First off, I hope I haven't lost any of you and that you're still waiting for updates. I'm so sorry it's taken me so long, I just needed to find some inspiration.

Thanks to my lovelies Mimi and Angel for your awesome help! You guys are the two best betas a girl could ever ask for.

Are you guys not so stoked that tonight is 4x07? Blauuuugghhh! So excited.

Anyway, please enjoy! And as always, let me know what you think at the end, you're reviews are the best!

Chapter 5: Young Guns

Mystic Haven - 1846

He didn't know where he would go. For a fleeting moment he thought about going to Caroline, hiding with her, but he knew that would be the first place his family would look. He also knew that Sheriff Forbes would send him on his way, if not escort him personally back to his Father. Everyone was scared of Mikael they wouldn't want to do anything to get on his bad side, even the Sheriff.

This could be a new game, he thought to himself. One of real life adventure and excitement. He would live the life of an outcast, wander from town to town, steal to live and love every minute of it. His mind raced with possibilities, distracted by the fantasies of new found freedom, when his feet left the ground as a hard shoulder slammed in to his.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?"

Klaus scrambled to his feet. "Elijah?"

"Yes, stupid, now come on, you've got Mother worried sick about you." Elijah grabbed Klaus by the elbow dragging him in the direction he had just come from, as the smaller boy squirmed and clawed for freedom.

"Let go!" He screamed and with one final twist of his arm he loosened his brother's grip only to fall once more.

"Klaus," Elijah huffed.

"NO! Elijah, I can't! You know what he'll do to me," Klaus said with a whimper and drew his knees to his chest, hiding the new formed tears daring to escape. Daring to show his weakness. "I can't go back there."

Elijah sighed. Klaus was right, he knew that he was right. His father's temper would surely befall on the small boy. He dragged his hand through his hair, contemplating his next move. "Well, what do you suppose I do, Klaus? Mother is worried sick about you."

"I don't know, Elijah, but please, please don't make me go back there." Klaus' small wet eyes pleaded with his brother.

"Do you have any idea where you're going to go?"

"I...I was thinking about hitching a ride to the next town and then I wasn't sure..."

"You mean, hiding out in someone's carriage, cause there ain't nobody in this town that's gonna agree to take you away from Mikael," Elijah said assuredly.

Klaus just nodded, suddenly feeling like this wasn't such a great idea after all.

"Well, Klaus, you can't go back but you're gonna have a hell of a time going forward on your own."

Klaus just shrugged his shoulders. "I'll take my chances alone."

"You won't have to," Elijah said and reached his hand down for his brother. "I'm comin' with you."

Klaus blinked the tears away before grabbing his brother's hand and raising back to his feet. "Really?" he sniffed. "You'd leave Mama and...and come with me?"

"Hell, who wants to live in New York anyway?"

"This is gonna break her heart. Oh and poor Rebekah."

"Rebekah will be fine. She's a tough girl, and she has Kol. I'm far more concerned with Mikael breaking your neck."

(***)

Middle of Nowhere

Klaus walked out on to the porch, stretching his young but tired muscles while the cool air of a new day washed over him. Today was a big day. One of thievery and danger, and it was these types of days that made him truly feel like the Outlaw that he was. His target was a large shipment meant for Abilene, KS and come hell or high water he would steal every wretched penny off of that train. Mikael had too much going his way and for far too long. The railroad was continuing its growth across the nation, but at what cost?

Mikael's dirty money was making its way this evening on the 2:40 from New York to Abilene, where it will be handed off to Mayor Lockwood. He knew the Mayor had been taking the money from Mikael, and in return giving him the labor of those poor unfortunate Negros that dared to step foot in to his county. Along with any Apaches, Cherokees or just a down on his luck white man. They were all sent to the mines owned by Mikael or shipped to work on the railroads. Slave labor to mine the very silver that was used to place those men in to slavery.

A vicious circle. And one that had to end.

Klaus is not a good man by any means, he doesn't steal the money to give to the poor, like the tales of Robin Hood and his Merrymen. No, they keep it, they revel in it, spend it like kings. Klaus had done just as horrible or maybe even worse things than Mikael, but he never pretended to be anything other than what he was. A no good, murderin', thief with a soft spot for sleeping blonde beauties.

He could see her, curled up under one of the horse's blankets. Her skin shimmering in the morning sun's rays, her face smudged with the desert grime, and a soft breeze picking up her curls and fluttering them gently across her face. She looked like an angel, an unfortunate angel that was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He still didn't know what to do with her. She couldn't go back, no, she had seen too much and knew too much. And it would be impossible to keep her with them, but he supposed the latter would be a more formidable solution to an otherwise sticky situation.

The fire that burned all night was a pile of embers now and a small stream of black smoke snaked through the air. Klaus watched Caroline, breathing slowly and peacefully. He envied her ability to sleep so soundly; he was not so fortunate. There was always too much on his mind. His next job, his past sins, always keeping him awake. He doesn't remember a night that he didn't wrestle in his sleep, or wake with a start only to grab the knife under his pillow, poised and ready for an invasion. A time or two he almost gutted one of his gang members. They learned very quickly after that not to go anywhere near him when he was sleeping.

Last night, however, her face haunted his dreams. He remembered some things about her from their childhood. The color of her eyes, and the way she smiled. Her hair always felt so soft and he could've listened to her talk all day, and she did too. She always had an opinion, even when he didn't ask for it, but she also spoke kind words, and filled his silence with silly stories on the days he just couldn't bring himself to respond. But those were memories of a child, and the vision in front of him now was a goddess. Long legs, pert breasts, and a mouth that still talked too much, but made him desperate to quiet it with his own.

