Chapter 61: Do Not Go Gentle
November 5, 2010
Ellie had ended up at Caroline's house early the next morning. The blonde was incredibly stressed over finishing up the preparation for the dance. "Hurry up, help me find my checklist so we can go."
"Care, we have plenty of time before we need to be at the school, but we need to talk." Ellie said.
The other girl immediately stopped and gave Ellie a worried look. "What? What is it? Is something wrong?"
"Not… wrong, per say. It's just something that I need to tell you." Ellie explained.
Caroline stopped what she was doing and put her hands on her hips as she eyed Ellie suspiciously. "You're not pregnant are you?"
Ellie choked on the water that she'd been drinking as she looked at Caroline with wide eyes. "What the fuck? Why would you ask me that? What kind of question is that? No, I'm not pregnant you nutjob! How would I even have gotten pregnant?"
"Sex obviously."
"Well, if I've been screwing someone please let me know because I had no clue." Ellie sassed.
Caroline gave her an unimpressed look. "You were being shady! I just thought I should ask."
"I'm not pregnant, I assure you." Ellie replied.
"Then what is it?"
"There might kind of… maybe be something going between me and Elijah." Ellie confessed.
The bottle that Caroline had been holding dropped out of her hands in her shock. "What?" Caroline searched Ellie's expression for any hint of a joke. "Are you serious? You're not joking?"
"No, no I'm not joking." Ellie replied.
She really should have seen Caroline's squeal of excitement coming, but it still managed to catch her by surprise. "Holy shit. Oh my god, no way. Stop everything. You have to tell me everything. What happened? When did it happen? How long has this been going on? Why didn't you tell me sooner? I can't believe you actually got with him. I mean god the pining between you two was so thick I could have cut it with a knife but I never thought you'd actually do anything about it."
"Actually, if we want to get technical, I guess Elijah made the first move."
Caroline squealed again. "No way! Mr. Prim and Proper made the first move? How did he do it? Tell me everything! Don't leave a single thing out." She insisted as she pulled Ellie to sit on her bed.
"Ok, ok, so, you remember when Meredith and I were keeping an eye on Alaric at my house?"
"When he almost killed you both?" Caroline asked.
Ellie winced slightly. "Yeah, yeah that would be the night." When Caroline nodded, Ellie continued, "Well, Rebekah had been coming to meet me and found me passed out just inside the house. When Alaric had attacked me, I'd managed to get the door open before collapsing. But, Bekah's never been invited inside, so she kind of freaked and called Elijah."
"He saved your life?" Caroline asked with a grin.
"He fed me his blood, but I really scared the three of them. It took a minute for me to actually respond. They thought that they were too late." Ellie explained. "But, after I came to… I guess I'd scared him badly enough that he just kind of said screw it and… and he kissed me."
Caroline looked positively thrilled. "He kissed you after saving your life because he was scared he'd lost you? Oh my god that's like Nicholas Sparks level good!" She laughed. "Oh that's so romantic."
"Little awkward to think about when Rebekah and Klaus had been there for it, but pretty great nonetheless." Ellie added.
"Was he a good kisser?" Caroline asked boldly. Ellie felt like her face was on fire. "That good? Damn, look at you go Ellie! Have you guys done anything else? So are you together?"
"Something like that. I mean, we haven't exactly put a boyfriend, girlfriend label on it, but I don't know, it feels a little weird to do that when he's been around a thousand years. It's not like I'm kind of with some random boy on the football team. And no, we haven't really done anything other than kissing." Ellie explained.
"First time you date someone and you snatch up an Original, impressive." Caroline praised.
"You could have an Original too if you wanted one." Ellie said slyly. She threw her hands up to block the incoming pillow before grinning. "I'm just saying, we both know Klaus has the hots for you. I mean can you blame him? You are pretty great."
The blonde just rolled her eyes. "He's only interested in me because I didn't jump into bed with him the moment we met."
A tan looking piece of paper caught Ellie's attention. She moved to pick it up before giving Caroline a look. "If that's the case, then why did he draw this picture of you?" She'd seen it before, but it seemed Caroline needed a little reminder.
Caroline looked flustered. "I should have just thrown it in the garbage." She replied.
"Along with that stunning ball gown and bracelet that he also gave you?" Ellie asked knowingly.
"I'm not going to be bought by fancy gifts." Caroline said defensively.
"How about hand drawn portraits of you looking oh so pretty?" When Caroline just glared at her, Ellie laughed slightly and replied, "Care, I've spent an excessive amount of time with him, if I thought he was oh so terrible, I would have let you know."
"He's an ass."
"He's definitely an ass!" Ellie agreed. "But so is Damon and no one is actively trying to murder him. Hell, Tyler's an ass sometimes. But that doesn't mean they deserve to die, so why does Klaus?"
