The last chapter was kinda short and I don't know about you guys, but there just wasn't enough Klaus/Caroline time. So it's a double update day! You're welcome :) Hope you guys enjoy.

Cheers!

Klaus had spent the better part of an hour beating the living hell out of his hybrid, Annie. After all it was her fault that he was in this fight with Caroline now. Once he felt he had caused a significant amount of pain he left her by the encampment and headed back to his cabin.

Usually torturing an unfortunate subordinate made Klaus feel better, but now he just felt worse. His damn resolve started to waiver. The look in Caroline's eyes when they had argued before was seared into his brain. The way she was trying to look so brave and unaffected by what he said in spite of the fact that tears were welling in her eyes killed him.

He couldn't stand the fact that he had caused her pain. He liked it better when she smiled because of him. He liked their light banter. And yes, he did enjoy sparring with her; she was delightfully fiery after all. But it wasn't as much fun when their words were truly hurtful.

This was one of the rare times when Klaus wished he had someone around that he could talk to. Someone he could trust. He longed for the times when he had Elijah and Rebecca by his side. Or even when he had Stefan as a true friend. Now he only had himself, so he was constantly going around in circles about his feelings.

But wasn't that the point? He could only trust himself. He couldn't trust his own siblings let alone a blonde teenaged vampire. No matter how amazing and beautiful he thought she was. No matter how much more powerful he had felt with her in his arms. The feel of her body in sync with his was even more amazing than when he became a full hybrid.

But no, it didn't matter. He was resolved. From now on he would keep his distance, make sure his doppelganger stayed alive, and see to it that his hybrids found Stefan as soon as possible. Klaus heard his phone go off. He walked over and grabbed it off the bed checking the caller ID first. It was Elena's number. What could the doppelganger possibly be calling him about?

He answered. "Hello?"

"Klaus?" Elena's voice sounded through the receiver.

"The one and only. What can I do for you?"

"There was a council meeting tonight. Caroline and Damon were there. They got ambushed. Caroline was hurt."

Klaus felt the color drain from his face. Caroline was hurt. This time is was real. He was out the door in less than a second and running towards the Salvatore house. He was scared of what he would find when he got there. Certainly she wasn't dead. No Elena would have said that. Right? There were a limited number of ways to kill a vampire. No she couldn't be dead. Please don't let her be dead. He pumped his feet as fast as he could, even his supernatural hybrid speed couldn't get him to Caroline's side fast enough.

Elena met him at the front door.

"Where is she?" He growled. His anger and worry had reached a boiling point on his journey over.

"Look," Elena said, "I don't trust you and whatever is going on with you and Caroline. But she's hurt and I figured she'd probably want you by her side. Here's your chance to prove me wrong."

Klaus just glared at the foolish doppelganger. His nostrils flared impatiently. He didn't need to prove a god damned thing to her. He needed to see Caroline and make sure she was all right before he started ripping people to shreds.

"She's upstairs, in her room."

Klaus flashed up to Caroline's room. He slowly opened the door. There was Caroline tucked into bed resting. She was alive. Klaus felt a fragment of relief wash over him. He quietly entered the room and closed the door behind him. It was dark. The only source of light was from the moon outside. Thanks to his superior vision though, he could still see. He pulled a chair up next to her bedside and looked her over.

She had bandages wrapped around her both her forearms and one across the top of her shoulder. He could see the blood that had soaked through them slightly. There were also dozens of tiny pink cuts all around her face and neck. They were close to being fully healed. Klaus reached out his hand to brush the hair away from her face. Caroline's eyes slowly opened. She looked up at him.

"Hi," she croaked out weakly.

"Hi," Klaus returned with a small smile.

"What are you doing here?"

"Elena called me," he replied his hand was still gently caressing the side of her face with his knuckles "what happened?"

"The usual. Vampire hating council members catch vampires trying to crash their vampire haters meeting," Caroline winced a as she tried to shift, "It was an ambush. We barely made it out of there. Damon and Alaric had to carry me back. It's safe to say no more double agent-ing for Alaric."

Klaus took a deep breath. He traced his fingers down her arm and took her tiny hand in his.

"I'm sorry. I should have been there."

"Why? So you could be hurt too?"

Klaus chuckled. "Those weak humans can't harm me."

"Oh I right I forgot. You're a big bad invincible original hybrid," Caroline jibed playfully.

"That's right," he returned giving her hand a light squeeze.

The two of them just sat there in silence for a while looking into one another's eyes. Klaus was amazed at how all his resolve to leave her behind vanished whenever he was in her presence. Her touch rendered him powerless. The look on her face and seeing her vulnerability made him never want to leave her side again. He felt the fierce need to protect her from any sort of harm.

Caroline gave his hand a weak tug, "This bed is pretty comfy. Care to join me?"

Klaus smirked. He released her hand and stood up to remove his shoes, placing them onto the floor. He walked around to the other side of the bed and climbed in, wrapping one of his strong arms around her waist and gently pulling her back towards his chest so that he was spooning her.

Again it felt so right to have her in his arms. Even more so now that he knew she was safe and he was there to protect her. He buried his face in her hair and inhaled. He loved her sweet smell. The light scent of her perfume filled his nose. He felt her fingers gently stoke the arm he had wrapped around her waist.

"Hey," she said pausing her ministrations, "aren't I supposed to be mad at you about something?" Her tone was light.

"Ah yes. I believe the issue of hybrids was a point of disagreement," he returned playfully.

"Really? Because I thought it was the issue of trust that was being debated."

Oh Caroline, his clever girl. It was now or never. He winced to himself. The point of no return hadn't been when he kissed her or made love to her or even when he rushed to her side tonight. No, the real point was allowing himself to trust her. He took a deep breath and let it out.

"I need them Caroline. I don't want to be the only one of my kind. I don't want to be alone."

He felt Caroline still as she considered his words. He felt nervous. He didn't want to appear weak and he hated feeling vulnerable. After a few moments, she went back to stroking his arm.

"I suppose you'll tell your friends about this," Klaus ventured.

"No, I already told Damon about the hybrids. The rest isn't their business."

Klaus smiled against her hair.

"Besides," she added, "that's how this trust thing works. I don't go blabbing your secrets and you don't go blabbing mine." He couldn't deny that logic. He couldn't think of any secrets that he knew about her, but he was hoping to learn one day soon.

"Although, it would be nice if you let those hybrids go. Teach them some manners and give them back their free will?"

"We'll see," Klaus retorted though he knew the real answer to that. Caroline pinched his arm. He snatched it away for a second before returning it around her side with a light chuckle.

Klaus placed a kissed on top of her head and listened as she fell asleep in his arms.

Alright so we're halfway through this story. Let me know what you think! Also I MAY or MAY NOT be working on another Klaroline story. ;)