In a corner of Gloria's club, a place where shadows overcast the small booth Addie sat and observed the crowd. The acidic Coca-Cola burned her throat as she swallowed a large gulp. She set the glass back down and stared at the beads of condensation that had formed. In it she traced a D but more condensation quickly made the letter disappear. She liked it in her dark little booth, as far away from the throngs of people as much as possible. Nobody bothered her or even seemed to realize she existed. Klaus had noticed her, though. He just gave her a nod before he and Stefan went to the bar. There was no shock that Rebekah wasn't with them. Addie had known it was a futile attempt to drag her from the spa. It might have been amusing to watch the stubborn brother and sister fight but Addie hadn't wanted to get caught in the crossfire when one of them started to throw a tantrum.

At the bar Stefan and Klaus seemed to be in an intense discussion. Stefan's face was blank, then confused, and slowly a look of revelation overcame him. Another memory had been returned to him. It was sick and twisted the way Klaus was returning Stefan's memories bit by bit. Having gone through something similar after having Rebekah and Alex prompt memories from her after a heavy night of drinking and slowly piecing the night together Addie would classify Klaus' actions as cruel and unusual punishment.

Damon had been slightly right about her drinking too much. It was just that the blonde Original had insisted Addie have fun because that was why Klaus had sent her and fun to Rebekah meant a lot of parties and a lot of clubs. Those things didn't mix with Addie's social anxiety. She didn't like to take her anxiety medication because it made her feel like she wasn't in complete control of herself but she had tried using it when they went out once. It hadn't done a thing and her anxiety was through the roof. The alcohol, though, it took the edge off. Enough of it even made talking to strangers bearable. It put her in a calm, happy state where everything crappy and stressful just didn't matter. The Jack and Coke that afternoon had kept her from worrying about what would happen when Rebekah showed up and Gloria used her to contact the Original witch. But that had mostly flushed from her system and she was terrified again.

Klaus and Stefan clinked shot glass and tossed back the liquor. They talked for a minute and then another look of realization came across Stefan's face before he looked extremely confused. There was a short exchange of conversation before Stefan got up and moved towards the exit. Addie's eyes narrowed suspiciously as Klaus sauntered towards her. She took another sip of Coke. Exactly why she had ordered Coca-cola she wasn't sure as she didn't even like it. Somehow the acidic burn just wasn't worth the discomfort if it wasn't mixed with concentrated alcohol that irritated the mucosa lining of the throat causing a pain response in the nerves.

She looked up at the ceiling as if the answer to why she needed to know the logical reasoning behind everything that happened was there. Normal people drank not giving a damn about why it burned; Addie had needed to look up why it did before she tried alcohol the second time. Living her life by rules of logic and reason had become more and more difficult since the Salvatore brothers had entered her life. Bonnie's witch abilities bothered her, too. There had to be some chemistry or physics or biology that explained how all the supernatural stuff worked. Rationality needed to exist. Chaos, things that couldn't be explained, made her uncomfortable. It made for a world where anything was possible and that was scary.

Addie suppressed a groan as the dark sensation she felt when Klaus was near arose in her. She understood that the desire to run away was linked with a desire for survival but there was no explanation as to how she could sense a deceptive vampire to start with. If she just knew why and how she got the sensations when other people didn't she wouldn't mind the ability. A chill ran through her as Klaus slid into the booth next to her and draped his arm along the back of the seat.

"Now, why do you look so glum?" he inquired, his tone light and airy. In her time with him, Klaus had, for the most part, been unexpectedly cordial. The only time he ever really got snippy or short with her was when she intentionally tried to irritate him or they were around other people. Even then he didn't seem to act malicious.

Typically she would have baited him with a smartass rebuttal but the encounter with Damon had been draining. The surprise of seeing him, being acutely reminded of just how much she missed him, pushing him away, again, had consumed more energy than Addie thought it would. She was too tired to go toe to toe with Klaus; her mind wasn't moving fast enough. With a gentle grip on the straw she spun the contents of her glass, the plinking of the ice against the sides somehow comforting. At least the physics of centrifugal force still made sense.

"One of two reasons: I'm saddled to you for the rest of the summer when I just want to go home because I miss my friends and family or because I wasn't warned that I would be on an extended vay-cay I only procured a two month supply of my bipolar medications I've been without my antidepressants for over three weeks and now it's biting me in the ass. Though, I suppose it could be a combination," considered Addie. She knew the dangers of stopping her medication cold turkey but that usually resulted in her heading towards mania rather than depression and despair. Although, with circumstances considered, she wasn't entirely surprised she had been feeling low lately. She hadn't completely spiralled out of control but everything was just too so much work and effort and left her emotionally depleted. It was why being trapped with Klaus had been tolerable; there was no energy left in her to care after she worked so hard to keep up her act of being normal and fine.

"I'm guessing it's the medication thing because we both know you secretly adore my company."

Resting an elbow on the table Addie dropped her head into her palm and looked at Klaus as he casually reclined in the seat. "Either your narcissism has made you delusional or you're just really bad at reading social cues if you really think that. I'm guessing it's the narcissism thing because you're you." Maybe there was enough energy for a little banter.

