Chapter 5

Elena sat on the couch, her legs tucked beneath her, one book rested on her knee, the other sitting open on the coffee table. She had just polished off her second cup of coffee and was thinking it might be time to swap over to tea or have an apple instead. Her early mornings would always start to hit her around dinner time; Elena would find that staying up later than nine seemed almost impossible. She coped like any other good college student and drank a preposterous amount of coffee.

She looked down at her notes before her and sighed. Finals started in the morning. Elena was feeling good about her assignments, but she was slightly nervous about taking her finals. She would be glad once they were over with. It also meant that soon she could head back to Mystic Falls and plan her next steps, which meant Medical School.

Elena was also looking forward to going home to see Jenna and Alaric. The two of them were so happy together, and now they had their little munchkin that was always running around and causing chaos. The two of them still lived in the Gilbert family home, which Alex, Elena and Jeremy had insisted on. Maybe one day, one of them might want the house, but for now, while Elena was working on becoming a doctor and Jeremy was off in L.A. doing his thing, it made sense for them to stay.

Speaking to Alex earlier had made Elena realise how much she was missing her siblings. She had seen Alex at Christmas, and it had been nice to catch up with her, but Jeremy hadn't come home. Ever since he had headed off to California, he had only been home a handful of times; everyone understood that Jeremy was enjoying himself, he was doing really well in his art program, and Alex had made a comment that she was glad that he wasn't involved it all of the supernatural stuff like they were. Elena was thankful for that, too; even if things had been mostly calm since Klaus, she preferred he stayed out of it all.

Elena shifted on the couch, untucking her legs that were now stiff from sitting in one position for too long; she placed her notebook onto the coffee table before carrying her empty cup into the small kitchenette. Their whole dorm room was much more of a small apartment; the main room consisting of the living space which had a couch, a chair and a beanbag and a small TV that sat beside the door; the kitchenette was just to the left of the front door, had a small bar fridge, couple of cabinets, sink and microwave; they shared a bathroom that was a little cramped; and they all had their own small bedroom. One of the cupboards was stocked with all sorts of snacks and drinks. Coffee and tea were the main options; Elena was never a big tea drinker, so the tea options were Caroline and Bonnie's preferences. The green tea was Bonnies, and the black tea was Carolines. Elena grabbed a green tea bag and popped in the tea bag after rinsing out her cup. She boiled the kettle and then leant back against the counter while she waited.

Checking the clock on the wall, Elena knew that Bonnie and Caroline would be home soon. Bonnie had been out all day even though she had only one class, that was an evening class; Caroline had speculated that she was getting laid. Caroline had three classes throughout the day; she had appeared once while Elena was studying to grab a blood bag that she practically inhaled before rushing off to her next class.

The kettle finished boiling as the door swung open. Elena glanced up to see Bonnie marching in with a pissed off look on her face. She dropped her books and her bag onto the coffee table and then flopped onto the couch.

Elena poured her tea and asked, "Good day?"

Bonnie huffed. "Why am I an idiot, Elena?"

Stirring her tea, Elena said, "I wouldn't call you an idiot."

"Really? Because the men I sleep with always turn out to be dickheads."

Elena shrugged and walked over with her tea. She sat down beside Bonnie and took a sip. "Is that where you were this morning?" asked Elena.

Bonnie nodded.

"Caroline will be glad to know she was right…again."

"She thought I was having sex?"

Elena nodded.

"Good God, am I that obvious?"

"No. But it is Caroline; she can smell things human's can't remember."

Bonnie cringed. "Right. Eww."

Elena chuckled and took another sip of her tea. "So what happened?" she asked.

Bonnie sighed. "You know Josh from the coffee shop?"

Elena smiled. "Black hair, dreamy blue eyes?"

Bonnie nodded. "Yeah, him."

"Oh, he's cute."

The door swung open, and Caroline walked in. "You were fucking Josh?" she asked.

Bonnie frowned. "Hi, Caroline, nice to see you."

Caroline rolled her eyes and sat down on the single-seat, dropping her stuff on the floor. "Yeah, hi. Details now!"

Elena laughed.

"I was getting to it," grumbled Bonnie.

"Apparently, Josh is a dickhead," said Elena.

