I sit quietly in the compound, staring directly at Klaus as he continues to paint. It has been rough here for the last few months. My daughter, Hope is with Rebekah until we can diminish impending threats,Hayley and Elijah have gotten awkward, Klaus and I both have the heart ache from our daughter, and I have to live with the fact I'm now a hybrid. So, like I said, things are rough.

Snapping me out of my reverie, Klaus angrily tears the wood off of his canvas and throws it across the room, growling in annoyance and frustration.

"I suppose we shall have to call this your "white period."" Elijah says, picking up the canvas as I stare at the both of them blankly.

" I'm missing a crucial colour in my palette-- that of my enemies' blood." He growls again.

" Well, I recommend a Venetian red, with a dash of rust..." Elijah jokes, pushing Klaus's temper over the edge.

"It's been months! I've adhered to our plan: sit and do nothing, sell our grief. And now, my child is safely away, and another full moon is upon us-- another night of pathetic weakness as the moonlight rings steal my strength" Klaus exclaims,walking frustrated over to me where he plonks down next to me, resting his feet on my lap.

" The inertia is killing me. I need to act. I-I-I need-- I need to spill blood." Klaus says quietly, staring at Elijah as he grasps my hand.

"Well, then, you'll be pleased to know that I've located the last of the twelve rings forged with your blood." Immediately, Klaus's features light up.

"Now," Elijah continues as I stare off blankly. "I'm concerned about Evie."

Klaus makes no noise as Elijah sighs,I pretend that I can not hear them talk about me.

"She looks no better than you, brother."

Elijah sighs again," I fear it's time for her to visit a group of people that can cheer her up..."

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I sigh, stopping at the boarder of Mystic Falls as I spot a familiar blonde, I pull over hopping out of the car.

"I am home! I just signed the lease to my new apartment." Caroline says as I stand behind her silently.

"You don't even like football. " she mutters over the phone.

Caroline turns around upon hearing footsteps, her eyes widening as she notices me.

"Oh. my .God." She says, pulling the phone away from her ear, pulling me into a bone crushing hug, and for the first time in months, I feel myself smile.

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After a long discussion and catch up, one where I coincidentally forget to mention that I am a hybrid and have a daughter, Caroline pulls me into a little cafe with her.

I walk beside Caroline as she holds three books with one hand, breathing lightly as I look around the cage, a small fire burns in the corner, creating a light, warm atmosphere.Small bean bags sit close to the fire but the snugly cafe consists mostly of old, wooden tables.

"You already read all that?" The voice of Alaric Saltzman says as Caroline drops a pile of books in front of him. Surprised, he looks to Caroline's side, a huge smile growing across his face.

"Evie Lockwood." He grins, pulling me into a hug.

"Hey Ric," I reply casually, his cologne filling my nose as I shrug into the seat next to Caroline.

" Cover to cover, with no mention on how to undo an anti-magic force-field. And if I'm going to single-handedly take back our town, I'm gonna need a little bit more to go on." She says with a sigh. I frown in confusion, before remembering her explanation of the 'no magic inside of the border' speech.

" I brought "Ancient Witchcraft, volume two"." Alaric says, pushing it across the table towards Caroline as I smile at her determination... Elijah was right, I have been here for barely an hour yet I have smiled more now than I have within the last 3 months... Home is very depressing at the moment.

"I've already read it." Caroline deadpans so Alaric pushes her another, she sighs, staring down at it.

" Fine. Thank you. So... how's Stefan?" Caroline asks, I smile,looking around the cafe once more at all of the oblivious faces, clueless of the monsters that roam the world, endangering their lives and they don't even know. As Ric and Caroline continue to talk, I pull my phone out of my pocket, feeling it buzz. Quickly, I punch in a reply to Klaus, stopping him from worrying.

"Or maybe I just need to get over it. Thanks for the books." Caroline says to him, grabbing my hand and leading me out.

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"Oh my-" Elena smiles, pulling me into a hug, almost awkwardly, I wrap my hands around her... I never was as close to Elena as I was to Caroline.

"What did you do? Why the hell are you feeding on people?" Caroline snaps at her as I pull back.

"It's fine.I've compelled everyone else." Elena says with a shrug as my mouth falls open into a gaping position... Who knew the Elena Gilbert could ever be so careless of human life? I guess a lot has changed.

" The herbs... Luke's been giving me. They make me so thirsty." She says, turning away from us. Herbs? And who the freak is Luke?

"Whoa, what herbs?" Caroline asks.

"They make me see Damon."She turns back to us " I can talk to him, and, and I can be with him, and -" i interrupt her.

"You lot are hopeless without me." I pauses," While I've been gone, Damon and Bonnie died, Steffie fell off the radar, Caroline can't get into her town, my own twin tried to kill me and Elena is hallucinating her dead boyfriend." Caroline stares at me dumbfounded as I release an exasperated sigh, Elena breathes in deeply.

"Tyler tried to kill you?"

"Is that the only part you picked up on?" I growl in frustration, pulling at my hair.

Everyone falls silent for a moment, letting the countryside border of Mystic Falls calm us all down, before Caroline fills the silence.

" There are better ways to get through this." she says, flinching as Elena laughs humorlessly.

" Like what? Like dropping out of school and having picnics with my mom, near the town border? Or maybe I could pull a Stefan and bounce from country to country, chasing some false hope that we're gonna find a way to bring Damon and Bonnie back. We're all getting through it. This is me, getting through it, okay?" She says, storming back to her car, leaving Caroline and I to stare after her retreating figure.

"What the hell happened to her?"I ask, incredulously...

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We sit in the same diner as earlier, I listen bored as Caroline leaves Stefan a sad, depressing voice mail, I snatch the phone out of her hands.

"Get your ass back here you bitch." I shrug away from Caroline as she tries to take the phone away from me. "You can't up and leave everyone when it gets bad... That's what cowards do... You're not just letting your self down, you're letting your friends down."I sigh, ending the call and passing the phone back to Caroline, she gives me a sad smile.

I guess it's not just New Orleans that's down in the dumps...

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