Addie scowled as he drummed his fingers on the table as he pretended to think. Damon had done that earlier. "It's quite possible you're right. Do you consider vanity and narcissism the same thing?"

"Rebekah is vain, egotistical. You're narcissistic, concerned only about yourself. See, you don't care about how other people feel or even view you and despite being conceited, Rebekah cares about others on some level and definitely obsesses over how she is viewed," she explained.

"You are decidedly neither," Klaus declared, mirroring her in resting his head in his hand. "You're too… magnanimous and compassionate. You should hate me and as much as you may claim to, you don't, at least not entirely."

"Insightful," Addie muttered bitterly. "I do hate you. However, I have no choice but to feel a degree of gratuitousness. The opportunity to attend that program and what I got out of it is life changing."

He smirked, "That was the intention."

Her eyes flickered away from Klaus and to the crowd. "The question remains as to why my life concerns someone who is only concerned with himself," she retorted icly. She had no intention to be so curt but the sight of Damon approaching them fueled her with anger, frustration, and fear. He was easy to spot among the few straggling patrons, most of who were headed towards the exit.

Klaus sat up as Damon slid into the other side of the booth. Addie simply adjusted to resting her chin in her palm; this was bound to be interesting so she might as well have a good view of both their faces. "I see they've opened the doors to the riffraff," Klaus sneered.

Damon smirked and shook his head slightly. "Oh, honey, I've been called worse," he drawled lazily. "Many times by her," he added, nodding his head towards Addie. She considered retorting but it was true. And she felt more like watching their pissing match than getting involved.

"Addison, I recall discussing what would happen if you discussed our arrangement with Damon," the hybrid said, staring at her with disapproval.

"Don't look at me," Addie replied quickly. "You just said I was too compassionate. Does leading someone to their death seem compassionate? Hardly."

"Addison didn't tell me anything. Don't worry, you've got yourself a perfectly trained lap dog," snarled Damon, glaring at her. "Katherine spilled your dirty little secret."

Klaus softly chuckled humorlessly, "Katerina. You don't give up, do you?"

Damon smiled smugly and gave a dismissive shrug. "Give me my brother back. You'll never have to see me again," he proposed.

The other man raised an eyebrow in surprise. He kept his tone cool and neutral as he checked, "Just your brother? No interest in getting your girl back? And here I thought you Salvatores were suckers for love."

"No interest in getting back my ex-girlfriend," confirmed Damon. "Addison," she winced at the way he spat out her name as if it were a bad taste, "wants to be with you. I took an hour to process it, accept it, and move on to more interesting things."

"Really?" Klaus mused, looking at Addie curiously. "When did this discussion happen?"

"We had a nice long discussion while you were out running your errand for Gloria," informed Damon lightly. "So, my brother?"

"What were the details of that discussion?" Klaus asked, studying Addie.

She plucked the little toothpick umbrella out of her soda. She wasn't exactly sure why Gloria had put it in her drink but she was grateful for the distraction. The yellow umbrella twirled as she rolled the toothpick between her thumb and forefinger. Klaus could wait as long as he wanted for an answer but she wasn't giving him one. This little spat was between her ex-boyfriend and Klaus. Her eyes stung as the way Damon had called her his ex-girlfriend replayed in her head. That kiss hadn't felt like they were over with. She had never really explained that she said she needed separation from him in order to keep him from worrying about her when she didn't talk to him for the rest of the summer. With what she had said and done, she could see how Damon would interpret everything as her picking Klaus over him. It shouldn't have hurt so bad or been such a shock when he used the word 'ex' and effectively ended them for good. He was really letting her go. He'd gone through with his suicidal threat to buy Elena time with Stefan. Klaus was going to rip his heart out. And she was going to have to watch.

Damon scowled; he didn't like the way Klaus was looking at Addie. Whether that predatory, lustful grin was because he wanted to kill her after winning her over or because he wanted something else Damon wasn't sure but he didn't care. He had known since Klaus had invaded Alaric that he was a predator and Addie was his prey. There had been the subtle innuendos and banter they exchanged that tipped him off to Klaus' game; Addie was too naive to sense it. Damon knew the game; he use to rule at hunting. Klaus never intended to kill Addie quickly. Damon had been right when he predicted the hybrid to do one of two things: win her trust before he attacked or find a way close to her through a backdoor and strik from there.

Addie never fully explained how she ended up in Chicago with Klaus but he knew Klaus had manipulated her by threatening to hurt the people she cared about. Threatening to kill him. Then she had a chance to escape with him earlier and she chose to stay with Klaus. That threw him off. Klaus had gotten close to her by having information Addie wanted and she was trusting that he wasn't going to kill her. What Addie didn't know was that she had fallen into Klaus' trap. It was a matter of time until he got bored of toying with her and killed her. Damon hand no idea how to get her out of Klaus' grasp when she wanted to stay. He had to make her want to leave and being with him wasn't enough of a reason.

From what he knew of Klaus, he gathered that the Original wanted to inflict pain and destruction. If Klaus did something that hurt Addie, though, she wouldn't care about what information he had and she would get away from him. His life still meant something to Addie if she was protecting him. If Klaus killed him, Addie would escape Klaus. Elena would convince Stefan to leave Klaus and he would protect both girls.

