Hey guys, I'm so sorry this chapter is late. It looks like I'm not going to be able to upload a chapter a day like I planned. It will probably be more like every other day.

This chapter is a little different then the flash back chapters I've done before because I put two scenes in it instead of one. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!


August 2nd 1944

"You girls want another round?" Ruby asked while grabbing Elena and Lexi's empty shot glasses.

A smile crept onto Lexi's face. "You know us too well, Ruby."

Ruby rolled her eyes, but the upward curve of her mouth betrayed her amusement. "Well," she said in response. "At least I know you can't get drunk. Otherwise I think I would have had to cut you off about 10 rounds ago."

Thought she didn't look it, the woman behind the counter was old. Not as old as the two vampires she was serving, but she was at least a few years past 80. Yet her eyes still sparkled with energy, the type normally only found in children.

When Elena had first meet Ruby, the bartender had saved her life and kept her hidden from Klaus. She had always had a fire in her, and not even the many years of life that she had experienced could drive it out of her. Is that what it is like to look into my eyes? Elena couldn't help but wonder to herself. Was she still as young at heart as she looked. After all the running and torture she had gone through, were her eyes still burning bright in defiance of those who would seek to harm her or those she cared about?

Over the past twenty years, she had grown as a person, and she knew it. For almost ten years after Lexi triggered her emotions, the two of them were inseparable. They laughed together, danced together, went on double dates together, although that one never seemed to go as planned. But there had been practically no supernatural related incidents.

Then, in 1929 Elena had decided to go her own way. She began traveling the world. She would compel her way onto a ship to England and then sneak on the back of a train around the country. She had made her way to France, China, Egypt, even Australia. She had seen all seven wonders of the world, and still wanted to see more. There was always something else to discover, something new to learn.

But when World War II broke out, she found herself drawn back to her own country, to her home. There she stood with all the other women and worked in factories to help build the necessary machinery and weapons for the soldiers. Though she knew she would have been able to fight if she wanted to, she decided to stay home. The middle of another war was not where she wanted to be, but she did her best to support her troops alongside the thousands of other women helping in the war effort.

Lexi showing up at the door of her apartment that night, however, had been a welcome distraction from the bloodshed she knew was happening overseas. And now here they sat, drinking shots at Ruby's bar.

"So," Lexi was saying, now turning towards Elena. "How was the world?"

"Big." Elena laughed. "But there is nothing quite like coming back home. Especially after ten years of traveling."

"But, you're not really home, are you?" Lexi pointed out.

Elena frowned. Of course America was her home. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, Elena, that this," Lexi gestured around her to the rest of the bar, "isn't really your home. Your home, your real home, is Mystic Falls."

Elena sat and stared at her friend. She hadn't heard that name in years, but as soon as Lexi had said it, she knew it was true. Mystic Falls was where she had been born and raised. It was where she had been turned and it was where she had always seen herself finally taking her last breath.

Finally, Elena found her voice. "I haven't been back there since . . ." Her voice trailed off, allowing Lexi to fill in the blank.

"It's been eighty years. The town is much different now than it was back then." Lexi supplied. "Maybe it's time you gave your hometown a visit?"


August 3rd 1944

Fifteen years. Fifteen years of running. Of hiding. Of searching. Fifteen years and Katherine had found nothing. She had searched for her sister everywhere, but Elena seemed to have disappeared. No one had seen her. No one even knew who she was. Revenge for abandonment was hard to carry out when you couldn't find any trace of the person whom you were trying to take revenge on.

The only bright side, was that she hadn't been found either. She knew that Klaus was still after her. She had been caught once because of her sister's betrayal, but she wasn't going to let it happen again. She wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

But now, there was a new spark of hope. After wandering for so long, searching with no real direction, the perfect piece of new information landed itself in her lap. It was a fluke, like a christmas present that mistakenly got sent to you in the mail but perfectly suited you. She shouldn't have been been in that bar, but the bar she was planning on going to was closed for renovations.

"Elena?"

It was the first thing the woman at the bar had said to her as soon as she walked in the door. She looked was so familiar.

Katherine's automatic response was to play along. If this woman knew who Elena was, maybe she knew where she was. She quickly threw on her most innocent smile and replied, "Hi."

The woman looked at her, more confused now, then when she had walked in. That's when Katherine realized the many flaws in her "pretend to be my twin sister" strategy. How long ago had this woman known Elena? Did she know she was a vampire? Did she know she had a twin sister? And why did she look so familiar?

However, at this point, Katherine had no other option than to continue playing along.

"Is something wrong?" the woman asked. "Why are you back so soon?"

So Elena has been here recently.

"No, nothing's wrong." Katherine assured here. "I was just wondering if you knew how to get there?"

The must have been the wrong answer, because as soon as Katherine said that, the woman stiffened up. "You're not Elena." She started, glancing around the store at her other customers.

Ruby. That was the woman's name. She was a witch.

Katherine knew her cover was blown, but she also knew Ruby knew where her sister was headed. She needed answers.

Her fake plastered smile faded into a more sinister one. She was going to enjoy this. "Nope."

Ruby glanced around again, and then took a deep breath before looking back at Katherine, her eyes now filled with hatred. "Katherine."

Katherine cocked her head to the side, amused. "So you remember me?"

"Yeah, I remember you. Last time I saw you, you pushed me up a wall by my throat because I was going to obey Klaus's orders to tell the other witches to keep a lookout for you and your sister. And I also remember how dangerous you are."

"Good. so you will remember that not giving me what I want will not bode well for you."

Ruby angrily began cleaning the bar top. "What could you possibly want from me?"

Katherine strutted over and sat down right in front of Ruby. She leaned forward to look Ruby in the eyes and said, "I want you to tell me where my sister went."

"Or what?"

"Ruby, what's going on?" It was a new voice that said this. A young voice. The girl stood in the doorway between the bar and the back room, looking between Ruby and Katherine questioningly. She looked to be no older than four.

Katherine heard Ruby's heart rate quicken as she glanced over at the girl. "Nothing's going on, Sheila. I was just chatting with an old friend, that all."

"Granddaughter?" Katherine asked, putting together the pieces. "Great-granddaughter?"

Ruby's eyes were now filled with fire, putting force behind her next words. "Don't you touch her."

Katherine let out a little laugh. She knew she had hit a nerve. "Only if you tell me where my sister is."

Ruby hesitated a moment, not dropping her glare. Finally, through gritted teeth, she responded. "Elena is headed back home. She is going back to Mystic Falls."