I do not own TVD or TO.
2011
She hated physical confrontation and could count the number of fights she had been in on one hand; impressive for a one hundred fifteen year old immortal.
Somehow she knew that it would always be a Mikaelson who would push her to use a second hand for her count, but she had assumed it would be Klaus and that it wouldn't be much of a fight.
She never expected their mother.
A frozen twig snapped under her boot.
"They're coming," Finn's strained voice reached the approaching group.
"No, it's too soon," Esther sounded distressed. "The moon's not high enough."
Good, Elena squeezed Kol's hand, that gives me some wiggle room.
The brothers climbed the small hill to meet with Klaus as she hung back to mentally prepare for what she was about to do by pulling off her gloves and wiping her sweaty palms on her jacket; it would not do to have clumsy fingers.
You can do this, she bounced on the balls of her feet. You can do this. You only have to hold her for a moment.
She steadied her body, spun on her heel and moved to climb the gentle slope toward her fellow Originals.
"Elena?"
A hand gripped her elbow.
Esther stood on the edge of her salt circle, nodding solemnly to her sons. Elijah was suspicious and Kol too clever by half. She had expected them, but by all counts they should have been later in their arrival.
"Come closer," she motioned them up the last of the slope; the better to see them fall. The metal bracelet warmed against her skin.
"Mother," Finn glowered, standing rigid in the center of the pentagram.
"It's okay," she held her hands, stepping backwards over the salt, "they can't enter." Esther's eyes cut to Kol – ever the petulant child – as he moved closer, testing his boundaries.
The torches flared when his toes touched the line.
He shrank back, lifting his hand as a shield against the rising sparks.
"That's lovely," he brushed a glowing ember from his shoulders, "stuck out here while the favorite son plays sacrificial lamb." He frowned at the impenetrable line; iron weighed down his pocket, made heavier by his impossible obstacle. Oh to be human again. "How pathetic you are Finn."
"Be quiet," Esther's tone left no room for argument, "your brother knows virtue you cannot even imagine."
Through the wind and flames Kol met his oldest brother's eyes; smoke clouded the once clear hazel. Finn loathed his existence from day one. As a human being he possessed a clear moral compass that he had clung to in the beginning, but hatred set in as he was forced to take life after life and never lost his sensitivity to violence.
He had been through more than enough to warrant a blatant desire for death – he was, after all, a vampire suited to the twenty-first century – but it was hard to believe that he would participate in the deaths of his own family when he had fought to keep them alive.
Elijah, ever the confident spokesperson, lifted his voice over the crackle of wood. "Whatever you may think of us," his eyes narrowed, "killing your own children will be an atrocity."
"My only regret is that I did not let you die a thousand years ago."
"Is he crazy?" He tightened his hold on her elbow. "Why the hell would he bring you here with the witch bitch?"
"Damon…"
"Let's get out of here," he ignored his brother.
"I'm not going anywhere, Damon," Elena wrenched her arm free. "I'm not leaving until this ritual is stopped."
"Why would you want to stop it?" Confusion swam in his blue eyes. "They'll all be dead in less than an hour. We win."
"Damon…"
"Not now, Stefan," he rolled his eyes, inhaling deeply. A line appeared between his brows. "You're a…" He rushed, pinning her to the nearest tree by her throat. "Katherine," he sneered.
She snatched his wrist, twisting.
He let go with a yelp.
Her eyes narrowed.
He dropped to his knees.
"Okay," she crouched so they were at eye level as she had once done with Thierry, "you've just received some new information so I'm gonna forgive the mistaken identity just this once. Likewise, I am only going to say this once, so listen very carefully, got it?"
Damon nodded, clenching his teeth and breathing through the pain of a broken bone she kept from healing.
"I am a vampire, but I am also a witch, and I am not Katherine. I'm also not going anywhere because nobody brought me here. I brought them." Her eyes flickered between the brothers. "I have made my choice: I am staying to help. You can get on board, or you can get out of my way. Which will it be?"
She released her grip and stood, giving him a moment to heal and stand. Her annoyance flared when he opened his mouth.
"Why do you want to help them?" His lip curled. "This is the stupidest decision you have ever made – and that's saying something. Now come on, I'm not letting you get yourself killed…"
She tore her arm away again, grasped his face and twisted. She felt the hard snap like a stem breaking from an apple.
