Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries or it's characters. If I did, the Originals and Steroline would never have happened, Kol would be alive and happily causing mayhem somewhere, and Klaus and Caroline would be travelling the world and sexing it up.

There's a dining hall at the end of the floor where they're all staying. It would surprise her, but this used to be one of New York City's most luxurious hotels, or it would have been had it actually had the chance to open.

Before hysteria took over the country, before humans left their ordinary jobs and instead took up arms against the supernatural, spurred on by a ruthless government and an overwhelming sense of righteousness.

She pushes open the heavy wooden doors, listening to the long creak that it makes.

She's surprised to see Klaus sitting at one of the tables, silent and as still as a statue, his back to her as he stares out at the city beyond the mercifully unbroken window.

It had been hard to sleep, with the wind whistling through their floor.

"Hello Caroline." Klaus says lightly, back still to her as she pauses, halfway towards slipping back through the opening the doorway provided. "Leaving so soon?"

His voice is low, melodious, brimming with mirth as she digs her fingernails into her palms. If she'd been human they would have bit into her skin, bright red marks of crimson in stark contrast to how pale she was.

She'd had another dream last night. She'd woken up frustrated, unsure if it was her subconscious thinking of Klaus, thinking of how good they were together, or if it was Klaus messing with her mind, striding into her dreams and taking.

"Are you alright?" She asks evenly, voice doing nothing to betray the inner turmoil she feels about being alone in a room with him, overwhelmed as always by his presence.

He stands, turning to face her, and her breath hitches in her throat. She's not sure what she was expecting to see. Perhaps a face half decayed, handsome features marred by whatever was lurking beneath her skin, sharing space with her monster.

But Klaus' face and neck were unmarred, unmarked, and she can't help but let out a soft sigh of relief.

"I'm fine." Klaus teases out the words between his lips, cocking his head to the side as he regards her with a thoughtful gaze. "Are you?"

There it was again, that concern for her that no one else, not even her friends back in Mystic Falls had for her. Bonnie was perhaps the exception, but not Elena, too selfish and too caught up in her own worries, trials, and tribulations to worry about the effect that playing bait for Klaus had been having on her.

She pauses for a long moment, the weight of his gaze heavy on her as she fights the blush creeping up the side of her neck.

Klaus steps forward, closing the distance between them, hand coming up to rest gently on the side of her neck, thumb brushing the underside of her cheekbone, feeling the heat in her skin.

She refrains from touching him in return, scared to unleash her power, worried it will have a more permanent and lasting effect.

Klaus' lips quirk into a small smile as he takes her other hand, resting it over the pulse point ticking at the side of his neck. She tries to snatch it away, but his grip around her hand tightens, pressing her palm more forcefully into his skin.

"It's okay Caroline." He murmurs softly. "It's okay." He repeats, hand slipping down to her waist, anchoring her body against his.

"I don't want to hurt you. I don't want you to be afraid of me." She tries to shy away from him but he won't let her, stepping closer into her personal space if it was even possible to do so.

For a moment she thinks that he might kiss her, the distance between them virtually non existent.

The scary thing is, she would let him. Right here, right now. She breathes in sharply as Klaus' eyes linger on her lips for a moment, giving her an odd smile.

The creaking of the door has her looking over her shoulder, seeing Stefan's surprised gaze as he takes in the way the two of them are standing.

"Am I interrupting something?" He enquires politely, careful not to get on her bad side once more, or anger her.

"What do you think, mate?" Klaus asks with a raised eyebrow as she turns her glare on him for even thinking about insinuating something that wasn't there.

Stefan just sighs, stepping into the room and closing the door behind him as she pulls herself away from Klaus.

"I must admit, you were the last person that I expected to see here." Klaus drawls, turning and pulling out a chair for her, gesturing for him to sit.

She's surprised at the chivalry in his gesture, ignores Stefan's raised eyebrow at the minute interaction between them.

She's long past the period in her life where Stefan's judgement even mattered, so she smoothly sits, folding her arms over her chest, Klaus sinking into the chair next to her with a smirk.

"I wasn't expecting to find you to be honest." Stefan sighs, running a hand through his hair as he sits at the table opposite them. "But I heard whispers that Katherine was around, and where she goes the rest of you usually do."

"A habit I fully intend on breaking." Klaus remarks with a dangerous smile as she shoots him another sharp glare. "Let's get down to it. What are you doing here?"

"Elena was taken."

"And I should care why?" Klaus asks as Stefan looks at her pleadingly.

She just sits there in stony silence, refusing to say anything.

"I was hoping you could help." Stefan finally returns his gaze to Klaus as the two stare at each other for a long moment.

"So you've finally plucked up the courage to ask for my help instead of trying to get Caroline to convince me." Klaus' accent curls around the emphasised word as he leans forward with a sharp smile that's all teeth.

