So I'm blocked right now on both of my multi-chapter stories, but this has been stuck in my head for a while now, so I had to get it out. It's AU/AH and Klaus is a musician. Obviously Ed Sheeran sings "Give Me Love" and "Thinking Out Loud," but they worked for the sake of the story so I borrowed them. It jumps around to different scenes, but I tried to break it up so hopefully it all makes sense. Also, if you can figure out where the mashed up name of the journalist comes from, you'll earn my sincere respect. As always, let me know what you think. Thanks!

Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue.

"So backstage before a show can be incredibly hectic," Katherine explained quickly as she moved around people preparing for the performance. "Klaus is getting ready on his own, but there are a hundred other people working together to make this happen. Don't get in their way."

Hayley nodded, taking mental notes as she tried to keep up with the fast-paced tour manager. "Does he usually get ready alone?"

"Yes," Katherine confirmed. "I've been his tour manager for six years and he's never once asked for anyone in his dressing room at least two hours before a single show. No one knows what he does, but he's spectacular on stage, so we don't ask."

"What about his assistant?" Hayley asked. "Caroline, right?"

Katherine stopped abruptly and spun to face the new brunette, causing Hayley to nearly slam into her. "Don't call her that. Don't let her hear you call her that and certainly don't let him. Caroline has been a part of this family for a very long time and we all decided a long time ago that calling her just his assistant was degrading to what she does here. Without Caroline, this entire ship would sink in minutes. No one can do his or her job without Caroline doing hers."

"Got it," Hayley muttered, feeling properly shamed. "She uhh, dates Kol, doesn't she? I'm just trying to get up-to-date here."

Katherine sighed and went on walking. "That's speculation that hasn't been confirmed. They're lifelong friends, and they swear it's nothing more than that."

Before Hayley could respond, Rebekah, Klaus' sister and stylist, stopped them. "We have a problem. My darling brother is saying that he won't wear the jacket tonight. He's worn it all bloody tour, but suddenly, he's refusing."

"Rebekah, I don't have time for this," Katherine rolled her eyes.

"You're the tour manager!" Rebekah cried. "This is exactly your problem."

"No, I deal with tour issues," Katherine corrected. "All Klaus issues are deferred to his actual manager. Find Elijah."

The blonde frowned. "He'll take your side and tell me to deal with it."

Katherine admired her wedding rings. "Yeah, he's good like that. Goodbye, Beks. Come on, Hayley."

"Who's the new girl?" Kol asked as he joined his sister, watching the two brunettes continue their backstage tour.

"New assistant tour manager," Rebekah explained. "Katherine finally replaced Cami."

Kol nodded. "Think she'll survive working under Katherine?"

"It wasn't Katherine that got Cami fired," Rebekah reminded him. "It was her constantly coming on to Klaus."

"Yes, I do seem to recall her batting her eyes quite a bit at him," Kol nodded. "Can't for the life of me figure out why. I mean, I'm always around, so she needn't slum with him."

"Gross," Rebekah gagged, shoving him away.

After the tour, Katherine excused herself from Hayley and hurried away to speak with the sound technicians, so Hayley tried to make herself useful by checking on Klaus. Just as she went to knock on his dressing room door, a soft voice called to her.

"Don't do that."

Hayley looked up to see a pretty blonde in jeans and a simple blue t-shirt walking towards her. "He goes on in fifteen minutes, so I thought I'd make sure he's ready."

"He knows," the blonde assured her. "He's never missed a show by even a minute, so he'll be ready. You must be Hayley?"

"I am," Hayley confirmed, offering a hand. "You are?"

"Caroline Forbes," the blonde introduced, shaking hands.

"Nice to meet you," Hayley said. "So, what's he like? Katherine was very tight-lipped about it all."

"No offense, but it's probably best that you figure it out on your own," Caroline explained, pulling a sleek phone from her back pocket. "Klaus is different with everyone. What I say about him will be different than what Katherine would say or what Henrik would say."

"Got it," Hayley mumbled. "Well, Katherine didn't really give me anything to do."

"Why don't you round up the band and make sure they're ready?" Caroline suggested. "Stefan is probably with Bekah somewhere, but it's hard telling where you'll find Marcel and Josh. I'd check the wardrobe room first; they like flirting with Bekah's assistants."

"I can do that," Hayley nodded. "Thanks."

