In the afternoon Rebekah took Grace away from the Mikaelson estate to the Grill, because she had a meeting with Carol Lockwood. The blonde thought that her brother's girl would be helpful in this case, as the mayor liked her.

On their way, she filled Grace in about what she discovered in that cave. Of course Grace was quite shocked to hear that there was still a weapon out there that could kill her loved ones. She tried her best not to be nervous, see it as an enjoyable afternoon with Rebekah and not ruin the cheery mood Elijah had put an effort in to establish.

But another problem was, that the risk of seeing Elena or any of her friends in the Grill was high. She probably would rip some heads off if she was confronted with that matter today.

The girls took place at a table in the middle of the restaurant, so they could watch their surroundings. This was a highly sensitive topic and it should definitely not be heard by the wrong kind of people. Grace even asked herself why the hell she asked Carol to come to the Grill, a highly public place, but then again she saw the point, because the mayor would probably get suspicious if an Original pushed for a meeting in the middle of nowhere.

Sighing, she ordered a tea and waited for Carol to arrive. Thankfully, she didn't arrive too late. The mayor and Grace exchanged cheek kisses to greet each other and sat down after Carol shook Rebekah's hand.

"What can I do for you girls?"

Carol asked to which Rebekah smiled charmingly.

"Grace hooked me up on some town history and I was interested in the town's monuments and older buildings. As you're the head of the Preservation committee I thought you could help."

The mayor returned the smile.

"It was in the Lockwood woman's hands for a long time, before they got real jobs. What exactly are you looking for?"

That was the point. Both women had no clue what they were looking for. They couldn't tell which building or monument was made of white oak. Grace's mind raced, but then she suddenly had an idea.

"Rebekah wants to explore how the land she was born in changed over the centuries. I think a lot of forest is where your old village was. Maybe the old milling documentaries are a start. Do you who kept them, Carol? I just know my family didn't."

Rebekah flashed her a thankful smile, but was then distracted by something behind Carol. Grace shortly followed her gaze and saw that she stared at Damon. Oh no. Her friend couldn't fall for that dick, he only played with her, that was something she could be sure of. But we were talking about Rebekah, she had a history of ignoring such signs. Quickly she nudged her with her foot to get her attention back.

"I think the Salvatores have them."

Great. Speaking of the devil. Grace held back her sigh when she saw the devious expression that plastered on Rebekah's face.

"Thank you very much, Carol. You helped a lot."

The oldest Gilbert flashed the mayor a polite smile, followed Rebekah who already said goodbye to the mayor and walked towards the Salvatore brothers.

Grace rolled her eyes and took a deep breath in. She seriously didn't want to talk to any of Elena's bodyguards today, but she had to make sure that Rebekah behaved. No way in hell would Elijah's litte sister be hurt on her watch.

"What are you doing here, traitor?"

Damon said rudely, but Grace didn't give him much attention. She simply nipped on her tea, even tough the urge to drink this bottle of vodka in front of her empty was huge. Alcohol didn't solve problems, but made them much funnier.

"Drinking a tea with my friend, do you have a problem with that?"

The older Salvatore shook his head, an angry expression in his ice blue eyes. He really cared that deeply for Elena that he got mad at persons that upset her and couldn't hide it.

"You have a really bad taste in friends...especially boyfriends."

Grace couldn't help but chuckle.

"I would say stones in glasshouses, Damon, but I honestly don't want to deepen that topic tonight."

Thankfully, Rebekah started to babble that effectively that the attention was off Grace. Unfortunately she directly asked them about the milling documentaries, which was a pretty stupid move. So far the Salvatores weren't on the track Rebekah and Grace were following, but now she got the boys interested. Even if she was a thousand years old, the girl had so much to learn. Especially now that she couldn't simply compel them.

Some time later, both men ditched Rebekah and went to another place in the Grill, explaining it with 'boys night'. A little grin spread on Grace's face and she quickly hid it with a cough. Rebekah send her a glare and followed after the boys to annoy them further. She really was desperate and bored.

