"Can't we just go home?" Anna asked grumpily as she and Caroline plodded after Klaus and Stefan. "This is like the fifth circus we've been to!"

"Nope, sorry," Stefan told them. "We got front row seats for this one, and do you really want to give them up?"

"Yes," Caroline grumbled. "Let's scalp 'em and then we'll have enough money to get back home. You can only see the greatest show on earth so many times before it starts to get less great."

"Oh, come on, Caroline," Klaus said. "What happened to that sunny disposition of yours that I love so much?"

"It disappeared when that clown tried to pinch me," Caroline said. "Lucky for him we were out in the open."

"Well, I'll make sure that no one comes near you this time," Klaus said. "Would that make you happy?"

"Wait a minute, Nik," Stefan said as they rounded a corner and came face to face with a tent that said "Sideshow" on it in bold blue letters. "Let's go in. We might see someone interesting," he said, looking meaningfully at Klaus. Klaus nodded. "You know, you're right. Let's go in."

"I saw that look!" Anna said. "What is going on? Is there something you're not telling us?"

Stefan took her hand and looked into her eyes. "There's nothing going on. Would I lie to you?"

"Yes," Anna nodded. "If there was something you didn't want me to know about, you would. So just tell me! You know I'll find out some other way if you don't."

Stefan and Klaus gave each other a look. "Just tell her," Klaus said finally.

"We're here to look for Kevin," Stefan said, trying not to meet Anna's eyes. "His mom gave him up to the circus when he was a baby and he never knew his dad."

"So what do you want with him?" Anna asked. "Why this particular kid?"

"Because he's Elijah's," Klaus said. "Elijah's son with his fiancee Elizabeth, who's dead now. We just want to find him and help him out a little. There's no harm in that, is there?"

Anna's eyes narrowed. "Why would you do that?" She asked. "Why would you drag that up now? And what will happen if Elijah finds out? Or Selina? For god's sake, she's eight months pregnant now and Nik, you of all people should know what that means if she gets angry."

"Do you think we're stupid?" Stefan asked. "We aren't just gonna stride up to Selina and tell her everything! Why would she have to know that? We're just trying to help the kid out. That's all. Give him a little guidance. And if he asks to see his dad, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

Just then, they heard someone clear their throat. The four of them turned and saw a young man with short brown hair and brown eyes. He seemed to be in his mid-twenties. "Excuse me," he said. "I heard you talking and you mentioned you were looking for someone whose mother gave them up to the circus?"

Stefan and Klaus froze. "Yeah," Klaus said finally. "Did your mother give you up to the circus?"

The young man nodded. "Yeah. I've been here for as long as I can remember." He held his hand out to shake Klaus' and then Stefan's. "I'm Kevin. Can I ask who you are?"

"Us?" Stefan asked. "We're no one special. But we know your father and we've been looking forward to meeting you."

"My father?" Kevin asked, looking intrigued. "I didn't even know he knew about me. Did he send you?"

"Not exactly," Stefan said.

The eager young man invited them back to his dressing room. As the four of them followed him, Anna whispered to Stefan, "Why didn't you tell me about this before we left?"

Stefan grinned. "Because if I had, you wouldn't have come and it's been so long since we've done anything together. But you've had fun up until now. Admit it."

Anna sighed. "I suppose you're right. But I want you to know that I want no involvement with this whatsoever."

"Well, all right then," Klaus told her. "That's simple enough. I absolve you of any involvement, so If Selina finds out and asks you if you knew anything, you can truthfully say 'no'."

Anna grinned. "Thank you. That's all I ask."

"So," Kevin asked when they were all sitting down. "You said you know my father?"

Klaus cleared his throat. "Yeah, we did say that. He's my brother, Elijah."

Kevin gave a short laugh. "So I have an uncle? That is so cool!"

Klaus nodded. "Technically you have a few uncles. And a couple of aunts, too."

"One of whom is me," Anna said. "I'm Anna, that's Nik." She pointed at Klaus. "And Caroline and Stefan are the people we're in relationships with."

