"When are we to expect the moonstone?" Elena demanded once Jenna left the room.
"Jenna knows?"
"She saw something and I chose not to lie to her."
"What did she see, Elena?"
"I don't trust you enough to tell you, and she's been sworn to secrecy. Now, stop changing the subject and tell me when are we to expect the moonstone?"
"When you agree to meet with Isobel. That's when you get the moonstone."
"Has she flipped the switch back?"
"No, she hasn't," John admitted slowly.
"Then, tell Isobel to expect a major headache, because I'm not interested in spending time with her as she is now. Miranda was my mother, the only mother I ever needed. I don't need to meet with wannabe Katherine. And she should know, Elijah's getting impatient."
XXXX
"So, you're like Bonnie too?" Caroline asked, jealousy coloring her tone. They'd just finished telling her that Elena was also a witch, though not one they expected and Caroline couldn't fight the jealousy, no matter how she tried.
"I didn't find out until a few days ago, but yeah, I'm a witch too, but keep that quiet," Elena hissed.
"Why?"
"Because, while people can know about me," Bonnie whispered, "Elena's the secret weapon."
"And what about me?"
"You're the best friend we need to have in our corners telling us that we're badass women who can go out there and fight the monsters. Because without a good support system, we fall apart completely."
"So, I'm Alfred? Like, you're both Batman, does that make me Alfred?"
"You're better than Alfred. I think you're more like Catwoman," Elena laughed.
"Except, I need to learn to kick ass like Catwoman."
"You've got better moves than you give yourself credit for," Elena assured her. "You're strong both physically and mentally. That's half the fight."
"I can take that." Caroline nodded once.
"So, Elena Jedi training after cheer practice," Bonnie said.
"Which means I'll need to head over there while you're at practice to try to get some extra time in so I can catch up." The faint ripples of her coming close to the end of her mental limits niggled at the back of her mind, but she pushed it away. She didn't have time for it.
"Hey, Bonnie!" Stefan jogged up to them.
"What do you want, Stefan?" Bonnie sighed and glanced at Elena, rolling her eyes. She mouthed, "I envy you."
Of course Bonnie envied Elena. No one aside from those Elena trusted most knew she was a witch too, so no one thought to ask her to do the same favors.
"Um, Damon was wondering if you could find Katherine using a spell or something."
"She's not going to try to find that manipulative, psychotic bitch for anyone," Elena cut in.
"You don't want to see Damon on a bad day," Stefan warned.
"No, I'm the one you don't want to see on a bad day, and tell Damon that if Katherine wanted anything to do with him, she'd have shown herself in the last century and a half that she had so many chances to. If he wants to find her, he's going to have to do it the old fashioned way. By looking."
"How did you find Elijah?" Stefan challenged.
"Craigslist." Elena shrugged and then grabbed her friends' arms and they walked away, leaving Stefan behind them, shocked.
"How strong are you?" Caroline staged whispered to Elena.
"Dunno. I just found out, so I've gotta learn the basics before I can test my limits."
"Grams says she's crazy powerful, probably on par with some of ancient witches that she's studied, including the most powerful witch in our bloodline"
"How powerful is that?" Caroline breathed.
"One of the witches she's referring to created the purgatory for supernatural people.
"But I just found out I can do things," Elena differed. "I'm a baby really."
"And you've got centuries of power that your bloodline hasn't been able to access since the Travelers were first cursed, all coming to a head in you. So yes, you're powerful, accept it. Grams told me that it's no wonder we were picked to help you. Because only the Bennett family line can rival you, and that's if there's more than one."
"I won't fight you, Bonnie. You're my friend."
"Not to fight, to teach. It takes great power to teach and help harness great power."
XXXX
"So, when do we go after Silas?" Elena asked as she paged through another grimore.
"Spring Break. You, Bonnie, Elijah, and I will go to Nova Scotia. Once we get Silas awake and convince him we are trying to help him and to destroy the Other Side, he should be less likely to attack us or cause the problems that he did in your time."
"And if we control when and how it is destroyed, the backlash will be minimal, hopefully." Elena sighed and traced the design carved into the leather. "We need to deal with Cade, at some point."
"You're going to need to be a much more knowledgeable witch than you are now, even with what you've been through."
"I'm going to need to learn how to create the Cure and to find a knife created with his bones." As the words left her mouth, she was struck with the sudden knowledge that she could never give the Cure to anyone, other than Cade.
"The spirits speak to you, don't they?"
"If by getting sudden bits of knowledge and having to obey or see everything fall apart again, yes."
"That can be how it is."
"We'll need to deal with the sirens too. Though I believe that taking down Cade will end them too. Or if that doesn't work, feed them the Cure too and kill them then."
"What do the spirits say about the Cure?"
"That I'm only to use what I make to deal with Cade and the sirens. The world has molded itself around vampires and to use it on vampires will upset the balance, but I have to help the Originals relearn to control themselves and regain command of the vampires."
Sheila studied Elena, then asked, "What else is on your agenda?"
