PFWW/N (I can't put A/N. I'm not an author. This writing crap is HARD. So this is a Person Fumbling With Words note.)

Hi! Thank you to all who have read, reviewed, followed, etc. It is SO crazy to me that I am doing this, and your encouragement is a huge help in pushing past my paralyzing insecurities to post this story.

That being said, I know things are super confusing and so this chapter is a whole hell of a lot of story progression so that things begin to catch up with the present. It's going to be a while before Klaus and Caroline REALLY meet, and they have no interaction in this chapter. They will 100% be a pairing in this story, this ship is too strong to deny, but it's just not gonna happen for a while.

This chapter? I'm so nervous. It's a lot of plot and a lot of an original character and I really hope it doesn't lose you.I'm pretty proud of it for now, but I'm sure that will last like two days. Lol.

In terms of timelines here - Caroline's scenes in this chapter start directly after the end of the last chapter, while Klaus' scenes are older.

Let me know what you think!

MYSTIC FALLS VA

Caroline pushed a pin into the cork board, marking another spot on the map of Delhi she had printed out on the big plotter at Whitmore. Her bedroom these days was straight out of a crime drama, the map accompanied by a whiteboard filled with Caroline's bubbly handwriting marching across the board in neat rows. She had drawn ruler lines first, of course.

She had been trying to find a pattern in the locations she had been sent to so far, at least in Delhi. She really didn't understand how New Orleans tied in and honestly? She didn't want to think about crazy, demented vampire guy right now. Luckily it was as if the flashes sensed this and were totally cooperating - she hadn't appeared in New Orleans in days, and instead visited Delhi with increasing frequency and substance. The whiteboard housed a running chart of the circumstances of her flashes, noting the time, how solid she was, if she could hear, if others could hear her. Plotting everything out helped Caroline stay calm and as in control as she could be. This alternate reality business was freaking confusing.

After the first time she left Abhi with a frustrated huff, fading before his eyes, he had given her a prepaid cellphone to keep on her at all times so she could contact him as soon as she appeared in his reality. She had basically wasted an entire Delhi flash with phone calls to friends and family, checking if they existed in Abhi's world. Her mom wasn't there, thank goodness, because that would be super confusing. Matt wasn't either, a suspicious female voice asking "Who's Matt?" when Caroline dialed his number. Myrna was around, her voicemail promising that she never listened to messages "so don't bother leaving one." Elena? Still Elena, her soft voice echoing through the phone line a strange comfort. Caroline had hung up, unsure if talking to someone she knew in this different reality would mess with anything. Hey, she wasn't super into sci-fi, but April Young had made her watch that freaky episode of Doctor Who with the angels and who knows, maybe there was some truth to it.

Caroline finished with the pushpins and stood back to eye the map, hands on hips. There was definitely a pattern - all the flashes seemed to form a circle in a very specific, albeit large, section of Delhi. Abhi had thought it was just Old Delhi at first, but a flash to a bustling metro station one day and an impossibly green lawn the next had widened their search to include more of the city. Caroline smiled as she thought of the older man; the two had become fast, if unconventional, friends, and Abhi had taken great delight in exploring the cure's mystery with her. She was thankful for a friend and a guide, shuddering as she thought of the first flash into Delhi after meeting him:

DELHI, INDIA

Caroline whirled around, surrounded on all sides by vehicles swerving around her and expressing vocal dismay at the inconvenience.

Really, spell? Was it necessary to flash her to the middle of a highway?

Caroline scoffed and jumped up and back, landing on an overpass and leaning over the roadwall to catch unnecessary breath. Old habits die hard. The cacophony of horns continued unabated, seemingly a part of the chaos that was a Delhi highway. There were no discernible lanes, yet somehow everything flowed like a vehicular river, the traffic eddying around an old man driving an oxen cart (seriously?), mopeds swirling through gaps in the traffic, an odd little three-wheeled vehicle doing the shuddering stop start of the newly-licensed clutch driver.

She really needed to find Abhi, trying to remember if he had told her anything she could use to find him. After their awkward meeting they had sat for an hour, Abhi's bushy eyebrows raising in astonishment as Caroline explained the spell. He had stopped her in the middle of her explanation with a raised finger, shuffling away from the courtyard and returning in a few minutes with a heavy book with gilt edges. The crackling sound of the thin pages turning filled the courtyard as Abhi flipped through the tome, grunting as he found the passage he was looking for.

"There are stories of this happening before. Of traveling between worlds. Old stories. Here. Forgive me, my Sanskrit is rusty."

Abhi cleared his throat, began to read, haltingly at first.

