One day...two days? Who knows how many days have passed since the massacre. I stayed in my room, locked away from the outside and its inhabitants. Care knocked at my door every few hours to make sure I was still inside. Still breathing. Mom checked in every now and then, but even she was kept at bay. The solitude was all I needed. The quiet and the darkness was my nest. The window became my movie. Showing me the outside and what was going on that day. The weather, the people, the cars were all just moving on, like nothing had happened. My phone had fallen silent after I refused to answer the previous messages and calls from everyone. Klaus tried to call, tried to message, but I never replied, then he too fell silent.

Mayor Lockwoods memorial was happening today at the school. I wore a black oversized jumper and a pair of black jeans and tied my hair back when I finally emerged from my bedroom earlier in the day. I ate for the first time in days and I showered for the first time also. I was feeling fresh and slightly better than I was. I mourned two losses. Mayor Lockwood and Klaus. Both of which I never thought I'd lose.

But here I was, sitting in the gymnasium next to my sister and brother, a candle in my hand as I listened to my mom deliver a speech to the rest of the room.

"Carol Lockwood always said that togetherness in times of tragedy leads to healing, that one community is stronger than a thousand of its members. But how does a community stay strong after losing its leader? And Carol was so much more than a leader; she was an open-minded friend and a concerned mother, taken from us too soon by a terrible accident." My mom said and heard the vibration coming from Tyler's chest as he growled lowly.

"Screw this." He said and shot to his feet.

"What? Tyler? Tyler?" Care whispered as Tyler shuffled through the crowd and walked off.

I squeezed my eyes shut as Caroline and I stayed seated as our mom continued to speak from the podium.

"Please join me in observing a minute silence in her memory." She said and bowed her head in respect.

Once the memorial was over and done with, Care and I left the room and waded through the hoard of people to get to the corridor.

"I'm gonna go call Stefan," Caroline informed me as she pulled out her cell, "Will you be okay for a few minutes?"

I nodded my head and clawed at my sleeves as I watched her disappear through the crowd once more. I fell back into the crowd and walked in the opposite direction. I needed to be somewhere quiet, somewhere no one else would be right now. I found myself walking in the direction of the library as It was exactly what I needed at this moment. A secluded part of the school where no one else would be.

It was deserted when I walked in. The only thing inside was the books and myself. I took a few steps forward and stopped instantly as I heard groaning coming from behind some shelves.

"Hello?" I called out into the vacant room. "Anyone there?"

When no one answered, I decided to investigate and walked across the large room to find out what the noise was.

"Elena!" I gasped as I kneeled down beside her. "Are you okay?"

As I rounded the shelves I found Elena slumped against some books on the floor, passed out but lightly moaning.

She nodded her head as I helped her get up from the floor.

"What happened?" I asked groggily as she looked around.

Before she could reply, April Young appeared out of no where and startled us.

"The assembly is over." She stated flatly.

"What the hell is going on?" Elena asked briskly.

April deflected her question with another of her own, "The school will be empty soon...How many times did you compel me?"

I frowned, "How do you...You're not on vervain." I sighed as she looked at me sadly.

"Don't...Don't lie. Rebekah says you lie." April said with a stammer.

"Rebekah isn't who you think she is, April." Elena said as she looked at her with concern.

"What? She's not a thousand-year old Original Vampire?"

My mouth dropped open, "Rebekah's back?"

"Not now," Elena waved me off as I came to terms with Rebekah being back. "Listen, we can figure this out, but we have to get out of here."

Elena pulled April's arm as she made her way towards the door and I followed in-tow. As we turned a corner, we were halted in out tracks as Rebekah stood in the way.

"Sorry, not allowed." Rebekah smiled.

"Rebekah..." I sighed.

"Hello, sweetie." Her smile turned into a wicked grin in my direction before she walked towards Elena and began to compel her. "Why don't you take a seat? The rest of the class will be here shortly."

"W-What are you doing, Rebekah?" I asked as I followed them towards an empty desk.

"You'll find out shortly," She smiled, "Take a seat."

I looked towards the chair across from Elena where Rebekah stood behind and pulled out for me.

