Disclaimer: The Vampire Diaries is the property of the CW. No copyright infringement is intended.
~ X ~
Klaus, arm resting on the window sill, hand cradling his forehead, was roused from his inward contemplation to an awareness of the present by the slowing of the car. It came to a stop in the middle of the road facing a sign that read 'Welcome to Mystic Falls'.
He started and then looked over at his brother. "Why are you stopping?"
"Can't you feel it?" Elijah asked, leaning forward hands gripping the steering wheel. He shifted the car into park, indifferent to the fact that he blocked the lane.
"Feel what?" Klaus shifted in his seat, looking from side to side trying to determine what he had missed.
"All the memories," Elijah not quite whispered. "I've lived in so many places . . . loved some of them . . . hated some of them . . . indifferent to most of them. But none have ever had the power to dredge up old thoughts like this place. Recollections I've suppressed or long forgotten. Things I treasured. . . things I can't bury deep enough."
He looked around puzzled, eyes searching the woods on both sides of the road. "The trees aren't the same as when we lived here. Is it in the soil? Or the air? Or the bones buried in the ground?" He shook his head as if trying to clear it. "I don't know why but no other place on earth makes me feel so old." He hesitated. "Or so insignificant."
Klaus reached a hand out across the seat, resting it on Elijah's impeccably suited shoulder. A brief comforting grip and then, grim faced, he confided, "I know. I hoped never to come back to this cursed town. This hell on earth. This place they lived."
Elijah knew without asking that 'they' were their mother and father.
Klaus shuddered suddenly. "Let's get this over with."
Elijah did not immediately put the car in gear. "Do you think we can pull this off?"
Klaus's eyes turned hard, and he pounded a fist on the dashboard. "We have to. Davina is giving Marcel an edge that we can't match unless this works."
Elijah turned his head to meet and hold Klaus's gaze. "There's enough power here, but can we control it, or will it turn against us and destroy us? The last time we pulled this much power it didn't go well."
Klaus dimpled. "I'm willing to bet it all. I don't like losing." He gave his brother a gentle punch on the shoulder. "Have faith in me and my charms."
Elijah smiled briefly and then nodded, knowing his younger brother all too well. "But there are others beside yourself to think of," he reminded him.
Klaus knew he referred to his unborn child and knowing his susceptible brother, probably the mother Haley. Klaus, lips compressed in a thin line, looked straight ahead. "This will allow me to guarantee their safety."
Elijah sighed and shifted the car into drive. He realized that Klaus would not budge on this. A restless movement in the back seat prompted Klaus to twist his neck around and ask a tall lovely dark haired woman, "Everything okay back there, luv?"
"Yes," Lucy Bennett responded. She was wide eyed but had made no move to escape while the car was not moving.
"Not much longer love," Klaus reassured her. Klaus settled back in the comfortable leather seat, running through the preparations in his mind.
Eventually Elijah pulled over to the side of the road, half in the breakdown lane and half on a grassy area bordering woods. The brothers didn't need to talk. Klaus opened the door and ordered Lucy up front into the passenger seat. His pupils dilated. "If anyone stops, you're with your boyfriend, and he had to stop in the woods to take a leak. He'll be right back. You do not leave the car. You do not ask for help."
She nodded and got in. He closed the door before joining his brother on the outskirts of the woods.
They sped through the trees at vampire speed. So adept were they that they did not disturb the piles of fallen leaves and skirted the low hanging branches without leaving a tell tale swish. They stopped only when they reached the back of the Salvatore boarding house. Keen ears distinguished the sounds of three occupants. Two were the ones they sought.
Elijah whispered in an ancient tongue, the sound similar to the rustle of a breeze through leaves. "I'll take care of Damon."
Klaus nodded. Elijah opened an unlocked back window and stuck his hand through. When he was not blocked they both climbed in. In the old language Elijah criticized, "Young vampires are so ridiculously complacent. You'd think they would deed the house to a human to somewhat protect themselves. So careless."