In the darkness of the old world reigned the eldest queen

A hunger insatiable, a million throats torn asunder

The ancients powerless against her bloodthirsty might

They escaped to the world betwixt

Returning as the phoenix cried the dawn of the age

They subdued her with words of power gained

A new language untried in the old

The crimson hosts fled before their strike

Following the same path the ancients redeemed

The eldest queen lies in eternal wait for crimson to free."

Abhi's voice was full and rich, the words rolling over Caroline. Her brows drew together and she bit her lip, considering.

"So...you think my world is the old world? Who is the eldest queen? And honestly, what does this have to do with the cure?"

"I do not know. It is just, your spell, I have not heard of anyone crossing worlds other than in these stories." Abhi brushed his hand across the pages and leveled a look at Caroline. "And an old Urdu poet once said 'coincidences are merely connections unobserved'. So I feel it is something...Wait. You...you are vampire, yes?" Abhi looked away, clearly uncomfortable with the subject.

"Yeah. But i don't eat people!" Caroline blurted, touching Abhi's arm in a gesture of comfort. "Blood bags only, like from a hospital. Speaking of which, I'll need to find a source here if the flashes get longer. But anyways, why?"

"Do you know where vampirism comes from in your world?"

"Not really. It was rough enough learning to control the urges and keep my emotions from going super wonky. I haven't really thought about it to be honest."

"Can you ask? I feel that it is important." Abhi tapped the passage in the book before closing it with reverence.

"Sure. I mean, Stefan probably knows." Caroline rested her chin on her hands, blowing air out through her mouth. "But I still don't really get why?"

Abhi somehow looked apologetic and far away at the same time. "I am sorry, it is just an idea in this man's confused thoughts for now." His face snapped back to the present, eyes meeting hers. "But come, tell me about this other place you visit, New Orleans. I would like to hear more."

Back on the overpass Caroline shook her head, gave in the urge to stomp a foot in frustration. Ughhhhh. There was nothing in memory that would get her in contact with Abhi. Well, she wasn't doing much of anything just standing here. Glancing both ways, Caroline picked a direction and started walking.

The chaos wasn't just confined to the roads and Caroline felt way out of her element. The city bustled about her, the now ubiquitous horns a backdrop to the lilting rise and fall of voices. She was surprised at the number of people dressed in Western clothing, collared shirts and trousers worn by the majority of men she passed. Women seemed more varied, from pants and blouses to vivid, extravagant saris that broke up the brown of the dusty streets. Caroline couldn't stop the grin that came to her face; there was something so alive about it all, surrounded by millions of people going about their day. Love and loss, tears and laughter, bored glances and hopeful ones, a flirtatious smile and a head ducked in embarrassment. God, this was everything that Mystic Falls was not.

She walked a half mile or so before stopping her tracks at a tarp hanging precariously from a storefront.

TELENOR INDIA

MTNL

VOLANT

OFFERED HERE! BEST PRICE!

A cartoon cellphone smiled at her from the tarp, arms spread in welcome. Volant...didn't Abhi mention working for a telecom? He had changed the subject quickly, but yeah, she thought it was that. Entering the store, she approached the counter with a bright smile.

"Hi! Do you have a -" Caroline mimed opening a book, rifling through the pages. "Directory?"

The proprietor looked at her with mild irritation before pulling out a book from under the counter and sliding it across. The cover and most of the first hundred pages were missing, but Caroline found Volant, noting the phone number and glancing up at the man behind the register with pleading eyes. "Is there any way I can use your phone?"

Another glare, another slide across the counter. Geez. Dialing the number, she prepared to be put on hold but was surprised when someone answered after six rings.

"Volant Communications, this is Nabanita speaking. How may I direct your call?"

"Yes! Hi! This is gonna sound totally weird, but um. Do you have an Abhi that works there? Middle aged, bushy eyebrows, kind of looks like that eagle guy from the Muppets?"

"I-what?" the sound of the phone being set down, muffled dialogue, laughter.

A different voice picked up the line. "He 100% looks like Sam the Eagle. I'm dying. And yes, Abhi owns Volant. Who may I say is calling?"

NEW ORLEANS, LA

"What about that guy Aiden? He's super cute." Bonnie drummed her nails as the polish dried, other hand turning the page of the grimoire she studied.

"He's a wolf. Have you ever dated a wolf? The possessiveness gets a bit old." Josh quirked his mouth, considering, then seesawed his palm. "Although that can definitely be hot. I don't know. I just don't do well with that whole control thing."

"Yep I get it. You can't be tamed." Bonnie said in mock seriousness, her eyes dancing with her grin stretched wide.