"I'd much rather you just tell me what we're doing here." I said and folded my arms across my chest. "Who un-daggered you?"

"Sit," She snapped, "Now..."

I smirked, "You can't compel me, Rebekah."

"No?" She bared her teeth as her lips curled up, "I'll just have to take it out on your sister then, won't I?"

"Don't!" I yelled as she walked backwards "I'll sit down." I walked towards the chair and sat down. "There. Happy now?"

"Not even close." Rebekah hissed as her smile faded. "No one leaves this room. If anyone tries, I'll rip you limb-from-limb. Understood?"

Before any of us answered she was gone.

"What's happening?" I asked Elena as she watched the large blue door as they stilled.

"I-I don't know, Jess." She sighed, "But it doesn't look good."

We fell into silence, neither of us knowing what to say to the other after everything that had happened. We were drifting apart, and we both knew it.

The doors swung open and Rebekah walked in with Caroline in tow.

"Caroline!" I gasped as Rebekah dragged her in by the arm.

"Sit down!" Rebekah yelled as she threw Care into one of the vacant seats. "Same rules apply. Anyone moves, you're dead."

Rebekah whooshed out of the room, but she returned just as quickly, but this time with Stefan.

"Stefan..." Elena gasped and got up from her seat.

"Did I say you could move?" Rebekah snapped and Elena took her seat once more.

"Class is in session," Rebekah grinned as we were all now seated at the desk, "You've all been compelled; well, with the exception of Jessica here. You know the rules. Answer my questions honestly, no disobedience, no one leaves. April, my sweet, take notes. This is how you get answers in this town. Let's start with a little quiz. In the year 1114, my brother learnt, thanks to yours truly, about a brotherhood of vampire hunters with tattoos that grew with each kill. These tattoos revealed what, Elena?

Elena sighed and rolled her eyes before answering, "A map."

"Which led to...? Caroline?"

"A cure for vampirism." Care replied.

"Perfect, so we're all caught up." The original smiled gleefully, "Stefan Salvatore, the last time we saw each other, you had a vampire hunter, but in order to decode the map, you needed the location of the hunter's sword, which you got out of me using some very dirty tricks. Assuming you found the sword, you also found the cure, and yet, you're all still vampires, which means something went wrong." Rebekah looked over at April and frowned, "What are you doing?"

"Oh, you asked me to take notes." April said as she placed her book on the table and held her pen.

"I wasn't being literal, darling. But now that you mention it...a flow chart would be nice, which means index cards and push-pins. Go, fetch."

"You're wasting your time," Stefan groaned, "We don't know anything."

"So, you just gave up? I thought you would do anything to save Elena? Even if it meant taking the cure yourself, so you could grow old and die with her?"

Elena, Caroline and I looked at Stefan as he tightened his jaw.

"Why do you look so surprised?" Rebekah grew impatient as no one replied. "I'm missing something. What is it?

"The broke up, Rebekah." I said as I pulled at the loose string on my jumper. "Just let us go."

Rebekah's grin grew, "Broke up? Wait, I'm confused. I thought Elena was your epic love, Stefan?" She rounded the table and sat down in April's chair as she looked at Stefan, awaiting his reply. "I asked you what happened. You have to tell me."

"She slept with Damon."

Everyone at the table looked at Stefan as he diverted his gaze elsewhere. Elena looked shocked before she looked towards Caroline and I. Care dropped her gaze down to the table as her heart rate picked up. She was the one who told Stefan about Elena and Damon.

Rebekah stood up from the table and continued to play her little game.

"So, vampire Elena is a trollop who likes bad boys, which explains why Stefan reeks of alcohol. But what it doesn't explain is why sweet, loving, innocent Elena could be so heartless towards Stefan." Rebekah was getting more of a kick out of this than she was letting on. She was in her sadistic element. "How could she hurt you like that? Answer, please."

"She didn't know it at the time, but she was sired to Damon." Stefan replied.

Rebekah took a seat on the chair in between Stefan and Elena. "A sire bond. That's fascinating. And what do you think about that, Elena?"

