Tires squeal as Eloise slams on her breaks, rubber grasping desperately at the asphalt as the young witch attempts to keep her car from smacking into the finely dressed man who's appeared in the middle of the street sometime in the seconds between glancing at the clock on the dash and returning her gaze to the road. There's a violent jerk as the car finally grinds to a stop that causes her seat belt to dig painfully into her neck before slamming her back against the seat. Eloise pants for a moment before she throws the car into park and climbs out into the street to face the enraged Original who almost killed her.
"Are you crazy!" Eloise yells as she stomps toward the vampire.
"Did you give Damon Salvatore the dagger?" Elijah asks when she's close enough to grab, though his hands remain at his sides despite how easy it would be for him to reach out and curl his fingers around her neck. Eloise is too angry to notice.
The question doesn't surprise her out of her rage either. When she'd given the dagger to Damon she'd been aware that when Elijah woke up he'd come looking for her first, because she'd known, had admitted to having it hidden from Damon and anyone else who would have wanted to use it against Elijah. If Damon wanted it he'd have had to get it from Eloise, and Elijah knows that.
"That's why you almost drove me off the road? Are you kidding me! I told you he was going to try something with that dagger! I tried to help you! I gave him a fake! And this is how you try to talk to me about it? This is how you want to handle the situation that you got yourself into! Unbelievable!" Eloise continues to rage, spitting insults at the quiet vampire and gesturing angrily with her hands until she's burned enough of the anger out to think properly. She sucks in a deep, cleansing breath before she says, "Get in the car. We're going to go get some food and we're going to have an adult conversation about what happened tonight and how we're going to proceed."
"No, I have come here to find Elena. You will take me to her and then we are leaving, be thankful I have not sought out and killed everyone involved with tonight's proceedings." The quiet rage in his voice gives Eloise brief pause but she thinks she'd be pretty mad if someone tried to kill her too.
Elijah Mikaelson is also over a thousand years old and no matter how noble and good he may be the man was raised in a time where every day was a fight for survival. The fact that he hasn't lashed out and burned the entire town to a smoldering crisp is proof enough that his self control is impeccable. Who cares if he flings around threats and angry words if he's not actually acting on them. In fact, Eloise doubts he's angry enough to actually do anything too extreme. He'd known about the dagger, after all, and Damon's intentions. Elijah has every right to be upset that Elena's protectors tried to kill him but can he really be so mad as to attack anyone when half of what happened tonight is on him? No. No he cannot.
"Tone it down a bit, Le Chiffre." Eloise shakes her head before she continues, "We have a lot to talk about so before you decide to go off an kidnap Elena - which will only give you a bigger headache at the end of the day - let's talk this out?"
With her piece said Eloise pivots and makes her way to the car where she slides into the driver's seat, slams the door shut, and unlocks the other doors so Elijah can get in. There are several seconds where Eloise thinks Elijah's just going to stand in front of her car or disappear into the night without so much as a word of goodbye but eventually his shoulders seems to relax a little and he slowly makes his way to the passenger side of the car. Eloise makes sure to toss her purse into the backseat before he gets to the door. She waits for him to settle in and buckle his seat belt - which she's thankful for, she doesn't need a ticket tonight - before she takes off again.
Going back to the Boarding House is a bad idea. Eloise needs to run damage control, negotiate her own deals, and build her own bridges without Damon or any of Elena's other protectors trying to influence her. They'll want her to focus on Elena. Which is reasonable for them, she's their friend and romantic interest so it's kind of expected for them to try and bargain Elena's safety, but Eloise isn't going to prioritize Elena where there are other people in the group that need protection just as much as she does when Klaus shows up. Because he will, and when he does there's no way Elena's friends are going to be ready for him. Elijah might not hold much sway over Klaus, if he holds any at all, but at least she'll have an Original in her corner. How many people can say that? Not Elena and her friends, clearly.
