2011

Elena peered through the slats in the blinds at Alaric. He had woken up completely healed, but she had talked him into going to the hospital. He was on vervain, so there was no logical reason that he wouldn't remember what had happened.

She turned around and approached Matt at the end of the hall.

"How's Mr. Saltzman?" He passed her a cup of coffee.

"Resigned to spending the night in observation, so long as I promise to change the lock on the house," she sipped, humming as the warmth spread.

"Is he really worried about you?" He tilted his head.

"I think he's more worried about Jeremy," she rolled her shoulders. "I'm worried about both of them."

"Bonnie and her mom are fine, by the way," he started towards the door.

"Good," she murmured, but then froze. "What was wrong with them?"

"Damon and Stefan found them in the caves," he shrugged. "I guess they got the coffin opened." He stopped her with a hand on her elbow. "You did know about the coffins, right?"

"What coffins?" She met his eyes.

"Stefan stole a bunch of coffins from Klaus. He said they held his family, and a few days before you left for your trip he gave four of the five back."

Hope rose in her chest and she held up her fingers as she counted: Finn, Elijah, Rebekah, and Kol.

"Klaus has his siblings?" She whispered, wondering why Bonnie hadn't told her. She felt tears prickle at the back of her eyes.

"Keeps them in coffins," he nodded. "Morbid, right? Would your… friend be in one of them?"

"It's possible," she chewed her bottom lip. Klaus' mansion was guarded by hybrids every hour of the day, but she had access as his 'human blood bag'. It couldn't be that easy, could it? "Have you talked to Caroline?"

"Yeah," he nodded, recognizing her thoughtful expression. "She's holding it together, considering how close she and her dad used to be. Any word on who's behind the attacks?"

"No," Elena stepped into the parking lot, "Sheriff Forbes said there are no real suspects at all."

They moved through the hospital parking lot.

"How are you dealing with everything?" She glanced at him, pulling her keys from her purse. "You keep getting dragged into everything."

"Honestly…" he leaned against his truck, "… I'm kind of lucky. All I have to worry about is showing up for my shift at the Grill tomorrow."

"You know how you were born before me?" She saw his brows draw together at the out of place question. "I got you a present when you were born," she reached into her purse, locating an envelope she had been carrying around, waiting for the right moment to give him. "You can do whatever you want with it except give it back to me," she smirked, "because it's all in your name. Just call the number inside."

"What is it?" He glanced at the thin envelope.

"Two hundred shares in Apple, and the high interest savings account information where the dividends have been deposited and accumulating since 1992." She backed up before he could push it back. "Remember my rule. Do what you want, but you can't give it back."

"This is too much," he shook his head.

"It's a birthday present," she smiled, "and a thank you for everything you do for me, and an apology for always dragging you into my mess of a life."

"That doesn't change the fact that this," he waved the envelope, "is too much."

"No, it's not," she caught the envelope and tucked it in his pocket, "I bought them dirt cheap, and I did the same for Bonnie and Caroline, but theirs are coming in the mail."

Matt took a small step back, frowning. She had told him she put herself in a state of stasis right before her birth. "Caroline and Bonnie are younger than you."

"That's why they will get their information in the mail; I had to leave instructions for them," she shrugged. With the chaos in New Orleans she thought it might be a while before Thierry got around to it, but none of her other friends were in immediate need. "Take it and go home."

Matt hesitated and she got the sense he would place the information in a safe place but avoid using it for as long as possible. She understood how hard it was to accept what could easily be viewed as charity, but Kol had been right. For her, wealth had been easily accumulated in the course of a century with modest purchases of low stock that nobody else thought would take off. She had a hand in Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Starbucks, McDonald's and Ford; with most she had gotten in on the ground level. She now possessed more money than she could spend in a millennium, and that was after raising a child and helping to rebuild the city in the wake of the fires.

"Get home safe," he unlocked his truck.

"Thanks," Elena moved away, "but shouldn't I be the one telling you that?" She saw his smile when she got in her car.

Turning over the ignition she put the vehicle in reverse and resolved to drive home. She couldn't just walk in unprepared; on the chance that he wasn't there she would have revealed herself, and made locating him that much harder. She needed an excuse to enter the mansion with a larger group of people so her presence – or lack thereof – would go unnoticed; it was a shame Klaus had become such a recluse since he used to throw wild parties.

She slammed on the brakes as something heavy hit her bumper, and jumped out with the car still running.

"What?" There was a small dent in the metal but nobody on the ground.

Her heart leapt into her throat when she straightened up and found herself looking into crystalline blue eyes.

"Drive much?" She sneered.

"Rebekah" her mouth popped open.

Rebekah inhaled quickly and then struck, grabbing Elena's upper arms and shoving her into the side of the car. The brunette reeked of mortality, and her doe eyes were abnormally wide.

