Elena's eyes darted from Caroline to Klaus curiously before settling on Elijah's confused expression; he had no idea what his brother was doing at her house either.

"What's going to be amusing?" She pressed a hand to her back, applying a light pressure to the ache near the base of her spine and mentally scolding herself for leaping to her feet so quickly.

She focused her gaze on Klaus, turning to face him fully. "What are you doing here?"

She thought she did an astounding job of keeping any and all accusations from her tone.

"Perhaps you could invite me in, love," he pushed a hand against the barrier, "so I'm not speaking across the length of your house."

"Are you going to threaten to burn my house to the ground if I don't?" She arched an eyebrow, hearing the snide inflection in her voice.

The baby tapped out a staccato rhythm on her ribs.

As much as she wanted to deny him entry and step outside for whatever conversation he had in mind she decided against it, knowing she would live to regret her impulsive decision made by tired limbs.

"Come on in."

He stepped inside and moved to the living room without pausing to look around.

"What do you want Klaus?" She crossed her arms over her stomach, feeling suddenly like a beached whale.

"What I want is your blood."

Elena clicked her tongue. "Saw that one coming from a mile away."

"I need it for a spell," his jaw clicked. "Bonnie Bennett will only do it if you give your blood willingly."

"You expect me to give you my blood for another spell?" Heat rose in her cheeks, but with it came a powerful sense of control. "You murdered my mother and my aunt, you indirectly killed my father, terrorized my town, used me as a human blood bag and you were going to kill me again. Do you really think I'm going to give you anything you want?"

"I'm sorry..."

She cut him off with a wry laugh. Her words came out sharp, ringing with a truth they all knew. "Oh please, we both know you'd do it again in a heartbeat without batting an eye."

"You're right," he nodded solemnly, "I would, and I regret nothing with the exception of your aunt. That was an unfortunate necessity to draw you out after Damon's interference."

"That interference saved Tyler and Caroline." His eyes widened. She wondered if he had ever known the first vampire Katherine provided him was Caroline. Would he have been able to kill her, or would he have been as captivated that first night as he was when he couldn't let her die from Tyler's bite?

From the corner of her eye she watched Caroline perch on the arm of the sofa and motion with her hand. A sharp backwards jab that Elijah steadfastly ignored. She felt his presence at her elbow.

Klaus shifted closer, staring into her hard eyes.

She knew he didn't regret it. He would never regret it. For a thousand years he had been cut off from a part of who he was, denied his heritage. A piece of him had been missing and in a weird way she got it. Maybe if he had gone about things differently, asked for her help and provided Elijah's elixir, she might have participated willingly - so long as nobody innocent filled the other roles: Kai Parker would have made an excellent candidate; she couldn't say the world would have been worse off without him.

Of course nobody could ever hope to know.

The past was past.

"Elena, please?"

Her name sounded as foreign on his tongue as the show of manners. 'Love', 'my lovely', 'doppelgänger' and 'my girl' were his preferred monikers for her, but 'Elena' had only crossed his lips once. She remembered it clearly, the cold night, the lick of fire, and the numbing emptiness as Jenna's death sank in; the sincerity with which he had thanked her remained nothing short of shocking. It was one of the few moments she had ever seen him vulnerable with his emotions laid bare.

She tried not to show how much her name affected her.

"She and Kol have found a way to save my daughter, and it requires your blood, willingly given," he took a deep breath to help force out his words. "I'm here to ask for your help."

She gripped her upper arms and narrowed her eyes at the man who had blown into her life and laid it in ruins at her feet. Every death caused by his siblings and even Katherine could be linked back to him and his curse breaking crusade. The sorrow he had caused still hit her from time to time at the oddest moments.

And now she had the opportunity to give him a taste of his own medicine. The life of someone he loved rested in her hands.

She imagined saying no and the rush of power that would give her. None of her friends would blame her for the decision; Elijah wouldn't begrudge her for the choice, despite what it would mean for his family.

"I need your help, Elena, please?" She could have sworn she saw moisture in his eyes.

She was well within her rights to say no.

She had earned that no.

And then there was the flip side. Klaus might be a dick, and the evil hybrid who destroyed her sleepy little town, but his daughter was innocent. Hope Mikaelson was a fifteen year old with her life ahead of her and a father who loved her more than anything; the man had been willing to sacrifice his life so she could live.

