taken aback by her outpouring.
"What will it take for you to believe me!?" she implored throwing her hands down against her sides. "I love you," she cried.
His eyes avoided her stare. He wanted to speak; his mouth opened and a few cracks of his voice sounded as he searched for what to say in return.
"Caroline..." he whispered.
Releasing a breath as if he had been holding it in for hours, he sped towards her. Clutching her face in his hands, he kissed her deeply and urgently.
She hesitated at first by trying to pull away, but she couldn't. She didn't want to. Her lips pressed harder against his as if they were magnetized. She had longed to feel his soft lips against hers again.
Rain was hitting her face as it began to come down harder, but she was crying tears of so many emotions that she paid it no mind. Her only focus was the way his lips moved in sync with hers and how he held her against him as though his life depended on it.
He released her only slightly from his grip as their kisses became more sporadic. She opened her eyes to find his still closed; his head tipped against hers. She brought her hands up to his face and traced his cheeks with her fingertips; following the path raindrops had already created. She pressed her lips slowly against his once more, savouring the sensation.
"I'm sorry," he apologized.
She was unable to contain a smile despite how upset she was with him. She kissed him again.
When she opened her eyes this time he was staring fixedly back at her. Her knees went weak.
That was until his eyes darted past her with a look of surprise strewn across them.
Her stomach instantly felt sick as she anticipated something horrible.
He looked back at her carefully.
"Well it looks like you won't have to tell him now," Klaus said.
She froze like a deer in headlights as a throat cleared behind her.
"What the hell is this?" Tyler demanded.
Her worst nightmare was coming true.
She turned around slowly, letting go of Klaus, to face Tyler guiltily.
"Tyler..." she rasped.
The look on Tyler's face said it all. His heart was broken.
"I'm sorry," she said softly.
He shook his head disappointedly.
"I knew it..." he scolded himself.
She winced as she tried to find the next appropriate words to say. There were no right words; only appropriate ones.
Before she could say anything more, to her deep dismay, Matt, Elena, and Bonnie, followed closely by Rebekah and Elijah, found their way to the back garden spot.
Once the rain stopped completely, it was only a matter of time before others – including Council members – would stumble upon them.
They all halted behind Tyler.
All of them aside from Bonnie were stunned to see a very much alive Klaus standing behind her.
"Oh my god," Elena breathed.
"Brother," Elijah gasped.
"Nik," Rebekah choked out.
Rebekah went for Klaus, but Elijah held her back with an arm across her waist as he seemed to realize what they had all interrupted.
The rest of them remained stationary, sensing the obvious tension they had just plowed through and the confrontational stance of her, Tyler, and Klaus; Tyler on one side, Klaus on the other, and her in the middle.
She looked at all their expectant faces and grew self-conscious and light-headed. If she was still human, she probably would have passed out by now.
"Tyler can we go somewhere...and talk?" she requested meekly.
Tyler shrugged and folded his arms.
"Whatever you have to say to me, you can say it to them," he said flatly. "They deserve the truth as much as I do," he added.
"Tyler," she pleaded.
He glared at her coldly, waiting for her to proceed.
She looked helplessly back at Klaus, and then to Matt, Elijah, and Rebekah, who almost appeared sympathetic.
Bonnie and Elena seemed completely perplexed.
"What's Tyler talking about Caroline? What truth?" Elena asked anxiously.
She swallowed hard and looked at Elena apologetically.
"...the truth about Klaus and I," she exhaled.
Both Bonnie and Elena's eyes widened. Tyler's burned with rage.
"You and Klaus?" Bonnie pressed.
She nodded as tears poured rapidly from her eyes.
Elena and Bonnie quickly understood what that meant and their expressions fell even further.
"Tyler, I'm so sorry," she cried. "I didn't mean for it to happen..."
- "But it did," he interjected.
"It did," she acknowledged. "He was there when you were gone; when everyone else was preoccupied with Elena...after my dad died. I thought it was just a one-time mistake...but I couldn't ignore how I felt...about him," she stammered, as she tried to repeat what she had told Klaus as Tyler.
She could see Tyler's jaw clench and his eyes narrow vindictively.
"I-I..." she began to stutter.
"Save it. I don't want to hear anymore," Tyler growled.
She cringed.
"Tyler, please," she begged, as she could tell he was beginning to withdraw.
She wasn't quite sure what she was trying to accomplish. She had hurt him and there was nothing she could do or say to take it back now.
