When she entered the dining room of The Grill, Elijah was the first person she saw, and she found herself walking towards him without even thinking about it.
He'd cut his hair since she last saw him, and gotten a more sharply tailored suit, resembling the man she knew in the end much more than he had when she'd first met him. Now he truly looked like someone Mrs. Lockwood would pay attention to, as would any other woman who was attracted to men.
"My niece, Elena," Jenna was saying when she got closer to the table.
"Hi." Elena gave a small wave as she slid into the seat beside her aunt.
"This is Elijah Mikaelson." Mrs. Lockwood introduced them, unnecessarily, though she didn't need to know that. "He's studying small town histories and since your mother kept a lot of the archives, I thought your family might be interested in helping."
"I'd love to to," Elena said, then realized she sounded a little too eager to help with something so boring to most teens. "I mean, you know, it'll give me something to keep my mind occupied, so I'm not wallowing."
"Of course." Mrs. Lockwood smiled in a way that was supposed to be sympathetic, but was really more pitying instead.
"You could come over this evening?" Elena glanced at Jenna for confirmation. "It'll give me some time to pull stuff out of the attic."
"Or you could come over after we leave here and help us sort through what you think is relevant to your research and save our backs so we're not hauling things twice," Jenna suggested."It's about time those books did something besides collect dust."
"Oh, and Aunt Jenna, there's also a bunch of stuff at the lake house too that might interest him."
"I think going up there would be a great idea."
Jenna's smile was a little too inviting and Elena cringed internally at her aunt's obvious flirting with the ancient vampire.
"I look forward to it." Elijah lifted his glass in a small salute. "Perhaps Elena could take me there some weekend that she's free? I would hate for my little passion project to interfere with your thesis statement and delay your graduation."
"Sounds like a plan." Elena sighed softly in relief at how deftly he'd side-stepped it without insulting her aunt.
Right then, Stefan walked into the room and looked around, smiling in greeting when he saw her. The way his face lit up, it made her wonder. For him to have feelings for her this soon after seeing her for the first time, it couldn't have been real.
Why hadn't she seen that before? She felt small and foolish for thinking it had been real just because he said it was. He may have thought it was real, but seeing things now through eyes that had lived a whole life and with whatever changes the spirits of nature had done to her, she knew better.
"Before I forget, Elena, your mother promised to lend these items for the Heritage Project and I hope it's not too much to ask for you to bring them by sometime soon. I've got the list here." Mrs. Lockwood slid a piece of paper across the table towards Elena. "I'd like to get the displays finished and these pieces are all I need to get it done."
"Of course. I'll get them to you as soon as I can." It was a good thing she was such a prolific journaler, otherwise, she would have been caught flatfooted with that request, but the careful documentation of everything going on in her life proved useful now.
"Perhaps we'd better get started on going through those journals now." Elijah stood up, catching Elena's eye and inclining his head slightly in Stefan's direction.
"We can walk over to my house, if you don't mind. It's not far."
"Not at all."
Once they were out of everyone's earshot, Elijah said, "It's Katerina he sees, even if he doesn't realize it."
"You think so?" She'd always feared that, deep down and to have it confirmed by someone who knew the other woman as long as Elijah did, it cut deeper than she thought possible.
"You are the version of her that he fell in love with and seeing you has brought all those feelings to the surface, but he's not willing to face the pain they bring, so he's projecting them onto you."
"How do you know?"
"You can't look at someone the way he looks at you, after only knowing you for such a short time and it not be that."
Elena chewed her lower lip for a long moment, then asked, "Who do you see, when you look at me?"
He searched her face for a long moment, his brows furrowed before replying, "You are Elena Gilbert, strong, fearless, and selfless, someone whose compassion knows no bounds, a compassion that can't be faked or manufactured, no matter how hard one may try."
"I'm also the third woman with this face that you've met, so who do you see?"
"I see you, Elena."
"I know you had a thing for both Tatia and Katherine though and I'm not either of them, so how can I be sure." Elena found herself wrapping her arms around her middle and hunching over.
"I will admit that when I first met Katerina, I saw Tatia. But then she showed her true colors and my blinders were ripped away. Now, I look at the actions, rather than let myself be drawn in by a familiar face."
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but in Katherine's defense, she was banished and sent far away from all things familiar, facing the world alone after having her baby ripped away from her. I don't know if I wouldn't have tried something similar if I had to go through the sacrifice without my friends and family nearby. It's because of them that I found the strength to die. She didn't have that."
"You're probably onto something," Elijah admitted after a long pause. "Yet your actions, your words right now prove you to be far stronger, far kinder than either of your predecessors that I've encountered because even after everything you know her to be capable of, you still extend the generosity of trying to see things from her perspective towards her."
