Author's Note: hey everyone! i'm just making this small note to tell y'all that i rewrote the first chapter of the first installment/season 1 of ptl. i'd suggest checking it out because a lot of it changed and the events are pretty different. i suppose it doesn't affect how the rest of the story played out, but it'll probably help you out a little if you read it. that's all :)
xxxx
Stefan and Elowen were in the kitchen preparing dinner. Elena and Toby were sitting on the couch, watching them.
"Y'know, my dad did all the cooking," Elena spoke up to break the silence.
"And your mom?" Toby asked.
Elena laughed. "She sat right here and watched. She couldn't cook if her life depended on it."
Elowen nodded her head at Toby. "Neither can he. Maybe you're perfect for each other after all."
Elena laughed again while Toby looked offended.
"Hey! I'm not that bad!" He tried to defend himself, but Elowen shot him a knowing look.
"You can burn water on a stove if you tried hard enough."
Elena glanced at the fire and noticed it wasn't as bright as it was before.
"Fire's dying."
Elowen stopped chopping an onion, wiped her hands on a towel and started to leave the kitchen. Stefan had stopped, too, and even Toby stood up.
"Guys, I got it," Elowen told them, but they both immediately started to shake their heads.
"It's cold outside," Stefan pointed out. Toby nodded.
"Besides, someone has to stay and finish dinner."
"Which is something Stefan is very capable of doing. Where are the jackets?" She asked Elena, who pointed upstairs.
"You'll find some in my parent's bedroom. Last door on the left."
Elowen started that way, followed by Stefan. Toby tried to go, too, but Elena quickly grabbed onto his hand.
"It's just getting some wood. She can do it herself."
Toby sighed loudly, but took a seat next to Elena again. In Elena's parents bedroom, Elowen pulled open the closet and pulled one of the heavier jackets out. Stefan plucked it out of her hands.
"Thank you."
Elowen rolled her eyes and turned around. "Stefan, I'll be fine."
"I know. You're strong, independant," Stefan walked closer with every compliment he gave, "self aware. It's hot. Sexy."
He was right in front of her now. He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her passionately. Elowen was taken off guard at first, but managed to kiss him back. Stefan pushed her backwards into the closet and pressed her against the wall. Elowen pulled back with a gasp.
"Stefan! It's Elena's parent's bedroom and her and Toby are downstairs! Are you insane?"
Stefan smiled mischievously and leaned back in for another kiss. Elowen gave in this time and put her arms around his neck. He grabbed onto her thighs and lifted her up so her legs wrapped around his waist. She giggled into his mouth and lightly fell into the wall from losing her balance. A hollow thud came from inside the wall, causing Stefan to pull away. He looked at it with furrowed eyebrows.
"What?"
She planted her feet back on the ground and turned towards the wall. Stefan knocked on the wall and this time, Elowen heard it. They shared a skeptical look.
"This is hollow inside," she said. She moved out of the way so Stefan could break off one of the panels. With his strength, he removed the rest with ease. They must've heard the noise, because both Elena and Toby came trailing into the room.
"What is it?" Elena asked when she saw what they were doing.
"A really good hiding place," Stefan replied.
Behind all of the panels was a door. Stefan broke the lock off, tossed it on the ground and opened it. He flipped the light on and revealed an array of weaponry that was specifically for vampires hidden inside. They all looked at it with wide eyes.
xxxx
Jeremy, Caroline, Bonnie and Josiah were all at Caroline's house. Luka was unconscious in the living room. Caroline entered, her arms full of candles.
"We only have, like, an hour or two before my mom gets home. These are all I could find."
Jeremy stood up from his spot on the ground and grabbed some of the candles from Caroline.
"Place them evenly around the room," Josiah instructed. Jeremy and Caroline did as they were told. Caroline handed the remaining candles to Bonnie, who took them and placed them around Luka.
"How does this work?" Jeremy asked.
"Um, I'll put him in a trance and ask him questions," Bonnie replied. "It's like hypnosis."
"You're sure you're strong enough for this?"
"That's why I'm here," Josiah cut in. "And why we need so many candles. She'll draw power for them and me."
"I'll get the matches," Caroline said and tried to leave the room, but Josiah shook his head.
"I got it." He snapped his fingers and all of the candles lit up. Caroline turned around and smiled.