Lifting her gaze she met Stefan's piercing eyes and cocked an eyebrow.
He glanced down to his crumpled brother and lifted his chin. The odds were that they would both wind up dead, but he wasn't about to fight her; the simple display of strength proved her to be the greater adversary.
"What do you want me to do?"
"Go and help Rebekah," she jerked her thumb toward the old witch house. "Don't be seen."
"Does something about this seem off to you?" Bonnie walked backwards. She wanted to kill Klaus more than anything, but there had been six torches and Elena had looked at her like she was an inexperienced child. This was about more than her newest vampire hottie and Bonnie couldn't place her finger on it, but something inside her whispered 'wrong'.
"This place has some serious vibe to it, if that's what you mean?" Abby shuddered as her skin crawled.
"That's just the witch spirits," she caught a shadow in the mirror. "They'll protect us from the Originals, but we should get into the basement." Her shoes left prints in the thick layers of dust coating the rickety stairs. Surrounded on all sides by walls, the basement fell silent and Bonnie looked over her shoulder to the vacant path. "Abby?"
"Enough," Klaus growled, pacing the barrier. "All of this talk is boring me. End this now, mother," his lips twisted, "or I'll send you back to Hell."
"What good will that do?" Kol scoffed. "She knows how to get out."
"You would think that after so many years you would have learned how to hold your tongue," Esther's gaze cut from Klaus to Kol. "For a thousand years I have been forced to watch you, felt the pain of every victim, suffered while you shed blood. even you," her eyes swept over her children, "Elijah, with your claim to nobility, you're no better. All of you," frustration laced her tone, "you're a curse on this earth, stretched out over generations. If you've come to plead for your lives, I'm sorry, but you've wasted your time."
Bonnie spun around and jumped, pressing her hand over her heart to calm down and keep from shrieking.
"Stefan," she gasped, drawing a deep breath into her lungs. "What's going on?"
He looked down into her eyes, listening to the soft rustle of fabric that signified Rebekah's movement on the floor above; her rushed explanation echoed in his mind.
"Elena's been linked to the Originals," he swallowed, "she's going to die unless we stop Esther."
"What?" Bonnie blinked, not sure if she had heard correctly. "Was that what she couldn't say?" Her heart sank with Stefan's nod. "Shit," she pressed her lips together. "I-I can't stop her Stefan. She's channeling us; every witch in out bloodline, living and dead."
"We know," Stefan exhaled, "the only way to cut her off is if one of you is no longer a witch."
Horror flooded her, turning her blood to ice. She ran for the stairs in a desperate attempt at escape that Stefan easily blocked.
Rebekah caught the older woman by the arm and didn't give her a chance to scream, shoving her bleeding wrist into the woman's mouth.
"For what it's worth, I'm sorry," she snapped the woman's neck.
She felt the start of the spell before she heard it – seconds after Stefan left her. The magic burned through her body. Her head snapped up to the full moon above; not quite high enough, but up there close.
She flashed up the hill.
Esther's profile came into view beyond the flaring of torches.
"Shit," she swore under her breath. Squaring her shoulder she summoned all of the power she could and drew her fingers in a pinch over each palm as she uttered the spell. "Imitanter Pupulus."
Esther grunted, eyes dropping to the hand over her mouth that had cut her off mid-incantation. Invisible strings moved her limbs, lifting her fingers and peeling the copper band from her wrist. She was unable to stop her hand from throwing the bracelet out of the circle where it rolled over the uneven ground.
"Phasmatoes morsinus pyrox allum," she muttered behind her hand.
Elena shrieked; her spell fell away as she clutched her head. Her knees gave way. As soon as the pain came it went. She gasped, blinking away the black spots in her vision and lunging before Esther could reach and grabbed the bracelet.
Finn blinked, clearing the fog in his head, but before he could move a muscle a clear voice rang out.
"Get the hell out that circle," Elena glared at him, giving him no choice but to obey the dark object by bending to its influence.
Kol moved around the circle and helped her to her feet with a hand on her elbow. He spared a glance for Elijah and Klaus who were holding Finn's arms.
"I don't recall that being part of the plan, darling," he glanced at the bracelet she had once sworn she would never use.
"I saw an opportunity," she swallowed. Her muscles screamed at her to throw it away, but if she put it down she would lose the hold she had on Finn; it was a shame it wouldn't work on Esther since the woman channeled so many witches.