"I think you're sad and bored and in desperate need of a hobby." Elena hissed.

There was a twinkle in The Originals' eye when Elena tried to evade her question. "You're hiding something. Fess up."

Elena fell into her compelled state and replied, "I didn't sleep with Damon because of the sire bond. I slept with Damon because I'm in love with him."

Stefan looked up from the table, his eyes filled with sadness as he and Elena looked at one another.

"What does any of this have to do with the stupid cure?" I grunted.

"You're right. We got off the point," Rebekah smiled, "Stefan, how do I find the cure? Unless, you'd rather talk about Damon and Elena all day.

"There's a professor. He knows where the cure is.

"Thank you. And, uh, where do I find this professor?" She asked.

"He's at Whitmore College," I answered her unprompted, "You'll find him there."

"Thank you, Jessica." Rebekah said as she got up from the chair and pulled out her cell. "Won't be long. No one moves"

I sat crossed legged on the chair as Rebekah chatted with someone on the phone, but I chose to zone out. Elena's attempts to get Stefan to talk to her were failing miserably, and Caroline focused on Rebekah.

"Hello, Tyler." Rebekah said into her phone and my ears instantly perked up.

"Tyler?" I mumbled as my legs fell from the chair.

Rebekah continued to speak to my brother on the phone, it was short lived, but none-the-less, she managed to rile him up in very few words. I presume that he was on his way to the school as we speak, but I hoped that he'd see through her attempts.

As she hung up the call, a familiar voice entered the room.

"Sister...Look at this!" Kol bared his teeth as he poked his head around the blue doors, "You're even worse than Klaus."

My body recoiled as he mentioned his name.

"Kol?" I all-but-whispered as I turned to face the other Original.

"Hello, darling." He smiled as we locked eyes.

"Kol," Rebekah sighed, gaining his attention once more. "Finally. Did you bring me what I asked for?"

Kol shoved Shane into the library, and Rebekah smiled like she had won a victory.

"You must be Shane."

With another order sent our way, Rebekah left the library with Kol and Shane to do god-knows what. Stefan, Caroline, Elena and I remained at the table, even though I couldn't be compelled, I remained in my seat beside the table.

"Are you okay?" I said under my breath towards Stefan who sat at my left.

He turned to face me and nodded his head, "Yeah." He said groggily.

I gave him a warm, reassuring smile as the the blue doors swung open and Rebekah walked back into the room.

"Still glued to your seats?" She joked, "Ahh, it's thick with tension in here. Let's spice things up a bit. Elena, truth of dare?"

"We're done playing your stupid games, Rebekah." Stefan snapped.

"Truth or dare, Elena." Rebekah said as her tone lowered, "You're compelled. Answer."

"Dare," The brunette sighed.

"I dare you to tell Stefan the truth about Damon."

I groaned, "Rebekah, stop it."

"Quiet!" She snapped towards me.

Elena took a sharp inhale before she played along with Rebekah's twisted game. "Being with Damon makes me happy."

"Makes you happy?" Rebekah smirked, "Clowns make you happy, Elena. Dig a little deeper."

"When I'm with him...it feels unpredictable, like...liked I'm free."

"And how do you feel when you're with Stefan?"

"Stop." Caroline said as Elena hesitated to answer.

"She can't, she's compelled." Rebekah grinned.

"Lately, I feel like I'm a project, like I'm a problem that needs to be fixed. I think I make him sad, and I can't be with someone like that, because when he looks at me, all he sees is a broken toy."

Rebekah smiled, but Stefan looked deeply hurt by her words.

"Do you still love Stefan?" She asked.

"Yes."

"Are you still in love with Stefan?"

"No," Elena's eyes swelled up with tears that threatened to overflow any second.

"Did that hurt?" Rebekah said as she diverted her attention onto Stefan, "Having someone you love drive a dagger through your heart?

"Go to hell." Stefan hissed.

"Did...that...hurt?"

"Yes." He choked out.

"Welcome to the last 900 years of my life." Rebekah hissed through clenched teeth.