"That's hot."
"Pun intended or not?" Jeremy questioned with a laugh.
"It'd still be hot even if Bonnie did it, right?"
Josiah held his hands up when Caroline looked at him. "That sounds like a trap question, Care. I'm not saying anything."
"Good answer, dude," Jeremy piped up. Caroline rolled her eyes.
"I need a bowl of water," Bonnie spoke up. Jeremy started to leave the room.
"Yeah, yeah. I'll go get it."
Caroline smiled broadly at Bonnie, who looked up at her with wide eyes.
"Okay, what was that? 'It'll be hot even if Bonnie did it'?"
Caroline sat down on the floor across from Bonnie but next to Josiah. She dropped her voice down to a whisper. "He is so crushing on you!"
"You should've seen him earlier, when you were talking to Luka," Josiah said. "He got all jealous."
Bonnie shrugged. "So?"
"So, what, you'd rather be with traitor witch over here?" Caroline gestured to Luka.
"I'm not into Luka," Bonnie denied. "It's just, y'know, he understood me, and he was new and different."
"And you've known Jeremy since forever and you only see him one way, as Elena's brother. But, you're a witch and I'm a vampire. Y'know, it's not like we're in any position-"
"To be picky."
Caroline laughed and shook her head. "No. To judge."
"She's right, y'know," Josiah agreed. "I think that because he's Elena's little brother makes it not so… difficult. You know each other already."
Caroline nodded. "Exactly."
"I cannot believe you two are endorsing this."
"Don't act like you haven't thought about it."
Bonnie looked down when Caroline said this. She smiled in triumph.
"I knew it!"
"Shh! Can you be any louder? Okay, yes, I've thought about it. Will you shut up about it now?"
Caroline and Josiah shared knowing smirks as Bonnie blushed at them. Jeremy chose that moment to reenter the room, holding a bowl of water. He handed it to Bonnie, oblivious to what had happened, and sat down next to Josiah. She placed the bowl on the floor by Luka's head.
"Looks like he's waking up," Jeremy noted. Sure enough, Luka was stirring slightly. Bonnie dipped her hands in the water and placed them on either side of Luka's head. The flames of the candles flared up, indicating that she had started the spell.
Here goes nothing.
xxxx
Damon and Alaric were sitting in the library at the boarding house. They each had a glass of bourbon in their hands.
"Today was a bust," Damon grumbled.
"Yeah. How's the throat?" Alaric asked.
"Sore."
"Yeah. That Elijah's one scary dude, but with nice hair. You want another one?"
Damon handed over his glass and Alaric stood up to grab it. He walked over to the bar and started to pour them both another drink.
"He's gonna be hard to kill."
"Yeah. I'd think twice before I'd trust that dagger and some ashes to do the job. You're gonna need more info."
"I'm out of sources."
Alaric handed Damon his now full glass and returned to his seat. He took a sip from his own, felt his phone vibrate and went to check the message.
"Looks like I've gotta go. Esmeralda said she needs to talk to me and apparently it's urgent." He stood back up and set his glass down on the table. "Don't worry. I'll, uh, show myself out."
"Good luck."
Damon closed his eyes and put his feet up on the table. He was just beginning to relax when he heard a loud crashing noise from the hallway. His eyes snapped open and, now alert, got up and walked out of the library. When he reached the door, he found Alaric standing there with a knife sticking out of his stomach. He saw Damon just as he fell to the floor, dead. Damon didn't have time to be surprised, because out of nowhere, somebody dropped down from the rafters and onto Damon. They fought for a moment when the intruder suddenly stabbed Damon in the neck with a syringe filled with vervain.
Seeing as how Damon had been drinking small amounts of vervain ever since Rose died, his body had already built up a small tolerance to it, but not enough to help him in this situation. He did his best to try and throw the person off, but the vervain finally hit his system and he went down. The man on his back stood up and looked down at Damon.
"Whew! Damn, you're strong. It took the whole syringe."
Two more people walked in through the door, each holding weapons. The man who fought Damon pointed down at Alaric.
"Grab that one. He's dead."
Jules entered the house last, a shotgun slung over her shoulder.
