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His hand around her neck shouldn’t have left her stomach clenching with need, especially with the utter lack of recognition in his eyes. “I don’t like new vampires in my city,” Klaus seethed, the bricks biting into her back as he held her against the wall. “Who are you?”
“S-Seriously?” she choked out.
Nails biting into her skin, however, she knew better than to test his temper even further. “Caroline!” she finally answered, hands scrabbling to push him back. “Ask Rebekah if you don’t believe me.”
He flew back as if she’d burned him. “You know Rebekah.” It wasn’t a question - more like an accusation.
Half of her wanted to flash out of there and forget any dreams she had of New Orleans. The other half couldn’t help herself at the intrigue in his expression as he gave her long look. “I do. I know you, too, but something tells me you’re not all there.”
“Perhaps you’re not all that memorable, love.”
Caroline snorted. “Yeah, right. Four hours in a forest don’t just disappear, Klaus,” she said, rubbing her neck. “Been hanging out with witches lately?”
He shrugged. “Mainly wolves.”
“Gross.” Licking her lips, she leaned back against the wall, watching his movements carefully. “So…can I see Rebekah? Maybe Elijah remembers me, but I’d actually trust Rebekah more.”
His eyebrows rose in surprise. “I can’t remember anyone asserting such a thing.”
Shrugging, Caroline brushed herself off. “Well, there you go. Point the way?”
Klaus shook his head, eyes narrowed in suspicion. “I don’t think so, love,” he said quietly, not giving her a chance to run before his hand darted to her chin and flicked it too hard to the left. She barely heard the snap before everything went black.
Ohhh, but she was pissed, and Klaus would definitely remember that.
“You’re going to regret this,” Caroline sighed, staring at the ceiling because she might actually develop a death stare if she stared at Klaus too long.
He’d compelled her.
Into his kitchen.
“I highly doubt that, love,” he promised, leaning against the counter.
She gave a murderously fake smile, testing the edges of her temporary prison by shifting around the table where she’d awoken. “It’s cute you think that. I’d say I can’t wait for you to realize just how badly you screwed up, but I hope to be long gone by then. Has Rebekah shown up yet to show how wrong you are?”
A throat cleared from the hallway before Elijah Mikaelson appeared in the doorway. “I’m afraid you’re stuck with me, Miss Forbes. I apologize for this…unfortunate situation.”
Klaus’s head just canted, his eyes not moving from her. “The doppelgänger’s friend shows up in our city. Odd, isn’t it?”
“I was invited,” Caroline bit out, hands clenched at her sides. “By you, ass.”
He opened his mouth to speak, but Elijah held up a hand. “May we procure you a ticket somewhere? Any destination of your choice.”
Again opening his mouth to argue, Caroline was quick to talk over him. “Far from here, with the promise that Klaus doesn’t find out where I am.“ Like hell was he allowed to hunt her down and grovel for his own stupidity. “But seriously, get some witches on this memory problem, because it’s freaking me out.”
Elijah nodded. “He’s had…troubling interactions lately.”
“Go figure,” she spat, staring bullets at Klaus’s mildly amused expression. “I repeat, you’re going to regret this.”
“Miss Forbes,” Elijah said, moving to stand between them, eyes widening with the weight of compulsion. “If you’d like, you may ignore Niklaus’s direction and come with me to the airport. I’ll pay for you to go wherever you choose.”
Sighing, Caroline highly appreciated the care with which he worded the request. “Thank you, I would like that.” She turned to Klaus as she crossed the boundary of her previous compulsion, tempted to throw a fit at the slack expression on his face. “When you’re back to yourself, I hope you remember this and know better than to come looking for me. Perhaps in a decade, or even a century,” she mocked, “I might forgive you and come back for Mardi Gras.”
She strode past Elijah without bothering to glance back. “But I wouldn’t hold my breath.”
“Whatever you say, love,” Klaus called, not sure why he felt the urge to follow them from the compound.
She couldn’t explain it. Hours after Elijah pressed a boarding pass and a fresh passport into her hand, still she sat at the gate. The plane had long since departed without her, several other flights, too.
The whole world offered to her in a first class seat, and Caroline couldn't understand why she didn’t want to leave.
