An island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean / 9 years ago

The nighttime was still and the hot air was suffocating as two men made their way through the trees around midnight. One woman, a man, and a boy in his teenage years sat inside a large hut, conversing and having a good time. The two men outside scoped out their surroundings, then they began loading their guns.

"I don't like this," the young blonde said.

"You don't have to like it, you just have to do it," the older one reminded him.

"The man is with his family! Can it not be when they aren't around?"

"If we do it now, it sends a message."

"Why? This isn't what we signed up for!" the blonde said in a hushed tone.

"Actually, it's exactly what we signed up for. If you don't remember, they said this wasn't going to be an easy job. From now on, we're going to be getting assignments like this. This isn't basic training anymore. Our job isn't for public knowledge, and this is why. We do the very messy work for the military, the work that the people can't know about."

"And killing a man in front of his family is honorable?"

"Sometimes, you have to get your hands dirty for the well-being of others. You forget that this man isn't innocent. He's killed people."

"I'm aware, but his wife and child didn't. How can we put them through this?"

The older man looked at the blonde with a sympathetic look on his face. He grasped the younger man's shoulder and gave it an affectionate squeeze.

"I was given instructions to go with you because we're partners through and through. This is supposed to be your job though, brother. You need to do this for them to take you serious. If you don't go through with this, the consequences could be serious. They've spent a lot of time and energy training you. If they find out it was wasted…I'm afraid of what they'll do."

"I understand that…but I joined to become a better man, to show I was more than what everyone thought. I wasn't expecting this."

"The man murdered people, Niklaus. His wife and kid will see it, and then they'll ring the alarm. That's what we want. We want his followers to know that killing our soldiers and posing as a threat to our people won't be tolerated. Trust me, this killing is justifiable."

"Really? Because it feels more like a fucking assassination to me, Elijah."

"If he's so important, where are his bodyguards?" Klaus didn't have a response to this. Elijah took the silence as his answer.

"Exactly. Not important enough for bodyguards, then not important enough for me to care or worry about our orders."

"He's important enough to have supporters. He's important enough to be a target," Klaus retorted. It was Elijah's turn to be silent. The older brother took a deep breath before tapping Klaus's gun with his finger.

"Get that ready. There is no choice in the matter. We must-" Elijah was interrupted by the sound of a man yelling by the entrance of the hut. Their target had spotted them.

"We must do this now. Aim and fire!"

Klaus fumbled with his gun. The pressure of the job was getting to him, and he hadn't completely submitted to the idea yet. The man was staring in their direction now, searching the trees for the noises he had undoubtedly heard. Klaus's eyes widened in fright as he realized his hands couldn't stop shaking, and he wasn't locking onto the man like he should have been.

"Dammit, Klaus," Elijah muttered, setting his gun and pointing it in the direction of their target. A loud gunshot rang out through the forest area, as the man went down by his hut. He was dead.

"We need to move," Elijah instructed. He grabbed Klaus by the arm and dragged him away in the direction of their camp. No one was around to follow, and by Klaus's expression, it would be obvious that he hadn't been the one to complete the kill. It was then that Klaus realized what he was in for. His commander would be outraged.


"I gave you strict orders, Mikaelson!" Commander Walker yelled at him. Klaus continued staring out at the space in front of him. This was what Elijah had warned him about. The wrath of Walker was not one people wanted to deal with. Walker had done a lot during his service, things that some people could never imagine. Rumors had surfaced that he had even done some questionably illegal work before he moved up in rank. It only made him more feared among the newcomers.

He had been furious to see the shocked look on Klaus's face when Elijah and him had gotten back. Now, it was just the two of them, and Klaus wished he were as far away from Walker as possible.

"I'm sorry, sir," he tried apologizing.

"Sorry won't cut it. I have spent a lot of my time training you to be the best at your job, and you couldn't even pull the god damn trigger!"

"Sir, I-"

"Shut it, soldier!" Walker moved closer, putting his face right in front of Klaus's face. Klaus made sure not to lose his composure. The tension was high and he didn't want to know what Walker was going to do to him. Unfortunately, he was about to find out.

"You are going to regret not ridding that man of his pathetic existence," Walker spat.

"What are you going to do to me, sir?" Klaus said, barely above a whisper.

Walker laughed humorlessly. "Son…I'm going to put you through a special kind of hell. I'm going to make you the soldier you came here to be, and the soldier I want you to be. You'll learn how to do things that even your brother couldn't possibly dream about."

Klaus's heart was beating fast as Walker strode away from him, his hands behind his back. What exactly did he mean by that? What kind of torture was he about to go through?

"Why me?"

"Because, Mikaelson…you have the potential to be the ultimate soldier. A man anyone would respect and aspire to be. I see that in you. I have since you signed up for this job a year ago. I want you to be that man. Apparently, it's just going to take some time to get you there."

