A/N: I do not own The Vampire Diaries franchise. This story is a product of my escapism.
His mind was reeling. As Elena finished her story, he sat in stunned silence.
As their conversation had progressed, Elena had migrated from his lap to sit beside him. He still was loath to let go of her, especially after listening to her list out the many horrors that had befallen her.
"My brave little sister," Alex murmured into her hair as he kissed her temple.
Elena looked exhausted.
"You believe me, right, Alex?"
"Of course I do. This is too fantastical to not be real. And you forget that I know you better than anyone. I know when you lie."
Elena sagged against him at that.
"But," Alex continued, "You shouldn't have had to shoulder everything by yourself, braveheart. You should have called me. I would have come back much sooner."
Straightening up, Elena glared at him. She struggled out of his arms and turned to sit sideways, probably to better glare at him.
"You know I wouldn't have done that. You had to finish your degree. And you already took care of us all over the summer," Elena said, "Hell, I was practically a zombie. So, now was my turn to take care of things here."
He started to reply to that, but Elena's glare made him click his mouth shut.
"Besides," she shrugged, "you were going to come back in a week from now. I only had to hold on till then. Which reminds me, what are you doing at home now? Wasn't next Monday when you were due back?"
"Elle, braveheart, you got into a car accident, what was I supposed to do? Jenna called me in a panic when they found your car and you were nowhere. I almost came that very day but then she called again to say that you were unhurt." Alex reached out and tangled his fingers with hers."It still took me a few days to wrap everything up."
"I'm sorry I didn't call you then, Alex, but you had more than enough on your plate to deal with. Besides, I know how it looked, me getting into another car accident, I didn't want to dredge up bad memories."
"Oh, Elena," Alex smiled sadly and squeezed her hands. "You don't have to shoulder everything, you are not Atlas."
She narrowed her eyes at him at that.
"Practise what you preach, you idiot. You are the same age as me. Let me handle some things too, you are not Atlas," She parroted back.
He chuckled, "Touchè, darling sister."
The room fell into a comfortable silence as they both just basked in each others' presence.
Elena enjoyed the comfort and safety that her brother's presence had always brought to her. She nestled into his side as he relaxed back against the sofa. It was a nice, blissful silence. And then –
"Seriously though. You just had to choose the vampire as your new boytoy? Of all the boys in school, him."
Elena sighed. It had been nice while it had lasted.
Then she smirked.
"Do you want me to go into why I want him as my boytoy? Really? Because I will, with graphic details," She said slyly.
Alex reared back, disgust twisting his face.
"No! Don't. Please for the love of Olympus, spare me," He blanched, horrified, well aware that she would do it too.
Then he became serious.
"Listen, Elle, I need to tell you something. I know I should have told you this long ago but Grandma made me wait till we were eighteen. However, I feel like you need to know this, especially now that you are around vampires."
Grandma? Elena had not been as close to Alexis Gilbert as her brother, who had been named after her. She had always been closer to her mom's side than her dad's. All she knew was that she had been a strict, yet sweet old lady who doted on her grandkids until she had passed away a year before.
Elena said as much, "Grandma? What did Grandma have to do with anything? And what do you mean, now that I'm around vampires?"
Alex huffed in amusement at her rapid fire questioning and raised a hand.
"All in due time, Elle. All in due time," He said. He took a deep breath and continued, "The thing is, the supernatural world is not unknown to me. I am a Warlock."
"What?" She half-smiled in disbelief, "No, you are not. I would have noticed it."
Instead of replying, Alex merely held out a hand, palm up, and a small flame danced above it.
"Fuck," She breathed, mesmerised by the flickering flame.
Alex smiled at her, flames colouring his eyes a brilliant orange.
"Why didn't you tell me about this before, Xan?" She asked, hurt colouring her voice, "We tell each other everything. Yet you hid something so big. You know I would have kept your secret."
"Believe me, I wanted to tell you the moment Grandma told me," Alex said, reaching out and drawing her back into his side. "But she made me promise not to tell you until we were of age. Said it was too dangerous if the information reached the wrong ears. She said we would all be in danger, you more than anyone. I had no choice."