"Surprised?" She growled low in her throat. "You drove a dagger through my back, Elena. It hurt." She lifted her chin to show the brief glint of her fangs.

Elena's scream was more from shock than fear. A glint of silver drew her eyes to her wrist, but before she could say anything Rebekah was ripped away from her and held to the car by her throat.

"Elijah," she exhaled.

He let her go with a narrow eyed glare: "leave."

Rebekah rolled her head forward and took a step toward Elena; she doubted her brother would cause the doppelganger bodily harm.

Amusement flashed in his eyes. "Are you challenging me?"

Her bored expression flickered over his face. "You're pathetic," she glanced at Elena and caught a glimpse of the silver oval in her palm, "both of you," she breathed the words and was gone.

"Well…" Elijah's breath created a white cloud in the air. A small smile lifted his lips. "I believe we have a little catching up to do."

She straightened her shoulders, forced her stiff fingers to uncurl and dragged her eyes from Rebekah's vacated spot to his gaze. He had no idea how accurate he was.

1914

Elena stared at the witch with wide eyes. The shaking in her limbs and the tears that threatened to spill had finally stopped. Her body and mind sat frozen as she processed the information and tried to figure out what to do with it.

"You're… you… you are…" her tongue tripped over the words that had no business being in her mouth. It couldn't be true. She had it on good authority that the person the witch was claiming to be was dead. "Elijah… he said plague…"

She was so frazzled that she didn't realize the slip until after she said it. It was 1914 and she had spent next to no time with him.

"It's okay, Elena," she waved off the rising panic. "I know where you're from."

"You do?" Elena shrank back in her chair. She hated the childish lilt of her voice in that moment.

"I do," Freya nodded. She glanced around the empty kitchen before bracing her elbows on the table and meeting Elena's troubled eyes. "I want to help you. I want to help you get back to your family."

"But Kol said…"

"There is no spell that can take you home," she smiled sadly, "but there is a way for you to see your loved ones again. If you become immortal then you'll catch up to them."

"If I'm immortal I'll be hunted until the ends of the earth before he kills me," Elena shook her head. "I don't want to spend the rest of my life on the run."

"He won't hunt you down because he'll think you're dead," Freya reached into her pocket. "Even if he finds you he won't be able to kill you."

Freya sat two jars on the table; one was empty and the other filled with herbs.

"I don't understand," Elena murmured. She picked up the jar of herbs, not wanting to question the purpose of the empty one just yet. "The only way he'd be unable to kill me is if I were an…"

Her eyes widened as the realization hit her. Kol had teased the possibility weeks before, but ultimately dismissed it because while he had access to the spell he lacked a crucial ingredient.

"Doesn't it need doppelganger blood?" She eyed the empty jar.

"That is already flowing through your veins," she pulled a small knife from her pocket, "but I still need it… you need it."

Elena stared at the glittering metal for a long moment before finally extending her hand. She didn't make a sound as the knife drew a stinging line over her palm, nor did she breathe when the small jar filled with her blood.

Freya healed the cut with a murmured incantation and closed the jar before holding it out to Elena. A cry from the front of the house had a sense of urgency flashing over her face.

"Hide that in you skirt," she hissed.

Elena moved quickly to do as she was told, spurred to speed by Freya's actions. Her eyes tracked the movements as Freya diluted the herbs with water and pressed it to her palm. She drank as instructed, too stunned by the change in demeanor to argue. The concoction slid down her throat, leaving behind a faint taste on her tongue.

Freya snatched up the discarded knife and spun it to point at Elena's breast.

"Wait," she cried, holding out her hands.

"I want to explain everything Elena," Freya's eyes darted to the door, "but we don't have time right now." She moved to the closer and dropped her voice to a whisper. "If you want to be free – if you want to survive and live – this had to happen right now."

"I get that," she nodded, "but I just have one question: why'd you need my blood?"

"I don't," Freya murmured. She took Elena's hand and guided her fingers to curl around the handle. "You do. Cross the threshold when you wake up and drink it to finish the spell only when you are off this property. Can you do this?"

Elena nodded.

She took a deep breath, felt something in the air shift and exhaled while plunging the knife through her heart.

Her knees buckled.

The last thing she saw before her world went black was the look of horror in the eyes of Mary Alice Claire; the last thing she heard was a loud 'no'.

It sounded so familiar.

2011

He removed his vest and unfastened his cufflinks; any lingering scent had long since disappeared from the metal. All he had left was the memory of her fingers fastening the clips.

He closed his eyes, willing the emotions to back away, but it was not so easy. The flood gates had been torn apart by a feisty brunette and they were impossible to repair.

He placed the cufflinks on the nightstand.

The door to 'his' room opened. His brows drew together, and he glowered at his silent sister.

"Nothing to say?" He cocked an eyebrow.