They had a long day ahead of them, and as much as he wanted to stay and admire the slumberous vision, she had to wake up and face the day with the rest of them. How to wake her was the question. Should he be gentle and sweet or show her the same respect he'd always shown his brothers? Without a second thought, he withdrew his pistol from its holster and with a ring like canon fire, shot it in to the air.

BANG!

Caroline shot out of bed like a fox in a hen house. She scrambled to her feet, trembling in place; her head whipping back and forth with surprising alertness. "What's happening?" she hollered.

Klaus didn't move. His hand lingered in the air, smoke still drifting from the barrel as he waited for her to realize the cause of her alarm. The recognition slowly came to her as her eyes darted between him and his pistol and finally narrowing in to slivers. "Holy buckets, you scared the livin' daylights out of me!" she screamed and balled her hands in to fists and stamped her foot.

He didn't laugh, however the toddler like reaction did have him slightly smiling and shaking his head.

"Is that funny to you? Scaring a defenseless woman like that?" Caroline threw her hands in the air.

"You over slept," was all he said, and if looks could kill, he'd be dead on the spot.

It seemed she wasn't the only one he had startled, "Goddammit, Niklaus! You tryin' to wake the neighbors?" Elijah screamed as he and Kol came rushing over to them, both shirtless and donning smudges of shaving cream on their faces.

He kept his face still, holding back any sign of amusement, "This one's been sleepin' in," he said and nodded in Caroline's direction.

"Yes, well, we didn't see any reason to wake her," Elijah said and wiped his face.

Kol was the first to notice Caroline's uncomfortable situation, and couldn't help to fuel the fire. "See something you like?" Kol taunted her and grazed his hands down his exposed chest.

"Excuse me?" she said, her indignant tone not going unnoticed. She swiftly turned away from them, only to be brought face to face with Klaus. His eyebrows were arched high in question, bringing out the deep set wrinkles in his forehead and the brilliance of his blue eyes. "Well...do you?" he said quietly and only for her to hear.

She rolled her eyes and scoffed at him before storming in the direction his brothers just came from.

"Where are you going?" he hollered after her.

"I assume, by your brothers' lack of decency that there is a watering hole of some kind on the other side of this ridge? I'd like to wash up, if that's okay with you?" she yelled back at him.

He needed to clean up as well, and thought the company of the sassy blonde would do just fine. Last night his thoughts were riddled with her. She was incredible to look at, all fire and brimstone, and he could only imagine how incredible it would be to touch her. To know her. To feel her naked body, flushed with heat and writhing underneath him.

"Make sure to get the place cleaned up. Saddle the horses, get rid of any evidence that we were here." He told his brothers.

Perhaps he could convince her to take a swim with him. The very thought had a sinister smirk dancing across his face.

"Where are Damon and Lexi?" Kol asked.

"They've already started for Abilene to meet up with Stefan." He didn't look back, only followed her up and over the hill, unbuttoning his shirt along the way.

(***)

The nerve.

The gall.

The absolute lack of respect these men have. Caroline didn't know where she was going, but let the sound of water in the distance guide her to her destination.

She had sometimes wondered whether she would meet him again. But she never imagined it would be like this. It was meant to be a happy reunion, filled with memories of the past and an expectation to create new memories in the future. Not like this. How did she get in to this predicament? What were the chances?

Was it fate?

Fate, as she saw it, was when two paths were destined to cross in order to balance the universe with their union. Each person giving something to the other that they had been searching for. Typically that would be friendship, or love, but in this circumstance all Caroline wanted to give Klaus was a bloody nose and a cracked jaw. No, it wasn't fate that brought them together, it was coincidence. She had nothing to give him, and he certainly had nothing to give back to her.

The water was getting louder and as she stepped through the trees to see a small stream. She raced to the bank and crouched down, the sight of water unearthing a thirst she didn't realize was there. She drank heavily letting the cool water rush down her throat before cupping it in her hands and splashing it on her face. She could only imagine the amount of dirt that covered her body, and for a moment pondered the idea of taking a swim.

Wouldn't that just be a delight to that scoundrel, Kol? She already felt exposed enough without giving him more to drool over, and she drew her already tightly fastened shirt closer to her neck. She rinsed her hands and her arms, and washed her face again, when she heard a twig snap behind her.

Of course they wouldn't give her a moment's peace. Always watching and terrorizing her. She continued her washing and yelled back, "If you've come for a show, you're going to be sorely disappointed." She snapped her head back to make her point clear to the intruder.

The sudden snap of a branch did not indicate the presence of a Mikaelson, no, what stood before her was much more threatening. If that was possible. A large red skinned man, with a strong jaw, painted face and dark brown eyes with a stern glower stared down at her.

A silent hiccup of fright bubbled in her throat but before she could let out a scream the world went black.

(***)

Klaus moved forward through the woods, undressing slowly and keeping quiet. He wasn't ashamed to admit that he wanted to see more than what was expected. He lingered a ways back, hoping that the alone time would spur the girl on to think they had given her some privacy. His fantasies getting the better of him of course, because seeing her naked would take far more effort than a simple game of Peeping Tom. He knew that, and smiled at himself for having such juvenile thoughts.

However, if he wanted her, he could have her. He always got what he wanted in the end.

He stepped in to the clearing but Caroline was nowhere in sight. Perhaps she was being coy and attempting to hide. She wasn't stupid enough to try running away. But with no sign of her, he started to panic and raced to the waters edge, looking for any sign of the missing blonde.

Being a part of the land his entire life, Klaus was known for his tracking. He could make out a pair of animal prints from a mile away and when he stared at the land before him, he knew she hadn't run away, she was dragged away.

Caroline had been captured.

Oh no...Injins!

What's a Klaus to do?

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