Elena stands in a forest, one that she hadn't recognized, and yet it felt familiar. Snow covered the forest floor, but she had not felt the cold. The wind blows strongly against her as the moonlight lights a path through the forest, something ushering her to follow it. Elena swallows hardly before hesitantly taking slow steps through the forest.
"Elliana," A voice calls out from the distance.
The voice had been low and faint. Elliana wasn't her name, but it felt like they were speaking to her. Bright red blood stained the snow as she continued down the path, fear beginning to make its way into her heart. She quickens her pace, the snow crunching beneath her. Something on the ground that she had failed to see made her trip.
She begins to get up, pausing when she sees what she tripped over. A scream filled the forest as she quickly pushed herself away from the dead body. She felt something against her back, she bites her lip scared as she turns to see what it is. Another dead body, his eyes bore into hers and she quickly threw herself up against a tree as tears fill her eyes. She looks down to see herself covered in blood.
Her vision shakes as she looks at her blood-covered hands. She curls up into a ball as she cries.
"Elliana," The same voice from earlier called out.
The voice was in front of her this time, it was the voice of a boy. Elena slowly lifts her head and a blush finds its way on her cheeks. The boy had messy ash-brown hair, his eyes held a bluish-grey color that shines in the moonlight, and he wore a red hooded cloak.
"Do not be frightened," the boy says as he holds his hand out for her.
Tentatively, she grabs his hand. He pulls her off the ground and holds her other hand in his.
"Sweet Elliana, do not be ashamed by the death you caused," He tells her with a smile on his face.
"I am not Elliana," Elena informs with a shaky voice.
The boy frowns at her, for he knows her true identity.
"Tell me, what is your name?" The boy asks.
Elena opens her mouth, but before she could reply a loud boom brought her out of her dream.
Elena's eyes snapped open, her body was covered in sweat, and her heart was pounding violently in her chest. Her eyes searched the room rapidly, a calm feeling taking over her as she spots Rebekah asleep. She slowly pushes the cover, that had been made out of some poor animal's fur, off of her and made her way towards Rebekah. She realizes that it was thunder that had woken her up when she sees Rebekah clutching the wooden knight that Niklaus had carved. She frowns as the memory of Niklaus and Rebekah begins to play in her mind.
Niklaus had chosen to sleep in their room, she had been six at the time, and Rebekah had been five. Elena had woken up out of her sleep as Niklaus had gotten up. Niklaus had made eye contact with Elena before turning to go to Rebekah's side.
"Hush now, it's just a storm, don't be afraid. I won't let it hurt you," Niklaus told Rebekah before getting up.
"Don't go," Rebekah pleaded.
Elena watched as Niklaus pulled out a wooden item and gave it to Rebekah.
"It's a brave knight, now you can be brave too," Niklaus whispered.
A smile appears on Rebekah's face as she held the wooden knight close to her.
"Will you stay with me till the storm ends?" Rebekah asked.
"I'll always stay with you Rebekah, no matter what," Niklaus promised.
Elena snapped herself out of the memory and began to head back to her bed when she felt a hand grab hers.
"Elena," Rebekah whispers.
Elena turned to Rebekah and got on her knees to hear Rebekah better. She hadn't known she was crying until Rebekah wiped a tear off her face. Rebekah took Elena's hand and placed her wooden Knight on Elena's palm.
"Now you won't be scared anymore," Rebekah says with a smile.
Elena shook her head, it was not for her to take. Niklaus had given it to Rebekah, not her.
"No, you keep it, sister," Elena says giving the wooden figure back to Rebekah.
Before Rebekah could give the wooden Knight back to her, Elena laid down next to Rebekah.
"As long as I have you by my side, sister, I needn't be scared," Elena says with a smile.
Rebekah smiles back at her before she slowly fell back asleep. Elena, however, could not go back to sleep. She couldn't get that strange dream out of her mind, she wondered who the mysterious boy spoke of when he had called her Elliana.
Elena watches as glimpses of light appear in the room, signifying that the sun had finally risen. She was glad that today was not one of the days she had agreed to go hunting on. She loved spending time with her father, but she knows she can't possibly go hunting after the dream that she had.
Elena gets up and heads to the kitchen, where she hopes to find her mother. When she walks into the kitchen, her mother greets her with a smile.