"Have you eaten?" Elijah's voice startles her a bit because she hadn't expected him to start talking to her about food.
Like, yes, she'd hinted at being hungry but she's so used to dealing with people over dinner and feeding people when they're upset that it's kind of just a fallback when she doesn't know what to do. Yes, she's missed dinner and could really go for something to eat but she'd mostly been trying to find a way to talk him out of his anger.
Hesitantly, Eloise responds to the question with a soft, "No."
Elijah nods once before he starts spouting off directions as he types away at his phone. Eloise isn't sure where he's taking her but if he wants to determine where they have this conversation then so be it. When she's told to pull over in front of a house Eloise is hesitant but she does as she's told without complaining. The two of them climb out of the car and Eloise locks it up before she follows Elijah up to the front door where a man is waiting for them. Eloise offers a tense smile when he steps aside to let her and Elijah in. Meeting the Original's witches - because she's sure Luka's here too - hadn't been something she'd planned on doing tonight but she supposes that maybe it's best to get it out of the way while she has the chance.
"Hi, I'm Eloise." She greet once the older witch has shut the door behind her and Elijah.
"Jonas Martin." the man points off down the hall, "Kitchen's that way. Elijah said you haven't eaten."
"Oh, you don't have to feed me. I'm just here to talk to Elijah." Her words fall on deaf ears and soon Eloise finds herself seated at the small kitchen table while Jonas throws a light meal together for her.
Elijah moves to sit between her and Jonas, eyes cool as he observes her. Neither of them speak until Jonas has placed a plate in front of her and has taken a seat at the table as well. It doesn't escape her notice that Luka is absent, likely having been sent off when Elijah told Jonas that Eloise would be coming over for an impromptu dinner. She takes a sip of her water but barely manages to pick at the food as she's too nervous to really eat anything. Thankfully, Elijah doesn't waste anyone's time and jumps right into questioning Eloise.
"Did you know the dagger wouldn't kill me when you gave it to Damon Salvatore?" He asks to which Eloise shrugs.
"I assumed it wouldn't. I used a spell to change the form of my athame but that doesn't mean I changed what it's made of. I hoped that since it wasn't a silver dagger the white ash alone wouldn't kill you."
"And why would you do a thing like that? I thought you were here to protect Elena and her loved ones." Elijah says as he regards her coolly.
"Protecting Damon from himself is just as important as protecting him from you," Eloise offers a cold smile. "Tomorrow when he realizes you're gone and that you've taken the dagger it'll be my turn to decide what our plans are going to be. You said you want Klaus dead? Awesome. When do you plan on killing him?"
Silence reigns in the kitchen for several long moments. Jonas and Elijah share a long look in the seconds that tick by before the witch slowly rises, leaves the kitchen, and returns moments with a framed picture that he hands over to Eloise. Jonas and Luka are quickly recognized but the young woman standing between them smiling like she hasn't got a care in the world isn't someone Eloise has ever met before. They're obviously family and if Eloise were a betting woman she'd say that the unfamiliar woman is Luka's sister. With careful movements Eloise hands the photo back to Jonas, who looks at it like it's something priceless. Who knows. Maybe it is. Eloise doesn't really have much of a connection to her family but she thinks that a few years ago she might have looked at any photos of them with the same type of reverence Jonas does.
"Klaus has my daughter Greta. She was always such an ambitious girl, so full of greatness, I never did anything to try and dampen it because I was always so proud of the witch she was becoming." Jonas puts the photo down. "Then one day she was just gone, called a few days later from a payphone in Albuquerque saying she was with Klaus and that she was where she wanted to be but... Greta's young. She doesn't know what type of man Klaus is, she's blinded by whatever he's promised her and her own ambition and I... I want to kill Klaus."
"I asked when you wanted to kill Klaus, not why." when neither man says anything Eloise sighs before she turns to Elijah and asks, "So what? You think you're going to kill Klaus the moment he rolls into town and play White Knight to a girl who doesn't want to be rescued? I'm gonna tell you how that's going to end for you; poorly."