Josh shoved her leg. "Ok miss control freak, like you'd ever put up with that. Anyways, don't really see you dating anyone."

"Every guy i meet here is either obsessed with my family or dumb as a box of hair."

Josh spewed out his drink. "Oh my god that's amazing. I'm totally using that."

A clipped voice rang out through the hall. "Perhaps you'd like to use it to describe yourself, Josh. I asked for the witch an hour ago." Klaus entered with an annoyed expression. "I'm not sure where you ever got the impression that I enjoyed having my orders ignored."

Bonnie rolled her eyes and interrupted Josh's stammer. "I was doing my nails Klaus. Whatever you needed could wait."

Klaus' voice was deceptively calm, an undercurrent of menace just below the surface. "I don't believe it can. There's a new witch threat in town and I need you to get to the bottom of it."

Bonnie couldn't help her surprise. A new witch? She listened as Klaus explained what he had seen in the alley. Weird. This didn't sound like anything she was familiar with. She pushed off the sofa and grabbed her phone from her bag, squinting at the picture Klaus had just texted. It was like a reflection on glass, really hard to make anything out. She saw long hair, a perfect crescent brow that she was kinda jealous of, a thin frame.

"I can't really do much with this. And I haven't sensed any new ma-" Bonnie paused as Klaus waved an arm to shush her, his eyes intent on something in the room.

"She's right there." Klaus said in a quiet voice, pointing to the left side of the couch. Josh exaggeratedly tiptoed away from the spot, making Bonnie's lips twitch. She looked at him and he shook his head. Josh couldn't see whoever it was either.

"Who are you?" Klaus said wonderingly, taking out his phone and snapping several photos in quick succession, eyes never leaving the spot on the couch. "She definitely can see me," Bonnie wondered at his suddenly smug tone. Oh. Klaus' hotness had disappeared for her long ago, what with the whole obsession with violence. Clearly this...whoever she was didn't know Klaus well. Or didn't care.

"You are aware I can't be killed, love? So whatever plot you have in mind will fail. Not that I'd mind a visit should you wish to grace us with your physical presence." Klaus voice dipped low with insinuation as Bonnie and Josh looked at each other with incredulity. Josh mimed gagging and Bonnie had to suppress her laughter, turning her attention back to the empty couch.

She wasn't really sure what to do. Without having a basic idea of... whatever this was, it was hard to cast magic around it, as spells in general relied on an understanding of the forces you were working with. Well...there was something she could cast, something on the lines of a forensic spell. Muttering low in Latin, Bonnie began drawing a continuous circle with her finger framing the couch.

"Josh, hand me a candle would you?" she murmured at a break in her chanting, reaching a hand back and grasping as she felt Josh place the taper in her hand. Lighting it with a quick cantrip, she continued chanting, this time using the candle to draw the circle, shifting her perspective every few rotations with a step to the side. She could tell Klaus was irritated by the distraction but paid him no mind.

"What is your name? Who sent you?" Klaus was continuing to interrogate the empty couch and Josh was having a hard time not finding this hilarious. Klaus cursed. "I can't hear her responses and her mouth is too faint for me to read lips. This is maddening. Wait!" He reached a hand out, let it drop. "She's gone." Klaus immediately turned his full attention on Bonnie. "What did your spell discover?"

"Hold your horses, Klaus." Bonnie hadn't stopped circling the candle, and the air behind it began wavering, the distortion akin to air rising above a sun-blasted road. There was an intake of breath - Josh, who had moved behind Bonnie to see - as a still image appeared, magical remnants caught in time. Blond curls, those perfect half-moon brows Bonnie had noticed earlier, pert nose, affronted expression.

"Who's surprised Klaus managed to piss off the ghost chick in less than a minute. No one? Oh -" the sharp crack of broken bones preceded Josh's body crumpling to the floor. Klaus glowered at Bonnie in a silent dare.

Bonnie arched a brow at Klaus, unimpressed. She picked her grimoire up off the sofa, paging through it. "So I have no idea what that was. It wasn't any kind of spell I've seen before, and I don't know why I'm saying this," Bonnie's brow scrunched in confusion, "but I'm positive that girl is no witch."

"Well, then what is she? Why am I the only one to see her? Until you figure this out she's a threat. I won't stand for this." Klaus stormed away, calling over his shoulder "Lattice Bridge - Louis Armstrong Park. Tomorrow, midnight." He paused, pirouetted to face her, mock bowed with arms spread wide. "I'll be expressing my displeasure with the local community. That is, unless you find something." Klaus' voice adopted a thoughtful tone. "Well, perhaps even if you don't. I do so love a good spot of violence."

