A/N: So I thought I should warn you all that this chapter has a bit of Elena-hate in it. It's also going to be a reoccurring feature of this fic from now on, especially once we move on to season 3. I'm not sure if it's going to be permanent though.

Short chapter ahead. I was going to join it with the next episode, but I decided that it ended nicely and would do for now :)

I went back to the sitting room we'd been in earlier, Elijah finding me there a few minutes later. He went over to the fireplace and lit it, then left for a few minutes. He came back with two glasses of wine, one of which he handed to me. I nodded my thanks, still not being able to smile.

My position on the couch was casual, with one leg crossed over the other, and my elbow leaning on the armrest. But Elijah knew better than to assume that my relaxed demeanour meant it was okay to talk to me, though I noticed him looking at me as if he had something to say. Thankfully, he kept his mouth shut.

Smart man.

Honestly, how dare he tell me I'm depressed! I didn't care if I had feelings for him, it was uncalled for and totally out of line. And then he said he was worried about me? Even though he knew I was going to volunteer to be sacrificed. I didn't understand.

I could be perfectly happy and sociable when I wanted, but I usually chose not to. I didn't purposely skip meals, and I focused more on my clothes than my body. My sleeping pattern was fine, too. In fact, I usually got better sleep than Elena.

The only reason I was so freaking upset today was because Bonnie had died last night. Last night! I was only human, I couldn't handle so much death in less than a year.

It was nearing the one year anniversary of my parents' death, plus with Bonnie's, I was a mess. And I had every damn right to be.

Elijah's gaze was still on me, and a little annoyed, I looked up and locked my eyes with his.

"Klaus knows I'm planning to sacrifice myself." I stated emotionlessly, taking a sip of my wine.

The Original furrowed his eyebrows. "How?"

"I thought I was telling Alaric last night, before I knew Klaus was in his body." I shrugged. "Ric isn't Elena-biased like the Salvatores. I thought I could trust him."

There seemed to be a million thoughts running through Elijah's mind, but he didn't voice any of them. Though his expression darkened, I still didn't want to hear what he had to say.

Okay, who am I kidding? Even when pissed off and utterly heartbroken, I still wanted to know what was going on in Elijah's head. Why had it taken me so long to realize that? I couldn't let myself become so blinded by my emotions in the future.

I took a large mouthful of wine, hoping the faster I drank, the sooner my emotions would become dull.

The sound of the front door opening and closing snapped me out of my thoughts. I glanced up to see Elena look around before spotting us and heading over.

"Welcome back." Elijah said, a relieved smile gracing his handsome face. I could see clearly just how glad he was to be rid of the tension in the room that I'd caused.

Ugh, I was such a horrible person. Just because I felt like absolute shit did not give me permission to project that feeling onto everyone else. I really, really needed to get myself under control. And fast.

"Tell me," Elena began, going straight down to business. She shrugged off her hideous puffy cropped jacket. "What is Klaus's curse?"

Elijah held out his arm, gesturing to the lounge I was on.

"Please." Elena sat beside me with a sigh, so he continued, moving to sit on the lounge opposite us, placing his glass of wine on the coffee table. "You know, my family was quite close. But Klaus and my father did not get on too well. When we became vampires, we discovered the truth. Klaus was not my father's son.

"My mother had been unfaithful many years before. This was her darkest secret. Klaus was from a different bloodline. Of course, when my father discovered this, he hunted down and he killed my mother's lover and his entire family. Not realizing, of course, that he was igniting a war between species that rages until this day."

Elena shook her head in confusion and narrowed her eye at Elijah. "A war between species?"

"Vampires and werewolves, Elena." I muttered, understanding it all straight away. "Elijah and his siblings are vampires, and his mother a witch. Seeing as there isn't exactly a war between humans and vamps, that leaves only one species. Werewolves."

"That's right." Elijah smiled warmly at me, glad I seemed to have calmed down a lot more. I thanked the wine for that.