Caroline frowned. "Oh. So not dating material then?"

"No."

"Repeat worthy?"

Bonnie sighed. "Maybe. But I don't know if I would even bother. The fucker answered my phone while I was in the shower and was going through it when I came out."

Elena and Caroline both frowned.

"Seriously?" asked Elena.

"I hope you kicked him in the balls for that," said Caroline.

"No. I did smack him, though and told him that he had lousy technique." Bonnie sunk lower into the couch.

"Why do I feel like that isn't true?" said Caroline.

"Because it's not. The asshole has a great cock and knows how to bloody use it."

"Well, that's disappointing," said Elena.

Bonnie grabbed a pillow and wrapped her arms around it.

It seemed to be an ongoing thing for Bonnie since her relationship with Jeremy ended. It hadn't ended well either. Elena had witnessed one of her best friends and her brother screaming at one another over another girl that Jeremy swore was just a friend. When the relationship crumbled, it had been awkward for weeks. Elena had been relieved when they returned to Whitmore, and Bonnie started to move on. But her moving on was more causal hookups with guys who turned out to be horrible.

"Maybe we should have Sarah pick guys for you from now on?" said Caroline.

Elena laughed while Bonnie looked at the blonde, horrified.

Sarah was a one of a kind. They had gotten to know her really well after the whole Klaus incident. Her brother gave up his life so that Elena could live, and still to this day, Elena had felt responsible. Sarah had insisted that the only person she held responsible for James' death was Klaus. Besides that, it had been really hard for the trio of best friends not to like Sarah; she was funny, clever, and caring. She was also brutally honest. It hadn't taken long after she moved into Alex's old bedroom for them to start spending plenty of time together. When they headed off to Whitmore, Sarah decided to try college out for herself. She got in a Bachelor of Arts since apparently she could paint like no other and knew a lot about art history, and was considering working as a curator.

But the thing that always made the three of them laugh was Sarah's approach to the opposite sex. Since they had known her, she had never had a boyfriend or dated as far as they were aware, but they believed that was because of Sarah tendency to intimidate men. They normally ran away from her with their tails between their legs because she wounded their pride. Sarah was extremely picky about who she spent her time on.

"I will ask Sarah to pick me out a date when I no longer wish for men to date me," said Bonnie.

Caroline smirked and shrugged.

"Let's ask her what she thinks anyway," said Elena.

She put her tea down on the coffee table before pulling out her phone and calling Sarah. The phone rang three times before it was answered. The click of the phone being answered was followed by the sound of a crash and a groan.

"Fuck sake."

The girls giggled at Sarah.

"Don't you laugh at me," said Sarah. The phone rustled, and then Sarah huffed again. "Hello, friends. What's happening?"

"Oh, you know," said Elena, "Bonnie's just filling us in on her dating life."

"Ohh, do tell."

"Why are you always so interested in our love life when you never share anything about your own?" asked Bonnie.

"Because if I told you my secrets, then I would have to kill you," teased Sarah.

"Bring it," said Caroline.

"Oh, Care-Bear, don't tempt me."

Elena just giggled at her friend's antics. She picked up her green tea and took a few more sips.

"Just to change the subject," said Sarah, "Bonnie, did Alex ring you?"

Bonnie frowned. "I don't think so."

She pulled her phone out of her pocket and tapped at the screen. Her face turned dark, and she sat up.

"That bloody dick. That was who called earlier."

"What?" asked Sarah.

"Josh answered Bonnie's phone while she was showering," explained Elena.

"Oh," said Sarah, "wait…coffee shop Josh?"

"Yeah, why?" asked Bonnie.

"Nothing, don't worry about it…You should call Alex back; she needs our help with a spell," said Sarah.

"Why kind?" asked Bonnie.

"Anything to do with Kol?" asked Elena.

"Yeah. Apparently, he is cloaked," explained Sarah.

"Right…I better call Alex."

Bonnie stood up and walked into her bedroom, closing the door behind her.

"Is Alex alright?" asked Elena.

It hadn't been too long since she had spoken to her sister, but things tended to happen quickly.

"She seemed fine," said Sarah. "She was in Mystic Falls with Elijah and asked for mine and Bonnie's magical assistance."

