"Do you still think Thomas is an imposter who's out to steal all Mama and Uncle Andrew's money?" Selina asked Elijah. "If you do, I'm taking you to meet him so you can see how wrong you are."

"You just want to take me to see a lot of people, don't you?" Elijah asked. "Sam's concert, seeing the man who claims to be your brother…why can't we just stay home and continue our project? I remember when we were first married and I had no problem getting you to do that."

Selina sighed. "I know that you wanna have another kid, but I just…I feel like I've given up. We've tried and we've tried and nothing has happened. We've already had eight. Let's just be happy with that."

"All right," Elijah replied. "Not that I'm giving up, but I suppose that taking a break and focusing on something else like the possible embezzler who's wormed his way into your mother's life is a good idea too."

Selina sighed. "I really think you'll like him once you learn that he's just a nice guy who's looking for a family. I'll call him right now and if he's available, we'll go and meet him. All right?"

"All right," Elijah replied. "We'll try it your way. But I doubt it will do any good!"

"How nice to see you again," Thomas said easily as he, Selina, and Elijah sat in the living room at Andrew and Amelia's. "I was just thinking about asking Amelia if she would invite you over for another chat, Selina. I feel that since you're my sister, we should talk more, don't you?"

Elijah began making weird noises in his throat and giving Selina really weird, obvious nudges.

"Is he okay?" Thomas asked. "Does he need water or something?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "That's not the trouble at all. He's just read way too many novels and is concerned that since you showed up and were recognized by my mother as the son she lost, that you're planning to steal all her money and run off to the Caribbean or something. Are you?"

"Well, no!" Thomas said, looking shocked. "Of course not!"

"You see?" Selina hissed as she turned to Elijah. "I told you so!"

But Elijah wasn't convinced. Not yet. He gave the boy a deep, penetrating glance and tried to listen for an unsteady heartbeat or ragged breathing that would betray him, but to his surprise (and perhaps also, his disappointment) he heard nothing unusual. "Well, all right then," he said gruffly and leaned back. "You may not be up to anything now, but I'm still watching you."

"All right," Thomas nodded. "But I promise you, you have nothing to be worried about."

"Don't let him get under your skin," Selina told Thomas. "He's like that with everyone when he first meets them, but once he gets used to you, he's much nicer."

"Whose side are you on anyway?" Elijah asked.

"Don't try and tell me I'm wrong," Selina said. "Cause I'm not." She changed the subject to something more neutral after that. "So…how have you been, Thomas? How's looking at schools going?"

"I've found a few promising options," Thomas told her. "But since I don't know specifically what I'm going to do yet, I might start at a community college and try all sorts of things before going to a bigger school."

"That sounds very sensible," Selina replied. "Good for you. Last time I was in school as a student, it was high school and I was pretending to blend in." She shuddered. "Don't do that if you can help it. It's not fun at all." She paused. "Oh, wait! If you ended school after eighth grade, then you do have to go to high school. Otherwise they won't even think about letting you in college!" She growled. "And there's a school we could have gotten you into easily, but it's closed now because of problems with the magical government. Damn, damn, damn!"

"Oh, it's all right," Thomas said as he put a hand on her shoulder. "We can figure something out. And I don't have to go and be educated right this minute. I've been working my whole life. I could use a bit of a break."

Elijah tried not to make any derisive noises or comment about Thomas sounded like a free-loader draining Andrew and Amelia of their funds, but it was hard.

"It sounds like you've got everything under control," Selina told her brother. "But if there's anything I can do to help you, just let me know."

"Oh, you don't have to do anything for me," Thomas told her. "All I want from you is a chance to get to know my sister."

Selina smiled. "I think I can do that for you," she said. "Where would you like to start?"

"Well…how did you become a vampire?" Thomas asked. "I mean, that's not a question you absolutely have to answer because I know it's a touchy subject for some people, but if you'd like to tell me, I'm eager to know."

