Jonas Martin and his son Luka are witches.

"We prefer warlocks," Luka corrects her with a smile. Elena smiles back, honestly even if a bit tentatively. Luka seems kind. Mr. Martin isn't quite as welcoming as his son, though he isn't rude. He just looks to be a more serious kind of man.

Elena can appreciate that.

"You'll be late for school, if you don't leave now," Mr. Martin reminds his son. Luka shrugs, and grabs a backpack from the floor.

"You coming?" he asks Elena. She looks to Elijah.

"It is your decision," he tells her. "If you wish to attend school, accommodations will be made."

Elena thinks about it for a moment. "Not today," she decides. She still needs to plan Aunt Jenna's funeral, and she should go buy herself a new phone, and… honestly, she can't deal with high school right now. (Elena is sure Matt's locker has been turned into a shrine, and there will be a substitute teacher in history class, and people will tell her that they're sorry about Aunt Jenna.)

"Another time," Luka says, no judgment in his tone. Elena turns back to Elijah and Mr. Martin once he leaves.

"Your friend Bonnie is a Bennett?" Mr. Martin asks. Elena nods. "Daughter of Abby, daughter of Sheila?" Elena nods again, a bit surprised that Mr. Martin knows the names of Bonnie's mother and Grams. "That's a powerful bloodline," he tells Elijah.

"The Bennetts have long been the guardians of Mystic Falls," Elijah comments. Mr. Martin agrees, and Elena gets the sense that he's pondering whether and how to use Bonnie's abilities.

To use iBonnie/i.

"Bonnie isn't the guardian of anything," Elena responds immediately, because she wants her friend to be safe, more than anything. She bargained away her life for it; she'll do anything necessary to keep Bonnie out of danger. "She's going to stay away from any fighting. She isn't trained for this."

"What about the other Bennett witches?" Mr. Martin asks her. Elena blinks, realizing that Mr. Martin perhaps isn't quite as knowledgeable as his reference to Grams and Abby suggested.

"Bonnie's mom left her and her dad when Bonnie was little. Bonnie hasn't heard from her in years," Elena informs him. Elena doesn't even remember Abby, and Bonnie never talks about her. Abby didn't even go to her own mother's funeral. "And Grams – I mean, Sheila – died last year, from using too much magic."

"It can be dangerous to practice magic alone," Mr. Martin tells her. "Especially for an untrained witch." Elena knows; she's seen Bonnie's nosebleeds, when she uses too much magic. She's constantly afraid that Bonnie will overreach her limits.

"Well, Bonnie doesn't have anyone to train her," Elena points out. Grams died before she was able to do more than teach Bonnie the very basics, and Bonnie doesn't know – or trust – any other witches.

Mr. Martin looks briefly at Elijah, and then back to Elena, his expression contemplative. "I could help train her," he offers.

"In return for what?" she asks, instead of immediately refusing. She doesn't want Bonnie involved with Elijah's witches – but she knows her friend is going to keep practicing magic, and maybe she'll be safer if she has at least some training.

"I don't need anything in return," Mr. Martin tells her. "Witches have a responsibility to help other witches." He seems genuine, somehow.

"I guess… I guess it's up to Bonnie," she says uncertainly. "I'll ask her. But even if she accepts your offer of training, I don't want her involved in any fighting." She looks to Elijah as she says this, hoping he can tell how serious she is about this.

"I'm a man of my word," Elijah assures her. Elena looks at him, studying his expression. As she told Bonnie, there is a certain nobility about him, and she believes that he believes what he's saying. She relaxes, and the conversation moves on to other topics.

Later, after leaving Mr. Martin's house, and going to the store for a new cell phone, and working out the details of Aunt Jenna's funeral for the following day, Elena slumps in the passenger seat of Elijah's car – exhausted.

"Don't you have better things to do that chauffeur me around all day?" she asks him wryly, turning her head to look at his profile.

Elijah's eyes don't leave the road as he responds: "Until I have a firm grasp on the dangers present in Mystic Falls, I would prefer not to leave you alone."

Elijah parks in front of the Salvatore Boarding House, and opens her door for her before she can even reach for the handle. Elena takes his hand as he helps her out of the car. After she stands up, she squeezes his hand lightly to get his attention. He looks down at her, dark eyes fixed on her face.

"You don't have to worry that I'll try to run, or to hurt myself," she reassures him, just in case his hesitance to leave her alone stems from any doubt that Elena will keep to her end of their bargain. "Katherine told me what happened to her family. As long as you keep Bonnie safe, I'll gladly sacrifice myself to break Klaus's curse."

She can feel her heart beat in her ears as Elijah's studies her intently. She wonders what he hears. "You mean that," he murmurs after a moment.