Elena didn't even know Alex had gone to Mystic Falls; she hadn't told her.

"Anyway, I have to go back to arguing with my lecturer. I'll see you all later," said Sarah.

Hanging up the call, Caroline picked up her stuff and said she was going for a shower. Elena glanced at her textbook and frowned, she wasn't really in the mood to study anymore, but she had finals the next day. She picked up her notebook and sighed.

It shouldn't bother her that Alex was calling Sarah and Bonnie for help, and it shouldn't bother her that Alex goes back to Mystic Falls to help Elijah. But it did. Elena understood that Alex wasn't back for a social visit; if she was, Elena would have known, and it probably would have been done when they both would have time. The whole situation was about finding Kol, but Elena couldn't shake the jealous feeling in her gut.

The one thing that Rebekah had learned to cherish in her long life was the little moments. Her brother was always there, waiting to interrupt her happiness or lock her away in a coffin. For years, any small stolen moment that she could find she cherished, and it felt good to be with someone who made her feel good without having to worry if Nik was going to show up and kill him.

After running into Matt at the Grill, his offer of dinner started with pizza and beer at his house, which Rebekah had enjoyed. But once the food was gone, their clothes disappeared, and Rebekah remembered one of the many things she enjoyed about the sandy blonde-haired man. Matt was a very attentive lover; he seemed to enjoy making sure Rebekah crashed over the edge before he even thought about his own needs. And that tongue, Rebekah could only recall two or three men in her whole life that had used their tongue as well at Matt.

When they had finished with their tumble on the couch, then on the kitchen counter, and then in Matt's bed, Rebekah was content to lay on her side snuggled against Matt's side. They had been catching up with what the latest was for each of them, kissing and possibly leaning towards another round.

Matt rolled Rebekah onto her back and smiled at her.

He said, "I wish you would visit more often."

Rebekah returned his smile. "Nothing is stopping you from visiting me."

Matt nodded. "True. But unlike you, I do have a job."

She sighed and hung her arms around his neck. "That sounds like a you problem."

He leant down and kissed her again. "It seems that my job was what led to you coming back, so I'm not going to complain."

Rebekah nibbled his lip. "Make sure to send Kol a thank you card once we find me."

"I just might." Matt pressed his lips to her throat and sucked lightly on the skin.

"Mmmm…at least I know it wasn't a total waste coming back to this town," she said.

"That it wasn't."

Rebekah enjoyed his attentions, let her body relax completely against the mattress.

"Has Elijah made any progress on finding Kol?" asked Matt, his teeth nibbling her shoulder.

"No," she sighed, "Alex said that he's cloaked."

"That's a bummer."

"Alex thinks that there are other witches involved."

"Would explain Kol's behaviour."

Rebekah pulled back and frowned. "What behaviour?"

"When I saw him, it was like he was high or drunk. If it had been anyone else, I would have taken them down to the station."

"It could have been a spell."

"And he also kept muttering the name, Esther…"

Ice shot through Rebekah.

"…if she was the witch who turned him mad, I am staying away from her."

Matt stroked Rebekah's cheek; she caught his fingers and pressed her lips to them. She hadn't heard her mother's name spoken in so long, and it worried her that Kol would be mentioning it; it could be nothing; if a witch had cast a spell on him and it was messing with him, he could have no idea what he was saying.

"You okay?" he asked.

Rebekah nodded. "Yeah, sorry. Just thinking."

"Did you know that when you think too hard, you get small wrinkles right here?" He pressed his finger to the top of her noses bridge.

Rebekah frowned. "I do not have wrinkles."

Matt chuckled and kissed her again, silencing any sort of quip she might throw back at him. When he pulled back, he smiled and stroked her cheek again. "For an immortal beauty, I don't think you will have to worry about wrinkles."

She clicked her tongue but couldn't stop her smile. Matt made her feel so normal and happy. She ran her fingers along his arms and lifted her head to initiate the kiss. Rebekah would make sure to mention her mother to Elijah, but that could wait for now.