"You can't go around hating people and expecting kindness in return. That's not how things work." Elena sighed and kicked a few stones out of her way.
"Something's troubling you?"
"I think the spirits of nature did something to me when they brought me back."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't know." Elena shook her head. "Things just feel, different. I can't explain it. Or maybe it's not that things are different. I'm the one that's different. Everything feels a little different."
Elijah pursed his lips, thinking for a moment before he replied, "I wish I could help you, but this is honestly the first time I've encountered such a case, so I'm as much at a loss as you are in this, though I am researching as best I can without giving away that I've actually encountered such a phenomenon."
"Thank you, so much. It wasn't what I asked of you."
"But that doesn't change my curiosity."
Elena curled in on herself, hunching over, her shoulders shaking but her eyes dry.
"What happened? What did you see?" Elijah kept his voice as gentle as he could, hardly daring to attempt to do more that catch her as her body threatened to sink under the enormous burden she carried.
"I was at peace. My fight was over. I was happy." Elena blinked back tears.
"And now you've been ripped out of that and thrown back into the fight."
She nodded, unable to speak, for fear of breaking down into tears.
"I can't imagine the full extent of what you're feeling, even though I've been inside your head and felt a brief moment of the peace you experienced, but being taken away from that, it must be horrifying."
"It's just so hard here, so violent. And not just the supernatural element, but the humans too. We're all animals, fighting over scraps of meat and lording our hordes over the starving masses." Elena wrapped herself even tighter than she'd been before, as if to shield herself from everything.
"Think of me as your safe harbor," Elijah caught her elbow and pulled her against his chest, "the one person you don't have to fight and you know will fight every battle that comes your way for you if necessary."
"My knight in an Armani suit?"
Elijah inclined his head. Then, slipping his hand into his pocket, he pulled out a delicately designed gold locket. "As promised. The vervain is magically sealed inside, so no worries about it opening accidentally"
"It's beautiful." Elena ran her fingers along the outside edge.
As she touched the metal, her skin brushed against his and a strange thrill rushed through her veins, but she chased it away. She knew what she wanted and this wasn't it.
"May I?" He held it up.
"Of course." Elena pulled her hair out of the way and Elijah draped the necklace around her throat before clasping it together.
"Now, your mind is safe, even from me."
"Thank you." Elena touched the delicate locket where it rested against her throat.
"As I said, I want you to feel safe when you're with me."
"Here we are." Elena turned down the sidewalk towards the house as she gestured him towards it. Walking up to the door, she opened it and said, "Elijah Mikaelson, please, come inside."
With an elegance only he had somehow mastered, he crossed the threshold into her home.
As they sorted through the journals several hours later, just to make it seem like he was serious about his historian cover in case anyone checked in on them, Elena sneaked a peek at him. He seemed so different now, so much closer to the Elijah she'd last seen.
"How long until Klaus reaches out?" she finally asked.
"I've put out a few feelers. We'll see if he bites."
"And then what?"
"And then see just how much of the future you experienced we can make come true without all the rest of it."
"You mean the Hollow and Malivore."
"Exactly."
"What if we found a way to destroy Malivore and right before we did, we fed the Hollow to it? Two birds, one stone The Hollow is gone and not a single damn person remembers her.."
"Do we want to forget that the Hollow existed?"
"We both journal. If we both write as much of what we can of our dealings with her, we can have evidence of her, should we need it."
"We will have to keep meticulous records if we do it that way. But I think Hope may be the one who needs to destroy both."
"We're not sacrificing Hope," Elena snapped. "No way in hell is she jumping in to save people. Stupid heroic acts are my thing, not babies who haven't even been considered by her parents.
Elijah chuckled once as he said, "We've got time before we have to deal with either of them. I'm sure we'll have a plan before hen.."
Elena shook her head slowly. "But all those people. Some of them, their only crime was to not be a human, witch, werewolf, or vampire before Malivore ate them. I don't want to leave them locked up in that torment forever. It's just not right."
"Perhaps, once Freya wakes up, she can help us with that."
"How did I even remember that? Caroline didn't even talk about the supernatural much to me after a while." Elena shook her head, confused by this newfound insight.
"Perhaps the spirits of nature are giving you the information you need, to ensure the innocent don't suffer."
"Why me? Why not give you all this information and send you back? You'd be a better choice. I mean, you're smart, you're strong, and you want your family whole. I'm just a human girl with nothing much to offer." Elena winced at how pathetic she sounded.
"The spirits of nature see the long term. Perhaps they have other plans, not just you correcting the wrongs in your life."
They fell silent for a long time, Elijah flipping through journals quickly to see if anything caught his eye and Elena handing sorting out the journals from the business records.
"Gotta keep up appearances, right?" Elena teased, nodding towards the books.
