At home, I saw Stefan walking down the stairs with a bag over his shoulder. 

Damon walked closer. "Where have you been?"

"Ah, you know, out," Stefan told him, walking past him and toward the front door.

"Where are you going?" Damon asked.

"Out," Stefan answered.

I walked into the foyer. "Okay, I see shady Stefan is back." Stefan stopped, walking toward us. "Please don't tell me that you're still working with Klaus." 

"Please don't tell me that you're still planning on going on a date with Klaus," Stefan replied. I rolled my head toward Damon, knowing he had told Stefan, because I hadn't. Damon shrugged. "Sorry. You obviously haven't heard. Elena and I broke up."

Damon stayed silent with a blank expressionless face. 

I raised my eyebrows, tilting my head. "Oh. Got it. Uh, well, I'll be quck then. So, apparently, if we want to find the Cure, we have to find a vampire Hunter who can kill enough vampires to reveal the map on the Hunter's Mark. Now, unless we want Jeremy to go all Connor 2.0, I suggest we find a different Hunter."

"Okay," Stefan said. "And?" 

"And I was gonna ask Professor Shane, but turns out, he's shadier than you are," I told him.

Damon was shocked at the name that he spoke. "Matt Donovan connected him and the Pastor through phone records. Apparently, the two were very catty the day that the Pastor blew up the Council." 

"Ah, so you're gonna confront Shane, threaten him, possibly kill him, that sort of thing," Stefan said. 

"Yeah, unless he tells me what he's up to," Damon told us, clapping either of us on the shoulders. "What do you say? Should we triple tag team this?" 

"Nah, I'd say you're on your own," Stefan told him.

I scoffed. "Speak for yourself." I looked at Damon. "I'll help you." Stefan started to walk away. I stepped in his way. "Or we ould just blow it off and go get drunk. Family bond over some Tri Delts. If you, you know, want some quality time." 

Stefan grimaced and laughed. "Let's not pretend like this isn't the best day of Damon's life and your goal to keep this family together isn't falling apart." 

Stefan patted us on the shoulders, walking out of the house.

****

I walked into Klaus' mansion. "Klaus, you ass! What the hell do you have my brother involved in now?!" 

Klaus' voice came from behind me. "I'm pretty sure if Stefan didn't tell you himself, then that means you shouldn't know." 

I turned to face him. "Uh-uh. We're not playing that game. Why don't you just tell me what you have Stefan involved in? Getting the Cure? Trying to find a Hunter to kill enough vampires to reveal the Mark?"

"You know, I have some questions of my own," Klaus told me. "I was wondering what time I should pick you up tomorrow."

"Okay, you suck at avoiding a topic, and how about a quarter to never?" I asked.

Klaus walked closer to me. "I was promised a date in return for one of my hybrids." 

"Yes, a date," I told him. "Like to a movie where we don't have to talk and I can put at least three seats between us. Now how about we talk about the reason I came here that you're trying to avoid on talking about?" 

"Fine," Klaus told me. "I'll tell you what I have your brother doing if you go with me to the Miss Mystic Falls pageant as a date." 

"Are you serious?" I asked.

"Do you or do you not want to know about what Stefan is up to?" Klaus asked.

"You're blackmailing me now?" I asked.

"I don't think of it as blackmailing, love," Klaus told me. "I think of it as getting what I want." 

Klaus gave me a look that was slightly pleading, close to puppy dog eyes. 

I sighed, giving in. "Fine." Klaus smiled. "If you tell me what's going on, then meet me there. 2:00." I turned toward the door, but stopping at pointing at him. "And I already have a dress, so don't even think of getting me so much as a corsage, you understand?" Klaus looked down submissively, nodding. "I'm going to blackmail someone of my own, getting information that I want." 

Klaus looked up, smirking. "We're not so different after all, then, are we?" I scoffed, rolling my eyes, turning around, opening the door. "I'll see you tomorrow, Kaylin." 

I walked out of the house, letting the door close behind me. 

I was only going to get information out of Shane about the explosion and to get information out of Klaus about Stefan.

****

At the pagent the next day, I walked past a waiter with a tray, picking up one of the wine glasses as I walked past, drinking as I continued walking, seeing Damon talking to Shane.

"So, I'm in search of another Hunter," Damon told him.

"Hunter?" Shane asked. 

"Mm-hm."

"With a capital H? Why?" 

"Same reason anyone needs a Hunter. Loneliness, drinking buddy, or for golf." 

"I thought you said you already had a Potential." 

"I did, but he ended up being a potential problem."

"There's nothing I can do to help you." 

 "Hmm, why don't you help us with this . . ." Damon trailed off, stepping in front of him. "Why are you here? What's in your little lesson plan there, Professor?" 