"What about my dad?" Kevin asked. "Where's he? Did he come with you?"

"Don't take this the wrong way," Stefan said. "But he doesn't know we're here, and technically I'm not sure he'd like it if he knew we were."

"Oh," Kevin nodded. "That figures. My mother didn't want me because I'm a freak and my father doesn't want me either. That's probably why he left before I was born."

"That's not it, actually," Caroline said. "Your father is as freaky as you, if being a vampire is the freakiness you're talking about."

Kevin's eyes widened. "How do you know I'm a vampire?"

"Because we all are," Caroline said.

Kevin's eyes widened. "Really? That's great! All these years, I thought I was the only one!" He paused. "So, when do I get to see my father? Did you come to bring me to him?"

"No," Stefan shook his head. "At least not now. Your father has a lot to deal with at the moment and I think putting a new, illegitimate son on top of that would just be too much for him."

"What's happening with him now?" Kevin asked.

"He's remarried," Anna said. "And his wife is pregnant. Really pregnant. She could have their baby any time in the next month."

"Yeah," Stefan said. "And when she found out about you and your mom, let's say she wasn't exactly happy about it. She'll need time to get used to the idea before she'll let you near her husband without having any sort of retaliation on her mind."

"Wow," Kevin said. "What kind of a psycho did my father marry, anyway?"

"Normally, she's not psycho," Anna said. "Normally, she's very nice. It's just that she's had a lot of relationships in the past where men have let her down, so sometimes, competition and knowing about her partner's past relationships can make her a bit edgy. Your dad's relationship with your mom was just kind of dumped on her. If she'd have been better prepared mentally, I'm sure she would have handled it with grace and aplomb."

"Dad's gonna have another kid to look after soon?" Kevin asked, his face falling. "Then he probably won't want anything to do with me. Just his legitimate kids."

"He's not like that," Anna said. "And neither is his wife. I mean, you know what? His wife had a kid with Stefan's brother while she was still married to Nik here, and then she went to live with your father, and the kid came to visit sometimes, and he was totally all right with it. If he can accept Sam, I think he'll be able to accept you."

"And what about his crazy wife who's not really crazy?" Kevin asked.

"As long as you behave yourself, you should have no problem with her," Klaus said. "After all, the only people who feel her wrath are her romantic rivals, not their children."

"Except for Mary Anne," Anna said. "She wasn't one of your better ideas, Nik."

"This is completely different from what happened with Mary Anne," Klaus said. And when he noticed that Kevin was beginning to look frightened, he cleared his throat. "Let's change the subject, shall we? I believe we're frightening Kevin."

"No," Kevin shook his head and tried to look nonchalant. "You're not scaring me. I'm fine."

Just then, they heard a voice say, "Excuse me, but it's time for Kevin to go on now."

"All right," Kevin said, but after the man left, he said, "I really want to go on. I've had enough of this and I'm miserable."

"And no wonder!" Caroline said. "Anyone would hate being put on show and mocked day after day."

"Yeah," Stefan said. "I mean, I know there are proud circus freaks out there, but it's all right not to be one of them."

"Listen," Kevin said. "I know that my father's not ready to see me yet, but can I come with you anyway? Just to get out of here?"

Klaus and Stefan looked at one another and grinned. "Well, it's your lucky day," Stefan said. "That's exactly what we came for: to take you away from here and bring you back to civilization where you belong."

"There you go!" Selina said as she pulled Gregory's little dark green polo over his head. "That looks so nice with those slacks. Your father would be proud." Gregory got out of the chair he'd been sitting in and held his arms up, waiting for Selina to pick him up. She watched him uncertainly for a few seconds, then his face crumbled and he burst into tears.

"Wait, no!" Selina said. "Just a minute, just a minute! Don't cry!" She tried to position herself to pick him up, but couldn't because her stomach was in the way. She felt her eyes well up and then she started crying too. Eventually, they heard a knock on Gregory's bedroom door.

