This is the continuation of the drabble written as a response to a prompt on my Tumblr (venomandchampagne): Established KC. Caroline takes Klaus to a Forbes family reunion.

This is Part II of II.

(Feel free to send me prompts on Tumblr or PM me them here.)

It was Caroline's turn to groan after the fifth or so great aunt or third cousin or whatnot had pinched her cheeks and commented on how skinny and pale she was before moving on to torment another unsuspecting young person. She had to keep reminding herself that she had wanted to come to this reunion, that she was there to support her mother, that she couldn't leave yet, not matter how much she found herself wishing she could. And Klaus was certainly not helping the matter.

Where all her older relatives had nothing but critiques for her, for Klaus they were full of compliments. How handsome he was, how lucky she was to have snagged him, how charming his accent was, how adorable his dimples were, how frisky he must be in the sack; yes, thank you so much, Aunt Mildred, she would never hear the end of that one from him.

She looked over at the aforementioned hybrid who was currently regaling a half dozen of her middle-aged female relatives with some apparently engrossing tale, most likely something from the backstory they had cooked up for him on the plane ride. Mild mannered, British import, freelance artist Nik, who she had met in college at a seminar on Venomous Animal Bites. He had rolled his eyes while she laughed as she told him his new life story. "What?" she had asked when he shook his head at her. "The best lies are rooted in truth." And she had grinned so wide he couldn't help but smile back.

As she watched him talk to his rapt audience she managed to catch his eye. Or rather, he managed to catch hers. She smiled as she recognized the plea for help in his features, so subtle that she was only one of a handful of people who would be able to spot it. She closed her eyes briefly and shook her head, amused that the Almighty Original Hybrid needed help escaping the clutches of a bunch of besotted women. On second thought, it was probably best that he sought her help instead of extricating himself from an unwanted situation in his usual, violent fashion. This thought caused her to increase her pace as she walked over to him, fake charming smile plastered on her face.

"Nik, sweetie, I'm sorry to interrupt, but I need your help over at the drink table. I can't remember which wine we prefer, could you help me out please?" She smiled apologetically at the ladies circled around Klaus, hoping her excuse would prove enough to allow him escape.

Klaus looked slightly more relieved at her presence than she expected. "Of course, sweetheart. Ladies, if you would excuse me." he said as he gave a slight bow towards the group, causing several of them to fan themselves as he departed with Caroline on his arm.

Caroline rolled her eyes at his actions before she snickered. "You're only encouraging them more by pulling out all that 'gentlemanly' stuff, Nik." she said as she steered him over to the drinks.

Klaus smirked down at her. "I can't help it if my natural charm attracts Forbes women. It worked on you didn't it? It must be genetic." His smirk widened as she rolled her eyes. "By the way, love," he said, his smirk turning into a soft smile. "I do rather enjoy it when you call me that."

Caroline looked at him, slightly confused. "Call you what?" She thought back on their conversation and tried to recall if she had used a new pet name or something, but she couldn't recall anything. Oh wait. "What, you mean when I call you Nik?"

Klaus stopped walking and pulled her against him, their chests touching. "Yes, that. No one outside my family calls me that," he said gazing into her eyes, an odd expression on his face. "I enjoy hearing it come from your lips. It sounds… right."

Caroline felt herself blushing; she felt like she was doing that around Klaus a lot lately. "Oh. Well, if you like it, I suppose I could be persuaded to use it more often," she said, giving him a small smile as she tried to squash the butterflies running rampant in her stomach. How he could make her feel like this even after a few years she didn't know. And she secretly hoped he would never stop.

Klaus leaned in and gave her a soft, yet meaningful kiss. "I would enjoy that, Caroline." he said quietly as he gently pulled away.

Caroline remained with her eyes closed for a moment longer, relishing in the warmth that spread through her body at his words. She liked it just as much when he used her name, she realized. She smiled brightly as she opened her eyes. The two stood staring at each other for another moment, saying nothing, yet speaking volumes with their eyes, before Caroline took a hold of his hand and they continued their journey to the drink table.