Caroline didn't seem to know what to say. "Let's just… let's get to the school. I'm pretty sure Jeremy's going to be there."
Ellie glared at her before sighing. "Using Jeremy was a cheap shot, but let's go."
By the time that they got to the school, most everyone was already there. Elena met them in the hallway, filling the two of them in on Alaric's plan to take some time. "So Alaric is trying to pull himself together. Why is that a bad thing?"
"I just… I wish there was something I could do." Elena confessed.
Their conversation halted abruptly by Ellie's high pitched squeal of excitement. "Jeremy!" The youngest Gilbert turned at the sound of his name and grinned as Ellie bolted towards him, throwing herself at him. He caught her with ease and lifted her off her feet as she hugged him tightly. "Oh my god I missed you so much you've never going anywhere again you hear me?"
"Yeah, yeah I hear you!" He laughed as she pulled back and pinched his cheek. "What was that for?"
"You got taller! Who said you could do that?" She asked as she hugged him again. "I missed you so so much!"
"You're squishing me to death!" Jeremy laughed as he pulled away. "I missed you too, but must you embarrass me on my first day back?"
Ellie gave him a look of warning. "I could do way worse than this and we both know it."
Jeremy winced slightly. "Very cute reunion and all, but can I steal him back now? I need help hanging this stuff." Matt called from where he was up on the ladder.
"Boo." Ellie groaned, "But I suppose you can have him back."
Jeremy climbed the ladder and passed the decorations to Matt. "What are you doing?" Caroline called sharply. "You can't just hang them! They're supposed to trickle down."
"Trickle down." Matt laughed as Ellie walked back to Elena and Caroline.
"Look at them all bromancey." Caroline commented with a grin.
"Yeah, I asked Matt to help Jeremy readjust. He got him his old job back at The Grill." Elena explained. For one bitter moment, Ellie couldn't help but think that it was Elena's fault that Jeremy had to readjust in the first place.
Caroline gave Ellie a skeptical look as she said, "That was nice of him."
"Mmhmm. Jeremy's got a lot on his mind. The whole thing with Alaric has got him really stressed out." Elena replied.
"You sure it had nothing to do with witnessing you and Damon getting hot and heavy in a skeevy motel?"
Ellie's jaw dropped as Elena smiled slightly and replied, "I didn't tell you that so you could torture me with it."
"Ah what are friends for?" Caroline joked. "So, who are you bringing to the dance?"
"What do you mean? I thought you, Ellie, Bonnie, and I were going as girl dates?"
Caroline laughed and explained, "Bonnie has a date."
"What?"
"Jamie called and wanted to see her so she asked him." Caroline explained as Ellie was still trying to process that Elena and Damon had made out. "So, here's a thought. Why don't you ask Stefan?"
Elena paused what she was doing before she stuttered slightly, "I… I can't ask him on a date. I just made out with his brother."
"All the more reason. Like, you're supposed to be figuring out what you want. That's what Stefan wanted you to do, right?" Caroline asked.
"Yeah, but-"
"But nothing. I've watched The Bachelor. Ok, fair is fair. It is Stefan's turn." Caroline insisted.
Elena laughed slightly. "Yeah, and you're not biased or anything."
"I'm sorry, but Stefan is your epic love. And I'm not going down without a fight."
"Ellie are you ok?" Elena asked worriedly as she caught the way her sister's mouth was still dropped open in shock.
"You made out with Damon?" Ellie asked in shock. Her kissing him the first time had been bad enough, and now she had to go and do it again? Elena's expression closed off slightly at the question. "Why the hell would you make out with Damon?"
The disgust was evident in her tone. "It's complicated Ellie."
The witch scoffed. "How is it complicated?"
"Why are you getting so angry?" Elena asked defensively.
"How many times do I have to explain that Stefan and I spent all summer with no one but each other unless you wanna include Klaus which you have made it clear you hate. Everything Stefan did was to protect you and keep Damon alive. While Stefan was on the verge of losing his shit because of what he was being forced to do, you're back here flirting with his brother? Real classy Elena." Ellie replied.
"That's not fair."
"What Stefan had to deal with wasn't fair either, but he didn't go making out with someone else did he?" Ellie asked angrily. "Stefan deserves better than to have you going back and forth between him and Damon. Honestly, at this point, I'm just disappointed in you. I never thought you were that type of girl, but here we are."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Elena asked.
Fed up, Ellie replied, "It means that you had a whole lot to say about Katherine and how she was a horrible person for manipulating them and playing them, but here you are doing the exact same thing."
"Don't compare me to Katherine!" Elena snapped. "I am nothing like her."
"When it comes to the way you're treating Stefan and Damon, you're exactly like her. Hell, at least Katherine made it clear that she wanted Stefan when she came back and didn't lead Damon on."
"I cannot believe you just said that!"