His eyes were pleading for her to understand. She nodded slowly, still hurt, but believing him. How could she not, when she could see that it had hurt him to keep it from her as well.
"Can you tell me now?"
"Of course."
(Flashback)
Alex Gilbert, all of 10 years old, was not pouting, thank you very much. He just couldn't understand why he had to stay with Grandma instead of going with Elena and their mom to visit Aunt Jenna.
"But I wanted to meet Aunt Jenna too." He very carefully did not whine.
Grayson Gilbert pinched his nose in exasperation due to the antics of his oldest.
"And again, it's because they are having a girls' day out. And remember, I did ask whether you wanted to come fishing with John, Jeremy and me. And what did you say to that?"
"That fish guts were the grossest thing in the world and that I would rather die," Alex muttered petulantly, crossing his arms.
"Exactly. Now wipe that frown off your face, and go greet Grandma with a smile. We don't want her to think you don't want to meet her now, do we?"
"Dad!" Exclaimed Alex.
His dad ruffled his hair and gave him a push in the direction of the living room.
"Shoo now, my little genius, and don't make trouble for her."
Alex shot him a disgruntled look over his shoulders but obediently went over to his Grandma.
Alexis Gilbert was a stately woman of seventy, with silvery-grey eyes she shared with her oldest grandson, and white hair tied back in a chignon.
On seeing Alex, her face broke out in a big smile, and came forward to hug him.
"Alex, my, how big you have grown. How is my Alexander?"
"Hi, Grandma. I'm good. And you?" He enquired, not wanting to sound unwilling.
"Oh, how polite! I'm fine, dear"
"Hi, Mom. How are you? I'm sorry to have disturbed your day just to babysit this little rascal," Grayson said, as he came into the room and kissed his mother's cheek.
She patted his cheek and said, "It's no problem, dear. I'm sure we'll have a wonderful time together."
After a few pleasantries, Grayson left. Alexis got up and made some tea for the both of them.
Handing a cup to Alex, she said, "I'm glad I could get a chance to talk to you, Alex. There is something you need to know about my family, and it is not something the others should know."
Sipping at his tea, Alex looked at her in inquiry.
"Do you know anything about where I'm from?"
"Your maiden name was Kritikos and your family came from Greece to the US before you were born," Alex answered, a bit bemused.
"Correct. But what you don't know, my dear grandson, is that we were not normal people. We were Magi. Witches in other words."
And under his disbelieving eyes, her hand lit up in flames. Something in him yearned to touch those flames, but he restrained the urge.
Seeing the fascination in his wide eyes, she chuckled, "That pull inside of you, that is your magic wanting to bond with mine. You are the only one who has inherited my magic."
"Not Elena or Jeremy? Dad? Uncle John?"
"Just you. See, we can tell if someone has our coven's magic by their eyes. We all have the same silver eyes."
"Okay, say I have magic. Why can't I tell anyone? Can I at least tell Elena? We tell each other everything," He said, rapid fire.
"Slow down, darling, I will tell you. You can't tell anyone because we will be in danger if it reaches the wrong ears. You are still untrained and uninitiated. It will take a few years for you to learn how to defend yourself against supernatural creatures properly. Us Magi are very powerful once trained and that makes others feel threatened sometimes. So you see, until you can learn enough, this will have to be a secret. Understood, my little raven?"
He slowly nodded, but protested softly, "Can I please tell Elle? She can keep a secret. I know she can."
"How about we make a deal. Once you two turn eighteen, you can tell her everything. But only her. Okay?"
"Okay."
Alexis smiled and smoothed his hair down."Now, how about I tell you more about the exciting part? The magic."
Alex felt excitement coursing through him at the mere mention of magic. Every cell in his body felt more alive, and he almost vibrated out of his seat.
His grandmother laughed softly at his visible impatience, taking a sip of her tea.