And she'd already lost her mother.

Not that Elijah had any intention of letting her lose her father too.

"I'm begging you."

She knew she couldn't say no.

Elena shivered in the blast of cold air and leaned forward to close the vents. The swell of her belly made the motion awkward and knocked her purse to the floor. She blinked down, between what she could see of her feet, considered bending to retrieve it and came to the decision neither she nor the baby would enjoy the experience.

"You know," she walked her fingers across her stomach, earning a kick with every touch, "my car has the ventilation perfectly set, and my stomach doesn't get in the way of driving."

"Yes, but if you were in your car, driving by yourself, I would be returning to the school with Klaus and be unable to grill you with questions." Caroline signalled to turn. Her eyes drifted to the rearview mirror for a glimpse of the Bentley's headlights where two Originals followed them close enough to hear; she flipped on the radio. Jazz filled the car. "You really disappointed me back there."

Elena adjusted the seatbelt, stopping it from digging into her windpipe.

"You thought I'd refuse to help Hope?" Her brows rose into her hairline, nearly disappearing behind her side swept bangs.

"Of course not," she scoffed, rolling her neck around for Elena to see her expression.

"I knew that you'd help. She's just a kid, so you were obviously going to help her. I just figured you'd make Klaus work for it a little more. Is it wrong that I was looking forward to watching him beg, and seeing you deny him? I thought for sure we'd have to utilize Elijah's persuasive skills at some point."

Caroline slowed for a stop sign and checked both directions before rolling into the intersection.

"I thought you'd be tickled pink by the thought of Klaus incased in concrete somewhere at the bottom of the ocean." Her jaw clicked.

"You really think Elijah would have let him go through with it?" She braced her forehead on the window and caught a glimpse of his dark outline in the mirror.

Her breath fogged up the glass: "stupid, freaking, martyr."

"I'm gonna let that one go," Caroline glanced over.

Elena flushed and blamed the pregnancy hormones for her next words because she refused to be the only one blushing in the car.

"If you're so eager to hear Klaus beg for anything, I'm sure you could think of something else that will have him pleading harder with each subsequent denial."

Caroline's alabaster cheeks burned red.

Elena smirked. "You've thought about it," she tittered, "minus utilizing Elijah's persuasive talents."

"You've thought about Elijah's persuasive talents," Caroline shot back.

It made little sense in terms of what they alluded to, but Elena understood the middle school comeback, so rather than burst into giggles her flush deepened; she cursed the day she told Caroline about her recurring dream that had only gotten steamier with the addition of hormones.

"You're cruel," she ducked, hiding her embarrassed grin.

"You started it," she tossed her hands up from the wheel for a second in a shrug. "What was Elijah doing at your place?"

"Catching up."

"Not turning your fantasy into a reality?"

"Of course not!" Her heart thundered loudly in her ears. He had of course fulfilled one of her dreams, but since the domestic fantasies had never been shared with Caroline her words remained true.

"So, Elijah decides he's gonna play self-sacrificing big brother and instead of spending his last hours on earth with his family he goes to visit you?" Caroline leaned against the headrest.

"What's your point?" Her nails scratched the seatbelt, catching in the tiny grooves.

"You haven't psychoanalyzed that yet?" She fluttered her lashes.

"I only found out a few minutes before you arrived, and I was too busy yelling at him because there was no way in hell I was letting him go through with it." Pressure built in her chest. "And now all I can think about is the spell Kol helped Bonnie make, and how I'm a central part of it."

"I guess that means you also haven't considered why 'there was no way in hell' you weren't letting him do it either?" She tapped the wheel.

"Have you thought about why you wouldn't let Klaus do it?" She countered.

"I know exactly why and if he were actually going through with plan A then I might even tell him, but we're not going through with that so I don't feel the pressing need to reveal the inner workings of my mind."

Elena twisted to look over her shoulder and through the window.

"He knows," she sighed, "even if you can't say it. Deep down, he knows."

She found Caroline's soft eyes on her, all teasing gone from her face. "He knows, too."

Before she got a chance to dispute that, the entertainment system dimmed for an incoming call. Caroline used the controls on the wheel to answer.

"Hey, Bonnie."

"Hey, are you on your way?"