Stefan looked up at her, but all our eyes darted to the door as Tyler busted through them.

"Ah, good, you're here. It was just getting depressing." Rebekah smiled.

"What the hell is going on?" Ty said with a confused look on his face as he scoped out the scene in front of him.

"Listen to the rules carefully. Stay in the building, no vamp-running in the hallways." Rebekah said as she looked towards us seated at the table.

Caroline frowned, "Vamp-running from what?"

The Original turned to face Tyler, and they locked eyes.

"Turn." She said as she began to compel him.

"What?" Elena gasped.

"He can't, he'll lose control!" Care tried to explain.

Rebekah faced the table once more, "That's the whole point. I've exhausted all your knowledge. Now I have the professor to help me find the cure, you're just competition. Whoever finds it first gets to decide what to do with it. Use it, share it, destroy it, save it. I want that to be me."

"But if I turn, I'll kill them." Tyler said in a panic.

"Yes, you will." She smiled once more, "Turn."

I shot up from the table, "Rebekah, please don't do this!"

She approached me and held my arm tightly, "Have fun." She whispered into my ear before she vanished from the room.

"Jess, leave." Tyler said in a low voice after a moment passed.

"No, I'm not leaving anyone." I knew there wasn't anything I could do, but I didn't want to abandon them.

"Jess, you're the only one not compelled." Stefan said as he stood from the table. "You have to leave, we're more durable than you are. You have to leave."

"But-" I looked between them all before sighing deeply, "I-I'll find some help."

I gave Tyler a small squeeze on the arm as I rushed past him and into the corridor. There was no one around, the school was completely empty. I jogged down one of the dim-lit corridors, in the hopes that someone would be around to help me figure out what to do. It would be a whole lot easier if Damon was here to help.

I rounded a corner and saw a light flickering in one of the science labs. I rushed towards the room and flew the door open.

"April?" I frowned in surprise.

"Jessica…hi." April greeted me as I burst through the door.

"What are you doing here?" I asked and stepped further into the room, letting the door slowly lose behind me.

She shrugged, "Looking for post-it notes and push-pins," she shrugged nonchalantly, "You know, for Rebekah's flow-chart."

I rolled my eyes, "I don't think she needs them anymore, April. She's away somewhere with Shane and Kol. She got what she needed from us."

"Oh," She murmured. I felt the door behind me open again, causing the both of us to turn around.

"Bonnie?" I frowned, "What are you doing here?"

"How did you know everyone was here?"

Bonnie's brow knitted together, "Who's everyone?" She looked between April and me for an answer, "I came here looking for Shane."

April snorted, "Did you do a GPS witchy locator spell or something?" Bonnie looked at her the same way I did earlier in the library, shocked. "Rebekah told me that you're a witch."

"Rebekah?" Bonnie murmured, "What the hell is going on?!"

"Rebekah has Stefan, Elena and Caroline compelled in the library." I sighed.

"She's getting them to tell the truth for a change." April added. Bonnie shook her head and walked over to the back of the classroom where a few supplies were. "What?" April eyed her in confusion.

"Shane can't be compelled. Okay? She'll happily torture him to find out what he knows." Bonnie replied. She turned around and began to look at the supplies in the cabinet.

"What are you looking for?" I asked.

I felt a wave of guilt wash over me. I was the one who told them where to find Shane in the first place. If anything were to happen to him...I don't know how I'd cope with that on top of everything else.

"I need salt." Bonnie replied quickly.

"I think I just saw some." April turned around and crossed the room to the other cabinets where a bunch of jars were sat. She reached for one of the ones on the top shelf which contained white crystals and handed them over to me.

I walked over to one of the work benches beside Bonnie and sat the jar down. "Bonnie...I didn't know this was going to happen." I said as I twisted the lid of the jar off before sliding it over to Bonnie. "She was asking all of these questions, and thought if she knew where he was, then she'd let us walk away."

"It's fine," She said quickly and began to pour the salt into smaller beakers. Five to be exact. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a necklace, "If this pendant will connect me to Shane, then I can do a protection spell."