A part of her did. Bonnie had already done a cloaking spell, no explanation needed. Enzo offered to tag along, always up for making a little trouble, especially when there was a scent of danger about it.
Klaus - let alone one that didn’t recognize her - was nothing but danger.
And still, she waited.
And she planned.
Klaus scratched his head. Something about the painting was wrong, but he couldn’t pick it out. It was simply driving him mad. “More pink,” he decided, already moving to mix the tiniest hint of red with the remaining white. Her skin was pale, yes, but there was a liveliness that he’d failed to capture. Maybe that was it.
“Miss Forbes made an impression on you.”
Without bothering to turn around, he focused instead on adding a flush to her cheeks and the base of her throat. “She’s a puzzle, Elijah, and the pieces are being held from me. You, I might add, are particularly unhelpful in that regard.”
Elijah chuckled in that genteel way of his before sitting in the armchair left pristine for such visits, as opposed to the worn and splattered couch. “I would apologize, but believe me that keeping you from hunting her across the world is in your best interest. Our sister has already fled the city looking for her freedom. What little I know of Miss Forbes is comprised of similar values and stubborn determination.”
Smirking, Klaus finally allowed himself a peek at the blatant calculation in Elijah’s face. “Wondering how best to direct my efforts while you continue on this charade that you have nothing to do with my recent memory problems?”
“Niklaus-”
“You’re hiding something, and you know I’ll find out. All I fail to determine is whether you arranged for the girl to come. She does make a pretty distraction.”
With a deep, resigned sigh, Elijah settled deeper into the couch, eyes careful not to leave his brother. “Apparently,” he answered, his chin raising minutely toward the half-finished painting of Caroline. The scene felt barely restrained, likely from when she was pacing their kitchen. “You won’t find her easily.”
“The Bennett witch.” Klaus could concede that witches holding the key to both locator spells and the spells that counter them was a cruel trick upon his personal convenience. “It’s odd to me that I remember so much of Mystic Falls, but nothing of her.”
“It is interesting.”
Klaus’s eyes narrowed, but his phone buzzed from the table before he could dissect that particular reaction. Answering the call, he couldn’t help but frown at the painting. It was still wrong. “What?” he snapped.
“Hey, Klaus, sir,” Josh stammered on the other end of the line. “Uh, you wanted me to keep an ear out for weird activity, which is kind of a vague duty, but it’s not my city or whatever-”
“Get on with it.”
“Right, right. I overheard a couple of witches at Rousseau’s, talking about some vamp buying up half their vervain reserves. That’s weird, right?”
He squeezed the phone, careful not to break it until he could bleed Josh of all the pertinent details. “Tell me about the vampire.”
Josh rattled off a number of disclaimers and assumptions, but Klaus only needed to hear the color of her hair.
And his smile spread.
He found her in the same bar where he’d pinned her to the wall, cheeky little thing. Whatever regret she claimed he’d feel was starting to seem inevitable, more so as she delicately sipped a hurricane without breaking eye contact. “I’m rarely surprised, love, yet here you are. You’re a brave one, all but daring me to kill you.”
Caroline arched an eyebrow. “More threats? I’ll add those to the list of reasons why you won’t see me for another decade.”
His smirk widened, not quite willing to ruin the joke of her staying in his city by saying it aloud.
Rolling her eyes, however, she clearly read his amusement. “It’s only a punishment if you remember why you don’t want me to run.”
“Fair enough.” Klaus dropped into the chair across from her, silently flagging the closest waitress for a fresh round of drinks. “So, why don’t I want you to run?”
“You can’t compel me anymore, but thanks for trying.”
It was Klaus’s turn to roll his eyes. “I was merely asking a question, sweetheart, and I’m well aware of your recent purchase. With such obvious moves, I find it hard to believe you’ll be able to hide from me should I actually care to hunt you when this is all over.” And it would be over; he had no intention of letting Elijah play with his mind, presumed noble intentions or not. “You seem very confident on that front.”
Caroline lifted her shoulder in a delicate shrug, which he took as confirmation. “I guess that’s for you to find out. But I didn’t see the point of sneaking around just yet. I wanted vervain, so I got it. Did some digging, too. I’m kind of nosy like that.”
