A/N: Hey everyone! I got this up a little sooner than I thought. I'll be at the beach next week so I probably won't be able to update, and I'm hoping to get chapter 12 up before I leave. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and favorited this story! You made my day!

Chapter 11: Goodbye, My Love

The house was beautiful, but all I could think about was the many ways Klaus could kill me. When I closed my eyes, I could see it done a million different ways. Damon never explained the how.

Damon…

Thinking of him causes the tears to rise to my eyes, but I force them back. I will not give Klaus the satisfaction of seeing me cry. But why didn't they save me? That was the plan, right? To lure Klaus out and kill him? So why hadn't they? Damon wouldn't just let me be taken. Vampire or not, I know he loves me! But where is he?

The door opens then, but instead of Klaus it's the mystery man. I stare him down, determined not to show fear.

"You look just like her," he says in a distant tone.

"And?" I stare him down defiantly.

"It's just a statement. So you're the one who breaks the curse."

I want to ask exactly how that's done and what the curse really is, but the words die in my mouth. If I speak, I won't be able to keep up the brave act.

"I wish I was allowed to taste you. I've always wondered what Katherine would have tasted like human. Maybe I can talk Nik into letting me have a nibble."

I take an immediate dislike to this man. Damon joked several times about biting me, but it seemed different with him. There was an undercurrent of emotion there, but this man has none at all. He looked at me as I would a juicy steak. So this is what Katherine meant when she said vampires didn't feel. Damon had said it was like a switch. Well this man's switch was definitely off. And there was a madness to his eyes, like he could barely contain this calm façade he put off.

It was enough to make me shake, but I kept my muscles rigid, not allowing him to see my fear. But he could read me better than I thought.

"I know you're scared. I can smell it in your blood. Adrenaline gives it a better taste, or did my brother not explain that."

"Brother?" I was in such shock that I didn't even realize I'd spoken. So this was Stefan.

"I have to admit, I'm surprised Damon's given in to such weakness. He was such a natural predator. He could have a girl begging him to kill her without even using the compulsion. So how did you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Make him love you?"

Anger rose up in me as he spoke this way about Damon, like I'd ruined him. It gave me the strength I needed to push the fear away.

"I didn't make him do anything, Stefan. The emotions were there, I just helped him pull them out. Did you know that he was coming to save you? To get you away from Klaus?"

"He probably just wants to kill me himself for stealing Katherine."

"He's over Katherine," I spat, making sure not to back down as he gets right in my face.

"Is that what he told you? He will never be over Katherine. Even when we thought she was dead, he still loved her enough to hate me. Besides, it doesn't matter anyway. Soon Klaus will drain every last drop of blood from your body and Damon will be alone again."

So that was how he'd kill me? At least this seemed less painful than other deaths I'd imagined. Maybe it would feel like falling asleep.

"What curse is he breaking?" I try to maintain the hard edge to my voice, hoping to come off as strong.

"Ah, well, that is an interesting story," he starts, lazing across the bed like Damon used to do. I jump up and move to stand against the wall. "Klaus isn't just a vampire. His mother had an affair with another man… a werewolf." Stefan's voice grows low, adding a menacing effect to the story.

"His own mother turned him and his siblings into vampires and that's when they realized what a monster he really was. He was a hybrid, a werewolf and a vampire."

He smiles maliciously and I know my face must be showing my shock. In a flash he has me pinned against the wall, his lips moving right beside my ear. But this doesn't feel like it did when Damon did this to me on the night I discovered he was a vampire. Damon always seemed to appreciate my body more than my blood, but Stefan only seems to be thinking of tearing into my throat and sucking it dry. Even now I can feel him sniffing my neck.

"The curse was placed on him to keep his werewolf side dormant. It was bound by the blood of your ancestor. The doppelganger, which would be you, was created to break it."

As he finishes, he brings his face back up to stare at me and his crazed green eyes freeze the blood in my veins. I want to hit him and scream all at the same time.

"Having fun," Klaus calls, leaning casually against the doorframe.

"I wasn't gonna bite her."

Stefan quickly leaves the room and I'm alone with Klaus who only continues to stare at me with that self-righteous smile.

"When," I ask in a small voice.

"Oh, you want to know when you'll die. Tonight, actually. My witch needs the full moon. But don't worry, I'll make it quick." With another smirk, he strolls from the room, closing the door behind him.

I throw myself back on the bed as the sobs take over. I've been magically sealed in this house, just like before, and although I've tried working out a plan in my head, it's pointless. But just as I curl up on the bed, I hear the sound of light tapping on my window. It startles me at first, but then I move hesitantly over to the window above the bed and open it, revealing…

"Damon!" I squeal a little too loud and he puts his finger to his lips in warning. I try to launch myself into his arms, but the barrier holds me inside. I wait for him to come in, but he never does and then I realize… he hasn't been invited in. A living person must still reside here.