"Sure," Caroline replied, going into a room across from Klaus', effectively ending their conversation.

"Have you met Katherine's new shadow?" Rebekah asked Caroline moments later as they waited for Klaus to emerge from his dressing room.

Caroline looked across the way at where Hayley was laughing at something Marcel was saying. "I did."

"And?" Rebekah mused. "Think she'll last?"

"She hasn't met him yet, so we'll find out," Caroline replied as the dressing room door opened and the musician walked out, dressed in jeans, a white Henley, and the jacket Rebekah had fought to get him into.

"Let's put on a show, shall we?" he spoke as he was immediately flanked by Elijah and Katherine. "Great job, mate," he added to his opening act, Vance Joy, as he passed by.

"Klaus, you need to meet the new assistant tour manager," Katherine explained. "Hayley," she called over her shoulder. "Come here."

Hayley rushed forward. "Hi, Mr. Mikaelson. I'm Hayley Marshall; it's so nice to meet you and be here."

"Please, call me Klaus," he requested. "'Mr. Mikaelson' was my father and he was hardly that."

"Right," Hayley noted. "Well, if you ever need anything from me, don't hesitate to ask."

"That's nice, love, but you'll work mostly with Kat here," he told her. "Most of my communication goes through either Elijah or Caroline first."

Hayley deflated. "Oh, I understand."

"That will be all for now," Katherine dismissed her. "Just keep an eye on Marcel and Josh until they get to the stage."

"You have to give her some actual responsibility, Katerina," Elijah advised of his wife as they continued walking. "That's why you hired her."

"I hired her because I need a glorified assistant," Katherine shot back. "One who wouldn't fall in love with our boy."

Klaus scoffed. "You keep biting attractive young women. Is that likely?"

"Slow the ego," Katherine warned as they reached the stage. "All right, I'm heading to the control booth. Good luck."

Klaus turned to his crew. "Let's do this."

The inner circle crowded in to pile their hands.

"It's my turn!" Henrik cried out happily. "On three. One, two, three..."

"Let's do this!" everyone cheered in unison.

Moments later, Klaus took the stage in front of tens of thousands and Hayley watched from the wings.

"He's impressive, huh?" Kol murmured, standing beside her.

"Yes," Hayley agreed, completely mesmerized. "His music is so authentic. Like, I'd never doubt that he wrote all of his songs."

"He'd hate if you did," Kol chuckled.

"His love songs," she gushed. "Are they about anyone in particular? Does he date? There's always speculation."

"Nik is very private," Kol shrugged. "What he does behind closed doors is a mystery to us all."

"No way," Hayley denied. "You're his brother; this whole operation is mostly family. Surely you'd know if he's romantically involved."

Kol shook his head. "No idea."

"Not even Caroline?" she asked. "Aren't PA's supposed to know and hide everything?"

Kol's face darkened. "Don't call her that. You have no idea what Caroline does around here."

Hayley smirked. "Is your anger confirmation of the rumors that you two are dating?"

"No comment, darling," he replied. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to prep guitars."

"She's nosy," Kol told Caroline moments later when he found her. "She was asking about us."

"Was she?" Caroline murmured as she sent emails. "I can already tell I won't like her, but Kat needs her around, so I'll be polite."

"She's already enamored with him," Kol went on. "It didn't work out for Cami, so it won't work for Hayley."

"Well, she won't deal with him much," Caroline shrugged. "She's Katherine's bitch, to put it mildly."

He laughed and threw an arm around her. "Oh, that's one of the reasons I love you, Care. Such a nasty girl behind the innocent face."

"Fuck off, Kol," she rolled her eyes lovingly, pushing him away.

Onstage, Klaus sat down on the stool Kol had brought him and smiled out at the crowd. "I want to thank you all for coming out tonight for this show in my beloved hometown of London. This next song I'm gonna sing is one that I've never performed before. Most of the people I work with every single day have never heard it, but it's one I've been working on for a while now. This is 'Thinking Out Loud.'"

When your legs don't work like they used to before

And I can't sweep you off of your feet

Will your mouth still remember the taste of my love?

Will your eyes still smile from your cheeks?

