AN: its that time again!

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Chapter 53

Cassie was back in her room packing with Klaus pouting on her bed.

"Stop it" she said as Klaus kept grabbing her clothes out of the bag.

"Why do you have to go?" he asked for the hundredth time.

"So we can finish the hunters mark," she said.

Klaus flopped on the bed, Cassie smiled as she finished packing and put her bag down.

She leaned over Klaus "Nik" she said running her hands through his hair. "Its for three weeks, I will be back before the Christmas party in town square."

Klaus grabbed her hips and flipped them so he was on top on her. "This isn't a good way for you to convince me to let you go." He said as he nuzzled her neck.

"Oh for you to let me go" she teased pulling his head back to her lips.

After kissing her Klaus pulled back and looked down at her, "I'm worried," he confessed.

"About what?" she questioned, pulling up so they sat side by side.

Klaus grabbed her hand and started to play with her fingers "about you leaving" he said.

"Anything specific or just me leaving in general" she asked.

"With whom you are going with," he said "we already know that Mikael has compelled Damon, and I'm just going to send you away with him."

Cassie nodded, "Damon, broke up with Elena" she told him, "told her that they couldn't be together until this was taken care of, because it wasn't right."

"That may be noble but that still doesn't put my worries to rest" he said.

"Nor mine" she confessed "but Damon needs to get out of town for a while and this could be good for him."

"Ok but I'm worried about you" he said his voice rising a little "not Damon"

"Nik," she said standing up.

"No, don't Nik me" he said angrily. "Every time we start to talk about you, you change subjects, you leave and call meetings together."

"We got a lot done today," she challenged

"For other people, not for you"

"We didn't need anything done for me"

"You needed to rest and get your bearings back"

"I'm fine"

"No, you're not, I see you. You tense every time someone touches you, you check behind every nook and carney with your eyes when you enter a room."

"I do that all the time!" she screamed back.

"Cass" Jeremy said from behind her.

Cassie jumped having been startled at her brother. "Jeremy" she said holding her hand to her chest.

"I need your help," he said.

"Ok" she said walking out of the room.

Klaus watched her leave, once again putting someone before her. Shaking his head "your empathy will be your undoing" he muttered to himself before blurring away.

Cassie was sitting on Jeremy's bed helping him pack. "I really screwed up didn't I?" he asked as he put some clothes into his bag.

"Yes and no" she said.

Jeremy looked at his sister "I don't understand" he confessed.

Cassie patted the bed next to her and Jeremy sat next to her.

"Yes, you messed up. You didn't listen to me when I told you about how becoming a hunter changes you're life. You don't just pick it up as a hobby, you become a hunter. Mind and body. I thought you had understood it and I was wrong. I shouldn't have become obsessed with every thing else." She said

"Its not your fault Cass" he said.

Cassie put her hand over his "I'm your older sister, its always my fault" she said.

"What's the no part?" he asked.

"You still were training so your skills have still been developing, we just have to work on the mental stuff, I just don't know how to start," she confessed.

"Why were you two fighting?" Jeremy asked.

Cassie turned to Jeremy, "we were fighting about a lot of things," she told him quietly.

Jeremy remained quiet.

"He's gone" she said, "he left when I came into your room"

"Maybe he didn't know how long you were going to be" Jeremy offered.

Cassie just nodded. "Its our first fight" she whispered so quietly Jeremy almost missed it.

Cassie stood up.

"Cass" Jeremy called. Cassie turned back to face him. "Are you sure your ok, after the whole Alaric thing?"

Cassie nodded her head "it wasn't him," she said "I never blamed him"

Jeremy nodded and slid his suitcase off the bed "see you in the morning."

"Goodnight" she said and then left the room; she didn't head back to her room. The emptiness of it was to daunting for her just yet so she walked into the kitchen and made some tea. Her thoughts drifted to Nik and what he was saying, it made sense his logic, but she understood Damon's need to get away from everything.

Cassie placed her head in her hands and ran her fingers through it. Her mind constantly running through her list.

Deal with Shane. Check.

Help her Dad. Check.

Finish the mark for the cure. Working on it.

Figuring out what Mikael and Ester's plan is. One step closer.

Over and over again she thought over it. She needed to get this cure done for her sister before she killed somebody else. But, it was taking to long killing one by one, only grew the mark so long, something drastic needed to happen in order for the mark to finish quickly enough to save Elena the guilt of another death on her.

How? How was she going to be able to orchestra a mass slaughter of vampires, vampires that deserved to die and either her or Jeremy needed to sign their death certificates, all of them.

And Nik, Nik didn't want her to go to the lake house with just Jeremy and Damon. So whom could she take?

