The Pact

38

It was 2 am and Klaus was still awake because he felt the need to make sure nothing would happen to Caroline.

"Klaus..." Caroline whispered.

"Love? Did I awake you?"

"No. Have you slept at all?"

"No, but I'm not a big sleeper."

"Try to get some sleep. Nothing will happen. Stop worry." Caroline whispered and gave a peck on his cheek.

"Believe it or not, you are valuable to me and I can't let myself fall asleep, knowing something might happen to you."

"Klaus, that's very sweet but Ric and Damon are already in Mystic Falls. You have nothing to worry about. Just try to get some sleep." Caroline whispered and gave a peck on his neck then cuddled to him.

"How can you sleep? After what...?"

"Klaus, if you keep with your million questions I will throw you out of the bed and then kick you out of the bedroom." Caroline said, not in the mood to have him ask all those type of questions and keep her up for the rest of the night.

"Fine. I am simply amazed at how you can sleep like nothing had happened." Klaus whispered.

"How about we chance subject, huh? After you turn me into a hybrid and a few others, you went to this tattoo place... and you got these feather that had all these birds flying away. Why did you choose that drawing?" Caroline whispered and Klaus took off his Henley t-shirt and pointed to the tattoo Caroline described.

"This one? It was to celebrate finally being able to make hybrids and being able to turn and have access to my werewolf side."

"Yeah...?" Caroline whispered, now feeling interested in what he was saying.

"Yes. The feather was a symbolic way of me being part wolf and the birds means that I finally was able to be free and be everything I can be."

"So... the feather represents your wolf side being locked because even if you were part werewolf you could access it and the birds represent the freedom you felt once you started to be your true self..." Caroline whispered, finding this small story very interesting because he wouldn't usually open himself to tell anything that was so private and important to him.

"Exactly, Love." Klaus whispered as Caroline caressed the part of his chest that was tattooed with birds flying away.

"I never said this but I'm sorry."

"Sorry? For what?"

"I'm sorry that your mother lied to you and then cursed you. Not being able to be who you truly are must be awful."

"I don't need your pity, Caroline."

"It's not pity. I just... I wouldn't wish that to anyone." Caroline whispered.

"Not even me?"

"Of course not. And why do you ask like that? Even you... You call yourself a monster and a beast but you are none of those things. Yes, we all have a little monster inside all of us but you are not a monster and you are not a beast." Caroline whispered as she draw invisible lines on his chest.

"Why do you think that, love?" Klaus whispered as he caressed her hair.

"Because you have shown me emotions. Because you have shown me mercy, forgiveness, affection, concern... All those emotions are not from beasts but from people. That's your humanity, the thing that you try to make everyone believe that has been long gone." Caroline whispered.

"How about the times I've shown you rage, fury, hatred, envy..."

"That's also part of being human. Humanity isn't all about love... if you were a true monster you would be selfish all the time and would do whatever it took to get whatever you want but you don't do that. You could just kill Marcel but you can't let yourself do such a thing, you could refuse the pact, kill me, the hybrids, everyone we love and then drain Elena but you didn't do that either. You could have killed Stefan in the 20s for knowing too much but you just compelled him to forget. Your humanity never left you, even when you tried to repress it, thinking it only made you weak." Caroline whispered.