Klaus' house was quiet as Alex climbed off the bed. She had been stretched out over the mattress for the past few hours reading through spell after spell, trying to find something—anything—that could help her find Kol. It had become frustrating when there was nothing of use. Cloaking spells were a tricky thing to get around; normally, you would need luck on your side. There was normally a time limit involved; cloaking spells required a decent amount of magic to maintain, and sooner or later, a witch would reach their limit. Unless something had enough magical energy that wouldn't expire, like, for instant, an Original vampire.

Alex stretched out her limbs and let her mind wander to Elijah; he had spent some of the time she had spent reading beside her, helping her look through books or discussing possible theories. At one point, he left her alone when his phone had rung; Alex had expected him to come back at some point, but he never had. The house was big enough that it would be easy to disappear for a few hours.

Exiting the bedroom, Alex glanced down the hallway. Elijah had only shown her the main areas; the kitchen, dining and main sitting room. He had also shown her which room he had set up for them to use while they stayed. Beyond that, Alex had no idea what was behind all of the doors. She walked back towards the staircase and took in the details of the half-finished home. Alex couldn't help but imagine what it would have looked like if Klaus had ever been given a chance to finish the home. No doubt, it would have been extravagant.

At the top of the stairs, Alex called out, "Elijah?"

Her voice echoed and bounced through the empty halls, but he didn't respond. She walked across the landing and looked down another long hallway; it almost seemed never-ending. Just before she turned to look downstairs, Alex spotted a door at the very far end of the hallway was sitting ajar. Every other door was closed, which meant someone had to have opened it.

Sticking her head through the door, Alex was surprised to see what looked like an art studio. There was a large table against one wall covered in a paint-splattered sheet. Sitting on it was several small canvases, piece of paper, paintbrushes of all sizes, and paints. Along the walls rested large canvases that were mostly covered with large white cloths, but one cloth was sitting on the ground, behind Elijah.

Stepping inside, Alex said, "Elijah?"

She walked slowly up behind him and took note of the painting before him. It was framed in an ornate gold frame; depicted were all of the Mikaelson siblings. Rebekah sat in the centre, dressed in a lavish green gown, her hair pinned up and decorated with flowers. To her left was Finn, dressed in a very smart looking black suit. Then came Elijah, who had his hand resting on Rebekah's shoulder; he too was dressed very handsomely, but his suit was a dark charcoal grey. Standing behind Rebekah's other shoulder was Klaus; his hand was resting higher on Rebekah's shoulder, closer to her neck. And then Kol; he stood on her right, the grin on his lips perfectly matched the familiar smirk he wore.

If it were any other family, Alex could convince herself that they were a happy, wealthy family from the early twentieth century.

Alex asked, "Who painted this?"

It took a moment for Elijah to respond. "Niklaus." His words were a faint whisper.

The look of pain that sat upon Elijah's face made Alex's heartache. Seeing him so torn was something she never wanted for him, but the situation with Klaus made it difficult. If there was some way to guarantee that everyone would be safe from Klaus, then she wouldn't stop Elijah from waking his brother up so that he might have a chance at the family they all really wanted. But they had talked about it before, and there would be no chance that Klaus wouldn't seek to murder each and every person Alex cared about.

Elijah was also carrying a lot of regrets when it came to his brother. After a thousand years, Elijah felt responsible for his younger brother. Alex had heard the stories from both Elijah and Rebekah about how Mikael had treated him; the abuse—physical and verbal—was cruel and unyielding. It was easy for Alex to understand that Elijah staying by Klaus' side through everything, allowing Klaus to do as he pleased with little consequence, was Elijah desperately trying to make amends for not protecting him.

Alex had tried to help Elijah with his guilt. The pressure placed on older siblings to care and protect their younger siblings was something she had struggled with a lot. The difference between them was that Alex knew that she wasn't accountable for Elena or Jeremy's choices; she could hate the decisions they make, disagree with them, but the outcome fell upon them and not her. Alex would always be there to help her siblings, to comfort them, but it was up to them how they chose to live their life. It seemed that the Mikaelson siblings heavily leant on one another; even though they all liked to stand tall and claim they needed no one, whenever something went wrong, they would cling to one another. Elijah would take on the troubles from all of his siblings, and they would become his own. It was then his responsibility to clean up the mess and fix it, not the sibling—mainly Klaus—who had done the damage beforehand.