"There wasn't much of a conversation. Addie told me to leave town because she wanted to stay with you. Of course, she was conceited to think that I was here for her. I want my brother back. The girl is all yours," Damon said smoothly. He didn't meet the dark blue eyes that flashed to him. It was likely that his words hurt her; she didn't know what he was doing. Hell, he wasn't exactly sure what he was doing. Was he really trying to goad Klaus into killing him with the thought that it would somehow save Addie? His eyes accidentally met hers as he nervously push a hand through his hair. She was confused but that nervous tick made her look at him with suspicion and concern.

Addie barely registered Klaus plucking the toothpick umbrella between her fingers. Her heart jumped when he whispered in her ear but her eyes stayed fixed on Damon. "You know, this is a much less interesting confrontation than I had hoped for. What is he planning to get you back?"

"He's telling the truth," she answered softly, hoping her voice was convincing. "Damon's not interested in me. Ask Rebekah. We broke up before the program ended. 'Outta sight, outta mind' beats 'absence makes the heart grow fonder.'"

"Huh," Klaus observed with interest. "You're about to cry and he doesn't look like he could care less. I'm conflicted on whether to believe that is because he has truly lost interest in you or if it's simply because he's jealous that you'd rather stay with me."

"Damon doesn't get jealous; he just gets even. He would be talking to Stefan and trying to convince him to leave you if he was trying to get even. I want you so he'd make Stefan want him. Instead he's directly approaching you about getting Stefan back because he no longer cares about me. He's not trying to get even with you for having something he wants," Addie reasoned, hoping whatever she said made sense. Damon had said he wouldn't leave Chicago without but he wasn't trying to negotiate getting her back. What game he was play, she had no idea but she'd go along with it. Though, the fact that he was nervous about whatever he had planned was enough to tell her it was a really stupid idea

"This is hardly any fun, then. Didn't I tell you part of keeping you with me and cut off from Damon was to make him suffer?"

Her voice was barely a whisper, "Yes."

Klaus leaned back as he twirled the toothpick between his fingers. "What shall I do with you now?" he questioned Damon. "Keeping your girl doesn't seem to be causing you any heartache. Having your brother in my servitude is definitely rubbing at you the wrong way. There's no way I'm giving him back. I would have you take Addison back to Mystic Falls seeing as I'm done with her but she wants to stay so that makes you quite useless. I'll admit I'm torn. You see, I promised Stefan I wouldn't let you die, but how many freebies did I really sign up for? And clearly you want to die, otherwise you would have been smart and left town when Addie told you to."

Damon smirked and lifted his hand helplessly as he taunted, "What can I say? I'm a thrill-seeker."

In the blink of an eye Klaus had vacated his seat, pulled Damon from his and had him dangling a few inches above the ground, clutching him by his throat. Addie stifled a squeal as she realized Damon's plan. He was actually trying to get himself killed. Why would he do something so stupid?

The hybrid cocked his head in confusion as Damon slightly choked. "Oh, dear, what was that?" he mocked. "I'm boozey, so you'll forgive me if I miss your heart the first few times."

It was then Addie saw that Klaus still held the toothpick. She didn't know if she should be anxious or relieved. Despite what Klaus had said it would never pierce Damon deep enough to reach his heart. Damon gave a grunt of pain when Klaus stabbed him in the stomach. Since when were toothpicks even made strong enough to pierce vampire flesh, Addie wondered as she looked away. She had no idea what Damon was planning but she wasn't fond of anything that involved him being in pain. He wasn't even fighting back.

"Ohh. No, that's not it. Hmm," Klaus paused to consider where he would attack next. In between the ribs, just below the vampire's heart seemed like a good place. He smiled when Damon cried out louder in pain. "Ohh. Almost."

"You want a partner in crime? Forget Stefan. I'm so much more fun," suggested Damon, gasping for air.

With ease Klaus chucked him backwards, sending him onto a table across the room. The wood crashed under the force Damon hit it with, leaving him flat on his back. Addie scrambled out of the booth and towards Klaus when he broke of the leg of a chair as he approached Damon. Klaus really was going to kill him. Screw whatever suicidal plan that idiot had. She wasn't going to let Klaus stake him. If anyone was killing Damon it would be her in a fit of rage for him embarking on another pointless plan to get himself killed.

The hybrid crouched over the vampire and snarled, "You won't be any fun after you're dead."

With one hand pinning Damon down Klaus raised the stake, poised to strike. Addie reached them just in time to grab Klaus' wrist making him hesitate in the attack. Anxiously she demanded, "Are you a man of your word or not?"

"Kinda in the middle of something, Addison," he glowered, glancing meaningfully at her hand.

"Yeah and this has to do with that something," she snapped back. She tried to tug the stake out of Klaus grasp but couldn't. Still, he wasn't advancing on Damon and she had to take advantage of that while she could. Her words came out in a rush, "You promised that Damon's life was safe as long as I did not tell him about our arrangement. I didn't tell him so you'll be breaking your word if you kill him. You're right; he shouldn't get an unlimited number of freebies but I expect him to survive the length of our deal."