Keeping the cup aside on the table, she said, "First, you have to understand that there are three types of magic-wielders on earth. Us, the Magi. Then, the Wix. And lastly, there are the Travellers. I will explain about the Magi last. The Wix, or witches practice many different forms of magic, mostly Spirit magic, Ancestral magic, Voodoo, Dark magic, etc. They mainly use the magic around them, usually from Nature or the Other side. Their magic always has a price, a toll on their body."
Pausing to take a sip of tea, she continued explaining to her enthralled grandson, "The Travellers were originally wixen but were cursed by other witches because of the actions of a few members two thousand years ago. They are cursed to never practice wixen magic and to roam the earth, never settling down. If they gather and settle down in any one area, that area is plagued by natural disasters. They are gypsies. Though cursed, they discovered different ways to use magic. They can jump into others' bodies as a form of possession."
"And the Magi?" Asked a very interested Alex.
"The Magi, or Magus as a singular, are different from the other types. We possess an innate magical core, as opposed to the witches, who are conduits to the magic of Nature or the spirits. The presence of a magical core was gifted to our ancestors by the gods as a boon for their service. We began as priests and priestesses of the Old Gods. We still serve and pray to them now, and they bless us by assisting in more complex spells."
"The gods are real?"
"Yes, they are. The Old Gods retreated from the mortal plains eons ago and no longer sire demigods. They still choose champions, though."
"Which pantheons are real?"
"Why, all of them. The Magi are more prevalent in Asia and parts of Europe. Different covens pray to different patrons."
"Do you belong to any coven?"
"I come from the Argyros coven. Our patrons are the Greek and Roman gods. It's the oldest coven in Europe, dating back to Mycenaean and Minoan Greece. There are older covens, but they are all in Asia. Some African magics are even older, with the Egyptian ones going back 7000 years."
"Wow."
She smiled. "Yes, isn't it. Now back to the topic of magic. Our coven is so named for our unique silver-grey eyes which are there in everyone who possesses a magical core. You are a Magus, so it is very important that you begin your training now as an untrained core is dangerous. For you and others."
"Okay. But when can I start learning magic? What will I learn? Can I meet a god? Can I meet gods of other pantheons?"
"You will start learning every weekend. You can come over to my house and I'll teach you. Before I teach you anything, you will have to undergo an initiation, a small ritual where you will present yourself before the gods. It won't hurt you. If the gods take a liking to you, they will come to you. Never go seeking out a god. Nothing good comes out of it. The gods are temperamental and mercurial. And yes, you can meet gods of other pantheons. You need to present yourself to each pantheon you wish to venerate."
"Really? Awesome! So when and what do I start learning about magic?"
"We can do a small spell right now, if you want. It will connect you to your magic properly, and will show which way your magic is inclined."
"Inclination?" Alex asked.
"Magi are proficient in various fields of magic. Everyone is differently inclined. Some types of magic are taught regardless of inclination, like Mind Magic, Battle Magic, Basic Elemental, Scrying, and Telekinesis. So, shall we?"
At his nod, Alexis took his hands in hers and muttered some words he couldn't catch.
His breath hitched at the silver glow his grandmother's eyes were emitting.
A surge of something from within startled him, and he jerked, but Alexis' hands held him in his seat.
Gasp.
A nebula of light flowed around them, swirls and eddies of colours painting the room. Suddenly, he was aware of an energy resting in his sternum, moving similarly to the nebula around them.
After a few moments, the light coalesced into three symbols: a knife, an owl, and a rope that was knotting and unknotting in a loop.
Alexis traced the knife in the air and explained, "The knife is an athame. It means that Blood and sacrificial magic will come easily to you."
She traced the owl, "The screech owl is sacred to Hades. This indicates that your magic is inclined towards death magic."
She ran a finger along the rope, "I'm surprised to see this. It hardly ever shows up in our coven. The ever knotting rope means that you will be able to sense and unravel other magics, like curses and wards. You will be very powerful once trained, my dear."
"What is your magical inclination, Grandma?"
"I am proficient in Green magic, healing and enchanting objects."
"Would I be able to learn those too?"
"Of course. I will teach you those if you wish to learn. Though you will not be as proficient in them as you will be in your inclinations."
A/N: Please review!