"Well somebody needed to. I mean it's obvious that Caroline thinks you should be with Stefan instead of Damon. It would probably be the opinion of just about anyone if you asked them."
"No one gets a say in who I'm with or not with."
Ellie gave her a look. "Really? Jeremy shouldn't get a say in it when Damon's literally killed him?" Ellie hissed. "Jesus Christ, it's actually baffling how easily you've gotten over all the horrible things he's done, and somehow Klaus is the bad guy?"
"Klaus is the bad guy!"
"And how many people have ended up dead because of your insane mission to kill him?" Ellie asked coldly. The comment seemed to shock both Elena and Caroline. "You know what, I'm gonna go cool off. I'll see you at the dance Caroline."
Ellie had been putting the finishing touches on her hair when there was a knock on her door. "Come in!" The door opened to reveal Elijah, dressed in a suit different than his usual.
"You look magnificent." Elijah praised as he stepped into the room.
"Thank you. You look pretty nice yourself." She replied.
"Rebekah asked Niklaus and I to attend the dance tonight, since Klaus intends for us to leave soon. I was wondering if you would allow me to be your escort to the dance." He explained.
She turned to look at him and grinned slightly. "You wanna be my date to the dance?"
"If you would let me, that is." Elijah replied.
Feeling confident, she tilted her head and said, "Well, it is a very tempting offer." As Elijah moved to stand in her personal space, she added, "I would love for you to be my escort." She offered up her necklace and asked, "Would you be so kind as to help me with this? The clasp keeps acting tricky."
When Ellie turned around so that he back was towards him, Elijah brought his hands around to fix the necklace. Her heart was racing when he'd leaned close enough for her to feel his breath on her neck. The moment was over too soon as Elijah said, "There we are." When she looked back at him, he had a small smirk on his face and she knew he'd heard her heart racing. She licked her lips instinctively and watched with fascination as his gaze dropped down to her mouth.
"Elijah…" She said softly.
His hand traveled up to cup her cheek and she felt his thumb gently trace her lower lip. "You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen." He told her, though he didn't look away from her mouth. The kiss didn't surprise her, but the fact that this kiss was stronger than the ones they'd shared before did. When his tongue swiped at her lower lip, she opened up on instinct. The more he kissed her, the hotter she felt. His other hand found her hip and she grinned into the kiss as she allowed him to walk her backwards until her back met the wall.
She let herself get lost in the kiss as her hands traveled up to his hair. Her nails scraped at the back of his neck and the sound he made had her feeling like her heart was going to burst out of her chest. She tucked that little trick away for later use. "Oh bloody hell if you two are going to act like horny teenagers at least lock the bloody door!" Klaus complained as he barged in.
"Well maybe learn to knock genius!" Ellie shot back before laughing at the ridiculousness of it.
Her head fell onto Elijah's shoulder as she laughed. "What can we do for you, Niklaus?" Elijah asked as he gave Klaus a dark look.
"I'm going to have to soundproof the whole bloody house aren't I? I'll never get a moment's rest if I don't." He complained.
Ellie snorted loudly, causing Elijah to smirk at her amusement. "What can we do for you, Niklaus?" He repeated.
"I was just going to ask if you two were ready to go or not." Klaus replied. "Honestly, you couldn't even be bothered to put a sock on the door?"
"A sock on the door?" Ellie asked as she finally looked up. "Seriously?" Klaus looked like he was trying not to laugh as Ellie and Elijah separated.
He grinned at her before he explained, "I was trying to see if you were ready to go or not. It's not my fault you take forever to get dressed."
"Shut up." Ellie said as she used her magic to fling a pillow at him. "Anyways, where's Rebekah? She hasn't returned my calls."
Both brothers gave her a look of concern. "She hasn't?" Elijah asked.
"No, and she didn't show up for the set up today." Ellie replied.
"Well, she was here this morning. I'm sure she's fine. We'll see her at the dance, let's just get this over with already." Klaus decided.
"You just want to go see Caroline." Ellie taunted.
"Shut up." Klaus huffed as he threw a pillow towards her, but she used her magic to launch it back at him. "Witch."
"I didn't take this long on this look for you to mess it up, jerk." Ellie sassed. "Also, since you guys have been dragged into the whole dance thing, you're going to take part in my dance traditions."
Klaus gave her a skeptical look. "Which is what exactly?"
"You look like I want to pull your teeth out." She laughed. "I just take pictures at every dance." The two of them obliged easily enough and then they were on their way. When they arrived, Ellie's eyes went wide in awe at the sight. "It looks amazing, Bekah did amazing."
Elijah hummed in agreement as Klaus headed for the drinks. The music shifted from it's upbeat pace to something slower. "Dance with me?" He asked as he offered her his hand. He led her out onto the dancefloor before he placed his other hand on her lower back. Dancing with him brought back memories of the ball, and it was still baffling how much had changed since then. "What are you thinking about?"