Addie couldn't read Klaus but the long moment of silence suggested he was calculating the pros and cons to simply killing Damon. His grip loosened enough on the stake for Addie to take it. Destroying the arrogant bastard would on hinder his agenda at that moment. He could feel Damon trying to sit up but Klaus pushed him back down and hissed, "You don't have to negotiate your brother's freedom. When I'm done with him, he won't want to come back." Standing back up he headed for the exit. Over his shoulder he called to Addie, "I suggest you get him out of here before I change my mind. "

"What the hell were you thinking?" Damon scolded, getting back to his feet.

"Me?! I wasn't the one about to let Klaus kill me without so much of a fight. Have you lost your damn mind?" she glowered, tossing aside the chairleg.

"You don't stop an insane hybrid in the middle of an attack unless you want to be his next victim," he replied curtly, ignoring her question. She had totally fucked up his plan and now she was still Klaus' little toy.

Addie stepped back from him, holding up her hands in a surrender. "Klaus still wants me alive. He wants to be on my good side. That's the only reason he didn't kill you. As long as it stays like that, as long as Klaus wants something from me, he's not going to kill me. I wasn't putting myself in danger. I-"

"Seriously?" Damon cut her off loudly. "Are you really that damn naive, Ads? Every second you are with him puts your life in greater and greater danger. Don't be stupid and start trusting him!"

"I'm not trusting anybody! I know he's volatile. I know what he's capable of. You seem to have forgotten that I dealt with your insanity!"

He laughed bitterly, "That is a horrible point. You ended up trusting me."

"I only ended up trusting you because you started to change your ways," she fumed. "And I still don't fully trust you! If I did, I would have told you about my arrangement with Klaus because I could trust that you wouldn't do something stupid!"

"What exactly is this arrangement you have with Klaus? What makes you think he isn't going to rip out your throat in a heartbeat?"

Addie ran her fingers through her hair. There wasn't time to discuss this with him; Klaus wasn't past changing his mind and returning to kill him. "Go, Damon. Just go. I'll explain everything when I get home."

Damon gave her a look of disbelief and scoffed, "You're not coming home. I don't think you understand how this whole hostage situation works."

"Oh my god! Get you things," she assumed he could figure out she meant Elena in case they were being spied on, "and get the hell out of Chicago. Klaus will uphold his end of the deal. If I'm not back in time for school, you can gloat and bask in the glory of being right and knowing that he isn't a man of his word."

"Tell me the truth, Addie. Do you truly want to stay with him or are you saying and doing that because you're worried about how he will retaliate if you leave?" he asked in a low, dangerous voice, flames of anger flickering in his eyes.

If she pissed him off enough than maybe he would go. "It's not an either/or situation. I'm staying with Klaus for both of those reasons. I'm well aware of what Klaus has done and who he is but I'm not going to run away and hide like some little girl afraid of the big bad wolf. This isn't some parasitic, hostage relationship. It's a mutualistic relationship; he's getting something out of me being with him and I'm going to get something out of it too."

"You're truly an idiot if that's what you believe is going on. This thing is toxic and he's only going to kill you! If you don't leave with me-"

"What?" Addie snapped. "What's going to happen if I don't leave with you?"

Damon crossed his arms and puffed his chest out, trying to look more intimidating. Addie always got what she wanted from him. He had to think of something that was valuable to her. He cleared his throat, "I won't have been lying to Klaus when I called you my ex-girlfriend."

"Seriously?" she whispered, shoving her hands into her pocket uncomfortably.

"It's him or me, Ads."

She shook her head in disagreement and sighed, "You really think that's what it about? That is what everything boils down to? It's not about either one of you. It's about protecting the people I care about. Every second that you stay here, you're making everything more and more dangerous for everyone. I just want you to go home and be safe."

Addie was far more important than the implications she was making about Elena's safety. It would be a lie if he said he hadn't thought of offering to trade sisters. The only reason he decided against the idea was because Addie would never forgive him. He couldn't believe she was actually denying him. "That's your choice?"

"If you think it's a choice, I guess so," she mumbled. This was serious. Damon wasn't just declaring a separation in the name of some plan. He was earnestly going to break up with her.

The light of the room flickered through the cracked door; Klaus had lit the fire place. Addie wasn't exactly sure why hotels had fireplaces; they were such a liability. An ember could jump from it and grow into something more. As he paced back and forth Klaus' silhouette came in and out of view. Something inside her pulled her towards the door and she opened it just enough to slide in. Klaus glanced at her as she entered his room of the hotel suite. He resumed pacing when he saw that she was simply sitting in the chaise lounge chair.

It was curious that Klaus hadn't made any remark on her appearance. Though, the Original had been acting very peculiar for the past few weeks, ever since he had discovered that Rebekah no longer had the necklace Gloria needed to contact the Original witch. He disappeared a lot and always came back in a foul mood. Addie had to guess that he was out scouring Chicago. It was the last confirmed location of the necklace. The only thing keeping her sister safe was a lost necklace. If she was lucky it was possible that the talisman had been dropped into Lake Michigan.

"There's a week before school starts," Addie remarked quietly. She knew her deal with Klaus and she knew better than to press her luck. This was the first time she even vaguely mentioned anything about going hope. Escaping Klaus.

