As the bright light once again transported Klaus away from the Hotel, he found himself back on the beach. But instead of a path and mausoleum waiting for him, he instead found a long, white-clothed table. A woman with jet black hair dressed in white sat there waiting for him. "Hey... I know you!" Klaus said as he approached her end of the table. "Of course you do, I'm your mother," she smiled. As the junkie approached the empty wooden chair, he looked down at the white bowl, a few clouds of steam coming from it.

"Is that Menudo?" he questioned. His mother nodded, and Klaus's grin widened even further. He dipped his spoon into the bowl, slurping at the meal with delight. "So, how can you be my mom if you died before I was born?" He asked, wiping the corner of his mouth with a napkin. "How have you died 56 times and come back to life?" She inquired. Klaus claimed that was a trick question and that he didn't even know he could come back to life.

"Well, what did you think you were doing?" His mother looked at him confused. "I just thought I was one of those lovable rascally Looney Tunes characters. Hit me on the head with a hammer, and I see some cartoon birds. And then, pop! I get back up!" He explained. His mother looked down at her bowl of Menudo, still confused by his explanation. "What's a cartoon?" She asked. Oh right, she's Amish and they don't know about that!  "I'm kidding!" she chuckled, taking his hand. "We have all the channels here. But mostly, I watch you,"

Klaus's heart warmed up, but as the thought of his mother seeing him do things that weren't so good, he felt awkward. "Even the naughty bits?" He questioned. But his mother continued, claiming she saw him mourning her, and she claimed he didn't need to, that she was at peace. "Bah! Peace is overrated!" He slightly smiled. "And chaos is exhausting," She added. "Only for amateurs. I'm a professional, mom! Just tell me. Tell me who killed you," He begged, squeezing her hand.

But she just gazed into her son's eyes, telling him that he wasn't looking for vengeance but purpose and that she couldn't give him that. "Are you sure? I'm new to this whole mom thing, but aren't you supposed to help me, your son?" he dragged out, but she could only laugh. "All this time and energy running away from the exact thing you're chasing. No wonder you can't see what's right in front of you," 

Klaus looked down at his bowl of Menudo, the meat inside grouping together to form the shape of a White Buffalo. And as the painting of it appeared in his mind, he realized all these White Buffalo signs kept leading him back to the Academy, back to Reginald. Perhaps with his help, he could find his true purpose. 