Klaus's eyebrows rose. "Since when have the Salvatore brothers ever done anything even remotely intelligent?"
Elijah smiled for the first time. "So true."
As one they turned and whooshed into the huge front parlor stretching the length of most of the house. They found Damon and Elena cuddling on one of the long overstuffed sofas. Stefan stood next to the main fireplace gazing into the empty hearth, one hand resting on the mantel piece. So fast were the Originals that the knowledge of the attack never registered on the three vampires' faces. Elijah broke both Damon's and Elena's neck at the same time. He left her sprawled on the sofa while he grabbed Damon by an arm, dragging him off the sofa and down the paneled hallway. He remembered the location of the door leading to the basement and callously dragged the vampire, head bouncing on each step until he came to the cellar dungeon. Elijah threw him in, slamming the heavy oaken metal bound door. It shut with a satisfying clunk. He tested the strength of the door with a hand and nodded satisfied before shooting the bolt. As he started to leave, he noticed an iron bar leaning in a corner. He picked it up and bent it around the door grill and the side frame. Only supernatural strength would be capable of removing it.
He whooshed upstairs to find Klaus leisurely pouring himself a glass of Damon's finest brandy. The hybrid poured a second glass and pushed it towards his brother.
Stefan lay on the floor, the angle of his neck indicating the reason for his unnatural stillness.
Elijah took the brandy glass, swirling it and sniffing. "Whatever you want to say about Damon his taste in liquor is impeccable."
Klaus lifted his glass in silent acknowledgement before draining it. "Is Damon tucked away?"
"In the same cell he put me in." Elijah made no attempt to hide his satisfaction. "I doubt if anyone will find him for awhile, and he won't get out on his own."
"Revenge brother?" Klaus made a show of quizzing him.
"Revenge," Elijah confirmed. He looked around while he drank his brandy. "The rugs here are exquisite."
Klaus nodded and pointed to the walls. "I particularly like the paneling." He frowned considering. "I thought about doing something similar, but it really wouldn't work in New Orleans. Too heavy for the décor."
Elijah stood back, considering, and then nodded. "I agree." He looked again and then added, "Shame really."
Klaus poured himself another measure, smacking his lips over the taste. They finished their drinks and then each one hoisted a vampire over their shoulder. They sped back to the car where they dumped Stefan in the trunk. There was a huge duffel sack in the back taking up the rest of the room. Klaus's brow wrinkled as he looked at it. "Did you pack the kitchen sink?" he chided Elijah.
"Best to be prepared," was the acerbic response. "I don't like winging it."
Klaus carelessly thrust Elena into the back seat and then climbed in after her. He allowed Lucy to stay seated in the shotgun seat.
Elijah carefully adjusted his suit pants before sitting in the driver's seat and starting the car.
Klaus rolled his eyes. "Really? I don't think a suit is the proper attire for where we're going."
Elijah, long inured to Klaus's taunting, paid absolutely no attention. He made a neat u turn and drove to a place he would never forget. It had taken a great deal of maneuvering and lying to find it. Night had fallen when they pulled up at the old abandoned house. Klaus politely opened the door for Lucy, helping her out of the car. She made no effort to run, even though her eyes were frantic.
Klaus smiled. "See Elijah, witches aren't so bad when they're not on vervain."
Elijah smiled back, shaking his head ruefully. "I've always like witches. Mother was one, don't forget."
Klaus's eyes turned murderous, his good mood ruined. "No, I never forget."
Elijah popped the trunk, pulling out Stefan and dumping him, before carefully removing the full duffel bag. Klaus opened the back seat door and dragged Elena out to rest on the ground. Klaus casually kicked the two vampires awake. Stefan clumsily got to his feet, moving his neck stiffly. Klaus cupped his chin, dilating his pupils. "You will do what I say. You will not run." He waited until Stefan nodded before releasing him.
Elena slowly got to her feet, looking around distrustfully, unable to suppress a moan when she recognized where they were. Elijah politely brushed the dirt from the ground off her clothes.
