Author's Note:

I'm back! Now that I'm back I've been able to get back to writing. So here's chapter 4 and I hope you guys like it!

~.~.~.~

Elena sniffed, wiping her eyes as she paced around her room while carrying clothes over to a duffel bag. After Elijah revealed that either Bonnie or Abby had to die for Esther to lose the power she was harnessing from them, all of Elena's anger faded away as fear and guilt overwhelmed her senses.

She tried to make her way over to Bonnie's house after searching the witch haunted house was empty. However, at seeing Caroline in her way telling her that Elena is at fault that Abby was killed with vampire blood in her system and Bonnie didn't want to see her.

She let out a small sob as she hurriedly stuffed her clothes and her sense smell caught a familiar scent that didn't stop her actions.

"What do you want now?" Elena looked up with teary eyes at a guilty looking original wearing a suit. "Haven't you got what you wanted?"

"Elena," Elijah began slowly. "Today I did things that I abhor to protect the one thing that I value most. My family. If anyone can understand that, it's you. Your compassion is a gift, Elena. Carry it with you. As I will carry my regret always and forever."

Elena closed her eyes as she tightened her grip on the duffel bag.

"And before I leave, I have one thing to ask of you?" Elijah moved closer to the silent girl. "I assume by what my mother has said to you that you are a part of one of the packs?" Elena looked up in surprise.

"How did you know?" she asked hoarsely.

"As we grew up in the New world, my mother told me and my siblings stories. Stories about men who could change into beasts whenever they wished to and how they are only men. Never a woman could survive the change or inherit the ability to turn into a beast."

"Werewolves," she admitted quietly but Elijah still heard her and nodded his head in agreement.

"Yes," he said, "another line of werewolves who preserves themselves to secrecy greatly as their abilities to change at will risks exposure and danger to the humans."

Elena took a deep breath before turning to fully look at Elijah, who stood in front of her.

"What do you want," she repeated her first question.

"If what my mother said was true, and she indeed had a hand in your survival of the first change, then why are you here? Why aren't you with you're pack? They are your family," Elijah questioned her who sighed in return.

"I know. But I can't go back to being someone who has to kill to protect their secrets. I want a normal life, Elijah," Elena explained, desperately searching his eyes for understanding then looked away with a shake of her head. "But now I can't because it seems that my pack are having troubles with a mutt in the territory and they need me unfortunately." Her eyes suddenly widened as a thought hit her. "Elijah, you can't tell anyone else okay? No one in Mystic Falls knows what I am."

"You wont have to worry about that, Elena." he assured her. "I plan on leaving tonight. But either way, you have my word that I wont tell a soul." Elena let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank you," she spoke softly yet gratefully.

"Although," Elijah started, making Elena tense in anticipation, "I would beware of my other siblings for I'm sure that they will not hold the same courtesy after tonight's events."

Elena growled in frustration, her fist clenching tightly until her knuckles turned white. Once Elijah left she went back to packing her stuff albeit without much tears coming out of her eyes. She turned off all the house lights before walking out of her house, locking the door behind her. From that point on, she journeyed her way to the airport.

Elena leaned back in her seat as she sighed, gazing out the window as a plane came closer to the gate. One more day, Elena, she told herself. You can go to Stonehaven, track the mutt, and be done with- a voice interrupted her train of thought as she jumped in surprise.

"You know if you were planning on running away from Mystic Falls you might want to try something called driving."

She turned to the seat on her right only to sigh in annoyance Elena comes face to face with Damon Salvatore with a smirk on his face.

"Damon, what the hell!" Elena hissed at him, glaring at his face. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh don't worry, love." Elena snapped her head to the figure standing behind her only to glare at a smug smiling Original hybrid looking at her. "He's just concerned for your safety as I am which is why you are not going to New York alone."

"I'm just going to visit some family in Bear Valley," Elena lied partially, looking at Klaus directly in the eye. "You don't have to worry about your precious doppelganger trying to run away. Besides don't you have more important things to do concerning Esther and Finn."

Klaus's smile faded away and Elena stood up to face him.

