People asked for an epilogue, so here it is! It tells of Klaus's time being a captive and jumps around a little with time. Keep in mind he was there for a year, so I couldn't write about every day. Thank you to everyone who has followed and favorited and reviewed. It's meant a lot to me! I hope you enjoy this last bit. Let me know!

His breaths came out in gasps as he sat straight up in bed. It was still dark as pitch outside, the crickets still chirping their nightly tune. Not for the first time since he'd found his family again did he turn to gaze at Caroline asleep next to him to make sure she was really there.

He rubbed his sleep ridden eyes and breathed a sigh of relief that he'd once again escaped his nightmare. It was the same thing over and over. Usually he had a reprieve from them and would be able to get a good night's rest, but for the last week the dreams had been running like a loop through his mind. Was it a premonition, he asked himself, but shook his head and resting it on his bent knees.

Three years he'd missed. One year he'd spent as a captive in his own keep and two years he'd spent running and searching for his family. The price he had on his head would put his family in danger, but he couldn't stay away. After telling his siblings, they suggested that he keep running, but Caroline had cut them with a glare even he wouldn't have argued with. Now he was plagued with dreams of the nightmare he'd lived and nightmares that could be.

Some nights he saw Caroline and his children being pulled from their homes and then killed in front of him by Phillip and his men. Other nights he dreamed he was still in the cage he'd called home for a year.

oooOooo

Klaus sat in the corner of the cell, his clothes were filthy from the dirt and grime, but he could hardly care. It was the least of his worries. He would often go within himself to escape the misery he lived in, thinking of only Caroline and his family. He fantasized they were together and living a life far away from the place that was his personal Hell.

He pictured Caroline and the children sitting around a fire, telling stories perhaps. He'd be sitting next to Caroline, calmed by her presence alone. He imagined pressing her lithe body close to his and burying his face in her light blonde hair, breathing her in. A smile blossomed on his lips, thinking of her playfully pushing him away with a laugh, but he wouldn't let go. He'd hold her in place, in his arms where she belonged.

At night he'd help tuck their children into bed, saying their goodnights before yawning and falling into a deep slumber. He and Caroline would spend most of their nights wrapped around each other, loving one another as best they could.

A loud bang against the iron bars had Klaus cracking open his eyes to glare at the intruder, a large figure protected by the East colored armor. "His Majesty, King Phillip," the soldier boomed, but Klaus stayed sitting out of disrespect.

The man in question lumbered in front of the cell, thin and weak. Klaus smiled, thinking about whatever Rebekah had tried to poison the man with had affected him permanently.

"Hello, Klaus."

He stayed silent, his chin held regally as if Phillip was below him.

Phillip hobbled closer to the cell bars. "Think yourself still King? My Mother always hated that about you. Thinking your better than everyone else."

He smiled. "I guess the feeling was mutual then," he croaked, his throat dry from the lack of fluid he'd received. Had it been days? Months maybe? He had no idea. He had always kept the dungeon dark, only one window near the stairs to torture the minds of the prisoners.

Phillip's face turned dark. "She told me the eventual war wouldn't be about land, but I'm quite taken with it. Quite taken with your former queen too."

Klaus charged the cell bars, reaching for Phillip's neck, but a guard pulled the King back just before his fingers could graze the skin. "If you touch her I'll rip you limb from limb," he snarled. He knew Caroline was safe with his siblings, but just the thought of Phillip getting his hands on her enraged him.

He smiled nastily. "I remember her, she was pretty," he stated calmly, ignoring the threat. "Perhaps once I find your sister and kill her I'll force Caroline to be my Queen. Villagers tell of how great she was, but I'm sure I'll be able to break her spirit."

Klaus returned to the wall and leaned back. He knew he had to keep his composure and knew Phillip was baiting him, but he'd never been very good at controlling his temper. "It's truly a shame that Rebekah failed in her attempt to kill you, but I'm sure one of these days, if not someone from my family, someone else will try."

"That person will fail," he growled, but Klaus smiled tauntingly.

"Really? You don't look so good now. How much more do you think it will take to finally kill you?" He shrugged. "I would wager not much. You're becoming frail just like your Mother."

"Get him out," Phillip ordered the guards lowly.

Klaus stood straight, arms at his sides. He wouldn't fight the guards, at least not yet.

Two guards entered, surprised by his acquiesce, but didn't question it as they led him out, each holding onto an arm. When he finally came face to face with Phillip, the new King smiled. "Take him to the chamber," he ordered and Klaus knew what would be done to him. He wouldn't be killed, but he'd be tortured until he wished he were dead.

Knowing it would make the punishment that much worse, he didn't care. He twisted his arms, loosening the guard's hold and swung at Phillip, connecting his fist with a nose and loving the sound of the crack it made.

