"I'm really starting to wish we'd started with our shopping trip, because this is so not what I'd imagined our Paris trip to look like." Katherine complained. They'd been at the graveyard for over an hour, trying to find a damn entrance, but they had no such luck. "Always nice to get your priorities straight, Kat." Kol grumbled. Why did things always have to be so fucking complicated? They'd been working on this clue for months and now that they finally had a breakthrough only to be stalled some more. "I blame witches for their cunningness and their need to make everything so complicated and so secretive that no one ever finds what they are looking for." Katherine was starting to lose hope. They weren't going to find the door anytime soon. Caroline wasn't happy with the situation either, but she refused to give in. They were close, she felt it. "Come on, Captains, we can do this. We knew that it wasn't going to be a walk in the park. You do realise that we're searching for a grimoire that can bring back the dead without consequences, right? Easy was never an option when we started this quest together. We can do this." Caroline gave a pep talk, trying to motivate the others.

"Your optimism is always a welcoming breath of fresh air. Let's find the entrance." Kol was motivated again. Caroline looked at Katherine. She sighed but started moving again. "Just for the record, I do not find your optimism as welcoming, though I'm glad you're here to motivate us." They spent another half hour walking around. Caroline leaned against one of the ash trees that were standing there, trying to figure out where the hell a witch could put a secret door so many centuries ago. "Giving up?" Katherine mocked. "I'm just thinking." "About?" Kol inquired, joining them. "What can be over five centuries old?" Caroline motioned to the graveyard. "I'm not sure whether there is anything that is over five centuries old. This place dates from the nineteenth century. Maybe we're looking in all the wrong places." Kol said. Katherine had heard those words before. Maybe Kol had a point, maybe they were. She started walking towards something she had spotted earlier.

She halted in front of a statue of Eros and Psyche, a copy of Canova's. There were two originals of that, one in Paris and one in Saint Petersburg. The second one had been purchased by Prince Yusupov. Nikolai'd had an impressive art collection, he'd gathered it over the years, using his contacts with the supernatural world to help him acquire them for a good price. Katherine had also known Canova. He was a famous and talented sculptor and she could appreciate that. Nikolai had sent a witch to acquire the sculpture. She'd immediately known that Katherine had been a vampire. But the witch had been intrigued, because Katherine could walk in the sun and she could speak Russian. The witch, Vasilisa, wanted out. An uneasy friendship had grown between them and Katherine had decided to help Vasilisa with her escape from Nikolai's hands. It wasn't the easiest thing to do, given the fact that the man had an entire network of supernatural community. But they had made a formidable team. Katherine was an expert in disappearing. So she helped Vasilisa and her daughter Yuliya begin a new life. It was many years later that she had been in Saint Petersburg, visiting the Hermitage. She'd halted in front of the statue of Eros and Psyche. A girl, who'd reminded her of Vasilisa, had talked to her and told her that one day she'd find herself looking in all the wrong places when all she had to do was look at the sculpture a bit more closely. When Katherine had wanted to ask more, the girl had disappeared. She'd dismissed it as crazy talk, but today it finally made sense.

She took a closer look, hoping that the girl had meant this. "You found something?" Caroline asked when she came to stand next to Katherine who was examining the statue. "Maybe." She climbed on the statue when she finally spotted something. It was small and very easy to overlook, but it was there. Katherine traced a finger over the word. "This is it." She said as she climbed down. "How did you figure that out?" Caroline asked. Katherine told her about Vasilisa and Saint Petersburg. "Interesting." Kol said. "It's very subtle." He continued, reading the word on the sculpture. "What does it say?" Caroline asked. It was in Cyrillic and she certainly couldn't read that. "Denfer." It was a French word written in Cyrillic.

