Disclaimer: I own nothing! All characters, locations, background and ideas all belong to The Vampire Diaries/Originals creators – and my, how talented they are!

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Making sure they weren't being followed – for the third time – they finally pull into the long driveway. Three little girls came to greet them with big hugs. All of them were talking fast when Caroline looked up to see Klaus up on the front porch, arms crossed lazily and watching them intently while smiling. "Lizzie, Josie, why don't you and Hope go paint a brand-new picture before dinner?" They run back up to the house yelling happily. Not bothering to raise her voice knowing he could hear her, Caroline says, "Klaus, can you come help please?"

By the time she reached the van's back door, Klaus was already there. "Help with what?"

Hayley opens the door to reveal the coffin and says, "With this?"

Klaus looks suspiciously at Caroline until she cracks under pressure. "Hayley said it would be okay to keep Elena here."

"Elena? As in the doppelgänger?"

"She was under a sleeping curse by Kai Parker, Lizzie and Josie's uncle. Her life is connected to Bonnie's, so until Bonnie dies, Elena is stuck in that coffin."

They carried Elena to the attic to be placed with the Mikaelson coffins. Hayley leaves quickly after placing a hand over what Caroline assumed was Elijah's coffin. Klaus was quiet. "You're angry with me." It wasn't a question, she knew him more than he realized. He didn't answer so she drew him close and said, "I'm sorry that we didn't tell you." Running her hands up and down his chest seductively, "If it makes you feel any better, Tyler was incredibly jealous that I was coming back to you. That I trusted you more than him with my best friend." As soon as she said this, she saw his eyes flash and she immediately regretted her choice in words.

"Lockwood was there?"

She backed up, suddenly scared of his features. There was something about the vibes she was getting off him. "Um, we had to get Elena's body from him. He's been moving her from place to place for years."

Klaus was quiet for a while so Caroline took the moment of silence to open the coffin. She hadn't seen her best friend in such a long time. He watched her while she hesitated touching Elena's forehead to enter her mind to talk to her. Finally convincing herself, she closes her eyes. The peacefulness allowed him to think about what Caroline had told him. When she had said the former hybrid's name, he didn't really let any of the other words sink in. She trusted him with not only her daughters but her best friend as well. Tyler had done a fine job keeping the coffin safe up until now but Caroline went out of her way to bring Elena Gilbert's body here.

Caroline came back to reality with a single tear coming down her cheek. "Klaus, I know you're pissed off at me for not telling you or maybe it's because of Tyler but I assure you, nothing has been going on with me and him in a very, very long time." She had come to face him, her hands on his abs. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you."

Unexpectedly, Klaus leaned down and kissed her hard. Pulling away, he breathed out the anger he was holding in. "I'm wrapped around your finger Miss Forbes; from the moment I met you. The only thing that I hate is that you once gave your heart to someone who did nothing to protect it."

"You're right." He looked surprised that she agreed so quickly. "I did give him part of my heart and he returned it broken and stomped on. We had known each other forever but were never really in each other's lives. That was until we went into transition around the same time and we leaned on each other. We were never supposed to date, we are only meant to be friends." She ran her fingers over his heart. "But as of this moment, I give you – not just a piece of my heart, but the whole thing. I know it's damaged and in stiches but it's yours, Niklaus Mikaelson."

"It will never be broken again," he promised as he took her hand in his and kissed her knuckles adding, "Don't keep anything else from me again."

"Don't scare me again. I don't like worrying about your temper turning on me like earlier. I backed away from you Klaus; I don't think I've ever done that before," she pauses. "Well, once but it was Silas pretending to be you."

This was something he only knew because of Stefan relaying it to him once in a phone call. Drawing her closer to him, he says, "Deal. You don't keep anything from me and I won't ever make you fear me. I didn't mean to have you feel that way earlier; Elijah always said I needed to learn to control my temper."

"I'll help you. Elena literally just told me that I've tried to do everything on my own for so long now that I need to learn to let someone else take on some of the weight."