"Yeah, I've got Elena with me," she flipped her turn signal, skirting the town square.

"Hey, Bonnie," she raised her voice to reach the speaker.

"Hey. I have a confession to make."

"You're having a steamy affair with a Mikaelson," Elena breathed.

"Wow, you really need to get laid."

"Elijah would probably oblige," Caroline smirked.

"Whats the confession Bon?" She glared at her friend.

"It's about the spell. Right now your blood is tainted by the cure which makes it less… reliable."

"I think I know where this is going," she sighed, turning her attention to Caroline. "You want it?"

"Not even a little bit," her nose wrinkled.

"Didn't think so. Pull in here," she nodded to a charcoal awning. "I'll take care of it Bonnie."

Caroline ended the call and put the car in park. She eyed the darkened window, momentarily illuminated by Elijah's headlights.

"What are you gonna do?"

"Potentially put myself into early labour." She pushed open her door and stood, feeling her back pop.

"At thirty-seven weeks you're gonna induce," Caroline shook her head. "Technically you're at term."

She dug through her purse for her keys and sorted out the ring until she had the right one. "Do I need to tell you who to call?"

"I think I got it," she nodded, already flicking through her contacts.

Elena left her to her devices and moved to the building. A fine layer of dust clung to the office, mocking her neglect of hard to reach corners on the desk. She made a note to ask the cleaner to come in twice a week instead of one.

That was if she didn't ultimately decide to shut down and sell the practice.

Dr. Elena Gilbert once held a nice ring to it, but long ago it began to feel like someone else's vision of her life. She wasn't sure she wanted to make a career out of another person's dream. Maybe she would write or teach, or do any number of things that wouldn't turn her into her dad.

She loved him, and she missed him everyday, but there was no denying that Grayson Gilbert missed a lot of his children's lives.

She didn't want her daughter growing up to wonder when Mommy would be home from work, especially without a daddy to fill in the gaps.

But she shook off those thoughts. The clock ticked; she would have time to think later. Fetching a couple of syringes, she walked back onto the street before Klaus could race in and demand to know what the hold-up was.

Rebekah met them at the front door, bouncing from one stiletto to the other. Kol stood at her side, dark brows drawn over darker eyes.

Her stomach twisted. The last time she had seen that type of intensity on his face he had been driving a railing through her body. Her baby kicked the throbbing spot, somehow managing to touch every place the wood scraped.

The set of his mouth appeared more urgent than murderous, so she took a deep breath to relax as she opened the door.

Elijah's hand appeared before she could command her legs to move, and she took it, enjoying the brief contact. It lasted only as long as it took to stand and refocus her balance.

Then she had the privilege of watching Kol's eyes grow wide and his mouth pop open. She let herself enjoy the moment for a second and then focused.

"Does Bonnie have the spell ready?" She hooked her purse over her shoulder.

"She and Freya are putting the finishing touches on it," Rebekah nodded, "they just need your blood."

"Where are they?" Caroline moved towards the school.

"In your office," Kol moved with her, eyes darting back to Elena.

She hoped he felt little to no residual, well deserved, rage because she suspected Elijah would place himself between her and potential danger to her child, and she had no desire to kick off another feud between brothers.

She glanced at the spell, arranged in an ash circle before the sister she had never met. The complexity laid beyond her level of magical comprehension, and she lacked the time to ask. At least she assumed she lacked the time based on the patient.

Hope reclined in a red leather armchair, eyes closed and extraordinarily pale.

She took the desk chair and rolled up her sleeve.

"Does anyone else know how to draw blood?" She brought out the neatly packed syringes and a tourniquet, finishing off her supplies with an alcohol swab.

"After a thousand years we are rather proficient," Klaus murmured, laying the back of his hand on Hope's brow; she shifted, but didn't open her eyes.

"I meant with a syringe," she rolled her eyes. "I was a vampire for a few years and once the cure is gone those years will catch up. I don't know how fast it will happen, but there is a decent chance that I'll be inducing labour and I'd rather not give birth with a stinging vampire bite or a large cut on my arm."

"I can do it," Rebekah picked up the tourniquet. She tied off Elena's arm, and swabbed the vein; she had the syringe in place before addressing the surprised looks. "I did spend a year as a nurse; I had to do this a few times."