Elena implored. "Elijah, what's going on?" She instinctively turned to the brother who had shown sympathy for her in the past. She feared and distrusted Klaus. "Where's Damon? Is he okay?"
"Damon is alive but back at the Salvatore house." He grabbed her by both shoulders and compelled. "You will do what we say. You will not try to escape."
No sooner had he released her then Klaus pushed her hard in the back indicating she should move. The hybrid grabbed Stefan by the collar of his sweatshirt, unceremoniously dragging him along not caring if he stumbled. His iron grip did not allow the vampire to fall.
They pushed through the woods towards the house. Elijah carefully held branches aside for Lucy. The wind stirred, picking up as if it recognized and resented the intrusion of the vampires on its grounds. The blood moon had not yet completely risen, but it seemed to embrace the dilapidated wooden building.
The closer they moved to the house the fiercer the wind howled. When they reached the doorstep Klaus pulled Lucy forward, shouting, "She is a Bennett. She has the right to enter."
The moaning and creaking gradually died down, and he crossed the threshold with Lucy, dragging Stefan behind him. Elijah followed, his hand firmly gripping Elena's upper arm.
Elena kept looking from side to side. The air was heavy and oppressive as if the house disapproved of them. She knew as a vampire that she didn't need to breathe, but it didn't stop her from feeling stifled, as if the house denied her the right to be here. She looked over at Stefan, and he was reacting the same way she was. He caught her looking at him and briefly smiled trying to reassure her. They both jumped when they heard moans and shrieks. They stood back to back trying to pinpoint the sounds, but they couldn't.
Lucy and the Originals did not seem to be affected the way they were. Klaus impatiently pushed them along. Elijah led the way through several rooms. Both she and Stefan knew the route; knew where they would end up.
As they moved through the house, they passed through alternating patches of darkness broken by moonlight peeking in through holes punched in the walls and roof. Broken window panes did funny things to the red tinged moonlight shining through them, throwing distorted shadows. As both vampires feared Elijah headed towards a doorway where the stairs lead down into the basement. Elijah wrapped an arm around Lucy easily carrying her down the stairs along with the duffel bag. The vampires did not need light to see, but she would have come to grief on the rotten stair boards.
When they reached the basement, he put her down on the dusty floor.
Klaus pushed the captive vampires to the side and faced her. "You need light."
Lucy raised her hands and mumbled words under her breath. The hundred candles placed throughout the basement were suddenly lit. It didn't make the basement any less spooky, if anything it was better when it was all dark. Now there were shadows in the corners, shadows that seemed to ebb and flow as if there was something living hiding in them. The air was even more stifling down here. Elena's eyes shifted from side to side. She swore there were whispers in her ears.
You are not wanted.
You do not belong here.
Stefan jumped suddenly, and Elena wondered if heard something too.
Elijah opened the duffel bag and took out two old leather bound books. Klaus busied himself gathering several low metal tables together in a makeshift altar. He upended a wooden crate close to the tables.
Klaus looked over his shoulder as his brother reverently placed the two books on the crate. Elijah, looking up, answered Klaus's unspoken question. "Our mother's and Celeste's."
Klaus smiled. His brother was a careful guardian of all things valuable to their family.
"Are you sure tha—" Elijah did not get to finish his words.
"Before I left Mystic Falls with my little ripper and my family's bodies"—he had the grace to look slightly embarrassed as he took in Elijah's expression—"I made sure I moved them here." He nudged Stefan with his boot. "I made him show me where they were buried. It was what she told me to do if things went wrong." He paused, looking at Elijah under his brows. "And you and Damon made them go so wrong."
Elijah wasn't moved. "If things didn't turn out the way they did, you would have killed your doppelganger and never been able to make hybrids. You should thank me."
Klaus sent a vengeful look at Elena. "Much good that did me."
Elena shivered, fearing the hybrid's temper. Stefan moved in front of her, hoping to deflect his anger. Elena leaned against him taking comfort from his closeness. He wrapped an arm around her.
Klaus's mood abruptly changed, and he cheerfully asked, "Lucy, luv. What do we do?"