Klaus stopped in front of the fire, his hands behind his back. The position left his face cast in the shadows. He'd been with so preoccupied with finding the necklace and resisting the desire to dagger his sister that he had forgotten to pursue his interest in Addie. "I'll book you a flight." He say her get up from the corner of his eye and held his hand out to her, motioning for her to stay put. He reflected on her odd behaviors of late. She had been refusing to go on his little outings, not that he had offered many since he spent most of his time looking for a necklace. Rebekah hadn't even been able to drag her out on her shopping adventures. Really, Addie hadn't come out of her room or done much of anything. It had been nearly a week since she had last asked him to text her brother. Her whole attitude had seemed downhill since…. "What happened between you and Damon when he showed up here?"

"What?" Addie gaped, taken aback.

"You've been different since then."

"I told you; I've been out of my medication for over a month. It's not that surprising that I've been depressed. That's kinda like the expected outcome when you take away mood stabilizers and antidepressants," she quipped back, forcing a winning smile.

Klaus eyed her suspiciously. "What are you hiding"

"Lots of things. What do you want to know?"

"Stefan has been much more friendly lately. Why?" he demanded.

Addie had observed that and she also took note of how Stefan refused to make eye contact with her anymore. It was unnerving. There was some thing up with him but she didn't know if it was good or bad. She opted to think the best of him. She scoffed, as if the answer was obvious, "He has all his memories back. I would think that would make anyone happy. It means you're not screwing with him anymore. Plus, you guys were friends. You're trying to bring back the guy from the 1920s and be friends with him, right? I see no reason to complain."

"Fair enough. My sister has an unnatural attachment to that necklace. You didn't see it with her in London, did you?"

"Nope. Why are you so obsessed with making more hybrids?"

Klaus raised an eyebrow at her. Did she really expect an honest answer? "An immortal army stronger and better than any vampire? Able to kill one with a single bite? Who wouldn't want that?"

"I don't think I would," Addie said innocently. "They would all outlive me and would kind of be lethal to my vampire friend."

"No, you're unnaturally passive, though. You don't have the stomach to lead an army." She shrugged it off; she hadn't expected to hear the truth. "What was Damon playing at when he showed up here?"

Having thought about that a lot herself, Addie laughed humorlessly, "I have absolutely no clue. The Damon I knew wouldn't have let you kill him without a fight. I don't know why he came to you with a death wish."

"Rebekah says you broke up with him."

"I… it's complicated. Damon and I wanted different things. Meaning he wanted to screw around with everyone and I just wasn't cool with that idea," she nodded, going with the same story she told his sister.

"That's very interesting. What I have a hard time understanding is why a man so obviously in love with you didn't fight to win you back from me."

Addie ran her hand through her hair, debating how she wanted to answer. "Damon doesn't handle betrayal well. No matter how much he may care about me, the fact that I wouldn't leave with him was a betrayal. It was like I picked you over him."

"Why did you decide that?" he wondered, curious ever since Damon had mentioned.

"You knew Stefan would have an allergic reaction to my blood. I want to know how you knew that. Plus, there was the whole you killing everyone I care about factor," she admitted.

"Easy. Your blood smelled too sweet."

"Yeah but how did you know that having sweet blood would cause that kind of a reaction."

Klaus gave her a dark, knowing look. "When you've been around as long as I have you learn a few things. Some of them tend to be quite useful."

"What else do you know about me?"

"Nothing I didn't already know," he sighed in resignation, sitting on the bed.

She huffed in frustration. He was being obnoxious on purpose. "Well, what do you already know?"

"Your blood keeps you safe from vampires eating you. I thought you couldn't be compelled but you've done everything I've told you to. I figured there would be something else special about you but there's nothing. You're a fast runner but not fast enough to help you out run anything. You're really intelligent but you're not smart enough to outwit an immortal. Really, the only thing remarkable about you is how much you don't want to accept the supernatural as fact," he finished with a laugh.

Addie's eyebrows furrowed in disappointment. "That's a boost to the ego… and not any new information. W-Why would you assume there is something special about me?"

Klaus smirked, "How many normal people have their blood act as a natural defense mechanism against vampires?"

"You know, considering the way you don't seem to discriminate in who you kill, I'm going to guess not very many," she replied, feigning careful thought. Slowly she recalled, "At the airport you said it had something to do with Gilbert DNA. The doppelganger effect overruled whatever Gilbert DNA does. Jeremy, though, he doesn't… a vampire can drink his blood."

He nodded knowingly. "I believe your brother has other Gilbert traits. I've traced back your paternal family history back to 1100AD. Every now and then something odd shows up in the gene pool. If there is a birth of a son and daughter in the direct lineage that leads to you, the sister typically has poisonous blood."

"What does the son have anything to do with it? What's, uh, what's with my brother?" Addie pressed, shaking her head in confusion.

"As of now? Absolutely nothing; your brother is perfectly normal."

She looked at him warily, shifting uncomfortably on the chaise. "And as of not now?"

Unconcerned he answered, "Your brother will most likely remain perfectly normal."

"Most likely? What is that suppose to mean?"