Elena watched the clear tube fill and stopped Rebekah before she could clip the second in place.

"I think that has to be taken first," she frowned, directing her gaze to Bonnie.

"Better safe than sorry," she nodded, raising an eyebrow at Freya.

"I'm of the same mind," she poured black sand around the knife.

Elena turned her attention back to Rebekah, expecting her to inject the cure without a second thought. It was the only thing she had wanted her entire life from the moment she learned what her mother had truly done to them. Yet hesitation turned her pretty features as she glanced from the blood to the left, half-turning to look towards her brothers.

"Rebekah!" Klaus snapped, but she wasn't looking at him.

Her eyes were focused on Kol between glances towards the syringe.

"Did I miss something?" Elena whispered, finding Elijah's gaze; he shook his head and shrugged.

Kol swore under his breath, almost too quiet for her human ears, before plucking the syringe from his sister.

She turned back towards Elena.

She watched the soft play of emotions as Rebekah's stiff shoulders quaked. The dejected sigh went straight to her heart. The sound cut off in a strangled gasp; her eyes darted to the syringe in the blonde's neck as Rebekah's lashes fluttered when she fell.

Cold rushed through Elena's body, pouring over her head and racing up from her toes. It poured from the pinprick in her forearm and she swore she saw a wave leave her body, crashing onto Rebekah's falling form.

Kol carried her to a short sofa and stretched his sister out.

Elena squeezed her eyes against nausea and exhaustion. She peeked out through her lashes when large hands covered her thighs; a little more energy and she might have flushed at finding Elijah on his knees in front of her.

"Elena?" His thumbs drew circles atop her leggings.

"I'm good," she swallowed, "pass me the other syringe?" Her fingers shook.

Elijah took over, taking the needle and slipping it into her vein. He filled it with blood, tossed the second syringe to Freya and untied the tourniquet.

He attempted to place a cotton swab on the dot of blood.

Elena's fingers twisted, digging into his hard biceps. She breathed fast through her nose and clenched her jaw tight against the contraction.

There was a specific way to breathe. How was she supposed to breathe?

Blood stained his shirt sleeves when she let go.

"Is that enough for the spell?" She blew out a fast stream of air.

The pads of her fingers replaced her sharp nails, but if she left bruises instead of cuts she would never know because Elijah voiced no complaints. She wasn't sure she would have heard it anyway, too busy clenching her teeth against the pain.

Shouldn't the contraction end at some point?

Precipitous labour, her brain supplied. Should have seen that one coming.

"We're about to find out," Bonnie muttered.

Elena blinked, catching movement as the witches joined hands. She felt the static charge of magic in the air, pulling towards the knife as they chanted.

"Are you going to release Elijah, darling?" Kol drawled, carefully pulling blonde hair from Rebekah's mouth.

"Nope," she went for a head shake, but the motion made the pain worse. She couldn't see what Kol did, nor hear what he muttered. Whatever it was proved enough to earn a sharp reprimand from Elijah.

She felt her hands tugged away and squeezed hard enough to break Elijah's fingers.

"Is that enough blood?" Elijah reclaimed one hand and shifted, carefully maneuvering to rub the small of her back.

"Yes," Bonnie looked up from the knife.

"You don't need anymore?" Urgency laced his tone. "You're certain?"

The conversation flew back and forth. She needed a hospital. Bonnie needed to put the final seals on the spell with Freya. Caroline needed to bring the girls. Alaric needed to hover and make sure the twins remained safe, not the he could have done anything if they weren't.

And then she knew what it was to be weightless in Elijah's arms as he carried her to the car and placed her in the passenger seat.

"I'll ruin the fabric if my water breaks," she flushed.

"You have more important things to think about right now," he fastened her seatbelt.

The full moon's light filtered through the blinds in the large window, making it a few inches into the sterile space; florescent lights drowned out the celestial event.

She couldn't see where it was, but she suspected it had risen beyond its apex.

Her fingers curled around the bed rail.

Tired eyes flickered from the cupboard holding her clothes to the well worn visitor's chair and her concerned visitor. He appeared at once comfortable and out of place.

"How do you feel?" Elijah tilted his head.

"I just had a giant needle jabbed in my spine," she hummed, "I feel numb."