"Hell. That's great. Fantastic. Couldn't it say something like Toyland or Neverland?" Caroline was pleased that they found the entrance, but this meant that they had to go down into the underground network of tunnels that could easily collapse. And whoever thought to mark the entrance named it From Hell. "Where would be the fun in that? Besides, you're immortal. We got this. There's three of us. And I promise I won't leave you behind." Katherine reassured the blonde vampire. Caroline gave the brunette a small smile. "You better not, Pierce. Now, how do we open this thing?" Caroline was walking around the sculpture wondering where the entrance was. "Good question." Katherine placed her hand over the Cyrillic writing, taking Caroline's hand as well. Kol's hovered over their hands. "We seek entrance to Denfer." Katherine tried. Kol was clearly trying not to laugh, but failing. "Like that's going to work, darling. You might as well try Open Sesame while you're at it." Kol had barely uttered the words or the statue began to move. "Open Sesame it is." Caroline said with a small giggle. Her joy soon disappeared when she saw the darkness that awaited them. "Let's jump into the unknown." Katherine said, yet she didn't jump. Both girls looked at Kol expectantly. "Since you're already dead." Katherine motioned for Kol to head in first. "That's nice. Let's sacrifice the ghost. I'm hurt." Kol said sarcastically but headed in anyway. "Looks good." Katherine looked at Caroline and nodded. The brunette went in after Kol. Caroline followed not long after.

"It could be worse. It's humid here, so not good for my hair. I call spa day for tomorrow." Katherine tried to lift the dark mood that hung in the air. They'd had to crawl through a very small space and finally came into a small dank room. "I'm in." Caroline said, already looking forward to getting out of there. She felt trapped. "Sounds lovely, but we should focus on the task at hand. Where are we?" Kol motioned to the room. "It sure as hell isn't the gathering place of the Templars, it's way too small." Caroline said while Katherine pulled out a map. "I feel as if this place is unmapped. We should be somewhere between these two tunnels. I hear water running not far from here." Katherine said, pointing at the map. "Which way now?" Caroline asked, looking at the fork. "I'd say let's follow the sound of water." Kol advised. They decided to do just that and took the left fork.

The tunnel was small, at times, they had to crawl through. Katherine complained about her jeans getting ruined and how this definitely warranted a shopping spree. Kol joked about Katherine's impractical choice of shoes. "I don't do anything under four inches." The brunette responded. Caroline knew that Kol had a comment coming, but she cut him off. "Don't." "Come on Care, she just made it easy." Kol complained. Before the blond could respond, there was some rumble and part of the tunnel gave way. Luckily, the rocks had missed them, but it blocked their way out. "I am not getting buried alive." She said as she pushed through. The tunnel grew a bit bigger which made it possible for them to stand instead of crawling. "It's a good thing we don't need oxygen to survive." Katherine said. Caroline could only agree. She could sense that there wasn't that much oxygen in the air.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Caroline groaned. "The way is blocked." Kol stated. Then he chuckled at his own joke, but one look from Katherine shut him up. They had no way to go, behind them, the tunnel had caved in, in front of them, the same had happened. "I say we move forward." Katherine said. Caroline nodded, surveying the wall in front of them. Physics and math weren't her forte, but she knew that they had to be careful with this. "We'll need to make a small space for us to crawl through. We should try to move as few rocks as possible." Caroline advised. It was like Jenga, taking out pieces while making sure the rest didn't gave in. She assessed the wall, slowly pushing at some rocks, seeing which ones were loose. "Alright, Care, where do we start." Kat turned to her friend, trusting her judgement. "Over there." She pointed at a rock, on the lower right side. It seemed like a good idea to start. They were careful when they were prying the rock out if its formation. Both vampires held their breath when they finally got the rock out of the wall. It held.

Four rocks later, they had made a big enough space to crawl through. Katherine went through first. She lend Caroline a hand and pulled her up. "This is interesting." Kol commented, looking at the gate that was in front of them. "You think this is it?" Caroline sounded hopeful. Behind the iron bars, there were remains of what once had been a mansion. Some walls still remained. "Only one way to find out." Katherine said as she pushed open the gate and walked through. Caroline followed after her. "This is kind of anticlimactic, don't you think?" Kol shouldn't have said that, because suddenly, a large white wolf jumped at them. Its golden eyes bored into them, keeping them in place. A growl warned them to keep still. "You just had to say it." Katherine uttered under her breath. Kol held his hands up in surrender. "We only came here to-" The wolf howled, cutting off Kol's words. Then it was gone, a man standing in its place. "I know why you are here." His voice was deep and he had a French accent in his English.