"There are six billion people in the world. Of those six billion people only five should concern you if you're so worried about your brother. One of them dies and your brother kills a vampire it is possible that he turn into the Hulk, He'll be stronger, faster, and have a thirst to kill vampires. Think of it as an upgrade. On the whole, Jeremy has a 99% chance of remaining as an unremarkable, average human," Klaus explained.

Addie mulled over what he said. It didn't make sense. She got that her brother would want to kill vampires but she already kind of sensed that from him. Except when he wanted to date a vampire. There was something that wasn't adding up, though. "These five people, why is Jeremy connected to them?"

"Genetics. There are several people connected to these five people. When one dies, there always has to be someone to take their place. That's not likely to happen if your brother is the only eligible candidate. What if he never even believed in vampires? It would be unlikely that he kill one and step up to the plate. So there always has to be multiple possibilities.

"I know all about your brother's potential; I was curious about yours. That's why I wanted you with me. I wanted to observe you. I haven't gathered there being much that is special about you. I think that is reserved for you brother. Your blood is just poisonous to protect you from the vampires your brother may bring into your life, I'm guessing," reasoned Klaus.

That was why she was dragged out to Chicago? She was some scientific experiment for Klaus to observe? His revelation was much less climactic than she had anticipated. He'd given her no answer about what or who she was. Damon had already concluded that it was a defense mechanism.

"How do you know all this about my brother?" Addie demanded protectively. It was perfectly fine if Klaus wanted to observe her but he needed to leave Jeremy out of his crazy hybrid business.

"I've been around a long time. I've learned a thing or two. Really, there's nothing fascinating about any of this so I recommend you let it go," Klaus said firmly, making it clear that he was done discussing the topic.

Addie stared into the fire as she contemplated just how far she was willing to push this with Klaus. He knew more than he was telling her. So much more. The need to know overtook her desire for self-preservation. She licked her lips anxiously as she crossed the room and grabbed his hand. The squeeze was meant to convey just how desperate she was. Her words were barely an urgent whisper over the crackling of the fire, "Jeremy and me, we're all that each other have. I need to know what you know. I need to be able to protect what is left of my family."

Klaus guardedly observed how she held his hand in hers. While unnatural, the contact wasn't uncomfortable. His eyes hardened before flashing up to her pleading face. He replied coolly, "For once, back off of something when someone tells you too. It's typically in your best interest."

"Please. I can no longer count how many nights I've lost sleep wondering about what's wrong with me. Knowing that Jeremy can become infected is never going to let me sleep if I don't fully understand this," she insisted, biting at her lip to look weak and anxious.

He grinned and bit back a sharp laugh."That's your problem, Addison; you don't know how to accept things for what they are. Everything needs to be neat and rational for you. You know that has a lot to do with why you're always anxious, right? You have this need to know what's going to happen and you get overwhelmed and lost when you don't see the future. Just accept life for what it is. For example, you're an enigma for the most part but you don't see me getting all bent out of shape because of it."

Her brows furrowed; Damon had once said she was a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside of an enigma. Personally, she didn't see herself as a very complicated person, at least not when she was stable. Her life and patterns were based on logic. Damon was her guilty, little flaw to that; how she felt about him, what he did to her, what he meant to her was all without sense. She wondered aloud, "How exactly am I an enigma?"

"You've been extremely compliant with my wants and demands. I expected someone so headstrong and independent to push her limits much more than you have. Even with me threatening the lives of the ones you love, I still expected some fight from you. I don't see how you can be so obstructive and annoying with Damon and yet so passive with me. When I first met you when I was inhabiting your friend, you reacted to me with so much… fire and resistance. There has been none of that. For the most part you've been extremely sensible and cautious in dealing with me," reflected Klaus, again staring at how she held his hand. It was interesting how her grip tightened and then relaxed when he mentioned the vampire.

Addie shook her head, frustrated with herself as she sat next to him in dejection. She had been embarrassingly compliant and complacent but it was just too much work to battle Klaus. Fighting with Damon came as easily as breathing but it took energy to be like that with the Original hybrid.

"When I met you, everyone was fighting you. We all were against you. We thought we could kill you. The fire and resistance just came so easily knowing everyone had my back and we were gonna win," admitted Addie. She couldn't tell how much was truth versus how much was a lie. "Then you won. Elijah betrayed us. You managed to kill my sister. You killed my aunt. You broke the curse. You took Stefan away. I knew from the moment you approached me in the airport that I had to deal with you differently. You're this uncontrollable, destructive wildfire. I know better than to fight your flames with fire. You'd retaliate and not care who you burned. When you made me picked between the program or leaving with you then you had me pinned down. If I chose to fight you, you were going to attack. So I've suffered my time with you relatively amicable. One firefighter would be stupid to try and take down or even try to hold back a wildfire. You need a smart team, otherwise everyone suffers. To be an ass with you would have just resulted in everyone I love suffering. I'd prefer to not test the limits if it is someone else, rather than myself, who will be hurt.

"I can fight with Damon because he's a star; his flames only reach so far due to his gravitational field. He is predictable. I know how close I can get to him without getting burned. Sometimes I push things a little too far with him and get a sunburn but everyone I know is there to back me up with sunblock and vervain. If I piss Damon off, he's going to hurt me, not the people supporting me. You both have the potential to be extremely destructive, which makes playing with fire fun but what you will destroy is worth more than some amusement."

