AN: Sorry about the delay. I caught some bug from work; it's on its way out though.
This chapter kind of got away from me, but I'm happy with it.
After this there are two more chapters that I need to write along with the final chapter that takes place in the future after Miranda goes back home.
8:30 PM
Elena and Elijah had spent several minutes staring at the name on Miranda's arm in a stunned silence. They might have gone on like that all night if Bonnie hadn't insisted that she needed to get on with the spell.
Reluctantly Elijah had relinquished his hold on Miranda's hand and allowed Bonnie to lower her into the center of the circle. He had pressed a handkerchief into Elena's palm and watched as Miranda's eyes returned to normal before she had disappeared in a ball of light.
That had been nearly twenty minutes ago. They had since moved inside to the large sitting room.
Elijah was still reeling when he set on a couch beside Elena.
"How the bloody 'ell did that happen?" Klaus all but roared, making Elena jump in surprise. He had kept quiet until after Miranda was sent back, but now Klaus pointed an accusing finger at Elena.
"Do you really need us to explain where babies come from?" Elijah couldn't stop the sharp retort. "At this age, Niklaus, you should know that."
Klaus glared at his brother. "That is not what I meant and you know it," he muttered.
"I don't know," Elijah glanced at Elena from the corner of his eye.
Elena gaped. Vampires couldn't have children. Wasn't that what Damon had once said? Judging by the shell-shocked expressions on the Originals' faces Damon had not been misinformed. Every single member of the Mikaelson family seemed to be confused… well… almost all of them.
Rebekah smirked. Her smug smile was reminiscent of the cat that ate the canary. Her eyes darted between her brother and Elena.
Elena surprised everyone when she called Rebekah out on it. "Rebekah, do you know something?"
Rebekah's smirk fell slightly under the sudden stares of Caroline, Elena, Bonnie and her brothers. She bit her lip and shrugged. "I may have heard a rumor in February of 1639 about a vampire conceiving a child during the winter solstice."
Klaus' hands clenched into fists as a muscle in his jaw ticked. "You waited until now to tell us?" His voice had slowly risen in volume.
Elena's eyes narrowed slightly upon Rebekah's admission. Had she really dismissed it as a rumor? Elena's doe eyes glazed over as a scene from earlier in the day replayed in her mind.
"I know how to take care of a baby," Rebekah quirked an eyebrow. "I think I can handle her. Right Miranda?" She lifted the little girl over her head and brought her down and kissed her nose. "You want to spend some time with auntie Bex right?"
Miranda grinned when Rebekah kissed her cheek. Her chubby hands closed around Rebekah's shiny blond hair.
"I'm going to take that as a yes," Rebekah turned to Elena and grinned. "Go on. We'll be just fine for an hour."
She had dismissed it earlier. After all friends were often called aunts and uncles if they were close enough to the parents, but now Elena wasn't so sure.
She thought about how comfortable Miranda had been with each of the Originals. She'd loved Rebekah despite the knife throwing incident. She enjoyed playing with Kol. Miranda had even started to warm up to Klaus; Elena suspected the only reason she had been weary of the hybrid was because he had scared her that first morning.
Elena's watched Elijah through the corner of her eye. Elijah had said Miranda's eyes were slightly darker than hers. Turning her head to the left Elena saw his dark eyes were locked on his sister who was saying something.
Elena mentally kicked herself for not noticing it before: Elijah and Miranda had the same dark brown eyes.
She shook herself from her thoughts as the full impact of Rebekah's words reached her mind.
"Back up a minute," the blood drained from Elena's face. "Did you say during the eclipse?"
Elijah seemed to follow her train of thought instantly. His eyes widened as he turned to take in her pale expression. Would they be greeting the child again soon?
"Yes," Rebekah nodded. Her eyes dropped to the silver watch around her wrist. "I'd say you've got about two hours left."
"I wouldn't worry about that sister," Kol leaned against a bookshelf. "That's already been taken care of."
Under normal circumstances Elena might have been mortified to have her sex life revealed in front of other people, but she was too focused to care. Truth be told, she was too focused on her own thoughts that she had not heard Kol's comment, nor did she hear Elijah's low warning growl. In fact she was completely unaware of the scene unfolding around her as she climbed to her feet.
"I…I n-need so-some air." She stumbled on shaking legs into the garden. Her palm covered the flat expanse of her stomach where, if Rebekah was right, her daughter was rapidly forming.
Elena glanced down to see a dark jacket being placed around her shivering shoulders. She didn't have to look to know it was Elijah that had followed her.
"Did we…" Elena's eyes found the dark circle where Bonnie had cast the spell.
"It's a little too soon to tell," Elijah replied, "but if Rebekah is right than… yes." He glanced at her sideways and frowned. "Do you not want to be pregnant?" 'With my child' went unspoken.
