A/N: Thank you all for reading and your lovely reviews and for following and favouriting.

This chapter is dedicated to chibichibi98 who has been amazing and gave me the ideas for this chapter and helped me figure things out. I really really appreciate it!

Disclaim: I own nothing.

Chapter Four

It had been a few weeks since Klaus had seen Caroline; things were beginning to change for his family. Rebekah was getting married to Stefan, Elijah and Katherine were having a baby. Henrik was going off to college in the fall for engineering and Finn, being the boring brother he was, was doing nothing special with his life.

Klaus had been working non-stop, selling paintings that he suddenly had the motivation and inspiration for. His gallery, which held not only his art but that of others, had been looking bare as of late. Thankfully he had gotten back into the swing of things and was having his paintings sell at top dollar.

Things were starting to look up for Klaus; all he needed was to have the girl of his dreams on his arms. Though Caroline was a work in progress, he had his sister on his side which helped his case. He had even heard his future brother-in-law was trying to persuade Caroline to go on a date with him.

The girl was relentless, saying: 'not all the Mikealson charm in the world would get me to go on a date with you.' Stefan had mentioned she was stubborn when she wanted to be and Klaus definitely saw how stubborn she was being over one date. Klaus didn't let it get to him, knowing eventually she would be his.

It was the weekend of Rebekah and Stefans' engagement party, which meant the remainder of his family would be arriving to town beforehand. It would be a family weekend, something he dreaded. Family reunions never turned out well, he had five other siblings, all of which liked to tear out each other's throats.

The Mikaelson family was unique. Kol was the instigator, Klaus the fighter, Rebekah the complainer, Elijah the voice of reason, Finn the quiet one and Henrik the naïve one. Their mother of course, caring as always, had been dubbed the sheep herder or referee. They grew up in a single parent household, one which prided itself on family first so everyone was extremely close.

Esther, their mother, remained in England with Henrik and Finns' family. Elijah was the first to move to the United States, for school, and when the others were old enough they followed along in their brothers footsteps; Klaus first then Kol and eventually Rebekah. Even though the family was separated, they would alternate on visiting, making sure visits were made twice a year.

So Klaus found himself waiting at the airport for his mother, Henrik, Finn, Sage and Alexa, their daughter. It was a Friday morning and the engagement was on Sunday which meant a weekend filled with family bonding. He knew there would be a family dinner planned for one night.

Klaus also planned on seeing Stefan before the party. In the past weeks, since the engagement the two of them were becoming fast friends. They had known each other for years because of Rebekah but never hung out without her. However, now he saw Stefan in another light, one that had no family and needed a brother.

"I'm finally reunited with my baby boy!" A voice shrilled from behind him. Klaus turned around only be engulfed into a set of arms. He hugged back, knowing it wasn't a stranger but rather his mother, Esther.

"I'm not a baby, mother." He replied with an eye roll.

She pulled back and held him out an arms distance and looked him up and down. "I guess not," she clucked with a shake of the head. "I missed you my dear boy."

"I missed you too."

"Niklaus," nodded a man from behind Esther, his brother Finn. Beside him stood a woman with fiery dark red hair, Sage, his wife with Alexa their daughter.

"Nik" Shouted another voice from behind the small group. He happened to push everyone away and practically tackled Klaus.

"Henrik, miss me?" He smirked, hugging his now grown brother.

"I guess I did." Henrik smiled, now almost eye to eye with Klaus and Finn.

"Come now, we must get to Bekahs' apartment or she'll have our heads. I'm having lunch with her and her lovely fiancé." Esther stated as she led the group out of the airport.

A half hour later the gang was at Rebekahs' apartment, which was large enough to hold the whole family. Rebekah greeted everyone at the door and showed them to their rooms. Finn, Sage and Alexa decided to stay in and get settled down as it was past Alexa's nap time.

"Mum, can Nik take me out?" Henrik asked with big brown puppy dog eyes.