...I have to get back!

~~~~~~~

"Dusk, come on. You have to let him go now," Diego whispered. But the raven shook her head furiously, her grip on her love's lifeless body becoming tighter and tighter. "Not yet..." She whispered, softly stroking his cheek with the back of her bloodied hand. "I can't lose you, Klaus. You're my whole world, and without you, all I see is darkness," Diego had been trying to pry her off of him for about an hour, but no matter what he did, she wouldn't budge.

He tried to grab her hand and pull her, try to talk her into giving him up, or goddamn carry her. But she insisted she wouldn't leave him. "Well, we're screwed. We can't even wrap him up in the carpet if she stays," Diego muttered. "We need some help." Stanley's eyes widened at the thought of anybody else finding out about this, but after seeing the trusting look in his dad's eyes, he knew he had to listen to him.

"I'm grabbing Aunt Vic. I think they're good friends," He volunteered, running back down the hall to his aunt's room, knocking on the door. After a few seconds, the door slowly opened, and the redhead poked her head out. "Hey... Stan, what's going on? You look upset. If someone hurt you, I'll kill them with my bare hands," She swore. "I need you to come with me. It's Aunt Dusk," He responded. The thought of her best friend being in trouble made her quickly grab her bo staff, just in case.

But as Stanley led her to the suite, she put the staff away and crouched next to her friend. "Oh my god... what happened?" She looked at Diego. He briefly explained the situation and the plan to wrap Klaus in the carpet to conceal the body. "But Dusk won't move. She's practically attached to his hip," He finished. The redhead put a hand on the raven's shoulder, making her look up. Her face was completely red, her mascara left dark gray lines trailing down her cheeks and onto her neck. Her lips were chapped and dry from all the sobbing, and her voice was on the verge of giving out.

"I'm sorry, Dusk. I truly am. Even though we never talked, I know Klaus loved you very much, and even in death, he still does," Victoria whispered. "I just wish things didn't have to turn out this way. I thought we'd be together forever, you know?" The raven sniffed. Victoria nodded, soothingly rubbing her shoulder. "If he can't be with you physically, he'll still there for you in spirit. Just remember he'll always be right here," The redhead pointed a finger to Dusk's chest, right above where her heart was slowly breaking piece by piece. "But you have to let him go now,"

Dusk knew her best friend was right. As much as she wanted to stay with his body, there came a time when everyone had to say goodbye eventually. She slowly nodded, glancing at her junkie's body one last time. "I will love you forever..." She whispered before pressing one final kiss to his lips. Victoria helped her stand up as Diego and Stanley approached the carpet, beginning to fold it up.

As painful as it was, Dusk knew this was how it had to be. "Vic, help me tie the rope around this thing," Diego called out. The redhead looked towards her friend, unsure about leaving Dusk by her lonesome. "Will you be okay?" She questioned. "Y-yeah..." Dusk nodded. When the process was all done, Stanley, Diego, and Victoria helped stand the bundle up, carrying it out of the room while Dusk followed close behind, keeping an eye out for any guests or hotel staff.

"Elevator should be just around the corner," Diego whispered, pushing the rug against the wall. "You sure we can't just torch the evidence? A couple flames from Mr. Burns over here," Stanley questioned, flickering with his lighter. The Kraken snatched the lighter from the boy's hand, and Victoria was quick to hold the rug in place, glaring at Diego. "We're not burning anything. We're gonna talk to the family together. Hopefully, they'll understand it was an accident,"

Stanley looked down at the ground, the hint of nervousness still lingering inside him. "Stan, no matter what happens, I've got your back. Tu ya eres mi sangre," Diego assured. The teen just looked at him confused. "I still don't speak Spanish," he shook his head. Diego tossed him back the lighter, telling him that he accepted him for his flaws. Strangely, it seemed the accidental death of Klaus made them bond a little.

Dusk pushed the button on the elevator, waiting for it to open. As a slight creak came from it, she jumped when she saw Chet was in there, walking past her to see the wadded-up carpet. The four of them glanced amongst themselves, wondering who was gonna give a plausible cover story. The last thing they needed was the cops to be involved. "We're uh, playing a game," Victoria eventually spoke up. "What's it called?" Chet inquired. "Guy in a Carpet," Chet seemed to buy it, hoping they won.

They piled into the elevator, shoving the carpet into one of the corners and pressing the button to the ground level. It was silent as the elevator began whirring, and they all looked at one another, bracing for the family's reaction. Suddenly, a loud gasp came from the carpet, making them all jump back to see Klaus's body shaking inside the carpet, his eyes rolling into the back of his head.

"You told me he was dead, puta!" Stanley shrieked. "He was, and now you speak Spanish?!" Diego shouted. "He speaks bits and pieces! I gave him some lessons!" Victoria briefly explained as the carpet fell towards the bunch. The rope holding the bundle became loose, letting the junkie have a little wiggle room. "Let's just turn down the volume a smidge, shall we? Celestial comedown is a bitch!" He groaned, his head throbbing like mad. As Klaus slid down on the floor, Dusk crouched down with a relieved look but also one of worry. "You scared the living shit out of me, Klaus! I thought you were dead!" She sobbed, but this time with tears of joy.

"Y-yeah, me too..." He breathed rapidly before laughing manically, further freaking out the rest of the elevator's occupants. As the elevator door opened, Klaus shakily stood up and walked out, the raven following close behind, still in shock. "Hon, slow down. You were dead like three minutes ago. I felt you die in my arms!" Dusk cautioned. "Well, I'm back now, sweetheart. Apparently, it's a thing I do. Who knew, right?"

What thing? What is he talking about? "And check this out..." Klaus ripped open his shirt, showing them the harpoon wound that was slowly starting to heal. As much as it relieved her that Klaus was still alive, Dusk couldn't look at that. "What would happen if we cut off your head? Would it grow two of you?" Stanley asked. "Don't you dare get any bright ideas!" Dusk warned.

Klaus shrugged it off before walking towards the bar where the rest of the family was sitting, in desperate need to indulge himself. But as she followed him, Dusk saw Victoria out of the corner of her eye, looking both shocked and angry. Her gaze was directly looking at the family, but one person in particular... Five.

"Oh hell no..." The redhead growled.