Incorrigible ↬ The Vampire Diaries {1}

Chapter Twenty-Nine

A/N: Rosalind's outfit throughout the chapter is above.

Down the Rabbit Hole

Caroline and Tyler walk into the house, Caroline has a laptop in her hands while Tyler has the sword wrapped in a blanket. Klaus is sitting on the coffee table.

"Well, if it isn't little orphan Lockwood. Come to show how laughably impotent you are against me?"

"I'm just trying to help my friends find the cure." Caroline sits besides Rosalind on the couch, and Tyler reveals the sword from the blanket.

"Found this in your attic."

"And you think finding the sword brings you closer to the cure?"

"You tell me. I was playing around with the handle on the ride over, and I found this." Tyler unwraps the leather on the top of the sword, revealing some sort of turning device. Klaus gets up and walks over to Tyler.

"And what do you think 'this' is?"

Caroline gets up. "It's called a cryptex. I've seen The da Vinci Code. You turn the different sides to the different symbols to get the translation on the other side. And with the magic of the internet, Elena sent over these." She holds up print-outs of Jeremy's tattoo. "So now all we have to do is cryptex away." Caroline sits down again. "If you happened to want to help, we wouldn't stop you."

"Right. Well, might I suggest using the magic of the internet to purchase an Aramaic-to-English dictionary from your nearest retailer."

Tyler turns to Caroline. "What's Aramaic?"

"It's a dead language. It hasn't been used since, like, biblical times."

"Qetsiyah's native tongue, I'm guessing. You know, even if you had the best dictionary in the world, it could take days to translate. Perhaps weeks. In bas so-teen-too ara-ma-eet."

"What does that mean?"

Rosalind smiled, she laughs lightly. "If only you spoke Aramaic."

Caroline has the pictures of Jeremy's tattoo and index cards of the Aramaic symbols lying on the table. She has her computer open and is sitting with Tyler.

"Okay, this is it. We've translated all the symbols on the tattoo. 'Passage inside...requires a young senator, and a pretty flower.' Okay, none of this makes sense!"

Klaus speaks Aramaic, then the English translation. "Requires a powerful witch and a hunter in full bloom."

"What are you doing?"

"I don't need to tell you my reasons. Caroline. Bring my sword over here."

Caroline has brought the sword close enough for Klaus to read the cryptex.

"Silas rests on the far side, the means of his destruction at hand." He glances at the pictures of Jeremy's tattoo on the computer screen. "Turn the cryptex to the right." Caroline obliges "Stop. The top of the hilt reveals a key to a nautical map. Turn it to the left." she turns it. "Now turn the other piece." She does. "There's something else."

Klaus speaks Aramaic but doesn't not translate it, Rosalind smiles knowing why he isn't translating.

"What does it mean? Klaus, what does it mean?"

...

Caroline calls Rebekah, who is on the beach when her phone rings.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's Caroline. We have the translation of the tattoo. We're emailing you pictures of the map and instructions right now."

"Got it. Thanks."

"Actually, it was me."

"Nik, you helped?"

"You sound so surprised, little sister."

"Shouldn't I be? I mean, you don't want me to be human. You don't want any of us to be human. Why would you help us find the cure?"

"Maybe I finally realized the longer I stand in the way of what you want, the longer you'll continue to hate me. Perhaps I want my sister to finally know happiness."

"Fool me once, shame on you; fool me a hundred times."

"No more fooling. No more games. I hope you get to live, and die, as you wish."

"So do I."

"There is one more thing, Rebekah." Caroline and Tyler look up as Rosalind spoke.

She speaks quickly "There is only one dose of the cure. You need to find it first and take it. It's the only way you'll-" Tyler rushes to end the call.

Tyler walks out onto the front porch, Caroline behind him. He seems really stressed out.

Klaus is sitting in an armchair in the Gilberts' living room while Rosalind sat on the ground, reading a book. The front door opens and Caroline walks in. She's the opposite of aggressive or angry, and instead is calmly sad.

"You can't kill Tyler."

"Not only can I, I have to. I have a reputation to uphold. Moreover, I want to."

"I'm not asking you to forgive him. All I'm asking is that you let him live, somewhere far from here."

"So he gets to live a happy life after he turned all my hybrids against me, after he tried to kill me, after he made it his life's mission to find the cure so he could use it against me--"

Caroline spoke defensively "we all want the cure."

"Do we' ?Caroline stares mutely at him. "Do you?"

"It doesn't matter. There's only one, so it's not like I'm gonna get it anyway."

Rosalind put the book she was reading down. "But if you could...you wouldn't, would you?" She is silent but her face gives away her answer. "You prefer who you are now to the girl you once were. You like being strong, ageless, fearless."

Klaus takes a step closer to her. "We're the same, Caroline."

"Then show me. You know how much I love Tyler. You can see how scared I am to lose him. If you and I are so similar, then show me your compassion. Show him the mercy that I would show you."

"Mercy? For Tyler? Very well. Tell him to leave town immediately." He starts walking away but turns back. "And tell him to run and hide in a place I will never find him."

"Of course." She turns and walks away, grabbing her jacket.

"Tell him that this is the mercy I extend for your sake...that I will give him a head start before I kill him."

Caroline's face falls as she turns back to Klaus.

Caroline is still sitting on the porch swing. The front door opens, Klaus and Rosalind comes outside, the spell keeping him inside has worn off.

"How did you get out?"

"I fear something awful has befallen your friend Bonnie."

Rosalind walks to her car while Klaus stays back to speak with Caroline.