"You think too highly of me, Damon," Shane told him. "I'm gonna go find the other judges." 

Shane turned away from Damon, starting to walk away.

I stood in front of him. 

"And who are you?" Shane asked.

I smirked. "Kaylin Salvatore, Damon's more fun, awesome little sister. Hey, no pity votes for April Young, okay? I mean, just because her dad blew up a house with a dozen people in it doesn't mean she should get a tiara. But you knew him, didn't you? Because I hear you two racked up a pretty impressive phone bill." 

"If you want to know something about me, Kaylin, just ask," Shane told me. 

"Okay," I said. "How did you convince the Pastor to kill all those people?" 

"Did you just accuse me of mass murder in the middle of a high school pageant?" Shane asked. 

I gave him a look as if to say, Maybe I did. 

Carol was on stage, introducing the pageant.  "Welcome to this season's Miss Mystic Falls." Everyone applauded. Shane stared Damon and me down, walking away, drinking his champagne. Damon and I watched him walk off. "We are so excited to showcase our most outstanding community leaders in the making." 

Everyone applauded.

I turned to Damon. "I like having you on my team. We are unstoppable."

Damon smirked, turning his attention back to the pageant. 

 I walked away from him, making my way through the crowd. 

Klaus was standing a few feet in front of me. "You are beautiful when you're in your true form as a vampire and what a vampire does." 

"And you are transparent when you're flirting," I told him. "Where's Stefan?" 

"Now, is your older brother the only thing you want to talk about?" Klaus asked. I looked to the side. "I'll tell you everything once we have a proper date."

"Then let's get on with it, shall we?" I asked.

Klaus smirked. 

Caroline was standing on the stairs starting the introductions of the girls. "Hi, everyone, I'm Caroline Forbes. As the reigning Miss Mystic Falls, it is my honor to introduce this year's Miss Mystic Court." Everyone applauded. Music started playing for the introduction of the girls. "We begin the procession with Valerie Fell, accompanied by Dylan Clark." Everyone applauded for Valerie as she walked down the stone steps. "Next, we have Amber Wolvertine accompanined by Hector Lindsay." Everyone applauded for Amber as she walked down the stone steps. The introductions continued. "Katherine Wilso accompanied by Eric Hanson." Everyone applauded for Katherine as she walked down the stone steps." April started to descend the stairs. "And finally, we have a last minute entry, April Young, accompanied by Jeremy Gilbert." 

April continued to walk down the steps, stopping and looking around for Jeremy.

Caroline looked around for Jeremy, keeping a large smile on her face.

Matt walked up to where the escorts were lined up and holding out his arm for April. 

Everyone applauded.

April breathed a sigh of relief, walking down the remainder of the stairs with a smile, taking Matt's arm.

"Jeremy's running late," Matt told her. 

"I guess you'll do," April told him, giggling.

Caroline continued to look around, worried but stopped and smiled.

April and Matt walked to the dance floor and faced each other. 

"You lead," Matt told her. 

April smiled, nodding.

The girls and their escorts bowed to each other, beginning the dance.

I looked over toward Elena and Caroline, who was walking toward Elena. Damon walked toward her. 

I walked away from Klaus, toward them. 

 Elena was on her phone

"Hey, what's with the last minute escort change?" Caroline asked. "Where is Jeremy?"

"I'm calling him right now," Elena told her. Damon stood next to them. "He's not picking up."

"Do the math," Damon told her. "Emo teen, open bar, it's fine." 

"Matt said that Jeremy's been having nightmares about killing vampires and he's been hiding it from me," Elena told them.

I looked at them in surprise.

Caroline looked at us in worry.

Damon shrugged it off. "Relax, I'm sure he's fine." 

"I don't know," Elena said. "I have a bad feeling." 

"If I'm not worried, you shouldn't be worried," Damon told her. "Let it go. I'll go look for him." 

"Okay," Elena said.

 Damon walked away.

Caroline looked at Elena. "Okay, you go home, I'm gonna start asking around here." 

"Maybe Damon's right," Elena told us. "Maybe he grabbed a bottle from the bar and snuck off to the woods." 

"No, Damon is never right," Caroline told her. "Damon is sneaky and manipulative and rude, but he's never right. How can you not see that?" 

I looked at Elena. "Actually, I need to talk to you."

"Does it have to be now?" Elena asked.

"Yes, now, especially after what Stefan told me this morning," I told her.

Elena walked away from Caroline. I followed her.

Elena turned to me. "Stefan told you about our break up."

"Yeah, he did, and I'm guessing it has something to do with Damon," I told her.

"It has everything to do with Damon," Elena answered.

I scoffed, looking away, looking at her. "Do you have any idea of the hell that you've been putting them through by doing this."