Elijah cleared his throat. "He painted this one when we were living in New Orleans; probably around 1919, I think."

The painting of the Mikaelson's was spectacular. Alex found it difficult to image Klaus covered in paint and standing in front of the canvas.

"I thought Finn and Kol were both in a coffin at that stage?" she asked.

Elijah nodded. "Finn was. Kol did get woken up briefly in 1821, but that was only for a short period."

Alex smiled; she reached out and wrapped her hand around his arm. She rested her cheek against his shoulder. "I still find it fascinating that you and Klaus were instrumental in building New Orleans."

A small smile graced Elijah's lips. "It was a very good time for us." The smile quickly faded, and the sad look returned to his eye. "But like everything, it didn't last."

Stepping around Elijah, Alex stood herself in front of him. He looked down at her, and one hand reached up to cup her face. Once his face would have become a mask, his stone features would have hidden the memories' pain and pretended that he wasn't affected. But Elijah didn't do that anymore; his sad eyes gazed at her, and she wanted nothing more than to take his pain away. Alex felt a small flicker of love in her chest that he was open about the weight on his heart.

She said, "I have faith that one day you will find that happiness." She lifted her hand and cupped the side of his head, her fingers brushing his earlobe. "Even Klaus."

His lips quirked with a small smile. "I hope you are right."

Alex stretched up on her toes and pressed a sweet kiss to his mouth. She said, "You should know by now, I'm always right."

"Of course, my apologies."

Alex smiled widely. "Apology accepted."

"Any luck with the cloaking spell?" he asked.

Alex huffed. "No. Sarah did promise to help, but she has to get through her finals first. I assume the same thing will apply to Bonnie, but she hasn't called me back yet."

Elijah nodded. "I guess we will need to find something else to do while we wait."

Alex smirked and ran her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck. She bit down on her lip and imagined what exactly they might occupy themselves with.

He chuckled at her and said, "That wasn't exactly what I meant, Alexandra."

"Maybe not exactly, but it crossed your mind."

Elijah's arm slid around her waist and pulled her body flush against his. "That it did."

Pulling her in for another kiss, this one was slow and full of heat. It was almost teasing Alex with the idea of what could happen very shortly. Elijah kept one arm wrapped around her waist, the other holding her head up as he explored her mouth. Alex gripped the roots of his hair, tugging his head closer to her so that she could get a better taste of him.

The moment was broken when Rebekah's voice echoed through the house. "Elijah! Alex!"

Breaking the kiss, Elijah sighed and mumbled, "Bloody siblings."

Alex smirked and snuck another quick kiss on his lips before pulling back. She said, "Upstairs, Bekah."

The blonde Original appeared in the doorway and frowned. Elijah's arm was still wrapped tightly around Alex's waist, not letting her step too far from him.

She said, "I thought I gave you plenty of time alone."

Elijah frowned at his sister. "Was there something you needed?" he asked.

Rebekah smirked. "Relax, 'Lijah. I wouldn't have come back so soon if I didn't have something I needed to say."

Alex smiled and asked, "And where was it that you were exactly?"

Rebekah bit the corner of her lip. "Catching up with an old friend."

"He wouldn't happen to be blonde and a Sherrif's Deputy?"

"Maybe."

Elijah sighed. "Can you discuss her dating life after?"

"I suppose." Alex smiled up at him.

"Well, if it wasn't for Matt, I wouldn't have anything to mention. So you really should thank my dating life," said Rebekah.

Elijah pursed his lips.

"Alright, calm down. Matt mentioned that when he saw Kol, he was muttering under his breath. He heard Kol say, Esther."

Elijah's arms stiffened around Alex. "He did?"

Rebekah nodded. "I thought it was really weird that he was mumbling about our mother."

"Esther again," groaned Alex.

It couldn't be a coincidence that the Council had all of that information about a linking spell in a folder labelled Esther. Now, Kol was heard mentioning her. It had to be connected; it would be too strange for it not to be.

"What do you mean again?" Rebekah asked.

Alex said, "Those folders about you and your family, there was one for your mother. That was where I found all of the notes on the linking spell."