“I’ll bet,” Klaus answered, smirk relaxing into an easy grin. The charm only grew when she flashed a wide smile of her own to the waitress, who brought her another teeming cocktail along with his scotch. Her raised eyebrows amused him further, urging him to reach for his wallet and a generous tip. “Tell me, what have you discovered?”
With a deep drag of her drink, she looked him over. Her gaze was both assessing and greedy - Klaus liked that, briefly wondered where his natural suspicion had gone before she flipped her hair back over her shoulder. His eyes caught on the curve of her neck, a perfect distraction indeed. Caroline cleared her throat at his none too subtle focus, and she nearly vibrated with impatience while he took his time to meet her glare. “That, for someone who claims not to recognize me, you certainly act like the old you.”
“Then let’s call that a start.”
She shook her head, tapping her nails on the table. Klaus had to stifle the urge to cover her hand with his, surprised how much he wanted to do it anyway. “Fine. According to a friendly witch I met, one with a huge grudge against you, by the way, memory spells require a personal connection and a particular emotional motivation. It’s you, so I assume there’s plenty of ammo on both counts.”
Klaus nodded, nonplussed by his well-earned reputation. “I’ve been known to make a few friends and enemies over the years. Still not sure where you fall on that particular spectrum.”
Staring at him for a moment, Caroline seemed torn. “Anyway,” she finally said, Klaus tracking the sweep of her tongue across her lips, “you didn’t seem to notice you were missing anything, right? That kind of seamless magic takes a lot of power.” He could feel the obvious answer pounding in his head before she said it, not liking the implications one bit. “Does the name Davina mean anything to you?”
His face hadn’t moved at all, but Caroline could read the fury behind his eyes. “You do know Davina, then.”
“Unfortunately.“ Klaus gave a terse nod before taking a deep swallow of his scotch. "What have you learned?”
She considers bargaining with him, if only for old time’s sake, to reassure her that it what he felt was truly based on herand not the role she played in his Mystic Falls chapter. A part of her had always wondered, and she was sorely tempted to take advantage of the situation for her own peace of mind. After all, a threat to keep him chasing her around the world only works if he’s actually willing to chase her.
But she also just wants himback. That was why she had come to New Orleans in the first place. Not quite ready to claim any promises of a last love, it seemed only fair to check in, maybe have a little too much fun on her way to the next adventure of her human life. Med school wouldn’t leave her much free time, let alone the glamorous world Klaus had once seemed so keen on offering. A vacation, though, that she could manage.
Her plan had not included memory loss and supernatural intrigue, if only she weren’t so good at the latter. “The baby witch doesn’t like you, downright hates you since you banished her bestie from town. Mark? Wait,” she smiled sweetly. “Marcel. I hear he doesn’t like you much either, which is obviously why Rebekah has the hots for him. What’d they do to get kicked out, make fun of your hair? Because I’m not sorry to say I agree you could use some work.”
The glass clattered to the table, any semblance of amusement draining from his face, though his smirk deepened. Unsettling to the extreme, Caroline straightened in her seat. “My patience wears thin, sweetheart. Davina did this,” he said in a deceptively easy voice, “and she will pay. Rebekah and Marcel know exactly what they did, and I’ve already granted them the favor of allowing them to leave.”
Taking a moment to steel herself, she nodded. “Yeah, well, Davina doesn’t see it that way. She thinks your petty turf war took away the only friend she had, so she decided to mess with the few positive relationships you’ve had over the past thousand years.”
Klaus frowned. “My siblings-”
“She had to start small,” Caroline explained, not without some pity. Messing with someone’s mind was crossing a line, and she’d never trust this Davina for taking the liberty, even if she could admit the bravery behind it. “Something you wouldn’t notice for a while, until your memories were nothing but pain and misery for you.”
His eyebrows lifted. “Ambitious, I’ll give her that. Not very well thought out if she intended the city to survive such an emotional state.”
Privately, she agreed, but she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. “So, that’s what I know.”
“It does put Elijah’s hesitance into perspective. He’s likely trying to protect the little witch, as well as Bekah’s freedom.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “Any ideas how to reverse the spell?”
