"What if either Bonnie or Esther send Caroline back in time when the Originals are still human to save Henrik so that they're never turned into vampires? And Caroline is a little annoyed about the whole saving-the-world-cliché and does some stupid things like teaching Rebekah some modern songs and stuff and she saves Henrik in a really stupid/funny way but then she falls in love with Kol and he with her. –Schlangenkind

Caroline stared at Esther Mikaelson, wondering how insane the witch really was. Her children had to get it from somewhere and with how crazy she heard her husband was, then Klaus and his siblings really had no chance of coming out sane. If anyone ever needed confirmation that insanity could be inherited than what only need look at the Mikaelsons and see that it could be. Also, totally off-topic, but Klaus inherited her eyes, she felt like pointing out.

"How does sending me back in time to prevent your son's death help with your anti-vampirism campaign?" She had to ask.

"It was my son Henrik's death that caused my husband and I to turn him and our children into vampires," Esther explained calmly. "If he never died, we would've lived out our mortal lives and be done with it."

Be done with it, like the erasing of a thousand-year existence was a chore that needed doing instead of the total cray-cray plan it was.

"Well, why me? Who not send someone else?"

"Niklaus is enamored with you. I'm sure you're merely being in the same vicinity as him will distract him from taking his little brother on midnight trips with dangerous creatures."

"You're overestimating your son's feelings for me." Caroline tried to reason with her. "I'm not-"

"One of those wretched dopplegangers? We already had one at that time. Tatia. Terrible thing caused a rift between Niklaus and Elijah."

Oh, nobody bothered ever telling her about that. It seems dopplegangers were getting brothers into messed up love triangles earlier than they'd thought.

"You are not a doppleganger, a witch, a werewolf, or anything magical to speak of," Esther explained. "The moment you arrive, you'll be fully human again and that's exactly what I need."

"But-"

"No more complaining,"

Esther started chanting and started the spell. Caroline, who was still tied to the chair with vervain ropes, shouted at her to stop. But again, this is apparently Mama Crazy, and Esther did not give a damn.

Her arrival was really something. One moment she was with Esther at the Mikaelson home's living room and the next she was in a wooden house with human Rebekah Mikaelson staring at her in shock. Another woman, a dark-skinned lady, didn't even look surprised at all to see her and just told Rebekah to find her mother. When the blonde girl was gone, the dark lady moved closer to her and smiled.

"Caroline Forbes," She said. "I am Ayana. You know of one of my descendants…Bonnie, is it?"

Caroline gaped at her. "How….?"

"I tend to be inaccurate with details but I've known of you for a long time. More of that I predicted your arrival long ago."

"But how would you…?"

"I see glimpses of what is to come. It has proven to be useful," Ayana moved around her little home and pulled out a small rucksack from underneath the table where various magical thingamajigs' thingamabobs were found and handed it to her. "You will need what's inside for your mission. You must not fail."

Caroline was about to look what was inside the rucksack when Rebekah returned with her mother and who she remembered as the brother Jeremy and Matt killed, Finn.

"What is the matter, Ayana?" Esther inquired, eyeing Caroline warily. "What is this about a girl appearing out of thin air?"

"No, my dear friend." Ayana laughed. "She appeared out of magic."

Caroline learned in history classes that hygiene in earlier centuries was practically non-existent but this was horrific. Everyone did not bathe regularly and you could smell it for sure. No indoor plumbing yet. Houses that were definite fire hazards. The men's ridiculous hair was the least terrible thing she'd seen all day.

Seeing Klaus with golden locks like Thor was a disconcerting sight. It just felt so wrong to see him and his family look something out of Brave heart. And don't get her started on their father, Mikael. The dynamic of the Mikaelson patriarch and his sons felt oddly like watching Odin with his sons.