"Come in," Selina sniffled.

The door opened and Elijah strode in. "What is going on in here? I can hear you all the way from my office!"

"Well, I'm sorry," Selina said. "I'll try and keep the fact that I'm too fat to be useful to anyone to myself."

"What?" Elijah asked, coming into the room and standing next to her. "No you're not!"

Selina nodded. "Yes, I am! I can't even pick Gregory up anymore! Do you know what happens to kids whose parents don't show them any affection? I mean, look at us!"

"Well, it's not your fault you can't move around as easily anymore," Elijah said. He sat Gregory down on his changing table and looked him right in the eye. "Gregory, you have to understand that your mother can't coddle you as much as she'd like to right now, so you'll have to learn how to handle things yourself. It's not that she doesn't love you, it's just how things are, all right?"

Gregory's lip still stuck out, but he seemed to understand. "He looks nice," Elijah said. "I like his outfit."

"Well, thank you," Selina said, wiping her nose with her hand. "I do try."

Elijah pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket. "Wipe your nose with this and then go wash your hands," he said. "Not that we have to worry about the spread of germs or anything, but it doesn't hurt anyone to be sanitary."

Selina took the handkerchief and blew her nose. "I assume you don't want this back?" She asked when she was done.

Elijah's nose wrinkled a little. "No. Just throw it in the wash."

Selina nodded. "All right."

Just then, the doorbell rang and Selina went to answer it. "Daddy," she said when she saw who was on the other side. "Come on in! To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I have to talk to you," Matthew said. "I want to know what kind of a person that Enid is."

"Has something happened?" Selina asked. "Did the two of you have a fight?"

"No, we haven't had a fight," Matthew shook his head. "But she's asked me to do something I'm not particularly comfortable with. She wants me to keep something to myself that I really think needs to be shared with someone."

"What is it?" Selina asked, looking intrigued. "Did she do something bad?"

"No," Matthew said. He looked uncomfortable. "In a sense, you could say that what she did was really sweet. I don't know what to make of it, honestly."

"Well, what did she do?" Selina asked.

"Well, I assume you heard that when Roxanne had her babies, she lost one."

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "She told me. It was one of the rare times I ever remember seeing her cry."

"The fact of the matter is, though, he's not dead anymore. Unless she was lying to me, although I don't know why she'd do that."

"What do you mean he's not dead anymore?" Selina asked.

"Well, I came to the club to pick her up for a date on the day the babies were born and she said we couldn't go out cause she had a baby to take care of, and that it was Roxie's baby she'd brought back from the dead, but that I couldn't tell anyone because she'd get in trouble."

"But you're telling me," Selina said. "Daddy, why?"

Matthew sighed. "I just think it's wrong to let Roxie and her husband suffer and think they have a dead child when they don't. I had to tell someone. Now, you can tell Roxanne and hopefully that will make them both feel better."

"Daddy, as much as I would love to tell Roxie this news, it's not my place. And besides, it's been a month. Roxie needs time to grieve over Joey. This experience could really help her grow up. It's not to say that she won't hear the truth eventually. I just don't think it's time yet."

"I'm gonna go to work!" Roxie yelled to whoever was around to listen. "And don't worry about Addie. Enid said I could bring her with me and she would watch her."

"Oh, you don't have to do that," Klaus said, appearing suddenly. "I would be more than happy to watch sweet little Addison. It wouldn't be any trouble."

"And do you really think it's a good idea to have her around all that alcohol?" Caroline asked.

"She wouldn't be around the bar!" Roxie said. "My god, Caroline. What sort of person do you take me for?"

"And besides," Klaus said, "Remember what happened last time you brought her to the bar and you and Vince saw each other? That was quite the awkward scene, wasn't it?"

"Well, it wouldn't have been so awkward if you hadn't started stuff with him!" Roxie said. "I miss him, but there's something in me that keeps telling me I have to respect his space and let him work through this Joey thing in his own way. And that it'll just make things worse if I or anyone else rush him!"