But my sister still looked confused. "So Klaus's real father was from a werewolf bloodline? What does that make Klaus? A werewolf or a vampire?"

"He's both." Elijah whispered, faintly amused at Elena's reaction. Her jaw had dropped.

I frowned. "A hybrid then. That doesn't sound too pleasant for the rest of us."

"No, it doesn't." Elijah agreed, all amusement gone. "A hybrid would be deadlier than any werewolf or vampire. Nature would not stand for such an imbalance of power. Therefore the witches, the servants of nature, saw to it that my brother's werewolf side would become dormant."

He had walked over to the doorframe during his explanation, and leaned against it casually. Elena leaned her body towards him as she stared in disbelief.

"That's the curse Klaus wants to break?"

"He wants to trigger that part of him that's werewolf. If allowed, Klaus would sire his own bloodline." Elijah sneered. "He'd build his own race. Endangering not just vampires, but everyone."

Elena stood up and approached him. "But you helped him."

"I helped him because I loved him." Elijah replied, shaking his head. "That's changed now. He must die."

"We have the dagger. We can stop him." Elena said eagerly, so full of hope.

But I didn't think it would be that easy. "Will the dagger actually work on Klaus?"

Elijah shook his head. "When a werewolf is wounded by silver, it heals. And Original can't be killed by anything but white oak ash on a silver dagger. Do you see the conundrum, Elena? The dagger does not work."

"What are saying?" Elena demanded, pissed off at Elijah's harsh tone. "Klaus can't be killed?"

"There's one way to kill any supernatural species." Elijah paused before looking at us seriously. "At the hands of the servants of nature themselves."

"A witch." Elena stated, her voice void of any emotion. The only witch we knew was dead… "If they can channel that much power. But it would kill them."

Why did Bonnie have to try and defeat Klaus on her own? Why?

"The curse must be broken during the full moon when Klaus is in transition. That's when he'll be at his most vulnerable." Elijah explained, moving closer to us. "A witch with enough power can kill Klaus."

Elena averted her eyes nervously. "What if I told you that I knew a witch that could channel that much power?"

Yes, keyword there was 'knew'. She fucking died last night. I felt tears threatening to come back and I bit my lip.

"Then I would tell you there's one more thing you should know," Elijah said. "When Katherine was soon to be sacrificed, I had the witches find a way for her life to be spared."

"You found a way to save the life of the doppelganger?" Elena was dumbfounded.

I had been sitting that whole time, but I jumped up and made my way to stand beside my sister. "You mean that neither of us have to die?"

"Yes, I did find a way. And no, neither of you will die. I promise. Unfortunately, Katerina took matters into her own hands first." He picked up Elena's jacket and held it out for her. "I believe you already know how that played out."

Elena didn't take her jacket, instead looking up at Elijah with a new light in her eyes. "You cared about her, didn't you?" She whispered, making me frown.

The Original glanced at my sister sharply. "It's a common mistake, I'm told." It felt like a metal vice was suddenly constricting my chest, and Elijah's eyes flicked to me while his gaze softened. "It's one I won't make again."

He turned and went to walk out, but I grabbed his arm like he'd done to me before. "It's nice to know either Elena or I can be saved, but we don't actually have a witch to kill Klaus."

Before Elijah could reply, Elena turned to me with a frown. "Yes, we do."

"No, we don't." I grimaced, then took a deep breath. "Unless you've found a new witch since last night."

The confusion in my twin's eyes was replaced with a dawning realization. "Oh, my God. You don't know."

"Don't know what, Elena?"

"Bonnie didn't die last night. She faked her death so Klaus would think we don't have a witch."

The metal vice around my chest suddenly got tighter, and it began burning.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I whispered, my voice low, cold and dangerous. It was foreign to my own ears.

Elena flinched. "I'm so sorry, Cell, it just didn't occur to me to tell you."