"Hi, Damon. Nice to see you again."
xxxx
Elena removed a journal from a bookcase that was inside the hidden room. Toby was examining the weapons hanging off the wall while Elowen grabbed another journal. Stefan was leaning against the doorframe.
"These must be the other Johnathan Gilbert journals," Elena said at last. "Jeremy had one, but John said that there were others." She flipped through the pages. "His whole life's in here."
"I'll go get the firewood," Stefan offered. "I'll let you have a moment."
As Stefan left, Elena crouched down on the floor and grabbed a handful of wooden bullets. Toby turned and went after him.
"Wait! I'll come with."
He left, too, leaving Elowen and Elena alone.
xxxx
Damon had been chained to a chair with some kind of wooden spiked collar wrapped around his neck. The vervain had sort of worn off, but he was still weak enough that he couldn't break free. He spotted Alaric's body a few feet away and tried to worriedly sit up, but was unable to. He spotted the ring on his finger and breathed a sigh of relief. The man who stabbed him with the syringe was standing to his right, holding the end of two different chains that were connected to the collar around Damon's neck.
"Morning, sunshine," he said tauntingly. "I saw this in a movie once, some torture porn flick. Anyway, they had this collar device that was really cool, so I just modified it some with some wooden nails, and when I pull…"
He tugged at the ends of the chains and the wooden spikes dug into Damon's neck. He groaned in pain through clenched teeth. Jules, from the corner of the room, spoke up.
"So, I hear you have the moonstone."
The other two werewolves that had come with walked in behind her. Damon laughed weakly.
"Oh, if you only knew the irony of this moment right now. Let me tell you how this is gonna go. You're gonna torture me, I don't talk, someone loses a heart. Last time, it was your boy Mason."
"This time, it'll be you."
Jules looked at the man holding the chains and nodded. He yanked on the chains and impaled the spikes into Damon's neck again. He yelled in pain.
This was going to be a long night.
xxxx
"How long is this gonna take?" Caroline asked.
"I don't know. He's fighting me," Bonnie replied.
"Please stop," Luka mumbled. "Please."
Josiah reached over and placed his hands over Bonnie's. Almost immediately, Luka had successfully been put under the trance.
"There. Alright. Why are you working with Elijah?" Bonnie questioned.
"Klaus," Luka answered monotonously. "We both want him dead."
"You want to kill Klaus, too. Why?"
"Because he has her and we have to get her away from him."
"Who… who are you talking about?"
"My sister."
"His sister?" Jeremy repeated in surprise. Bonnie ignored him and continued asking questions.
"Why does he have her?"
"He's searching for ways to undo the curse without the doppelganger. He's forced generations of witches to help him for centuries. The Ramirez line had previously been enslaved to do so, but they went into hiding decades ago, so he had to start finding alternative options."
Everyone looked at Josiah with wide eyes. This had been news to him, too.
"What has Elijah promised you?"
"If we help Elijah kill Klaus, he's promised to return her to us."
"And how do you kill Klaus? How do you kill an Original vampire?"
Luka started to fight the spell again and opened his eyes.
"He'll kill me if I tell you. Don't make me."
"It's okay, Bonnie," Jeremy tried to say. He didn't want anybody to die. "We can find another way."
"No," she replied. With Josiah's help, she put him back into the trance. "How will you kill Klaus?"
"After the sacrifice, Klaus will be vulnerable, weak. It's our only chance."
"After the sacrifice?" Caroline asked in alarm.
"What do you mean, after?" Bonnie questioned as calmly as she could.
"Klaus will be vulnerable," Luka repeated.
"But, Elena will be dead."
"Yes. Elena has to die."
"What about Elowen?" Josiah asked frantically. "What will happen to her?"
"She will go with Elijah. He'll keep her safe."
"But if Klaus is dead, she won't need protecting anymore!"
"He'll keep her safe," was all Luka said. Josiah drew his hands back from Bonnie's and ran them through his hair. Caroline put a comforting hand on his shoulder. She wasn't sure what else she could do.
Everyone in the room was stunned into silence.
Nothing else was said.
xxxx
Stefan dumped an armful of wood onto the porch and returned to the garage. Toby was already in there grabbing more firewood, but when he rounded the corner, he found Toby unconscious on the floor. He rushed forward to check on him, but froze when he reached him. He slowly stood up and turned around. Brady was standing behind him with a gun pointed straight at him. He fired it and shot Stefan in the chest with a wooden bullet. He went down with a painful moan. Tyler entered the garage at that moment.