Elena's eyes shifted to the left reflexively when there was a rush of wind. It was a mistake. The motion caught Esther's attention. Both woman saw the glittering arc of glass. She turned her head with Kol and felt her eyes widen when the orb was redirected.
"Bloody hell," Kol threw up his arm too late.
Glass shattered at the feet of Elijah, exploding in a blinding display of light. Their retinas burned and all anyone could see was white.
Everyone except for Esther who had shut her eyes to plead with the spirits that fled.
Her eyes snapped open and she acted, using magic to pull her nearest son into the pentagram. He stumbled, falling at her feet and struggling to clear his vision. She began her chant again, fast and sloppy in order to finish while she still had the support of her sister witches.
Magic percolated in the air and pulsed, slamming down into his body.
Elijah regained his senses first and turned his head around, taking in the sight of his blinking siblings.
Elena shook her head, dragging her eyes up. Her heart stopped. Her vision tunneled and from a distance she heard her voice shouting.
"Evas elabuk estupey," she threw out her arm.
Esther dropped to the ground under the force of the pain infliction spell, falling into an unconscious heap.
Klaus stared, gaping at the doppelganger and the sight of his younger brother. He exchanged a look with Elijah and Finn, glanced towards Rebekah and Elena and came to the conclusion that Kol, and Kol alone was unconscious.
Elena scrambled to her feet, banging against the barrier that kept her out.
"Kol!" Rebekah joined her.
"Why did the spell only affect him?" Elijah joined them, taking a calculating stance to examine the line of salt.
"Because he and I never drank the champagne," Rebekah growled. "Dammit, he's not moving. Kol!" She banged the barrier.
Elena dropped the copper band. Her teeth sank into her wrist. Hot blood dripped down on the salt. The air shimmered.
She crossed the line and dropped to her knees. "Kol?" She slapped his face gently. "Kol?"
Rebekah's shoulders slumped when she heard him breathing and knelt, reaching into his pocket for the shackles. She fitted them onto her mother's wrists.
Kol groaned, eyes fluttering open. "Am I dead?"
A relieved smile met his question, accompanied by a soft laugh. "No," Elena pushed her hair from her face.
"Are you sure?" He propped his body up, squinting. "I'm fairly certain I'm looking at an angel."
"He's fine," Rebekah snorted. She shoved Kol's shoulder. "That line was not."
He tumbled down into the dirt. "I'll come up with something better when my head stops spinning and I can feel all of my limbs again."
"That might take a while," Finn crouched, picking up the discarded bracelet, "as mother's spell has taken effect."
"But we broke the link," Rebekah's eyes narrowed.
"She would have possessed enough strength affect one," he stood. His hazel eyes met Elena's and for a moment they were locked in a staring match as he spun the discarded copper bracelet between his fingers. "Might I suggest placing this where nobody can access it again? I don't know about you Miss Gilbert, but I dislike having my agency stolen away."
Elena caught the dark object. "I had it locked away, and your mother still managed to get a hold of it. How she got it out…"
"Your blood," Finn drawled, "Niklaus has a small store of it. She needed fresh to link us together, but a few drops of stored blood unsealed the locks and expanded the dark magic in the band so it would hold two people in its power."
"Are you implying that you don't want to kill us all?" Elijah arched an eyebrow.
"I'm morose, not vindictive; though I've every right to be after being abandoned by the lot of you to that damn box."
"You were a lot more fun in that box," Klaus smirked. "Those nine-hundred years were so peaceful without your condescension."
"Knock it off, both of you," Elena snapped, "before this turns into a fight. Personally, I don't want the bruises. No matter how short lived they might be."
"And that brings us to another issue," Klaus glowered down at her. "What the bloody hell are you?"
"Vampire," Elijah cleared his throat.
"Witch," Finn rolled his eyes.
"Original," Rebekah snickered.
"Hybrid," Kol blinked.
Klaus' head snapped around from his siblings to Elena, disbelief in his eyes. Suppressed rage dripped from his tongue. "Am I the only one that didn't know of this?"
"Uh…" Elena tilted her head, murmuring names as she counted off her family and friends before finally nodding. "Yeah, you were the last to know."
"Personally I've known since 1914," Rebekah got to her feet, "but we've got bigger issues tight now than the supernatural transition you two," she pointed to Klaus and Elijah, "pushed her towards."