And, darling, I will be loving you 'til we're 70

And, baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23

And I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways

Maybe just the touch of a hand

Well, me—I fall in love with you every single day

And I just wanna tell you I am

So honey now

Take me into your loving arms

Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars

Place your head on my beating heart

I'm thinking out loud

That maybe we found love right where we are

When my hair's all but gone and my memory fades

And the crowds don't remember my name

When my hands don't play the strings the same way

I know you will still love me the same

'Cause honey your soul could never grow old, it's evergreen

And, baby, your smile's forever in my mind and memory

I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways

Maybe it's all part of a plan

Well, I'll just keep on making the same mistakes

Hoping that you'll understand

But, baby, now

Take me into your loving arms

Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars

Place your head on my beating heart

Thinking out loud

That maybe we found love right where we are

So, baby, now

Take me into your loving arms

Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars

Oh, darling, place your head on my beating heart

I'm thinking out loud

That maybe we found love right where we are

Oh, baby, we found love right where we are

And we found love right where we are

"Wow," Hayley breathed. "There's gotta be a girl, right? He's been rumored to date Emma Watson. Think it's her? Ooh, or Jennifer Lawrence? They were seen at a Halloween party together and she just broke up with Chris Martin."

Elijah, who was standing beside her, eyed her warily. "Miss Marshall, did you sign all of your paperwork today?"

"Yes," she confirmed. "Why?"

"Then you know you sign a non-disclosure agreement, meaning should you ever talk about anything private in Niklaus' life outside of this small circle, you'll spend years tied up in litigation," he warned coolly. "What my brother does and who he writes about is his business, and as the newest member of our team, you know absolutely nothing yet."

"Okay," she whispered, feeling mortified. "It's a great song though."

"Have you heard that one?" Kol asked Caroline when the new song finished up.

"Nope," she denied. "I like it though."

"Best love song yet," Kol agreed, "and he's written some doozies, no?"

"It's what he does best," she confirmed. "Now you need to go make sure the crew is packing up because we have to be out of the arena no later than one, which means we'll have two hours to clean up. Then we're on the train by seven AM to take the Chunnel towards Paris. Find Henrik and take him with you."

When the show ended, Klaus left the stage and found only Hayley waiting for him.

"Everyone is packing up because we have to be out by one," she filled him in as she walked just behind him. "You have an interview to do back at the hotel and then Caroline said it's straight to bed so you can be up by six."

He yawned. "Thank you, Hayley. If you don't mind, would you find Elijah and send him to my dressing room?"

Sad that he didn't care to spend time with her, Hayley sighed dejectedly. "Sure."

"Don't feel bad," Henrik said as he approached Hayley from behind. "Nik is an enigma to most of us. I'm his brother and I don't know him as well as I'd like to; few do. Do your job well and you'll get there."

"Who's in with him?" she asked, wondering who she should suck up to; it wasn't every day a girl got the chance to work for Klaus Mikaelson, after all.

Henrik shrugged. "Elijah, for sure. And Caroline. Stefan is his best friend, so him, too. Bekah and Kol are closer than me. It's just because I'm young."

"What about your parents?" she wanted to know.

"They died when I was four," he answered. "Elijah was just eighteen at the time, so I lived with my grandparents until I was twelve and started living on tour with everyone; Caroline was my tutor to finish school."

"She's just a jack-of-all-trades, huh?" Hayley realized.

"I guess," he shrugged. "Caroline is the glue."

"Uh-huh," she muttered. "I have to find Elijah. Have you seen him?"

Henrik nodded ahead of them at where Elijah was letting himself into Klaus' room. "Just there."

"Damn it," she groaned. "I was supposed to find him and send him there."

"Hayley!" Katherine called out. "We have a tech emergency and need all hands on-deck, so your job duties are expanding. Go with Klaus to his interview and intervene if questions are too personal. If he doesn't like a question, his immediate tell is to scratch the lock tattoo on his left wrist, so watch for that and jump in right away."

"Okay!" Hayley agreed quickly. "Who's the interview with?"

"It's a brief profile for Rolling Stone," Katherine explained. "He's on the cover next month so this is just some preliminary stuff. The big interview is next week in Italy."

"Sounds good," Hayley nodded.

Twenty minutes later, Hayley sat in a limo with Klaus, heading towards the Goring Hotel.

"So, what previous tour experience have you had?" he asked, making polite conversation with her.

"Um, most recently I worked on Ellie Goulding's last tour," she explained. "And I've worked with Miley Cyrus and Ariana Grande in the past."