"Keep him down," Brady told Tyler. "If he moves," he handed the gun over, "kill him."
Brady exited the garage as Stefan continued to writhe around in pain. Tyler pointed the gun at him.
"Don't move!"
"Just let me get the bullet out," Stefan begged. "It punctured my heart. I need to get it out. I'm not gonna fight you."
Tyler circled around Stefan while keeping the gun pointed at him. Toby laid on the ground just next to Stefan and Tyler faltered a little seeing him like that. He almost felt bad that he got caught up in the middle of everything.
"I don't think so."
"Tyler, why are you doing this?"
"I can't let you break the curse."
"You know about the curse?"
"You're liars, all of you."
"No. I swear to you, we don't want to break the curse, Tyler. We don't want to do that."
"Oh, yeah? Well, I do." Tyler shot Stefan in the leg, who screamed in pain. "I can't be like this forever."
"Tyler, I'm just trying to save Elena."
"Elena will be fine!"
Stefan paused and looked up at Tyler. "... They didn't tell you that part, did they? Who are the liars now?"
"Tell me what?"
"In order to break the curse, Elena has to die."
A look of shock crossed Tyler's face. He looked uneasy and began to lower the gun.
Inside the cabin, Elowen and Elena were both rubbing their arms from the cold. They'd come downstairs a few minutes ago and had been waiting for Stefan and Toby to come back. The front door was wide open and Elowen tried to peer out of it without going outside.
"Are you growing trees out there?" She shouted so Stefan could hear. Then again, he could hear her even when she was whispering, so maybe yelling wouldn't help. When Stefan or Toby didn't answer, Elena and Elowen glanced at each other nervously. Elena inched over to the counter and silently picked up a knife that was sitting there.
"Stefan?" She called out. "Toby?"
Still, there was no answer. Elena started making her way towards the front door, but Elowen quickly seized her arm. Elena looked back at her questioningly as Elowen shook her head.
"There's someone out there," she whispered. Elena widened her eyes in alarm.
"Who?"
"I don't know. Go upstairs and hide."
Elena nodded her head and let Elowen take the knife from her hands. As quietly as she could, Elena crept over to the stairs. It wasn't until she fully disappeared from view that Elowen said anything.
"We know you're out there! Come out, you coward!"
Brady appeared in the doorway. Not knowing about her power, he was slightly surprised she'd known he was out there, but started into the house nonetheless. Elowen threw the knife in her hand and, miraculously, it sunk itself into Brady's stomach. He fell to his knees with a groan. Before he could move, Elowen cast the same spell from before and Brady clamped his hands over his ears. He cried out in pain and while he was down, Elowen came up and kneed him in the face. He fell over as blood gushed from his nose.
The only thought going through her mind was that she needed to keep herself and Elena safe, so, acting quickly, she ripped the knife out of his stomach and started to stab him over and over again. It wasn't until Stefan came sailing through the front door did she finally stop.
"Hey, hey!" Stefan tore the knife out of her hands and tossed it aside. "He's down! He's down!" He took her in his arms as she numbly stared at Brady's body. She wasn't able to process what happened next. Her ears were ringing and her whole body seemed to shut down.
Elena came running downstairs when she heard Stefan's voice and stopped short at the sight of Brady and all the blood coating the floor. There was a huge puddle of it that was still spreading everywhere.
"Oh my god," Elena gasped.
"I know," Stefan replied. "Help me."
Elena rushed forward and helped Stefan help Elowen to her feet. Her body was limp in their arms and she allowed them to set her in a chair that was near the island.
"We need to clean her up," Stefan said. "Go get some towels. Quickly."
Elena nodded and ran off. Stefan grabbed at the roll of paper towels that was on the counter, wet them and started to wipe away the blood that had splattered on her face. Her clothes were completely soaked and getting the blood out would probably be impossible.
Tyler finally walked into the house with Toby's arm wrapped around his shoulder. Toby had finally come to and was clutching his head where he'd been hit. They both stopped when they saw the situation in front of them. Elena came rushing back into the room with fresh towels and handed them to Stefan.
