Gone (A Klaus and Caroline Fanfiction)

Bitter Reunion

I followed him into a bar; the big, cliche, farmer kind of guy, complete with the plaid shirt and clanking boots caked in dried mud. I caught the acrid smell of gasoline and knew he'd gone full rancher with the gas-guzzling truck. The fumes of testosterone and nicotine and the lingering traces of hay made me want to cough. But beyond that, I could smell him. Could glimpse the bandage wrapped around his palm. He'd cut himself and I didn't even try to quench the thirst. Plus, Mr. Cowboy was B positive.

A favorite of mine.

I sat across from him at the bar, listening as he gruffly asked for a beer. Typical. The balding bartender gave me a questioning look but I just shook my head and he returned to his mundane activities, using a rag to wipe off the wooden counter.

I shifted in my seat to the Cowboy.

"I need a favor," I told him. "See, I'm really hungry. I literally have the appetite of a wolf. Could you maybe dole me out a few bucks? I could really use the food."

The man's brown eyes watched me and I glanced at the small scar that clipped the corner of his left brow. He looked me up and down before his hard expression turned annoyed. "I don't think so, Honey. Why don't I give you a dollar to call your folks?"

If my humanity were on, I'd probably be offended. But fortunately for me, I had no such reservations. Instead I pulled him closer, planting my hand on the surface of the bar. "Listen, Wyatt Earp. I said I was hungry. And you're going to help me. But let's make one thing clear; if you ever call me honey again, I will kill you, okay?"

And no sooner, did I take him back into the far, isolated area of the bar.

During the few minutes that followed, I nearly reconsidered my threat and wondered if I should just make good on it. It would save time. And the efforts of cleaning. Sure, I may have shut my humanity off, but I wasn't a slob. I still respected good hygiene.

But the sound of the bell tethered the doors suddenly chimed, followed by a whooshing noise that effectively interrupted me, and I knew someone was there. Annoyed, I let go of the Cowboy and turned to Stefan.

Except it wasn't Stefan.

I did a double take, eyes widening in disbelief. No, it definitely wasn't Stefan, and instead, I found myself looking into another familiar, if not equally unwelcomed, face.

Klaus Mikaelson stood a foot away from me, his back pressed against the wall, arms crossed over his chest. His eyes studied mine, his expression bored. "A bit early to be drinking, don't you think, Love?"

My eyebrows rose and my grip on Cowboy's shirt loosened. "Seriously? Alcoholic jokes?" My voice was incredulous as I stared at him. "What are you even doing here?" Because I highly doubted it was mere coincidence.

Klaus gave a noncommittal shrug. "Looking for you. I hear you've gone a bit off the deep end. From good girl to, well, serial killer. That's quite an impressive bound, Caroline."

I smiled dryly at him. "Glad I have your approval. Now leave."

"Oh, it's not approval." He shook his head and took a step forward, hands in his pockets. That at-ease expression of his did not go. "There may, perhaps, be an undertone of quiet admiration and pride but this is still frowned upon. Mainly by your friends."

"You're really going to lecture me on morality?" I asked, letting Cowboy slide through my fingers and to the floor. He was still breathing. I could hear it as I stepped over him. "You?" I laughed. "That's a joke."

"I'm not reprimanding you, Caroline, I'm not even suggesting what should be done. Actually, I believe Stefan's aim was to show you what you are a threat to becoming if this killing spree of yours continues."

I smirked. "I would have to kill for centuries to become like you, Klaus."

"Precisely," he agreed. "But everything has a starting point."

"Whatever." I turned to the door, wishing he would just leave already. This was getting irritating. "You've wasted your precious time. Don't you have a kid to get back to or something?" I tossed over my shoulder.

Klaus followed me out, stepping lithely through the door. The bell didn't even sound this time. "So you've heard about that, then."

I scoffed. "Ancient vampire hybrid offspring? Kind of hard to miss the memo of."

"You should know that that does not change the way I-"

"Oh, please," I said, whirling on him. "Like I even care. Believe me, if I had a hypothetical list of things to care about, ranging from most important to least important, you would not even be on it."

His lips quirked up. "Consider me reassured."

I waited, for the whoosh, for the blur, but when Klaus didn't move, I swiped my hand in the universal get lost gesture. "Well go. I'm sure there's something much better for you to occupy your time with."

"I can't," he said, that insufferable half-smile still playing around his lips. "I'm far too intrigued."

I gave him a dubious look. "Intrigued? By what? Is it the irony? The fact that scared-little-Caroline has finally found a backbone? Or just the fact of me telling you I couldn't forgive the bad things you've done until now. Because I can't use that excuse anymore."

"Believe me," he said, his tone becoming suddenly serious. "I find no pleasure in seeing you this way. And I never thought you afraid. On the contrary, Love, I believed your humanity only further added to your strength."

I didn't bother keeping the note of irritation out of my voice as I turned away from him, discarding his words like they were nothing. They were nothing. "This is getting dull.You are getting dull. Are you so archaic that you've run out of things to do you have to check up on me?"

That half smile returned, and he took a step closer, close enough until he was officially invading my personal space. "Well then. If you really are that bored, are you finally ready for me to show you how to have a good time?"

I scrutinized him, catching the gleam in his hazel eyes. "I thought your agenda was to save me. Not encourage me to be even more reckless."

But he just shrugged again, and held his hand out for mine, palm up. "I've already told you I wasn't suggesting what you should do. But this time I'm offering. As you've pointed out, I've been around longer than most. Who would know what the best things there are to do than the person who's tried them all?" He wiggled his fingers. "And invented a few of them along the way?"

The old Caroline would have disappeared by this offer. She would have run for the hills and sought much more moral ground. But I was different. That Caroline meant pain. This Caroline meant fun.

I studied Klaus's face for a moment before I took a step forward, and wove my fingers through his.

"This had better be worth it."