Stefan looks uncomfortable, pulling tightly at the collar of his jumper.

"You don't think I didn't know how you used her to bait me? Of course I played along, to let you think that you even had a chance of bringing me down. I enjoy her. I always have."

Klaus' eyes meet hers for a split second before he continues to stare at Stefan, who flinches at Klaus' confident pronouncement of his acquaintance with her, even if his words insinuate more.

"And now you expect me to extend an offer of assistance for you to get your pathetic doppelgänger back and put my life at risk? Isn't she still fucking your brother? A little pathetic that you're still so invested in her, mate."

She can't help but flinch at Klaus' words. She and Elena had been estranged for many years now, but she'd known Elena since she was a baby. That still counted for something, despite what Stefan and Klaus both seemed to think.

Klaus is silent for a long moment.

"My answer is no. Do not try to recruit my siblings into one of your harebrained schemes, and do not ask Caroline to participate. Do you understand? I will not have her being placed in harms way because of you. Not anymore."

Klaus' voice is low, dangerous, and Stefan audibly swallows, murder in his eyes.

"I think Caroline is allowed to make her own choices."

Klaus just snarls at Stefan, eyes hybrid yellow.

"Get out."

Stefan gets up, stalking out of the room without a backward glance. She lets out the breath she hadn't even realised she'd been holding.

Klaus might not know it now, but he'd made a dangerous enemy.

"I wondered when you'd come and see me again. Nice to see you've lost your guard dog." Genevieve begins with a smirk, turning away from the window and taking a seat at a great oaken desk.

The study that she's found herself in his small, far smaller than the audience hall that Genevieve had fashioned for herself, received her and Klaus in the other day.

"He has no claim on me." She replies cooly, sinking into a seat opposite Genevieve uninvited.

The witch raises her eyebrow, but perhaps chooses wisely to say nothing further about Klaus.

"Can I offer you a drink? Some blood perhaps?" Genevieve continues, waving her hand towards the side board.

Her fangs prick against her gums at the smell of the tangy blood sitting in a glass stoppered bottle, but she shakes her head.

"I'm fine, thanks. I'll find some later."

Genevieve stares at her for a long moment.

"Such control for one so young. It is most unusual. Tell me how were you able to master yourself?"

She lifts her shoulders into a shrug.

"I was a bit of a control freak when I was human. When I turned, I supposed that manifested into a good sense of self control. That and I was turned while I was still in high school. I had to adapt or be found out."

"Remarkable." Genevieve murmurs, sipping at her own drink. "And your relationship with the Hybrid?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business." She replies a little sharply as Genevieve smiles to herself.

"He's a danger to you and your power. Surely you must know that?"

"I trust him. Which is more than I can say for you. What do you want?" She asks the other girl bluntly, Genevieve raising a perfectly arched eyebrow.

"Then you're a fool. And I want what my kind all want. The balance of nature restored once more. There have been periods throughout history where the humans have overstepped their bounds, brought chaos into the lives of the supernatural that prowl the earth."

"And how do you propose that we restore the balance?"

"By stopping them of course. By whatever means necessary." Genevieve's smile doesn't quite touch her eyes, and in an instant she realises what the witch means.

"Sorry." She says, standing suddenly. "I'm not really into mass murder. Especially of humans."

"A vampire with a moral compass. How interesting." Genevieve drawls, taking another sip of her drink, eyes narrowing as her gaze fixes upon her.

The sudden explosion of pain in her head is excruciating, a pain she's not felt since a witch tried to give her a vampire aneurysm at her graduation.

She can't help but shriek in pain at the sensation, the building of pressure in her brain as she launches towards Genevieve across the desk, knowing that if she could kill the witch then the pain would go away.

Genevieve holds her in place with a sudden burst of magic as the door crashes open, Klaus appearing on the threshold with a positively murderous look on his face, Katherine at his heels.

Genevieve releases her immediately, pain subsiding like the flipping of a switch.

"Just wanted to see if it would work against you. Perhaps you'll reconsider my offer, in time."

Klaus moves to step into the room, possibly fully intending to wrap his hands around Genevieve's neck, squeezing the very life from her.

But he's stopped at the door, blocked by Genevieve's magic as he snarls at her.

"I'm not so easy to kill Hybrid." Genevieve spits in Klaus' direction as his eyes narrow at her. "Remember that before you come to tear my heart out later tonight."

She backs away from Genevieve, Klaus braced against the doorway, as he holds out a hand to her pleadingly.

She doesn't hesitate when she reaches out to take it, the magic giving beneath her, allowing her to exit the room that Genevieve is still occupying.

"We're leaving." Klaus murmurs towards Katherine, once they exit the floor. "First thing tomorrow morning. Tell the others."