"Use some of them to clean up the floor before it gets too bad. I'll take care of her." He cupped Elowen's face and tried to read her face, but it was completely slack and there was no emotion in her eyes. They were just blank. "Hey, listen to me, we need to get you out of these clothes, okay?"
He tried to wait until she gave a nod, blinked or made any sight of movement, but she didn't. At this point, Tyler was helping Elena, who wasn't sure why he was there, and Toby stumbled his way over to Elowen and Stefan.
"Is she okay?" He asked as Stefan helped her back onto her feet. He shook his head.
"No. She's unresponsive. Help me get her to the bathroom and grab some of her clothes from upstairs."
Toby did as he was asked and made his way upstairs as best as he could once Elowen was settled in the bathroom. Stefan had set the towels on the sink and had turned on the shower. He was setting the temperature when Toby came back with her clothes. He set them on the toilet lid.
"Go help Tyler and Elena. Brady's body needs to be moved. I'm going to shower her and get all of this blood off of her."
Toby nodded and left, closing the door behind him. Stefan started to strip Elowen of her blood soaked clothes and lead her into the shower. She finally moved her head and looked down at all of the blood going down the drain. Stefan had to move her head back up and away so she would look at him instead.
"Hey," he said softly. "You're safe now. He can't hurt you. Just let me get you cleaned up, alright?"
Elowen nodded robotically.
"Good. Now, you've gotta help me out here, Elle. Can you do that for me?"
Again, she nodded. Slowly, she moved fully under the water and allowed Stefan to clean her up. She moved around accordingly, but still didn't say a word. It wasn't until she was fully clothed in fresh clothes, dried off and sitting in the living room that she said anything.
"I killed him."
Toby and Tyler were outside burying Brady while Stefan and Elowen sat in front of the fire. Elena was awkwardly sitting in the kitchen.
"It was self defense," Stefan said, wrapping his arms around her. "He was going to hurt you."
"But, he's dead." She turned to him, her eyes watering. "He's dead and I killed him."
All at once, she started to cry. Full on crying, accompanied by loud sobbing and snot running down her nose. Toby and Tyler entered the house and both shot sympathetic looks in Elowen's direction. Her face was currently buried in Stefan's shoulder, so she didn't see. Tyler went over to Elena.
"I didn't know what they were gonna do to you," he told her. "I didn't. I just… I don't want to be like this anymore. I'm sorry, Elena."
Elena got up from her seat and embraced Tyler. He hugged her back.
"It's okay. I understand."
xxxx
"You know what the great thing about buckshot is?" Jules asked rhetorically. "It scatters through the body. Maximum damage." She lifted her shotgun and pointed it at Damon. "Where's the moonstone?"
"Get over it, honey," Damon said sarcastically. "You're never gonna get it."
"Looking for this?" A voice rang out from the entrance of the room. Everyone looked to find the culprit and found that Elijah was standing at the top of the stairs, holding the moonstone in his hand. Damon stared at it in shock. What was he doing with the stone? Elowen told him it was safe in her house.
Elijah made his way down the stairs and set the moonstone on the table. He stood back and gestured towards it. "Go ahead. Take it."
One of the werewolves used his enhanced wolf speed to make a grab for the stone, but without batting an eye, Elijah plunged his hand into his chest and ripped his heart out. There was a short pause before two other wolves also tried to zoom towards the stone, but met the same fate. Damon watched with a smirk. Now this was more like it.
Jules quickly fled the room before she, too, was killed, leaving the man holding the chains to the collar. He crouched onto the ground and pulled his jacket over his head in fear. Elijah grabbed onto the back of his hood and dragged him back onto his feet.
"What about you, sweetheart, hmm? You want to take a shot? Yes? No? Yes?" Elijah glanced at Damon. "Where's the girl?"
Damon looked around the room for Jules, but couldn't find her. He shook his head. "I don't know."
"It doesn't really matter."
Elijah punched the man in the face, sending him crashing towards the floor. He stepped over the body and removed the chains that were strapping Damon to the chair.
"You do realize this is the third time I've saved your life now?"
"How do you have the moonstone?" Damon asked instead. "Elowen hid it in a house you aren't invited into."
"Maybe you should ask your girlfriend's lovely mother. She might have the answer to your question."