"You don't have to believe me but you can trust when I say that I will come back. The last place in the world that I want to be is at Bear Valley but I have no choice in the matter and you know why." She hissed the last three words as Klaus tilted his head in contemplation. "So let me go to Stonehaven and I'll be back in Mystic Falls before you know it. I'm sure you can understand my obligations to my family."

Elena flicked her eyes off to the gate entrance as an announcement was made that her flight is now letting in passengers. She picked up her bag and with one last look towards the two men, she left to walk over to the gate.

"Elena," she heard Damon begin before grunting. "Stefan."

"Let her go, Damon," the last she heard from Stefan before she got on the plane and off to Bear Valley.

A few hours later after landing in New York and taking the rest of journey through a taxi led Elena to Stonehaven. She opened her door and stood out, gazing at the gate as memories spent in this place raced through Elena's mind.

"You live up there?" The taxi driver asked as he took out her duffel bag.

Elena closed the car door and walked around to the other car side where the taxi driver was at.

"I did," she responded, taking her duffel bag as the driver hesitated for a moment still looking at her.

Seeing the look in is eye, Elena gave him a comforting smile. "Don't worry. I know what everyone's been saying about this place. Nothing up there scares me." She walked closer to the gates as the driver let out his breath that he probably didn't he was holding.

She looked back at the driver when she didn't hear any movement. At that moment their eyes met, the driver nervously coughed and started getting into his cab. She watched him drive away before turning back to look at the house up ahead. Breathing in through her nose, Elena began trekking her way up the path before coming to a slow stop.

"You will have to do better than that if we're tracking a mutt." She spoke louder as footsteps were heard from behind her.

"Missed you too." Clay sarcastically said as he came to stand in front of her.

Elena couldn't help but look over the older man. Long, light brown neck length hair pushed away from his face, scruffy beard, button up shirt, and jeans. Three years may have gone by but the man looked the same as he did back then.

"Are you the welcoming committee? Or did Jeremy chain you to the front gate, where you belong?" Elena shot back which made Clay look down as he fought to show the hurt her words cut into him.

He went to grab the duffel bag she was holding but Elena jerked it away.

"Easy. I just want to help with the bag," he said as Elena slowly looked up into Clay's face which appeared closer than before.

"It's fine. I got it." Elena finalized her words by walking pass Clay. She couldn't help but take in a shaky breath as she remembered the first time she crossed the property gates with Clay.

Elena nervously grasped Clay's hand as they entered pass the gates. She stopped in her tracks as she spies a certain house off into the distance. She stood stock still and silent as what if's ran through her head as if on a loop. Elena didn't notice Clay looking at her curiously or hear him call out to her. She clenched her grip on the back pack over her shoulder.

In the corner of her eye, Elena notices Clay moving towards her. She laughed delightedly as he picked her up in his arm and twirled them. They came to a stop as he put her down and Clay kissed her twice.

"Don't be nervous," Clay assured her with a warm look in his eyes. "Okay? We're gonna be fine."

Elena sighed.

"Well, when you put it that way" she tried to muster all her feelings into words, "I feel nervous. Look this is a big deal bringing me home to your family," she looked over to said house. "What if Jeremy doesn't like me?"

"Impossible," he scoffed with a teasing smile.

"Okay then I'll come clean. I've never met anyone's family before. No one that I haven't known growing up a-and you know in this context," as she spoke, her voice rattled with her nerves. "Not in the context that this is someone that I love and that I want to spend the rest of my life with and if you don't like me then-"

"Darlin'," Clay cut her off and Elena looked up at him. "I've got you." She calmed down instantly at which he chuckled at.

Elena nodded her head, muttering a silent okay. Clay gave her a kiss before picking up the back pack Elena dropped. Said girl grasped Clay's hand in nervousness as they continued their way up the path.

Author's Note:

So I thought that would be a good place to end the chapter and I hope that this was all to your liking. I have another story in mind that I might post about on my profile so keep checking my profile for the story ideas that I have in mind and send me a message on your thoughts on not just my story ideas but for this story as well. Be free to check my other stories as well! R&R PLEASE!