Maddy had never actually been to Italy.

It was ridiculous of her to have not gone sooner, considering that the Salvatore surname was Italian, and she probably had some distant relatives there. In all honesty, she'd never felt like going because she and her brothers were always fighting, and this was something she wanted them to do as a family.

She was considerably happier, knowing Klaus had made amends with Rebekah. Though he looked embarrassed, having had to tell his baby sister that he'd done something wrong, he seemed to puff up his chest every time he noticed the proud smiles Maddy cast at him.

He compelled a crew of workers to find Alexander's grave using metal detectors and large tunneling systems, considering the earth over San Vittore had changed immensely throughout the past centuries.

He helped where he could, to limit the amount of machines that were brought in. He was intending to pay the workers, and didn't want their equipment potentially ruining the sword.

"Would you ever take the cure?" he'd asked her suddenly, when they'd gone to sit down for a bit in the shade.

Maddy frowned. "The cure isn't for me, I want it for Elena and Meredith. And for Rebekah, too."

"That's not what I asked, love. Would you ever take it?"

"I never really thought about it. I guess I'd consider it. I chose to become a vampire so that I could stick alongside my brothers. At the time it felt like the right thing. In hindsight, it was impulsive. But I don't regret it. If there was a way we could all become human, maybe." She nudged him. "Would you take it?"

"Never."

"Did you ever, at one point in the last thousand years, wish to be human again?"

He faltered a bit, at that. "Once. I was on a trek in the Andes, and a hummingbird flew up to me. It just hovered there, staring at me, its tiny heart was pattering like a machine gun. And I thought, what a thing, you know, to have to work that hard every day just to stay alive. To be constantly on the verge of death and how satisfying every day must be that it survived. And that was the only time I thought about being human. I see no reason to be human again. I have grown accustomed to my existence. I value my strength. I require it, to protect my family. For what reason would you wish to be human?"

Maddy pursed her lips. "To be able to have kids again. Maybe become a good mother, like the one I had. I have this fear that if I die as a vampire, I'll never see her again. She's probably in heaven, if that even exists... feeling disappointed. If I were human, I could maybe redeem myself enough to catch a glimpse of her, even if just for a moment."

Klaus took her hand. "I believe she's proud of you. She knows her daughter... albeit a tad manipulative and fiery in certain situations... is a vicious protector and will not allow her family to come to harm."

She smirked. "Well, I'm nowhere near as manipulative as you. If I get it from anyone, it's from my father. That prat."

"Oh," said Klaus teasingly. "You said prat. It appears Damon's worst fears have come true. I've corrupted you."

"If that's what constitutes corruption then I should say 'bloody' every time I speak to Damon and really drive him nuts." She looked up at the sky. "If you're going to stay immortal, then so will I. I want to be with you forever. But do you think that maybe, in the far future, we could... try to raise a kid together?"

Klaus turned red. "You do realize we cannot have a child, don't you? As hard as we may try... as enjoyable as it sounds... it's impossible, love."

"I don't mean making a baby. We can adopt one. Like how you adopted Marcel. Eventually, we can try and be parents. I think I'd like that. Would you?"

Klaus shook his head. "No. I may have wished to be a father before but now... I cannot imagine anything more awful."

Maddy frowned. "But... why?"

"I had a son. I was a terrible father to him. And to top it all off, I lost him. Mikael murdered him. Left him to burn in that opera house. My father killed my son. I will not allow it to happen again. I apologize, love, but I would not want to adopt another child. I don't wish to be a father."

Maddy tried to pretend that this didn't hurt her in the slightest. She squeezed his hand and said, "If it's not in the cards for us, that's alright." To finish convincing him, she added, "Can we maybe get a puppy in the future, though?"

Klaus didn't realize that on the inside, her heart was breaking. "A puppy?" he inquired. "Perhaps I ought to get you a horse first."

"But puppies are smaller, easier to handle. I've never owned a horse, I don't know how to care for one. I've had many dogs in the past, though, I love them."

"Very well, then, a puppy it is. In a couple of decades, unless you wish for it to arrive by Christmas."

"I can wait a few decades while everything settles down."

Klaus's phone began to ring, and he answered. "Nate," he said, speaking to one of his hybrids. "What news do you have for me, mate?"

"We have a problem. We went to keep watch on the Hunter, like you said to, but he managed to put up a fight and... Dean accidentally killed him."

Klaus's smile dropped. "Kill Dean."

"Wait... what?"

"Trust me, mate, it's better you put him out of his misery, now. Kill him."