"Well, are you miserable here by yourself?" Klaus asked.

"Not as much as you would think," Roxie said. "Because I still have Addie and you...both. I'm gonna be all right. I swear. And I'm still taking Addie to work with me. It'll be all right."

Klaus and Caroline gave each other looks and rolled their eyes, but didn't say anything more as Roxie took Addie outside and put her in the car, then drove to Enid's.

"I'm here for work!" She called when she came in. "And I brought Addie! I hope that's all right."

"You didn't get my message?" Enid asked, appearing almost immediately, looking a little panicked.

Roxie shook her head. "No. What message?"

"I've decided to change you to complete evening shifts now," she said. "So you can spend more time with Addie during the day."

"Really?" Roxie asked, looking surprised. "Well, thank you, Enid. But if you don't want me bringing Addison to work, all you have to do is say so. You don't have to rearrange the whole schedule."

Enid shrugged. "I figured that it would be easier for you and Vince to work together at night, when it was just the two of you here," she said. "Maybe it'll be easier for you to work things out that way."

Roxie sighed. "There's nothing for us to work out! Vince is sad about Joey dying and that's just something he needs to work through. Not to say I'm not affected by it, but we're just dealing with it in different ways."

Just then, Vince came in. "I'm here," he said. "Where do you want me to start?"

"We're not supposed to be working yet," Roxie told him. "But apparently, neither of us got the message. And I'm sorry about my dad's behavior the other day. I'm sure he didn't mean it. He goes a little overboard when it comes to me sometimes, but you already knew that."

"Oh, it's fine," Vince said emptily. "I really don't care." He was having trouble meeting her eyes.

"For god's sake," Roxie said. "Can't you at least look me in the eye when you speak to me?" Vince brought his gaze up. "Sorry," he said quietly.

Addie cooed and Roxie said to Vince, "Do you at least want to see your daughter and feel amazed I haven't killed her yet?"

Vince looked at Addie in Roxie's arms for a long moment and Roxie thought he was gonna just walk away, but to her surprise, he reached out and snatched Addie up, hugging her to him.

"Oh, sweetie," he said. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Does this mean you want me to leave my dad's?" Roxie asked hopefully.

Vince shook his head. "No, I'm sorry, not yet. But I think it means I'm ready to start visiting for a little bit every day. If your dad's in a good mood, that is."

"I could come to the house with Addie and visit you," Roxie said tentatively. "Or I could come to the house by myself sometime and we could..."

Vince gave her a look.

"Sorry," Roxie said quickly. "Too soon?"

"Yeah," Vince nodded. "Just a little."

Roxie sighed. "Well, whatever. Want me to bring Addie over tonight?"

Vince looked down at his daughter. "All right," he said. "That would be nice."

True to her word, Roxie brought Addie over to see Vince that night. "Hi!" She said when he opened the door. "We came!"

Vince grinned and took Addie from her. "You did come! But you're a little late, though. You said five and it's almost six."

"Dad had a problem letting Addie go. He's really attached to her," Roxie explained. "So...how are you doing? Any better?"

Vince nodded. "A little. I mean, I don't think this is something I'm gonna get over completely, but I've realized that if I'm going to be a fully-functioning person, I have to learn ways to cope. And that this is a good way to start." He took Addie from Roxie again and they went to the living room.

"What do you think of Enid changing our hours?" Roxie asked him. "Don't you think it's a little odd? I mean, we've done the night shift before, but it hasn't been permanent."

Vince shrugged. "So she changed the schedule. I don't think there's anything wrong with that."

"But when I got there today, she looked terrified at the sight of me. Granted, I have had a lifelong goal to instill fear in people so they'll respect me, but Enid is not one of those people. What possible reason would she have to be afraid of me?"

Vince shrugged. "I don't know. On a completely different note, have you seen Jeremy yet?"

"Who's Jeremy?" Roxie asked.