The list was short, only two people who weren't needed either at school or another point in the plan to find the cure and save everyone.

Katherine or Mason.

Katherine was mad at her and probably wasn't going to jump on the chance to help Cassie stay at home faster.

So that left Mason.

Cassie picked up her phone and called him before her mind talked her out of it.

He didn't answer of course that didn't surprise her; it was late in the night.

"Mace," she began "I have to take Jeremy out of town tomorrow, we are going to the lake house, and Damon wants to go. But, the problem is Nik doesn't want me to go with him alone. I know you two don't get along but I need you. We are leaving tomorrow at eleven so I guess I'll see you then or not." She finished before hanging up and taking another drink of tea.

Klaus was pacing in his study; a blank canvas was sitting there with his paints a ready.

He shouldn't have left his mind kept yelling at him. He should have stayed.

But what good would staying have done? He was fighting with himself, she didn't want to talk about herself or anything other than what was going wrong with the town.

You don't like to talk about your self either. His rational side argued, this was your first fight and you just left. What do you think is running through her mind now?

Klaus poured himself a glass of wine and turned back to the canvas, all of his thoughts ran silent as he picked up the paintbrush and started to control the outcome of this one thing.

Morning came to quickly in Cassie's opinion. Having gotten so much sleep yesterday she found she wasn't tired so she had stayed up and packed, cleaned the house and left instructions for Matt while the two of them were gone.

Ten o clock rolled around and Cassie heard Jeremy up and in the shower when Damon walked in.

"Come on in" she said dryly to Damon as he strutted in the kitchen.

"Don't mind if I do" he retorted taking a piece of bacon from the stack Cassie had made.

"Ready?" she asked.

"All packed up and ready, I even brought marshmallows." He said smirking.

Cassie rolled her eyes "this isn't summer camp, no bonfires with s'mores or singing songs."

"Aw sure it is" he pressed "its vampire hunter summer camp."

Cassie just raised an eyebrow at him.

"Fine" she gave in after a minute, thinking about how she can play this to her advantage. "Since it's a summer camp that means rules."

It was Damon's turn to quirk an eyebrow at Cassie "ok" he answered hesitantly.

"You have to play nice with all the campers" she said.

"All the campers?" he asked.

"All the campers" she repeated thinking about if Mason was coming or not.

"Any thing else?" he asked.

Cassie turned around and started to dig around the cabinets until she found a small glass bottle. She turned back to the table and slid the bottle across to Damon.

"Vervain?" Damon asked

"Yep" she said popping the p "you have to take it everyday while we're gone."

Damon pursed his lips, deep in thought as he debated the options.

"Or you can stay here with Elena" she added.

Damon opened the bottle and took a sip and then started to cough. Cassie quickly handed him a glass of bourbon.

"The way you treat me makes me weak in the knees." Damon said in between coughs.

"Last rule for now," Cassie said.

"Another one" Damon whined.

Cassie nodded her head as she drank her orange juice. "I'm with Nik, I'm happy and I'm not going just leave him got it" she clarified.

Damon held his hands up in surrender, confused to why she had brought this up. He already knew that she was in love with Klaus; everyone knew the two of them were in love, even if the two of them hadn't noticed it yet. He knew that no matter how hard he tried, he wasn't getting Cassandra Gilbert back any time soon.

Jeremy came down the steps and sat next to Damon grabbing some breakfast as well.

"What's the game plan?" he asked with a mouth full of pancakes.

"Don't talk with your mouth full" Cassie teased. "And we are leaving as soon as you are finished eating and packed up."

Matt came down the steps "breakfast" he said sitting next to Jeremy.

"Seriously what is this" Damon said "a bed and breakfast?"

Cassie ignored Damon and turned to Matt. "I left instructions on the fridge, its fully stocked and if you have a party you have to clean up before I come home"

Matt nodded while Damon turned to Cassie.

"What?" she asked as Damon continued to stare.

"You stocked the fridge and gave him the go ahead for a party." He asked

"Ya" she answered hesitantly.

"Best guardian ever" he said.

Cassie rolled her eyes as she heard a car pull up.

A knock came at the door.

Cassie held her breath hoping it either Mason or Nik.

She went and looked through the eyehole. She smiled as she opened it to mason.

"So summer camp?" Mason asked with a smile on his face.

Cassie gave him a hug "thanks for coming" she said as she released him.

Mason waved her off "it was this or help Carol plan another founder event."

"Glad I was so high on your list" she said as the two walked to the kitchen.

"Oh come on" Damon whined seeing Mason.

"All campers" she replied.

Damon rolled his eyes and turned back to the food.

"Campers?" he asked.