"I'm sorry about this. Jonas gave me some intense witchy migraine and by the time I came back to the world of the living, you were gone."

"What? But I thought he was supposed to be helping us?"

"Apparently, there was a part of the plan they left out." This was said through his teeth and I wondered momentarily if Jonas survived the encounter when Damon woke up.

"The witches can't kill Klaus until he breaks the curse. That's when he'll be vulnerable. If they do their juju before, they die before he does."

"What? But that means…" It all hits me, hard. "I… I have to die so they can kill him."

"No! I won't let that happen! I will get you out of this."

His blue eyes are intense as they stare back into mine and for a second, they seem to take on a darker shade, his vampiric features showing through the human mask.

"How?"

"He has to take you outside to perform the ritual. That's when I'll come for you."

An image flashes through my mind then, of Damon fighting the terrifying man that entered my room just moments before. Even through my human eyes I could see how deadly he was. Damon couldn't fight him.

"Damon. I don't think you know who you're dealing with. You can't just–"

"Relax, Elena. I'll have the witches on my side. I'm not stupid. But I won't let you die! Do you understand?"

I nod, wishing desperately for the chance to simply feel his cheek beneath my hand. Just one touch. Instead, I place my hand against the invisible barrier and he reaches out as well. It's not the same as feeling him under my skin, but no barrier can keep out our love, and I can feel his love for me spread through my being. It gives me the comfort I need to hope for tomorrow.

Before I can get in a tearful goodbye, he's gone and I left with an empty window once again.

At least Klaus feeds me; well in fact. For what Klaus calls "my last meal" I'm served lobster and steak with garlic potatoes and cinnamon apples. The food is exquisite, but I can barely stomach it as I think of the night ahead. My only prayer is that Damon survives the fight with Klaus. I can't lose anyone else I love, even if it means losing my own life. And there's another dilemma; what happens to Miss Shelia and the others if they have to take down Klaus before the ritual is complete? Damon said they would die. How can I risk killing Bonnie's grandmother?

Bonnie!

I'd almost forgotten about my best friend in the clutches of my greatest enemy; the murderer of my parents. No matter what happens to me, they have to get to Bonnie. We can't leave her to Katherine, who clearly has no remorse when it comes to killing. What if she's already dead?

No! I can't let myself think like that… not if I want to keep from going crazy. But the idea keeps surfacing the more I think. It feels like it takes forever for the sun to drop, but finally it does and I wait impatiently for my door to open.

And when it does, I wish I had more time.

"Time for the show," Stefan calls as he flings open the door.

I don't struggle as he leads me down the stairs and out of the house, though his arm is a little too tight around my waist. He takes me into the woods where it's too dark for me to see my hand in front of my face. I have no choice but to clutch his arm for support as I'm lead through the darkness. Finally, I see firelight ahead and Klaus standing in a clearing. There's a faint moaning coming from a man on the ground and his face instantly registers with my brain.

"Mason?"

Tyler's uncle looks up at me in agony. His face is so pained that I attempt to run to him, but Stefan's unyielding hand grips my arm and pulls me back.

"What did you do to him," I demand, staring down Klaus.

"We had to slow his transition. He'll be much easier to kill in this form."

"What?" Nothing he just said makes sense. I thought I was the only person who had to die for this. And what did he mean by "this form?"

"You didn't think you were the only ingredient, did you love? Along with the doppelganger, I must kill a werewolf and a vampire. Mason here is the werewolf and I believe you remember this one."

Klaus motions to a man dragging an unconscious Anna into the clearing. Once he places her on the ground, she and Mason are each surrounded with circles of fire. My mind struggles to accept that werewolves are also among the list of horror story creatures that are real, but it can't accept the fact the he has to die. What will I tell Tyler when his uncle turns up missing? Not that I'm his biggest fan, but I wouldn't wish losing a family member on anyone.

"You can't hurt him, Klaus. There has to be another way," I yell.

"If you plan on playing to my emotions, I don't have any. I've waited a thousand years to break this curse and I couldn't care less who mourns this poor man. Now, shall we begin?"

I'm thrown to the ground and engulfed in my own flaming circle. The man who brought in Anna, who I now recognize as Maddox, approaches a woman by an alter made of rocks and she begins a chant. As I wait for something to happen, my eyes search the woods for signs of Damon, but find only silence. I have no idea how he plans to save me from this.

At some sign that I miss, the flames around Mason go out and once he notices he's free, he affords one last glance in my direction before attempting to make a run for it. But before he takes a full two steps, Klaus knocks him to the ground and I hear the awful wet, tearing sound of flesh being broken. As I watch, Mason's body lies at an odd angle and no longer struggles and Klaus stands up with a bloody object in his hand.