"My brother is paranoid, he's spent the past thousand years convinced that no one is to be trusted, which makes it impossible for me to get close to him. Our hope is that as he completes the ritual there will be enough time for me to kill him while he is transitioning."
Eloise purses her lips and then says, "Do you honestly think you can kill him, though?"
The way he hesitates says everything despite the fact that he says, "I assure you, I will be the one to kill Klaus."
Leaning back in her chair allows Eloise a moment to gather her thoughts. Elijah may want to kill Klaus but he won't be able to do it. He's too noble for one, and despite the resentment he's clearly feeling towards Klaus at the moment there's no telling how loyal he is to Klaus despite it. Growing up, Eloise was always taught to put family above everything. Despite not considering herself part of their family and detesting some of the things they'd done Eloise would never raise her hands to her parents or siblings with the intention to kill, harm perhaps, but never kill... not unless the situation was one where Eloise had no other option. She understands the rage Elijah must be feeling but she can't find it in herself to actually believe he'd kill Klaus. But he thinks he will, doesn't he? So what should she do? Pretend to go along with it and tell her friends she's surprised when plans fall through? Help figure out an alternative plan should Elijah prove to her that he can't kill Klaus? Eloise doesn't actually want Klaus dead necessarily but will she have a choice? Eloise bites the inside of her cheek until she tastes iron.
"Look," she begins tentatively, "I'm not sure I believe you when you say you're going to kill Klaus but I agree that the moment to try would be just as the curse is breaking. The problem is that Klaus is going to need sacrifices and I don't really like the idea of handing over any of my people."
"I thought you were only here for Damon Salvatore." Elijah says, ignoring her comment on him not being able to kill Klaus.
Obviously, he's a little afraid he won't be able to either.
"I have a werewolf already waiting, Damon has the moonstone, and I'm working on a plan to keep Elena alive, so all we need now is a vampire." Eloise says.
"Who would you propose?"
"Someone you know Klaus doesn't like." Eloise offers a tight-lipped grin.
"And you would be willing to give Elena to Klaus?" Jonas asks to which Eloise shrugs.
"Ritual sacrifices don't scare me, I see no reason to not send Elena to Klaus when I can keep her alive after he kills her. The curse needs the doppelganger to die, doesn't say she needs to stay dead."
Technically, Elena does need to stay dead if the witch who cast the curse doesn't want any more hybrid abominations running around but they don't need to know that. Elijah might not be opposed but Eloise doesn't know Jonas and she certainly doesn't trust him. She's not going to tell them that in order for Klaus to propagate an entirely new species he needs Elena's blood. That's something Eloise and Klaus need to discuss before the ritual and with Elena present, she doesn't need the whole of the supernatural community trying to kill or kidnap Elena Gilbert as it'll end up being her problem when Damon inevitably asks for her help. The sooner she gets this curse broken the sooner the dust settles and she can go home.
"Besides, you'll have killed Klaus by then so what does it matter?" She asks and when neither man tries to contradict her Eloise smiles, "So I help you kill Klaus and you don't kill Damon."
"That's what you want?" Elijah asks, "Me not to kill the Salvatores?"
"Damon specifically, but sure, might as well add Stefan in there too. So long as they both walk away from this whole situation relatively unscathed I couldn't care less how you punish them for trying to kill you. Do what you please, just don't kill anyone." Eloise smiles a bit more genuinely, "Besides, I don't think they'll try and kill you again after tonight."
"You're fairly confident in your abilities." Jonas remarks.
"I wasn't taught to make compromises as a child. Either Damon and Stefan listen to me or they don't and I use my witchy wonder powers to make them do what I want anyway." Eloise says wit a shrug then she rises from her seat with a soft, "Speaking of Damon, I haven't heard from him so I should probably go back and make sure no one's done something they shouldn't."
