Phases

The Pretender - Foo Fighters

Send in your skeletons
Sing as their bones go marching in... again
The need you buried deep
The secrets that you keep are ever ready
Are you ready?

- The Pretender, Foo Fighters

The next morning they're all in the lounge, Caroline and Kol barely managing to stay awake. "Care, you okay?" Bonnie laughs, patting her friend's knee softly. "I want to go to bed," Caroline mumbles, stretching out and lying over Klaus and Bonnie. He rolls his eyes, but strokes her hair as she rests her head on his lap. "This is important, don't go to sleep, love," he warns, earning a mumble in response.

Caroline notices the looks Kol and Bonnie keep exchanging and wonders what happened after her and Klaus went to bed. She makes a mental note to question it later. She watches as Stefan, Damon and Elena shift awkwardly on the sofa. Elena sits in the middle of the brothers, Stefan is brooding and looks at her longingly while Damon looks confident and smirks at Elena every so often. That, pretty much, sums up the whole love triangle... Team Stelena, though, all the way. Caroline frowns at her thought, I definitely need sleep if I'm making couple names... This is no Twilight.

Elijah, Kol and Rebekah are on the other sofa, Elijah in the middle reluctantly so the younger siblings will refrain from beating each other up, even though Kol is practically asleep already.

"We need to discuss the threat of Mikael and Esther," Klaus announces. "They have already proved to be able to interfere with this side, so we need to work together," Bonnie agrees, earning a sleepy but proud smirk from Kol. "I agree," he yawns. "Shouldn't you be dead?" Damon snaps. "DAMON!" Elena and Stefan hiss, both glaring at him.

"Damon can please refrain from organising a pissing contest in my house when there are more urgent matters at hand," Klaus sighs, rolling his eyes. "You not really much of a threat when you have Barbie sleeping on your lap," Damon smirks. It falls though when Caroline sits up and Klaus flashes over, grabbing his neck.

"We have come to a mutual understanding that we won't change each other, Salvatore," he snarls. "Be very careful what you say to me, because I know of Caroline's past, and you aren't exactly in my good books." He squeezes Damon's neck and Caroline huffs. "Hey, angry pillow, get over here, I'm still sleepy," Caroline grumbles. Kol chuckles as Klaus instantly returns to his seat and begins stroking Caroline's hair again. "She's got you whipped," Kol smirks, still chuckling. Rebekah is grinning (secretly jealous but still happy that her brother is happy), and even Elijah and Bonnie manage small smiles.

Before Damon can comment further, the front door bursts open, leaving the annoying Salvatore with an annoying open mouth. Because, as Klaus has previously said; the guy is annoying.

"Niklaus Mikaelson!" An angry voice calls out. A young woman with flaming red hair storms into the room and glares at him with dark amber eyes. "Next time you kill your mother, do it properly!" She hisses, not bothering to look at anyone else in the room as she fearlessly snarls at Klaus further. "She had me immobilized for days whilst she channelled me against my will. I guess that is what I get for being friends with the big bad hybrid. URG!" She drops down into an empty seat, still glaring at him.

"Nice to see you, too, Giovanna," he sighs, rolling his eyes. She finally looks around the room and her eyes land on the doppelgänger. "Fucking hell, Klaus, how many doppelgängers do you want?" She smirks, looking back at him. "Starting a collection? Going to make a big chessboard with them?" He chuckles and shakes his head. "Giovanna, you truly are something else, aren't you?" He compliments, causing her to scoff. "Yeah, I am a natural hybrid," she mutters.

"A what?" Bonnie frowns, "I thought you were a witch? I can sense that from you..." Giovanna nods, "I'm a witch-wolf hybrid. That's why my eyes are amber and why my hair glows when I'm pissed." Rebekah stands up and walks over to her. "You're Sage's daughter," Rebekah gasps, eying up the girl. She shrugs, "Yeah. Where's dad?" She asks.

All the Mikaelson's faces drop and Caroline sits up. "She means Finn, doesn't she?" She whispers so only Klaus can hear. He nods and whispers back, "He adopted her from an early age, so she called him dad. I didn't dagger him until she had left. At first, we all thought she died and that is why Sage turned. She lost her daughter and she never wanted Finn to lose her. It was tragic. She found me after Finn was daggered and Sage disappeared."

"I can hear you, dumb ass," Giovanna sighs. "So, my dad is dead?" She asks quietly, her confident wavering. He nods solemly and she looks down at her hands. He moves to comfort her and she scoff, "You're not good at comforting me, Nikkie. You'd think after nine hundred years, you would remember this shit." She folds her arms and looks over at him unimpressed as he scoffs.

"Shut up, Gi," he sighs playfully as a smirk creeps across his face, glad that she's not a crying mess at the minute. "I'll sing the whole of Bohemian Rhapsody on my own, in a minute," she warns, "Instrumentals included. I know how much you love it when I sing Queen to you. Dick." He rolls his eyes again and she holds a smug, triumphant smile on her face.

"What's wrong with Queen?" Caroline snaps, glaring at him. "Nothing, love, it's just that Giovanna has the tendency to be over dramatic. Sometimes I feel that she spent too much time with Freddie." Giovanna scoffs, "Oh, honey, Freddie spent too much time with me." She flicks her hair over her shoulder and rises to her feet, bowing ridiculously to him and flashing him a dazzling smile.

"Definitely Sage's daughter," Elijah mumbles with an amused look. "Well, I am fabulous," she replies as her phone blasts a ringtone, The Darkness' I Believe In A Thing Called Love. "Give me a minute," she sighs. "My husband is a-calling." She disappears, sliding along the corridor and singing to the ringtone before answering with a faint. "You have reached the amazingly perfect Giovanna Mikaelson-Bennett, how can I help my little sugar muffin?"

Everyone freezes and looks at Bonnie. She is just as confused as everyone else and she looks over to Kol. "Bennett?" She whispers, only to have him shrug and point to Klaus, who then shrugs back at her. It seems everyone missed Giovanna's call because she returns a moment later. "Yes, sugar, I'm one of you," she smirks. "Now, I suppose I better tell you everything."

"What could you have possibly been hiding from me for nine hundred years, Giovanna?" Klaus snarls, stalking up to her dangerously. She sighs, shaking her head at him. "Everything," she shrugs. "My husband is a descendant from the Bennett line, that is where the name comes from," she explains, pushing Klaus back a step. "Now, calm down and hear me out, Niklaus," she whispers, pleadingly. "You know I love you and I would never deceive you. I know you have never doubted me before, Uncle Nik, don't doubt me now."

He reluctantly walks away from her, sitting next to Caroline. Giovanna watches as he takes Caroline's hand in his with a smile. She sighs and waits for everyone to be calm and listen. "Now, from the beginning," Klaus demands, waving his free hand for her to begin.