"The ball." She confessed. "I was so nervous to dance with you."
"Why?"
"Because… I don't know. I was worried about embarrassing myself, plus, I was trying to ignore whatever it was that I felt for you."
Elijah gave her a fond look. "Why would you do that?"
"I wasn't exactly sure you felt the same way." She informed him. "If you hadn't I would have just made a fool out of myself, or I would have made it awkward which I didn't want."
He nodded in understanding. "While the circumstances weren't exactly expected, or what I would have wanted to happen, I can't say I'm not happy with this turn of events."
Ellie grinned at him. "Well, I mean, all it took to get you to kiss me was almost dying. Maybe I should have done it sooner."
He pulled her closer sharply and warned her, "Don't joke like that." But the way his mouth quirked up into a smirk had distracted her almost entirely. "Eleanor."
She looked up at him and he noted with amusement how wide her eyes had gone. "Hmm? Did you say something?"
Elijah leaned close, bringing his mouth so that he was just barely brushing the shell of her ear. "Now you know how I felt earlier."
"Not my fault Klaus doesn't know how to knock." She informed him.
"True." Elijah agreed. They settled into the dance easily and Ellie stepped closer, resting her head on his shoulder.
They'd been dancing together peacefully for a while before Ellie noticed Klaus staring intently at something. She followed his line of sight and spotted Tyler and Caroline dancing happily. "Oh no."
"What's wrong?" Elijah asked as she pulled away.
"Klaus' jealousy." Ellie replied.
She made her way through the crowd with Elijah just behind her. "Where have you been, mate?"
"I just got back in town." Tyler said carefully.
"That's funny. I don't recall giving you permission to leave in the first place." Klaus told him. "You don't mind if I cut in, do you?"
"Yes, actually, we do." Caroline said sharply.
Klaus gave Tyler a look and the younger hybrid corrected Caroline, telling her, "No. It's fine."
"Why do you always have to prove you're the alpha male?" Caroline asked.
"I don't have to prove anything, love. I am the alpha male." Klaus replied.
Caroline scoffed as Ellie added, "Well, acting like a jealous teenager isn't exactly helping in that department."
Klaus glared at her before looking back at Caroline. "Come on, one dance. I won't bite." Caroline looked back at Tyler before looking at Ellie. When the witch only shrugged, Caroline sighed and allowed Klaus to pull her further onto the dancefloor.
Tyler was watching them intensely, so Ellie moved to him. "Ty, I've missed you so much." He was prepared for her bear hug and she felt him laugh more than she could hear it. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah, I'm ok." He assured her. "I missed you too." Despite him being happy to see Ellie, it was clear that all he could focus on was the way that Klaus was dancing with Caroline. "Do I need to be worried about that?"
"Do you think she would cheat on you?"
"No."
"Then, no. You don't have to be worried about that."
"Eleanor." Elijah called and Ellie turned to see Klaus quickly walking away from Caroline. "Come on." He looked like he didn't want to ruin her fun, but she knew how Klaus could be, so she didn't protest.
They caught up to Klaus as he was walking out the front door. He had his phone pressed to his ear and was saying, "Rebekah, call me back immediately. I only came to this ridiculous dance because you begged me to and now you're nowhere to be found." He slowed to a stop as Ellie and Elijah noticed the very thick ring of salt. "What is this?"
"Your mother's back." Stefan explained as he walked over to them.
Ellie looked between the three of them. "Wait, I thought Esther died?"
"So did I." Klaus replied.
"Bonnie's already trying to undo the spell." Stefan explained. "Jeremy came to get us when Esther came for Elena, and we've been trying to fix it since."
"Esther has Elena?" Ellie asked as she felt the panic rise in her. "Where's Bonnie? Maybe if we work together we'll have enough magic to overpower Esther." Ellie suggested.
Klaus nodded. "Brilliant idea. Let's go." He demanded as he gestured for Stefan to lead the way.
It seemed like everyone had already gathered in the lunchroom. Bonnie was standing at one of the tables with a set of candles lit before her. "Any luck?" Ellie asked.
"Not yet." Bonnie confirmed. Ellie offered up her hands and once they were holding on to each other, they both began to chant, "Merabas Hic Libatal, Confremun Signas. Omus Quisa Tentum Exalis, Merabas Hic Libatal. Confremun Signas, Omus Quisa Tentum Exalis."
"She does this all the time, right?" Jamie asked worriedly.
"What's taking so long? All boundary spells have a loophole." Klaus reminded them.
"Are you the witch here?" Ellie asked. "Do you have the ability to undo the spell? No? Then quit being so damn pushy. We're working on it."
Klaus glared at her, but said nothing further. Matt barged into the room and announced, "People are walking right out of the dance, past the barrier."
"Well, if Matt and I can leave, we could stop Esther ourselves." Jeremy offered. "We just gotta find out where she is."
