Family Heirlooms
Alaric stayed seated on the floor but was leaning against the lockers on the far wall. Elena was knelt down beside him, a worried look on her face. It was clear that the high school teacher meant a great deal to Elena and had made an impact on the whole group in the short time they had known one another. Alex couldn't help but have her own concerns about the man. Mikael had snapped his neck, he had died, but for some strange reason he was alive, and his neck had righted itself and healed. It was like nothing had ever happened.
"Is Klaus out of you now?" asked Damon. He had made his appearance after it was all over and was offering no help other than being a pest.
"Yes. And I still can't believe you couldn't tell the difference between me and that pyscho," groaned Alaric.
"I'm sorry," said Elena. She looked ashamed of herself. No doubt she had been going through every moment trying to realise how she had missed it.
Alaric reached over and squeezed her hand. "It's okay, Elena. I don't blame you."
"Is no one else wondering how he is alive?" asked Matt. He looked the most freaked out about all of this.
"No, we are all wondering about that," said Damon.
"Perhaps we should wonder in a different location," said Stefan. "Perhaps back at Elena's house," he suggested.
The group seemed to agree. Damon helped Alaric up to his feet, and Alaric said, "I'm going to need a place to crash, my apartment is currently occupied by a mad man."
"I'm sure you could crash in Jenna's room," said Elena, "she wouldn't mind."
Alaric turned to look at Alex. "Is that okay with you?"
Alex frowned but nodded. She was confused by what had happened but keeping him close would ensure that Klaus wouldn't have a chance to jump back in him, however, at this point, it didn't really seem like a plausible idea for Klaus to possess him again. He had collected enough information about Elena that he was probably setting up his next steps to break the curse.
Alaric shrugged his jacket on, and a ring on his finger caught Alex's eye. An older styled ring that she had seen before, but on the hand of her father. "Where did you get that ring?" Alex asked.
Alaric looked down at his hand. "My wife, Isobel, gave it to me before she died."
Alex moved towards him and grasped his hand. She pulled the ring from his hand and looked at it closer.
"What's wrong, Alex?" asked Elena.
"This is a Gilbert family ring," said Alex.
Elena frowned. "A Gilbert family ring? How would Alaric have a family heirloom?"
"Good question." Alex turned the ring over in her hand but then held it back to Alaric. "Where did your wife get this from?"
Alaric shrugged as he slid the ring back on his finger. "I'm not sure."
"Alex, why does the ring have you so freaked out?" asked Bonnie.
Alex sighed and turned to her. "There are two of these rings, spelled by Emily Bennett, to bring back whoever worn them from death if they died at the hands of a supernatural being."
"Emily? She was the Bennett witch who was friends with Katherine," said Damon.
Alex nodded. "Yes, she was. The last time I saw one of these rings, it was being worn by our father." Alex looked at Elena. "When he passed away, it was passed onto John."
"Are you saying that a human can wear this ring, be killed in any way by vampire, werewolf, witch and still come back to life?" asked Damon.
Again, Alex nodded. "Yes, but don't be getting any ideas about testing it. Spells like those can be dangerous and have nasty after-effects."
"So wearing this ring is what kept me alive?" asked Alaric.
"You are one lucky high school teacher."
The group turned to see Elijah standing at the end of the hall, a look of annoyance plastered across his face. The look affected Alex more than she cared to admit. She found herself wanting to make him smile and take away any concerns or worries he had. She had to keep herself in check, she pushed down her strange feelings and focused on speaking. "Elijah, what are you doing here?" Alex asked.
"I heard of the confrontation between Niklaus and yourself. I decided that it was time I spoke to him directly and headed to Mr Saltzman's apartment. When I arrived instead of meeting my brother, I met my father. Would you care to explain?" he said.
Alex's first thought was to deny any and all knowledge of the vampire hunter, but she could tell that he knew more. Mikael didn't seem like the kind of vampire who would keep information to himself if that information helped him make those around him feel inferior. It was time to explain and provide her side of the story to him.
Speaking with Elijah alone seemed to the best course of action. Damon was still a loose cannon and the other's felt uncomfortable around Elijah. Alex sent Elena home and asked Elijah to follow her. They climbed into her car, and she drove them to a place she hadn't been too in a long time.
Back when her life was what you could consider normal, Alex would drive out to a large empty field that was owned by the council. It had laid desolate for her whole life, and the original plans to turn it into some sort of park or community area had never been finalised. It was a plot of land that was forgotten by everyone except the teenagers.