"You realize flames and the sun, a star, are lethal to a vampire," Klaus smirked at her. She had her reason for being so docile but, like everything, Addie had to explain herself in a most bizarre way. He wasn't sure if she thought so differently that she had a problem explaining things simply or if she found it amusing to watch people try and understand her.

Addie smirked at him and settled for a wink since she couldn't raise a single, suggestive eyebrow. It didn't mean exactly the same thing but Klaus would get her point. Smartly she quipped, "I know. I don't think you realize that you will both be the cause of your own demise."

"I'm immortal. Fire won't kill me."

She laughed and inclined her head to the fireplace. "Stick your head in there; I'm not entirely convinced of that."

"Didn't you already try to destroy my brother with a flamethrower?" he grinned.

Her hands raised innocently. "That was Damon," she quickly corrected. "I'm not that stupid but he… well, like I said, he'll cause his own demise."

"I can't have a demise," he retorted, reviewing her words.

She replied ominously, "The definition of demise does not specify death."

The pulling and tugging of her hair made Addie scowl as she watched Gloria work some sort of spell at a table in the empty club. Rebekah hadn't asked for permission to braid her hair but she found that it was usually easier to let the girl do what she wanted rather than argue with her. Addie couldn't help but wonder just how long they were going to sit and watch the witch do nothing.

Klaus had woken up that morning in a particularly bad and demanding mood. While he, Stefan, and Addie had watched Rebekah play as a runway model in an upscale boutique downtown it occurred to him that Gloria could perhaps do a locator spell to find the necklace. Stefan had left their little group to go kill someone but Klaus did not have the patience to wait for the vampire to return once he came to his revelation about the talisman. Subsequently Rebekah and Addie were dragged to the bar where Klaus pressured Gloria into using magic. Over the course of two hours it did not appear that any progress was being made. Her hands floating over a large grimoire on a table filled with candles just seemed to be for show.

"You left us," Rebekah suddenly accused as Stefan walked into the club and over to where they waited at the bar.

"Yeah, sorry," he apologized, not sounding the least bit like he actually was. "Retailed therapy was making my head explode."

Klaus muttered, "Tell me about."

At the same time Addie scowled, "Join the club."

"What is she doing?" Stefan asked quietly, looking at Gloria.

"She's failing," snarled Klaus.

"It's hard to find something when you don't have anything to go on," the witch bit back sharply, her attention never leaving the table.

Rebekah hopped off the bar and huffed in impatience, "So use me. I only wore it for a thousand years.'

Gloria looked over her shoulder and smirked at Klaus as the girl approached her. "See? Now this one offers a solution." She turned her attention to Rebekah as she sat on the table and instructed, "All right, give me your hand sweetheart."

Stefan's brow furrowed as he crossed his arms and leaned against the bar next to Addie and quietly uttered, "She's, uh, she's looking for the necklace, huh?"

Klaus nodded while Addie critically assessed Stefan. He had been very chummy with Klaus ever since he learned that they were looking for a necklace. She had been sensing a light shade of grey from him. Stefan was up to something or he definitely knew something about the necklace.

"I can sense something," Gloria said after a minute.

Addie noticed the way Stefan shifted uncomfortably next to her and discreetly gave him a curious look. The shake of his head was barely perceptible. He took a few steps towards the witch as she began to chant in Latin. After a minute she dropped Rebekah's hand and turned to look at the other three.

"I found it."

"So where is it?" demanded the blonde vampire.

Gloria frowned at Rebekah. "It doesn't work like that, doll. I get images. There's a girl with her friends-"

There was no way Addie missed the was Stefan suddenly tensed. He had once given Elena a necklace, ornate and very old looking. He had put vervain in it to keep her safe. It simply couldn't be the same necklace, she decided. Stefan was simply anxious because finding the object just meant Klaus was one step closer to finding out that Elena was still alive.

"Yes, a dead girl with dead friends, if I don't get my necklace back," Rebekah snapped angrily, cutting the witch off.

"Well, I'll have to dive back in to get the details," the witch replied casually.

Klaus began to walk towards her and just as coolly ordered, "So dive."

Gloria shook her head as she looked at him. "I need more time." Klaus rested his hands on the table and peered down into the witch's face. "And space," she chastised.

Addie took the few steps she needed to reach Stefan and lightly put a hand on his arm as she looked up at him questioningly. He gave her a dark, grave look as he mouthed her sister's name.

"We can wait," Klaus replied lightly, not moving.

"I'm sure you can but that's not what I asked," Gloria cut back sharply.

"Hey. Hey, you know, why don't we just com back later," suggested Stefan as he clapped a hand on Klaus's shoulder. "I'm hungry anyway. I'll let you pick who we eat."

Stefan started making his way to the door without waiting for a response. Halfway there he looked back at Klaus and Rebekah meaningfully. The hybrid looked at his sister before turning to walk away. The girl followed. Addie tried to move back to the bar without drawing attention to herself but soon felt Klaus' cool grasp against her elbow dragging him with her. Of all the horrible things that happened in her time with Klaus, watching them feed was the worse. It combined two of the things that made her most uncomfortable, blood and death.