Ellie gave him an incredulous look. "And let you go up against a thousand year old wicked witch of the west? Like hell."
"Ellie's right. It's suicide, Jeremy." Stefan agreed.
Klaus had his hand wrapped around Jamie's throat in an instant. The teenager was lifted off his feet as he tried to pry Klaus' hand off of his neck. "Suicide would be disappointing me." Klaus warned. "Now work your magic, witch, or I'll start killing people you fancy."
"Let him go!" Bonnie begged.
"Not until you get us out of here." Klaus replied.
"Ah don't be stupid, Klaus. Bonnie doesn't give a damn about us. The only reason she's helping right now is to save Caroline and Tyler. If you start killing people she cares about, she'll tell us all to go to hell." Stefan said as he walked over to Klaus.
Klaus looked between Stefan and Bonnie, but Jamie was hitting Klaus' hand repeatedly, clearing running out of oxygen. "Knock it the fuck off, Klaus." She snapped and she used her magic to forcibly pry his hand off of Jamie.
"Unnecessary." Klaus told her as he flexed his hand.
"So was that, but if you're gonna act like a dick, then I don't feel too bad about that. Or are you forgetting that Esther has my sister?" Ellie reminded him. Klaus didn't seem impressed with her stunt, but he had no reason to hurt Jamie other than acting like a dick, so she didn't particularly regret it. "Bon, come on. We can get a map from Alaric's room."
The two quickly headed for Alaric's room, and when the two were alone, Bonnie quietly said, "Thanks for that, back there, with Klaus."
"He was being a dick, and Jamie was in pain. It's no big deal." Ellie assured her.
"I just feel bad that we've hardly gotten to spend any time together since you got back." Bonnie confessed.
"There's been a lot going on with someone's life constantly on the line. And with stuff with you mom… it's understandable that we haven't gotten to hang much." Ellie replied as she pulled a map off the wall. Ellie pulled a letter opener out from the drawer of Alaric's desk and unflinchingly dragged the blade across her palm. She healed the wound with ease. "What is it?" She asked when she noticed Bonnie's curious expression.
Bonnie made a face before replying, "I guess it just caught me off guard how easy all of this seems for you."
"It's just practice." Ellie replied as Bonnie clicked on the lap.
Klaus, along with Damon and Elijah strolled into the room. "Do we really have to do this with the three of you lurking over us?" Bonnie complained.
"You're still mad at me for what happened to Abby. Let me apologize. I'm sorry Elijah forced us to turn your mother into a vampire to save Elena's life." Damon said. "Didn't exactly have a choice."
"Wonderful apology. Really selling it with all that sincerity in your voice." Ellie sassed.
"There's always a choice." Bonnie replied. "Whenever you make one, someone else suffers."
"Let's cut the dramatics and begin, shall we?" Klaus said.
Ellie glared at him. "Klaus, shut up." She warned. "If you're not going to be useful, just be quiet so we can do this."
Elijah's hand shot out to stop Klaus from moving, and he gave his brother a look of warning. "She's right."
"Why do I feel like I'm going to regret ever letting you two have anything to do with one another?" Klaus asked.
She smirked at the hybrid. "I'd love to see you try and stop me." She replied.
Klaus rolled his eyes at her. "When did you get this cocky?"
"When my sister got kidnapped, again, because I'm a little preoccupied with making sure your mother doesn't kill her." Ellie replied. "So if you want us to do the locator spell, chill."
With that being said, the two witches began to chant, "Phasmatos Tribum Nas Ex Veras, Sequitas Saguines Ementas Asten Mihn Ega Petous." Ellie could feel the pushback against their spell. "Esther's fighting us." Bonnie explained when the blood wouldn't move.
"Esther couldn't possibly have this much power." Klaus commented. "No, she's channeling something."
"A hotspot." Ellie suggested.
"Get the humans ready. I know where she is." Klaus instructed.
"No way in hell are you sending my very human, relatively defenseless brother up against your insane mother." Ellie replied.
Jeremy and Matt were obviously lingering nearby, because the duo walked in at her protest. "Ellie, we have to try and save Elena." Jeremy told her softly.
"Jer, you don't get it. Esther is insane. I will not be ok if something happens to you." Ellie told him. "Jer, you can't go."
"I have to go." Jeremy replied as he walked over to her. "If you could get past the barrier and try to go save her, would you?"
"Of course I would."
"Then how is it any different that I go?"
"Because I literally have magic powers! Jeremy, if something were to happen to you." Ellie said softly.
Jeremy pulled her into a tight hug. "It won't." He promised. "We'll be careful, I promise."
"Where are they?" Matt asked.
"The old cemetery." Klaus replied. The two humans moved to get weapons from Alaric's stash, and before Ellie could stop them, they were gone.