She was pretty sure Klaus was Loki after witnessing how Mikael went after Klaus when blond-Loki decided to have a bit of fun with Elijah's belt and his sword. Just regular boys being boys, nothing out of the ordinary with her time (well, except for the swords) and Mikael went all that asshole military dad from American Beauty on him. It was sickening to see.

Poor blond-Loki. And after that night's festivities, some kind of magical thing they did at this time, and that century's doppleganger, Tatia, left him to canoodle with Elijah, she was beginning to see how shitty of a life Klaus' life had been and this was pre-turning. Mikael was obviously a douchebag and Esther wasn't doing anything about it.

Caroline was watching the fire, contemplating. She didn't want this mission of saving humanity from the curse of vampire kind but she was here, she was human, and according to Ayana, there was no going back. She did what Caroline Forbes did, think and organize. Compartmentalize her despair for never seeing her friends and family again and work on the Save Henrik's Life Plan.

Rebekah came over, after having danced with one of the burlier looking men. Her cheeks were flushed with flowers in her hair. Human Rebekah was a great deal sweeter than Original Vampire Rebekah. Caroline liked this version already. Especially since Rebekah had lent her a dress after Ayana explained Caroline had zero possessions.

The dress was a rough fabric and a deep grey but Rebekah had been so proud to tell her she mad it herself that it warmed Caroline to know Rebekah had given her something she'd quite clearly loved for a practical stranger. Finn had been polite earlier when he handed her a drink of mead (because clean water was a rarity). And Elijah was happily dancing with Tatia without all his formality and stiffness she was used to seeing.

Maybe she wasn't just saving one boy's life and all of humanity. She was saving people a life to live as they chose without the hunger, death and guilt. She was giving them a chance at a simpler life. She was going to be their hero.

"Kol fancies you," Rebekah said with a giggle.

Caroline stared at her in disbelief. "Pardon?"

"My brother, Kol. The one who likes to jest."

"And flirt," Caroline pointed to where Kol was making a few tipsy girls laugh. "I have a feeling he 'fancies' all the girls."

"Plenty," Rebekah smiled. "And that's why I'm warning you away. You seem like a nice girl and my brother will eat you alive."

That would've been true in a different life. Err, the one before this in the future that was erased. Time travel was giving her a headache.

"Maybe I'll eat him," Caroline returned with a smile of her own. "I have no time for boys."

Not that one anyway. He was trouble and she had a mission.

It turned out the full moon was the next night. She'd been staying with Ayana, sleeping on a thin bedding that made her mourn her comfy mattress at home, when the witch declared it was time for them to hide in the caves. The witch explained about their 'neighbors' who had a furry little problem once a month. The native werewolf packs, of course, the ones that would eat them if they were found during the full moon.

The caves were uncomfortably dark. And Caroline kept close to the walls trying to find her bearings. She didn't miss the hunger as a vampire but she did miss the superior senses in times like this. She nearly jumped at the hand at the small of her back.

"Sorry," Kol murmured to her and she could hear the laugh in his voice. "I didn't mean to scare you, Caroline."

"You didn't scare me," She groused. "You surprised me."

He was trying hard not to chuckle. "There's a difference?"

"Yes." She rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to elbow him sharply to the ribs and made her way to where Niklaus and Henrik were whispering to one another near one of the torches on the walls. "Hey. What are you guys talking about?"

Klaus kept his face impassive but the guilt and excitement on Henrik's was too obvious. She took a seat beside the younger boy on the ground and murmured, "Not planning on seeing the wolves are you?"

They both blanched.

"Cause that would be dangerous and very irresponsible," She cocked an eyebrow at blond-Loki. "You wouldn't want Henrik harmed, would you?"

"Of course not," Klaus vehemently whispered back. "But he was insistent and I've been to see them before and I was fine. As long as we're hidden, we'll be-"

"Fine?" Caroline resisted rolling her eyes. "Have you gone 'wolf-seeing' with other people before?"

"No."

"Just by yourself?" Caroline shrugged. "Maybe the wolves like you and only you. Maybe they won't like Henrik the same way. Have you thought of that?"

