I stood on the stairs as Elena opened the front door to find Stefan and Damon were standing on our front porch.
"Hey. Uh, can we talk?" Stefan asked her looking between the two of us.
"Why?" I asked them.
"We went to see Katherine." Damon told us.
"Come on in." Elena said stepping aside letting them both in. We all walked into the kitchen around the island and waited for the boys to tell their story.
"We told her we wanted the moonstone and she wanted to make a deal with us." Stefan told us.
"But I thought she wanted to stay in there." I said looking at the two of them.
"She got bored. She offered to give us the moonstone and if we got Bonnie to let her out. Her trade was that she would leave Mystic Falls forever." Stefan told us.
"You don't believe her, do you?" Elena asked them.
"No, of course not. We just want the moonstone." Damon told us.
"According to Rose's friend Slater, there's a way to destroy the spell that Klaus wants to break." Stefan explained.
"No spell, no doppelgänger sacrifice. Ergo, the two of you live." Damon told us.
"How do you destroy it?" I asked getting myself a glass of milk.
"By releasing it from the moonstone." Stefan told us.
"How do you guys even know this is gonna work?" Elena asked them.
"Cause we have a crafty witch on our side." Damon told us.
"You discussed it with Bonnie." Elena said but you could tell by her tone of her voice she knew he hadn't.
"She agreed to do anything she could to help us." Stefan told her.
"It's Katherine who has the moonstone. She's not gonna give it to you." Elena told them.
"We're gonna get it from her." Stefan told us.
"Well, what he means to say is, we will pry it from her cold, dead hand if we have to." Damon corrected.
"Bonnie just needs to find a way to release the seal long enough for us to get in, get the moonstone, and get out in time for her to return it." Stefan told us.
"Wow. I mean, it sounds like you guys already have it all planned out." I said looking between the two of them.
"Yep. We're awesome." Damon told me smirking.
"Except for one thing. I don't want you to do it." Elena told them.
"Make that 'I' a 'we'." I told them as they exchanged looks.
"What are you talking about? Elena, Nikky, we don't have a choice." Stefan told us.
"What about Klaus?" I asked him.
"We'll find him right after we get the moonstone." he told me.
"Is that before or after he kills everyone that we care about, including the two of you." I said pointing to the two of them. Damon's face looked startled at my words and I looked away quickly. The memory he doesn't want me to have still fresh in my mind.
"Nikky, if we can de-spell the moonstone, we can save both your lives." Stefan told me.
"I know. Everybody keeps saying that. Don't you realize that I left so I could die for Elena's safety? I never intended to live much longer after I came back home." I told them.
"Then you got pregnant and if you die your baby dies with you. I wont let that happen." Elena said as she left the room with me right behind her leaving Stefan and Damon in the kitchen.
Elena and I opened the front door to the Salvatore house and walked in. She shut the door behind us and looked around the hallway. Rose chose that moment to come down the stairs tying a silk robe around her.
"It's not nice to leave a girl naked so early in the morning." Rose said before looking up and seeing us. "Whoa. Sorry, I thought you were…" she broke off looking at us. Elena looked away from her, embarrassed.
"I, uh, sorry, I…" Elena stuttered.
"There's no one else here." Rose told us.
"Actually, we came to talk to you." I told her hiding this bad feeling I got.
"Then I should probably get dressed." Rose said smiling broadly before walking down the stairs. As soon as she was dressed she came back down and we all sat in the living room talking.
"It's a bad idea." Rose told us.
"No, it's not. From what Stefan told me, your friend Slater obviously has more information about Klaus. You and Damon just gave up before you got it." Elena told her.
"Because somebody blew up a coffee shop with us in it." Rose reminded us.
"There's more to learn. We just have to find a way to learn it." Elena told her.
"Why are you coming to me with this?" Rose asked looking at the two of us.
"Because I only slept with the guy and you owe us. One word from us, and Damon and Stefan could have killed you for kidnapping us." I told her and she stared at me.
"Or maybe it's because you both know that they wouldn't want you two doing this. And their moonstone caper gives you twp a chance to sneak away." Rose said finally looking away from me.
"We're having a disagreement, okay? They're willing to risk everyone that we love and we're not." Elena told her.
"They're just trying to protect you." Rose told us.