"I am Loís. A Knight Templar." The man introduced himself. "You're Anaïs' ancestor, aren't you?" Kol inquired. "I am. I am also the protector of this sanctuary." Katherine looked behind the man. "You call this a sanctuary? More like a tomb." The vampire thought back on the tomb underneath the church in Mystic Falls. It had been more comfortable than this place. "People have died to protect the innocents." "Ah yes, the greater purpose." Katherine continued. "Katherine." Caroline hissed in warning. It didn't seem like a good idea to antagonise a spirit wolf. "I must say, you three make an interesting pair. Dusk, dawn and twilight." Lois observed them for a moment, before stepping aside. "You may pass. I do advise you to tread carefully. No corporal being has visited this place in centuries." And then the man disappeared. "What the hell did he mean by dusk, dawn and twilight?" Caroline asked as she carefully made her way onwards. "They just like to comment on how remarkable we are. Who cares anyway, we finally found what we were looking for." Katherine didn't want to dwell on if further, even though she was intrigued as well. But it would have to wait until they were out of here. She felt that if they'd stay here too long, something bad would happen.

They made their way through what once must've been an entrance hall. "I did not sign up for this." Caroline shrieked as they halted in the next room. Twelve corpses were still in chairs around the dinner table. Bloodied and some of them half ripped to pieces, presumably by claws. "I'm pretty sure they're dead, Blondie. So chill." Katherine said without her usual bravado. "I wonder how their bodies were preserved. They should be nothing more but bones." Kol commented, completely unfazed by the sight in front of him. After all, he'd seen worse. Caroline took a deep breath, at least the corpses didn't smell. She tried to calm herself down. They were dead, just corpses, nothing to worry about. Caroline repeated in her head as she surveyed the room.

"Time has continued to elapse while we sit here still." Caroline screamed. Katherine put a hand over Caroline's mouth. The brunette was frightened, but she had learnt to control her fears. "We mean you no harm." Another voice said. "Yeah, because talking corpses are such peaceful creatures." Caroline said, recovering from the shock. "How are you even talking?" Katherine asked. "Magic." Both Kol and another corpse said at the same time. "We have given our lives so that one day, this message can be given to the right people." "Time is already catching up, so listen to us carefully." Katherine wanted to interject something, but she could smell the change in the air. There was something rotten in this underground. "O the brave stand watch, a city of civilisation past. Legends told, dynasties fell. The city of great kings, but tragedy as well. O sweet little lioness, roar once more. Your rulers are long gone, but you remain. Protect your home, your secrets entombed, so long the citadel stands." There were only two corpses still intact, the others had already been reduced to ashes. "You must leave now at a steady pace, the magic is already disappearing." "We must go now, good luck." And then the earth started to shake, the walls that were still standing were starting to give way. The way they had come was blocked already. "Unless you want to get buried alive, I suggested you run." Kol said, when neither Katherine nor Caroline moved.

And ran they did, through the ruins, trying to find an exit. Thanks to their vampire speed, they were able to stay clear from being buried by rocks. It didn't take away the fact that they were lost and had no idea how to get back to the surface. "I have a feeling that this grimoire holds more than just some spell to bring back the dead from the Other Side." Katherine remarked as they halted for a moment, trying to figure out where to go next. "While I may agree with you on this, can we discuss this once we're out of this fucking place?" "Oh, Caroline isn't kidding around anymore. She used the f-word." Kol joked. Judging from Caroline's face, she did not find it amusing. He held his hands up in surrender. "Why don't I go see what lies ahead?" He proposed, not wanting to incur the wrath of Caroline further. Without waiting for an answer, Kol proceeded doing just that. The two vampires decided to wait around for Kol, not risking getting separated.