April and I nodded silently before taking a step back, giving Bonnie as much room as she needed to perform her spell. She stared at the necklace for a few moments before she clutched it between her hands and held it against her chest. Flames emerged from the beakers, startling April as she hopped back a little further. Her eyes closed tightly as she focused more. A large flame shot up from each of the beakers.

The room fell silent. I observed Bonnie as her nose wrinkled up as she concentrated deeply on her spell. My hand shot to my throat and gently rubbed it as I got a tickling sensation inside. I coughed lightly in a bid to alleviate the sensation that was growing, but it did nothing. I eventually coughed again, but still, nothing. I did my best to refrain from coughing for a third time, but the pain grew worse. I placed my left hand against my chest and the other onto the counter top as I began struggling to breathe.

"Jess?" Bonnie's eyes flew open as she noticed my struggle. I began to claw at my throat with both hands as my coughing grew louder and more painful. "What's happening?"

I looked over at Bonnie as water began to spill from my mouth with each cough. I was instantly on my knees within seconds. The water poured out, hindering my breathing altogether. Then, as fast as it appeared, the coughing subsided and the water stopped.

I took a sharp inhale as Bonnie helped me back to my feet. "W-What the h-hell was that?" I said in broken gasps with my raspy voice.

"I don't know." Bonnie said as she looked at me with shock.

"Aghhh!" I groaned in agony as a sharp pain vibrated through my left side. I looked down and pulled my hands off my stomach and gasped as they were dripping in blood. My blood. I gripped Bonnie's arm, unable to speak or move.

"Oh, my god!" Bonnie gasped in horror.

I began to pant, my knees went weak and I slowly slumped down onto the floor.

"B-Bonnie..." I whispered before I felt my world become dark.

My eyes shot open as I lunged forward, gasping for air as a warm sensation trickled down my chin.

"It's okay, it's okay! You're okay." Stefan pulled me up into a seated position, his arm around my back as he steadied my shaking frame. His hand wrapped around my wrist in a bid to comfort me.

As I realised I was safe, I began to relax and fell into Stefan's chest as he held me tightly. I took slow, steady breaths as he rubbed my arm before helping me to my feet.

"Bonnie, get April and Jess out of the school. Just be careful. Tyler's out there, and he's turned." Stefan ordered.

"What about you?" Bonnie asked as she rose to her feet.

Elena began to shake her head, "No, we can't leave. Rebekah compelled us."

"Just go," Stefan said, "We'll deal with her later. Come on." Stefan ushered Bonnie, April and I towards the door.

I stopped in my tracks and turned to face Stefan. "Thank you, Stefan." I placed my arms around his neck and stretched up onto my tiptoes as I gave him a hug.

"You're welcome," He smiled as I took a step back. "Now go. And don't worry about Caroline, she can take care of herself."

I smirked, "You don't have to tell me."

Bonnie, April and I bolted down the corridors and shot out of the school into the parking lot. We each went our separate ways, each in a different direction as the darkness began to settle in the sky. The chill in the air was nipping at my skin as I rushed home. When I arrived, I noticed that my mom wasn't here. I shouldn't be surprised but given everything that's happened, I just wanted to be with someone.

Inside my room, I placed my cell on the table and headed towards the bathroom. The ringing caught my attention as I came back out of the bathroom and wiped my face. I looked at the screen and saw Caroline's name flashing.

"Care, are you alright?" I asked as I took a seat on the edge of my bed.

"Yeah, everyone's fine, Jess." She sighed into the phone

"Tyler?"

"He's fine too. A little sore, but he'll be alright." She said, "Where are you?"

I blew a sigh of relief as I knew everyone got out of the school alive. "I'm back at the house."

"Tyler said you should come over to his." Care said, "He-He's wanting to have a toast, for his mom."

I smiled, "I'll be there as soon as I can."

I arrived at the Lockwood Manor later that night. Caroline, Tyler and I spent the night in the Parlour room, sharing stories of his mom and laughing in the moment. I spent the night there with them, and I was glad for it. After spending days cooped up in my room alone, I now craved the comfort of others, and being with my sister and brother was more than I could ask for.

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