Grace stayed where she was and ordered another tea, watching the trio. Stefan seemed so changed. He had developed a nervous habit of making a knocking sound with his ring. She immediately figured that it must be because of his ripper-bloodlust-thing. Grace herself had gotten it under control pretty well lately, but Stefan seemed to have a bigger issue with that. Her thoughts brought her back to the time she spent with Klaus and Stefan. The younger Salvatore had understood her and she did the same with him and now even they had grown estranged because of Elena. It was a pity.

When the group shifted to the exit, the young vampire followed them. She wanted to go home as soon as possible and she was curious to what Damon and Rebekah were up to with Stefan.

Walking next to Rebekah in silence, she watched Stefan who walked in front of them. Poor soul. But Damon was right, he needed to learn. He couldn't survive without blood. It was a vampires nature.

They came to halt when they saw a young woman getting out of her car.

"Perfect opportunity."

Damon said grinning and was already in front of her, compelling her to be quiet before he bit into her neck to get his brother's attention. When the smell of blood hit her senses, she noticed how hungry she was. Not counting Elijah's and her intermezzo last evening, she hadn't drunk straight from the vein in weeks. She was tempted to have a bit for herself.

Damon pushed the girl Grace's arms to present her better for Stefan, who couldn't hold himself together anymore. He growled and fought the urge, but of course lost. After he bit into the young woman's neck, Grace took her wrist and bit into it, too. She enjoyed the warmth of the hot red liquid and again noticed how much better this was then blood bags. Now that she was able to stop, she should drink more regularly.

"Stefan?"

Suddenly, Elena's shocked voice came up from behind her. The least person Grace could need right now. Stefan immediately pulled back, his love seeming to be the only one that could stop him from drinking.

Surely her sister had this judgy look on again. But Grace had enough of it. A devilish smile spread on her lips. With the girl still in her arms she turned around to face Elena, who now stared at the stranger's bleeding wounds with wide eyes and disgust written all over her. Matt stood next to her, having a similar expression. The blonde boy stared at her with hatred, not that Grace would ever care. They could hate her as much as they wanted to.

Grace pushed the injured girl into Elena's arms who suddenly shrieked, Matt helped her get the girls weight off her.

"Are you shocked, Elena? You shouldn't, because you actually know who we all are. That's our nature. Look at your precious boyfriend, that's who he really is. Wake up, Elena. Your judgment is hypocritical."

The vampire's face was emotionless and mocking. She flashed her a cruel smile and wiped a bloodstain from her chin before she turned around and took off. No one was talking, they all were just staring at her. Only Rebekah seemed to be impressed. Grace send her a questioning glance, asking of she wanted to come home with her, but the Original shook her head. Shrugging, she just went on her way, she could watch out for herself from now on. Rebekah was surely old enough.

She quickly texted Elijah that she was on her way and then continued to ask through the dark streets. Since she was a vampire, she wasn't afraid of the darkness anymore, because she herself was one of the monsters lurking in the shadows. Grace remembered how scared she always been to be alone outside after dawn with a smile.

After she made half the way, she suddenly heard someone behind her. She frowned, she could've sworn that this person was following her. What a bad idea to stalk on a vampire. But then she remembered that Klaus had gotten crazy with his hybrid protection.

"Please, tell Klaus that I will kick his balls if he doesn't realize that I can watch out for myself soon."

She turned around to face the person behind her, but suddenly she felt a harsh pain in her stomach. Then she felt warm blood run down first her belly and then the legs. Instinctively, she tried to reach out for the attacker, but he was clever, he jumped back before she could fight back. Grace looked down and only then realized that she had a stake sticking out of her stomach. That person staked her. She couldn't believe it.

Even for a vampire it all happened the fast. The attacker had the effective element of surprise. Grace felt herself falling to her knees. She wanted to get up again, but then she heard a gunshot right in front of her. Closing her eyes, she waited for more pain to add. It didn't happen.

When she opened her eyes again, she saw a broad back in front of her she very certainly knew. Elijah. He walked up to the attacker while he fired more and more bullets into the Original's chest, Elijah taking them all without even blinking. He grabbed grabbed him by the throat and held him up in the air. Elijah hesitated a bit and she asked herself why, but then she heard the cracking sound of a neck snapping.