Elijah nods and rises to follow her, "Of course, it's rather late."
"Thank you Mr. Martin." She says to the older witch who bids her goodbye.
With no reason left to stay Eloise turns and makes for the front door, Elijah at her heels, neither speaking even once they've reached the car and Eloise has opened the front door. It's a nice sort of silence, the kind Eloise had to grow up to appreciate. She basks in it for a moment before realizing she still has the dagger hidden under her seat, while it might not be smart to give the weapon back to Elijah it's not fair to keep it hidden either. Quickly opening her car door, Eloise kneels down and carefully reaches into the space between the floor and her seat in search of the dagger which she finds after seconds of blind searching. She looks at the dagger for a long moment as she contemplates whether or not this is going to get her killed but, deciding it's a risk worth taking, Eloise rises from her crouch and turns to present the blade to Elijah, whose eyes widen a great deal when he sees the dagger in her hand.
"You're giving this to me?" He asks, sounding vaguely awestruck.
Eloise supposes that this would be the first time anyone has ever willingly given him a weapon that could incapacitate him.
"Consider it a show of good faith."
"Good faith?"
"Sure, I give you the dagger and you try not to rip my heart out when this goes bad."
"I beg your pardon?"
Eloise rolls her eyes as she leans against her car. "Come on, Elijah, we both know you aren't going to kill Klaus."
"What makes you so sure?"
She doesn't have an answer. Not one that will make any sense to Elijah without her opening up about her family and the only people privy to that fiasco are Damon and Miranda. People she knows and trusts with her life. How can she tell Elijah that he's too good to follow through with killing his brother? How would he ever believe something like that when she's known him all of, what, two days? He wouldn't believe her if Eloise told him that she knows because she understands the situation and that he'd ask questions to prove that she doesn't, which will lead to him looking into her past in more depth than he probably already has and- no. No, Eloise isn't going to think of her mom, or her dad, or Theodore and Beatrix. Not right now.
"I'm good at reading people." She tells him because it's safer than telling him about how she's wanted to turn her own siblings inside out and hang them from the trees that used to surround her family home
"I see."
Eloise smiles and says, "Text me when you have that vampire. I know a place we can stash them until Klaus comes."
"Of course," Elijah takes hold of her car door as she slides into the driver's seat, "Have a pleasant evening."
"You too, Elijah." She says before the Original gently closes her door behind.
He's gone seconds later, disappearing into the night or into the house Eloise isn't sure but she doesn't linger outside the Martin house. Opting instead to start up her car and begin the drive back to the Boarding house. Eloise spends the time driving to come up with something she's going to tell Damon. He's a hard headed fucker so whatever she comes up with has to be good. Using Elena's safety might help. She's only here because Damon wanted to keep Elena safe, while that stings a little bit Eloise isn't going to pretend that it doesn't give her a really good argument point. Oh, he'll be a pain for the next couple of days but at least Eloise will be able to handle their plans from now on. It helps that Elena seems to like her... in that hesitant sort of way that prey likes a predator. Elena liking her will make it easier for her to get close to Bonnie and Caroline, which in turn will make it easier to get them to listen. Bonnie is, after all, a powerful witch from a powerful bloodline but she's young still and young witches tend to be foolish witches. Eloise would know. She's done a lot of stupid shit over the years. Coming to Mystic Falls is either going to be the dumbest thing she's done or the best but at least she'll be walking out of this town alive. Eloise can't say the same for Bonnie.