Elijah grabbed the moonstone, placed it in his pocket and left the house.
A few minutes later, Damon's phone went off. It was Bonnie. He answered it as he started to move the chair he had been chained to back to its original spot.
"So, he planned to kill her all along," he was saying as he finished moving the chair.
"Yeah. The sacrifice is part of Elijah's plan."
"And Elowen?"
"He was going to take her with him this whole time. Luka mentioned her family line had been forced to help Klaus for generations and Rose said that the Originals have been protecting their family for centuries. Maybe this was his way of taking back what he thinks is his."
"Like hell I'll let that happen. Talk to you later."
Alaric started to stir from his spot on the ground. Damon looked down at him.
"Finally. You missed all the fun."
The sound of the front door opening and slamming shut was heard and Esmeralda came barreling into the room. She sighed in relief when she saw Damon standing there and Alaric sitting up.
"Thank god. I thought something was wrong when Ric never showed up. Look, I need to talk to you guys."
"Yes, you do," Damon replied. "Care to tell me why Elijah has the moonstone?"
Alaric had pulled himself onto his feet and furrowed his eyebrows. "Elijah has the moonstone? What?"
Esmeralda sighed. She had been hoping to get to them first. "I think it's time I told you two the truth."
"Thank you for meeting with me," Elijah told Esmeralda, who was sitting across from him in some coffee shop in downtown Atlanta. She was 7 months pregnant, fresh out of high school and newly married. It was mid July, so temperatures were high and the humidity was almost unbearable. Welcome to the South.
"When an Original vampire comes knocking at your door, you listen. I have a daughter to worry about and a son soon. I have no room to put them in danger."
Elijah calmly shook his head. "I'm not here to put your children at risk. I'm here to warn you."
Esmeralda furrowed her eyebrows. "Warn me? About what?"
"Klaus."
Esmeralda's eyes widened. "Klaus? But, I thought- Elizabeth's grimoire said we were safe from him."
Elijah nodded. "It is true that your ancestor Elizabeth placed a cloaking spell on your family so that Klaus couldn't find you. In fact, I helped her do it. I made a promise long ago that I would keep your family safe and I make sure to see my promises through."
"Then, why come to me now? What's different this time?"
"There's a rumor within the witch community that he's searching for a way to break the cloaking spell. I believe it's so he can use you to help him break another spell that he's been trying and failing to do for centuries."
"Why can't he use some other witch? Why come for my family specifically?"
"Remember that promise I was talking about? Your ancestor Estefani made a deal with him in 1564. If she helped him find an alternative to his spell, she would pledge her family's loyalty to him and in turn, we would keep her and everyone who came after her safe."
"Did she? Find an alternative, I mean."
"She found many. None of them worked. She did come exceptionally close, however. The spell includes a human sacrifice of a doppelganger. She tried to recreate the doppelganger gene by impregnating herself and gave birth to a baby girl."
Esmeralda's mouth fell open. "Are you saying that she sacrificed her own daughter?"
Elijah nodded again. "Yes. Her name was Marisol. In order to prevent herself from being able to do her job, she refused to raise her. Instead, I did."
"Marisol?" Esmeralda questioned in confusion. "But she was a Ramirez. Her name should've started with an E. That's how it's always been."
"As I was the one left in charge of raising the girl, I was granted permission to name her. Her mother said that due to the nature of which she was born, she wasn't a true Ramirez and therefore the naming tradition didn't apply to her."
"Wait, wait," Esmeralda changed the subject as a thought dawned on her. "What about my sister? Why isn't she here, too? This involves her just as much as it involves me."
"You're the oldest. First born witches are the strongest, which means Klaus will come for you before he goes for your sister."
"So, then, what? What am I supposed to do? Run?"
"No. I will stay nearby for the next few months and make sure no harm comes your way. You can trust me, Esmeralda."
Esmeralda slowly nodded. "Okay. Don't make me regret it."
"He stayed true to his word. He hung around for about 6 months after that," Esmeralda explained to Alaric and Damon.
It was January now. The coffee shop they met at for the first time became a regular occurrence for them. They met up at least once a week. Over time, Elijah and Esmeralda had grown close. Really close. Flirty banter was shared. Compliments were exchanged. Physical touch happened frequently. They'd been mistaken for husband and wife so many times that they'd stopped trying to correct people. Everyone at the coffee shop thought he was Josiah's father. Yeah, it had gotten that "bad". Neither of them seemed to mind.