"Yes," Elena confirms. Elijah nods, seemingly satisfied with the reaffirmation of their deal. "There… there has been one thing bothering me," she tells him, before he pulls away.

"Oh?" he murmurs, indicating that she should ask her question.

"You said that Klaus needs to die, but you also want to complete the ritual to reverse his curse…?" Elena trails off, her voice questioning, though she knows she hasn't actually asked a question. She isn't sure how to word it, exactly.

"You want to know why I don't just kill him the moment he returns to Mystic Falls," Elijah replies, almost like he's reading her mind. Elena nods. "As you may have noticed, it is not easy to kill an Original."

"You recovered from a stake to the heart," Elena whispers, a part of her still in disbelief. Elijah had looked so idead/i, lying there in that clearing. She looks at Elijah's ring. "The sun? Fire?"

Elijah smiles, apparently pleased by Elena's questions. "I'd burn, but heal," he reassures her. Elena wonders, very briefly, if Bonnie would even be able to slow him down. She decides she doesn't ever want to find out. Stefan surprised Elijah last night, but Elena imagines that doesn't happen often – that it is almost always Elijah's opponent lying still on the ground, and that (unlike him) they very rarely get up again.

"You already told me that werewolf venom won't kill you," Elena reasons out loud, remembering their discussion from yesterday. "Is Klaus as durable as you are?" She hopes not.

"Perhaps more," Elijah admits readily, and Elena should learn to expect the worst, by now. Elijah doesn't seem to realize just how terrifying that thought is, because he continues with an explanation. "Even though his werewolf aspect is bound, he still receives certain… benefits, from his dual nature."

"How… how are you going to kill him, then?" Elena asks. If Klaus can't be killed by a stake, or the sun, or fire, or werewolf venom, can he be killed at all? What would happen if Elijah slapped off his head, like he did with Trevor? Would he just heal? (And if so, would he reattach his head, or somehow iregrow/i it?)

"When his werewolf nature manifests, he will be weakened temporarily," Elijah informs her. And for Klaus's werewolf nature to manifest, Elena has to die. She supposes, from there, Klaus will be Elijah's problem, and Elena won't be around to worry.

Elena is tired of worrying. (She just has to trust that Elijah will keep his promise to keep Bonnie safe.)

"Is Stefan here?" she asks, changing the subject, looking to the Salvatore Boarding House. Once, it felt almost like a second home.

Now, it is just yet another place where she's haunted by her ghosts. (Some of whom aren't even fully dead, though Elena does her best not to think about Damon, trapped in the basement and hopefully well on his way to desiccation by now.)

"Yes. I spoke with him last night, and then ordered him to remain here until I returned," Elijah tells her. He opens the front door for her. "I thought perhaps you might have some questions of your own?"

"You have no idea," Elena says.

They walk into the living room, where Stefan is standing – perfectly still, and quiet. He doesn't even seem to register their presence, until Elijah meets his gaze and compels him to answer all of Elena's questions truthfully.

Then, Elijah settles into a chair by the fire, and gestures for her to proceed. Elena has so many questions; she almost isn't sure where to start. Except, there's only one real place to start, isn't there?

"Did you kill Matt?" Elena asks, looking Stefan straight in the eye. She wants so badly not to believe it, even as a part of her is resigned that it's true: that Stefan, her first real love, killed her childhood friend and first lover. Both Lucy and Katherine told her that Stefan killed Matt, but she needs to hear Stefan confirm it. (She hopes he denies it.)

"Yes," Stefan responds. Elena turns away immediately, unable to look at him. She stumbles to the sofa, sitting so her back is to both Stefan and Elijah, clutching her knees to her chest. (Not wanting to see or be seen.)

"Why?" she whispers, staring blankly out the window. How could Stefan do this? He and Matt weren't friends, exactly, but he knew – he iknew/i how much Matt meant to her. How much Elena missed him.

How much Elena would miss him for the rest of her life, short as it is destined to be.

"He was bleeding," Stefan responds. "I couldn't stop myself." She thinks it is the compulsion that keeps his tone flat – no hint of apology in his voice, no silent pleas for forgiveness. (Elena isn't sure if that makes this all better, or worse.)

A part of Elena wants to ask if it was quick, at least. She wants reassurance that Matt didn't suffer too much before he died. But she's scared that no such reassurance will be forthcoming. She's scared that Stefan will tell her that Matt died, in pain and alone, but for his murderer. (Elena doesn't ask, because Elijah compelled Stefan to tell the truth. He can't lie, not even to spare her feelings.)

"Why was he bleeding?" Elena murmurs. How much blood did it take, to erode Stefan's control? How much blood did it take, for him to feed from her friend until he killed him?

