Planning

The next morning Stefan found Damon in the kitchen making coffee and pancakes, while whistling April Showers. Stefan stood silently watching him, trying to think of the best way to bring up the subject of Katherine and the events of the previous night. Before Stefan could find the words, Damon spoke up.

"We need to do something about Brie."

"I know." Stefan sighed.

"It's been six hours since Brie was turned and she's still refusing human blood." Damon said, frustrated, "I thought if we let her sleep on it, she would change her mind, but I spoke to her this morning and she's dead set on dying."

"If that's what she wants Damon we can't force her. You should know that better than anyone."

"Come on, Stefan, are you still beating yourself up over that?"

"Yes, actually I am. You told me you didn't want to be a vampire and I made you one anyway. I know you don't resent me for it anymore, and even though you never said it out loud, I know you forgave me a long time ago. Still I had no right to take your choice away. Same as we don't have the right to take away Brie's choice."

"Given time Brie will realize that being a vampire beats being dead." Damon said.

"No, I won't."

Both Salvatore brothers turned around to see Brie standing in the doorway. She was wearing one of Damon's shirts and looked exhausted.

"Is it a vampire thing to have private meetings deciding the fate of a human being while she isn't in the room, or is that just a Salvatore thing?" Brie asked.

"A Salvatore thing." Damon replied.

"We're sorry Brie, we weren't trying to plan anything behind your back. We just want to help you." Stefan said.

"You want to help me? Give me some of those pancakes, because I'm starving, after that take me somewhere nice and quiet where I can spend my last hours alive in peace."

"Don't you want to see your parents?" Damon asked.

"No. What would be the point of going back to them just so they can watch me drop dead?" Brie asked.

"It would give them closure. Right now, they have no idea where their daughter is. All they know is that she went to a party and never came home. Also, they'll no doubt hear the news that a dead woman was found at that party and then mysteriously disappeared. They'll spend the rest of their lives wondering what happened to you, whether that mysterious dead woman was you or not, and if so who took you. You really want to leave them like that?" Stefan said.

"Also, you really want to die alone instead of with the people who raised you and love you?" Damon added.

"Why do you care what happens to my parents or me? It doesn't affect your life at all what happens to us." Brie said.

"Because we know what it's like to lose someone you love," Damon said, "And what it's like to die."

"I'm sure you do." Brie said, and walked away.

"Well that went well." Stefan said.

Damon grabbed his coffee and sat down at the kitchen table.

"Look, if she wants to die that badly, then I don't care. I'll let her have what she wants." Damon said.

"You're lying." Said Stefan.

"I see that mind link thing hasn't wore off."

"Nope." Stefan said. "I knew what you were thinking when you brought up her parents. You thought if she saw them she would change her mind. I agreed, and that's why I pleaded the case."

"Thanks for backing me up." Damon said.

"A lot of good it did. Brie isn't going to change her mind."

"Well…" Damon trailed off, letting his thoughts finish the sentence.

Stefan raised his eyebrow at Damon, then motioned him to come outside. Once the two brothers were out of the range of Brie's heightened ears Stefan finally spoke.

"Are you serious Damon?"

"Yep."

"That's your plan? And you don't think when she doesn't die she won't know what you did?" Stefan demanded.

"Brie isn't stupid, she'll know, and I don't care. I don't care if she hates me, or wants to kill me after today. I'll accept it. What I can't accept is letting her die when we can save her."

"Damon, she isn't Bonnie." Stefan said.

"I know that Stefan."

"No, you don't. In the back of your mind you keep thinking if you fail Brie it would be the same as failing Bonnie, and it isn't. Brie doesn't want us to save her. I'm not going to try talking you out of it, I already know you're wholeheartedly committed to this plan, but I'm not going to help you either. I can't go through that again."

Damon sighed. "Fine. I'll do it myself."

-x-

"You have no idea who would want your son dead?" Sheriff Forbes asked.

"No, my children and I have no enemies." Esther said.

"Could this have anything to do with the woman who was found dead at your estate last night?"

The sheriff thought about how the woman's body hadn't been found yet and it made her frustrated, but she kept calm in the presence of Esther Mikaelson.

Esther sobbed and shook her head. "I don't know Sheriff. I just wanted my family to be accepted into this community. I wish I had never held that foolish ball, maybe my son and that poor woman would still be alive."

Elizabeth Forbes wanted to press for more information, but didn't want to push Ms. Mikaelson in her current state.

"Okay those are all the questions I have for now. Please contact me if you remember anything that may be useful." Sheriff Forbes thought for a second then asked, "Is Klaus's father aware of what happened to him?"

"Klaus's father hasn't been a part of his life for many years." Esther said carefully.

"I see. Well thank you for your time Ms. Mikaelson." Sheriff Forbes said kindly.

"Excuse me sheriff when can I have my son's body?" Esther asked.

"We'll release him to you once an autopsy is done. Your son's body may yield more evidence than we have right now. I promise it won't be long." Sheriff Forbes assured.

When the sheriff left, Esther wiped her eyes and went immediately to the room of her oldest son.

"Elijah, do you hear all that?" Esther asked.

"Yes." Elijah replied.

"We need your brother's body back, now." Esther said. "Whatever weapon the attacker used has to be something powerful if it put an original in a death like state. We need to help your brother and analyze that weapon."

"Mother you know the only item able to do any real damage to us is a white oak ash dagger." Elijah said.

"We have all of them Elijah, what else could it be?" Esther asked.

"Not all."

Esther looked at her son, and realized what he was implying.

"You don't think…"

"Mikael. Somehow he escaped and he's after us again."

"Elijah your father was daggered and then sealed inside a tomb with a high caliber spell. Even if someone found him they would need a very powerful witch just to open that tomb. Mikael and that dagger are still stuck in the graveyard where we left him." Esther said.

"How can you be sure?" Elijah asked.

Esther was silent for a long time and finally said, "Take Finn and go to that tomb to make sure he's still there. I'll send Rebekah to retrieve Klaus."

"Yes, mother." Elijah said. "If somehow someone has unleashed Mikael what do we do?"

"What we always do my son. Protect the family."

"You mean run?" Kol said.

Kol had been standing in the doorway listening to everything that had been said. Esther stared at her youngest son with love and patience. They had had this argument many times before.

"Kol, we have only managed to survive all these years from making smart decisions. Trying to fight a vampire who is stronger than all of us, and has weapons that can kill us permanently isn't smart." Esther said.

"If we were to band together and go against Mikael we could kill him for good." Kol pressed.

"And lose one of you in the process? Absolutely not."

"Mother you were able to dagger Mikael once, can't you do it again?" Elijah asked.

"The only reason I was able to get close to Mikael was because I lied. I made him believe that I was going to join his cause in killing you all and be with him again. Your father, though he's a monster, always had a special place in his heart for me, but if he's awake I won't be able to take advantage of that again."

"I'm not going to run this time. I've spent centuries running. If Mikael has been un-daggered and he was the one who attacked Klaus I'm going to kill him." Kol said.

"Kol I don't have time to argue with you. Please, get your sister and bring Klaus's body here." Esther said, sternly.

Kol bit his lip and turned his back on his mother and brother. He didn't care what his mother said, if his father was back he wasn't going to let him chase him out of Mystic Falls. Especially now that he found someone worth staying for.