He hung up without explaining any more.

"What's that about?" asked Maddy, confused. "Why does Dean need to die?"

Klaus heaved a sigh. "I killed the original five Hunters, remember? When one kills a Hunter, there's a bit of a consequence. The Hunters were spelled by witches to kill vampires. If you prevent one from fulfilling his destiny, then he'll take you down with him."

Her breath hitched with realization. "They tormented you, didn't they? Even in death?"

He assented. "Yes, they did. For fifty-two years, four months, and nine days. I was tormented, in my dreams, every waking moment, relentless, never-ending torture. It was the only period of my life when I actually felt time. It drove me so mad, I tried to end my own life. Problem is, I'm immortal. I kept coming back. Eventually it just stopped."

She pulled him into a hug. "I'm so sorry that you had to go through that."

"It's been a long time since then," he admitted. "I hardly remember it."

His phone began to ring again, and he drew away from her. "Tyler," he said. "To what do I owe the pleasure? I do hope you're not causing problems."

"I can do whatever I want. I'm not sired to you anymore. I just stopped Nate from ripping out Dean's heart. You can't make us kill our own kind. If you want Dean dead, you're going to have to kill him yourself."

Klaus's lip twitched. "Fair enough. I do suggest you lock Dean up in the meantime, however. And how about you take on the lovely task of keeping Dean from tearing his own heart out? When the hallucinations start, he will not be in his right mind anymore. I did want to inquire, though, about your little secret regarding your time in Appalachia. What was your friend's name? Hayley, was it? You probably prefer I keep that to myself." He smirked. "Enjoy."

He hung up, and Maddy made a face. "Why not just tell him about the curse?" she asked. "Why not explain what Dean will go through?"

"Tyler needs a lesson in obeying those who know better than him."

"Well, I know you don't like rules. And you know I question a lot of things. So why would it be so bad to explain a bit more? He doesn't understand, and that's not his fault."

Klaus tapped his fingertips together. "I am not accustomed to explaining things to anyone. You're the only one who is both brave and stubborn enough to try and worm any information out of me."

"Yeah, because you know I won't sleep with you unless you keep me in the know." Klaus chuckled, but she wasn't done. "What did you mean?" she inquired. "About Tyler's time in Appalachia?"

"The other day, a female werewolf arrived at the mansion. She was asking about Tyler. When I saw into Tyler's mind and learned that he broke the sire bond... she was there. And though I could not confirm it, it's rather obvious that those two shared a connection that Caroline is not privy to."

"Oh my god," said Maddy. "He... he cheated on Caroline? What a dick." She got to her feet, seeing one of the compelled workers waving at them and holding up a sword. "If you ever cheat on me, Nik, I'll use that sword to cut off parts of you that you'd rather keep. And then I'll encase you in cement and pour vervain and wolfsbane down the cracks every day for the rest of my life."

He raised his brows. "I would never be unfaithful to you. You are the only one I love. The only one I wish to lay with."

She smiled. "Good. 'Cause like I said..." she mimed a motion of chopping and smacked his thigh, close to his groin.

"Let's be honest, now, love," he said, following after her as she neared the excavation site, "that is your favorite part of me."

"Mm, no I think my favorite part is your personality."

"Really? Because my favorite part of you is your arse."

She rolled her eyes. "I like all of you, Nik. Except the parts that make you walk incredibly slowly behind me when I know you can move way faster than that."

He winked. "I'm trying to catch a glimpse of your bottom, love, don't blame me."

_

They were on their way to the airport when Kol called them.

"This old colleague of Sheila Bennett's is a young professor named Atticus Shane," Kol reported. "I don't like him. He's claiming that he wishes to teach Bonnie magic, but he isn't a witch. She's thrilled, however, as he knows much about what her grandmother taught at Whitmore."

"You sound jealous," said Klaus, amused.

"I am not jealous. I am merely suspicious. There is more to this man than meets the eye. Something I can't explain. I'm going to be occupied digging into his life."

"Why not just compel him? See if his intentions are pure?"

"I can't, Nik. He knew who I was. He knew I was an Original, and he mentioned he learned to resist compulsion in Tibet. He bled to prove that he had no vervain in his blood."

"And I assume your little girlfriend was impressed, but you were... livid."

"Quite so. What business does anyone have learning to resist compulsion?"

"From the human standpoint," piped up Maddy from beside Klaus, "it's nice to not be mind controlled, and if you know that it might happen, it's good to learn to defend yourself. But from a vampire standpoint... it is weird. The only other person I know of who could resist compulsion was Bill Forbes. And he's dead now, so..."