Klaus' brow furrowed. "That would make no sense. The only ones they seem to like are ones like themselves."

"Yes. It seems so."

Caroline stared him in the eye and dared him to figure it out. Come on, blond-Loki, think. This is that moment in the movie when Loki starts shouting at Odin for all the lies. Go and be your bad self.

She decided to leave Klaus to his thoughts and turned back to Henrik. "Do you like stories?"

When the younger boy nodded, she continued. "There was a wizard named Harry Potter and he lived with his awful relatives…"

Caroline woke up on the ground of the cave to Rebekah nearly wailing as she descended upon them all.

"Niklaus is gone," Rebekah was in tears, distraught. "I searched everywhere and no one knows where he is."

Ah, the prodigal son went home. She looked around and saw Henrik still fast asleep near his mother. Mikael was already off doing whatever it was he was doing. Caroline smiled sleepily and tried to go back to sleep.

"Caroline!" Rebekah was suddenly there, shaking her. "You were talking to him last night. Did he say anything?"

"Jotunheim," She murmured back.

"What?"

"He has to move on and be who he is," She intoned. "He just doesn't belong here. He hopes you understand. He has to go his own way."

Rebekah stared at her in confusion.

"He's Gabriella Montez-ing you. Get with the program."

"What was up with that mad conversation with Rebekah earlier?" Kol asked her as she was picking berries in the forest later.

"Oh, you know, girl can't appreciate great musicals," She waved him off. "The tragedy of these times aside from the plague and lack of modern medicine."

"You're talking mad again,"

"It's a mad world!" She sang. "I find it kind of funny. I find it kind of sad."

He shook his head at her, eyes wide. "You've lost it."

"I am stuck in the Middle Ages where penicillin has not been invented," She laughed. "And anesthesia and epidurals? Might as well just kill myself now. The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever hard!"

She dropped her basket and kicked the fallen leaves around her. "Henrik is alive and Klaus is off exploring his inner canine and me? I'm stuck here with you! This was a raw deal from the start!"

He gaped at her. "Ugh…"

"I will never have good jeans, cheeseburgers and chocolate again! I don't get to watch the new Harry Potter movie! I don't get to see my parents and Elena, Matt, Bonnie, Stefan…and…"

She picked up a pine cone and threw it up towards the sky. "Esther! You bitch!"

"Why are you cursing my mother?" He was there, his hands on her arms, looking very concerned. "What is going on?"

Her eyes were watering without her consent as she stared at him. "Your hair is so stupid like this. I liked it best at that stupid ball and you didn't even dance with me."

"I'm sorry?" He looked so confused and worried for her, it was unfair. "I can dance with you next time?"

"Oh no," She said as she felt the stirrings of another doomed romance. She shook her head and tried to move away from him. "Oh no. Not you. Not here."

He cupped her face and forced her to stay still. She was looking into his dark eyes and only saw the future. A simple life here with him. Marriage, babies if she didn't die from childbirth and…magic. He was a witch.

"You can do magic?" She nearly demanded.

He blinked at her with a bemused smile. "Yeah. A bit of a prodigy, actually."

He was Esther's son and therefore he had to be a powerful one. This was it. He was her answer. She just had to get him to figure out the spell and bring them back to her future, present, past – whatever it was.

She smiled at him, all sweet and coy. "Kol? You fancy me, right?"

He stared down at her hand on his bicep than back at her angelic face. He felt a bit like he was about to agree something crazy. She was definitely mad but pretty and the most intriguing girl he's ever met. He was drawn to her and he couldn't seem to shake himself out of it. "Yes?"

"Good," She leaned closer until her lips almost touched his. "Because you're going to take me home."

"Home?"

"Mm-hmm," She kissed him lightly. "And then you can have whatever you want."

She said other things but he stopped caring at that point. This mad girl did have a lot of mad ideas. Time travel. Like that was possible.