Lucy was carefully reading through the grimoire identified as Celeste's. She turned to look at Stefan and Elena huddled together. "Their blood will give me the power to do this."
She pointed. "Bring them to the altar."
Elijah took additional items from the bag while Klaus roughly grabbed them forcing them to their knees next to each other. He looked over at the utensils his brother held and joked, "You packed perfect."
Klaus ripped off Stefan's sweatshirt leaving him bare-chested and then tore off Elena's sleeves.
"Please Elijah. Help us," she begged.
"This is to protect my family, Elena." Elijah was clearly regretful but adamant. "It must be."
Lucy carefully sliced their wrists with an ornate knife. If one looked closely it was the knife used to impale both Klaus and his brother. She handled it carefully, not letting it get away from her. When she slit their wrists she forced metal springs inside to prevent them from healing. She positioned their wrists over a large ornate highly decorated bowl that Elijah had provided. She murmured under her breath as the blood flowed into the bowl.
"What is it with our blood?" Stefan complained trying to make a joke to ease Elena's mind.
Lucy replied as if he had asked a serious question. "Doppelganger blood is very potent. Especially doppelgangers that were born here. It is twice as potent. The Original witch used doppelganger blood to set the spell that enchanted her children. Using this knife and my spells as the blood flows gives it a power that is practically limitless. There is so much magic tied up with your existence."
Klaus added his mite. "And since you're both the last doppelgangers it's even more so."
Elijah simply watched, standing at ease. His immaculate suit, tie and crisp white dress shirt looked out of place in the dank basement. His highly polished shoes seemed immune to the dust that was everywhere. Not a hair was out of place in contrast to the others who all had dirt smudges of some kind.
By now the bowl was filled with their blood. She removed the metal springs holding open the wounds, and they soon healed. Lucy picked up the bowl holding it in the crook of her arm, using a finger and an incantation to swirl patterns of power in the blood. She spoke in a language she did not know. It was as if the ceremony was directing her, not the other way around.
Lucy patted the altar. "Place her bones here and the others on both sides."
Klaus strode over to a crevice hidden by junk and returned carrying three body bags. He carefully placed the smallest dirt smeared bag on the altar and the others on each side pushing Elena and Stefan back from the altar.
She returned to Celeste's grimoire running a finger over the lines on a page. She closed her eyes briefly and then nodded at Klaus who zipped open the body bag. He pushed aside the rotten clothes. What little flesh remained clinging to the bones was dried up. She carefully anointed each bone with the doppelganger blood. She repeated the procedure until all the bones were covered. When she stepped back, Klaus zipped the bag closed.
She placed the bowl of blood on top of the grimoire and stood at the head of the altar. She chanted a ritual over and over again, starting quietly and gradually increasing the volume as she repeated it. The candles burned brighter and higher reaching for the ceiling.
Voice shrieked around them. "No! It is an abomination. Stop this!"
Shadows, some as insubstantial as smoke, others clear enough to see shapes and features circled around the altar protesting. Some battered at Lucy pulling at her hair and buffeting her. Suddenly three shadows emerged. The figure of a young man, still a boy, a mature man, and a young woman just crossing over the gap from girlhood gradually grew clearer. They joined hands around Lucy forming a triangle shape of strength and protection. They joined their voices to Lucy's, chanting the incantation with her, the sounds growing louder and stronger until it rang in the vampire's heads. None of the shadow shapes could now touch Lucy. The keening and wailing in the background was gradually overpowered by the combined voices of the dark shadows and Lucy. As the objections died down, one shadow detached from the triangle to be replaced by Lucy. The shadow, now a black cloud, hovered over the body bag appearing to be sucked inside. When the black cloud disappeared the two other shadows faded until they were no more. Lucy collapsed to the ground drained of all energy.
There was movement on the altar. Without hesitation Klaus stepped up and unzipped the bag.
A young beautiful woman sat up looking around until her eyes landed on Klaus. "Hello, luv."
"Greta, darling. How I've missed you."