"Come on now Tyler, don't you want to hear the details?" Klaus badgered suggestively.
She glared at Klaus scornfully, chastising him with her eyes for trying to aggravate Tyler.
His words had succeeded.
"You son of a bitch," Tyler growled as he lunged towards Klaus at hybrid speed.
"Tyler!" she shouted, spinning around to see Tyler knock Klaus down against the ground that was teeming with rain water.
Tyler was straddling Klaus with his claws extended against his neck ready to tear at Klaus's flesh.
If Klaus let him, Tyler could have Klaus's head severed from his body in seconds; permanently killing his sire.
"Try it. I dare you," Klaus challenged him.
"Tyler stop!" she pleaded. "Klaus stop him!" she cried as she started for the both of them.
Tyler dug his claws a little deeper into Klaus's neck, drawing blood, but before he could go any further he groaned painfully.
"I can't," he said frustratingly before falling back off of Klaus.
Klaus chuckled as he lifted himself up off the ground.
Her eyes darted between the both of them in confusion. Klaus had done nothing to stop him, what had compelled Tyler to stop?
Tyler himself looked stunned as he retracted his claws and eyed Klaus curiously.
"Perhaps the sire bond is stronger than you think..." Klaus mused. "Or perhaps all your efforts went to waste when Bonnie let me possess your body," he thought aloud.
Elena flashed a sour look in Bonnie's direction, while Tyler seethed.
Klaus dragged his arm against his neck, wiping away the remaining blood covering his now healed wounds.
He regarded her casually.
"Well love, I suppose all the hard work is done. Now all you have to do is choose," he pointed out simply before bolting into the darkness.
Rebekah and Elijah lingered silently for a few moments before speeding off in the direction Klaus had taken.
That couldn't have happened at a better time, as she noticed other guests begin to file out from the Founder's Hall onto the back terrace.
The rain had stopped, but she was nearly soaked from standing out in the spitting rain for so long.
She was now left encircled by Matt, Tyler, Bonnie, and Elena.
"Tyler, are you okay?" she asked, knowing it was foolish of her ask as the question rolled off her tongue.
Tyler scoffed.
"What do you think? Klaus stole my body, he stole my girl...and after all that the sire bond won't let me touch him," he spat. "I'm fine," he remarked sarcastically.
"Tyler, I'm sorry," she apologized again, reaching out to console him.
He backed away from her as though she had some contagious disease.
"Don't touch me," he growled. "Leave me alone," he barked.
She grimaced and lowered her head shamefully.
He paced in front of her agonizingly as if trying to find more to say, before giving up.
"I need to get out of here," he declared forlornly.
He headed back for the Founder's Hall and Matt followed closely behind, to her relief. Tyler would need Matt.
Now she was left with Elena and Bonnie.
Elena was shaking her head in disapproval and disbelief.
"I can't believe this. I can't believe any of this," she said emotionally. "Klaus is alive...I died for nothing," she cried, glaring both at her and Bonnie.
"Don't say that Elena," Bonnie urged.
Elena shrugged.
"It's true," she retorted. "I would still be alive if Rebekah had known Klaus was still alive," Elena explained.
Bonnie now looked just as guilty as she did.
"If Bonnie hadn't acted fast, everyone would be dead; her mom, Stefan, Damon, Tyler, me," she argued.
"Aren't you forgetting Klaus?" Elena said scornfully. "And oh yeah, in addition to all of that, one of my best friends has been sleeping with the guy who is responsible for this whole mess; who tried to kill me, who tried to kill her, who killed Jenna," Elena listed. "So I guess that whole re-con mission you did on Klaus was just an excuse to see him? And when you called Elijah you did it to protect Klaus, not me, right?" Elena finished sarcastically.
She shook her head.
"Elena, I'm sorry. I was trying to protect both of you," she reasoned.
Elena scoffed.
Sure, Elena had every right to be upset at her for how she treated Tyler, but she didn't understand how she could be so unforgiving when it came to Klaus.
"I'm sorry Elena," she repeated. "I know I hurt Tyler. I made a stupid mistake. I know Klaus has hurt you, but I thought you of all people would understand..." she told her.
Elena folded her arms and chuckled in disbelief.
"Understand? How am I supposed to understand your apparent feelings for Klaus?" Elena questioned. "I can't even begin to understand what you see in him."