Esther gave him a look before looking back up at Klaus who stood beside his younger brother. "Alright, but you keep him out of trouble, Nik."

"Yes, mother."

"Be careful with my baby." Esther addressed Klaus before she stepped forward and hugged Henrik, giving him a kiss on the cheek. He was taller than her by a few inches and old enough that he didn't need to be coddled by his mother but he let it happen anyways. "Have a good day, boys. Remember to be home for dinner!"

"I thought I moved out so I wouldn't be told what to do by my mother." Klaus remarked before pulling Henrik along behind him. He heard Esther laugh and she probably rolled her eyes too before turning all attention to Rebekah and her ring.

"Thank god I'm going off to school soon. I love her and everything but I'm eighteen, Nik, I'm not a baby anymore." Henrik sighed as they walked along the busy city streets.

Klaus looked over his brother and noticed that he really wasn't a baby anymore, though he would always be thought of one. Klaus was ten when Henrik was born and even though he's a man now he will always be the baby of the family.

Klaus through his arm over his shoulder and pulled him close while giving him a noogie, "you'll always be the baby of the family."

Henrik pulled away and flattened down his brown hair while shooting his older brother death glares. "So, what's this I hear about you having a crush on some girl?"

"Shut it." Klaus snapped, closing all doors to that conversation; no doubt his siblings rating him out about his feelings for Caroline.

"Fine." Henrik grumbled with a slight roll of the eyes. "So where we going?"

"I have to drop by the gallery and then I'll take you for lunch." Klaus said, smiling at his brother who just looked annoyed.

"I came all the way to America to sit around while you work? Not cool, brother."

"I have work to do, make a living for myself. Not all of us can get by on mothers' money." He replied dryly.

Henrik mumbled something under his breath as he followed his brother into his gallery, Original Design. Klaus went straight to the back to his studio to finish a piece for a client, leaving Henrik in the store front to wonder around.

Caroline had just gotten a call from work telling her that they needed her immediately. She rarely went into work for she was allowed to work from home; which worked well so she could take care of Nate and wouldn't need to be put into day care. On rare days she would get called in, but never on short notice.

She worked as a columnist for one of the leading newspapers in the city. Often she wrote about trending topics and things going on in the city or she would answer questions. Her column was in the paper twice a week, supporting her and allowing her to spend time with her son.

"Natie, I need you to grab your things, you're going to spend the day with Aunt Bonnie." She yelled as she rushed past his doorway, trying to collect her work items.

Caroline scrambled around the house, not remembering where she last put her laptop. She heard the doorbell ring but ignored it and ran through the house at top speed.

Rebekah and Esther talked the whole way to Stefans' house while Rebekah pointed out things about the city. Of course, Esther had visited her before but never walked the streets or took in the culture. So Rebekah was surprised when her mother asked to walk and talk.

She had always been close with Esther, only because she was the only girl. However, at times it was hard to receive attention, especially when you have five other siblings and most of them were trouble makers.

"So tell me about Stefan." Esther said after a few minutes of silence. The two were walking side by side along the busy streets and storefronts. Esther gazed around taking the view in. Her being from a small town outside London had her not very comfortable with the big city and crowds.

"I've told you many things about him, mother."

"I know but just trivial things, I really want to get to know the man who wants to marry my daughter. Besides you've hidden him from me for the past few years so I really have no idea about him."

Rebekah groaned, "mother, be nice to him."

"Yes, dear." She teased. "So how is work going?"

"I'm between jobs right now." The blonde muttered praying her mother would drop the subject.

"Why, what happened?"

"Mother!"

"Is there anything that I can talk to you about without you snapping at me?" Her mother asked, hurt evident in her voice.

Rebekah felt bad, not meaning to be rude but her mother was being slightly intrusive on topics she didn't want to talk about. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright, darling." Ester pulled her into her side, comforting her like only a mother could.