"And you've proven that you couldn't care less whether we're protected or not. So, we're back to you taking us to Slater." I told her. Rose sat down on the couch next to Elena and I.
"What exactly do the two of you hope to achieve by this?" she asked us.
"How would you like to be able to walk during the daylight?" I asked her.
"I've been a slave to shadows for 500 years, what do you think?" she asked giving me a look.
"I think I know a witch who's willing to do whatever it takes to help, if you're willing to make a deal." I told her smirking.
We parked in an underground parking lot below where Rose told us Slater lived. We ascended the staircase to his apartment and Rose banged her fist on the door while Elena and I stood nearby.
"Slater? Slater, it's Rose. Open up!" Rose called. After a brief moment, Rose looked at us. "He's not home. Sorry." she said trying to get us to leave.
"Mm-mm. No. We didn't come all the way out here for nothing." Elena said. Rose sighed and pushed the door open using her vampire strength. We looked inside the apartment and Rose gestured into the room.
"After you." Rose told us. I walked into the apartment with Elena and Rose following suit. Rose wandered farther into the apartment than we did, looking for Slater. "Slater?" she called as she moved. "I don't think he's gonna be much help." Elena and I rushed over to where Rose stood and saw Slater's dead body. Rose walked over to Slater's body and drug it away from us. I walked over to Slater's computer desk and picked up a bunch of papers.
"Looks like whoever blew up the coffee shop found him and killed him for his information." I said as I shuffled through the papers as I heard Rose and Elena walked up behind me.
"Yeah, probably to stop him from helping people like us. The guy was a vampire almanac. Knowing too much information just bit him in the ass." Rose told us. I shuffled through a few more papers before picking up a framed photo of Slater and a girl. Rose walked away from us and pulled back the curtains.
"What are you…?" Elena asked her.
"Tempered glass. U.V. rays can't penetrate." Rose told us, looking out the window. "I used to just come here and watch the day." she told us. I looked back to the photo before looking back to Rose.
"I'm sorry about Slater." I told her.
"Any luck?" she asked me. I placed the photo back on the desk and tried to log into one of the computers.
"It's password protected. I can't get in." I told them.
"No, this is fine. Let's just go." Rose said. Suddenly, we heard a doorknob rattling from inside the apartment. "Stay here." Rose ordered. Rose walked past us and opened a set of doors. She peered into the small hallway.
"Alice?" Rose asked.
"Rose!" I heard a girl call out. The girl, Alice, rushed to Rose and embraced her. "He's dead!" Rose comforted Alice as Alice tried to regain her composure. I stood close to Elena as she made tea for her and Alice.
"She found him a few minutes before we did." Rose told us.
"How is she?" Elena asked her.
"Overreacting. Big time." Rose said rolling her eyes.
"Her boyfriend just died. There's no such thing as overreacting." Elena told Rose.
"Those tears are for her. She didn't care about Slater." Rose told us and I looked at her curiously. "She was only dating him long enough to see if he'd turn her." I turned to look at Alice, an idea forming in my mind. I grabbed a cup of tea and walked to the room towards Alice then handed it to her with a small smile.
"Thank you." Alice said taking the cup as I sat down next to her. She looked at me as though trying to remember who I was.
"You look really familiar. Did you know Slater?" Alice asked me.
"Not personally, no. I just knew that he kept detailed records of all of his vampire contacts and I was hoping that he could point me towards Klaus." I told her seeing Elena and Rose standing not to far away.
"Doubtful. Klaus doesn't want to be pointed at." Alice told me.
"Do you know Slater's computer password?" I asked her.
"Are you seriously asking me that right now? I just saw my boyfriend with a stake through his heart." Alice told me getting offended that I would ask something like that.
"I understand that. Do you know his password?" I asked her again.
"Who do you think you are?" she asked me looking away from me.
"What if I could convince Rose to turn you?" I asked her and she looked back to me. I saw Rose and Elena look at me like I was crazy. "Will you show us his files then?" Alice rushed to Slater's computer and logged on with the three of us behind her, watching.
"Someone's been here. The hard drive's completely wiped out." Alice told us.
"Yeah, probably whoever killed him." Rose told us. Elena ran a hand over her face and turned away from the computer.
