Chapter Text
Stefan took a devastated and silent Caroline back to the dorms of Whitmore College. His attempts to cheer her up were futile as he struggled to stop her from being so miserable about what happened with Tyler, considering the way that she practically stomped to her room, grumpily.
Before she entered her room, she turned around to face him.
“Am I a bad person, for sleeping with Klaus?”
“Yes, Care. You’re the worst person ever and no one can ever forgive you for that. Not even me, who killed many people when I didn’t have my humanity, or Elena, who burnt her house down without her humanity.” His voice was sarcastic and joking and that seemed to cheer her up slightly as it got a small laugh out of Caroline. However, he noticed Caroline’s quick change in facial expression from a smile to a frown and was about to ask her what was wrong when she dived into conversation first.
“Stefan, when I told Elena quietly, she acted… well… not like Elena. Usually, Elena would freak and speak about it quietly, but this Elena seemed determined to make Tyler hear and I think it was…”
“Katherine,” Stefan concluded. They agreed to meet up and talk about it tomorrow as she had a day off college and Stefan left her after making sure the devil herself wasn’t in the room.
A few hours later, when Caroline was sleeping, she heard the doorknob twist and jumped, knowing full well that it was Katherine.
Once the mentioned person entered the room, Caroline pushed herself to speak.
“Drop the act, Katherine.” A devious smile found its way onto the doppelganger’s face as she turned around to face Caroline.
“Well done, Forbes. You figured it out.” That earned a scoff from Caroline as she got up and switched the table light on.
“Why did you do it? I know the travelers helped you or whatever, but why?”
“Look, that’s none of your business Caroline.” A frown appeared on a tired Caroline’s face as she had never seen Katherine Pierce get this snarky and defensive before.
“Ok, sorry.” Caroline made a surrender gesture with her hands.
“How long have you been in Elena’s body?” Katherine looked into Caroline’s eyes and smirked.
“It’s been on and off, but my daughter’s helping me.” Katherine almost laughed at the shocked and horrified expression on the girl’s face.
“I’m sorry, but since when does the evil Katherine Pierce have a daughter?” Caroline exclaimed. Katherine dodged this question by walking to the bookshelf and fiddling with a book.
“None of your business.”
“Give Elena back.” If Katherine wouldn’t tell her, then she’d negotiate.
“No can do,” the devil said, amusement in her eyes as she watched Caroline start to become angry. The blonde took a breath and calmed herself down before answering.
“And why not Katherine?”
“My human body is dying quickly, idiot. In case you forgot, while you were off having sex with Klaus, I was on my death bed with Damon entering my mind. Nadia came in after and told me that I could stay in Elena’s body forever while my body rots. Obviously, there’s a lot we have to do to make me pretty again.” Katherine smirked at Caroline who scoffed and shook her head.
“Obviously, you’re not staying in her body forever,” Caroline said, putting emphasis on the ‘not.’
“Go to bed, Caroline we’ll discuss in the morning. I’m pretty tired.”
“Liar,” Caroline replied, causing Katherine to smile.
“Goodnight, Forbes.” She tried to fall asleep but failed as she had many questions racing through her mind. What she knew was that when morning came, she would interrogate Katherine, share the information with Stefan and figure out how to save Elena.
“Wake up, Caroline.” For a brief moment, Caroline forgot that it was Katherine.
“Elena?” The blonde rubbed her eyes, blinded by the light.
“Seems like someone forgot who I am.” Caroline now woke up fully, the memories of the previous day flooding back.
“Can’t you give Elena back already?” Katherine was walking around the room and stopped close to the blonde.
“I wouldn’t be Katherine if I didn’t make it a challenge. Anyway, get up Forbes. If you want your precious Elena back, you’re going to want to listen to this.”
They both walked over to the table and Katherine made them both some coffee using the espresso machine Caroline bought. After they reviewed the details they discussed yesterday, Caroline asked her first out of many questions.
“Ok, so basically you want your other human body back, but you want to be a vampire again?”
“Yeah, and you’re going to help me with that.”
“How?”
“I know a few witches that will help me and well, they aren’t in Mystic Falls so I want some company on the drive.” Caroline rolled her eyes.
“And if I don’t help you…”
“Then I’ll stay in Elena’s body forever and play with the Salvatore brothers.” Katherine winked and looked at her in amusement, giving Caroline a villainous smirk. It reminded Caroline of Klaus’s signature smirk at that moment, the one that she tended to see often when he was around. But then again, the evil doppelganger and original hybrid were villains, which is why she knew better than to not take them seriously.
“Ugh fine. Where are we going?”
“You ask way too many questions, Forbes. Stop being intense and just live a little.” As Caroline was about to speak, Katherine got to it first and answered what she was thinking, as if a psychic.
