"He took them somewhere after the ball," Damon grumbled as he paced back and forth in the sheriff's office, Liz watching his every move from behind her desk, looking more exhausted than usual. It was nearly nine-thirty at night, and they had all been here for the entire day, trying to find a lead as to where Klaus may have taken Caroline and Elena; her, Damon, Stefan, Bonnie, Matt, Jeremy and Alaric.

"This never would have happened if you hadn't ruined his little party," Stefan grumbled and Damon shot him an icy look.

"This is not my fault! As the resident good brother, you should have been watching her!"

"She's not a child, Damon; she doesn't need a babysitter!"

"Well, clearly she does," he hissed, his voice breaking, and Liz furiously interjected.

"Both of you need to stop this! Fighting isn't going to get us anywhere. Now; Matt. You say that the last time you saw any of the Originals was last night, at the Grill?"

"Yeah; Rebekah. She left with Damon," he stated, shooting Damon a curious frown.

"Damon; Rebekah told you about Klaus' plan this morning, didn't she?"

"Yes," Damon grumbled as he leaned against the wall. "The bitch failed to mention it last night."

"She was likely too busy doing something else…" Stefan muttered, and Damon opened his mouth to interject, earning a glare from Liz that made him regain some of his composer.

"Bonnie," Liz said with a sigh. "Isn't there something you can do? A spell, anything?"

"I can try, but it probably won't do any good," she said, shrugging. "Klaus has connections; connections with witches who are much stronger than I am. He might have some kind of block up so I can't get through to where they are."

"Well, you have to try!" Jeremy cried. "That freak has my sister!"

"He has Caroline, too," Matt said with a slight tone of irritation. Despite the way things had ended between them, he still harbored some feelings for the fair-haired vampiress, and the fact that no one else but Liz seemed concerned for her bothered him. If anything, Caroline was in more danger in this situation than Elena was. No matter what, Elena would be safe; Klaus needed her, so he wouldn't harm her. But Caroline… If she did something that really irked the Original, nothing was stopping him from killing her. As the saying went, there were plenty more fish in the sea. Especially when you were Klaus.

"Yes," Liz said with agreement, worry filling her features. "He has Caroline, too. Who knows what he might try to do to her?"

"Which is why we need to find them," Stefan agreed. He had to admit; he was worried for Caroline, too. While Damon could obviously care less about anyone but Elena, Stefan felt a twinge of protectiveness toward Caroline. Maybe it was because they had bonded when she turned; he really didn't know. But he knew one thing; he had to get them both away from Klaus.

"We have to talk to the other Originals," he stated, standing up. "One of them might know something."

"They won't tell you anything after what Damon did," Matt said, glaring and Damon glared back with disbelief.

"I saved your life, moron! Kol would have killed you!"

"Enough!" Liz yelled, getting to her feet. "Damon, Matt; find Rebekah. Stefan; talk to Elijah. Jeremy and Alaric will take Kol."

"What about you?" Alaric asked as he stood, frowning; why did they get stuck with the Original most likely to kill them? Glancing at his finger, he frowned as he realized; the rings.

"I'm going to try to find the mother and the other son; Finn? If what you say is true, and this woman has been watching over Klaus for the past thousand years, maybe she knows what he would do in a situation like this."

Nodding, they all go to their feet.

"Let's do this," Damon snarled, stalking out the door, Matt trailing along behind him.

… . … . … . … . … . …

Elena was sitting on her bed atop the sky blue, cotton comforter, angrily scribbling in her diary. Where the hell were Stefan and Damon? One of them surely should have found them by now. They had to at least know they were gone…

She looked up when Caroline opened her door and snuck inside, shutting it quietly behind her.

"Hey," she muttered to the blonde, finishing her sentence and closing the small green book.

"Hey," Caroline echoed, creeping across the room and perching on the bed beside Elena, pulling her legs up to her chest, her yellow sundress falling wispily at her ankles.

"What are you doing in here?" Elena questioned, setting her diary down on the bed beside her, facing Caroline. Caroline rolled her china blue eyes, shaking her head.

"I snuck up here when Klaus went outside to 'tend to his hybrids'. He's driving me crazy, Elena!"

"Why? What did he do this time?" Elena asked with a tone of anger in her voice. If Klaus had touched her…

"He's being so… sweet!" Caroline said with disgust, shaking her head. "He keeps telling me how beautiful I am, and how much he would love to show me the world, and buy me dresses and paint me ponies…" She shook her head with irritation. "I'm starting to hate ponies, Elena! I officially hate ponies, and I love ponies!"

Elena couldn't help but snicker at that phrase, shaking her head. "How can he possibly be making you hate ponies?"

Caroline just shook her head. "I don't want him to draw me something that I love. It would be so much easier to hate his romantic drawings if he would just draw me a slug or something. But nooooo, he has to paint me ponies! Do you know how hard it is to look at possibly the most beautiful painting of an adorable horse in existence, and have to tell him you hate it, just because he drew it? It's not fair to the pony, Elena!"