"If you just give me another chance," Klaus pleaded, trying to appeal to his commander's better senses. Walker wasn't having it though.

"I told you to stay quiet! Now, I want you to do exactly as I say. If you thought it was tough before, then you were terribly mistaken. I am going to personally whip you into shape, and make you a real warrior. If you don't put the fear of god into our enemies by the time I'm finished with you, then I haven't done my job right. And son…" Walker moved back to his spot in front of Klaus's face. The young man's eyes closed, afraid to look into the gaze of the vengeful man in front of him.

"I always do my job right."


Present Day

Yoga was the same as always the next day. Caroline was showing her class, including Elena, how to do a shoulder pressing pose. The brunette kept falling backward and forward and even sideways a few times. Caroline couldn't help but smile at the attempt. She untangled herself and stood up to address the class.

"Alright, everyone. That's enough for today. You all are free to leave," Caroline announced, gathering up her yoga mat and water bottle as she walked over to help Elena.

"How do you even do this, Care?" Elena grunted as she fell for the hundredth time, deciding to give up on the pose for the day and stand with Caroline.

"It's not that difficult. It just takes time."

"Well, tomorrow is a new day. Anyway, to continue what we were talking about before class…"

"Elena, I told you I don't want to talk about it anymore. It was probably just a one time thing."

"Screaming like that? You really think that's going to be the only time it happens?"

"Why would it happen again?"

"Beats me, but it sounds like it scared you half to death! Let me spend the night tonight. Please?"

"Thank you, but no thank you. I can take care of myself. Besides, he didn't come down and harass me. He staid in his room and threw his fit. Maybe he's a just bad drunk or something."

"Possibly. You said you didn't hear the girl?"

"Nope. No girl. Just a male voice shouting to the world."

"Hmm. I still think someone should stay with you tonight. Have you thought about telling the landlord?"

"I don't want to, and I don't want you to either. What this guy does is his business. The last resident had a screw loose somewhere and I didn't say anything then. I'm not going to now. The man isn't bothering anyone but me either, so it's not like it would be top priority. The building is old and going to ruins anyway."

"Fine, I won't say anything. And yea, don't I know it," Elena sighed. She had told Caroline about the problems the shop had keeping customers. Everyone wanted to go to the new and flashy places, not a vintage looking café.

"Hey, business will pick up. So what if two loony people live upstairs?" Caroline wrapped her arm around Elena's shoulders and gave them a tight squeeze. The brunette chuckled and the two began walking out of the studio to go across the street. The shop was empty, as it usually was. Stefan and Tyler were at the counter, talking about god only knows what. They gave the girls a bright grin as they walked through the door.

"I thought I could smell you coming over," Tyler said, waving a hand in front of his nose. Caroline slapped him on the shoulder. The guy was too full of himself.

"How was class?" Stefan asked.

"Same old, same old. This girl couldn't seem to stand on her hands." Caroline snickered, pointing to Elena.

"It's not as easy as it looks, so sue me."

"It's okay. I'll go to class one of these days with you guys, and show you how a man does yoga," Stefan said jokingly. The girls laughed, but Tyler just looked kind of perplexed.

As the four of them talked, they had managed to miss the ring of the bell by the door that indicated a customer walking in. Caroline saw Stefan suddenly draw into himself as he looked down at the mug he was cleaning, and focused intently on it. She turned around to see a somewhat tall, lean man walking in. He had on a black pinstripe suit with a blue shirt underneath. His hair was as black as midnight, and his eyes were the iciest of blues. Caroline instantly recognized him as Stefan's brother, Damon. What was he doing at the coffee shop? Didn't he have some kind of job to attend to?

"What are you doing here?" Caroline asked a bit agitated at his presence.

"Always a pleasure, Barbie," he said sarcastically. Damon was one of the most egotistical men she had ever come across. He thought of himself, and only himself. Which is why she was so suspicious of him being there. He never once came to the coffee shop just to chat. The man was impulsive, but he was also very calculating. If he was there, it was for a reason.

"Wish we could say the same," Elena said from the place she had taken behind the counter.

"Oh. I like my women feisty," he growled seductively.

"Yet, you go after any and all that breathe," she quipped.

He gave her a nasty look before turning to Stefan, who had been silent this whole time. "So, baby bro, dad said he was looking for you. Guess he thought I'd make a good messenger," he said, obviously upset that their father had only wanted to talk to Damon so that he could get ahold of Stefan.

Tyler tapped Caroline on the shoulder. "I think I'm going to go. I don't like being around this guy," he whispered. She nodded her head and he made his exit. Caroline turned around to see that Stefan had only shrugged in response to Damon, still focusing on his mug. His brother was obviously annoyed that Stefan refused to speak to him. He inhaled deeply before continuing.