"In front of us we have a maze of tunnels. I took it upon myself to explore and I believe that if we head through the tunnel in front of us, then take two rights, turn left and head straight through, we might be able to find an exit. There was a ladder up and it comes out on an empty garden." Kol informed them. "Alright, let's get out of here." Caroline said as she started down the path, determined to reach the surface before anything else were to happen. A growl sounded from behind them. "What the hell?" "It didn't sound like a wolf." Katherine said while she picked up the pace. "Something's following us." Caroline looked behind her. "It's fast." They heard something run after them. "I'll go check it out." Kol said. At least there was something good about having a ghost on your side, there was no risk of him getting killed. "I'd run a little faster. It's really fast, and it breathes fire. Probably the same thing that attacked Katherine, a Chimaera."

"It's close." Katherine said as she felt heat coming their way. "There's the ladder." Relief flooded through Caroline. Both girls hurried up and got out of the tunnel unharmed. "At least this time it didn't attack us." "I think it wasn't its intention. It just wanted to scare us." Katherine said thoughtfully. "It's gone, so Kat may have a point." Kol said, popping back up after checking whether the beast had followed them. "Great, so someone is trying to kill us?" Caroline sat on a chair. "It's hunting us." Katherine said following Caroline's example and sitting down on one of the chairs. She looked around. "Jardin de Luxembourg?" Kol nodded. "You think it was the shadow who had killed Maria?" Caroline inquired. "Probably, but why let us live?" "Maybe it wants the grimoire as well, but whoever it is figured out that only we can find it?" Kol suggested.

"That leads us to the question of why us? What is so special about the three of us? Dawn, dusk, twilight? The one with the knowledge, the one with the genius and the other with the heart? It makes no sense." Caroline placed her head in her hands, trying to figure out why they were set on this path in the first place. "Honestly, I have no idea. But for some reason we are chosen to find this grimoire, which means that someone decided that this was a quest for us. Someone wants us to discover the grimoire." "I've had it for tonight. We have our next clue, you can let Bonnie know that we made it through alive. And for now, time-out. Tuesday we can get back on figuring out this riddle. I'm sure the grimoire will stay wherever the hell it is." Katherine said while she got out of her seat. She offered Caroline a hand and helped her up. "What do you say, Captain Swan." "Yes to the spa, please. And I hope wherever the next clue is, it has nothing to do with hell." Caroline accepted Katherine's hand.

After a good night's sleep, the girl made their way to a spa, compelling themselves the best treatment. "Look at you, getting all accustomed to compulsion to get what you want." Katherine smiled. "This is because after last night, I need to relax. Speaking corpses, spirit wolves, chimaera's. It's too much to handle." Caroline sighed while she changed into the robes. She was going to make the most of their time-out.

"So, you and Elijah. How is that going? Isn't it weird to pretend to be someone you're not." Caroline carefully inquired. "I think he knows. Actually, I'm sure he knows. But for once, he just accepts it. So, we both pretend. It's easier, no complications, no explanations. It's how it's supposed to be." "Except for the fact that you pose as Elena, which is so not how it's supposed to be." Katherine laughed. "It's really not like that. We talk, just like we used to. We just avoid our past together. But he talks about his and I listen to it. There's an openness we were never able to explore before. This is our time now." Caroline was happy for Katherine, that she had something good in her life. "I have to ask though, how did it happen. It's just, Elijah doesn't really seem like your type." "He gets me, in a way no one ever has. Don't underestimate Elijah, though. He likes to act all high and mighty, but where Klaus fights with fire, he is ice. He can be cold and calculating, but at the end of the day, he will fight for his family at all costs. Time and time, he chose his family over me. And this time, will be no different. I respect him for that choice. I would chose Nadia over him as well. But, I love him and he refuses to give up on Katerina." Caroline had actually never looked at Elijah that way, but maybe Kat was right. After all, she had known him for five hundred years. "Maybe we can bring her back." Caroline said hopefully, thinking about Nadia. The girl had tried to kill her, but it had been out of anger and powerlessness. Like mother, like daughter. "Let's wait until we find this grimoire."