"A kid Enid says she's watching for a friend," Vince said. "She brings him around the bar all the time. He's a sweet little guy. The patrons really like him. He's probably what's making me feel better about Joey being gone. Every time I see him, I just...I feel better. When you're at work sometime, ask Enid if she'll introduce him to you."

"Who's on the phone?" Damon asked Lenora the next day when she came and held it out to him.

"It's Aunt Lucy," Lenora said. "She wants to talk to you."

"Well, you tell her that I don't know if I want to talk to her."

"Too bad!" Lucy shouted. "This is long distance, you know. I'm not wasting a phone call just because you want to throw a tantrum!"

"I can't believe you're criticizing me for being concerned about your welfare," Damon said. "Most people consider that a nice thing."

"I don't need another person being concerned for my welfare down here," Lucy said. "I told you that I'm gonna be fine. My uncle Jake is down here with me. We're gonna check this thing out together."

"That's all right, I guess," Damon said grumpily. "Jake's better than nothing."

"What's your problem with my uncle?" Lucy asked.

"I just have a history with that part of your family that's not so good," Damon replied.

"Could you get over yourself for like, two seconds so I can tell you what Uncle Jake and I found today?"

"All right," Damon said. "What is it?"

"Well," Lucy said. "Jake definitely thinks there's a rogue werewolf family down here. A beast has been attacking farm animals and locals for a century or two, and from descriptions of the 'wolves, they seem more like weres than ones just found in nature. And there was one winter where a villager was attacked by a wolf and then the wolf got its paw chopped off, and then the next morning, a group of the men went down with the sheriff to show him the body and all they fond was one of the local men, dead. He had a bloody stump where his hand should have been. They figured he must've bled out during the night."

"One stupid guy doesn't mean there's a whole family of werewolves in this place!" Damon scoffed.

"If you think there's nothing here, than why are you so worried about me?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah, why?" Lenora parroted.

"I can be worried for whatever reason I want!" Damon said. "I don't have to explain it to you!" He pressed the speaker button and hung up the phone, ending the call.

"What did you do that for?" Lenora asked him. "That's not very nice."

"I don't care," Damon said to her testily. "Now go to your room and don't come out until I say!"

"I don't want to go to my room!" Lenora said. "I haven't done anything wrong."

"Yes you have," Damon told her. "It's not nice to listen in on other people's phone calls. That's a lesson you're having a really hard time learning."

Lenora looked at him angrily and was in the process of striding off toward her room when she turned on her heel quite suddenly and ran back, throwing her arms around him. "I'm sorry you miss Aunt Lucy," she said.

"Well, thank you," Damon said. "I do miss Lucy."

"Do you want me to make it be January so she comes back?" Lenora asked.

Damon sighed. "No," he said. "That wouldn't be very nice of us." Lenora looked at him for a minute and then came back with Rusty. "Here," she said. "He's soft. Pet him and you won't be sad anymore."

Tentatively, Damon reached out for the dog and began stroking him. Lenora put the dog in his lap and Damon shut his eyes and pretended he was running his fingers through Lucy's silky blonde hair.

"Do I still have to go to my room?" Lenora asked after a couple of minutes.

Damon shook his head. "No. And I'm sorry I snapped at you."

Lenora crawled next to him. "It's all right," she said. "I'm not mad. If I was, you'd be something yucky right now."

Damon looked at her and smiled. "Thank you for restraining yourself," he said. He looked up at the clock. "I think it's time for you to have quiet time," he said.

"All right," Lenora said. "I'll go have quiet time." She went to her room and picked up her play phone, hitting it with her finger. "Hello, Aunt Lucy!" she said.

"Lenora?" Lucy asked. "What are you doing?"

"I just wanted to tell you that Damon stopped talking to you because he misses you," She said. "Okay? Were you wondering that?"

"Yes," Lucy said. "You tell him I miss him too," Lucy said. "Bunches and bunches. And that part of me wishes that it was January so I could come back."

"There is?" Lenora asked.

"Yeah," Lucy said. "And you can even tell him if you want. Promise you'll do that?"

"Yes!" Lenora said. "Yes, I will!"