#dissolvedshadows:caleb

            ❛ Then I guess I’m not the only one in need of a babysitter. ❜    She had not forgotten his response the last time she’d gotten herself into trouble, though in her defense, her definition of trouble involved flour all over the kitchen floor, not anything actually resembling Trouble with a capital T. The words slipped across her tongue before she could restrain them or mitigate them. Lessen any bitterness, soften the tone to make it more teasing and less accusatory. 

            The first of his statements no longer surprised her; she’d reconciled herself to both his and Ana’s general disconnect from the world around them. Her grudging acceptance did not lead her any closer to understanding, but she’d ceased to wage war against their determination not to care. The second statement, however, stung, and so she deflected, buying herself time.    ❛ You don’t, huh? ❜   

            ❛ Precisely. ❜    It had worked less well over the centuries than Klaus cared to admit. It seemed that at every turned he managed to allow himself the disappointment he sought to avoid --- even while thoroughly believing that there was not a single person upon this earth whose loyalty would prove unshakeable. 

            It did not matter whether he expected Rebekah’s eye to be claimed by yet another foolish young man doomed to break her heart. He still felt the pain of the betrayal when she chose another over him. It did not matter whether he expected Elijah to forsake him; when their arguments boiled over into a decades-long estrangement; he still felt the absence just as keenly. It did not matter whether he had awaited the turning point, the moment when their acquaintanceship turned sour; when she left New Orleans and saddled him with the idiot she termed her ‘replacement,’ he was no the less bitter for the expectation. 

           There seemed to be little enough on which Klaus and Caleb agreed. This particular matter, however, Klaus could certainly not contest.     ❛ I’m glad we’re agreed, then. ❜    It would make the following hours --- Klaus refused to concede that it might stretch beyond the afternoon --- less aggravating. It did not mean he was willing to forgive Caleb in the slightest for the present situation, for Ana’s unexplainable absence.     

            Left all alone, she found nothing but peace in the bustle about her. It all melded together, the rolling of strollers along the pavement, the calm conversations of adults ( sometimes verging into stern reprimands for their wayward charges ), the delighted laughs of children and excited cries of ‘Mommy, look here!’ Not far from her, two siblings bickered over the koalas before them, attempting to determine just which of the named koalas listed upon the information cards rested on display within the enclosure. 

            Though Caleb had disappeared without warning or explanation, Aline remained untroubled. He’d come back, likely with some excited story about whatever had drawn him away. For now, she was happy to sit in the sun, drawing no attention from passersby, scarred eyes concealed behind sunglasses, hands folded upon the purse in her lap. 

            His eyes were still amber when he turns to consider the Caleb, and dark veins still ran beneath his eyes. Perhaps he had strayed beyond the realms of the necessary ( the blood upon his chin and staining his hands offered ample evidence ), but Caleb ought to have known what he was getting himself into. It was not, after all, as though Klaus was known for his moderation, nor for self-control, nor for the patience to handle idiots who got into his way. 

            Caleb was only lucky that Ana’s wishes continued to ensure his safety.

            ❛ You asked for my help. Or don’t you recall? ❜    And helping he was. He might neglect to follow Caleb’s lead in their venture, but their progress had been all too slow, and his patience had long since disintegrated. If finding Ana required tearing through New Orleans, then tear through New Orleans he would.    ❛ We were going to get nothing from them, save wasted time. Now, that’s no longer a problem. ❜

            The individuals in question had been stubborn, obstinate in having nothing to do with the whole affair. Klaus did not care whether or not they spoke the truth. When the third had still offered nothing useful after the first two lay in bloody shreds upon the ground, Klaus decreed that he was no longer worth their time, or energy. The man had joined his colleagues in violent death. 

             Aline did not frown. She did not permit herself to, though the temptation nudged at her. She feared it might come across as judgment, and it is not meant so. Confusion might have better described the sentiment.    ❛ Why? ❜    she asked instead, neutrally, as if merely curious.    ❛ Doesn’t that get exhausting? Carrying anger around all the time? ❜