"I wonder where it'll take us next." They had been able to not bring up what they'd found out last night for about two hours. "Somewhere in Europe, I guess. A castle maybe?" Katherine suggested. "I really don't like the whole entombed thing. I really don't want to go underground again." Caroline leaned back in her chair. Katherine handed her a glass of champagne. "Time-out, remember." The blonde smiled and accepted the drink.

*** almost is never enough ***

"I miss Paris already." Caroline said when they got off the plane. "You tell me. At least I got some new lingerie sets, some new pants and new shoes. There's nothing like shopping in Paris." Katherine sighed happily. "It's all about the shoes." Caroline giggled. They arrived back on campus around ten pm. Katherine excused herself and made her way to Elijah's place. Caroline shook her head, but she was happy for her friend. She made her way back to her dorm, wanting nothing more than to go to sleep. Unfortunately, her plans were disrupted.

"You're back." Marissa said, hugging the blonde. "How's it going around here?" Caroline asked, looking for Elodie. "Well, remember when you mentioned werewolves being real?" Marissa asked hesitantly. Caroline nodded. "What about them?" She had a feeling that this wasn't anything good. "Well, Elo was out hunting last night and she ran into a pack of werewolves. She managed to get away, but one of them bit her. The bite healed, so she's going to be okay, right?" "Where is she?" Caroline asked, panic in her voice. "She's in her room." Caroline made her way there. "Hi, you're back." Elodie was already weakened. "Hi. Heard you had a run-in with some wolves." "Yeah, the bite wound has come back, that's not good is it?" Caroline took a deep breath. "Don't worry, I'll get you back in shape. You just stay here and rest, alright." Caroline left the room and closed Elodie's door.

"Is she going to be okay?" Marissa asked, having heard that the wound had reappeared. "Werewolf venom is toxic to vampires. They usually die twenty-four hours after being bitten." "She's going to die?" Marissa whispered in disbelief. "I said usually. I've been bitten twice, and I know someone who can help." Caroline said, taking out her phone. She had little choice if she wanted Elodie to live. After taking a calming breath, she dialled Klaus' number. And it went straight to voicemail.

"Hi, it's me, Caroline. I need you to get out here, there were some werewolves and there's a bite. I need your help with curing it. So, could you please come here, as fast as you possibly can? Like within the next twelve hours, because there's a bite that needs to be healed. Please." Caroline hung up, deciding to call again in an hour. And again, until he either got her or he picked up the damn phone.

Klaus

A little after midnight, Klaus entered his home. It had been some quiet weeks, with both Elijah and Rebekah gone. He would never admit that he missed them, but things were definitely different. Marcel was still there, and he had his hands full with the witches and werewolves. He had decided to co-lead with Marcel, it had made the different factions and the vampires a bit more cooperative. When he made his way to his art studio Nik took a look at his phone. He had several missed calls. They were all from Caroline. He listened to the first one and after hearing the word werewolves, he immediately made his way to the airport, not even bothering to listen to the rest of the message. He should've given her some blood of his so that she would be safe in case something like this happen.

Klaus called Marcel, telling him he had to leave for a while and that the city was in his hands now. He didn't call Caroline back. Klaus compelled himself a ticked and boarded a plane. The next flight to Boston was scheduled for the morning, so he decided to compel the pilots to make a stop at Boston airport. Consequences be damned. He couldn't lose Caroline because of some stupid werewolves that didn't know to stay away from her. They would pay for what they had done. He would hunt them down and see to it himself.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Alright, new chapter is up, what did you think? I'm sorry it took me this long, but with paper deadlines and exams, it's been a busy couple of weeks. But here it is and I hope it was worth the wait. And Klaus is on his way to Harvard (under the impression that Caroline is the one who's bitten). And he'll stay put until he's taken care of the wolf problem. So that means, KLAROLINE interaction. I'm so excited to write them together.

I hope you guys liked it. And as always, thanks for reading/reviewing/following/favouriting :)

You're awesome.

Lovies,

Zoë

P.S. any guesses on where the next clue is hidden?