The rest of the reunion continued without incident. Caroline finally decided it was time to leave after she lost count of how many hints about a wedding in her future she had received from her relatives. She loved Klaus, very much, but she couldn't really picture marrying him. Not that she wouldn't want to. Hell, she would jump at the chance. It was just that the idea of two immortal beings, one already 1000 years old, following the very human tradition of marriage seemed a bit absurd. Especially for Klaus.

Klaus seemed almost reluctant to leave the festivities, which struck her as odd. At least until she asked him about it, that is.

"As much as I appreciate your positive relationship with your mother, I am not so fond of spending another night in her house. I still do not understand why you would rather not stay in a hotel." he told her as they left.

Caroline smiled up at him and laughed. "You know I don't get to visit that often, what with all your constant schemes for world domination," she said as she ignored his eye roll and continued, "So I like to spend as much time with her as I can when I do get to come back to Mystic Falls. And it's not that bad. It's not like she makes us sleep in separate rooms or anything."

Klaus sighed heavily, shaking his head at the very thought of a mere human woman dictating the sleeping habits of the Originals Hybrid.

"You know," she said, looking up at him from underneath her long lashes as they walked towards the car, "My mom won't be leaving for another hour or so, Aunt Mary has her wrapped up in some scrapbooking project at the moment. So we would have the house to ourselves," she said suggestively.

Caroline barely had a chance to gasp before he scooped her up into his arms with a growl and flashed them back to her mother's house, forgoing the car. She decided she would wait until later to berate him; probably much later if the look in his eyes was any indication.

After brunch with her mother the next morning, Caroline and Klaus said their goodbyes to the sheriff, Caroline's taking significantly longer than Klaus' tight smile and nod in response to Liz's thinly veiled glare and crossed arms. The trip to the airport was uneventful, both happy to ride in comfortable silence, Caroline dozing a bit. She waited until they were seated on the plane before she turned to Klaus, breaking the lull in conversation.

"I wanted to thank you again for coming with me this weekend. It really meant a lot to me." she said, smiling warmly at him as she reached for his hand.

Klaus returned her smile, squeezing her hand. "Of course, love. You know I would do anything for you."

She did. He had proven it to her a thousand times over by now, yet it continued to amaze her how much he was willing to do for her, silly little Caroline Forbes. She wasn't sure if she would ever truly understand what he saw in her that made him think she was worth all that. Perhaps it was similar to what she saw in him that made her able to look passed all the terrible things he had done. They truly were a perfect pair.

Caroline's expression softened at his words before a smirk slowly spread its way across her lips. "Oh, I do know. Which is why we're on our way to visit your sister right now."

Klaus groaned loudly, tossing his head back against the headrest. He knew he should have paid more attention as they made their way through the airport.

She chuckled at him. He had put up less of a fuss about going to her family reunion than he did whenever they were off to visit one of his siblings. "Don't you start pouting again," she said, laughing at his scowl. "If you're nice to Rebekah while we visit I promise to reward you when we get home."

Klaus looked over at her skeptically. "And what did you have in mind?"

"Mmm I dunno, maybe I'll let you paint me in something… red," she said slyly, surreptitiously toying with a red, lacy strap on her shoulder, pulling it out from underneath her sleeveless sundress.

It only took Klaus a moment to identify the article of clothing she was teasing him with. It was the same one he had been eyeing in her lingerie drawer as they were packing for the trip. His eyes darkened as he stared intensely into her eyes. "Don't tease me, Caroline."

She gave him a self-satisfied smirk before letting go of the strap and readjusting her dress. "You know I always keep my promises, Nik."

Klaus groaned before pulling her in for a kiss that was a little less than appropriate for public.

Caroline giggled as she pulled back, pecking him once more on the lips before settling back in her seat. "I take it you agree to my terms?"

"We have a deal," he smirked, giving her the distinct impression that she had just made a deal with the devil himself. And she was not at all shocked to find that she didn't mind in the least.