Currently, they were walking through the park. Elijah had his arm securely around Esmeralda's waist as she pushed Josiah in his stroller. Elijah had never met Elowen. She was older and wasn't as dependant on her mother anymore like Josiah was. She was usually with Eliana and her then girlfriend, Luna.
"I haven't heard anything about Klaus in months," Elijah started to speak. Josiah was making gurgling baby noises from his stroller and giggling at the birds that were flying ahead. He was about 4 months now and was probably the most bundled up between the three of them. Esmeralda was so worried that he could catch some kind of cold and it turns out that she'd always been a paranoid mom.
Esmeralda had been smiling down at Josiah when Elijah spoke. She tore her eyes away from him and looked to Elijah. He hadn't mentioned Klaus ever since they first met and to be honest, she'd forgotten that's why he was here in the first place.
"Oh. That's a good thing, right?"
"Right. It also means that it's time for me to take my leave."
Esmeralda slowly came to a stop. Elijah did, too.
"You can't just… leave. Not after everything- I mean-"
Elijah's arm on her waist gently pulled her around so she'd face him. Then, his hand moved to cup her cheek. He smiled softly down at her and swiped his thumb across her face when a tear spilled over her watery eyes.
"Dear Esmeralda… did you expect me to stay forever? I'm an Original. Setting down roots is not something that is in my vocabulary. I have other duties to take care of."
"Take me with you," Esmeralda blurted suddenly. She was sniffling and blinking her tears away. "Me and the kids. They won't be a problem, I promise. Please."
"I don't stay in one place too long. Your children don't deserve to be on the move their entire lives. They deserve to have a proper childhood. Besides, what of your sister? Your parents?" Elijah paused. "... Your husband?" He added quietly. He'd often forgotten that he had been watching over a married woman, for she never talked about him. She was so young, no older than 18, and so he never seemed to remember that she had been thrusted into adulthood so early on, despite the fact that Josiah was with them most of the time.
Esmeralda was already shaking her head. "I don't want marriage, especially not with him. I'm not in love with him anymore. I haven't been since Elowen was born. I love y-"
"Please don't finish that sentence."
"No, no, let me say it. Just once. I love-"
Without any warning, Elijah leaned in and kissed her. More tears fell down Esmeralda's face as they kissed and when he pulled back, he made sure to wipe them all away.
"Will I ever see you again?" Esmeralda asked with tremble to her voice from crying. Elijah brushed some of her hair behind her ear, which was just as curly as Elowen's and then some, and shook his head.
"I don't think so. At least, not any time soon. Dear Esmeralda… you will be missed."
Elijah leaned in again and this time placed a tender kiss on her forehead. Esmeralda closed her eyes and felt the warmth of his body leave her. When she opened her eyes again, Elijah was gone.
"Wait a damn minute," Damon said when Esmeralda was done. "You mean to tell me you were shacking up with Elijah? Seriously?"
Alaric had gone quiet the moment Esmeralda started her story and she glanced at him helplessly. He wouldn't look at her.
"I wasn't 'shacking up' with anybody. It was just the one kiss."
"Yeah, a kiss with a guy you were in love with! I thought you had better taste than that."
"Look, that's not my point! My point is, you can trust him! If you can't do that, trust me, okay?"
"Did you know that Elijah was going to sacrifice Elena anyway?" Damon shot back. "He was going to kidnap Elowen, too. How's that for trusting the guy?"
Esmeralda faltered a little bit. Then, she shook her head. "He wouldn't do that without a reason. He had the opportunity to take me, Josiah and Elowen all those years ago and he didn't do it. Something is different this time and I'll be damned if I don't find out."
xxxx
Stefan had just gotten off the phone with Damon, who had filled him in on what Bonnie had told him. He decided to leave out the whole part about Esmeralda being in love with Elijah and how they had a history together because they had bigger things to worry about. Granted, he should've mentioned that Elijah now had the moonstone, but there were more pressing matters at hand.