"Perhaps," said Klaus, "it means Kol will get his wish and be able to kill him in the near future. Keep him alive as long as you can... give yourself time to learn everything you can before you make a decision. I will like to meet him depending on what you discover. Is that all, little brother?"

"Yes. I'll let you know what I find."

Maddy found it curious that he hung up without asking about the sword. "Does Kol not know that we came here?"

"Kol and Elijah were not told about this trip, no. Rebekah was smart about it, she knew that they'd get in her way. If the cure is what she wants, they are obstacles to it. I believe she only told your brothers the truth about where we are. Everyone else believes we are investigating the Hunters. They don't know the cure exists, and we must have it remain so. The less who know of it, the better. Less competition. Not to mention that if word gets out, Mystic Falls will be overrun by ancient vampires who seek a weapon like this. Imagine the power one could hold, if they had the means to make their worst enemy mortal?"

"Hmm. So you're worried that someone will come and get the cure and shove it down your throat to kill you."

"Somewhat worried."

"And yet you still want to help us find it."

"You wish to have it for Elena and Meredith. My sister seems to want it as well. If it is what you desire... I will aid you. But secrecy will be our friend here."

When they returned to Mystic Falls, they went straight to the Mikaelson Mansion, where they found the hybrids drinking. A new face clued Maddy in on who this Hayley person was. The girl was standing across from Tyler, and pouring a shot into his mouth. As he finished drinking it, she dragged her thumb across his bottom lip, then put it in her mouth, sucking on it and batting her eyelashes at him.

Klaus smirked when Tyler sensed his presence and turned around. "Well, don't let us interrupt."

Tyler's eyes flickered between Maddy and Klaus. "I didn't know you were back."

"Clearly. I just popped round to inquire about where you put Dean."

"The windowless room that you planned to turn into your second art room. Thanks for not telling us shit about his condition, by the way. We had to find out about the Hunter's Curse from Professor Shane, Bonnie's friend."

Maddy found it odd that this professor would know that, but she said nothing. There was a knock on the door, and she went to open it, allowing Caroline to enter with a box of random objects.

"I brought your stuff," she told Tyler coldly as he walked over to her. "Old laptop, your jersey, the charm bracelet."

Tyler's eyes flickered back to the hybrids uncomfortably. "Care, this isn't a good time."

She shoved the box into his hands. "Just take it." She then exited the house quickly. Patting Klaus's shoulder, Maddy rushed off, following her.

"Caroline," she said, catching her before she could speed off. "Hey. Think you might need a bit of release?"

She quirked a brow. "What are you offering?"

"Well, I've been cheated on, and I know batting cages and punching bags can do wonders to help you process your anger and figure out what the best next step for you is."

Caroline managed a smile. "I think I'll take you up on that."

It was all a lie. The blonde didn't want to be dishonest with Maddy, but she knew that whatever the brunette knew, Klaus would know, too, sooner or later. Whether he accidentally went into her mind like he did Tyler's, or whether she blurted it out. Caroline knew that the secrets were better kept when less people knew about them to begin with. Maddy was too close to the one that they were keeping the secret from.

She ranted, letting out all sorts of frustration and accepting the advice Maddy offered. All the while she was thinking about whether Tyler and Hayley would be able to keep up their part of the act to convince Klaus that relationship drama was all that was happening there... and not the de-siring of all the hybrids, who were furious about Klaus telling them to kill Dean without explaining anything about his condition.

When she got back to the mansion, Klaus let her know what everyone else had been up to. He had been trying to locate a different Hunter, perhaps someone more experienced existed, someone with the map nearly complete. Kol had gone to an exhibit with Bonnie for a while, before leaving and having Bonnie unknowingly distract Shane while Kol rummaged through his office at Whitmore. Even Damon had been helpful, calling Klaus and saying that there could be a way to cure Dean from the Hunter's Curse, which would keep the Original from losing any more hybrids. It involved having Jeremy kill a vampire, which would kickstart the growth of his Hunter's Mark, and end the curse on Dean.

Unfortunately for Dean, however, it hadn't happened soon enough. Just when Maddy was getting excited about this working, Klaus let her know Dean was already dead. He'd gone rabid, and one of the hybrids (unfortunately unsired due to his place in line for Hayley and Tyler's intervention) had been unable to resist Klaus's previous order to kill him and free him of his suffering.