They approached the house and Rebekah felt the nerves gnaw at her from inside. She had kept her mother away from Stefan for years, knowing that she was the over bearing mother and always gave her boyfriends the third inquisition. Rebekah walked right into the house, Esther following suit.

The house was bustling with activity, mostly Caroline. Stefan sat in the family room, giving Rebekah a clear view of him sitting on the couch stuffing his face with a bag of chips.

Nate came rushing down the stairs next and ran straight to Rebekah and latched onto her legs. He looked up at her smiling, "hi, Aunt Bekah."

Rebekah reached down and picked him up, "hey, Nate." She could feel her mother's curious eyes on her so she turned around to introduce the two. "Mother this is Nathanial, Nate this is my mother."

Nate scrambled out of Rebekahs' arms and went straight to Esther, "hello." He held out her hand which she took appreciatively.

"Hello, Nathanial." Esther smiled as they shook hands.

"Nathanial Michael Salvatore, but you can call me Nate." He replied then his eyes grew wide, "would you like to come meet Percy?"

"Sure."

"No!" Rebekah yelled, grabbing onto her mothers' arm as she went to follow Nate up the stairs. "Maybe another time, Nate."

Stefan finally decided to get up off the couch and joined everyone in the front entry way. "Hey, Bex," he kissed her cheek and pulled back and stood behind Nate in front of Esther.

She could see her mother sizing him up but also comparing Nate to Stefan. Rebekah noticed it as Nate got older the more he looked like Stefan. They had the same shade of light brown hair and identical eye brows. But where Stefan had dark green eyes, Nate had blue ones. Their noses were similar, but Nate had Carolines' ears and lips.

If you didn't know the family personally, one would assume the child was Stefans'. Rebekah wanted to laugh at what must be going on through Esther's head.

Stefan held out his hand, "It's nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Mikaelson."

"As you, Mr. Salvatore." She replied with slightly narrowed eyes, her eyeing him up and down, and already making judgments.

Before Stefan could say something or Rebekah to jump in to ease her mother's thoughts, a voice sounded throughout the house. "Stefan, have you seen my computer?"

"Check the office." He shouted back up the stairs.

Nate was still standing between Esther and Stefan, him looking up at her and her looking down at him with a small smile. A second later Caroline was flying down the stairs, briefcase and a child's backpack in hand. She quickly slipped on her heals, not noticing the stares from everyone in the room.

Caroline looked up to have four sets of eyes staring at her. She blushed and pushed away a blonde curl. "Hello, you must be Mrs. Mikaelson. I'm Caroline."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Caroline." Esther smiled warmly back taking in the frazzled woman.

"Okay, Nate, let's go. Bonnie should be expecting us." Caroline said, ushering Nate to get his shoes on so they could go. "Sorry I'm interrupting. They called me into work half an hour ago and they know I have Nate and can't just come in at a moment's notice. Editors, I'm telling you." She ranted shaking her head.

"Editors? Where do you work?" Esther inquired.

"The Sun Daily Newspaper; I'm a columnist." She answered.

"I'm ready" Nate burst out and jumped into the air.

"Okay, say good bye to everyone." Caroline told and watched as he ran to every person in the room and gave them a hug, including Esther. Then he ran back to Caroline and she took his hand and dragged him out the door waving goodbye.

Stefan sat at a table in a small restaurant with Rebekah and Esther and the awkward silent was killing him. They had already eaten through their salad with minimal conversation. Esther asked him basic questions about work.

Esther folded her hands and set htem onto the table and stared right at Stefan who sat across from her. "So tell me about the boy."

Rebekah choked on her wine that she had been drinking at the very moment of the question. "Excuse me?"

"Nate, I'd like to know about your son." Esther replied seriously, not once taking his eyes off Stefan.

"He's not my son, he's my nephew." Stefan said with matching seriousness.

"And you live with Caroline and him?"

"Yes, my brother-" he began but took a breather, not wanting to go into details about his past but knowing Esther deserved to know.