The King fell to the ground as the guards converged and took hold of him once again. He laughed at how weak Phillip looked lying on the cold dirt floor, holding his crooked nose and cut cheek. Even after a guard punched him in his gut and it left him gasping, his smile never wavered. He probably sounded half mad, but he continued laughing as the guards dragged him from the scene, forcing him through a wooden door that led to a chamber filled with instruments meant to do damage.

After what felt like hours of being beaten bloody and burned with hot pokers, Phillip's followers threw him back into his cell. He lay there on the ground, panting from the excruciating pain, barely able to lift his head from the dirt ground beneath him.

Dull blue eyes closed, fighting against the aches of his joints from being pulled and the seizing pain of his skin every time he moved. He wondered how many scars there would be or if he'd be alive long enough for the wounds to turn into scars.

Caroline's face swam in front of him, comforting him until he was jolted awake by cool water dripping down his raw throat. He was sure every prisoner could have heard his screams, even though he'd tried not to make a sound. His eyes moved to a hand that was held above him, feeding him the substance through the bars next to him with a soaked rag. Even when the dripping of water stopped his tongue tried to follow. The salty tang of his blood still lingered on his tongue, making him nauseous.

"Thank you," he whispered.

"Even if I had never liked you I owe a lot to the Queen," a withered voice answered.

"Former Queen," he corrected.

A small laugh was heard throughout the quiet room. "She'll always be our Queen. The reason we fought was for her."

Klaus knew he was being condemned by this man and the rest of the prisoners that filled the cells for his past indiscretions, but it didn't matter. It made him smile that some were still loyal to Caroline. It was her heart and compassion that had captivated people. How lucky they all were to have known her, he thought.

"How long have you been here," Klaus asked, hoping conversation would keep his mind off the throbbing and stings.

"A week."

"How long have I been here?"

"It's been two months since the fighting ended, but people, rebels mostly, stood up again to fight the King a week ago. That's when most of us were captured. We all figured you'd fled, left us."

"Never," he admitted. "This was my land and my people. I wouldn't have left," he answered, his brain starting to feel foggy.

"This was the first time he's touched you?" the man asked, but Klaus didn't answer. "Curious," he mused with a hum.

"Mental torture. Good tactic." His voice slurred and wavered and then finally everything in his vision went blessedly black. He was able to float in a world without pain until he was awoken by ice cold water being thrown on him.

He woke with a start, roaring out in pain when his bones protested and his skin felt as if it were being torn from his body. He stayed still in a half sitting position, panting as the pain numbed.

"The King said we should bring you some water so you don't die too soon." The guard chuckled. "There's your water."

Another voice joined in as their laughter reverberated off the stone walls at Klaus's soaked state. He resembled a drowned animal. His once regal clothing stuck to his body as his longer hair dripped with the algae smelling water.

Better than smelling like dung, he thought and lay back down as the guards left, biting his lip until he tasted blood so not to cry out again.

"They won't kill you," the man informed him and if he'd had the strength he would have laughed.

He knew he was going to be kept alive. For how long he didn't particularly know, but he did know Phillip would want to play with him first. The guards, however were doing a marvelous job of it so far.

"Then I guess I should ask your name since we may be here a while longer."

The cell door groaned open and Klaus didn't even bother to open his eyes this time. He was concentrating too hard on ignoring the excruciating pain as they dragged him out again.

"My name is John," he heard whispered somewhere in the depths of his mind.

oooOooo

"I've never seen someone live after such pain," John commented from beside him once he'd been thrown back in his cell.

Klaus could feel the blood dripping from his wounds. He didn't know how many times he'd been taken into the chamber to be beaten and brought to the brink of death to only be tossed back in his cage to heal once again.

They allowed him enough time to heal in his cell, but once he felt strong enough to walk he'd be dragged out again for another round. The first couple times he'd been defiant, but after that he no longer cared. It was as if a switch had been flipped. He no longer cared whether he lived or died. He prayed for his family's safety every day, not knowing if Phillip was searching for them, but could have cared less if he was put to death. It would allow him to escape the unbearable pain he was in. It wasn't helping that he was becoming delirious from the torment, seeing things that shouldn't be there and hearing cries that sounded so much like Caroline or one of his children. Every time he heard something he'd ask John, who'd become a tentative friend.

"Was it real? Did you hear that?"

"No," the older man answered the first time as a question, but after that it was always a resolute declaration.

oooOooo

"Do you have anything sharp?" he whispered to his neighbor on a particularly painful night.

"Why? Are you ready to give up so soon?"

"Soon. I can't tell if time passes quickly or slowly here."

"I believe a little bit of both."

"I don't even know if you're real. I could be all alone down here talking to myself."

"That's a possibility. How do I know I'm not in your position and you're the one who isn't real?"