Katherine just nods once in agreement before melting away into the darkness, leaving her alone with Klaus.

He just stares at her for a long moment, watching her sway on her feet tiredly before nodding to himself.

She's surprised when he bends down, sweeping her up into his arms in the next moment. She goes willingly, surprised at how weak she is after her little show down with Genevieve.

She rests her head tiredly against his chest, not caring who might see her like this, what they might think. She's long since passed caring about what other people thought of her.

She looks down at her hands, watches the blackness throb beneath the pink of her skin, swirling around like darting shadows. She curls her hands into fists, nails digging into the palms of her hands as she tries to force the darkness back beneath her skin.

Klaus nudges open the door to what his clearly his room with his boot, barely breaking stride before he's sitting down on the edge of the bed, moves her until she's sitting on his lap.

She hears his fangs descend, watches as he bites into his wrist, fangs pricking at her lips as the potent smell of his blood hits her with full force, just like the blood back in Genevieve's office had.

She's hungry. Hungrier than she realised.

"Drink." He orders, and she can't help but stiffen in indignation at the forcefulness of his tone. "You've gone without blood for far too long. I can't believe I've overlooked it."

She twists away from him, Klaus' remaining free hand a grip of iron on her waist to hold her still.

"I'm not drinking from you." She tells him stiffly, watching as the bite marks in his wrist begin to seal themselves shut.

"I'm not moving from this bed until you drink." Klaus replies a little stubbornly as she juts her chin out defiantly.

"Then I guess we're going to be here for awhile."

Klaus just smiles a feral smile, thumb swiping along her cheekbone.

"That wouldn't be so bad now sweetheart, would it?"

She just rolls her eyes as she grips his forearm, pulling it towards her.

"Do you mind?" She asks politely as he lets out a chuckle at her formal tone.

"Have at it love. Wouldn't be the first time after all. I'm sure that it won't be the last." He remarks smugly.

She pauses before letting her fangs fully descend, biting into the skin of his forearm before she can overthink it. It was just about survival. Nothing more, nothing less.

Whether Klaus thought the same was another thing entirely.

His blood tasted as good as she remembered. It's rich and potent, floods her senses with warmth and a feeling of completeness as she takes her fill. It's like ambrosia, heady and addictive.

The feeling of Klaus' hand stroking her hair has her jumping slightly, widening the already messy wound that she's no doubt left on his forearm.

"Sorry." She remarks, mouth thick with blood as she finally pulls back, peering at the mess that she's made.

He's healing quickly, despite not having had blood for as long as she had, perhaps longer.

But then again, he was as old as dirt. Maybe he didn't need as much blood as she did to sustain himself. The desiccation process probably took longer as well.

"That's alright." Klaus remarks mildly, hand falling from her hair as they both pause, realising what close proximity they're in.

Klaus is the one that pulls away first, lifting her off his lap gently, setting her on the bed beside him.

"You should get some rest. I'll watch over you."

She peers around the room.

"Here?" She asks, slightly scandalised. Klaus just looks bemused by this, standing to pull back the covers.

"I don't bite Caroline. Unless you would prefer that of course." He remarks with a quick smile at his joke.

"Fine." She finally replies stiffly, reaching down to pull off her boots. "But if you try anything, I will end you."

"I'd like to see you try." Klaus says amusedly. "But you have my word."

She stares at him for a long moment before deciding it's enough for her, crawling up the length of the bed and burrowing under the covers.

Sleep takes her a lot quicker than she thought it would.

It's the sound of waves crashing against the shore that has her opening her eyes suddenly. The ocean lies before her, the unrelenting march of time as waves wash against the shore, water pooling at her feet before running back towards the sea.

She looks down at herself, at the simple sundress that she's wearing, miles away from the ragged clothes of Rebekah's that she'd been running around in for far too long now.

"This is unexpected." A familiar voice echoes from next to her, and she turns suddenly, startled to see Klaus standing next to her, brow furrowed as he stares out at the ocean.

He's dressed in his usual uniform, boots, jeans, henley and an ever present leather jacket, familiar necklaces peeking out from under the neckline.

"What the hell is going on?" She asks shrilly, whirling back to face the ocean, to take in her surroundings. This was as far from New York as one could possibly get, cornflower blue skies, sunshine, and nary another soul in sight. "Have I teleported?"

"Not possible." Klaus replies immediately, taking a step back from the water, eyeing the waves off with some distaste. "It seems that you've learnt to dream walk love."

"Dream walk?" She asks incredulously. "Is that even a thing? How is that even a thing?"

Klaus' lips quirk into the smallest of smiles as he waves her over to a stretch of sand where even the water can't touch.

She sinks down onto the ground, still stunned by the landscape around her.

