November, 2018

London, England

Elijah looked up as he saw Rebekah approaching the table. He motioned for her to sit down and she obliged, pulling out the chair across from him. He noticed she was still in the dress she left in last night, but decided not to bring it up. There were more pressing manners than the ways his baby sister chose to spend her time away from their home.

"Thank you for meeting me here."

"Well you said we needed to talk, and you asked to meet me here instead of at the house," she shrugged as she took a sip of wine from the glass Elijah had ordered for her.

"I want to talk about Niklaus," Elijah started.

"Is he okay? Did something happen?" Rebekah asked the worry evident in her voice as she set her wine glass down. She placed her elbows on the table so she could lean closer to him as if he would answer her question sooner.

"Niklaus had a bit of a...mishap last night in a pub. Kol and I got him home safely and took care of the mess..." Elijah trailed off. He wasn't sure how to explain what he thought had happened or if he was going to sound as crazy as he thought he did. "But last night, at the pub...there was a girl. Klaus stopped to look at her before he left. She was dead, I'm sure he was the one that killed her. She was on her stomach so I only saw her back...but if I do say so…I think she bared an uncanny resemblance to Caroline."

Rebekah bit her lip and looked away from Elijah, glancing at all the couples having dinner and conversing about normal topics. She wished she was one of them, if only for a day so she didn't have to worry about Niklaus. But he was her brother and it was her responsibility to look after him. "In Dusseldorf, when we were at that restaurant, I swear I heard Caroline. This girl, she sounded just like her…the same laugh. And Nik, he didn't…he wasn't paying any attention to me. I'm sure he was thinking about Caroline….but then it was like he couldn't take it anymore. He just got up and started tearing everyone apart. Except for the girl, she was the only one not completely covered in blood."

Elijah nodded, "The girl last night had her neck snapped. The rest of the bodies were quite mangled but she had a relatively quick death." Elijah paused, taking a sip out of his glass. "After last night, I am inclined to agree with your belief that Niklaus has not yet gotten over Caroline's death."

"He's getting worse."

"Yes," Elijah agreed. He had bared witness to many of his brother's bloody rampages and had cleaned up after many more of them, but there was something different about Klaus' massacre in the pub last night. Maybe it was the fact that he becoming more reckless killing so many in a public place where anyone could wander in, where he could easily be attacked. Where he was attacked, Elijah reminded himself. "There's something else I need to tell you."

"What else could there possibly be? I think Nik going crazy because he's reminded of Caroline is more than enough. Now is not the time to hold a little dinner party or whatever else you are planning to show everyone that we're the most powerful family on earth, 'lijah," Rebekah scowled.

"No," Elijah shook his head. "I found this on the floor of the pub last night," Elijah told her as he pulled out a towel from his inner suit pocket and placed it on the table. He unrolled it to display the blood-stained stake inside.

Rebekah let out a gasp as her eyes fell on the object. "Is that…one of the Five's stakes?"

Before Elijah could stop her, Rebekah reached for the stake and let out a small whimper as her fingertips touched the wood and it burned her. She quickly pulled her hand back to her chest, fingertips already healed.

"Yes, and it has been soaked in vervain."

"Thanks for the warning," Rebekah rolled her eyes. She reached for the stake again, but this time held the towel in between her fingers and the stake. "Did Nik mention the hunter?"

"Niklaus has not said a word since last night. Kol has been with him all day, throwing knives or whatever Kol has decided to try and distract Niklaus with today, but he has not said a word that I know of. I do not think he even realized that it was one of the five, or he would have said something whether he was distracted by Caroline or not."

"He didn't even know a hunter was there, that close to him…" Rebekah realized. She laid the stake back on the table. If Klaus wasn't even able to recognize that one of the five was near him last night, his survival instincts had sorely been impaired, and that was dangerous. It put them all in danger if Klaus was susceptible to attack. "Now what?" Rebekah asked as she laid the stake back on the table.

Elijah wrapped the stake back up and placed it back inside his jacket for safekeeping. "Now we need to be extra cautious, we cannot let Niklaus out of our sight. He has gained the attention of a hunter and he is probably curious as to why Niklaus did not die last night when he staked him. It is only a matter of time before this hunter finds out who Niklaus is, if he doesn't already."

"But he can't kill Nik. He doesn't have a white oak stake," Rebekah insisted.

"No, but that does not mean he cannot get one once he learns who we are," Elijah reasoned.

"The Salvatores," Rebekah breathed. "They wouldn't."

"I am positive they wouldn't hesitate to hand over the stake if the hunter threatened Caroline," Elijah reasoned with her.