He let the attacker fall to the ground and rushed to Grace's side. At first, she looked at her lovers face and saw him flinching a bit when he knelt down beside her. The bullets must've been wooden, if not, they wouldn't have hurt Elijah. She wanted to see who the attacker was, but she was too distracted by the stake in her stomach. Panting, she meet Elijah angered eyes. He checked for any more injuries.

"I need to pull the stake out, Grace."

Carefully, he loosened her grip around the stake and with one swift movement, he ripped it out of her. Grace cried out in pain, but felt instant relief. The wound was already closing when Elijah helped her to her feet. His shirt had gaping holes and his blood was staining the fabric. They had to get them out of him soon. It wouldn't kill him, but they still couldn't stay in.

"Who the hell..."

Grace stopped mid sentence when her eyes fell on the face of the guy who just staked her. It was Alaric. God damn nice history teacher Alaric Saltzman. Grace knew that he was once a vampire hunters, but he wouldn't hurt her. Besides him from being on team Elena, they never held any grudge.

Anger lit her veins on fire and her mouth became a tight line. She turned around to see that she was only mere feet away from the street she grew up in. Shaking her head, she mumbled some insults before she grabbed the temporarily dead man's collar. She dragged his corpse behind her while she started walking towards the Gilbert house. With her other hand, she grabbed Elijah's arm. He followed, but had a frown on his face. Even if he tried to hide it, Grace could see that he was in pain. Elijah just had taken a load of bullets for her, of course he was. She would have been dead if it weren't for him.

"Where are you going?"

He asked.

"To my 'family's' home. My sister needs a fair warning."

Silence erupted and the rage inside Grace stayed stable, but then again questions made their way into her mind.

"What were you doing out here?"

She asked softly, gently squeezing Elijah's forearm.

"I wanted to surprise you with some food and a movie. After I received your message, I remembered that you once said to me that you enjoy popcorn. I was on my way to find you and ask you if you wanted to join me on my way to the supermarket when I heard you screaming."

His voice faded into a whisper when he said the last words. It seemed to physically and psychologically hurt him when he knew that his love was in pain. The memory of her scream sent a shiver down his spine.

Grace's shoulders sunk down and she gave him a side glance. He was so amazing. That man remembered something from a conversation they had months ago and then went out just to buy her popcorn. Well and on his way, he took freaking wooden bullets for her. Just a normal, romantic day in a vampire's life. How could he always be so strong? This Original-vampire-authority radiated off him all the time and he didn't even made a sound when he was shot a dozen times.

"I would tell you how cute this is of you, but the situation is not fitting."

She motioned for the corpse she dragged behind her when she reached the porch. Luckily for Elena, the door was unlocked. Grace would've kicked it in if she needed to.

Her sister must've just arrived, Matt's truck was still in the driveway. Alaric's feet made a rumbling noise when they got inside, which made Elena and Matt storm into the hall. They watched with their eyes wide open and their mouths gaping as Grace dragged Alaric's body into the kitchen. She let him fall to the ground. Elijah was close behind her.

"Your lumberjack hill billy just tried to kill me."

Of course Elena showed concern to him. Would she do this for Grace? She guessed not. Not anymore.

"What? He wouldn't!"

Her sister shot Grace glares. Did she really believe Grace simply killed him out of fun? She really still didn't get that the oldest Gilbert wanted peace. Killing the town's history teacher would've been a dumb move.

"Seems you don't know him that well. He came up from behind me, staked me through my stomach. Then he wanted to shoot me with wooden bullets. Thankfully, Elijah saved my life."

Matt's and Elena's gazes flickered to Elijah, they didn't even notice him coming in.

Grace grabbed him by his shirt and pushed him to the kitchen table, so he could lean on it while she got the bullets out from his chest. She couldn't bear seeing him in pain until they reached his home and Elena could see how much this man got hurt in order to save her sister from being killed.

With one movement of her hand, she ripped his ruined shirt open to reveal six still open wounds. Her hands were gentle on him as she examined the the bullet holes. She surely needed tweezers.