Caroline shrugged. “Bonnie says it’d be dangerous for anyone else to unravel it, so I guess have a little faith in your brother. He has a better chance than you do of getting Davina to change her mind,” she said with a pointed look. “If you want, anyway.”
Leaning across the table, Klaus couldn’t drag his eyes from her, something fierce behind them. “Falling into madness isn’t my idea of a good time, love, and I don’t particularly like that you know more of me than I do of you.”
Her heart dropped, wondering why she thought his attention meant anything more than guarding against the threat she apparently posed. Caroline forced a smile as a memory echoed in her ears, only for it to fall from her lips all over again. “Are you going to kill me?”
For a moment, they just stared at each other, horror choking them into a resigned silence. Caroline wasn’t sure what scared her more: that he’d do it, or that he was even willing to consider the possibility.
Either way, she was terrified.
Klaus could see the naked fear in her eyes, and revulsion roiled his stomach. Her question rattled in his mind, though, a cold awareness sinking in. All of Caroline's hints and assertions as to their prior relationship left him with the impression they were lovers at the least, or something more promising than he was willing to put a name to just yet. But he could tell she'd asked him the question before, and her expressive face betrayed she wasn't sure of his answer now.
He didn't like that one bit, and he hated that she was right to worry. "Not quite certain," he answered honestly. "You are more of a help at the moment, so it seems I have time left to decide."
Something in her expression drops, a strange calm falling between them. It was such a different image from her spitting angry in his kitchen, and Klaus wanted her to bite back at him, anything but the blank cant of her head as she waited for him to attack. "Lucky me."
"Not tonight, gorgeous."
They both turned to find the Bennett witch and a strange vampire trailing her, the man who'd spoken. His fangs itched to drop when he realized that he was addressing Caroline. "More newcomers." He turned a steely eye onto her confused expression, torn between relief and fear.
"What are you guys doing here?" She asked, only sparing him a stern glance that brooked no argument. They're mine.
The witch crossed her arms. "What are you doing here? You were supposed to be on a plane to Timbuktu with a cloaking spell to protect you, not sending Enzo snaps of beignets and hurricanes."
Caroline narrowed her eyes to glare at the other vampire, tossing her straw in his direction. "Traitor."
To Klaus's utter annoyance, this 'Enzo' just shoved himself into the booth next to her, slinging his arm over her shoulder as he snuck a sip of her drink. A territorial rage clouded his vision for a moment until he took a bracing swallow of his scotch. "Introduce your friend, love."
"Hello to you, too," Bonnie snapped, protectively standing at Enzo's side. "We're here to make sure our friend survives this lapse in judgment, and I'd rather you remember why you want her to do just that. So, Enzo is going to take her to the airport, and you're going to take me to see your brother. From what I hear, Elijah is playing power broker with the witch involved, and we've got a spell to break."
"Bonnie-"
"And Caroline will be far away when that happens," she finished without looking at her friend, "because I don't trust you not to hurt her, even with your memory intact."
Klaus smiled, a sharp curl of his lips that should have warned even the thickest of humans they were in danger. But the witch remained unruffled, which only irritated him further. "Listen-"
"I'll go." They all turned to Caroline, who snatched the glass from his hand to finish it off. She glanced up to Bonnie. "You can do it? You can break the spell?"
Nodding, the witch shrugged. "If Davina cooperates, it shouldn't take too long."
Caroline finally looked to him, tucked as she was under Enzo's arm. Klaus wondered how long it would take for her affections to wane so that she wouldn't care if this Enzo lost all his limbs, one by one until there was nothing left of him. Even knowing as little of her as he did, Klaus figured that scenario unlikely in the next century or so. "Then I'll go," she said, not letting her gaze waver. "Who knows? Maybe you won't care to chase me across the world after all."
That, he doubted. Very much.
The first gift was waiting for her in New Zealand. She’d left Enzo behind to keep Bonnie company, but Caroline took his adventurous suggestion to heart and planned to explore the entire island in time for the good news to reach her. It seemed that, even without his memories, Klaus had no intention of letting her quietly disappear; a bottle of champagne was iced and ready to welcome her to the beach house Elijah had graciously lent. While she might have chalked it up to the elder Mikaelson’s sense of hospitality, the artful bunch of vervain and the oil painting she definitely did not sit for gave the game away.