"It seems that my suspicions about my blood are correct." Klaus begins, hands laced together, elbows rested on his knees. "When a vampire drinks from me, it seems that certain abilities… manifest. Make themselves known. It's why I choose not to give out my blood freely."

"So all of this." She waves a hand to encompass their surroundings, "Is happening because I fed from you?"

"Yes, essentially." Klaus confirms for her.

"So why are you here? If this is my dream?"

"Is it?" Klaus smiles enigmatically, not revealing anything more than that. She snarls at him as he laughs. "Yes it's yours. I was curious, to see if you were capable. I'm not fully unconscious back in reality. Merely restful. Still watching over you."

"Is much happening, back there?" She asks tentatively.

"I haven't killed Genevieve. Yet." He replies in a dangerous voice. "Although I do believe Kol and Rebekah are coming up with a way to creatively murder Katherine. Your sire is not very popular with my siblings it would seem."

"Yeah, well she's not very popular with anyone." She mumbles under her breath.

"Do you know, I think this is the longest conversation that we've had in a civil manner." Klaus points out in that infuriatingly observant way of his.

"It' s a Christmas miracle." She remarks dryly before sighing. "So is this… ability a permanent thing, or is it going to wear off eventually?"

"I'm not sure." Klaus admits, staring out at the ocean before them. "I suppose only time will tell."

"Wonderful." She sighs, burying her face in her hands for a few moments. "I wish things were just back to the way that they were. Before."

Klaus stiffens next to her, turning to glance at her.

"Something's happening. We have to go." Klaus says sharply, taking her hand and pulling her suddenly to her feet.

She comes to with a gasp back in New York, Klaus standing next to her, hand on her shoulder to shake her awake.

"This is so weird." She points out as she shoves her feet into her boots, taking Klaus' outstretched hand as he pulls her from the room.

She can hear the yelling now, muffled by the doors of the dining room as Klaus strides towards them, not pausing on the threshold as he pushes one of the doors open.

Almost abruptly all conversation ceases as her eyes land on Damon Salvatore, lips curling in distaste at the sight of the raven haired vampire.

The Mikaelson's are sequestered to the other side of the room, Rebekah's face revealing just how much she doesn't want to be here right now.

"Caroline?" A wavering voice says as Elena steps out from behind Damon, blinking at her with wide brown eyes.

She starts forward towards her oldest friend, Klaus stopping her before she can go further.

"Something's wrong." He murmurs to her, gaze fixing on Elena for a long moment. "Don't go any closer."

Klaus himself steps towards Elena, hands held casually behind his back as he regards her for a long moment.

"How did you escape the SRA?" Klaus enquire curiously as everyone turns their eyes towards Elena, who's trembling under Klaus' intense gaze.

"I can't remember." She replies honestly, tongue darting out to wet her cracked lips.

"How did you know to come here?" Klaus continues his line of questioning. "How did you know that we'd be here?"

"I said I couldn't remember!" Elena snarls at Klaus, features feral for a few split seconds. "I don't have to answer to you anyway, Hybrid." She sneers unpleasantly.

"See? Everything's fine. Elena had a lucky escape, but she's here now, and that's all that matters." Damon says firmly, stepping forward, an arm around Elena's shoulders.

To everyone's surprise, she shrugs him off with a frown.

"Damon." Klaus remarks pleasantly. "If you value your existence, you'll step away from Elena now."

Damon's eyes flick towards Klaus with a frown, and to everyone's surprise he does Klaus' bidding.

Elena snarls at Klaus again, vampire features on full display. But she doesn't move to attack him.

No. This time she moves towards Kol, faster than everyone would have thought possible, hands outstretched and fangs bared.

Kol reacts quickly, batting Elena away like a human would a fly. It's Elijah and Katherine that move then, both coming behind Elena to restrain her, Elijah taking Elena's face in his hands and twisting quickly to snap her neck.

Katherine just lets her drop to the floor, nudging Elena's body with a boot clad toe, a distasteful look on her face.

"God, now I remember why I dislike her so much."

Klaus just looks smug, smiling pleasantly at Damon.

"You were saying, Salvatore?"

AN: Whoops, it's been awhile since I've updated this one! I've been playing around with this chapter for awhile, trying to get it to the standard where I feel like it's ready for posting. Hopefully I've succeeded!

I've always loved the idea of dream walking which is something that I stumbled across in Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy series. This version will be slightly different, coming about as a result of blood sharing with an Original.

For those reviewers asking whether or not Freya, Finn, Hayley and Hope will be in this- I have a tendency to ignore The Originals show as a whole, so I don't really acknowledge the existence of Freya and Hope. I've always thought Finn as rather one dimensional so I choose not to write him.

Hayley may make an appearance in future chapters, but I'm not 100% sure at this point.

See you on the other side!