Visionary

Marcel gave Tyler a car to drive to Lake Charles. It was more ostentatious than Tyler would have preferred, low to the ground, black and gleaming. Before he'd packed Tyler off, Marcel had informed him it would get him from zero to sixty in less than seven seconds. "Don't scratch it," Marcel had said before Tyler took to the interstate.

There was already a hotel room reserved for him, but Tyler didn't spend much time there. As soon as he checked in, dropping his bag off in his room, he was off. Marcel hadn't been very specific about what Tyler was expected to do there. He hadn't really known himself. All he knew was Elijah made regular visits here, leaving New Orleans for days at a time. It was unclear whether or not Klaus knew about these getaways, but either way Marcel suspected something bad, something that could make or break their claim to the city.

In the car, Tyler unfolded the copy of Elijah's credit card statement. It wasn't in Elijah's name but that of Jonathan Sykes. Marcel hadn't gotten around to explaining how he'd gotten it, but he'd highlighted a specific charge, telling Tyler to start there. It had been made at a jewelry store in town.

Emecheta Jewelers didn't look like much from the outside where the walls were made of crumbling brick and the sign was fading and hanging a bit low on one side. Inside, however, it was a different story. Everything was white or made of spotless glass. The display cases all shone and lights illuminated velvet lined interiors all in the same royal blue.

"How may I help you, sir?" an employee asked as Tyler entered, setting off the light ringing of a bell. He smiled politely, folding his hands in front of him. His nametag read Evan.

"There was a payment made here," Tyler said. "A few weeks ago. Can you look it up?"

"Yes, sir," Evan said. "I just need the name and some identification."

Tyler smiled. There was someone in the back whistling to themselves and flipping through what sounded like a magazine. They wouldn't be bothering them. Tyler leaned against the counter, holding Ethan's gaze. "The name's Jonathan Sykes. Look it up."

Evan's gaze became glassy, hardly there as he dropped his gaze to the computer, punching on the keys. When he found what he was looking for he smiled politely and angled the screen so Tyler could see. "He purchased our limited edition Darling Diamond Necklace," Evan said.

"Were you here?" Tyler asked.

"Yes, sir. I handled the transaction myself."

"Did he say anything about who it was for?"

"No, sir," Evan responded. "But he did ask us to include a card in the delivery."

"Delivery?" Tyler asked. He glanced to the screen and sure enough there was an additional charge for the delivery of the item and an address. The name attached was Sarah Lane.

"What did the card say?"

Evan clicked his mouse a few times and pointed when something appeared on the screen. "We keep very detailed records," he said proudly.

"So I see," Tyler commented, unable to stop the smile from creeping onto his face.

The card read: For my beloved Katerina.

Tyler compelled Evan to forget the entire thing had ever taken place, he headed straight to the address given. It was a secluded little house, sitting along lake, separated from the next house by at least half a mile. Tyler left his car a decent walk away and headed toward the bordering trees. It was cool in the shade of the trees where he had a perfect view of the front of the house. It was a squat one level cabin with a wraparound porch with a dock extending out over the glassy surface of the water. It reminded him of the Gilbert lake house. There were tire tracks on the dirt path in front of the porch steps though there wasn't a car in sight. He listened for sounds from the house, any sign of life and came away with nothing.

If this was Katherine's house, she wasn't here at the moment.

Tyler remained in the trees as the sun began to set, painting the sky a pale purple. When the sky went black he settled on the ground to wait, listening to the rustle of the trees around him, disturbed by the wind. He sent a text to Marcel whose number had been programmed in immediately.

Do you know who Katherine Pierce is? She used to go by Katerina Petrova.

Marcel's response was swift.

Doesn't everyone?

Tyler rolled his eyes and punched the buttons. I think I'm at her house. Elijah's been seeing her.

He'd only just sent it when headlamps came into view, and he shoved his phone into his pocket as a car pulled onto the uneven path outside the house, a simple black SUV with its headlamps sweeping the trees as it pulled to a stop. Tyler ducked low, watching intently for a glimpse at the driver's face. It took a moment for the driver to round the side of the car, her arms laden with paper bags. She balanced them in her arms as she took out her keys, searching for the right one. The truck's horn sounded as she activated the alarm.

Katherine took the porch steps two at a time and unlocked the front door, pushing it open with her hip and slipping into the house. The door closed behind her and a few seconds later lights were flicked on, flooding the windows with light. He heard her banging around inside, putting away groceries. When she turned on some music, she made sure it was up loud enough that even without his advanced hearing he'd be able to hear it.