"But why would he threaten Caroline?" Rebekah asked. "Why not threaten them, or even their precious Elena?"

"I've been keeping tabs on Caroline it seems she's not…entirely herself. A hunter would easily pick her out as the weakest one of their group."

"Not herself?" Rebekah hissed. "What do you mean?" Caroline had managed to become her closest friend while she and Klaus were dating and Rebekah could only imagine what the other blonde was going through.

"She's rather…lethargic from what I understand. She's rarely seen outside the house her, Elena, and the Salvatores share. As of May she began this…un-Caroline like behavior, with it worsening around August."

"Worsening? Since May? Elijah, we can't let this continue! It is obvious Caroline and Nik aren't meant to be apart!" Rebekah exclaimed, hoping Elijah would finally see the light and bring this whole ridiculous arrangement to an end.

"That may be true, but the Salvatores still have the stake," Elijah sighed. He had only wanted what was best for his family and Caroline and Niklaus' relationship was a threat to the empire they were building. The plan to separate the two had been a brilliant one but how was he to know that Niklaus was going to cause more damage without Caroline than he did with her? It was hurting Elijah to see Niklaus in so much pain and knowing it was by his own hand. Now things were too complicated and he couldn't return Caroine to Niklaus without the Salvatores staking one of them for going back on their deal. He was suddenly grateful and relieved for all the years Klaus had taken charge of their family, trying to keep them safe and happy. It was too great of a task for Elijah to bear and he couldn't wait to return it to Niklaus.

Rebekah pulled Elijah out of his thoughts with her reply, "But they can't give the white oak stake to the hunter to kill Nik, they'll kill themselves too."

"Yes, but they're not a part of your, Kol's or my lineage. I do not doubt that they will somehow convince the hunter to use it on one of us to hurt Niklaus since I am sure they do not want to end their own lives. You know they never warmed up to him and Caroline," Elijah reminded her. "Or the hunter might simply kill Niklaus regardless of his promises to the Salvatores. There are too many variables yet, Rebekah."

"So there is nothing we can do? We can't tell Nik about Caroline?"

"Maybe once we pay a visit to this member of the brotherhood and take care of him we can visit the Salvatores and…renegotiate our deal with regards to Caroline and the white oak stake."

Rebekah broke out into a large grin at his words and Elijah couldn't help the small smile that formed on his own lips.

November, 2018

Nashville, Tennessee

Stefan sat on the couch of their living room flipping through the course catalogue. He was supposed to meet with his advisor soon to go over his class schedule for the next semester. One of the psych courses caught his eye: PSY 270: Positive Psychology

Caroline would love that class…or the old Caroline would've, Stefan corrected himself. He made a little star next to it and continued looking at the list of classes being offered. He was debating whether he should take another English class or fill another pre-requisite for graduation when the door to the house banged open and Caroline blurred past the entryway to the living room and up the stairs.

Elena appeared in the hallway seconds after Caroline, dropping her book bag on the floor. Stefan put down his stuff and stood up, alarmed at the worry written across Elena's face. "Elena, what's going on?"

Elena shook her head, "I…I don't know. We went Stambaugh House..."

"Caroline's old dorm room? Why would you go there?" Stefan demanded.

"She just ran off! I found her outside her old room and she was crying. She asked who her roommate was..."

"Did you tell her?"

"Yes." Stefan groaned in response. "What was I supposed to do Stefan? She was having a breakdown in the middle of the hallway. I didn't think it was a big deal..." her voice trailed off and Stefan could tell there was something else, something that was a big deal.

"What happened, Elena?" Stefan asked. Elena couldn't be keeping secrets about Caroline.

Elena took a deep breath and continued, "She said 'he killed her.'"

That's not possible, he thought. He shook his head at Elena, "No…does she remember him?"

"I don't know," Elena said. "She didn't say his name, but she remembered that he killed Holly."

"I think we need to find out exactly how much she knows," Stefan suggested. Elena nodded in agreement and they quickly walked up the stairs to Caroline's room. Her door was shut, but they could hear the sounds of Caroline moving things around inside. Stefan and Elena exchanged glances before Stefan opened the door. "Caroline?" he called as he stepped into her room with Elena behind him.

Caroline emerged from her closet with her arms full of clothing. She flung them on the floor, letting them fall onto the already messy floor. "Where's all my clothing that I bought with Holly?" she cried as she kicked the cream-colored blouse nearest to her foot. "We went shopping together, I know it. Where's my clothing, it's missing!" Caroline yelled as she dove back into her closet, trying to find her lost clothing.