"So female artists?" he mused. "It's different with guys, just so you're prepared."

She smiled. "It's fine. I'm a guys' girl by nature, so I'm good."

"Don't tell the girls that," he warned with a smirk. "Kat and Bekah and Caroline are girls' girls. They're a very tight threesome, so getting in can be difficult. It didn't work out with the last assistant tour manager."

"I heard that was because she unsuccessfully threw herself at you," she boldly replied.

He shrugged. "She might've. I wasn't interested."

"What kind of girl are you interested in?" she wondered. "There's always speculation, but you never confirm anything and it's always mostly hearsay."

He sighed and leaned back in his seat. "I like a girl who is confident but not cocky. That's a cliché, I know, but it's true. Someone who isn't afraid to speak her mind and doesn't take shit from anyone. She's kind, but not a doormat. There's a light about her that is inexplicable but easily seen. You bask in it when she's around."

"This all sounds awfully specific," Hayley noticed. "Is she the mystery girl your new song was about? Or all of your brilliant love songs, for that matter?"

"I just write from the heart," he replied vaguely.

At the hotel, Klaus' security whisked him away to a private suite where the journalist from the magazine was waiting. Since most of the questions were about his music and the tour, Hayley occupied herself by checking the thirty emails Katherine had sent since she'd left the arena.

"What about love?" the man, Jax Sandoval, asked, catching Hayley's attention about fifteen minutes into the interview. "Your songs all sound so personal, so there must be, or have been, girls who have meant a great deal to you. 'Give Me Love,' for instance. That song won you three Grammys."

"It did," Klaus nodded calmly. "To date, it's perhaps my most meaningful, though I did perform a new song tonight that I'd say is up there. I wrote 'Give Me Love' for a wedding four years ago and had no idea it would take off quite like it did."

"Whose wedding?" Jax wanted to know.

"A member of my team," Klaus replied. "Caroline is my right-hand woman and she deserved something beautiful."

"Ah, yes, Caroline Forbes," Jax nodded knowingly. "One of the three woman integral to your team. Then there's Katherine Pierce-Mikaelson, your tour manager/sister-in-law, and Rebekah Mikaelson-Salvatore, your stylist/sister. It seems Team Klaus is very family-oriented." He looked to Hayley. "Are you a cousin?"

Klaus laughed. "No, no, she's new. Katherine needed an assistant tour manager to help her out so she hired Hayley here. This has been her first day."

"How's it going?" Jax asked her.

"Well," Hayley answered. "It seems like it's going to be an amazing experience. He's a fantastic musician and I'm very lucky to be a part of the team now."

Jax checked his notes. "I think we're good here now. I'll do a brief write-up for this month and then I'll see you next week in Venice."

"Sounds good, mate," Klaus said as he stood to shake Jax's hand. "Always a pleasure."

Once Jax was gone, Klaus yawned. "Well, Miss Marshall, it's been lovely, but I should shower and get to bed. Do you know the itinerary for tomorrow?"

"Yes," she confirmed, again hurt that he didn't want to get to know her. "I'll see you in the morning."

Hayley excused herself, left the suite, and headed down the hallway for the elevator. Klaus and his family were staying in a suite while the rest of the crew were being put up in smaller rooms on lower floors. When the doors opened, Kol and Caroline emerged, laughing about something.

"Oh, hi," Caroline greeted her. "How was the interview?"

"Fine," Hayley told her. "I never knew you were married? Klaus said he wrote 'Give Me Love' for your wedding. He said you deserved a beautiful song."

"He did?" Caroline breathed. "Um, yes, I am married."

Hayley eyed Kol suspiciously before looking back to the blonde. "Is it hard to be away from your husband?"

"Nope," Caroline denied. "Come on, Kol, we have to be up early. Goodnight, Hayley."

The doors closed before Hayley could make any more accusations.

"That was close," Kol mumbled as they walked down the hall to their rooms.

"Uh-huh," she grumbled. "I'll kill your brother."

"Don't be rash, darling," Kol grinned. "He was being honest for once; he did write that song for your wedding."

She sighed. "Yeah, yeah. I'll see you in a bit."

He pressed a kiss to her cheek. "See you."