"No, I don't know, but why do I think that you won't hesitate to tell me?" Elena asked.

"You've been stringing both of my brothers on for over a year now, and it's already got them to the point where they will kill each other for you," I told her. "And it's gotten worse since you've become a vampire. Damon was ready to rip Stefan's heart out." Elena raised her eyebrows at me. Klaus walked over, standing next to me. "If that does indeed happen, then I won't just warn you about killing you, and keeping my promise that I made. I will kill you. Do you understand?" 

"Easy, love," Klaus told me.

"You only care about her because you want her human so you can make hybrids," I replied.

Klaus didn't deny the truth.

"Wow, Kaylin, thank you for making this very difficult time so much easier," Elena told me sarcastically, walking away.

Klaus turned toward me with a look.

"Don't look at me like that," I told her. "Damon was going to kill Stefan while Stefan had me pinned against the wall. If one of my brothers die because of her, or both, I will do what I said."

"I know you would," Klaus told me. 

"Would you blame me if I did?" I asked.

"If hybrids were not an issue?" Klaus asked. "Not in the least." 

"I'm better at being the bad guy anyway," I told him.

"Kaylin, you're one of the best vampires I've met," Klaus told me. I raised my eyebrows at him. "Granted, there were moments cringe worthy." I nodded. He held his arm toward me. "Let's get you a drink. I'll tell you all about being the big bad." 

****

Klaus and I were walking next to the pond. Klaus was carrying two glasses and a bottle of champagne.

"It's just, as their sister, I feel like I have to do something to make sure that they don't kill each other," I told him. "She was with Stefan, and now she's taking Damon's side on everything." 

"So, being a vampire's changed her?" Klaus asked.

"But being a vampire only amplifies who you already are," I told him. "It doesn't turn you into a completely different person." 

Klaus smirked, looking as if he knew something I didn't. "It's very peculiar."

"What's that look for?" I asked. 

"It'll all make sense eventually," Klaus told me.

"Whatever," I told him. "Just hurry up and find the Cure." 

I sat down on a stone bench by the pond. 

Klaus placed the champagne down next to me, looking at me. "I'm working on it." 

Klaus sat next to me, starting to open the champagne bottle.

"Would you ever take it?" I asked.

"Now, why would I want to Cure myself of being the most powerful creature on the planet?" Klaus asked. "Hmm?"

"So there's not one single moment in your whole life that you wanted to be human?" I asked skeptically.

Klaus looked at me, popping the cork off the champagne bottle, avoiding the question. "How about you?" 

I took a wine glass, holding it toward him. "Like I said, you suck at avoiding a topic." Klaus smiled. I looked toward the girls in the dresses, sighing. "Back when I was human, I was supposed to be in this pageant 146 years ago." Klaus looked at me. "Then I died before I could actually do it. My dad told me that if I was going to look like my grandmother, I might as well have acted like her, and my grandma only wanted one thing for me. To be one of those girls who wanted nothing more than a life like this." 

"Life used to be a lot easier," Klaus agreed, standing, pulling a piece of paper out from inside his jacket. "Don't you miss the days of being. . ." He opened the paper and started to read. "'Horsekeeper for the underprivileged' and the 'Reader to the blind'." 

I looked up in shock. "Is that my Miss Mystic application?" I stood, hitting the paper out of his hands. "Where did you get that? That should've burned!" 

Klaus laughed, catching the paper, continuing to read. "'When I am chosen, I intend to redefine excellence.'" I ran my hand through my hair in frustration, embarrassed for him to know about the time when I had been a naive human. "Now, I'm really enjoying your use of 'when' here. It's very confident." I looked at him, nodding, laughing sarcastically. "'And above all, I promise to aspire, inspire, and perspire . . .'" I didn't like this form of torment, though I was barely able to stop myself from laughing with him. Klaus couldn't stop laughing. "Obviously, we found a shortage of words ending in 'spire'." 

I tried to grab the paper out of his hands. "Yeah, it's very funny. I was a 16 year old human in 1864."

Klaus pulled the paper out of my reach. "Then why does it bother you so much?" 

"It's hilarious," I told him sarcastically. Klaus held the paper out behind him, away from me, looking at me with an expression that clearly said, try and take it from me. I stopped trying, barely able to stop from smiling, laughing. Klaus laughed. "Seriously, how did you get that?"

"After our departure in the '20s, I couldn't rid myself of you completely," Klaus told me. "It might have slipped your mind, but I do like to have keepsakes."

I looked at him in realization. "You came to Mystic Falls after you left to get that. I'm guessing it was in the town archives." Klaus nodded. "And you kept it with you this entire time." Klaus shrugged slightly, looking a little sheepish and embarrassed, but not ashamed. "I'm not sure if that's a little creepy or incredibly sweet."