Elena couldn't help it; she burst into hysterical laughter. Everything about that statement was just too ridiculous.

"It's not funny!" Caroline snapped, and Elena shook her head as tears of laughter rolled down her cheeks, wiping them away with her sleeve.

"No… no, I know it's not… But… ponies, Caroline? Are you really going to blame the pony in his painting for the way it makes you feel?"

Frowning, Caroline shifted awkwardly. "Of course. That's all it makes me feel; disgust that he drew it, and adoration for the pony."

Shaking her head, Elena picked up her diary again. "Let's just put it this way, Caroline; you hating all ponies just because Klaus draws them, would have been like me hating all crows just because Damon had one."

Caroline frowned and leaned against the headboard of Elena's bed, shaking her head. "It isn't the same thing, Elena. Damon… well, he's Damon. This is Klaus."

Sighing, Elena patted her friend's arm as she picked up her diary again. "Just keep up the good work, Care; keep doing what you've done so far today and we'll be out of here before the week is over."

Frowning, Caroline stood up. "You just think this is all a big joke, don't you? How would you feel if you had to pretend to like someone you really just wanted dead? How would you feel if you were doing it to protect your best friend, and she didn't once even say thank you?" Shaking her head, she glared at Elena. "I'm glad you find my misfortune so entertaining. The next time you get confused by your obvious feelings for Damon, don't come crying to me."

Storming from the room, Caroline slammed the door, leaving Elena stunned behind her.

… . … . … . … . … . …

"Caroline, love! There you are! I have a…"

Klaus frowned when Caroline walked down the stairs and brushed straight past him, walking into the parlor and plopping herself down on the couch, crossing her arms and glaring into the distance. Something had clearly upset her.

"What's the matter?" he asked, taking a few cautious steps toward her. He didn't want to set her off; they had had such a good day, after all.

"Nothing you need to know about," she grumbled, turning her head away from him.

Closing the distance between them and sitting beside her, Klaus resisted the powerful urge to tuck her loose blonde curls behind her ear. "Did you and Elena have a spat again?"

"It's none of your business, okay?" Caroline snapped, shifting away from him. Klaus sighed and ran a hand through his sandy hair, shaking his head.

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to pry. I just thought you… may want to confide in someone, that's all."

"I'd like to confide in my mother, but you won't let me go home!" she yelled, tears sparkling in her eyes as she turned angrily to face him again. Klaus frowned, his brow furrowing.

"I thought you said you were going to agree to my conditions? That you would try to get to know me better?"

"Why does it have to be in the middle of nowhere? Why can't I get to know you in Mystic Falls?" she cried, and he scowled.

"Because you won't give me the time of day there! Here, you have no choice!"

"That's ridiculous!" she cried, leaping to her feet. "You can't just force people to like you, Klaus! You have to actually make an attempt to be in their lives! You don't just kidnap them late at night and hold them hostage!"

"I have made countless attempts to be in your life!" he shouted, standing to glare down at her through his pale blue eyes. "You want nothing to do with me!"

"Of course I don't!" she hissed, taking a step closer. "You tried to kill me before! You turned my boyfriend into a hybrid, and then you made him attack me!"

"It was bound to happen eventually anyway, love," he hissed venomously. "Tyler would bore of you. He's far too restless to settle down with someone. Give it a few decades and he'd spot a new little plaything, and toss you to the side. You deserve far better." Shaking his head, he turned on his heel and stalked from the room, storming up the stairs and slamming the door to the study. Caroline winced as the house shook, glaring after him as tears leaked from her eyes.

Tyler would never…!

She froze. Only one thing was running through her mind at the moment; a name.

Vicki Donovan.

Tyler had treated her like crap, like nothing. He had changed, or so she had thought… but could people really change that much? What if Tyler really did get bored of her? What would she do then?

… . … . … . … . … . …

"Oh Barrrbie…" Damon purred as he opened the door to the Mikaelson manor and walked inside without bothering to knock, Matt following in pursuit. "I have Ken here with me, and something tells me he'd really love to party with you."

"Shut up!" Matt snapped, flushing as they walked toward the ballroom.

"Such a shame I prefer crystal over plastic, then," Rebekah said as she flounced down the stairs, causing them both to turn around and face her. "Not to mention I'm not a big fan of others brushing my hair, nor undressing me everywhere."

Damon smirked as she approached them. "That's not what your attitude was last night."

"How charming," she said flippantly, turning away from him and giving Matt a small smile. "Hello, Matthew."

Matt simply nodded at her, and Rebekah's smile slipped.

"Still angry over what my big brother did? Honestly, I had no part in that."

"Did you have any part in your other big brother taking Caroline and Elena?" Matt asked, and Rebekah's frown deepened.

"No, I did not." Scowling, she turned to Damon again. "I already told you that. If that's all you came here for, I'm afraid you've wasted your time yet again."