Nausea. Oh crap, I felt so sick. I could barely breathe, and tears blurred in my eyes. I shook my head slowly, trying to catch my breath.

"I hate you so fucking much." I stated slowly, deliberately. I really meant every word. "Being your sister is the worst thing that has ever happened to me."

She took a step back in shock, so I stepped around her and brushed passed Elijah, heading for the front door.

"Celina, wai—"

"Keep the car keys." I cut her off, not looking back. "I won't be going home for a while."

With that, I slammed the door behind me and stalked off. At first I didn't really have a destination in mind, but then I decided to head to the Falls. That was the one place I knew I'd be alone, and where I could collect my thoughts.

After the long but much needed walk, I laid down on the bridge over the Falls, spreading my arms out beside me. I had my eyes closed, only hearing the rushing water, and feeling the slightly cool breeze.

It was calming.

But I still couldn't believe Elena just forgot to tell me that my friend was alive. I mean, I watched her die. It wasn't like somebody told me she was dead, then later told me they got it wrong and she wasn't.

I had witnessed it. That kind of trauma wouldn't just go away with a quick apology.

And then I was angry at Bonnie. If Elena knew that Bon was alive, then she would've demanded proof - either a phone call or skype message from Bonnie herself. So why didn't the witch contact me as well? She knew I'd been there, watching her fake death.

It hurt to know that my twin sister and friend could just brush the thought of me away like that. Gods, if Elijah was right and I really did have depression, then I would certainly know why.

Elijah. The thought of the handsome Original gave me butterflies, but not the good kind. I felt nervous, and still sick like before. My breathing had calmed, but there was still the tightness in my chest.

Why did Elijah look at me when he said that caring for Katherine was a mistake, one that he wouldn't make again? It seemed like he was addressing me only, and not Elena. The look in his eyes was like he was trying to reassure me that he no longer had any feelings for Katherine.

But why would he want me to know that? Elijah was, for lack of a better word, ancient. And I was just a seventeen-year-old fake-blonde who was really nothing special. All I had going for me what the fact that I looked exactly like his ex-love interest.

This was all so confusing.

And what the hell did he mean when he said 'Why does it always end up being a doppelganger?' after I had slapped him? Did that happen with all the other doppelgangers, or did he mean something else?

Argh, this was all too much for me. I actually longed for the time when I didn't have feelings for anybody, and didn't have to worry about every bloody thing they said, or if my feelings were even returned.

That one glass of wine had done nothing. I needed something stronger. I didn't want to be around the Salvatores, so maybe if I headed to the Grill I could convince Matt to sneak me a vodka soda or something.

I opened my eyes and sat up with the new destination in mind, only to find that Elijah was sitting with his back against the bridge railing a few feet away from me. I had definitely not expected him here, so even though I didn't mind this turn of events, I just stared at him with my eyebrows slightly raised.

"I had a feeling you might be here." He said, a faint smile on his face. "You mentioned that you liked to visit the Falls. I believe it had something to do with liking your solitude."

I nodded and smiled back. "I guess I didn't think anyone would actually come find me. How long have you been sitting there?"

"Only a few minutes. I came to apologise." Elijah stated, standing up and holding out a hand for me. I took it and let him help me up so I stood barely a foot in front of him, my heartbeat accelerating like crazy. He probably heard it too, damn.

"Apologise for what?" I asked, infinitely grateful that my voice came out strong and not breathless like I'd expected.

The Original sighed. "After seeing how excited you were when you found out neither you nor Elena have to die in the ritual, I knew I was wrong about you being suicidal. After seeing so much hope in your eyes; so much hope to live… I just want you to know how truly sorry I am, for making such an accusation and upsetting you."

"It's alright, I forgive you." I whispered, biting my lip. "I mean, how could I not forgive you? Not only was your apology completely genuine and well thought-out, but you made me smile. I hadn't smiled at all today, until you made me. Thank you."