"Elena, you're up early," Esther says as she stands up.
Elena nods.
"I wanted to help you cook today, mother," Elena admits.
It had not been a lie. Elena had wanted to help her mother cook for a while, but she never had the time to. Besides, any girl her age would've had many years of experience in the kitchen, seeing as the expected age to begin assisting in the kitchen was seven. Unlike the other girls in her village, Elena had spent her time hunting, collecting herbs, occasionally caring for the animals, and playing with her siblings and other children in the village.
This brought a smile to Esther's face.
"Well, let's get you ready," Esther says, quickly grabbing a rag, towel, and Elena's dress for the day before ushering her to the lake.
After washing up at the lake, Elena put on a light green long sleeve dress. When she got home, Esther began to brush Elena's hair.
"Mother," Elena says.
"Yes?" Esther asks.
Elena had wanted to tell her mother of the nightmare she had, of the boy who had called her Elliana, but she chose not to.
"May I go out into the village today?" Elena asks.
"Of course, be sure to bring Rebekah along with you," Esther replies.
"Mother, I am ten years old. I am old enough to go into the village alone," Elena says stubbornly.
Esther gives Elena a hesitant look, causing Elena to sigh.
"It will only be for a little while, Mother," Elena pleads.
"Very well," Esther sighs as she puts the brush down.
*
As soon as Elena finished eating she left the house. She pauses as she takes in the pure simplicity of the village. She watches as a crowd gathers as two boys were playing with swords. She hesitates before joining the rather large crowd, one of the boys looks at her with a smile before an angry mother takes the swords from the boys and yells at them as they run away. The crowd quickly dispersed, laughing as they walked away.
"He seems to have taken a liking to you," A voice says behind her.
Elena turns to see a girl, who was not much older than her. The girl held a pale complexion, her hair was blonde, and her eyes reminded her of Niklaus. They had held the same bluish-green color, only, this girl's eyes were lighter than Niklaus's.
"Do you think so?" Elena asks.
She had to admit that the black-haired boy was cute, although he paled in comparison to the boy she had seen in her dreams.
"I do. My name is Lilith Petrova by the way,"
"I'm Elena Mikaelson,"
"Do you wish to know a secret, Elena Mikaelson?"
Curious, Elena nods her head.
"You should make the most of the life you live, an easy life is a boring life,"
Unbeknownst to her, those words will stay with her forever.
A group of girls and boys approach them, she soon learns them to be Lilith's friends. They're shocked to learn Elena was only ten years old, but they welcome her into their friend group. Marcus, the boy who had been playing with the sword, was also in the friend group. There were six of them before she joined the group. Lilith, Noah, Nora, Marcus, Cleo, and Neo. Lilith was fifteen, making her the oldest in the group.
Noah and Nora were twins, although they looked completely different from each other. Nora had long silky black hair and brown eyes, while Noah had short wavy blonde hair and blue eyes. Cleo had brown skin, and her black curly hair fell to her waist. Neo was only a few months older than Elena, his hair was a dusty red color, and unlike the other people in the group, he had freckles.
Elena found herself closer to Lilith than anyone else in the friend group. She learned that Noah, Marcus, and Nora were werewolves, Cleo and Neo were witches, and Lilith was only a human. Elena supposed it wasn't odd, after all this village was filled with three different species.
When Cleo and Neo found out that Elena was a witch they encouraged her to try to get in touch with her magic. She tells them that she wasn't interested in magic. It was a lie. She had been fascinated with magic from a young age, so when Finn offered to teach her how to use magic when she was only eight she agreed not to speak a word about it. When Elena noticed the sun beginning to set she decided to go home.
*
"Elena, there you are!" Rebekah exclaimed as she ran to hug her sister.
A smile made its way on Elena's face as she embraced her sister.
"Would you like to join us in a game of hide and seek, sister?" Elijah asks.
"Yes," Elena answers.
They all decide that Niklaus is the seeker before they all take off in different directions. Elena finds herself hiding in the forest. When Elena hears movement in the forest she stands up, ready to run. She sighs and relaxes at the sight of Kol.
"Elena," Kol whispers.
"No," Elena says, seeing that look Kol gets when he's about to cause trouble.
"Please, Ellie," Kol begs.
"What is it Kol?" Elena sighs.