Mason's heart.

It was so fast; I barely had time to register what was happening. Mason, who I'd seen on occasion since childhood, who'd come to school plays and football games to cheer on his nephew, was gone in a matter of seconds. It just didn't seem possible. I continued to stare at his lifeless body, waiting for him to jump up and shake the dirt from his pants, but he never rose.

I feel my eyes prick, but I'm in too much shock to produce tears. I'm vaguely aware that I'm shaking and momentarily wonder if I'm about to pass out.

It feels like forever when the circle around the motionless Anna finally disappears. I wonder for a second if she's already dead, but assume they need her alive… so they can kill her. As Klaus rolls her over, her eyes open and widen in fear at the sight of him. But she doesn't try to escape or even fight him off. Her face turns to me with desperation in her eyes and she asks me for one thing.

"Save my mother. Please."

Before I can even respond, Klaus drives the stake through her heart and her skin turns an ashen gray. Two down, one to go. I begin to tremble as he turns to me, warring between my own fear and my worry over Damon. Klaus just killed two people – well, a werewolf and a vampire – without remorse; what would he do to Damon if he got in his way. I couldn't bear to lose anyone else I loved, even if I wouldn't be here with them.

The witch's chanting continued and soon the flames surrounding me receded. Should I run? No, he'd only catch me and according to what Damon said, he'd take out his vengeance on my family. So what choice was left but to walk to my own death?

"Your turn, love," Klaus called, extending his hand. I brushed past it, fighting the tears that welled up in my eyes. I would not let him see me weak. But as I stepped up to the stone alter, my fear rose until it nearly consumed me and my trembling intensified. Wasn't it barely a week ago that I was planning my summer with my friends? How could I go from that to dying in such a short time? The tears finally won out as Klaus approached me and tilted my head to the side, sweeping my hair from my neck.

This was it. Damon wouldn't get here in time. I just hoped he'd take care of Jeremy and tell him how much I loved him.

"I love you, Damon," I whispered, hoping the words would find him somehow.

And then I felt Klaus' fangs break my skin. He was gentle, as gentle as Damon had been, but he was sucking a lot harder, trying to drain me. The world was growing fuzzy and sparkly…

And I was on the ground. Had Klaus dropped me? Was I dead?

No, I was still here; the pain attested to that. I heard an angry snarl and an awful ripping sound, and then I was flying through the air. Through the pain in my neck I hadn't felt the arms under me until I was already in Damon's arms.

"Sorry I'm late, Angel," he whispered, flying into the trees.

"Klaus," I muttered, though my voice was so weak I couldn't understand it myself.

"Sheila's taking care of him."

But he hadn't completed the ritual. He had to kill me. Sheila would die. I was about to protest, but he stopped to lay me on the ground, tearing into his wrist with his fangs and bringing the bloody flesh to my mouth.

"Drink," he ordered.

Just like before, I could feel the flesh knitting together as the sweet substance flowed down my throat. I clutched his arm with more strength until all the pain was gone.

"By the way, I love you too."

I smiled as I pulled away, glad he'd heard me. I could hear Sheila's voice in the background, chanting in some unknown language as I rise to kiss him, thankful that our problems will soon be over. But just as I reach his lips, a guttural scream tears from his mouth and he doubles over, clutching his head.

"Damon? What's wrong? What's happening?"

His teeth are locked together in his effort to keep from screaming, but his muscles are still tight with pain. Finally, one word escapes his mouth.

"Run!"

"What? No, I'm not leaving you." As I'm talking, Maddox stalks out through the trees, staring intently at Damon.

"Stop! Please! Don't hurt him," I begged, placing myself between the witch and Damon. Looking around quickly, I grab a think tree branch and swing at his head, but he catches the branch easily. I go for a kick and manage to get him in the ribs, but he's only fazed for a moment before he's coming at me again.

But Maddox stops mid-step, jerking back as if in pain. Blood drips from his mouth and he slowly drops to the ground, the long knife protruding from his back.

"Not a bad shot, huh," Lexi called, stepping out of the trees. I just stared mutely, unable to even move. "Are you okay?"

Numbly, I managed to force my head to nod in response. It was Damon's low groan from the ground that woke my stiff limbs and had me wiping around. But he was already on his feet when I turned, smiling at me.

"You never listen, do you," he asked in a breathy voice.

"What did he do to you?"

"The witchy migraine thing, but I'll live."

"What have you done," Jonas' son, Luka, called. "The witches weren't supposed to die!"

"Well, when I had to pick between him and an innocent girl, I went with the evil one," Lexi quipped.

Luka was about to protest, his face contorting in anger, when two screams broke the night air. One was obviously Klaus, as he shouted obscenities at Sheila, but the other one was…

"Stefan," Lexi and Damon confirmed as one, and in seconds, they took off for the clearing.