Disclaimer: I in no way, shape, or form own anything involving The Vampire Diaries.

Rebekah knows where Elijah will be and goes to him at vampire speed. He will not be happy with her, but he needs to know what she's done for him – for all of them.

She arrives at the storage facility where Klaus' remains were kept. Elijah is just getting out of his car. Taking a deep breath, she gathers her courage and follows him inside.

"Elijah," she called to him just before he reached his destination.

He turned around to face her, confusion filling his face. "What are you doing here? I thought we agreed to split up to make it harder for Alaric to find us."

"We don't have to run anymore, Elijah. We don't ever need to be apart again. Our remaining family can be together always and forever, just as Nic wanted." She wasn't sure whether or not she wanted him to realize what her words meant.

Apparently, he didn't as he features softened toward her. "Rebekah, as much as I want that to happen, it cannot. Not now, at least."

She sighed, hoping he would still want that once she revealed what she'd done. She prayed to any deity that would listen to a vampire that Elijah would forgive her. "The hunter is dead, Elijah. He won't ever come after us again. I made sure of it."

Once more confusion filled his face, tinted with annoyance. "You couldn't kill him, Rebekah. None of us can kill him, mother made certain of that. The only way he dies is if Elena…" he trailed off. His expression changed rapidly from confusion to realization and horror.

In a flash, Elijah had Rebekah pinned to a wall by her throat. The wall behind, between two of the storage lockers, cracked from the force of her body's impact. She had never before been afraid of her brother, but she was now.

"What did you do, Rebekah?"

She shuddered at the inflection in his voice. She'd heard it before. Never had it been directed at her, that deadly, cold tone. It was reserved for his enemies just before he killed them. She panicked, tears filling her eyes as her heart began to pound in her chest. She had to explain herself quickly.

"Elijah, please, I had to! I can't stand the thought of losing you or Kol! We've already lost Finn and Nicklaus; I can't lose you, too!" She began to sob, her fears for her brothers' lives, her grief for those she lost, crashed into her with more force than she could handle.

The sight of her tears, her sobs, and her words brought him back from the rage and grief that had threatened to consume him seconds before. He released her and pulled her to his chest, stroking her hair. His own tears clouded his vision as he looked over her head while she clung to him. After everything he had done to ensure the safety of his family, after what he had done to Elena, how could he fault Rebekah for trying to protect the last of them? She was a younger sibling, following the example of her older brother.

Guilt began to eat at him, threatening to break him further, but he pushed it back. He needed to be strong for Rebekah and Kol. But first, he needed to know how Elena had died and he knew he would need control when Rebekah told him. He didn't want to hurt her, though he knew that might change when she confessed her actions.

Once he felt he could handle whatever she said, he pushed her back and took a step away. Her eyes were puffy and red, cheeks tear stained. It tugged at his heart to see her in so much pain, but his resolve didn't waver.

"What happened, Rebekah?"

She looked into his eyes before looking down at the floor. He steeled himself for her response. If she couldn't meet his gaze, whatever she had done was going to be hard to hear.

"As you know, Jeremy and Matt had gotten Elena out of town. She was heading back with Matt. I was filled with anger and pain and I blamed her. If she had died with her parents, then none of this would have ever happened." She paused and took a deep breath. Rebekah dared a look up at Elijah to see his jaw tense at what she said. She hurried on before her courage ran out. "I stood on Wickery Bridge and called Stefan when I heard Matt's truck getting close. I told him that because Nic was dead, the deal you made was off. I told him I didn't want to run anymore. He knew what I was planning on doing. I hung up on him as the truck started onto the bridge and stepped in front of it. Matt swerved to avoid hitting me and his truck went into the lake." She looked back up at Elijah. His eyes were filled with betrayal and pain.

Elijah closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. His sister had killed Elena the same way she'd almost died before. He knew she still had nightmares of drowning. He'd heard them when he was keeping watch over her before the sacrifice. He never let her know he was there, but had longed to comfort her when she woke up crying. He'd known that, regardless of how he felt about her, she didn't feel the same and would not have welcomed comfort from him. Rather, she would have been embarrassed and incensed that he'd dared to come close enough to see her at her weakest.

Suddenly a thought occurred to him. A spark of hope lit in his chest. "You called Stefan?" She nodded. "Then perhaps he saved her."

Rebekah slowly shook her head no. "He did arrive quite fast, but it wasn't Elena he pulled up first. It was Matt. By the time he made sure Matt was breathing and going to live and went back in to get Elena, it was too late."

Elijah closed his eyes again. Of course Elena would tell Stefan to save her friend before herself. For the first time, he wished Damon had been with her instead of Stefan. Damon wouldn't have cared what she wanted and would have saved her, kicking, screaming, and hating him, but she'd be alive. As quickly as he wished it, he dismissed the thought. Elena was very strong, but he wasn't sure if she would survive the loss of another friend.

Rebekah's heart broke for her brother and fresh tears filled her eyes. She knew he had feelings for the doppelganger, but she hadn't realized how strong they were until today. She cautiously raised a comforting hand to his arm. His eyes snapped open to look at her. "Stefan had called for emergency help before, or as, he came to help. They arrived soon after he did. They took her body to the morgue at the hospital in Mystic Falls. I can get Nic's coffin if you want to go and tell her goodbye."

Elijah nodded. "First I want to see if Alaric died here or elsewhere. We still need that stake."

He abruptly turned and walked back to the room where Klaus' casket remained. He saw the hunter laid out on the floor, covered in grey skin and veins. Most definitely dead and the final glimmer of his hope died. Pain, grief, and guilt filled him, but once again, he pushed it back. He could feel all of it later, when alone with her body. Right now, he had to ensure that her sacrifice was not in vain.

He walked quickly to Alaric, knelt down beside him and searched him. The stake was no longer there. He and Rebekah quickly searched the room to no avail.

"Damon must have taken it after Alaric died." Rebekah looked at Elijah with fear.

"Yes, he would have known that Elena was dead when Alaric died. I'm sure he took it to kill us and avenge her."

The gull of the young vampire never ceased to amaze him. He had to know that he would not be able to kill any of them and would die in the attempt. But he also knew that Damon was in as much pain as he was and that he tended to do very stupid things when upset. He had no doubt that, as ill-advised as it may be, Damon would try to attack one of them.

"Rebekah, get Klaus somewhere safe. I'm going to get the stake back and pay my respects to Elena." His voice betrayed him more than he would have liked as he spoke her name, but his sister didn't seem to notice.

"Please be careful, Elijah, promise me!" She grabbed him and looked into his eyes with tears and desperation in hers.

"I will be careful, I promise." She looked relieved and went to walk away, back toward the casket. "Rebekah," he called after her. She froze and turned back to face him. "Though I do understand why you did what you did, it may be some time before I can forgive you for it. Not only did you kill her in a way that has haunted her, but you broke my word to her. After all that Elena and I have done to each other for our families, she still found it in herself to trust me and you betrayed us both. You may not have cared about her word, but you should have respected mine."

With those parting words, Elijah was gone. Rebekah walked over to Klaus' coffin and collapsed next to it and let her tears once again flow free.