"Something feels off," said Maddy two days later. "About... everything. Matt found out that Shane and Pastor Young were in communication... which seems to point to the entire Council's deaths being Shane's fault. And then yesterday when they were setting up for Miss Mystic Falls, I heard Shane is being asked to judge. Why did this man suddenly appear, in the midst of this? Also, apparently the witch needed to get the cure is a Bennett witch. I love the Bennetts, they're great, but how are they involved in literally every important thing, ever? Has Kol found anything?"

"Not yet," said Klaus. "He's had to be secretive. Bonnie would be furious if she learned he was investigating Shane so thoroughly. It appears she may have a bit of a blind faith in this man." He hummed. "A bad feeling should never be ignored. What does your intuition tell you about our task list for today?"

Maddy smirked and said dramatically. "I have a horrible feeling about attending the Miss Mystic Falls Pageant so I say we don't go." Then, with a genuine smile, "I'd rather spend the day with you. Stefan says that he has this plan to make vampires for Jeremy to kill, but I know my brother, and the guilt of doing that— even to criminals— would eat him alive. So... what do you say we put on our murder mittens and go and turn some really evil people into target practice for Little Gilbert?"

Klaus kissed her cheek, tickling her with his stubble. "I would love nothing more. After all, Elijah went to that ridiculous pageant with Elena, and Rebekah wormed her way into the competition. The mansion will be... empty when we get back."

"Empty, you say? How convenient. Let's see how siring vampires today goes, first."

Though the process was enjoyable (since Maddy was having one of her moments where she justified murder so long as the ones being murdered were rapists and child abusers) it seemed to have been a waste of time, considering that Jeremy wasn't going to be killing vampires any time soon.

"He what?" she asked Stefan over the phone. "Oh... come on."

Klaus raised a brow, and she drew the phone away to report, "Jeremy attacked Stefan and Elena and nearly killed them. Looks like the whole 'hardwired to be a vampire Hunter' thing is actually like... a new lifestyle and belief system is forcing its way into his mind."

"Elena will be staying at our house until we can make sure she won't be murdered in her sleep," said Stefan. "Jenna's still with Jeremy, and Matt will be keeping them company just in case."

"Is she doing okay? Jenna?"

"I mean, she's worried, you know, and burying herself in her work whenever she feels it's safe to do so. But she misses Ric a lot."

"What about Elena? Did you get to talk to her?"

"Nah, she went on a walk with Elijah. But I think she'll be okay. She knows Jeremy isn't trying to kill her because he hates her. He just can't control it. Everyone's just nervous right now. Things are... strange, to say the least."

"You know what we should do?" asked Maddy brightly. "A girls' night. My darling little itty bitty fratellino, would you be so kind as to—"

"—leave the house for the night? Okay, but you owe me two bottles of bourbon."

Klaus pouted when she hung up to start contacting Jenna, Elena, Caroline, and Bonnie. "No night to ourselves?"

"You can have me all day tomorrow, Nik," she promised. "I think the girls need this. Jenna, because of Ric, Elena because of Ric and Jeremy, Caroline because of Tyler, and Bonnie... I kinda just want to see what she says about Shane to see if I can help Kol a bit in his research. She's probably stressed about something, too. They all need some support and I want to be there to help them."

The truth was, she needed support, too. But she didn't want to bring it up to Klaus.

"I don't know what to do," she said quietly, cradling a bottle of whiskey. "I just... blurted out the question, asking Klaus if he'd want to raise a kid with me in the future. I thought he'd be all for it but he shut it down so quickly. And I've been holding it in, trying to focus on other things. I keep having these bad feelings about everything but I think the root of them has to do with the fact that one of us is going to feel hurt depending on what happens. Me because I'd be losing the chance to be a mother, since I won't do something Klaus isn't in agreement with. And if he were to agree to it just to make me happy, as he tends to do... he'd be reminded of past trauma and pain and he'd be forcing himself to enjoy a situation he loathes being in."

"I think you'd make a wonderful single mom," said Jenna. "Why do you need Klaus to be a part of it at all?"

"Even if he isn't part of the parenting, he'd still be my partner. Someone my adopted child would know. Hoping that he'll warm up to it is a pretty wild wish on my part. If he's against it, he's against it, and I don't want to force it into his life. I just thought that now that we can be more than we were in the past... we could grow the family. We had a conversation about kids decades ago and since the compulsion was removed... I realized that there's no one else in the world I'd rather co-parent with. If I were to adopt a child and become a mother, I'd want him to be present as the father. It was this fantasy I had, I guess. My perfect life. And it kind of all went to dust. I love Klaus, I do, and I'm happy with him, but I want more than that."