She allowed herself a moment to close her eyes as the drug worked its magic. It had the added benefit of cutting off their eye contact. He grew up in a time long before the existence of the epidural when women felt every contraction. His mother did it seven times. Tatia and Katherine both did it without aid.

She lasted an hour, less when she took begging for the drugs the moment they were inside, into account.

"Do you think I'm weak?" She directed the question to the IV.

"Why would I ever think that?" His brows drew together.

"Giant needle…" her lip curled.

"I think," he began, unbuttoning his jacket, "that you were in tremendous pain and that if you gave me a month I could provide you a list a mile long of women who would have jumped for an epidural; including your own ancestor."

"Tatia?" Her eyes narrowed. She pushed her head into the pillow. "Seriously."

"You could hear her screams from the falls, and I am not speaking figuratively. I had taken Rebekah and Henrik swimming, ten and six at the time, when Niklaus heard the first scream. I had to strain to catch the sound. We thought the village was under attack." Nostalgia graced his smile, tinted with sadness. "Mother gave us an earful for leaving a thirteen year old Kol in charge of our younger siblings."

"Irresponsible?" She guessed, glancing to the machine keeping track of her contractions.

"Poor swimmer," he chuckled. "Rebekah had a habit of swimming under the falls."

"I used to do that," she sighed, tightening her arm over her stomach, "there's a little cave back there." She blinked back tears as a contraction tore through the pain meds.

"Little more than a ledge, I'd say."

"You've been?" She drew in a sharp breath.

"I did grow up here," his smirk turned serious, "you're not weak, Elena."

"Thanks," she smiled, fiddling with the hospital bracelet. "You don't have to stay, you know? I'm okay, and I'm sure you're dying to check on Hope."

"Hope is surrounded by family who will immediately let me know if something goes wrong," he reasoned. "And I do have to stay. I won't leave you here alone."

"I should probably get used to being alone," she chewed her bottom lip, chomping down hard enough to bruise. Her hand curled over her belly as she sighed. "Sort of alone."

He reached out and placed his hand near hers on the rail, not quite touching her fingers; the heart monitor jumped.

"You should never get used to being alone in any capacity."

"I don't see another option right now." She tried for a wry smile.

"Aren't you the one who was screaming there's always another option?" He teased.

"That was different," she shook her head. Her eyes widened when he covered her fingers.

"You gave me an option Elena, and now I'm giving you one. Now that I have the time, since I won't be sinking to the bottom of the deepest ocean, I would offer you my support." He gently squeezed her fingers. "You have it Elena, whatever that may entail; be it help in the dead of night when she won't sleep, or finding out what the hell happened to you."

Her breath caught in her throat.

"Or overhauling that nursery so you don't have to be confused every time you put her to bed." His thumb rubbed her wrist. "Whatever you need Elena. I give you my word."

"Elijah," she choked on his name and blinked back tears that she blamed on her hormones. Her sparkling eyes flicked, searching his gaze for honesty just for something to do; she knew he was honest, and that he would keep his word. "You knew it was me in Willoughby?"

"Yes," he nodded.

"Why?" Her chest rose and fell with shaky breaths.

His eyes fell to her hospital bracelet and back to her face.

"Because I'm a very selfish man," he sighed, "and if I thought for a second that I could get away with it I'd do it again, but that's not likely to happen."

Her mind flashed back to the gazebo. She felt his strong hand on her jaw and the slant of his hungry mouth; soft, exploratory and oddly gentle with a tongue that whispered sinful promises.

The question travelled up her throat and sat heavily on the tip of her tongue: 'what if that's what I need?'.

The door burst open before she could ask and she was forced to break their heavy stare to watch Caroline and Bonnie skid across the linoleum.

"We've got it from here," Bonnie reached for her hand as Elijah let go.

"How's Hope?" Elena blinked, swallowing her question; the moment had passed.

"She's fine," Caroline directed the response between them.

Elena wondered if she had been listening.

"The vessel held?" Elijah's fingers brushed her arm.

"Yeah," Bonnie nodded, "Kol's keeping it safe for the time being."

"Klaus is seeing Hope through the transformation," Caroline explained, "and Rebekah is getting a full physical from a compelled doctor in 402."

"I suppose I'll go check on her." He locked eyes with Elena on his way out, and she understood that he wouldn't go far.