Like I'd done at the tea-party however long ago, I threw my arms around Elijah's neck and pulled him in for a hug. But unlike last time, the vampire instantly wrapped his arms around my waist with no hesitation.

"You're welcome," he whispered against my hair, causing a shiver of delight to run down my spine.

My mood swings were getting out of hand. A few minutes ago I'd been hurt and planning to drown my sorrows, and now I felt light and happy thanks to Elijah. It was my turn to apologise.

"I'm so sorry for getting so angry at you, and for slapping you. I had the choice not to get that mad, but I did anyway." I reluctantly pulled away from Elijah, though I linked my hands with his. "But I think you were right about me being depressed. I mean, not severely. I don't think about self-harm or anything. But… I am sad a lot of the time."

"Why are you so sad?" Elijah asked, his tone both earnest and curious simultaneously.

I shrugged, staring at our linked hands. "I like my loneliness, but sometimes it pains me. Yeah, there's this jock who's obsessed with me, but it's rare for someone to actually want to get to know me. And when they do, they always prefer Elena. I have hardly anyone I can count on."

"I see how that can upset someone." Elijah stated, then removed his hands from mine so he could tilt my chin up. Once I was looking at him, he dropped his hands to my shoulders. "Celina, once all this business with my brother and the sacrifice is all over, I'd like to get to know you."

"You won't decide you prefer Elena's company over mine, will you?" I asked, feeling the sides of my lips curl with delight.

"Not at all, I promise." Elijah grinned. "I give you my word."

I grinned right back. "I would like that."

After pulling Elijah in for another hug, I felt him kiss the top of my head, and good butterflies erupted in my chest.

Well, he sure knew how to make a girl happy.

A/N: Okay, so that definitely ended on a lighter note than last chapter did!

If it seemed like mentioning Bonnie's death was repetitive, that was intentional! Celina couldn't grasp the fact that her friend was 'dead', and most of her thoughts lead back to it.

Review Replies:

RebeliousOne: Thank you! I'm glad you do, I tried to make Celina's reaction as realistic as possible and hearing that makes me feel like I succeeded :) I considered having her slap Elena, but I thought a cold indifference would hurt far more than anything physical. I hope you thought it was good enough! And yeah, she'd kinda pissed at all of them at the moment. And you won't have to wait long, I promise! Also, her and Klaus will eventually be good friends, as will her and Rebekah.

: Thank you for pointing that out! I went back and changed it as soon I saw this review. I'd been writing/editing while half asleep and I had a feeling I'd written the wrong name but I was too tired to have noticed it. But, that's what I get for having two OC names start with the letter C! And thank you, I'm glad you did :)

tate4eva: You're welcome. And yeah, she is a little bit. She finally accepts that she might be in this chapter, and Elijah promised to get to know her :) I hope you liked how she reacted to the news. I sometimes think someone seems more upset if they make less of a scene about it.

Lucy Greenhill: Thank you!

Queen of Supernatural Lovers: I'm glad you do, I was hoping it didn't seem too soon for Elijah to act like that with her, but he can be a really caring person. And Celina's fire was very fun to write, I do admit!

Guest: I hope this was soon enough :)

Bella-swan11: Definitely! We'll find out what he chooses in the next few chapters... who knows, he may choose both Celina AND his family. Elijah's definitely going to have to decide what he wants soon though, before there's any competition. I'd say she's more like Katherine than Elena is, but less selfish.

ChristinaAguileraFan: I'm glad you did! Their first kiss might come sooner or later, depending on how soon you want it ;) But omg, I have big plans for the Mikaelson's ball... Big, big plans. No, don't worry about it! I always get ahead of myself when I read other fics, thinking of what's to come. Thank you!

Another huge thank you to every who reads this story. Please keep reading, and if you have any thoughts, please share them. I don't mind if it's a review or a pm, I just love hearing what you guys think :)