With the music as a cover, Tyler approached the house. He took the porch steps slowly, pressing his back against the wall. Katherine's shadow moved along the porch, jumping in and out of the light. When the music was shut up abruptly and the lights were turned off, Tyler listened to the retreat of her footsteps and the closing of a door.

When she was gone, Tyler turned to the door. His chances up against Katherine were...slim, and he didn't think attacking her was the way to go. She'd tell Elijah about him right away, and he'd find a way to pass that info along to Klaus without informing him of his girlfriend being around. But she was important enough for Elijah to take time out of his busy schedule to come see her, important enough to hide here under a fake name and purchase expensive jewelry for.

They could use that.

Marcel could get someone down here to help him if detaining Katherine was what he wanted to do. They could use her to get Elijah out of the game. It wasn't much, but it was something.

Tyler touched the doorknob as he thought. Or at least he tried to. His fingers didn't touch it. Confused, he backed away from the door and tried to touch it again. No dice. Quietly he stepped off the porch and rounded the house, finding a cracked window. He pushed his fingers toward it, narrowing his eyes as they pressed against solid air, his fingertips brushing against an invisible barrier.

First he thought of Bonnie, back in New Orleans working for Klaus. Maybe she'd spelled the house at Elijah's request, to provide Katherine with some extra protection. But telling Bonnie would risk Klaus also knowing. Bonnie was on Klaus' payroll, not Elijah's, and it was unlikely she'd risk Klaus' ire by helping Elijah keep this particular secret from him.

Elijah could have found another witch to do the work for him.

But there was another option. It was far-fetched, and he reminded himself of how dumb it was as soon as it occurred to him.

Tyler went back around to the front of the house, stopping in front of Katherine's truck. He gave it a bit of a shove, satisfied when the alarm split the tranquil silence.

It only took a few minutes for Katherine to appear on the porch, pressing the button on the remote and peering out into the darkness with squinted eyes. She turned to return to the house and came up short, letting out an audible gasp as Tyler blocked her path.

Katherine swallowed as Tyler's hand closed around her neck, holding her in place. He didn't squeeze. He wasn't going to kill her. But she stiffened anyway, body tense and ready for him to break her neck and call it a night.

It took him a moment to realize her skin was warm where he held her.

She was human.

Katherine was also on vervain so compelling her wasn't an option. Instead Tyler took her around to the back porch where he sat her down in a wicker chair and took a seat on the matching love seat. The only light they had was that provided by the moon hanging overhead, and it was barely enough. But it would suffice.

"Well this is a surprise," Katherine said, leaning back in the chair. She was trying a bit too hard to look calm about the whole thing, but old habits died hard, he supposed. Katherine wasn't used to being the weaker one in these encounters.

"I agree," Tyler said. "You're human, huh?"

"That cure you all were on about was all it was cracked up to be," Katherine said, crossing one leg over the other and looking out to the lake like she wanted him to evaporate already. He heard it in her voice, the disdain, the hatred of her newfound humanity.

"If you don't want to be human," Tyler said, "then why are you? Have Elijah turn you."

Katherine kept her stare focused on the water, but she swallowed.

"He won't do it," Tyler realized. "Why not?"

Finally Katherine swung her head back to him. "Why are you here, Tyler? Last I heard Klaus had you on the run. I've got some experience with that so I can tell you that this is a really stupid move."

"Maybe not," a voice said.

Bonnie's voice.

She was right next to him in a pair of jean shorts and a t-shirt, her hair pulled back into a ponytail. She threw an arm around the back of the couch, looking at Katherine in thinly veiled irritation, her lips pursed.

Tyler didn't know whether to be annoyed or worried or both. "What the hell -"

Bonnie raised a finger to her lips just as Katherine spoke.

"Just tell me what you want," she said. Tyler turned back to her, seeing that she wasn't looking toward Bonnie at all. Her gaze was stuck on him, as if Bonnie wasn't there.

But she was there, sitting right next to him running her fingers through her ponytail and jiggling her leg looking a cross between bored and amused as Katherine went on. He wanted to demand to know what she was doing here, how she'd found him, what she wanted, but if Katherine couldn't see her, Tyler wasn't going to point her out.

"I'd bet you don't want me telling Elijah about you," Katherine went on, "but you came here for something, and it wasn't just to say hello."

Tyler wasn't about to tell her about Marcel. He should be calling him to see what he wanted him to do about this new, human Katherine anyway. And in case Katherine had retained some of her more slippery traits, he didn't want her carrying anything about Marcel back to Elijah.