"Caroline," Stefan said softly as he approached Caroline. "You're not going to find anything."

Caroline turned from her task to face Stefan. "Why not?"

Because we burned all the clothes you bought with Holly so you wouldn't remember her, so this wouldn't happen.

"Because you gave them away. You said you didn't want them anymore," Stefan lied.

Caroline was quiet for a moment, then she took a deep breath and started towards her desk where the contents of her photograph box were emptied out. "But her picture…I remember her face, but I don't have any pictures of her," Caroline said distractedly as she sorted through the photographs again, looking for the face she might have missed the first two times she looked through them. "I know we had to have taken pictures together…"

"Smile loves," he said as he held the camera up to his face.

Caroline wrapped her arm around Holly's shoulder and she felt Holly's hand rest on her own. Caroline smiled as the camera's flash went off.

"Gorgeous."

"This isn't too much?" Holly asked as she looked down at her ensemble consisting of a Vanderbilt sweatshirt, short black shorts with VU written on the side and black and gold ribbon tied around her ponytail.

"No it's perfect," Caroline insisted. "You'll fit right in at the game." Caroline looked down and ran her fingers over her VU cheerleading uniform. "I have to get going; Michaela's going to kill me if I'm late. I'll look for you guys in the stands!"

"Good luck Caroline!" Holly yelled as Caroline scooped up her duffle bag and ran out of their dorm room towards the football stadium.

Caroline squeezed her eyes shut as the scene stopped playing in her head and a few new tears sprung to her eyes.

"What is it Caroline?" Elena asked.

"Where is it? I know I have one. The one of my first game at Vanderbilt, I dressed Holly up and we took a picture together," Caroline said as she shoved the piles of pictures to the corners of her desk.

"Caroline," Elena said softly, unsure of what to do.

"Maybe you lost it," Stefan suggested.

"No," Caroline interrupted, "Where is it?" she yelled as she picked up the empty photograph box and threw it across the room where it left a dent in her cream-colored wall. "I loved that picture of us…I loved her…I didn't want her to die. It was my fault," Caroline confessed as she bit her lip to stop the tears.

"No, it wasn't your fault," Stefan assured her as he stepped forward and wrapped her in a hug.

"It was. I let it happen," Caroline cried, her voice muffled by Stefan's shirt. "He grabbed her and I didn't stop him. I should have stopped him…but I was angry that she interrupted us too! I let him!" Caroline sobbed, gripping tightly onto his shirt for support.

"Shhh, it's okay Caroline," Stefan tried to calm her. He scooped her up and sat her on her bed, sitting down next to her and rubbing her back. "Care, do you know who killed Holly? Do you know his name?" Stefan asked.

Caroline shook her head as she rubbed the tears from her eyes, "No. I can't even remember his face really, just his voice…" being called love, the feel of his hands on my skin, how much I wanted him, how eager he was to rip off all my clothes…And dimples. I remember dimples Caroline finished silently.

"It'll be okay, Care. You should get some rest," Stefan told her.

"I'll bring you up a drink," Elena offered.

Caroline nodded and sunk down into her bed. Stefan and Elena took it as their cue to leave and made their way down to the kitchen.

Elena grabbed a blood bag from their freezer and dumped it into a mug for Caroline. "Well at least she doesn't remember him," Elena remarked quietly so Caroline couldn't hear.

"Yes bus she should not have been able to remember Holly's death at all since Klaus was the one who killed her. And why now? Why does she remember it now?" Stefan asked, drumming his fingers along the island countertop.

"She did remember it when were at her dorm room…" Elena offered.

"So the location has something to do with it?" Stefan guessed. "But we can't keep her locked in here forever and not let her go out."

"She might not remember anymore, Stefan. This could've just been a mistake. Maybe Bonnie didn't erase her memory of Holly properly," Elena suggested.

"That doesn't make me feel any better," Stefan replied. "Who knows what else she might've missed then," Stefan wondered. They couldn't have Caroline remembering Klaus. It would be too messy. "Maybe we should contact Elijah or Rebekah and ask them. They might've dealt with this type of thing before."

"No Stefan, you can't. If they think we're not holding up our end of the bargain, they'll kill Caroline for real," Elena persuaded him.

"You're right. We don't know what they'd do," Stefan sighed. "And we can't risk Caroline's safety."

"I'm going to take this up to Caroline," Elena said as she held up the mug. Stefan nodded and Elena left him alone in the kitchen.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter, even if it did take me forever to write it (sorry!).

I promise to try and get the next chapter out faster

Review, tell me if you loved, it hated it, thought there should be more of someone, less of someone, less flashbacks, etc.