"I don't know what his trauma is," said Elena, "but maybe it's just something that he needs to partially experience to understand in a... different way. Maybe if he sees you interacting with kids, if he has the chance to participate, if he's granted the opportunity to prove that he's actually a better potential dad than he thinks himself to be, then maybe he'll reconsider, and you guys can have a detailed conversation about it."

Maddy half-smiled. "Thanks. Anyway, I've ranted enough, who's turn is it next?"

"Mine," said Bonnie, taking the bottle. "Caroline, after me, the circle's done, you're sure you don't want to say anything?"

"I don't really want to talk about it anymore to be honest," said Caroline, pretending to look sadly down at her feet. "You go."

The Bennett witch cleared her throat. "Um, I asked Kol about us being more... official. We haven't kissed, haven't gone on a proper date, haven't done anything intimate. But we're definitely feeling a little something there and I just want to know what we are and know where we stand. But he's been so detached lately. Always asks about Shane. I think he's jealous and getting defensive and that's why he won't tell me what we are because he feels he needs to prove that no one else can have me before he puts any labels on it."

"Maybe," said Maddy casually, "he's just worried. I mean, no offense to the Mikaelsons, but they are all pretty paranoid. Makes sense after so many years. They're always worried something will go wrong and someone will stab them in the back, or the front. He might just be scared that Shane will hurt you through this very new, and still unfamiliar friendship."

"Shane is like a big brother to me," said Bonnie. "I'd be a fool to trust him completely, but he's been helping me so much with understanding forms of magic that Kol had a bit of trouble explaining to me. He's good at magic, Kol is, but I struggle to understand it the way he teaches it. He's so much more advanced and I think he can't dumb it down enough for me to get it."

"Bonnie Bennett, you are not dumb," said Elena.

She waved her hands. "Not calling myself dumb, I promise, I just need to to be laid out in a very clear way because I'm still pretty new to this, and Kol jumps ahead. With Shane it's like baby steps and it creates such a good foundation that it solidifies really well in my head."

"What I suggest," said Jenna, pressing her empty shot glass against her chin, "is that you get them to become bros. If they become friends, there won't be hostility, and they'll be able to teach you together instead of competing to give you knowledge. If that makes sense. 'Cause from what you were saying earlier this week, Shane's almost overloading you with studying. Maybe he thinks he has to prove something because Kol's an Original who's been around for a lot longer. Instead of making it a contest, they should teach together. Who knows? Maybe they'll become drinking bud..." she faltered and bit her lip hard as it started to quiver. "I'm sorry," she said, her voice cracking as she started to tear up. "I managed to not break down earlier, but..."

Maddy put her arm around her. "Jenna, it's okay. Let it out if you need to."

They cried. Drank. Danced. Bonnie even recorded a time lapse video of Caroline and Elena doing cartwheels at vampire speed, which somehow made them look like peppermint swirls in the air.

"Hey." Elena sat beside Maddy once the others had fallen asleep, too tired to talk any more.

Maddy smiled weakly. "Hi. You didn't talk much about your stuff today."

"Ah... I trust that we'll figure out a way to quell the murderous urges soon enough. He's still my little brother no matter what, and I love him. Am I scared of him right now? Yes, maybe a bit. Nothing that can't be fixed." She pursed her lips. "Elijah and I did it."

The older vampire raised a brow. "Oh? You felt ready?"

"Yeah. So I told him and we... went for it. I trust him, I really do. He made me feel so safe. I just needed to tell someone. There are certain things you just have to get out of your system, you know?"

"Tell me about it," chuckled Maddy lightly. "Literally needed to get my bit out days ago but I had to keep it in because I didn't want Klaus to know. I would feel so awful if I unintentionally guilt-tripped him into adopting a kid with me, even if I mean for it to happen in a couple of decades."

"He'll come around. The guy is nuts for you. By now, everyone knows that you're the most precious thing in the world to him."

A/N: Just a note, there is no sire bond between Elena and Damon. Since Delena won't be canon in this story, and the story isn't focused on Elena, I removed that whole bit. Another note because people have been asking about the planned ending being sad or happy... I have no clue at this time. Haven't planned that far. Ideally I'd like all my stories to have a happy ending but in some instances, it just isn't realistic for things to end with rainbows and butterflies because life is not perfect, neither are my characters, and when I have a chance to make a beautifully devastating ending, I take it. >:) When I figure it out, I will try to let you guys know in advance so you can prepare emotionally. Thanks if you read all this!! Comment for more :)