Bonnie leaned forward to rest her elbows on her knees. "She's a doppelganger, and she's human. Don't you know what that means?" Katherine was saying something else, but Tyler wasn't listening. Bonnie's voice was in his ear, still speaking. A little angel, a little devil, maybe both, on his shoulder. "It means," she said, putting her lips so close to his ear that he could feel her breath on his neck, "hybrids."

"For Klaus," Tyler said, out loud.

Katherine looked at him. "What about Klaus?"

"He doesn't know you're here does he?" Tyler said.

"No," Katherine said, folding her arms defiantly across her chest. "Are you gonna tell him? Because that's a two way street. You say anything about me, and I'll-"

"Has Elijah been taking your blood?" Tyler demanded. "Is that why he hasn't turned you into a vampire?"

"No," Katherine snapped, sounding annoyed. "I know what you're thinking, and let me assure you, I haven't been used to make anymore hybrids. Klaus doesn't know I'm here, and he doesn't know I'm human."

Bonnie sighed heavily beside him. "Not hybrids for Klaus," she said. "Hybrids for you."

Tyler furrowed his brow, staring down at the lines of the porch where it dipped and warped in certain sections. Klaus was the only one who could make hybrids. Without his contribution they were just as lost as they'd be without a doppelganger's.

"Make them yourself," Bonnie said, like she could read his mind. Maybe she could.

I can't, he thought. It's not possible.

"Why not?" Bonnie asked. "Because Klaus told you so?" She laughed, and it sounded like she was laughing at him. And that pissed him off because it wasn't the same as it had been before, when they were in the same boat, before he knew about Lydia. "It'll work," she said, more seriously. "Make them yourself. Use Katherine. Trust me."

"I don't trust you," Tyler said.

"Feeling's mutual," Katherine said.

Tyler and Bonnie both ignored her. With a breathy sigh, Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Do you trust Bonnie?"

Tyler looked at her. "You are-"

She withdrew. "Am I?" Tyler opened his mouth, about to ask her what game she thought she was playing, but she spoke first. "I'm not," she said. "Bonnie calls me 2.0. You can do the same." She smiled at Tyler's confused expression.

Tyler opened his mouth to tell her to stop playing games, but her smile only widened. It was then he realized that it sat on her face differently, that it was Bonnie physically with the same dirty green eyes and dark hair, the same bow shaped mouth and small frame. But she carried herself differently. This Bonnie was predatory and dangerous.

"Get her blood, make the hybrids," she said. "You'll need them."

Tyler stared at her, trying to figure it out, but Bonnie 2.0 looked back to Katherine and waved her hand in her direction, in a "Go on" kind of way.

"I have a proposition for you," Tyler said. "It's a win/win."

"I'll decide that," Katherine said though her interest was already piqued. He saw it on her face. A deal meant a chance to walk away. Walking away meant survival. Katherine loved survival.

"I want your blood," Tyler said. "And in exchange..." He'd have to clear it with Marcel later, but he saw no reason not to make it happen. "...You can be a vampire again."

Katherine looked at him, considering it. He wondered what she was thinking about. Maybe she was weighing the odds of Tyler letting her live if she refused, maybe she was thinking about how she'd explain her return to vampirism to Elijah.

She didn't take long.

"You've got yourself a deal."

Katherine invited him into the house. She made coffee for herself while Tyler called Marcel, and she remained unaware of Bonnie 2.0 walking around like she owned the place. For a while she stood at Katherine's side, watching her as she poured cream into her coffee mug. When she got tired of that she took to examining the paintings on the walls.

Marcel listened to Tyler's plan in silence until he was finished. "You want to make hybrids?"

"Yes."

"You can't."

"I can," Tyler said. I think.

Marcel laughed. "I admire your optimism, Tyler. But that doesn't sound...plausible."

Bonnie 2.0 wandered back to his side, standing right in front of him and holding his gaze. She smiled knowingly, like she could hear what Marcel was saying and it was incredibly amusing to her.

"I can do it," Tyler said. "I can at least try. Either way, we don't want Katherine staying a human. If Klaus finds out about her, he'll make the hybrids on his own. Even if this doesn't go the way I want, it'll keep Klaus from getting any more reinforcements."

Bonnie 2.0 nodded her head like she was very impressed with him and went back to checking out Katherine's art.

Marcel was quiet. "I don't like werewolves."

"They won't be werewolves when I'm done, they'll be hybrids," Tyler said.