"Us?"
"What other option did I have when you locked me in the Fauline cottage? And before you can ask, yes that was me – curtesy of a spell gone awry." She stood, helping Kol to his feet. "Who knows what would have happened if you broke the curse ninety-seven years early? I get migraines just thinking about the possibilities."
"Then don't think about it," Kol stood slowly, brushing dirt from his sleeves. "What are the bigger issues, Bex?"
"Off the top of my head I'm gonna say mother, the blood link and you," she shrugged, looking down to her unconscious mother.
"What's wrong with me?" A line appeared between his brows. The confusion was mirrored by the others in the clearing.
"Have any of you smelled him?" Rebekah crossed her arms.
"Oddly enough that's not my first instinct," Klaus scoffed.
"I thought that's what canines did," Elena smirked, glancing at Rebekah. She leaned closer to Kol and caught the scent Rebekah had already caught. "Oh my God."
Elena's fingers drummed over her elbows in time with her pounding heart. She stared at the opaque glass through which she could hear the silent sobs of her best friend.
Still night air circled around her, holding her in place as she stood, wavering between action and inaction. To knock or not to knock.
Shakespeare had nothing on her quandary.
Her hand came up, hesitating over the door. With knuckles poised to rap on wood she stood stock still and held her breath before finally knocking.
She was still gnawing on her bottom lip when the light spilled out, nearly blinding her. She closed her eyes, blinking against the harsh glare; it was nothing she couldn't handle and far less than the brilliance of the Omega sphere. If she could take the burning brilliance of a hundred stars she could take a 60 watt bulb.
"She doesn't want to see you," Caroline glanced over her shoulder.
"I doubted she would," Elena heard Bonnie's heart around the corner. "I just… I wanted to tell her that I'm sorry."
"She doesn't want to hear it," Caroline smiled sadly. "Why didn't you tell us what was going on?"
She lowered her eyes and reached into her pocket. The dark energy hummed between her fingers.
"This bracelet forces obedience," her thumb smoothed over the copper. "I had it locked away where it couldn't hurt anybody, but Bo… the page found its way to Esther's hand and with the blood Klaus had on hand she was able to… circumvent my spell. I couldn't tell you. I couldn't tell you I was linked to them, or what would happen if the Originals were to die."
Caroline stared at the innocuous ring of copper, wondering how such a little thing had caused so much trouble.
"Can't I talk to her?" Elena put the object back in her pocket.
"Abby's in transition, 'Lena," Caroline shook her head, gold glittered in her hair. "It's going to be really hard over the next few days and she needs time to deal with it. I think you should give it to her." Her mouth turned down as tears shimmered in Elena's eyes. "I'm sorry. I know you want to help, but put yourself in her shoes. She wanted to get rid of Klaus and to save you because she loves you so much – and she wanted to stop it when she found out what would happen to you – but somehow she was the one that got hurt. You just need to give her time."
"Okay," she nodded slowly; a single tear slipped down over her cheekbone. "You're right… I know you're right. I just… just tell her that I love her, okay? And that I'm so sorry. If there had been another way…"
"I'll tell her," Caroline gripped the doorknob. She took a step forward, calling after her friend.
"Yeah?" She paused on the bottom step, staring down at the ground.
"What would have happened if the Originals died?"
She glanced back over her shoulder, locking eyes with the blonde. She knew what it would have sounded like to Bonnie in that moment – justification for her actions – but Bonnie was out of earshot.
"Esther wanted to wipe her 'mistake' from the face of the earth. She wanted to eradicate the plague she set on the world. Do you really think killing her children would have been enough?" She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Within twenty-four hours every vampire would have died and thrown the balance of nature into chaos. Kind of makes me wonder what the Bennett ancestors were thinking."
She held Caroline's wide gaze for a moment before turning away. If Bonnie wouldn't let her in for comfort she would hurry back to the mansion.
"Here," a water bottle was shoved into his cold hands, "hydrate yourself."
"Is that really necessary?" He pinched the bridge of his nose to alleviate the pressure behind his eyes.
"Yes," Elena slammed the door to the mansion. Her shoes clicked over the marble floor. "When was the last time you drank water?"
She hadn't expected to stump him with the simple question, which told her he definitely needed the liquid.
"Drink your water," she perched on the edge of the couch and pulled a thick file from her purse, "who knows what your immune system is like after a thousand years."