As much as she didn't feel it was fair after all that had been revealed, Elena's remarks put her on the defensive.
"Then tell me Elena, what do you see in Damon?" she countered.
Elena sighed.
"Caroline, that's different..." Elena argued.
She arched an eyebrow at her friend.
"Is it? Because the last time I checked Damon's killed and attempted to kill a lot of people we care about. Not to mention the fact that he manipulated me, practically raped me, and tried to kill me," she gaped.
"Caroline..." Elena interrupted.
"Damon did all those horrible things, and he did those things to me, and yet I forgave him. And sure, I may root for you and Stefan, but I try so hard to understand and not judge your feelings for Damon, for you, because I'm your friend," she pointed out.
She could sense a look of guilt on Elena's face, but it was quickly wiped away and exchanged for her vampire features.
"Don't ever try to compare Damon to Klaus," Elena hissed.
Both she and Bonnie were stunned by Elena's outburst. It seemed Elena was too, as her vampire features quickly disappeared.
"Elena," she said, trying to calm her down.
Before she could say anything more, Elena disappeared at vampire speed through the trees.
She sighed disappointedly.
It was obvious her words about Damon had impacted Elena. However, they had the opposite effect. Instead of helping Elena to understand, they only served to alienate their friendship further.
She and Bonnie were now the only ones left standing.
Bonnie looked no more happy with her than Elena had, but she sensed Bonnie was more sympathetic.
"I would scold you for lying to me too, but I'm no better. In a way we both betrayed people we care about for Klaus," Bonnie muttered.
"I'm sorry Bonnie," she apologized.
"The only difference is that I betrayed my friends for Klaus to save them, you betrayed your friends for Klaus, for what?" Bonnie asked.
"For love, I suppose," she whispered.
Bonnie shrugged.
"Well I hope it was worth it," she stated bluntly.
She tried to speak, but no words would come out. She was tired of trying to explain herself. No explanations would appease her friends. To them, Klaus was a monster, nothing more, nothing less. It was as though they had completely forgotten about her only truly reprehensible behaviour; cheating on Tyler, and instead chose to focus their contempt on her feelings for Klaus.
Bonnie turned and headed back for the Founder's Hall, leaving her entirely alone.
He watched her silently and intently behind the cover of a few trees as her witch friend left her alone on the patio.
She was all by herself now and he had a perfect shot from where he stood. She had been a part of the original orders: kill Caroline Forbes, Tyler Lockwood, and Elijah and Rebekah Mikaelson.
He had followed her out to the patio discreetly, expecting her to be alone, anticipating an opportunity to shoot her. That was until she led him directly to the very much alive Klaus Mikaelson.
He waited for a few moments, opting to let their apparent confrontation play itself out as he loaded a few more wooden bullets into his gun.
Due to the distance he couldn't hear the words being exchanged, but he did see the kiss they shared.
He was confused at first. He had been told that Caroline Forbes and Tyler Lockwood were romantically involved, but as Tyler interrupted the two with a disgusted look on his face, the circumstances and context of the situation quickly became apparent to him.
He marvelled at his own luck; rounding up three vampires in plain sight.
It was tempting to take a shot, but he knew as soon as he took the first one, the vampires he hadn't hit would be gone before he could take another.
So he decided it best to wait it out.
Soon after Tyler's appearance, several of their human friends had arrived, followed by Rebekah and Elijah Mikaelson.
It frustrated him to no end to see all his targets neatly rounded up for him when there was nothing he could do. He hadn't anticipated a situation like this.
He had planned to take them out one by one when he had them alone, but with Klaus alive, he decided to improvise on the orders the Council had given him.
Klaus was now the priority and Caroline would be the bait he would use to kill him.
With everyone gone now except for Caroline, he checked his gun to ensure it was good to go. Putting himself into position he lifted his gun and prepared to shoot. However, when he looked through the scope on his gun she was gone.
A/N: I've been dying for a Klaroline kiss in the rain, so I decided to give it to myself in my story. I hope you fellow Klaroline fans enjoyed. Sure it's cheesy, but cheese is good in moderation.
Also, I'm sure you can guess who was in the last part of the chapter. Knowing about this Connor character in the summer, I planned on working him into my fic somehow, so here he is.
Expect the next chapter to be from Klaus's point of view (as it stands right now) along with more Klaus and Caroline goodness. :)
As always, I'd love to know what you thought. Review me, please.