Alex pulled up to the empty field and couldn't help but smile. The grass was long enough that your feet would disappear within, but there were fresh tracks from where recent cars had driven through it.
"Where have you brought me?" asked Elijah.
"One of my favourite places in Mystic Falls." Alex climbed out of the car. "Come on," she said. Alex walked through the grass and allowed her hand to gently caress the top of the strands. She looked over her shoulder to see if Elijah had followed her, and he had. He had removed his suit jacket, rolled up his sleeves, and was following behind her.
"Are you trying to avoid telling me about Mikael?" Elijah asked as the reach the base of a large tree that stood towards the centre of the field.
Alex shook her head. "No. I plan to tell you."
"Why bring me here?" he asked.
Alex sat down on the grass that was tangled in with the roots of the tree. "I don't know really." And she really didn't. She could have easily told him the events that had led to Mikael in the hallway of the high school, there had been no reason to bring him here. None that sprung to mind anyway. "I woke Mikael up," she said.
Elijah nodded and sat down beside her. "Yes, he told me as much."
"The reason I woke him up was to protect Elena."
"I promised to help you."
"You did. But I woke up Mikael before we met before I knew that you wanted to stop Klaus as much as we all did." Alex pulled her legs up to her chest. "I came back to Mystic Falls to find Katherine Pierce, she had found out about Elena and was dead set on trading Elena's life for her own. I dealt with Katherine, but I knew that taking down Klaus was well beyond me, taking down an original vampire has never been done before. All I knew or wanted was to kill Klaus, and when Katherine told me she knew where Mikael was, I jumped at the chance to wake him." She leant her chin on her knees. "However, after he just tried to murder Alaric without even a thought I am considering that waking him up may have been rash."
Elijah hummed but didn't speak. His silence irked Alex. She found herself wanting him to tell her that it was okay. The idea that Elijah was annoyed with her or maybe even angry made butterflies appear in her stomach. Alex was nervous and unsure of what was to come next.
It frustrated Alex further that she didn't understand how she was feeling. These type of nerves and uncertainties she hadn't felt for anyone. She had been nervous about James when she had first started getting to know him, Alex had been uncertain about herself and him, and the way her body reacted around him was unpredictable. It seemed that her emotions and body was going through the same rollercoaster but why when she was around Elijah.
"I can understand why you woke him up," said Elijah. The frustration was still evident but seemed to have lessened. "Mikael does have the only weapon that can kill one of my siblings and me, but there is one thing you may be unaware of."
"What?" Alex was curious as to what Mikael hadn't told her.
"If Mikael kills Klaus than his whole sire line dies with him. Every vampire who shares his bloodline will die."
"And?"
"That means that Stefan, Damon and Caroline will all die."
Alex wasn't concerned if the vampires died, but she could only imagine if Elena lost them all, she would be devastated. "There isn't any other choice."
"Are you sure about that?" Elijah asked.
Alex nodded. "Yeah. I have gone through so many books that I'm at my wit's end. Without the white oak stake and Mikael, I haven't been able to find a way to kill him." Alex watched as Elijah's expression seemed to darken. There was a flash of pain and regret, something she had yet to see expressed by him. It occurred to Alex that Elijah was angry at Klaus, he had felt betrayed but even after all of that Klaus was his brother. They had spent the better part of a thousand years together, the idea of killing his brother had to upset him in some way. Alex knew that no matter what happened between her and Elena, or even Jeremy, she would never be able to hurt them. "Are you sure you want to kill Klaus?" she asked.
"I don't want to kill him," said Elijah. No hesitation. "But he needs to be taught a lesson and there is no way to do that." He stood up and tucked his hands into his pockets. "If you can find a way to put him down without ending him forever, I would appreciate it."
Before Alex could respond, he disappeared, leaving Alex alone. How did you stop an original without killing him? The only way would be to desiccate him just like Mikael had been, seal him in a tomb and make sure that no one ever disturbed him. Desiccate a vampire wouldn't be easy, and Alex had never seen a spell to do such a thing. She needed to find the witch who had desiccated Mikael but the only person who knew was Mikael, and she doubted he was going to be forthcoming about her she way.
Alex decided that she needed to speak with Mikael but that could wait another day. She headed home and decided to spend some time with Elena. Things were getting complicated and she needed to make sure Elena was okay. As she arrived home, she found a package sitting on the front step with a letter attached. Opening the note, it read: "I believe this may be of some assistance in putting down Niklaus. It belonged to Nadia and I believe she would have wanted you to have it – Elijah."
Tearing open the package, Alex found an old bound book. Opening it she couldn't help but smile, it was her grandmother's grimoire.