"Rebekah, please," Matt said, knowing that the next few witty words to come out of Damon's mouth would likely result in something fairly painful for the both of them. "If you know something, anything, then tell us. It's important that we get our friends back from your brother."

Rebekah turned back to him, her frown remaining, but seeming to soften a bit. "You have feelings for them both, don't you?" she asked softly, and Matt blushed, not confirming nor denying her statement. Rebekah sighed.

"I don't know where Nik is. He wouldn't tell me. If he calls with any information, I promise to relay it back to you. Now please, if that will be all, leave me be. I have important things to do."

"Like what?" Damon snorted. "Running for prom queen?"

Rebekah scowled at him, turning on her heel and stalking toward the stairs. "Get out of my house, Damon, before I get Kol to finish what you started."

Rolling his eyes, Damon headed for the door. "Come on, Mutt; let's go. This was a waste of time."

"In a minute," Matt said, and Damon frowned, but shrugged and walked outside, shutting the door behind him.

"Rebekah?" Matt asked, walking toward the foot of the stairs. She paused half way up and turned to face him, wiping the tears that had been slipping down her cheeks before she did so.

"Yes, Matt?" she asked, and he gave her a small smile.

"I had fun last night. You know, before your brother broke my hand."

Rebekah gave a small laugh and smiled at him. "I'm glad… I enjoyed myself, as well. It was nice to be there with someone who I hadn't compelled."

Grinning, Matt nodded. "I guess I'll see you around?"

Rebekah nodded eagerly, feeling her spirits lift. "You certainly shall."

Giving her a small, slightly awkward wave, Matt turned and followed after Damon. Rebekah finished walking up the stairs and headed for the room she had claimed as her own, smiling all the way.

… . … . … . … . … . …

Quietly walking toward the tall, mahogany door, Caroline knocked quietly.

"What?" Klaus snapped from inside, and Caroline flinched.

"Can I come in?" she asked, her voice breaking from the tears she had shed, and heard him stand up and approach the door. When he opened it, his expression was cold.

"Come to yell at me some more? Insult my paintings? Inform me of how heartless I am?"

Caroline remained silent for a moment before slowly shaking her head, a few more tears escaping. "No."

Klaus had been prepared to offer up a witty retort, and was taken aback by her response. "No…?"

"No, I'm not going to insult you," she mumbled, wiping her tears away with humiliation. "I came to tell you that you were right."

"I… was right?"

She nodded and walked around him into the room, Klaus slowly turning and shutting the door behind her, rather interested in what she had to say.

"About Tyler," she said quietly, sitting down in the chair behind the desk. "After what you said, I started thinking. Thinking of what he was like before he turned… thinking of all the girls he screwed over. I mean, why should I be any different? Just because he said he loved me? He told Vicki that he loved her, too, and look what happened with them? I'm worthless; just another stupid chapter in the book of girls Tyler Lockwood has fucked."

Klaus frowned and shook his head, walking closer to her, cupping her chin and forcing her to look at him. "You are not worthless," he said firmly, gazing down into her eyes. "You're wonderful. You're enchanting, and stunning, and only someone truly incredible would be able to catch my attention, Caroline Forbes. Don't you dare let yourself think otherwise," he said, his eyes narrowing, "or we will have a serious problem."

Caroline frowned a bit, but it wasn't full of as much hatred as it normally would be. "So what; I can't hate myself, or you'll kill me?"

Frowning, he released her chin and took a step back. "I would never kill you, Caroline. That's one thing you can be certain of."

"How can I be so sure?" she said, tears still prickling at the corners of her eyes and she stared over at him, clutching the arms of the chair she was seated in. "What if I let you get to me, let you do whatever you wanted, and, in the end, I turned out to not be satisfactory? Would you kill me then?"

Grinning a bit impishly, Klaus shook his head. "I highly doubt you would be unsatisfactory, love."

Rolling her eyes, she shook her head and looked away. "You're disgusting…"

Klaus laughed a bit, shaking his head and approaching her again, brushing her hair back and tucking it behind her ear, making her blue eyes drift back up to his face.

"Come somewhere with me," he said softly. "I've had a surprise planned for you since before we had our row, and I'd very much enjoy still showing it to you."

"Where is it?" Caroline asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes. "If it's in your bedroom, you can go to hell."

Klaus laughed again, a bit more loudly this time, shaking his head as he took her hand and pulled her to her feet. "No, no; nothing like that, love." He smirked, leaning forward and whispering in her ear, "Not until you're ready, that is."

Caroline wiggled backward away from him, her eyes still narrowed with suspicion. "Then where is it?"

"Well, if I told you, it would simply give away the surprise; the location is far too obvious. Just trust me, Caroline; do you think you can do that?"

Trust Klaus? Like hell! But… he seemed harmless enough, at the moment. It wasn't like she had anything to lose.

Sighing, she headed toward the door. "I don't trust you," she muttered, "But I'll go with you."

Klaus grinned with almost boyish excitement, rushing forward and grabbing her hand. "Come," he said, pulling her out into the hall and toward the stairs. "You're going to love it!"