Rebekah frowned. "Our mother has been dead for over a thousand years. What use could she be to them?"

"I don't know."

"Could the Council perhaps be trying to contact our Mother? She is the one who created us; maybe they believe she can help them destroy us," said Elijah.

"Maybe. It would be difficult for them to contact Esther without something of hers that would give them that kind of connection."

"But why would she help them?" asked Rebekah. "She made us this way because she wanted us to be strong."

Elijah said, "You know as well as I that our mother didn't understand the consequences of what she did to us. There is no way she doesn't see us from the other side and think differently of us; like all witches, she probably believes we are abominations."

Alex hated hearing that from Elijah. For years, it was a statement she held true to. Vampires were against nature, abominations to be destroyed. But there was so much more to it. Nature is more powerful than witches seem to give her credit for. If Nature had never wanted vampires to exist, it never would have allowed it.

"Couldn't Kol's muttering have just been coincidental?" asked Rebekah.

"A witch could have done something to him. It is possible that when Matt stumbled upon him, he had tried to escape from whoever is cloaking him, and to detain him, they messed with his mind. But I have no way of really knowing unless we find him," said Alex.

"Maybe for the time being," said Elijah, "we should focus on something other than locating Kol. For the moment, we can't do much other than wait. Maybe we should focus on the Council and see what we can find about linking spells?"

Alex could argue with that. Until Bonnie and Sarah returned to Mystic Falls, she couldn't try anything about the cloaking spell.

"Alright," she said, "but in the morning. It's late, and I think I'm ready for bed."

The pounding in his head was an unfamiliar pain. In his very long life, never had he experienced such pain before. It was piqued his curiosity as to what had happened to make the reoccurring beat. However, Kol was more inclined for it to stop and for the blasted ringing in his ear to go away too.

Blinking, Kol's eyes adjusted to the dimly lit room. Pushing himself up, he took in the room and rubbed the palm of his hand against his eye. A small bubble of laughter fell from his lips as he noticed the iron bars in front of him. He was in a cell. The other three walls were made of old brick covered in moss and cracks. There were no windows letting in any form of light; he could hear the sound of water dripping through the walls and a human heartbeat.

How exactly Kol had ended up in this cell, he couldn't remember. The last thing he could recall was driving past the 'Welcome to Mystic Falls' sign and groaning in disgust that he had come back to the painfully dull town.

Standing up, Kol took a step forward and felt the hairs on his arms stand up. Moving his hand towards the bars, he felt a tingling sensation run through his body. It made him smirk; someone had infused the bars with magic. Clenching his hands around the bars, he tugged and laughed when they didn't budge. How very clever.

"You won't be breaking through those bars, vampire."

Kol turned his head and spotted a young man standing by a door. He was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, and a lamp sat on the floor beside him. Kol wondered if he was the one who spelled the bars? Looking him up and down, Kol decided that he was nothing more than a guard.

"Where am I?" Kol asked.

The young man glared at him but didn't respond.

"It's rude to ignore your betters," said Kol.

The young man pushed off the wall and walked across the room. The closer he got, the louder the pumping of his veins became.

Kol realised that he was quite hungry.

"You aren't my better," said the young man.

Kol smiled. "You sure about that?" Leaning his body against the bars, the magic crackled against his skin. If he was a young vampire, he had no doubt he would be whimpering in pain. But the magic almost tickled.

The young man's glare faltered, and his eyes became uncertain. "Seems we need to increase the voltage for your cage."

"Please do. It might give me a good massage. I have felt lately that my shoulders have become rather knotted." Pressing his forehead to the bars, he asked, "I'm going to guess that you have a boss; what does he want?"

The young man seemed to contemplate his words. "The Council have a plan for you and your siblings."

"The Council? Interesting."

Kol had heard about the Council before. They were the coven of witches that Alex had once belonged too. He hadn't focused too much on the details, they seemed like a bunch of crazies, but he knew that they wouldn't mind the eradication of the vampire species like most witches.

"Could we get a move on their plan then?" he asked. "I have other things I need to do."

The young man, probably witch, shook his head and walked back over to where he had been leaning against the wall.

"I was serious," said Kol. "I came to Mystic Falls to meet my brother…are we still even in Mystic Falls?"