Elena spun on her heel. She tilted her head back to meet his eyes and glared. "I'm not overly thrilled about the prospect of being pregnant in high school," she poked his chest, "but don't think for a second that I don't want that little girl."
"Good," he caught her hand, "because so do I."
"Really?" Elena bit her lip and searched his eyes.
"Really," he nodded. Elijah released her hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear before cupping her face. He pressed a kiss to her forehead and wrapped his free arm around her waist.
Elena's eyes drifted shut. Her hand fell back to her flat stomach. "How sure are we that Rebekah's right? When's this," she gestured upwards to the eclipse, "supposed to happen again?"
"2094," Kol called from the door. "That date is rather unlikely since Miranda was…is… will be…" He frowned and tried to sort through the proper tenses in his head. How did he refer to a child he had known that hadn't been born yet?
"Get to the point Kol," Elena stepped around Elijah to glare at his brother.
"She was clearly part human. If she wasn't I'm sure we would have noticed sooner since she would have needed blood to survive and she didn't," Kol smirked. "How soon until we know for sure?" His eyes dropped to her stomach.
"The strongest tests are effective after 10 days," Caroline tucked a curl behind her ear. She tilted her head when she found nearly everyone had turned to stare at her. "What?"
"How exactly do you know that Caroline?" Klaus crossed his arms and leaned against the open door across from Kol.
"Everybody knows that," Bonnie cut in. "It's one of the many things taught in sexual education; a mandatory class for all high school students."
"What else is taught in this class?" Kol wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
Elena shook her head before bending. Before Elijah could ask what she was doing she had lobbed a handful of snow at Kol's head.
The snow exploded upon impact. Thousands of miniscule ice crystals sprayed across his face.
Kol's head whipped around to glare at Elena. His frown morphed into a wicked smirk. He carefully stepped down into the garden. "You are going to pay for that, darling." Kol moved at vampire speed to throw a handful of snow at Elena.
"Don't call me darling," Elena jumped back out of the way. She suspected the only real reason Kol missed was because Elijah had stepped in the way of the flying ice.
"Kol," Rebekah chastised, "don't throw snow at Elena. For heaven's sake she's pregnant!" Rebekah shoved some snow down his collar.
"I'm pretty sure it doesn't work that fast," Klaus watched from the door with Caroline.
"There is a very good chance however," Caroline flashed around to the other side of the garden, "but even so a little snow ball fight never hurt anyone."
Elena shrieked when she felt the cold run down the back of her neck. She spun around and glared at Caroline before bending to pick up more snow. "That's cheating," she cried when Caroline used her vampire speed to get out of Elena's line of fire.
"All's fair in love and war, Elena," Caroline giggled from the porch steps. She gasped when she felt strong arms encircle her waist. The next thing she knew she was lying in the soft snow. "Klaus," she mock glared when she found him hovering over her.
"Caroline," he smirked and cocked an eyebrow.
Elena took advantage of her sudden immobility and threw her snowball; it collided with Caroline's shoulder. The crystals sprayed upwards to hit them both in the face. She backed away instantly and took cover behind Elijah.
She caught sight of Bonnie snickering in the open door; she held up her hand and stopped a snowball from colliding with her arm. It swung back through the air.
Elena gasped when she found herself pressed against the side of the house. She inclined her head to see a full blown fight underway in the garden. Kol and Rebekah had teamed up on Klaus. Caroline had found herself on Klaus' side when one of Kol's snowballs hit her in the face.
"You've started a war."
Elena tilted her head back to look into Elijah's eyes. She might have though him angry if not for the amused twinkle in his eyes.
"If you let go of me I'll finish it," she smirked.
"A battlefield is no place for an expectant mother," his hands splayed across her sides.
Elena was going to say that: 'they weren't sure she was pregnant yet', but the words died on her tongue when his mouth descended on hers. Her frozen fingers tangled in his dark hair. Her mouth opened to admit his tongue when it swiped across her lower lip.
Elijah lifted her by her waist and stepped forward to pin her to the wall. He had other plans that did not involve a snowball fight with his siblings.
Elena tilted her head back to watch the full moon as it finished its ascent into the night sky. Miranda would be sent back to them in a matter of moments. Bonnie's spell would return her child to the present in the same place she had left the past.
Elena's eyes landed on Bonnie where she was busy casting a spell to ensure that Dahlia would be unable to see them from the mansion windows; the mansion that was less than twenty feet to the left of them. Realization hit her like a ton of bricks. Her eyes lighted on the ground as a glowing ball of light appeared in front of her toes.
"No," she hissed and broke from Elijah to crouch on the ground. Her hands reached out as the light faded away and closed around the tiny body of Miranda. "No," Elena shook her head and pulled her daughter to her chest.
Her protests came too late. Over her shoulder she heard the double doors of the mansion crash against the walls with a resounding bang.