"Let's play a prank on our siblings," Kol says with a smirk on his face.
"What did you have in mind?" Elena smiles.
"You're going to love this!" Kol says excitedly.
After discussing the plan Elena and Kol set out to find their siblings. After finding Elijah who was hiding with Henrik, Finn, and Rebekah they led them to the waterfall. It took some convincing but they all agreed to the plan. Kol set out to find Klaus as they hid near the waterfall. It didn't take long for Kol to come running back towards them, as Niklaus followed after him.
As soon as Niklaus got close to the waterfall, Kol quickly moved out of the way. Before Niklaus could stop himself his siblings pushed him into the water. Kol had been the first to jump in after Niklaus, laughter filled the air on his way down. Elijah and Rebekah quickly followed Kol's example. Elena stood there, looking down at her siblings laughing and playing in the water.
"Are you not joining them?" Finn asks as Henrik attempts to make his way towards the water.
"I could ask the same of you," Elena says, her eyes not leaving the water.
"I am watching Henrik, what is your excuse?" Finn says as he pulls Henrik back towards him.
Elena turns to him, watching the smile on his face disappear.
"I do not think Niklaus will be fond of me joining in the fun," Elena admits, picking up Henrik.
"What makes you think that?" Finn questions.
"You see the way Niklaus looks at me, it is as if he hates me," Elena says as a tear makes its way down her face.
When she sees Henrik frowning at her she forces a smile on her face.
"Why don't you take Henrik home, it's getting rather late," Finn suggests.
Finn wishes he could tell Elena that she was wrong, but he couldn't.
Elena nods and puts Henrik down.
"Let's go home, Henrik," Elena says as she holds her hand out.
Henrik quickly grabs Elena's hand and smiles.
"Okay!" Henrik exclaims.
Elena smiles at his excitement. Henrik was the happiest one of all of her siblings, and she wished for it to stay that way. If anyone deserved to be happy, it should be Henrik.
*
Elena knows her siblings had finally gotten home when she hears her mother yelling at them for ruining their clothes. She figures Finn must've told them that she hadn't been feeling well when Rebekah hadn't bothered to come to their room. After a moment of silence, Elena gets up, quietly making her way out of her room. She finds herself standing at a door, chewing on her lip as she knocks on the door.
"Come in, Elijah," Niklaus's voice instructs.
He's alone, just as she thought he would be. Elena slowly opens the door and steps into the room. Niklaus only looks at Elena before continuing to carve a wooden block.
"Kol isn't here," Niklaus says dismissively.
Elena closes the door as she waits. Niklaus stubbornly puts the wooden block down and looks at her.
"I want to speak with you, brother," Elena informs.
"So speak," He says, his voice remaining indifferent.
"Why do you hate me?" Elena asks.
Niklaus looks shocked at first, he was not expecting her to ask this, and he certainly did not expect her to be so blunt.
"Perhaps it is because Father adores you, while he chooses to beat me," Niklaus says as he stood up, anger clear in his voice.
Elena takes a step back.
"Or maybe it is because everyone prefers you over me," Niklaus says, gripping the knife as he moves closer to her.
"That isn't true, Niklaus," Elena says as fear makes its way into her heart.
Elena notices his starling necklace isn't hanging from his neck. She doesn't know why, but that only brought more fear into her heart. She can't help but feel that this is a mistake.
"And what makes it worse is that you aren't even our real sister!" Niklaus exclaims.
They both freeze as they realize what was said. Elena feels her world shatter as her eyes meet Niklaus's sorry expression.
"No, no I hadn't meant it. Elena," Niklaus calls out, but it's far too late.
Elena had already swung his door open and ran towards her room with tears in her eyes. Elijah stood there shocked at what just happened, he looks at Niklaus with disapproval as he goes after Elena. Elijah knocks at her door.
"Go away!" Elena yells.
Elijah frowns and walks away.
Elijah had begun to worry when Elena hadn't shown up for dinner. The table was silent, the only time Mikael or Esther spoke was to ask where Elena was. His worry hadn't gone away when Elena finally walked into the room with her head down. She ignored all of Esther's and Mikael's questions as she took her seat. When she finally lifted her head, it was painfully obvious that she had been crying.
"Is it true?" Elena asks, her voice brittle.
"Is what true?" Esther asks.
"Am I not your daughter?"