"You don't have to tell her," Rebekah whispered, placing her hand on his arm.

Stefan shook his head, "Caroline was engaged to my brother, and they dated for a long time, throughout high school. She found out she was pregnant when she was nineteen and Damon was battling his life with cancer."

"I'm so sorry," Esther sympathized.

"He made me promise before he passed away that I would always take care of Caroline and Nate. Damon died a few days before his own son was born. I made good of his promise, still do. Caroline is like a sister to me, and I have stood by her side ever since." He explained and let out a breathe that he had been holding.

"I am so sorry for your loss." Esther repeated. "It was very honourable of you to take on such a task."

"I would do anything for my family, including Rebekah." He announced as he leaned over to kiss her cheek.

"I think you would make a wonderful addition to the family, Stefan. I am happy to call you my future son-in-law." Esther praised.

Rebekah grinned, thankful for her understanding mother and amazing fiancé. Stefan knew he didn't owe Esther an explanation but he gave her one anyways, making Rebekah proud of him, knowing he never opened up to new people that fast.

They finished their lunch talking about family and children; Stefan and Rebekah filling in Esther all about their nephew and his mishaps while she tells them about Alexa, her only grandchild.

Stefan liked his new mother-in-law and saw how much of a proud mother she actually was. She spoke of all her childrens' achievements with high regard and even shared a few stories of a younger Rebekah. He knew they would get along famously and was happy that she was such an understanding and companionate woman.

Nate had been at her apartment for no less than five minutes and he had already taken to Kol. She had reconnected with him the night after the bar and in the past weeks they had hung out and went on many dates, finding they had a lot in common.

Kol was just like a child which was why he was getting along so well with Nate. The two sat on the floor, Nate whispering into his ear about Bonnie. Kol laughed along as he eyed his girlfriend who watched the two from the door way.

"What is he saying to you?" Bonnie asked Kol, her arms folded over her chest.

"Nothing, darling; just having a little chit chat." Kol smirked up at her.

Nate got up and walked towards her, "can we make some cookies?" His blue eyes were wide and his bottom lip stuck out, his puppy dog look coming out to play.

He was a smart kid, knew each family member well and knew how to get his way. "Sure thing, sweetie," Bonnie said and took his hand and led him into the kitchen. She picked him up and placed him onto the counter as she moved around the kitchen to grab supplies.

Kol joined them, sitting on a stool behind the breakfast bar when Nate was sitting. Her boyfriend had a smirk on his face and was eying Nate suspiciously.

"I'm keeping my eye on you two, so don't you think about trying anything." Bonnie proclaimed pointing a wooden spoon at Kol.

Bonnie and Nate set to work on the cookies as Kol watched on. When the batter was finished, Bonnie had turned her back to check the oven and Nate stuck his finger in and took a chunk and shoved it in his mouth.

"Bonnie, he's eating the dough, there won't be any left for the cookies, he's going to eat it all." Kol complained.

"No I didn't." Nate replied giving Kol cut eye.

"I saw you," Kol snapped.

Before Bonnie could step in Nate stuck his whole hand into the bowl and threw a handful of dough over at Kol.

"Nathanial!" Bonnie scolded while trying not to laugh. Kol had been hit in the forehead and had cookie dough sliding down his face.

Nate laughed at Kol, causing the older man to wipe his face and use the cookie dough thrown at him to throw back at Nate.

"Hey! No one throws cookie dough in my apartment!" Bonnie yelled over the laughter but was hit with a glob of cookie dough herself.

Bonnie began to laugh and threw her own chunk at Kol. A few more throws and it had turned into an all-out food fight. Flour was being thrown with an egg or two with the cookie dough.

Kol and Nate had ganged up on Bonnie, pouring the remaining flour on top of her head. That caused Bonnie to shriek and lunge at Nate and shake all the flour onto him. Kol fought her hard for Nate and eventually she had let go of him.