"If they get hurt because of that old witch, I'm gonna tear her apart." Ellie said darkly as she flexed her hand.
"I'm sure you will." Klaus agreed.
Bonnie looked awkward and replied, "Well, now that that's done, I'm gonna be anywhere but here."
She hastily exited the room and Damon left shortly after. "Eleanor?" Elijah asked carefully as he looked over at her.
Klaus turned to see the witch breathing heavily, and she'd lost her color. "Ellie?"
"What if something happens to him?" Ellie asked as she looked up at them. "You don't understand, I can't handle it if something happens to Jeremy." Her voice was shaking.
Elijah quickly approached and wrapped his arms around her. "Breathe, Eleanor, breathe."
"She'll kill them. I can't lose Jeremy. I can't."
"You won't." Elijah assured her as she wrapped her trembling arms around him. "Klaus, give us a moment, would you?" Klaus, for once, didn't have a smart remark. He only nodded, and exited quietly. "He's going to be ok."
She had her head buried in the crook of his neck. "But what if he isn't?" She asked pitifully.
"He will be. You have to have faith."
Ellie held onto him tightly and begged whoever was listening to keep Matt and her brother safe. "I can't lose anybody else." They just stood there for a moment as Ellie let herself be comforted by the Original. "Wait, what about Rebekah? What the hell did Esther do to Rebekah?" Ellie asked worriedly.
As soon as she asked it, Elijah also felt concern for his sister build in his chest, but either way, there was nothing they could do for anyone locked in the high school. "We'll find her as soon as we can." Elijah promised.
"If she hurt her…"
"I wish I could say that my mother wouldn't, but…" Elijah admitted, "But we will find Rebekah, one way or another."
The sheer confidence that he said it with was enough to calm her, even if it was only slightly. They took a while longer to let her pull herself back together before they left the room to look for the others. "Do you think that they've gotten there yet?"
"Possibly." Elijah confirmed.
They found Stefan and Klaus standing silently at the salt barrier. "You know this is your fault." Klaus commented casually. "You set us on this path when you released my mother. I wonder if revenge will prove worth the cost."
"Is now really the time for the blame game?" Ellie asked tiredly. She was grateful when Elijah didn't seem to mind her wrapping her arms around him. She shook slightly and gave Elijah a tired smile when he pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders. "Thanks."
"I'm done with revenge." Stefan admitted. "As far as Esther, we've stopped her before. We'll stop her again."
"We are strange bedfellows, you and I." Klaus told him. "You know, all of this reminds me of our time together in the twenties."
Stefan scoffed and replied, "You say that like I'm supposed to have happy memories about it."
"Well, there were moments, real friendship, brotherhood."
"Well, he already has a brother." Damon reminded him as he approached. "Not to be, you know, territorial or anything."
"Oh no, of course. The Salvatores and their unshakable bond. I wonder what'll happen when Elena finally makes her choice. Will we see you shake just a little bit?" Klaus asked.
When Klaus turned away from them, Damon glanced over at Ellie who still had her arms wrapped around Elijah. "What the hell is going on with this?" Damon asked as he stared at the two of them.
"Shut up, Damon." Ellie sighed. To her surprise, though it might have been because he was preoccupied with his concern for Elena, he didn't say anything else.
She turned when she felt Bonnie's energy as she approached. "It's done." Bonnie announced. "Esther's not fighting me anymore. The boundary spell is broken."
Ellie allowed Klaus to rush her and Elijah along and she said nothing as Klaus drove at concerningly high speeds. All she could think about was what could have caused the boundary spell to drop. She also needed to know if everyone else was alright. When they arrived, Ellie spotted a body on the ground, but relief washed over her when she saw Jeremy pacing. "Oh my god." She threw herself at him, holding him tightly as she tried to keep her emotions in check. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." Jeremy assured her.
Klaus and Elijah were staring at their mother's dead body. "Did you stop her?" Klaus asked.
"She tried to turn Ric into a weapon. She failed." Jeremy explained.
Elijah nodded. "We'll take her." He said he shared a look of understanding with Ellie before he picked up Esther's body. Klaus tossed her the keys before he and Elijah disappeared with Esther's body.
"Is everyone else ok?"
"They're inside." Jeremy replied.
"Are they ok?" Damon asked as he appeared out of nowhere.
The siblings flinched in surprise. "Yeah. I'll go let them know you're here." Ellie followed Jeremy inside as he told Alaric and Elena, "Damon's here, and Klaus and Elijah took Esther's body."
"Does he know about the stake?" Alaric asked.
"No, only that she tried to turn you into a weapon and failed." Jeremy informed him.
"Wait, how did she try to turn you into a weapon? What stake?" Ellie asked.
Alaric gave her a sad look before he explained, "She used my ring to make an indestructible white oak stake and she tried to turn me into an Original vampire."
"Tried?"
"I'm in transition." Alaric confessed.