MYSTIC FALLS VA

Caroline had finished making her latest entries on the whiteboard and was now laying on her stomach on the bed, legs kicking idly as she stared at the data.

"Honey?" Her mom's voice called through the door. Caroline jumped up, calling "One sec mom!" as she shoved the two boards in her closet. She hadn't really brought the whole cure thing up yet, because how exactly to broach the subject? "Hey mom so you know about vampires, but there's also witches and I had them cast a spell so I could help cure you so now I keep visiting another reality and it keeps sending me to India and New Orleans at random moments and there's this super murdery guy who i can't stop thinking is hot." Honestly it just seemed easiest to keep it under wraps.

Pasting on a bright smile, she opened the bedroom door and tried not to let her mother's exhausted appearance shake her expression. Her mom didn't need to deal with being worried about her.

"Hi sweetie." Liz brushed a curl from Caroline's face. "I just wanted to let you know I'm working late tomorrow. And before you say it." Liz blocked Caroline's mouth with an index finger. "Please. It helps me. To know that I'm leaving a legacy of safety for this town. I know it's hard, but we really think we've gained traction on that vampire case I was telling you about." Liz withdrew her hand, continued in a placating tone. "I took Sunday off and we can have that picnic and go shopping."

Caroline was hurt. I mean, on one hand she understood, but why was this town's legacy more important than her daughter again? Nodding her head and trying to not dislodge the smile, Caroline hugged her mom, feeling the delicate bones underneath. "It's ok mom. I get it. I love you"

"I love you too, honey." Liz's eyes softened, a half grin making a brief appearance on her face. She stared at Caroline a moment more before turning and heading out of the room, calling over her shoulder, "I'll call on my break, ok?"

Caroline murmured in assent before she closed the door and pulled out the boards again, staring and willing a pattern to emerge.

NEW ORLEANS LA

Klaus checked the time on his phone. Oh good, the witch was late. He knelt down and removed the gag from a struggling werewolf. "Sorry, love. Time has run out. Any last words? If you tell me what you know, it will be a merciful death."

The werewolf's eyes were huge in her pale face, dark hair streaming. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish, fear paralyzing her vocal chords. Klaus rolled his eyes and pulled her to standing, punching a hand in her chest.

"Wait! Stop!" Bonnie's voice called out.

Klaus sighed. "Are you sure? This one is a disgrace to werewolves everywhere, she's weak."

"Well then she's no threat to you at all and frankly it's beneath you to mess with her, yeah?" Bonnie knew Klaus logic.

Or thought she did. The heart was still beating as it hit the wood of the bridge.

Klaus raised his hands placatingly, speaking in a bored tone. "I'll talk to her Alpha. To be honest, I've done him a favor, cutting out a weak link in the pack."

Bonnie felt a sick, helpless rage boil up in her, almost unleashing her wrath on Klaus before reining it in when she spotted the two bags beside him, alive with movement.

"You can't mess with lives like that Klaus. She did nothing to hurt you."

"And how do you know? Do you have news to the contrary?" Klaus said almost eagerly.

"Just - I can't even. Let them go." Bonnie motioned to the bodies fighting for escape from their confines.

Klaus eyed Bonnie thoughtfully, recognizing he had stepped over the line when it came to the witch. Not that he was going to apologize, but he did bend down, loosening the strings on the bags and freeing the vampire and witch encased within. They ran off as soon as their legs were freed without a backwards glance.

Bonnie was still almost choking on her anger but spit out a summary of her conversation with Grams.

"It's a spell, but we think it was cast on the girl, so she's definitely not a witch. There's something really off about it though. It's like it's a window between you two, but her side is not anywhere on the planet. Like it's from somewhere...else but we don't know where yet."

Klaus looked irritated but smartly kept his feelings to himself. "How do we trace it back then?"

"I don't know Klaus, but I do know you have other problems, and idly killing werewolves isn't helping your cause. I'm out." Bonnie waved a hand dismissively, turning and leaving the park.

DELHI, INDIA

"Agrasen ki Baoli."

"Bless you." Caroline quipped, earning an unamused glance from Abhi. "What. I'm hilarious! Sorry. What did you say?"

They were both in Abhi's courtyard, a copy of Caroline's map spread across the table. Abhi pointed to a spot in the middle of the circle, tapped it a few times. "Agrasen ki Baoli. It is an ancient step well in Delhi. Seven hundred years old. I dove in it as a boy." A goofy smile grew on his face. "My father was not pleased, but amma was indulgent, so I hid under her skirts to escape my father's wrath."