"Katherine pushed him, and he hit his head," Stefan tells her. Katherine. Of course it was Katherine. It is ialways/i Katherine.

And every one of Stefan's answers leads to two more questions. Elena doesn't have the energy to tease the truth from him like this. She sits there and thinks for a while. She's grateful that Elijah doesn't rush her; that Stefan ican't/i.

(Tears roll down her cheeks, and she doesn't wipe them away. They're for Matt, and he deserves each and every one of them.)

"What happened, the night of the Ball, after I left the ballroom with Tyler?" Elena asks, finally, hoping that a more open-ended question will get her the answers she needs.

Stefan tells her. He tells her that he watched the door close behind Elena and Tyler, and waited for her to return. He tells her that Katherine – dressed in Elena's dress – returned to the ballroom, Matt at her side.

He tells her that he thought Katherine was Elena – so when "Elena" and Matt had an argument, and Matt pulled her into the library, Stefan followed. He tells her that he watched as Matt tried to kiss Katherine-as-Elena, and Katherine pushed him, and Matt hit his head.

He tells her that Matt bled – a lot. He tells her that he couldn't resist the smell of Matt's blood. He tells her that he bit Matt's neck, and fed, and fed, and fed.

"Stop!" Elena cries, not wanting to hear any more. But Stefan is compelled to answer all of Elena's questions truthfully; he can't stop. Instead, he tells her he fed until Matt's head fell off, and there was no blood left to drink.

Elena starts sobbing. Oh, god – Matt. It hits her, suddenly and all at once, the truth that she's refused to acknowledge.

Stefan killed Matt.

Matt is dead.

"Stop talking," she hears Elijah say from behind her. Stefan does, and Elena would be thankful that he's stopped talking, except…

iMatt/i.

Matt, with his big heart, and his beautiful smile, and his blue, blue eyes.

Matt, headless and drained of blood, just another casualty in Katherine's war against Elena.

Because Elena can put the pieces together: Stefan may have been the one to kill Matt, but Katherine arranged it all. She compelled Matt to pick a fight to Tyler – to distract him, so Katherine could knock Tyler and Elena out. She stole Elena's dress, and staged a fight with Matt, to lure Stefan into the library.

Then she compelled him to kiss her, just to push away, to make him ibleed/i. Katherine arranged it all. It doesn't clear Stefan of blame, of course. Stefan could have resisted – Stefan ishould/i have resisted. It was iMatt/i.

But Stefan didn't resist – didn't recognize Katherine's trap, or do anything to avoid it. And so Matt died, because Stefan couldn't tell Katherine and Elena apart.

It's her face, her hateful face. So many have died for it, or because of it. Matt. Aunt Jenna. Ric. Uncle John.

Even Jeremy, in a way.

At some point – Elena has no idea how much time has passed – she feels a soft touch on her shoulder, startling her out of her thoughts. Elena sniffles, turning to look up at Elijah.

"I am sorry," he murmurs quietly, his expression full of sympathy as he hands her a handkerchief.

Elena takes it, drying her face. "I wanted the truth," she tells him. "I iwant/i the truth. I just… I loved them both. I loved them both, and Matt is dead, and Stefan killed him, and I just…" Elijah pats her shoulder, a little awkwardly. Elena leans into his touch nonetheless, taking what comfort she can.

Elena realizes, suddenly, that Elijah understands what it is, how it ifeels/i, to have one loved one kill another. Somehow, knowing she isn't alone in this feeling makes it a little better, and a little worse, all at the same time.

She thinks she startles him a little bit, when she stands and pulls him into a hug. Elena rests her head on his strong shoulder, and clutches him as hard as she can. It's comforting, to know she can't hurt him.

(It's comforting, to know that if Elijah dies, he'll wake up again. He already has.)

A beat, maybe two – and then Elijah's arms encircle her hesitantly, one tentatively cradling the back of her head, and the other gently rubbing her back in soothing circles. "I'm sorry I didn't understand about Klaus, before," she murmurs softly into his shoulder. "I think I know what it is, now; to love someone, and hate them at the same time."

Elijah's hands pull away from her and fall to his sides, suddenly. Elena pulls back slightly to look at him. His eyes are just a little wider than normal, and his lips are slightly parted.

He looks astonished.

"I – sorry, if that was too personal," she murmurs, blushing and taking a few steps back. He sways forward, as if to follow, before collecting himself.

"Do not be sorry, lovely Elena," Elijah tells her, his voice reassuring. But there's something unreadable in his gaze, as he fixes those dark eyes on her face. "It is – a singular experience, to be understood."

Elena, unable to disagree but unsure how to respond, just offers him a weak smile, bringing up his handkerchief to dry her new tears.