"Much better," Marcel deadpanned.

"I'm a hybrid," Tyler reminded.

"So is Klaus."

Good point. "I'll handle it all myself. You just tell me where to find the wolves and I'll talk to them," he said. "You hardly have to do anything."

Marcel sighed and after a few seconds of that he said, "I'm sending Duke to you. He'll give Katherine his blood. He'll bring all the equipment you'll need."

"Thank you," Tyler said.

"Yeah, okay," Marcel said. "Call me when it's done."

"Will do."

He was about to hang up when Marcel spoke again. "Bonnie stopped by," he said. "She was looking for you."

Bonnie 2.0 turned to him as if she wanted to see his reaction. "What did she want?" Tyler asked. Apparently Bonnie saw this double regularly which meant she knew who - or what - she was. He wanted to ask her himself, wanted to ask Marcel to give him Bonnie's number so he could, but that would mean talking to her, and he didn't want to do that just yet.

"Don't know, but she wanted to see you," Marcel said.

"Glad I missed her," Tyler said.

Marcel laughed. "I'm sure. I'll talk to you later." When he hung up, Katherine was sipping her coffee across the room watching him.

"Well?" she said.

"A friend of mine is on his way," Tyler said. "He's a vampire, and he's gonna turn you after get the blood. It's gonna be awhile though."

Katherine shrugged as she pulled out a chair and sat down. "Make yourself comfortable," she said, not sounding like she cared whether he did so or not.

Tyler sat down on the couch, shifting away when Bonnie 2.0 joined him. "Very good, Tyler," she said.

He wondered if he was going to regret this. He had no idea who this person was, what they were. She could be anything or anyone, luring him into a trap or something. He wanted to believe she was a figment of his imagination, but that would mean he and Bonnie shared a psychosis. That wasn't exactly unheard of, he supposed.

Tyler turned his head to look at Bonnie 2.0 again, to try and pick out any differences between her and the Bonnie he'd left behind in New Orleans, but she was gone. As if she'd never been there at all.

When Duke arrived it was past midnight and Katherine granted him an invitation so he could come in with empty blood bags and tubes and towels. Katherine watched him warily as Duke inserted the needle into her arm. They were all quiet, the only sounds the recurring crinkle of plastic as Duke sealed up the full blood bags and put them into a bag.

"What are you going to tell Elijah?" Tyler asked from his spot on the couch. He'd only moved a couple of times since sitting down.

"Don't worry about it," Katherine said, not taking her eyes off of her arm and her blood as it fled her veins to pool into that last blood bag. "He won't know you were here as long as I get what I was promised."

"We could kill you," Duke said conversationally, brushing his hands off on his pants.

Katherine's mouth twitched, but she was trying hard not to look spooked. She'd love being a vampire again. She'd been brand new, weaker than even Tyler, but it was better than nothing.

"We won't," Tyler assured her, cutting his eyes to Duke. "Right?"

Duke grinned. "Right."

When the bag was full, Duke sealed it closed and dropped it into the duffel with the others. He zipped it closed.

Katherine stood on unsteady legs, glaring at them both. Tyler could tell she expected him to renege or at the very least wouldn't be surprised if he did. There was nothing she could do about it. Duke would either turn her or they'd kill her to keep her from telling anyone. Now they could even compel her to forget it all most likely, with all her vervain-laced blood gathered in plastic bags.

And she'd deserve it. Tyler probably never would have ended up in this situation if he hadn't activated his curse, a occurrence Katherine had orchestrated. There were plenty of things he thought were worse than Katherine not getting what she wanted.

But a deal was a deal.

"Fine," Tyler said, looking expectantly to Duke who nodded and took a bite of his wrist. When he extended it to her, it was red and dripping, and Katherine accepted it like she was still a vampire, like the blood was still everything to her. She fastened her mouth to his arm with enthusiasm, and when she drew back blood stained her lips and chin. She didn't bother wiping it away.

With a satisfied, anticipatory gleam in her eye Katherine brushed her wavy locks out of her eyes. "Want to do the honors, Lockwood?" she asked. "This is the only time you'll ever get to do this."

Tyler stepped forward. "I hope I never see you again," he said.

"You and me both," Katherine said. "It was a pleasure doing business with you." She held his gaze as he placed a hand on her forehead and another on her chin and twisted her head roughly to the side. The crack was loud, possibly even louder than the thump as she hit the floor.

Tyler picked up the duffel bag and led Duke to the door. "Let's go."

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