"The bracelet links Caroline to Kol," Josephine explained once Caroline had managed to get her to agree to allow the vampires into her home, "So long as she wears it she cannot bleed. If she is cut, Kol bleeds in her place."
"But why did you do that?" Stefan asked.
"Because through Klaus's own stupidity, our mother has risen again." Kol said, "She is back, more powerful than ever, and set on undoing what she sees as her greatest mistake, making her children into vampires."
"What does any of this have to do with Caroline?" Stefan asked.
"She knows that Caroline has the cure in her blood." Kol said, "She plans to use Caroline's blood to cure her children."
"That doesn't sound so bad," Bonnie said.
"And through us, every vampire we ever created," Kol said.
Bonnie made a face that made it clear that she saw no problem with a world that had no vampires in it. Stefan frowned, because he wouldn't mind being human, but he had a feeling that there was more at stake than immortality.
"So what's the problem?" Stefan asked.
"To do such a spell, Esther would have to drain all of the cure from Caroline," Josephine said, "and with it, every last drop of her blood."
"So," Kol said, "to cure the world of vampires, my mother intends to kill Caroline."
Bonnie's calloused expression slipped away. She might be willing to through vampires as a whole under the bus, but Stefan knew that she would never agree to it if it would cost the life of someone she cared about.
"But the bracelet solves the problem?* Bonnie pressed.
"Temporarily.* Kol nodded. *But our mother is very resourceful. She will find a way around it. It's just a matter of time. If we are going to prevent this, we need to stop her, permanently."
"And how do you suggest we do that, brother?" Elijah asked. Stefan noticed that his gaze was focused on Caroline even as he spoke to his brother. His expression was tight and unreadable.
"I suggest she," Kol indicated Caroline, "finds a way to convince Nik to help us."
"I have to face him alone," Caroline said, as she left the house with Elijah. He had volunteered to show her the way to where he was sure Klaus would be staying.
"That's foolish," Elijah said, shaking his head. He wouldn't let her put herself in jeopardy. He'd always thought she was a nice girl, but in the past six months she had become more than that. She was family. He would protect her and not just because she was pregnant. He had come to care what happened to her deeply. His feelings were purely platonic, but he wasn't accustomed to caring this much for someone outside his immediate family. He'd loved Katherine that way, intensely, loyally, but he could only stand aside so long before he had to stop turning a blind eye on the manipulative monster he and Klaus had twisted her into. He would always hate himself for what he'd done to her, both five hundred years ago and six months ago, but she had left him no other choice and he would not let her continue to hurt other people, especially not Caroline. But now Caroline was in danger again and he would do anything to make sure the danger passed and she was safe.
They were across the street from the Mikaelson family home. Elijah felt a startling longing at the sight of the place he'd abandoned nearly a hundred years ago. Though the city had grown and changed around it, it remained exactly the same as he remembered it. It was the one place where he'd truly been happy and even dared to believe he could make a lasting home. He had not realized how much it had hurt to leave it all behind until he saw the place again.
"If you go in, this will turn into a Mikaelson family reunion and we both know those usually end with someone getting daggered." Caroline pointed out. She was right, but he didn't want to admit it. She pressed on. "Besides, he'll be so furious that you allowed me to keep this secret for so long that he won't hear anything else either of us says."
"He could kill you." Elijah said. He grabbed her wrist and looked her in the eye, willing her to realize just how much danger she was walking into.
"He could," Caroline said with a shrug, "but I don't think he will."
Elijah studied the pretty blonde. Sometimes she reminded him so much of his sister. She was brave and determined and foolhardy like Rebekah. She could be the equal of any man by sheer force of will. Perhaps he was the foolish one to let her go, but he knew that if anyone could convince Klaus to help people he had every reason to hold a grudge against, it would be Caroline. She had proven time and again to be his weak spot.
"I will be close," He promised.
"I'm counting on it." She said, gently pulling free of his grip. She gave him a tight-lipped smile and turned away, crossing the street.
Caroline felt herself shaking as she made her way through the arched entrance to the New Orleans Mikaelson home. The entryway opened into a large courtyard. She looked around the large courtyard, the Mikaelson "M" carved into the architecture all around. She walked around, trying to determine what part would be considered the front door.
A fountain babbled near the middle of the courtyard and Caroline walked over to take a closer look.
She felt a sharp kick in her belly and realized that it was a reaction to her panicked heartbeat.
"It's okay," she promised, gently stroking her stomach, "We're okay."
"Cami, what are you doing here?"
Caroline looked over her shoulder and saw a handsome man with dark skin and a closely cropped black hair exit the house. He saw her unfamiliar face and stopped in his tracks, he looked her over, warily.
"You're not Cami," the man said.
"No, I'm not," Caroline replied.
A charming grin stretched across his handsome face as he slowly walked toward her.
"What's a pretty young thing like you doing here? You must not be from these parts or else you'd know better than to wander into the home of the big bad wolf." He said with a smile, but Caroline recognized the look in his eyes, hunger. He was a vampire.
She drew herself up tall, making it clear that she would not be intimidated.
"I'm not afraid of Klaus Mikaelson." She said, calmly.
She turned to face the vampire. His eyes dropped to her round stomach and he immediately took a step back.
"Is he here?" Caroline pressed.
He frowned, his interest obviously peaked, and he nodded saying "He is."
"I need to speak with him." She said, "It's urgent."
Gah! Weird Monday! Sorry for the wait!
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