"Right now, I'm just going to focus on Silas and Amara, and what that means for Markos. Then, after we deal with Cade, we'll take care of Kai Parker, and maybe the Heretics."
"That sounds like a laundry list."
"That's only what's going on here, not to mention what's going to go down in New Orleans." Elena leaned her head against the back of the chair and feeling so drained, she wasn't sure if she could stand if she tried. "I think I'd better get home."
"Elena?"
"I'm done for today. I need to get home."
The time after leaving Sheila's was less than a blur. She couldn't remember buckling her seat belt or even making a single turn. Nothing registered.
It was Elijah's gentle hand on her shoulder that brought her to the surface, a bit, and she found that somehow, she'd made it safely to her bed.
"What happened?" Elijah asked gently as he sat down on the edge of the bed beside her. "Sheila called me, worried, so I came to check on you."
"It's too much."
"What is?"
"Everything," she confessed.
"So, put everything on the back burner and rest." Elijah brushed her hair out of her face with the back of his hand.
"I've gotta save people. I can't rest," Elena mumbled.
"We've got enough time for you to recharge before the world falls apart, again. If you'd like, I could go to fetch Silas and then we go look for Amara."
"No. There's a hunter, one of the Five nearby. Remember? You've gotta stay away from him, at least until you've got a witch or two on your side, to keep him from chasing you back here."
"Alright. Then I'll do some research on how to deal with the occupants of the prison worlds that will want to start trouble should they escape."
"The Phoenix Stone. You need to get it."
"I'll handle it. You get some rest and forget the world for a while."
"Will you stay?"
"For a while. Though I'll need to take at least a day to get the Stone."
"If you stay away for a day or so, you'll miss the Founders' Day Parade and I'll have to bribe Jeremy to be my escort," Elena mumbled, burying her face deeper into her pillow.
"Do you want me to miss it?"
"Do you want to get on a float with your brother somewhere around so he can take pictures and laugh at you for the next century?"
"Not particularly."
"Then go. I'll be fine with Jer."
"When I leave, I'll let him know that an emergency has come up and you need him to take my spot. Then I'll speak to Stefan Salvatore about taking Jeremy's spot on the float. Don't worry about Isobel. I've got Enzo keeping an eye out for her and her minions."
"Thank you, Elijah. And I'm sorry about falling apart."
Guilt ate at her. She needed to be out there, facing the monsters and everything that she was brought back to stop. Instead, she was here, in her bed, unable to focus on much of anything, except the need to withdraw from the world.
"Never apologize for admitting that you've reached your limit." He brushed her hair behind her ear and sat down on the edge of the bed.
"Oh, the bridge, we've got to deal with the white oak." The weapon that took out Finn, then Kol, and finally Klaus and Elijah needed to be dealt with.
"I've been dropping hints to Mrs. Lockwood. She's close to coming around to dealing with it."
"Good. Don't want you to die on me again. It hurt enough last time. I can't go through it again, especially now that I've gotten to know you better." Pain sliced through the haze clouding her mind and her eyes stung with unshed tears.
"I'm not going to die on you, Elena."
"Give me your word." The whispered plea, a callback to memories only she experienced, hung in the air for an agonizing moment.
Leaning over, Elijah kissed her hair and whispered, "I give you my word that I will remain by your side in whatever way you need me, for as long as you exist."
"Thank you." A band of tension she'd been afraid to acknowledge released from around her heart and she relaxed a little bit more, until the image of a white horse rearing crashed into her thoughts and she found herself unable to refrain from saying, "The white horse, the white horse needs to be destroyed too."
"What white horse?" Elijah asked, concerned.
"The knight and his white horse, protected the child from Thor's hammer blows while she slept. But now, the golden owl will soon start hunting the white horse and should it catch it, it will mean the end of all vampires."
"Can you find the horse?"
"In the jaws of the wolf."
Elijah considered Elena's words, then said, "A white oak carving of a knight and horse and Niklaus has it. What's the owl though?"
"I don't know." Elena blinked and looked up at Elijah. "What was that? The white horse?"
"Sometimes, witches get visions, and it looks like you just got your first one that didn't directly touch your life last time around. I'll tell Niklaus to destroy the horse because it's white oak when he finally agrees to meet with me."
"Good." Elena caught his hand and tucked it beneath her chin, to prove to herself that they still had time to prevent her vision from coming true.
After a few minutes of silence, he started describing the most beautiful sights he'd ever seen over his very long life while he carded his fingers through her hair. Instead of falling asleep, like she expected to with his soothing voice conveying her across time and place, Elena sank into a comfortable lassitude, resting, but still awake.
Sometime during Elijah's journey through time, Jenna poked her head in to speak to them, but Elena couldn't focus on her voice. For once, her mind was at rest and all she wanted was to hear Elijah's voice carry her to a place of peace she didn't know could exist in the land of the living.
After a few moments, Jenna left and Elijah continued to carry her away, his words painting images she herself had never had a chance to witness.
This was what she needed. Lying here, in his arms, it did more to allow her to recharge than any amount of sleep ever could. Soon, she would be ready to face the world again, but until then, she rested.