"Why do you look like that?" Ellie asked suspiciously.
Alaric sniffed as he replied, "Listen Ellie, Jeremy… I'm not gonna complete the transition. My dark side was dangerous enough as a human. I can't be a vampire." Ellie felt like the wind had been knocked out of her as her eyes watered.
"So what, we're just gonna lock you in here and let you die?" Jeremy asked. When neither Elena or Alaric responded, Jeremy told them, "No! No, we can't."
"Listen, Jeremy, it's the right thing to do, ok? After everything that's happened, after… after all that I've done… maybe I had it coming." Alaric said.
"Don't say that!" Ellie snapped as angry tears rolled down her face.
Jeremy started to walk off, and Elena moved after him. "Hey, wait, Jer. Alaric, this isn't your fault."
"Please, you guys, let's not make this any harder than it already is. You three should go." Alaric said softly. "Damon's here. He'll make sure it'll all go down the right way." Jeremy started to walk away again when Alaric stopped him. "Hey, hey."
"Don't." Jeremy said. "Just don't give me some crap speech about how I need to be the man of the house."
"Ok." Alaric agreed softly. "I won't." When he pulled Jeremy into a tight hug, Ellie's resolve crumbled. When they let go, Jeremy turned sharply on his heel and left.
"We need to tell Jenna." Ellie said suddenly. Alaric turned at the mention of his ex and Ellie could see the heartache on his face. "She needs to get to say goodbye."
He nodded and with shaking hands and blurry eyes, she texted Jenna what was happening. She couldn't handle telling Jenna over the phone. "This is all my fault." Elena cried. Ellie couldn't stomach listening to Elena cry, so she stepped out to give the two a moment. In her grief, there was a dark thought that Elena was right, and that this was her fault.
When she came out, she was startled to see everyone there, all teary eyed and somber as they lit candles. The squealing of tires caught everyone's attention and Jenna ran towards Ellie in a panic. Her face was red and tear stained. "What's happening? What's going on? What are you talking about?" Her voice was shaking.
Alaric and Elena stepped out then, and he only had a moment to take in the scene before him before he focused on Jenna. "Jen…" He said sadly.
A choked sob tore through Jenna's throat as she collapsed into him. It was hard to make out what they were saying, but Ellie felt like she could throw up from the pain in her chest. "Please no." It seemed like Jenna's plea was hard for everyone to handle, because even Damon, who had mastered controlling his emotions long ago, had to look away.
"Ellie." Alaric called and she moved over to him. Jenna backed away enough for him to hug Ellie tightly.
"It's not fair." She choked.
"No, it's not, but this is how it has to be." Alaric replied. "Look after each other."
"We will." She said shakily as she moved to hold onto Jenna. He took one last look at the others before giving them a sad smile and going back inside the mausoleum and closing the door behind him.
Damon approached, and for once his presence brought him comfort. "Jenna, it's ok. I'll stay with him." He said gently.
Jenna was still crying as she looked at him. "Please don't leave him." She begged.
He gave her a gentle smile. "I promise I won't. It'll be ok."
The group dispersed and Jenna handed her keys over to Stefan. He took them wordlessly. Jenna climbed into Ellie's car, and Ellie, not knowing what else to do, drove on instinct. They drove to a house Jenna wasn't familiar with, but when Ellie knocked on the door, a familiar face opened it. "Ellie? Jenna? What's going on?" Katherine asked as she moved to let them inside. Ellie whimpered softly as she moved to Katherine. The vampire took in their distressed states with worry and when Jenna also wrapped her arms around the two lookalikes, she simply closed the door behind them. "What's happening?"
"Ric is dying." Ellie said quietly.
"What?" Katherine asked in surprise. She did nothing to stop Jenna as the blonde made her way over to Katherine's alcohol, opening a bottle and drinking from it directly.
"Esther… Klaus and Elijah's mother, she tried to turn Alaric into an Original vampire so that he could kill them, the same way she made Mikael." Ellie explained as she hiccuped. "He's not going to complete the transition."
"Oh Ellie…" Katherine replied. She knew that Ellie saw him as a father figure and she knew that Jenna had been in love with him. There was no way they were handling this well. "It's ok, come on, come sit down." She managed to get both of them on the couch with relative ease. Jenna curled up on herself instantly before she took another long drink from the bottle. "What can I do?"
Ellie looked at Katherine through blurry eyes. The vampire before her was so good and no one seemed to realize that. In her already overly emotional state, Ellie broke down in tears again. She didn't seem to be able to get her thoughts out, so Katherine simply moved to sit between the two girls and pulled Ellie close as she began to sing a familiar lullaby. Ellie curled into Katherine as far as she could.