Leave it to the girl who never came first to snag the attentions of the Original Hybrid. Twice.
When Bonnie called about a month into her little hideaway, Caroline had been relieved to hear all memories had returned and no witches harmed in the process. Enzo had taken a few stabs to internal organs as a result of particular needling at Klaus, but nothing he couldn’t heal from or enjoy in his peevish way.
A part of her wanted to show up in New Orleans and give him a swift punch in the mouth for hurting her friend and threatening her in the first place. With a strong location block spell, though, she took the first flight out to New York. She hadn’t worked so hard to get into med school just to drop it at the first sign of supernatural shenanigans. Her vacation had been lonelier than she planned, filled with worry over someone she wasn’t sure deserved it, knowing he would be worth it in the end. As uncertain as she was in those last moments with him, the way his eyes had tracked her quick exit from the bar, the angry longing that warmed her skin from across the room reminded her of the promises he once made. Even with the unfortunate detour of all their plans, Caroline couldn’t help but see their future as anything less than inevitable.
Another gift was waiting at her apartment, though a bit dusty, like it had been delivered about the same time as a crisp bottle of champagne. She wondered if there were any number of presents littered across the world, just in case she happened upon them. Her lips lifted at the idea; it definitely sounded like something he’d do. Opening the little jewelry box, she was surprised to find a ticket to some fancy museum gallery tucked over a gorgeous set of earrings. Idly, she noted they’d perfectly match a bracelet she’d long since missed.
The ticket was dated for the following week, not so subtly coinciding with the first weekend after classes began. For someone who didn’t remember her at the time, Klaus seemed to put forth a lot of effort in infiltrating her life. Yet, he hadn’t taken the time to call her once said memories were repaired. Perhaps the museum was his plan after all, laying in wait until she could decide whether to see him.
What a drama queen.
He smelled her before he heard her, the only reason he allowed her to rush him up against the marble wall, just out of sight from the rest of the gala. Caroline smirked up at him, eyes narrowed at his delighted expression. “Hello, sweetheart.”
“That doesn’t prove you remember me,” she pointed out, pulling back slightly to straighten the jacket of his tux. “Just that you flirt your way out of trouble.”
Raising an eyebrow, Klaus lightly pushed a loose curl back over her shoulder, baring the full line of her throat down to her generous neckline. Familiar diamonds dangled just above, and a thrill of pride sang in his veins. “And into it, apparently.”
She laughed and mirth shined from her eyes, a far cry from the fear he’d put there in New Orleans. “We really need to talk about your idea of flirting, because you are so bad at it.”
“You’re here, aren’t you?”
The humor didn’t leave her face altogether, but it dimmed enough for him to want it back. “I’m here for an apology. Any flirting that happens afterward will be easily blamed on the open bar and dancing.”
He gave a sad smile, letting his eyes drop to where her hand had rested on his chest. “I am sorry,” he swore, his voice quiet and vulnerable between them. “Had I been- I have no wish to compel you, ever. I only ever want you as you are, to know it’s-” Klaus broke off, frustrated with himself and equivocating when he’d never bothered to justify his actions before. “When you come to me, I want to be sure that you’re sure. And I regret that what might have been a wonderful visit turned into an...incident.”
“I’ll give you the witchy interference,” Caroline allowed, her index finger tracing the edge of his bow tie. “For what it’s worth, I know there are lines you won’t cross - not with me, anyway.”
Eyes wide, he hoped that was true. “The naivety of youth,” he teased with only some strain.
Caroline acknowledged him with a slight nod. “Only time will tell, I guess. Right now, though, I’m just glad you’re you. Want to dance?”
Klaus took her hand in his, twirling her out to the floor to join the rest of the party. When she landed back against him, eyes shining once more, he couldn’t stop himself from leaning down to kiss her. Laughing into his mouth, Caroline let him hold her still for a beat. With her eyes closed, joy seemed to radiate from her soft smile. “One day, I hope you’ll tell me about New Orleans and what you wished to find there.”
Slowly, her grip tightened on his shoulder, the other hand clenched in his. Her chin raised to meet his gaze. “I prefer to live in the moment,” she murmured, closing the hardly polite distance already between them. “This is a pretty good one.”