She smiled at Abhi and waggled her brows. "You wanna go?"

"Well, not to dive in it, but for your cure, yes." Abhi laughed as Caroline cocked her head and gave him a long-suffering glance.

"You're such a dork," Caroline grumbled as they exited the house into the bright Delhi sunshine. There was a snap in the air as winter approached, and Caroline tugged her cardigan closer. She still got cold, ok? Stefan had once tried to argue that she was a vampire and the cold didn't affect her, eventually throwing up his hands in exasperation at her stubbornness.

They walked in silence, Caroline slowing her gait to let Abhi catch up every few minutes, though her legs were twitching with the need to move.

Abhi sensed her impatience, squeezing her shoulder when he caught up. "It will still be there whenever we get there."

"Well honestly, I might not be, so if you could pick up the pace?" Caroline knew she was being a bitch, but it had been three weeks since the spell and they were no closer to finding out anything. She had a right to be impatient. Didn't she? They walked on in silence until Caroline looked at him out of the corner of her eye and saw his crestfallen expression. Ugh. Stupid conscience.

"I'm sorry Abhi. This is just...I really hope we find something at this well." The hurt turned to understanding in Abhi's eyes and he signaled a rickshaw driver, motioning to Caroline to sit before taking a seat next to her in the cart. The ride was less perilous than it could be, this section of Delhi oddly desolate with its austere government buildings and wide swathes of lawn. Twenty minutes later the driver pulled up, murmuring a friendly goodbye as Abhi handed him the fare.

Caroline knew before she even stepped out that this was it. There was a pull in her diaphragm, and she followed, reaching the edge of the structure and looking down into the well. Next to her, Abhi glanced down with a rueful gaze at the dry depths below.

"No water anymore," Caroline stated the obvious.

"No."

"There is something here though. I feel it." Abhi swiveled his head up at her words, their eyes locking. "Stay here, I'm going down."

Caroline jumped down, catching the edge of the stonework and swinging into one of the stone arches in a gracefully athletic move. Abhi gestured feebly at the stairs on the other side, then shrugged and bent over the lip of the well to watch her descent. Drop, catch, swing; she repeated her movements and reached the bottom of the step-well, disappearing underneath an archway.

"Can you hear me?" She called up to Abhi.

"Yes, but faint." Abhi screamed through cupped hands.

"You don't need to yell back, it's ok. Vampire remember?" Caroline's voice was teasing. "Anyways, there's a wall down here that looks super weird. I'm gonna see what happens when I-"

The faint sound of toppling masonry rose up from the depths. "I'm ok!"

Abhi leaned further over the edge, straining to see. A sudden hand at his shoulder almost sent him toppling and he reared back with alarm, overcompensating and sending himself flying to his back. Two tall, menacing figures glared down at him. How in the name of Chandraya had two people snuck up on him?

"What are you doing here? This is a sacred area," one of them spoke in a low guttural growl.

Abhi regained some of his bravado and leveled his gaze. "This is public property, and you almost sent me to my death. What do you think you're doing?" He watched, disbelievingly, as a sheen of red passed over the eyes of the two men, disappearing as quickly as it appeared. Abhi began edging backwards, trying to lure them away from the well, a shaking in his voice when he next spoke. "Now would be a great time to introduce yourself."

"Where is the girl?" The men were seeming less and less like men, Abhi catching the grey cast of their skin in the street light as they followed his retreat.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Lies. Where is she, our mistress has sensed her. She is the one that will -" The creature stopped, distracted by the pole that was now stuck through his chest, feebly clutching at it as he dropped to the ground. Caroline appeared, shooting a worried glance at Abhi before hefting another shaft of wood and throwing it at the second creature. He roared and batted the makeshift stake away, lowering his head and spearing her with eyes that glowed a deep blood red. He charged her and she danced aside, laughing. Seriously, being a vampire was fun.

Bellowing in rage, the creature struck out at her, missing again, thrice, a fourth time. On the fifth he caught a lucky blow to her shoulder that sent her flying ten feet behind her. Ouch. These guys packed a wallop. The creature turned his red lantern gaze on Abhi and approached him, Abhi murmuring a Hindu prayer and backing away until he hit the road barrier. A wild mane of blond hair briefly appeared on top of the demon's head as Caroline vaulted up, locking her legs around his neck and using her momentum to throw to the side, snapping the creature's neck.

She looked back to see the first creature pulling the pole from his chest with a sucking sound. Grabbing Abhi and whispering for him to hold on tight, she whisked away from the ancient well in retreat.