The longer she sang, the quieter Ellie and Jenna became. At some point, Jenna had put down the bottle and had curled into Katherine as well. Losing a loved one was hard and painful, Katherine knew the pain well. The two girls that were wrapped around her were honestly the only people in the last five hundred years that had been close to her without wanting anything from her. She'd let her guard down around them. They were the only ones alive that really got to see a glimpse at the way she'd been as a human.
When she'd been just a girl in Bulgaria, she'd been innocent and kind. She'd loved her sister fiercely and had enjoyed the days she spent in the kitchen with her mother, or the days where they would learn to sew or make flower crowns. She hadn't known the struggles of life in her time with her father's high standing, and despite her father's anger, she'd been a happy girl. Her only crime had been loving one man too much, and having a child out of wedlock because of it.
No one understood the trauma that she'd gone through. No one seemed to care. But Ellie did. She was willing to give Katherine a chance when no one else had. It made Katherine hate Elena even more. The bitch had everything Katherine could have wanted. She had a family that was still alive. She had an amazing sister. She had Stefan. He was everything pure and good she'd ever wanted out of love and Elena had taken him from her. He only ever looked twice at Elena because she'd looked like Katherine.
How Elena managed to treat both Ellie and Stefan so poorly astounded Katherine. They were the two people that meant the most to Katherine, and she didn't think that Elena deserved their love. If she were honest, she probably didn't deserve them either. She'd made countless mistakes and had been cruel far more than she'd had to be, but she knew that. Despite that, she still thought she deserved them more than Elena did. She definitely treated them better. If she had to place bets, she thought that Ellie would choose Katherine over Elena, which brought her great satisfaction. The only thing left was to get Stefan back, and she was willing to do whatever it took to do so.
Author's Note:
Sorry for being a little late today guys, today's a busy one. We got a little more Ellie and Elijah this chapter and Caroline finally knows about them! We also got Kat comforting Ellie and Jenna, did you enjoy it? As always, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Please leave a review and let me know your thoughts!
To Guest: To have you say that Ellie is the type of character you wish the writers included in the beginning honestly means so much to me. I don't want her to mess up in a really big way, she won't be cheating or anything like that, but something like messing up magic wise is fair. Thank you so much for your support, it helps a lot when negative comments get to me.
To xenocanaan: That's what I was thinking. She's messed up it just hasn't been a deadly mess up. I'm not sure when Kol comes back on the show, but when he does they'll definitely be interacting. Hopefully I can start working on the one shots soon.
To zombie-hunt: Yes! When the Mikaelsons go to New Orleans, she will be going. In the show, Katherine does reach out to Elijah and that might still be happening in the show, I haven't written that far so I'm not sure yet.
To Daddy's LiL HeartBreaker: You're definitely right about Ellie holding herself to a different standard. There might actually be a bit where Ellie knows something that Elena doesn't in the future. When it comes to Klaus, she knows he's kind of an ass, and because Care is so important to her, she's extra protective.
To SJES2468018: I know, it's kind of hard to imagine her with anyone else, but at the same time when I came up with her, she was made for Kol, so that's probably going to be a separate fic at some point. I'm glad I made her feel so real to you!
To Guest(2): I would agree. Elena never really faced consequences for her actions to the point that it didn't even make sense canonically. Why Klaus didn't kill her and everyone else for killing Kol, I'll never understand. Especially after Katherine had been forced to take the cure and Elena was useless. Thank you so much.
To flawsome4ever: Thank you so much. I love her bonding with the Mikaelsons and with Stefan.
To Qewbix: If I have her fuck up and there's a fallout between her and at least some of the MF gang, it probably would last the longest with Elena when it comes to a fight. Oh I feel you, if I haven't had time to wake up and get some caffeine my brain is useless. Honestly, the idea of her and Damon kind of becoming friends is pretty appealing.
To Guest(3): That is definitely an interesting idea. I don't know if I'd do Hayley and Jenna but the thought of Jenna being Bi is suddenly a really interesting idea. It's not like we got much in the way of sexual diversity from the majority of the characters.
To brigitm28: Thank you so much, all I ever wanted was for her to be realistic. I actually did do research for that funeral, so from what I've found, yes those are real things that actually happened in Viking funerals all the way down to the burial of actual boats and the sacrifice of slaves. Having Finn see Ellie do that for him and maybe have him be a little protective of her against Esther's rage would actually be really cool. Yes, Stefan just needs a solid friend man.
To Guest(4): You're only on chapter two so far, so if you get to this point, thank you for reviewing!
To AdiraBraelynn: Thank you so much, I'm just glad to see people getting what I was trying to do when I made Ellie. I'd also agree that the Originals treat her better, at least better than Elena. Yes, when it came to the funeral I did a bunch of research before writing it because I wanted to do it justice. There's a moment I've written where Elena's starting to get suspicious, so I wonder how that's going to blow up. I think I'm definitely getting closer to writing Elena finding out, but not quite there lol.
-Madame Magic
Posted: 3/20/21