Rebekah placed a folded slip of paper on the bed and retreated to the door. "Some things are better articulated with ink and paper."

He stared at the page long after she was gone and stripped off his shirt. Her words held no appeal to him.

He crumpled the page, tossing it in the pile of bloodstained clothes to burn.

1914

He shut the door behind him as silently as possible and moved into the house, freezing at the sitting room door.

"I see you've helped yourself to my liquor," he cocked an eyebrow, willing his heart and face to remain calm.

"It was an excellent year," Klaus swirled the liquid. "I should know since it's one I purchased." He stood, picking up the bottle. "You do make a habit of taking my things."

Kol's eyes narrowed. A feeling of dread crept up his spine as he listened to the empty house; she wasn't there. He crossed his fingers, hoping she had taken Thierry and ran.

The dagger weighed down his pocket. That's what he had to be here for.

"How long did you think you could hide her from me?" Klaus tapped the bottle before setting it aside. There was no physical warning before he pinned Kol to the wall.

The bottle shattered, staining the carpet with red wine.

Klaus' voice was deadly quiet. "Hiding a doppelganger, and conspiring against me…" his cold eyes raked over his brother. "I never should have woken you up."

He knew he should have been worried about the dagger that was surely about to push through his chest, or outraged at the betrayal that could have only come from his sister, but as he fought his brother's hold he had only one thing on his mind.

"I'm not letting you hurt her," he shoved, knocking Klaus to the ground.

Kol didn't get long to enjoy the sight of Klaus crumpled by the broken glass before his arms were wrenched behind his back. He struggled, but couldn't get the leverage needed to break free.

"Why are you helping him Elijah?" He growled. Panic gripped him when Klaus appeared pulling the stolen dagger from his pocket and dipping it in a bottle of ashes.

"You've been conspiring against your family," Elijah shook his head.

"I stopped being a part of this family a long time ago," he grunted. His heart pounded around the silver blade before stopping.

"He was just protecting a girl from certain death," Elijah lowered Kol onto a couch.

"And creating a weapon that could be used against me," Klaus grumbled. His foot kicked a small box that fell to the floor. "Would you like to join him brother? Or perhaps you would prefer being locked away with the doppelganger?"

"If you lock me away then who will find the moonstone?"

2011

Elena busied her hands wiping off the clean breakfast dishes. Her gums ached for something more substantial than the omelettes she had whipped up for herself and Jeremy, but with her current company her thirst would have to wait to be quenched.

"Are you two just going to stand there," she glanced over her shoulder, "or do you have something to say? It's a little unnerving the way you're both staring at me."

Damon glanced at his brother and braced his hands on the island. "There's something you need to know…"

"Stefan abducted Klaus' daggered siblings who were supposed to be sleeping with the fishes?" She guessed, turning around.

Stefan's mouth fell open.

Damon's head snapped around to look at his brother.

"Matt told me last night," she crossed her arms, "when he told me that Bonnie and her mom were fine. Now that took me completely by surprise because I had no reason to think Bonnie and her mom would be hurt." She fought to keep her voice level, but still the temperature in the room spiked. "How long did you have them?"

A flush rose under Stefan's skin; he resisted the urge to tug at his too tight collar and cleared his throat.

"A couple of weeks."

"You had them for weeks and you never told me?" She struggled to remember if they had actually mentioned it – even in passing – but it had been so long ago. She felt certain they hadn't though; that was something she would have remembered. That was something she would have told Kol. "Why didn't someone tell me?"

The brothers shared a look, and her eyes narrowed. She glanced between the pair of them, wishing she had someone to place bets with on who would answer the question.

They seemed to come to a silent agreement.

"We thought you might take issue with the plan, or take the daggers out," Damon leaned back, "since you have a history of that."

"You wouldn't have approved of using them as leverage," Stefan met her eyes.

"Damn right, I wouldn't have," she uncrossed her arms. "You were using people who had never done a damn thing to you…"

"Elijah betrayed us," Damon cut her off, "and Rebekah is going to want you dead for what you did to her."

"Elijah betrayed me, Damon, not you," she shook her head, "and if I'm honest, I don't think I ever expected him to go through with it because no matter what Klaus has done he is still his brother. He was never gonna kill him, and if either of you really thought he would then I am sorry, but you're both idiots."

"You could have died that night," Stefan frowned.

"If I'm going to blame anyone – besides Klaus – for the outcome of the ritual it's not gonna be Elijah," her eyes closed. There were so many conflicted emotions where Elijah was concerned; he had left her to die in 1914, but he had tried to save her in the present. For the Original things were linear, but for her everything was messed up in her head.

She blinked and folded the towel, setting it in a neat pile beside the sink. What was done was done, and there was no use getting worked up about it. Elijah had tried to help her with the elixir, Damon hadn't trusted it and gone about saving her in his own way; what happened to John wasn't either of their faults. For the longest time she had blamed herself, but then she'd had a child of her own and understood some of those impossible decisions he had mentioned.