Selina decided to bend the truth a little cause the real circumstances of her becoming a vampire were incredibly unsavory and she didn't want to trouble him with them or make him feel guilty for making her relive such a painful experience. "I got ill," she said. "Scarlet fever. The man who delivered you was our town doctor, and he was also a vampire. He told me that the only way to save my life was to turn me, and so…that's what was done. I was a bit put off at first, but the longer I've lived, the more grateful toward him I've become."

"Well, that's nice," Thomas replied. "I'm happy for you."

Selina smiled. "What about you? Have you enjoyed seeing things that you most likely wouldn't have gotten to see if you'd lived out a normal human life?"

"Oh, of course!" Thomas nodded. "Definitely. But I also miss when things were simpler, you know? Things are so complicated these days."

Selina scoffed. "Yep, tell me about it."

Thomas then turned toward Elijah, who had just yawned. "Do you have anything you'd like to contribute to this discussion?" He asked. "It's better than you just sitting here by yourself."

"Thank you, but no," Elijah replied. "I think, in fact, that I'll go home and let you two bond alone."

"How will I get home then?" Selina asked. "You'd be taking the car!"

"Call me when you're done," Elijah told her. "I'll come and pick you up then."

"All right," Selina told him and threw him the keys. "I guess we'll talk later then."

"Yes," Elijah nodded. "We most definitely will."

Although Selina knew she didn't need to feel shame for talking with Thomas, she wanted to do all she could to get Elijah in a better mood. So instead of calling him to bring her home, she said goodbye to Thomas and zipped over to a nearby mall to buy herself new underwear. Once it was bought, she headed home, changed in the front hallway, and then called out to her husband.

"I'm home! Elijah, are you here?"

"How did you get back?" Elijah called back. "You could have called me to come and drive you."

"I had an errand I needed to run first," Selina said. "Come see!"

Elijah came in to the hallway and his jaw dropped immediately when he saw her standing there with nothing on but a pair of blood red lace panties and a matching bra.

"Well, isn't this a nice surprise?" he asked when he could speak. "What's the occasion?"

"Does there need to be an occasion?" Selina asked, taking him in her arms, kissing him, and tugging on his tie before using it to lead him to their room. Once the bedroom door was closed, however, Elijah moved her hand from the tie and then ordered her onto the bed where she watched him undress without blinking, her tongue sliding over her bottom lip as she began tugging at her panties.

"Oh, no," Elijah said with a shake of his head and got in bed next to her, taking her in his arms and moving her so that she was on her back and looking up at him. "Don't you do that. Not yet."

Selina groaned and arched her back. "Really?" She asked. "How long do I have to wait?"

Elijah pushed her stomach so she was lying flat on the mattress again and starting with the skin just under her bra, he kissed a trail downward, stopping at the waistband of her panties. He then paused for a moment so he could deftly remove them and throw them on the pile of his clothes by the bed. Her bra quickly followed and soon he was kissing her deeply as he massaged between her parted legs.

Her eyes were closed as she clutched the edges of the mattress, her whole body becoming warm as she broke into a sweat. "Come on!" She pleaded. "Do it now! Don't make me suffer anymore!"

"All right," He replied. She opened her eyes just in time to see him loom over her with a wicked grin on his lips before he pulled her body close and buried himself inside her while also giving her a bite on the neck. He pulled in and out until they were both panting with exhaustion. Later, as they lay beside each other, Selina looked at him. "That was the easiest time we've had in a while," she observed. "Could it be that when you said you were going to relax and not worry about this anymore, you finally meant it?"

"I tried," Elijah nodded as he reached over to run his fingers lightly over her breasts. "You're still not taking your pills, right?"

"Of course not," Selina said. "What good would that do?"

"Well, with that in mind, I guess we'll see what happens then, won't we?" Elijah said and took her hand to kiss it.

"Yes," Selina smiled. "I guess we will."

"Do you think I'm foolish for wanting to come back to life?" Charlotte asked Lucy a few weeks later.

"No," Lucy shook her head. "I had the magical council make me human. There's nothing wrong with wanting to experience something you don't have. If you're willing to take the risk, who am I to tell you you're wrong? I wish you luck."

"Well, at least someone does," Charlotte scoffed. "You're taking this much better than my sons, thank goodness."