"How long does it take Stefan to write a name on a wall," Addie glowered as she trailed next to Klaus from the parking spot back to Gloria's. "Isn't he suppose to be your wingman in this?"

"He probably snatched someone else to eat along the way. Next time I shall I leave you to help Rebekah with the dead bodies?" Klaus sneered.

She hate when he was right. Addie huffed, "Fine. Being on the Witch Duty committee is better than being on the Corpse Disposal council."

"Thought you would see it my way," he smirked smugly.

Klaus halted when a ringing began to issue from his pants. He raised an eyebrow demanding an explanation as he pulled out Addie's cell phone.

Her hands fell to her hips as she glared at him. "Now, how am I supposed to know what you're all pissy about if I can't tell who's calling?" He turned the phone to show her the caller ID. Addie felt a chill run through her as the blood drained from her face. "You have to let me answer it. She wouldn't call unless it was an emergency," she pleaded. He shook his head. "I know Caroline. She's just going to keep calling and calling until I answer. If you expect her to still believe I'm traveling through Europe, I'd answer her call. If I ignore her, she'll know something is wrong. Then she'll tell my brother. Then everything becomes a big mess."

"If you say anything-"

"You think I'm going to spill now about you holding me hostage? I have my flight back home tomorrow. I'm not going to say something stupid and send you into a killing rampage to destroy everyone I care about," she snarked indignantly. With a slight reluctance Klaus passed her the phone. "I suppose a little privacy would be too much to ask?" she implored, knowing she was pushing her luck.

"Meet me in the club," Klaus growled, stalking away.

Addie wasn't sure whether she was rolling her eyes at him or at person calling when she answered with a curt, "Hello?"

"You need to get your ass back here," Caroline snapped angrily.

"And why is that?" Addie drawled out in boredom as she leaned against the side of a building.

"Because everything has gone nuts without you here! Your sister and Damon have lost their minds!"

She studied her nails in disinterest, none of what Caroline was saying was that surprising. "What exactly do you expect me to do about it?"

"Get back here and keep them in check! You're sister is cooking with Damon."

Addie held back a laugh, "Is cooking the new way of saying hooking up?"

"Practically!" Caroline cried. "Damon's gotten under your sister's skin and now she's attracted to him and all his bad brother glory."

"I don't see how any of that is my problem."

"He's your boyfriend. Elena is with Stefan! Your sister and boyfriend are practically making out!" the other girl insisted frantically.

Addie winced at the idea but made sure her voice was firm and cool as she informed, "Damon is no longer my boyfriend. We broke up. He's free to move in on Elena. And if Elena wants him… well, he's her problem, not mine."

"O.M.G. Did you guys seriously break up?"

"No, I find this to be a very hilarious joke to pull," she replied flatly.

Caroline gave a whine of frustration from the other end. "No wonder Damon's acting so… Damon. That's also part of why you need to come home! You're the only one who can control him. Elena's trying to but she's really just trying to turn him into Stefan!"

She was about to respond with another smart retort but hesitated. Damon was acting out? "First of all, Damon isn't someone I can control, I just accept him for who he is. If you leave a dragon alone he'll likely go about his business and leave you alone. If you try and train the dragon chances are he's going to spit fire at you."

"You're not making sense again. Look, I just got into a fight with him because he was eating my dad! He killed Alaric!"

"When did your dad come back to town?" Addie asked as she worked to mask her surprise at the information regarding Damon's behavior. She wanted to say it wasn't like him but if Elena was trying to change him, Addie could see how he might be stressed into snapping. Attacking someone innocent and killing his best friend, knowing he'd come back to life, was normal behavior for an angry Damon.

"Seriously?" Caroline scoffed. "You take that away as being the most important point?"

"Let me make sure I'm understanding this correctly. You want me to come home and try to make Damon behave because everyone's being reminded of how he acts when he doesn't get his way and you want me to keep Elena from falling for him?"

"Ideally you and Damon would get back together. It really just solves all of the problems."

"Me coming back isn't going to change anything. Damon's still going to be a dick. Elena's still going to be attracted to him. And she's still likely to try and make him change. See, if Damon and I were still dating I see how some of that might be my problem but we aren't and so none of it really is my concern. Go be a big girl and handle the big bad vampire and my whorish sister yourself," Addie snipped, quickly ending the phone call.

"Well, it seems the witch has cleared out but I don't quite think I need her anymore," Klaus said in a low, dangerous voice as he closed in on Addie.

Suddenly her throat was dry and her mouth felt like it was filled with cotton. "How much of that did you over hear?"

He gave her a dark, predatory grin and growled, "Enough." Klaus' hand snapped out and squeezed around her throat.

A/N: So we have some answers as to what's up with Addie's blood but that seems to be all the knowledge Klaus is going to share at the moment. Evil bastard. Next we return to Mystic Falls and Addie gets to confront Damon.

Also, I do my best to update every Friday but my life has just done a complete 180 and I've lost a significant amount of time that I get to work on this. We might be looking at every other Friday or shorter chapters. - Let me know what you prefer.

Thank you everyone for all your reviews, favorites, and follows!