Toby was sitting on the couch with Elowen, who was still reeling over killing Brady. She had two big blankets wrapped around her, plus Toby's arm, as she sat in front of the fire. Tyler had left hours ago, so it was just Toby, Elowen, Stefan and Elena again. Speaking of Elena, she was sitting in the armchair in the room, her legs tucked under her as she watched Toby and Elowen intently. Truth be told, she was jealous. Toby was supposed to like her. Elowen already had Stefan and Damon. She didn't need another person fawning over her.
"That was, um… that was Damon," Stefan announced as he walked into the room. "We need to talk."
"What is it?" Elena asked. Elowen looked up at Stefan, her eyes still devoid of any emotion (after she was done crying, she went right back to being dead to the world), and Toby gave Stefan his attention as well.
"He learned that Elijah's planning for you to die in the sacrifice ritual."
Elena looked down and bit her lip. "I know the deal I made. Elijah's very careful with his words. He promised to protect my friends. He never said a word about me."
"You mean, you knew that you weren't going to survive this?" Toby asked in disbelief.
"If it comes down to the people I love getting killed or me, I know what my choice is gonna be."
A look of hurt crossed Toby's face. "How could… how could you stand out there earlier with me, talking about making memories and planning dates for the future when you don't even expect to have one?"
"I'm sorry, Toby. I'm just trying to keep the people that I love safe."
"No. What you're doing is being a martyr."
A small scowl appeared on Elena's lips. "Why do you care so much anyway? I don't even know you."
Toby abruptly stood up from his spot next to Elowen. "I care because I like you, Elena!"
Elena flinched at the volume of his voice.
"We were out there, talking about getting to know each other and now you're gonna throw this in my face? Am I a joke to you?"
"No, I didn't mean-"
"What you're doing isn't heroic. It's tragic."
Toby stormed off and Elowen felt her body moving on its own. She untangled the blankets from her arms and legs, stood up, and followed Toby upstairs. She found him sitting on the bed in the guest room he was supposed to be sleeping in. His head was in his hands and he must've heard her come in, because he scooted over and made room for her. She carefully sat next to him and ran her hand down his back.
"I haven't had the best luck finding someone like you to have in my life after we moved," he spoke up after a moment.. "You were the best friend and girlfriend anyone could ever have. Stefan and Damon are lucky." Toby lifted his head and looked at her. "I thought Elena was different. She seemed different. I feel like an idiot." Toby laughed bitterly.
"... I miss us," he said quietly after a pause. His hand slowly creeped over to hers and interlaced their fingers together. "If I could do it again, I wouldn't have let you go. I would've held onto you like my life depended on it."
"Toby…"
"I know. You don't have to say it. I know."
There was a knock at the door and Elowen quickly pulled her hand away from Toby's. Stefan was standing in the doorway. He had seen that they'd been holding hands and had to stop himself from being jealous. They were best friends. Of course they'd be comfortable doing that sort of thing together. He cleared his throat.
"That wasn't all Damon told me. According to Bonnie, Elijah was planning on leaving after the sacrifice and taking you with him. Elena was right, he's careful with his words. He said he'd keep you safe from Klaus. He never said anything about himself."
Elowen sighed deeply. "I know. I know why, too. Remember when I told you I felt like I knew Elijah?" She waited for Stefan to nod. "Well, I've been getting these premonitions of this little girl, Marisol. I don't know who she is or how she knew Elijah, but she did."
"What does this have to do with you?"
"I'm getting there. This little girl, Marisol, she looks just like me. Not in some uncanny resemblance way. She looks just like me, like looking in a mirror."
"... Like a doppelganger."
Elowen nodded. "Mm-hmm. It's like I have her memories. Every time I see Elijah, it triggers the premonitions. So far, I've gathered that something happened to her. Something bad. I don't know how, but she died. I think Elijah wants to find out why I look like her just as much as I do. That's why he wants me."
Toby, who had been quiet this whole time, finally said something. "And you're sure it's not because he wants you to be her? To have her live through you?"
Elowen shook her head. "No, I'm not, but it's the best thing I've got."
Toby and Stefan shared a look and nodded at each other. He stood up and helped Elowen to her feet.
"Look, why don't you get some sleep? It's been a long night and you deserve some rest."
Stefan stepped forward and took Elowen from Toby. "Come on. Let's get you to bed."