Klaus thought it over for a minute. "Good point." He was silent for a while, staring at the dark ceiling, wishing it would crumble down and a sharp piece of rock would impale him. "Why are you so loyal to my wife? Were you one of the families she fed?"

"My family owns a farm on the border of the main village. I worked on the farm when I was younger and once I married my wife joined me, working until our hands hurt most days. I don't think you knew how far your wife traveled around the village because she often made it to our small home. She brought us food as she did other poor farmers and villagers and when my wife was sick she still came to see us. She calmed my wife, Agnes was her name. Any time she heard the Queen was there she'd light up."

"She made everyone feel that way," Klaus said, imagining Caroline sitting by a woman's bedside, risking her own health to make another feel better.

"My Agnes eventually passed, but I think it was the Queen's presence and caring that kept her alive for so long. She took a big burden away from a lot of people. She made lives easier. It was almost like she knew what it was like."

"She did," Klaus revealed. "Her family worked within the castle of the East as servants. She worked mostly in the kitchens."

"How..."

"She was sent as a spy," he told him. "But unfortunately for her I fell in love. Even after she was exposed I couldn't take my heart back from her and like you said, she made me light up."

"How lucky we both were to know her then."

Klaus closed his eyes, picturing his wife's smile and how she treated everyone she met with such respect, even if they were technically beneath her.

oooOooo

"Your Majesty," a feminine voice whispered, waking Klaus from a restless slumber.

"Who's there?" he demanded strongly.

A candle was lit and a woman with long brown hair and olive skin appeared, her eyes jumping from side to side. "My name is Katherine and I owe a lot to your brother," she answered, dropping two pieces of metal into his cell and quickly scampering away.

Klaus was finally feeling better, his wounds had scabbed over, but he knew the guards and possibly Phillip would be back to take him to the chamber again. He crawled over to what she dropped inside, examining them in the dark as much as he could. He held two long pieces of metal, one thicker than the other and bent on an angle.

He'd seen these type of tools before. His brothers and he would often use ones like it to break into his father's locked belongings, usually sneaking glances at boring documents.

"What is it?" John asked.

"It's our way out," he announced, a smile lighting his features.

oooOooo

It had been years since Klaus had tried to open locks and it was even harder when he couldn't see the lock in front of him. He worked endlessly, his eyes dropping shut in exhaustion, but he kept going, knowing if he didn't learn how to pick the lock before the guards came than it would be more time until he healed enough to try again.

His eyes closed in concentration, listening and feeling the placement of the tumblers as the pick worked its magic. He didn't know how long he'd been at it, but finally the lock gave way with a final click. He hesitantly pushed the door open a crack and smiled at the little taste of freedom. Down the corridor he couldn't see any stationed guards so he turned to the cell beside him, making quick work of John's cell door lock. The rusty door groaned open and Klaus motioned for the man to leave, but he stayed put.

"You're as crazy as they say if you try to leave now. The guards will be back soon."

"And if we don't leave now than I won't be able to so much as crawl out this door."

The man started to argue again, but the sound of laughs and muffled words reached Klaus's ears. He slipped back into his cell, closing the door and lying on the floor, keeping the pick concealed in his fist. He wasn't going to let them take him this time. If he ended up losing then he would take down as many guards as possible.

Footsteps sounded closer and Klaus counted. Three guards, he thought to himself and smiled. Three I can handle on a worse day than this, he thought the next second as his door opened. As soon as a guard lifted him up he acted, stabbing one of his captors in the neck. Blood spewed from the wound, but he didn't stop to take much notice before moving onto the two stunned guards. They watched rooted to their spots as their compatriot fell to the ground in a pool of his own blood. With the pick still in hand, Klaus struck out with his fist, connecting with a dark haired guard and knocking him to the ground, wounded, but not dead. The third came out of his stupor just long enough to see Klaus seize the dead soldier's sword and spear him through the heart. The bloodied sword was then held at the wounded soldier's neck in an instant.

Klaus clucked his tongue as his prisoner reached for his weapon, but stopped as the tip of the sword stung his neck. "John, would you mind ridding our captive of his weapon?"

The short older man in the cell hesitantly opened his door and fumbled with the soldier's scabbard before holding it at his side.

"How many soldiers walk the halls?" Klaus demanded.

The soldier held his hands up in surrender, his face pale as he looked from Klaus to his fallen brethren. The sword pierced closer, drawing a drop of blood before he sputtered out a number. "E-Eleven, maybe twelve."

Klaus tilted his head to study the man. "I think you're lying," he said and pressed harder.

"I swear, I swear!"

"Why so little men?"

The soldier looked to John who stood to the side, his brow furrowed and weapon pointed down. "Please, I swear."

Klaus huffed. "I asked you a question, now you better answer or I'll take my chances and you can die down here with your friends."