"Maybe we should go somewhere else..."

His gaze shifted from Elena to Grace, who just shook her head.

"No, you need her now. at least you won't stain a carpet here."

With vampire speed, she rushed to the bathroom and got tweezers and towels. The two humans in the room still were frozen in spot, Elena looking at her sister and Elijah again with that slightly disgusted look on her face. She simply couldn't accept their relationship.

"I'm sorry."

Grace whispered, apologizing beforehand for the pain she would inflect in order to get the bullets out. She stepped between his legs and stole a short peck on his lips before she started her work.

He was so patient, he didn't make a sound or moved while she tried her best to fetch the bullets. On the side of her mind, Grace couldn't help but admire his strongly built muscles.

For some moments, they all stayed silent until suddenly Grace realized something. She had gotten out three bullets and was now moving out to the tougher ones when she started speaking.

"Think, Elena. I'm a council member. I belong to a founding family. I'm a vampire. Here you have you're serial killer. It's been him all the time."

Desperately, Elena shook her head.

"No, no, it can't be him."

Grace rolled her eyes annoyed and accidentally ripped a bullet out with too much force. She send Elijah an apologizing look, to which he smiled lightly.

"Well, then why do you think he attacked me? I haven't done anything to him."

"...you've been off the rails lately. He has all reasons to do it."

Matt chirped in, but looked slightly frightened when Elijah shot him a warning glare. Grace only chuckled.

"You know what? Figure that out on yourselves, what do I care. I'm outta here. Elijah and I will grab some of things and tomorrow I'll sent you a notary, who'll give you the full the deed to this house and in return you'll give me the lake house. I want it in my name so the Mikaelsons can enter."

They all looked at her in bare surprise. In this moment Grace got out the last bullet and satisfied she watched as the wounds closed. She got every splinter out.

"No discussion, Elena. I want nothing to do with this anymore. This is your problem now."

Grace grabbed Elijah's hand and together they walked upstairs, leaving her words hanging in the air. It was the only solution for this problem. She needed to get out of this town for a while, distance herself from the fight with her sister. The young vampire knew that this was all come crashing down to her, she had no clue how she kept herself together that well today. But when the emotions came, it would be better if she was somewhere else. It would be easier to think.

Sighing, she sat down on her untouched bed and covered her face with her hands shortly. She felt the mattress shift when Elijah sat down beside her, wrapping his arm around her waist. Carefully he lifted the fabric of her teared shirt to check if the wound had properly healed.

"I'm ok."

Grace whispered and leaned her head on his shoulder. Again a day where everything just had been too much. Would she ever have a normal day again?

"No, you aren't."

His voice was so deep and soothing, it always comforted her. He cared for her, protected her. Grace would never understand why Elena couldn't accept Elijah with her sister. Grace never judged her relationship with the two brothers.

"Take me away from here."

She whispered and interlaced their fingers. Elijah tilted his head in question.

"Elijah, I know that you need to chase after your mother. You know she'll never stop conspiring, threatening your life. We need to find her, so we know what she's plotting and stop her."

The Original sighed. Sometimes he couldn't belief how sharp her eye for things surrounding her was. He tried hard to get it away from her, so she wouldn't feel bad from keeping him in Mystic Falls even if he had to find his mother. For him, Grace was more important.

"It's too dangerous."

He shook his head, to which Grace squeezed his hand.

"Please, it's the only thing I can do to help. You and your family...you've saved my life twice in the last two days. I also desperately need to get out of town for some time. Elijah, you and me, together, wherever the leads will take us. That's what I want."

Elijah stared at her for a while. A bit of relief spread inside him because he could finally go against that nagging feeling of knowing that Esther was still out there. But also there was worry, because he feared that Grace's life could be in danger again. He would never forgive himself if something happened to her, especially if it was because of her connection to his family.

Sighing, he nodded before he placed a kiss on her forehead. Together they stood up and collected some of Grace's personal items and clothing.

A light smile crept on Grace's face. Even tough her life just had been seriously threatened by Alaric, she felt the chains of Mystic Falls falling off her. She looked at Elijah while she couldn't await getting on the road with him.