Nate ran away from both of them and turned to run down her hallway that led to the bathroom and bedrooms. Bonnie saw a glimpse of Nate putting his hand to the wall and shouted, "Nathanial, don't you dare put your hands on my walls"

She caught up to him and saw that no harm was done but he had a smirk on his face as he held his hand within inches of the white wall. "Do it, mate" Kol yelled from behind her. Bonnie turned and glared, giving Nate that one second to plant his hand on the wall and take off running.

"I am going to kill you, Kol!" She punched his shoulder and shot him a dirty look.

"Ow, what was that for?"

"For encouraging him!" She yelled and stormed off to find Nate.

An hour later the mess had been cleaned up and everyone was changed into clean clothes. Bonnie decided on watching a movie and Nate had chosen to sit with Kol, telling Bonnie he was disappointed in her.

Bonnie herself was mad at Nate and Kol so she liked the distance. A few minutes after the movie had started Nate had fallen asleep curled up against Kol.

"I'm really sorry, Bonnie." Kol whispered to her so he wouldn't wake the sleeping boy up. She didn't respond or even look his way. "I'll make it up to you, I promise."

She finally gave in and turned to face him, "you have a lot of grovelling to do."

"I know."

"You can't encourage him like that, Kol."

"I know."

"He's a child and you're an adult."

"I know," He repeated. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine, just don't do that again in my home, maybe Rebekah's or Caroline's, just not here. You know I hate cleaning." Bonnie finished.

"Alright, darling."

The next night the family of the family of nine sat down together at one of the finest restaurants in the city to Klaus' suggestion. Klaus sat at one end of the long table with Rebekah, Elijah, Kol and Henrik while Esther sat with Finn, Sage and Alexa.

Esther was busy listening to a story from Alexa while Finn and Sage added in the odd comment. The others, who were closest to each other in the large family talked amongst themselves about other things as they ate their dinners.

"So, mother, did you approve of Stefan to be our darling Rebekah's husband?" Kol asked, cutting through all conversations at the table.

"As a matter of fact I did, he's a lovely man." Esther replied.

"Did you happen to meet Caroline? She's to be the next one welcomed to the family." Kol smirked, receiving glares from Klaus.

"Kol-" Klaus began but was interrupted but Esther.

"Oh really, is this the girl I've heard you've taken a liking to, Niklaus?" She asked.

"Oh yes, you should hear him, he talks about her all the time." Kol joked.

Klaus had had enough of Kol and threw a few peas at him from across the table. "What are we five, Nik?" Rebekah quipped.

"You're just mad because it's true." Kol said.

Klaus stood up from his chair and reached over the table to grab at Kol and had his hands on his closed and pulled over the table. Elijah stood up trying to pull them apart with Henrik helping.

The two men were throwing insults at each other and had caused a scene. Finn and Sage looked down in embarrassment while Alexa and Rebekah looked on in amusement.

"Enough!" Esther bellowed causing the four boys to stop what they were doing and look at her. "Sit down, finish your supper and keep your hands to yourself. All of you are acting like you're five."

Everyone followed what they were told, sitting down and ate their meals in peace. Esther sighed inwardly, no matter how old they were they were always going to want to tear each other's throats out. Throughout their whole lives she has had to play peacekeeper amongst them and had become accustomed to the roll.

"So, Niklaus, tell me about this girl." Esther finally said once everyone had calmed down. Kol opened his mouth to speak but she shot him one look and he closed it again.

Klaus groaned, "her name is Caroline."

A/N: What did you think of all the family moments? Do you like how good Esther is? What about Damon? What about Nate and Kol?

There will be Klaroline next chapter guarenteed! I needed to add this one in and I hope you liked it. This story will have Kennet, Kalijah and Stebekah scenes but mainly Klaroline.

Lastly, this story will continue on after the five chapters. I have so many great ideas and you all seem to love it so I couldn't possibly just end it on you. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, let me know what you think!