And then, Elena's new phone rings. It's Bonnie; she just met Luka, and she wants to know if Mr. Martin's offer of training is legitimate. Elena assures her it is, and promises they can talk more, later that night.

She doesn't tell Bonnie where she is or what she's doing. She knows that Bonnie would come over to support her, but she can't even stand the thought of Stefan in the same room as Bonnie.

After Elena hangs up, she looks at Elijah uncertainly. He stares back, their earlier understanding still there, but the moment broken. For lack of anything better to do, Elena offers him his handkerchief back.

He tells her to keep it. Elena nods – and then she gathers her nerve and turns back to Stefan. "You may speak," Elijah tells him, almost casually, before he returns to his seat by the fire. He's still, and quiet, and Elena would almost forget he was there – except she can feel Elijah's eyes on her. Watchful. Protective.

"When did you realize Katherine wasn't me?" Elena asks Stefan. Was it before or after he left the Lockwood Mansion with her?

"After I killed Matt, I looked up, and she was smiling," Stefan tells her. She'd rather he stabbed her.

She'd much rather someone stab Katherine. Matt was dead, and Katherine was ihappy/i.

She hopes that Katherine returns to Mystic Falls, so Elijah can tear her to pieces. She hopes Katherine finds Klaus, and iKlaus/i tears her to pieces. (She wishes Elena could just tear Katherine to pieces herself.)

"Why did you leave with her?" Elena asks. How could Stefan kill Matt, and then still leave with Katherine, once he realized that she wasn't Elena?

"She told me that you were in danger – that you'd die if I didn't go with her," he replies. There's no hint of accusation in his voice; there can't be, with Elijah's compulsion. (Elena feels it just the same.)

"You ibelieved/i her?" she questions Stefan, incredulous. How could Stefan be so istupid/i?

"Yes. Katherine was wearing your dress; I thought she was threatening you," Stefan tells her. That dress, and her face. Elena lost three people because of that dress and her face.

"W-were you there, when Katherine killed A-aunt Jenna and Ric?" Elena asks, unable to keep her voice from trembling. Katherine didn't mention anything about Stefan, when she bragged about murdering Aunt Jenna and Ric. But if Stefan was there, and he didn't do anything…

"No," Stefan responds. "She told me she had a quick errand to run, and that she wanted me to go home and wait for her here. I did." Should it make her feel better, that Stefan didn't just watch as Katherine murdered Aunt Jenna and Ric?

It doesn't.

She barely feels anything at all – except grief, for those she lost. (And love and worry for Bonnie – always love and worry for Bonnie.)

Elena asks Stefan what happened next. He tells her that Mason and Tyler tracked Katherine and Stefan to the Salvatore Boarding House, and Katherine knocked them out and tied them up. He tells her that, when they woke up, Katherine threatened and tortured them. For hours. He tells her that Katherine pushed and pushed, leveraging Tyler against Mason, and Mason against Tyler, until Mason agreed to get the moonstone from the well for her.

"Why didn't you stop helping Katherine, once you saw me in the clearing? Why did you stake Elijah?" Elena questions.

"Because Katherine told me that the Sun and the Moon Curse is fake, and that the Originals all want you dead. I thought Elijah would kill Katherine, take the moonstone, and then take you to Klaus to be sacrificed," Stefan tells her.

That might explain why he staked Elijah, but…

"After you thought Elijah was dead, why did you chase after Mason and Tyler? Why did you leave me alone with Katherine?" Elena demands.

"I knew I couldn't beat Katherine in a fight – not like that, without any element of surprise. I didn't want to go, but I thought maybe if I got the moonstone, I could negotiate with her, find some way to get you somewhere safe," Stefan says.

That's an iawful/i plan. Completely stupid: Katherine could have killed Elena any moment they were alone together. Elena couldn't have stopped her – couldn't have even delayed her – alone and defenseless as she was.

And yet – Stefan is compelled to tell Elena the truth. She has no choice but to believe him. She isn't sure how she feels about that.

Elena has one last question. She needs the answer, but she isn't sure she wants it. She asks it anyway: "Do you love me or Katherine?"

"I love you, and only you," Stefan tells her.

Stefan doesn't love Katherine. He didn't mean to betray Elena.

Elena should be relieved.

She isn't.

Because it doesn't matter. Not really.

Even if Stefan didn't imean/i to betray her, he still did. He still allowed himself to be manipulated by Katherine. He still killed Matt. He still let Katherine go off alone, iin Elena's dress/i, and she murdered Aunt Jenna and Ric. (If Elijah weren't an Original, Stefan would have killed him too.)

"I'm done," Elena says to Stefan, before turning to Elijah. "I'm done," she repeats.

She's done.

(She doesn't want Stefan to die, but she isn't sure she'll do anything to save him, either.)