"That and I am curious about these Salvatores. I want to read up on them from someone who knew them as humans and after."
A few minutes later, she asked, "Why me? Why did the spirits of nature rip me out of heaven and bring me back? I know I keep asking, but it makes no sense."
"I don't know, Elena." He cupped her cheek, brushing away the tear she wasn't even aware had fallen. "But whatever the reason, you have an ally in me. No matter what."
"Was it not enough that they tormented me in life, but now they have to do it all over again after I've died more times than even a lot of vampires?"
Elijah set his books down on the nearby table and drew Elena close.
"What did I do that was so horrible to make them send me back to hell?" She dug her fingers into his jacket as sobs shook her shoulders. She couldn't keep up appearances any longer and pretend to be strong when inside, she was in a thousand little pieces.
"I'm sorry this happened to you. What I've seen of your heart and mind, I can't imagine anyone less worthy of punishment, so the spirits must have something more in store for you than that. This can't be a punishment." He ran his hand over her hair slowly in an attempt to comfort her.
"I'm tired, Elijah. So tired. I was done, I was at peace, and yet, here I am, all over again. I know almost ninety years isn't much to someone who's lived a thousand years, but it was enough for me."
"Maybe that's it," Elijah murmured. "You're not seeking immortality or power or anything else that the supernatural can offer you, so the spirits of nature know you can be trusted to try to do what's best for everyone, not what will just benefit you."
Elena pulled back and stared at him, confused.
"Think about it, Elena. What would Damon or Stefan, or even Caroline or Bonnie have done in your place?"
She considered it carefully and hung her head. The Salvatores could be trusted to do the absolute worst thing possible, because it seemed like the best plan at the time, while Bonnie might try to keep everything from happening and killing herself in the process, and as for Caroline, her perfectionist nature would make demands of her that not even she could fulfill.
"Exactly. You want what's best for the people you love, not what you think is right or what you want to happen. That's why the spirits chose you. Because you're good and kind and desperate for everyone around you to live the lives that are best for them."
"Enzo!" Elena said suddenly. "Lorenzo St. John. He's locked in the basement at Whitmore House! Can we get him out now? That would save a lot of people a lot of pain."
"Leave that to me. I'm sure I can convince the Martin witches of the benefits of keeping the supernatural out of human hands."
"Thank you." Elena sighed, relieved that he was willing to help the people she knew needed it, even if their current predicament had no bearing on the success or failure of their plans.
"Look at you."
He brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear, then cradled her cheek, the only affection he felt he deserved in the presence of someone who'd seen beyond the grave and not suffered the fires of hell. How could he possibly felt he had a right to be in the presence of such a woman?
"You're devastated about being ripped out of heaven and yet, you're still worried about people who you know are suffering. That's why the spirits chose you. Because they knew you would be strong enough to put your own suffering aside in favor of others."
"Do you think I can earn my way back?"
"You never fell." He wrapped one arm more tightly around her waist, securing her against him in a desperate attempt to comfort this woman who should be at peace.
"So, if I be good, and fix my mistakes, you think I can go back?"
"I can't imagine why they wouldn't let you back in once you've completed the task they have for you."
Elena sighed and rested her head against his chest. A small part of her wished for another set of arms to hold her, but she couldn't risk it. Elijah was the only one she could trust to help her reach her end goal the way she wanted. So she would accept the comfort he offered, the strength he had.
Suddenly he pulled away and his expression melted into one of extreme neutrality. Elena looked up, alarmed.
"Your aunt is home and arguing with your brother," he said by way of explanation.
"Thanks, you know, for understanding."
"You're quite possibly the strongest person I've ever met," he said, admiration coloring his tone. "If the least I can do is offer comfort when you're struggling, I consider it an honor."
"Thank you." Elena offered him a watery smile
"I'm the strongest person freed of their confines, aside from Niklaus, trust me to take as much of the burden as I can."
"I'm just so used to being the one everyone looks to, it's strange letting go."
"Well, Dr. Gilbert, I think it's time to take a second opinion and trust someone who's been in this field of practice for centuries."
Elena found herself smiling against her will at his mention of her practice, if in a different name than she'd used, from her past life.
"I'm an expert in this field, so I'm asking you to trust me."
"I will do my best."
Jenna opened the door to the attic just then and they broke away from each other.
"Wow. You've already gone through most of what we have here," she commented.
"And once he's gone through all of these, I'll be taking Elijah to the lake house to look at even more."
"I still don't see what the fascination is with those dust collectors."
"Sometimes, from the dust of the past, comes the answers to our futures," Elijah replied as he collected his selection of diaries. "Goodnight Miss Gilbert, Miss Sommers."
With that, he walked down the stairs, out the door and into the night, leaving Elena wondering just how little she actually knew about her favorite Original.