"Lucky for you, Slater was paranoid. Everything's backed up on a remote server." Alice told us and I smirked before Rose pulled me away.
"You know that she's not going anywhere near my blood, right?" Rose asked me softly.
"I know. She doesn't." I said looking back at her. I walked back to Alice missing the smile. I leaned down next to Alice to look at the computer screen.
"Kristen Stewart. God, was he obvious." Alice said as I watched a lot of files come up.
"These are all leads to vampires?" Elena asked her as she continued scrolling though the files.
"Slater was obsessed. Almost as much as me." Alice told us.
"What about that one? Cody Webber. They exchanged dozens of emails about Elijah." Rose pointed out.
"I could call him." Alice suggested looking at me. I picked up the phone and handed it to her.
"Tell him that we're trying to send a message to Klaus." I told her as she too the phone.
"The doppelgängers are alive and they're ready to surrender." Elena told her.
"What?!" Rose asked looking at the two of us.
"Oh, my God, I knew I recognized you." Alice said smiling at Elena and I.
"Get him the message, now." I told her walking out of the room with Elena and Rose behind me. Elena placed her hands on a table and exhaled heavily. "It'll be okay, Elena. As long as we stay together, we'll be okay." I told her rubbing her back.
"What are you doing?" Rose asked us.
"Getting Klaus' attention." I told her.
"If Klaus knows that you're alive, he'll find you and he'll kill you." she told me. Elena held my hand tightly while I looked back at Rose, neither of us saying anything. "Which is exactly what you wanted all along."
"It's either us or our family." Elena told her.
"So this whole charade is some suicide mission so that you two could sacrifice yourselves and save everyone else?" Rose asked us as Alice entered the room.
"Cody is on his way and he really wants to meet you." she told us smiling. Rose shut her eyes and sighed. We all waited for Cody to come. I squeezed Elena's shoulder as she gazed out the window. I suddenly saw Elijah's face coming towards us in the window. We both gasped and turned around quickly but saw no one. I went to get some water and gave it to her. She walked into the main room and looked over at Alice then gasped. I looked in her direction and saw Damon was here.
"What are you two doing here?" he asked looking at the two of us.
"What are you doing here?" Elena asked him as Rose entered the room. I turned and looked angrily at her.
"You called him?" I asked her.
"I'm sorry, Elena. Nicole." she told us.
"You said that you understood." I said.
"She lied." he told me. I turned back around and looked at him as Alice walked up to us, star struck.
"Damon Salvatore." Alice said.
"Get rid of her." Damon told Rose.
"No. Way." Rose grabbed Alice's arm and led her out of the room.
"Come on. We're leaving." Damon said grabbing our arms.
"No." Elena said fighting him.
"I said we're leaving." Damon told her.
"I'm not going with you." Elena fought him harder.
"You do not get to make decisions anymore." Damon told her.
"When have I ever made a decision? You and Stefan do that for me. Now this, this is my decision." Elena told him.
"Who's gonna save your life while you're out making decisions?" Damon asked her and I pulled my arm out of his grip.
"You're not listening to her, Damon. We don't want to be saved. Not if it means that Klaus is gonna kill every single person that we love." I told him.
"Get your ass out the door before I throw you over my shoulder and carry you out myself." Damon ordered us. Damon grasped my arm tighter and I struggled to release myself from his grip. I finally pulled my arm out of his grip and got out of his reach.
"No!" Elena yelled throwing a punch at Damon. Damon clutched her fist in his hand and moved in towards her.
"Don't ever do that again." Damon told her releasing her fist from his grasp and walked away. I went to Elena and looked at her hand as she stood there, horrified about what happened. Damon then walked to the bedroom where Alice and Rose were and closed the doors. When Damon came out he walked straight to us with Rose right behind him. "Time to go. Alice is soundly sleeping and won't remember a moment of this horribly stupid day." Suddenly, the front doors burst open and three men walked into the apartment. Damon and Rose turned to look at them.
"We're here to meet the doppelgänger." The man in front told us.
"Thank you for coming." Elena said attempting to walk towards them, but Damon pushed her back.