"I'll tell you later" she whispered back to him. "Want some food?"

Mason took the last seat at the island and started to pile the food on his plate.

Cassie smiled at the sight of the kitchen all of her boys sitting and eating. Well not all of her boys her mind taunted to herself. Nik still hasn't shown up. But Cassie just shook that thought away and thought of what she had.

Jeremy- her brother who she was so close with and now needed her help.

Matt- the boy who was like who little brother, whom she felt the need to protect him.

Mason- the man who she had grown up with, the man she had given everything to and who had given everything to her. Who had held her when she cried and who helped her when she needed it.

And Damon, the man who was quickly becoming her best friend, whom she had thought was going to date before she meet Nik.

All of her boys she smiled to herself. Her family except Elena.

She frowned thinking about Elena, she had no idea how to fix the problem with her. She never knew how to handle Elena, well girls in general. The drama of it all hurt her head; she liked just how straight forward boys were. Well boys and Katherine, she knew Katherine could play games and that she did play them. But not with Cassie, never with Cassie.

Cassie pulled out her phone and called Elena. Reaching her voicemail like she figured she left a quick message. "Hey Elena I know I'm the last person you want to her from, but I just wanted to see if you were ok. Um, I know you think I told Damon to break up with you but I didn't. Ug I'm terrible at this and you know it. The point I'm trying to make is that I'm here for you if you need it. Love you" she finished up and brought her phone to her forehead "stupid" she muttered to herself.

Eleven came around and Cassie had cleaned up while the boys packed Damon and Mason's cars.

Nik hadn't shown up. Not yet her mind whispered to her but he will.

"Well" mason said walking back into the house "you ready"

"Ya" she whispered quietly standing up to walk out of the house.

She moved as slow as she could. Mason caught on to the fact that she was moving slow but didn't ask. Not yet anyway he would wait until they were alone.

"Lets go" Damon whined as they approached the two cars.

"Ok" Cassie laughed at him. She looked around the block one last time "lets go" she whispered.

"I call top bunk" Damon called before hoping into his car.

Cassie rolled her eyes as she got into Mason's jeep.

"He didn't show" mason said as soon as the doors shut.

"We got in a fight last night" she replied quietly "Jeremy needed my help so I left him in my room. When I came back he was gone"

Mason didn't reply, there was nothing that could be said that wasn't some false hope.

The trip was silent for the rest of it, not uncomfortable silence, just silence between two long friends that knew each other as well as they knew themselves.

"You didn't even say goodbye?!" Rebecca screeched at Klaus when she saw him still there.

"Becca" he growled "I'm tired of hearing this"

"Well then hear this and I'll be done. You left Cassie, you're girlfriend, in the middle of a fight didn't show up to say goodbye as she drove off for three weeks to the lake house with her ex boyfriend and the man who you had to compete with for her feelings." She ranted.

"Her ex?" Klaus questioned.

"Yes Nik when I called to say goodbye she said that she had called Mason to come with them to the lake house." she said.

Klaus put his head in his hands "should I call her?" he asked.

"She wont answer, besides the shotty cell service she is probably hurt and knowing the relationship that those two have Mason is trying to get her mind off of it." She informed him.

"Damn it" Klaus growled throwing the glass against the wall shattering it.

"Its three weeks" Rebecca tried to comfort "then she will be back for the Christmas party the town is throwing"

Klaus started pacing, his thoughts racing as he heard Mikael's voice in his head. You screwed yet another thing up it taunted history repeating itself.

"The Christmas party isn't going to be enough" he said "to make it up to her"

"Well I'm going to have that Christmas Eve ball," Rebecca reminded him.

"I can do that, make it up to her there" he said.

Rebecca rolled her eyes. "Ok, here is what you're going to do" she said sitting down she started to write down instructions. Klaus walked over to where she was and looked over her shoulder. "That's never going to work," he protested.

Rebecca just turned back to Klaus "fine" she said tearing up the paper "I'm done trying to help you" she said storming away.

Klaus pinched the bridge of his nose "Becca wait" he called after her following her into the hallway.

"Nik" Becca said fear laced in her voice.

Klaus caught up to her in the second he hears the fear in her voice.

"Becca" he asked.

Rebecca didn't answer so Klaus just followed her eye line.

His blood ran cold, it was a good thing he didn't need to breathe otherwise he would be choking.

Because standing the hallway, in HIS house were Mikael and Ester.

"Mom" Rebecca choked out.

"Rebecca" she said "Nicklaus,"

"Its time we had a family meeting" Mikael said.

AN: oh no its mama and papa together at last!

what do you think rebecca wanted Nik to do to make up to Cassie?

What do you think Nik will do?