"The fifth coffin held their mother," she looked up, moving her gaze from one brother to the other.

"As in the Original witch?" Stefan leaned toward her, brows drawing together.

"What?" Damon shifted back and looked anywhere but at her. "How is she even alive? Thought her hybrid freak show of a son ripped her heart out a thousand years ago."

"Strangled actually," Elena shrugged. "I'm guessing she's got some connections in the witching community." She turned around and started putting the breakfast dishes away. "I ran into Elijah last night and he said that she wants to live in peace with her family, including Klaus."

"She was supposed to be the weapon to help us kill Klaus."

"Well, not anymore…" Elena braced herself when Stefan's hands curled around the back of her kitchen chair; his tense muscles shifted, but he refrained from throwing the furniture. She doubted the boarding house would have survived the rising rage without a few dents. "… at least not according to Elijah."

"That coffin was the only thing stopping Klaus from tearing us to shreds," Stefan met her eyes.

She couldn't help but wonder if Klaus would have wanted to tear them to shreds if Stefan hadn't taken his family, but the history was too convoluted to figure out who had thrown the first punch… probably Klaus.

"Anyone else feeling a little used right now?" Damon rolled his eyes, leaning against the wall.

"Elijah promised that his family wouldn't hurt anyone," she sighed. Her head snapped around to the front of the house as the doorbell rang. "I believe him."

She left the brothers in the kitchen and strode through the house to her front door. She tilted her head when she found the porch empty and lowered her eyes. A thick envelope sat on the mat with her name written on it in ornate swirls of ink; she picked it up and turned around, sparing Damon and Stefan a brief glance.

"What is it?" Damon squinted at the paper.

Elena reached inside and lifted out a card covered in neatly typed lines. "It's an invitation," she chewed her bottom lip and read, "'Please join the Mikaelson Family, this evening at seven o'clock for dancing, cocktails and celebration'."

"Who the hell are the Mikaelsons?" Stefan scoffed.

"The Original Family," Elena scanned the card. Perfect.

"It's not bad enough they're moving into town," Damon rolled his eyes, "now they want a housewarming gift?"

"What's that on the back?" Stefan glanced at the card.

Elena flipped it over to find more of the ornate handwriting on the back. "A note," she frowned, "'Elena, I think it's time we finally meet, Esther'."

"Well," Damon snapped the paper from her hands, "you're obviously not going."

1914

She bounced on the balls of her feet, shushing the screaming child in her arms.

"It's okay," she rubbed his back, "shh, sweetie, it's okay." She lowered her hand to pick up the bear from where it had fallen. "Do you want your bear?"

He screamed, pushing the toy away with a small hand; it bounced off the floor and slid under the couch.

She felt tears well up in her eyes; her ears rang.

"I don't know what else you want," she knelt on the floor. She placed the screaming child and reached for the stuffed animal. Her hand closed around a small box.

That was wrong; she knew exactly what he wanted, or rather who he wanted, but that wasn't possible.

She straightened up with the toy and sighed as she saw him rolling beneath the bowing branches of the tree. The screams turned to sniffles and muffled sobs. "Come on," she shimmied down on her stomach.

Her eyes found him under low branches.

"What have you found?" She reached for the small box in his hand. He followed her, scooting out with the aid of her palm behind his back. "Let's see, then."

The lid popped off easily and he reached inside for the glittering metal. She pulled it away when he tried to put the oval in his mouth.

"That's not a snack," she sighed.

The locket hit her palm, pain seared her skin and she hissed. She dropped the locket and it popped open revealing two separate compartments. A purple flower fell from the back onto the wooden floor boards.

He reached for it again. She picked it up by the chain and gave a small shake to make sure all of the herbs had fallen out. "That's not for you."

She glanced at the photograph inside before shaking her head and standing up. She had a job to do. She had things to gather and a child to relocate before her brother found out he existed and kept him under guard because he wouldn't listen and believe the child wasn't hers.

"Let's go get your things," she sighed. Bending at the waist she picked him up and balanced him on her hip; his sobs renewed.

She made it three steps across the sitting room when the door opened and she froze. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, expecting to see one of her brothers, but when she looked up the air rushed from her lungs.

A large stain covered the front of a red silk blouse. Chunks of brown hair stuck to tacky skin. Dark circles ringed even darker eyes.

"You…" she pointed. The silver locket hung from her hand. "You're… what the bloody hell are you doing here?" The baby in her arms pitched sideways, reaching for the mess of a woman in the sitting room.

The brunette flashed across the room, pulled the baby into her arms and closed her eyes. Tears ran down her cheeks as she kissed the boy's head.

He placed his head on her shoulder and began to calm down. Once she was satisfied he was unharmed she focused her bleary eyes on the blonde.