"Please?" he asked through gritted teeth, "I don't want to have to deal with father's temper again."

"He probably just wants to talk to me about joining the football team at school. I don't want to be involved in athletics," Stefan answered quietly.

"Well, you have a good arm! That's something most guys would love to have."

"I make one good pass during a game of tag football, and he thinks I'm Tom Brady. I don't want to play."

"Really? The best name you could think of was Tom Brady?" Damon sighed and shook his head.

"Fine, whatever quarterback you look up to the most. Point is I don't want to play."

"Have you ever thought about just considering the option? How it might make you some good money?"

"Ever heard of J.K. Rowling? Stephen King?"

"Who?"

Stefan sighed. "Should have known that'd be your answer. I'm trying to say that I can make money by writing. I don't have to play football to make a good living and be happy."

Damon glared at him for a long time, causing Stefan to visibly shrink in his spot. The younger brother picked up another glass and began cleaning it. Caroline and Elena continued watching the argument in silence. There wasn't much to say that would help Stefan out. Damon took another deep breath.

"You're books can't help you forever, Stefan. Eventually, you're going to have to grow up and get a real job," he said, his tone low and not at all pleasant. Stefan's face saddened as his brother stormed out of the shop, slamming the door as he left. Elena quickly went over to him and put her arms around his shoulder, as Stefan finally stopped cleaning his glass.

"I just want him to accept me," Stefan said softly. Caroline could never understand why Stefan loved his brother so much. Damon might have loved Stefan, she didn't know, but all she could see was the jealousy he held. Stefan's brother just wanted their father's attention. What he didn't realize was that he already had Stefan's.

"I'm sure he does, Stefan. He's just an ass, and incapable of showing love properly," Caroline tried comforting. It got a smile out of Stefan, but she could tell he still wasn't at his best. Every time his brother came walking in, the boy would become mute. It never failed.

"I guess you're right," he said sadly.

Their attention was drawn elsewhere as the blonde man from the room upstairs walked in. The boy walked over to one of the refrigerators full of drinks, and pulled out a bottle of water. He was actually buying something? Caroline and Elena were awestruck. Stefan looked at them questioningly before shaking his head and going over to attend to him.

"Is that everything?" Stefan asked in his friendly employee voice.

The man just nodded, grabbing some money from his sweatpants pocket and tossing it on the counter. Stefan gave him his change, but before he could say anything else, the man was walking off, turning the bottle over and over in his hands. He had that same serious look on his face as he had yesterday. Then, he was out of the establishment. Stefan turned to look at them, confused by what had just happened. Caroline and Elena gave each other a knowing look. He had seemed perfectly normal there, if not a bit distant. What was going on?

"He's…kind," Stefan said slowly.

"Yea…" was all Caroline could say.

"How do you like that guy?" he asked. Stefan didn't know about the screams, and he was still asking her that.

"I never said I liked him! I just said that he-" Caroline stopped herself, realizing she was playing right into Stefan's trap. Her eyes narrowed and she waved her finger at him. "Nope…not falling for that one."

"I was this close to getting you to say it," he said, moving his finger and thumb to demonstrate how close he had gotten.

"Say what?" Elena asked.

"That he has a nice ass," Caroline said smugly, looking at Stefan. His eyebrows shot up, a pleased expression on his face. Her eyes widened in horror as she looked at Elena, who was doubled over laughing. Caroline crossed her arms across her chest. "That was very sly, Elena Gilbert."

"I know," she said, going over to attend to some customers who had walked up to the register.

Caroline grabbed a cupcake before Stefan could yank the plate away. She grinned at him and bit into one. "I'll be taking this, now. And I will see all of you tomorrow then?"

"Yes, we'll be here at six for pizza."

"Good. Now, a bubble bath is calling my name." She smiled and walked up the stairs.

A part of her was scared for the night ahead. She wasn't sure if the screaming would continue. What if the guy threw another tantrum when she was by herself? What if he finally lost it completely and came knocking on her door? Ugh, if she kept thinking thoughts like that, she'd never get to sleep. How could she not though? Those screams…it had shaken her to the core last night.

Was he schizophrenic? He had been fine at the counter, despite needing a personality check. No shouting or anything. Was it just at night that he yelled at the top of his lungs? No one wandered around these parts at night, so no one would be outside to hear him. It was literally just Caroline there. That thought made her feel more alone than ever. Even more so than when she stared at the vacant side of her bed.


A/N: I owe you all so many thanks for the reviews and follows and everything! You guys have also been so patient with me as far as Klaroline scenes go. I promise, I have some (hopefully) epic scenes planned and written out for them, I'm just trying to build up to it. I feel like back stories and stuff need to be established for all the characters as well. I blame Caroline and Klaus for the difficulty of getting them to talk, but mostly Klaus. More flashbacks to come later, too.

Love ya!