"I will break your arm." Damon whispered to her before looking at the head guy. "There's nothing here for you." the man in the back suddenly dropped to the floor, dead. Elijah was standing where he had bad holding his heart. The other two vampires looked back at Elijah as he used his speed to get in between them, looking from one to the other. I heard Rose gasp and run away as Elijah looked to us. "I killed you. You were dead." Damon told him.
"For centuries now." Elijah told us before looking to the man in front. "Who are you?"
"Who are you?" the first man asked him.
"I'm Elijah."
"We were gonna bring them to you. For Klaus. They're the doppelgängers. I don't know how they exists, but they do. Klaus will want to see them." the first one said.
"Does anyone else know that you're here?" Elijah asked him.
"No." the first one told him.
"Well, then, you have been incredibly helpful." Elijah said as he plunged his arm's into the two vampire's chest. They both grunted as Elijah ripped out their hearts and they fell to the floor, dead. Elijah let their hears drop from his hands. Damon prepared to fight with Elijah, but Elijah shocked us buy turning around and rushing out of the apartment. Damon looked at Elena and I, we all had shocked expressions on our faces.
Damon Elena and I walked up the steps to the house and we turned to him.
"Thank you for bringing me home." Elena sighed.
"Well, your ride left you. I didn't want to leave you stranded." Damon told her and she went inside.
"Rose was just scared. She didn't mean to run." I told him standing in the doorway.
"Yes, she did. She's been running for 500 years." Damon told me.
"I can't believe Elijah's alive. Why do you think he killed those two vampires and just let us go?" I asked him.
"If I had a dollar for every time some evil vampire surprised me." Damon said leaving off the rest of the saying. I moved to go inside but Damon caught my arm before I could go all the way in and turned me to I could face him. "What you and your sister did today was incredibly stupid." he told me.
"Actually, the only thing that was stupid was that we got caught." I told him wriggling my arm out of his grasp and he let me go. "I don't question why you and Stefan and everyone else tries so hard to save us. You shouldn't question why we would try to save all of you." I told him. I heard footsteps running towards me but didn't turn to them. "Damon, good night, okay?" I said and I was about to enter the house but stopped when I saw Jeremy and Elena's face.
"What?" Damon asked them.
"It's Stefan." Elena told me, tears breaking to the surface.
Elena bolted down the stairs of the tomb and she rushed towards the cave and looked in, but saw no one.
"Stefan! Stefan!" I heard her call our as I walked down the steps. Elena tried to enter the cave when I saw Damon come from behind her, grab her, and pin her against the wall.
"Don't you dare." Damon told he.
"Stefan's in there, Damon! How could you let this happen?" Elena asked him.
"What are you talking about? I was too busy saving you and your sister from you and your sister's crazy kamikaze mission." Damon told her.
"You didn't even have to go after the moonstone in the first place!" Elena told him.
"It was the right call, Elena." Damon told her.
"The right call? How was any of this the right call?!" Elena asked him hitting him with her fists. "Damon, let go of me! Damon, let go of me! Let go of me! Let go of me!" I watched her repeatedly beat her fist into Damon's chest who kept a calm face and restrained her. Elena became tired and desperately looked up at Damon. I stood next to him and she turned to me. "Please." she begged us.
"Are you done?" I asked her. She just breathed heavily but didn't say a word as Damon released her from his grip and backed up. Elena looked back into the cave and started to move toward it. I held my hand up and blocked her. "Don't." I told her. Elena looked at me and slapped me hard before stomping out of the tomb in a rage.
"Are you okay?" Damon asked me as I watched her go. I nodded and looked to the cave as Stefan walked over to the entrance.
"Of all the idiot plans, Stefan." Damon said.
"Yeah." Stefan said looking at us.
"We'll find a way to get you out." I told him
"Ah, it's all right. I'll handle myself. Bonnie has the moonstone. Work with her. Try to figure out how to de-spell it." he told us.
"You martyr yourself in a tomb and I get partnered with a semi-competent witch. Wonderful." Damon said and I hit his arm.
"Keep Elena away from here." Stefan asked us.
"Yeah. Cause that'll be easy." Damon said.
"Promise me. No matter what happens. You'll protect her." Stefan said looking from me to his brother.
"Promise." Damon told him. Damon left the tomb with me behind him. I looked back and watched Katherine emerge from the back of the tomb. She nodded her head at me and I turned away from her and followed Damon the rest of the way out.