Klaus kissed her again and held her tight. "We'll help each other. Welcome home." This made her smile. Before heading down from the attic, he adds, "Perhaps, Freya can assist with waking your friend." Caroline's eyes shine up at him.

Later that night after dinner, Hayley read a story to the girls to tire them out for bed. Saying goodnight to her daughters, Caroline sees Hope hug her father and give him a peck on the cheek. His eyes light up and returns the affections.

Leaving the room, hand in hand, Klaus and Caroline follow Hayley into the kitchen. "So besides obtaining a coffin containing a Petrova doppelgänger, what were you two doing?"

"Finding the cure for Marcel's bite," answers Hayley.

Klaus leans forward in his chair with interest, "And?"

Hayley smiles and says, "I think we got the last ingredient."

"Wonderful news!" He rises to his feet. "When can we wake them?"

"Once I can combine all the antidote together we can wake up Freya to work her magic."

Grabbing the pot of tea off the stove, Klaus poured three cups of the hot beverage before saying, "This is splendid. We'll work on the cure tomorrow morning together. With any luck, we'll be able to wake my siblings by nightfall."

"Sounds like a plan. I'll see you guys in the morning," said Hayley, getting up and placing her already empty cup in the sink.

Klaus stopped her and said, "Thank you, little wolf."

Caroline raised her eyebrows, wondering when the term of endearment had become a nickname; but she realized it wasn't out of jealousy, rather curiosity. Once alone, Caroline said, "Hope has really warmed up to you."

His face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Those two days of spending time alone with her has really helped build a relationship with her. And not just her but with your girls too."

"Tomorrow will be a good day for you. Having your family back. I'm looking forward to meeting this long, lost sister witch of yours. Hopefully, she fairs off better with first impressions than the rest of your family," she joked.

"Freya is a spirited person. I believe you'll enjoy her company."

"And Kol? How is he alive?"

"Long, complicated story. Short version, he body jumped, fell in love with a witch, died and then brought back by said witch."

"Where is she? Why is she not helping?"

"She's dead. Another long, complicated story and definitely not one that ended on a happy note…obviously." Caroline looked down at her cup and sadly placed it down on the table. She was not a friend of Kol but that didn't mean she didn't have any feelings of concern for him – losing the love of your life is tragic. "Love?"

"Hmm?"

"You got really quiet. What's on your mind?"

"Oh, I was just thinking of Kol losing his love like that. It was just so quick and he just found her."

"At least it was now and not years down the road," Klaus said, leaning back in his chair.

She looked at him, stunned. "So, you're saying if you lost me right now, that it would hurt less than say, in forty years?"

He looked at her and said, "That's not what I meant." She smiled at him and crossed her arms, saying nothing. "I see your point. For someone one so young, you are wise."

"I am a mom and moms know everything, so…" He smirked at her. "How do you think you would react to my death?"

"I know how I would be. Terrified over the thought of living without you and then for once in my life, I would contemplate death, just to be with you in the afterlife."

"How do you know that?"

"When I bit you in the Gilbert living room. That was a close call and in that one moment, I truly was disgusted with my actions and when I thought I was too late to save you, I hated what I was."

"But you weren't too late. I knew you would save me."

"I have no idea how you can still defend me," he shakes his head at her.

She smiles brightly. "Because we all have a little darkness in us, much like yin and yang. I didn't even register that I killed those twelve witches until you literally spelled it out for me. I did it to protect Bonnie and definitely wouldn't hesitate to do it again if it meant saving her life. But what does that say about me? That's my darkness."

Klaus started at her in respect before saying, "When this is all over – waking my siblings and finding out the meaning of the girls' connected dreams – let's take some time to go exploring. I'm sure the girls would enjoy seeing some of the wonders that this world has to offer."

Caroline chuckled, "You mean like 'Rome, Paris or Tokyo'?"

Smiling at the memory, he answers, "Japan is quite lovely this time of year."

Caroline stands, walks over to him and sits gingerly on his lap before kissing him passionately. "Sounds like a plan, Mr. Mikaelson. I'm finally ready to follow you anywhere."