We smiled.

I didn't even bother trying to hide the fact that I was being drawn in like I normally did, which only seemed to please Klaus more. We both sat down again.

 "Though I know you're not the girl you once were way back then, it's still interesting to see every aspect there is of you," Klaus told me. 

I looked at him, shaking my head. "You still suck."

We looked at each other, smiling.

****

Carol, Caroline and Elena were standing on the stage with the other girls. Caroline was holding an envelope. Elena was holding a cushion with a tiara and a sash.  

"And now, the moment you've been waiting for," Carol told us through the mic. "Caroline, would you do the honors?"

Caroline walked up to the mic. "This year's Miss Mystic Falls is . . ." She opened the envelope. "April Young." 

Everyone applauded.

April smiled, looking as if she was about to cry. 

Caroline took the tiara off the cushion Elena was holding, walking over to April.

Elena looked out into the crowd. "Jeremy." 

Caroline placed the tiara on April's head. 

Elena handed Carol te sash and cushion, quickly walking off the stage. 

****

Later, Klaus turned to face me. "I never answered your question. If I ever thought about being human. Once, I was on a trek in the Andies, 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."

"You ever gonna tell me what you've been doing with Stefan?" I asked.

Klaus sighed, nodding. "I have been using him to further Jeremy's mark."

"By making him kill vampires?" I asked.

Klaus nodded. "Once you knew, I knew you'd be angry."

"And that's why you waited until after this to tell me," I finished. "Well, I'm about as angry at Stefan for letting you use him as I am at you for using him." 

I looked down, turning forward, sighing, starting to walk forward again.

Klaus smiled, following me. 

****

Elena moved into our house because Jeremy had tried to kill her.

Stefan went to Caroline's house.

I walked in, rushing toward him, pushing him against a wall. "You let Klaus manipulate you into making Jeremy kill vampires, only to find out, the more he kills, the more he wants to kill, including killing his own sister, and all for some stupid Cure?" 

Stefan sighed. "If you already know everything, why are you?" 

"Because I have a feeling that if I'm in the house with Damon and Elena, I'll end up killing one or both of them," I answered, letting Stefan go, turning toward Caroline.

"Well, let's take shots to take the edge off," Caroline told us awkwardly. 

"Okay, I can deal with some shots," I told them. 

Stefan sat down, pouring a shot for all of us. "Elena's right. I just--I need to let go."

"No, you're right, Stefan," Caroline told him. "It's not pretty and it's not easy, but you can't give up on her." 

"Caroline, she looked me in the eye and she told me to move on," Stefan told her. 

"She's lost," Caroline told her. "Okay, you and her, epic. Her and Damon, ugh, God. There's something wrong with her. Just promise me you won't stop looking for the Cure." 

"Klaus won't let him even if he wanted to," I told them, drinking my shot, placing it down, pouring another one.

"Why does he care?" Caroline asked. "He doesn't even want it." 

"He wants to keep Elena human so that he can make more hybrids," I answered.

Caroline sat back into her chair and relaxed. "He's gonna need them. Tyler's almost got all of them unsired." 

Sired . . . 

Elena had changed completely since she had turned, and Damon's blood turned her, he was the reason she was a vampire, she agreed with everything he said. . . 

Just like Klaus and his hybrids.

Klaus had said that I would get it. 

"Oh, my God," I said. Stefan and Caroline looked at me, confused. "Oh. My. God." 

Stefan gestured for me to tell them what I was talking about.

****

I stood, still shocked. "I was trying to understand why Klaus was so intrigued by Damon and Elena. He said I would figure it out. This is what he was talking about." 

"What are you talking about?" Caroline asked.

"Think about it," I told them. "Every time Elena's had a problem, Damon's been the magic solution." 

****

I pointed at Caroline. "Today, Elena was worried about Jeremy. Who swoops in and tells her to relax? Damon. And she listens." Stefan and Caroline were still confused. "When Elena started feeding, who said that she could only drink blood straight from the vein?" 

Stefan seemed to be realizing what I was getting at. "Damon." 

****

"And when she tried to drink from animals?" I asked.

"She couldn't keep it down," Caroline answered.

"And blood bags?" I asked.

"Same thing," Stefan said.

****

"Name one vampire in the history of vampires who couldn't drink blood from a blood bag," I told them. "Damon said she couldn't, so she couldn't."

****

"Damon likes the red dress," Caroline added. "Elena likes the red dress."

"Damon says 'Kill Connor', and she kills Connor," Stefan added.

"What if it's possible?" I asked. "Damon's blood made her a vampire, right?" Stefan looked at me. "It's rare, but it happens. What if this is one of those times?" I sat down. "What if this is really happening?" 

****

Stefan leaned forward. "Elena's sired to Damon."