"Of course I am," Lucy smiled. "Were you expecting anything different?"

"No," Charlotte shook her head. "But it never hurts to have hope, does it?"

"I can have a talk with Damon if you want," Lucy offered. "Cause if this works and you and Thomas are able to be together on the same plane of existence, it's something that he and Stefan are just gonna have to get used to."

"Yes, they are," Charlotte agreed, her eyes becoming steely. "Because I'm not giving up on him. I'm not. I won't. Not for them, not for anybody." She then broke off as Damon came into the kitchen. "Hi, Mother," he said to her.

"Hello," she replied. "Have you been out with your brother? You two haven't been causing any trouble, I hope?"

"Of course not!" Damon said. "You know I would never."

"Don't you try to pull the wool over my eyes," Charlotte told him. "I know more about what you've been up to over the years than you think."

"How much did you tell her?" Damon asked Lucy. "Everything?"

"Not the really bad stuff," Lucy told him. "I thought you'd wanna do that on your own."

"Don't worry," Charlotte told him as the blood drained from his face. "I don't want to hear about it. I can assume what you've done and the assumptions are enough for me without having them confirmed."

"All right," Damon replied. "I promise I won't tell you a thing." He paused. "Have you been checking up on Stefan too?"

"Yes," Charlotte nodded. "I know what's happened with both you boys and it won't accomplish anything to go on and on about it."

"Good," Damon nodded. "Okay." He looked at the clock. "I have to get ready for Sam's concert! It starts in an hour. Are you coming, Lucy?"

"Sure," Lucy replied. "Why not? I've come to all the other ones." Roxie had engaged Sam and the rest of the band to work nightly at the bar, and both she and Damon, along with her mother, had been there every night to support him.

"What exactly does Sam play?" Charlotte asked. "I think I might want to come too. He must be really skilled if you two are going to see him every night."

"I don't know if you'd like it," Lucy said. "It might not be your thing."

"I'll give it try anyway," Charlotte replied. "If you're worried about how I'll react to the fact that he performs at bars or something, don't worry about it. It won't bother me."

"All right," Lucy nodded. "I hope you enjoy yourself."

When they got to the bar, Sam, Addie, and the others were doing sound checks and last minute rehearsals while a crowd gathered by the stage to watch, including Charlotte. To Lucy's surprise, her mother wasn't in the crowd, but sitting at the bar with her head resting on it and a glass half-full of a mixture of blood and orange juice nearby.

"Are you okay?" She asked, coming to sit next to her.

"I don't know," Selina replied. "I know I look like hell and I probably should have stayed home, but I didn't want to disappoint your brother."

"If you're not feeling well, I'm sure he'd understand," Lucy told her and put a hand on her back. "It's not like you haven't been here the other nights."

Selina drank the rest of the orange juice down, stood up from the stool, and collapsed.

"All right, that's it," Lucy said and helped her up. "We're definitely taking you home. No arguments!"

"Okay, good," Selina told her. "That might be a good idea. The smoke here is starting to get to me. It just…it smells so awful!" They had just gotten out the door when Selina suddenly pitched forward a little and threw up in some bushes.

"I think that's all of it," she said when she was done. "And can we stop by the drug store on the way home?"

"Yes," Lucy nodded. "We can get you medicine."

"I don't need medicine," Selina replied. "I need…something else."

So they went to the drug store and Selina bought several pregnancy tests. She was pretty positive that's what was going on, but she wanted to be sure. Not that there were any other things that had ever made her sick before.

Thankfully, Elijah wasn't home when Lucy dropped her off. That would make it a surprise. She took five tests and they all came out positive. When she heard Elijah announce that he was back, she ran into his arms, gave him a hug, and cried, "I'm pregnant!" before feeling dizziness and stomach pains start to overwhelm her.

"You are?" Elijah asked with a wide smile and tried not to jostle her too much. "How wonderful! What do you say we get you in bed then?"

"Yes," Selina nodded and laid her head on his shoulder as he carried her to their room to tuck her into bed. "That's a good idea."