Bonnie and Eloise haven't spoken so Eloise can't say anything about the witch, what she's heard is all pretty complementary seeing as it comes from Damon most of te time. The problem with Bonnie is that there's been no one around to teach her and it's affected how she perceives her magic. At least Eloise was taught by experienced witches who knew what they were messing with. Bonnie's learning as she's going and it's going to get her killed one of these days. Sighing, Eloise turns onto the road that'll lead her out of town toward the Boarding House. Maybe she can get some spare time to teach Bonnie some magic? Better yet, maybe Bonnie could come to Chicago for a week or two this summer and learn from her and Miranda? Never hurts to have a Bennett on your side and what better way to get them both what they want than to spend time in a magical witch shop? Eloise smiles at the thought. Some of her customers would eat Bonnie Bennett alive as she is right now, but by the end of her time at the shop? Well, Eloise is pretty confident she can teach Bonnie a thing or two.
The lights are off at the Boarding House when Eloise pulls up to the curb and parks. She doubts anyone is really asleep but she still sneaks back into the house as quietly as possibly in case people actually are trying to catch some shut eye. No one stops her in the foyer, or on her way to her room, and Damon isn't waiting on her bed when she flips on the light which is really weird because she kind of expected him to accuse her of something. Guess that'll have to wait until tomorrow. Humming softly under her breath Eloise begins stripping out of her clothes, balling them up and tossing them into the hamper she'd pestered Damon about when it had become apparent there wasn't anywhere to put her dirty clothes, and then she's changing into an overly large shirt before climbing into bed.
She's about halfway to dreamland when the light flips on.
"Where have you been?" Damon asks, flopping down beside her on the bed.
"Bargaining with Elijah. We're having a family meeting tomorrow by the way, I have words." Eloise says.
"Did you know the dagger wouldn't work?"
"I figured that it probably wouldn't."
Damon huffs, "This day just gets better and better."
"Why? What else happened?"
"My malicious hell-bitch of an ex-girlfriend manipulated me into letting her out of the tomb and then came prancing back into my life like she'd been invited."
"Katherine's here?" Eloise asks, peeling open an eyelid to stare at Damon.
He looks beyond irate, which is fair considering Katherine's back and his plan for Elijah fell through. Eloise decides that she's never, ever going to tell him what she did and that she's going to call Elijah tomorrow and tell him to keep his mouth shut about it too. The last thing she needs right now is Damon being mad at her. Maybe after everything with Klaus blows over... but for now? No.
"I told her to leave." Damon says.
"Think she will?"
"And miss out on the chance to torment us all? Unlikely."
Eloise curls up to rest her head on Damon's shoulder and utters a soft, "At least we'll have a sacrifice for when Klaus gets here."
"Ooh, wishful thinking."
"I'm a vicious little thing aren't I?"
"Diabolical."
Soft laughter rumbles out of her before Eloise asks, "We having a sleepover? We can paint each others nails and everything."
"I was thinking we could just sleep."
"Sleep is good."
The light flickers out and he's returned just as Eloise processes Damon's absence from the bed and soon she's wrapped up in soft blankets and warm arms. Damon huffs as he rests his cheek on the top of her head so she can rest hers against his elbow and Eloise wonders if she smells weird or if he's just struggling to shut down his thoughts about the events of today long enough to catch some shut eye. She takes pity on him after about seven or so minutes of his irritating huffing and shifting around and mutters a few words in Latin that have Damon calm and quiet in seconds. She pokes him a few times to make sure he's asleep before she settles down for some shut-eye too.
When she wakes up the next morning to loud arguing Eloise can't find it in herself to be surprised. What she is surprised about however is the fact that she genuinely can't tell Elena and Katherine apart when she first sees them together. They're carbon copies of one another and if that weren't creepy enough the fact that they can flip-flop their personalities to match the other is also not something Eloise is all that fond of. Thankfully, Damon is quick to kill her in on why Katherine's here as Stefan and Damon head out for school. It's all pretty benign when you think about it; Katherine wants Klaus dead, the gang protecting Elena wants Klaus dead, and now they're all playing nice until after the ritual. Eloise can't find it in herself to care. Because Katherine may have all sorts of juicy information of the Originals but Eloise is the one who's going to be pulling strings from now on. Hopefully, Damon and the rest of Elena's gang fall in line.