The soldier visibly shook, his metal armor clapping together. "It's nighttime and the Lockwood's are now our ally. The King said there wasn't much to defend against since now the rebels and you have been defeated."

"He killed the rebels?" John asked and looked at the others in the cells around them who listened with rapt attention.

John's face darkened and went to swing his sword, but Klaus's hand stopped him midair. "Let the others out," he ordered and grabbed the keys from the guard.

He stared at the nervous guard as clicks of locks and murmurs sounded around them. When the last groan of a door was heard Klaus ran the sword through the man without a seconds hesitation. The buzz of chatter ceased, but Klaus didn't pay it any heed as he turned to the people. "Take the second door to the left at the top of the stairs. It will lead you to the garden and if it's night than you should be fine. You're all free. I suggest you get your families and run," he advised before taking off the down the corridor, John following close behind him.

The distraction of finally being able to breathe the fresh crisp air made way to surprise to see the soldier had been telling the truth. The stars shined bright overhead and the castle grounds were empty, people sleeping peacefully in their beds he assumed. A moment later he heard rather than felt John come up beside him.

"Follow me," John ordered and for a split second Klaus thought of challenging him, but realized he was no longer royalty. He was a common criminal and would need all the help he could get, so instead he followed behind the man through the darkened village and through overgrown fields.

oooOooo

"I feel like I'm abandoning them," Klaus admitted, strapping on the scabbard of a sword and pulling on a heavy wool cloak.

John froze in his packing of a large cloth bag, filling it with necessitates he and his family would need on their journey. After the escape, John had led Klaus to his family's farm. His children had been excited to see their father, but the reunion had been cut short with his demand that they pack their belongings and leave the country. The older man had even been kind enough to help Klaus plan his own travels to find his family, offering old maps he'd stored away. "You're running to find your family. I imagine a large price will be put on your head once word of your escape reaches Phillip's ears, but you must do it for them."

"If Phillip has yet to find them than perhaps they're better off without me. Like you said, I'll have a price on my head." Klaus packed the extra food the family could spare for him in his own sack, thinking of what he'd do instead. He could recruit his own Army again. They could go after the land.

"More people would die," his friend said, knowing what Klaus had been thinking. "Even if you recruited for years there'd be no way for you to beat him. You'd be coming to seize the throne again with farmers carrying pitchforks. As much as I hate Phillip and what he's done there's nothing we can do. You can't ask people to sacrifice themselves."

"They'd be fighting to be free of Phillip. That would be noble."

"Pardon me saying, but they'd be fighting to be free of one tyrant only to be led by another."

Klaus's face darkened, but he said nothing. Perhaps one day, in a year of even a century from now his family would take back what belonged to them. "Thank you for your hospitality, John," he said instead, throwing his bag over his shoulder.

"At least stay the night?"

Klaus shook his head. "Phillip will be looking for me by morning, along with every other prisoner we freed. I suggest you and your family leave as soon as possible as well."

The man stopped him as Klaus opened the rustic front door. "Where will you look for them?"

Klaus stopped in his tracks. He didn't know, but, "Everywhere," he answered before walking out into the cold night, tucking the cloak closer to himself and making his way out of the old Mikelson lands.

oooOooo

"Klaus?"

His eyes slid over to Caroline's side of the bed. Her sleepy eyes stared up at him questioningly.

"Couldn't sleep," he admitted, but lay back down beside her, letting her presence console his tumultuous thoughts.

"You haven't been sleeping well for a long time. Would it help to talk about it?"

Would he want to talk about the horrors he'd faced at the hands of his ex-brother-in law? No, he couldn't burden her with the vivid memories. They kept him awake at night, so he couldn't imagine what they'd do to her.

"It will be fine. I just need time," he answered, wrapping his arms around her.

Her sad smile wavered. "I've seen the scars."

He nodded. The burn marks and slashes were painted all over his body, but mostly on his back. They had disgusted him at first, not wanting his family to look upon them, but with a strong minded wife like Caroline it was impossible. She'd traced them delicately, even went as far as placing kisses upon the smooth glossy marks. As much as he wanted to share his entire existence with her, the time he'd spent away was one thing he couldn't tell her about.

"I know you see that time in your life as you being weak, but you were powerless against him, Klaus, and it's over now. He won't get to us again and if he does than you'll fight him and win."

"Always so optimistic," he said, brushing a loose strand of hair away from her face.

"There's no way you could loose with your family by your side. We make you stronger, even if you don't believe it and I'm not letting you go so easily this time. You promised me forever."

He smiled happily, studying her features that hadn't changed with time. "I believe I did and I'll do everything in my power to keep that promise."

He leaned in, capturing her lips and sealing his promise to grow old and love her for the rest of his life.