Caroline turned and used a key to open the door behind her. She dropped her things in the foyer and went to the bedroom. Moments later, Klaus emerged from the bathroom in nothing but a towel around his waist.

"Hello, sweetheart," he smiled. "What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing, talking about the background to 'Give Me Love' like that?" she snapped. "We've kept a cover on everything for years and you almost blew it in minutes! Saying I deserved something beautiful?" she scoffed. "Please. You just wanted to say I danced to your song."

"Oh, I didn't give a single specific," he explained, going to the dresser for pants to sleep in. "I don't know why it's such a big deal. It's been four years. It's probably time you admit it."

"You just wanted to impress the new girl," she smirked. "So few celebrities will talk openly about personal stuff, so you wanted her to think you're a rebel for doing it."

Klaus made a face. "I wasn't terribly impressed with Hayley. She's worked with mediocre artists at best and her outfit was entirely inappropriate. She almost makes me miss Camille."

"Take that back," Caroline demanded.

Klaus raised a brow. "Have I hit a nerve, Caroline?"

"You know Cami was a thorn in my side," she said through gritted teeth.

"Someone sounds jealous," he chuckled in a sing-song tone.

She threw a pillow at him. "You're an asshole."

"Perhaps," he agreed, "but you married me."

"I did," she sighed. "And despite everything you are, I don't have any complaints yet."

Klaus laughed and pulled her to him. "I would like to tell the world about us though, sweetheart. We've been married for four years and we deserve an award for how well we've hid it, but I want everyone to know you're my wife. I want them to know I write those songs for you. Jax Sandoval has always been good to me, so why don't we tell him?"

She chewed on her bottom lip. "I don't know. We'll have to ask Elijah and see what he thinks. For now, I'd like to shower and sleep."

"All right," he agreed, kissing her before releasing her. "Hurry up in there; I like falling asleep beside you."

"Ugh, sap," she joked, walking to the bathroom.

"You love me," he called after her.

Caroline stopped at the door and looked back at him. "I guess that makes you lucky."

Downstairs, Hayley sat on her phone, talking to her best friend back home, Sophie.

"It's amazing," she gushed. "He's so beautiful and in the limo to his hotel, he was telling me about what he looks for in a girl and I swear, it's basically me in a nutshell."

"What about his team?" Sophie wanted to know. "Aren't they like, all his family?"

"Yeah," Hayley confirmed. "His older brother, Elijah, is his manager and he's married to Katherine, the tour manager. His younger sister, Rebekah, is his stylist and she's married to Stefan, his lead guitarist. His youngest brother, Henrik, is just eighteen, so he tags along because they've all been caring for him since their parents died."

Sophie thought for a moment. "Isn't there another brother? Kol?"

"Yes, Kol," Hayley confirmed. "He's the guitar tech and it's not confirmed, but I'm pretty sure he's married to Caroline, Klaus' glorified assistant, but when I called her that, I was reprimanded. She seems like a bitch. But Klaus wrote 'Give Me Love' when she got married and there's no way she'd travel all the time like this without her husband, so it has to be Kol. That's the inner circle and I know she isn't married to Klaus. He's single. And perfect," she sighed.

The following morning, Team Klaus convened in a conference room for a quick breakfast before heading to the train station.

Caroline was just filling her mug of coffee when Hayley joined her at the coffee bar.

"Morning," Hayley yawned. "How can you look that good after to little sleep?"

"Been doing this a long time," Caroline shrugged.

"I noticed you don't wear a wedding ring," Hayley stated. "Why not?"

"If I'm helping techs, it gets in the way and I'm afraid I'll lose it," Caroline explained, thinking Hayley to be a tad nosy. "I wear it occasionally, but we got matching tattoos instead."

Hayley could tell by the finality in Caroline's voice that she wanted to drop it, so she made a mental note to check both Caroline and Kol for tattoos when she could.

"Excuse me," Caroline said, reaching over Hayley for the sugar.

Hayley scooted over and spotted the flash of ink on Caroline's left wrist.

"Hey, what's your tattoo of?" Hayley asked as Caroline backed away.

"Oh, this?" Caroline asked, holding up her arm. "It's a skeleton key."

"A skeleton key?" Hayley repeated.

"It's my matching tattoo," Caroline explained, getting irritated.

The brunette. "Oh, that makes sense." And then, suddenly, it hit her, and she gasped. "Son of a bitch!"