“We’re leaving tonight. Don’t tell anyone. I’ll kill you.”
“Fine, it wasn’t like I was going to tell anyone anyway but ok.” The older vampire laughed.
“Not even Stefan? Just so he knows what we’re doing,” Caroline tried. There was a temporary silence as Katherine considered this.
“Call him round. I’ll tell him.” Caroline reluctantly agreed and started packing some clothes and essentials that she would need as Katherine would stalk around the room and pick through her belongings before sorting herself out.
Stefan arrived around 4 in the afternoon, ready to face Katherine’s wrath again. Unlike his brother, he knocked at the door and waited for his friend to open the door, which it did after a few short seconds. Caroline greeted him with a small smile and hugged him, in spite of Katherine’s smirk which she could see out of her peripheral vision.
“Are you ready or what?” Katherine fiddled with some jewelry that Caroline snatched out of her hands earlier today.
“Just tell him, Katherine,” Caroline sighed as she failed to snatch the jewelry out of her hands again, reminding her of the time she was trying to snatch her Miss Mystic Falls application out of Klaus’s hands but failing. A small smile appeared on her face at the sweet memory that didn’t go unnoticed by anyone in the room.
“Why are you smiling? You were moody 2 seconds ago I swear,” Katherine said.
“Whatever, let’s get on with it.”
Between Katherine and Caroline, Stefan absorbed all the information he needed to decide on what to do. While they were bickering about something else, yet again, he chose to interrupt them.
“Do we tell Damon?”
“No!” They both exclaimed at the same time, finally agreeing on something for once.
“So what’s your excuse? He’ll want to know where his girlfriend is.”
“Good point, Stefan. It’s too bad I already thought of that.” Katherine pulled out Elena’s phone from her handbag and flashed it in front of Caroline and Stefan.
“Can’t say I’m surprised, Katherine.” It was Stefan’s turn to sigh and the others just observed.
“Just keep up the ruse Stefan, it’s fine. We’ll only be gone for a week or two, tops and we all know that I can trick people very well. If I can play Elena, you can keep this a secret.”
“I guess that means I’m not coming along to wherever it is you guys are going to?”
“Yep,” Caroline said.
“Care, be safe. If anything happens…”
“I get it, don’t worry. I have a crazy old vampire here with me so I guess we’ll be fine.”
“Thanks, Forbes. But I’m still young and gorgeous. Stefan, ouch. You seriously don’t care about me?” Katherine said with mock hurt. Stefan gave a small smile before replying.
“Nice try, Katherine.” He got up after spending a couple of hours with the girls and as he was about to leave, Katherine spoke up.
“Stefan, she’ll be safe. Where we’re going, I know she’ll be well protected.” After hearing that, Stefan knew it would relate to Klaus and left feeling a sense of relief and Caroline started to put two and two together.
Both the girls were now in the car, packed up and ready for the long car journey, but it was only when Katherine drove past the welcome sign that Caroline confronted her.
“We’re going to New Orleans, aren’t we?” Katherine smiled, happy that she figured it out.
“Yep we are, but we are trying to avoid the Mikaelsons.”
“Why?” Caroline asked, immediately curious.
“Someone’s eager. But fine, there’s basically a lot of drama with the vampires and witches and the Mikaelsons plus a man called Marcel are team vampires. Marcel runs New Orleans but the Mikaelsons want it back, so they want to unite with their old enemy Marcel to take over their home city again. Also, they’d be angry to know that their worst enemy was trying to find another way to live. Klaus would rather see me dead anyway, Forbes.” Caroline was left speechless, still absorbing the details Katherine spilled. Yet out of nowhere, Caroline remembered Elena spilling the beans about Elijah having a relationship with Katherine.
“Hey, Katherine.”
“Yep?”
“What does Elijah think of the situation in New Orleans?” This took Katherine aback and Caroline picked on it.
“Elijah is… well, the noble brother.”
“Do you love Elijah?” Caroline asked cheekily, wanting to put Katherine in the spotlight of embarrassment for a change.
“Caroline, of course not.” The doppelganger rolled her eyes, but her cheeks were blushing slightly, which made Caroline get excited.
“So you love him! Katherine Petrova, I want details.” Caroline said this in a demanding yet happy tone and Katherine decided to crack. Besides, she didn’t have a friend and it could be nice to have a friend for a change. So they gossiped about both their lives, their involvement with the Salvatores and Mikaelsons, and by the time they finished, they passed through the “Welcome to New Orleans” sign.
“I guess we’re here.”
“Yeah. Let’s do this.” The girls sat in tense silence for the rest of the journey, until they arrived at the Lafayette cemetery. Katherine took notice of a vampire by her right, who spotted them, but she kept silent while Caroline was looking straight ahead and ignoring the music. They were here.