Deception and Revelation

Elena waited nervously outside of Stefan and Damon's home. Katherine had been very clear – timing was essential. She and Damon had gone inside. Elena was to enter at precisely the right moment – at least in Katherine's mind.

Which, of course, Elena was relying on.

Stefan had not returned her calls. Alaric was still at her home, which made Elena feel a little better. Damon had found the vampires where Katherine had expected.

Katherine had coached Elena on the part she would play. Elena thought of the cold, distant demeanor of Isobel, and of Katherine herself until very recently, toward Elena. Could she duplicate it? Could she keep it going long enough?

"It's all about how you carry yourself," Katherine had told her.

"Confidence?" Elena asked her.

"Indifference."

"No coughing, scratching, sneezing or any such thing." Katherine added. "They'll know immediately. And virtually no silence. Do not let them hear that something is wrong."

She could have worried all night, but it was time. She entered through the front door. What she found was not unexpected, but it still upset her.

Katherine was being held by one vampire, standing still. Apparently the vampire had tried to compel her. He was watching the other vampire as Damon struggled with him – though she could swear he wasn't trying all that hard – maybe just keeping it up until Elena arrived.

It was time.

"Stop!" Elena said clearly and loudly.

Damon looked at her and stopped struggling. "Katherine."

That got the attention of both of the hostile vampires.

"What is this?" Elena asked coldly.

She must have been doing it about right. "Family matter." Katherine's vampire replied.

"Katherine, help us." Damon pleaded. "Help her."

"Shut up!" the vampire holding him said, giving him a shove.

"Help her? Help Elena Gilbert? Whose uncle killed my best friend?"

The vampires were looking back and forth at Elena and Katherine, seemingly trying to figure out why they looked the same.

Elena was slowly approaching. Katherine had told her what a safe distance would be. She gave them a little more room than that.

"Help her whose family has burned our kind for decades? No. I may share her, but I will not help her."

Then she looked straight into the eyes of Katherine's vampire. "Do I know you?"

The vampire glared at her, but continued to hold on to Katherine. "Does it matter?"

"You wear a ring I recognize. It keeps you safe in sunlight. Where did you get it?"

She must have been doing okay, she thought. He was still talking to her – glaring at her, but talking.

"It was given to me."

"Willingly? By whom? I do not pass them out lightly."

The vampire hesitated before answering. Elena was just wondering if the silence was lasting for too long when he replied "He was dead – not by my hand."

"Do you often steal from the corpses of my soldiers?" She wasn't sure it was the right term, but it felt OK.

"Steal?" the vampire asked. "You can't steal what is not owned. The dead own nothing."

"No one owns such a ring but me. It is mine then."

"Do you think you can take it?" He actually released Katherine, and turned quickly to face Elena. It was enough to make her flinch. Immediately he leapt at her.

Katherine was faster, though she had to push Elena of his way. Elena stumbled against a wall and had to brace herself before she was able to turn back to see the fight. Damon was on the defensive, but Katherine was nearly done. She had literally done it. His head was severed.

Elena was shocked. Since she had pledged her loyalty to Katherine, the threats against her family had stopped - the vampire had just asked her to help. She had almost forgotten what Katherine was, what she could – and would – do.

Katherine was instantly next to Damon, the hostile vampire's neck in her firm grasp. She held him above her with one hand.

"Who else knows?" Katherine asked him as he struggled against her.

He did not answer.

"Tell me. Who else?"

The human girl had seen enough. "Katherine, don't. He could help us."

Katherine looked at her – her face furious.

"He could warn others not to come here." Elena explained.

Katherine turned back to the vampire. "Would you do that?"

"Yes." The vampire managed to gasp.

Katherine released her grip slightly and repeated the question. "Who else knows?"

"No one. We wanted him for ourselves."

Katherine nodded and lowered the other vampire to where she could reach his head with her other hand. Again she carried out her threat to "rip their heads off".

Elena was distraught. "Katherine, he said he would spread the message to leave us alone."

As quickly as the fury had come, it was gone. "That's not the message he would have spread," Katherine said. "It would have been 'I went up against Katherine and lived'. He would have been back – probably with more vampires. Vampires do not give up revenge so easily."

Elena looked at the mess around her. "I hate this world of yours."

Katherine approached Elena slowly. "Elena, you may have been seduced into this world, but you stayed willingly. Now that you are pledged to me, it is just as much your world as mine."

"I don't know how I'll be able to do this." She sat down, burying her face into her hands.

Katherine touched Elena's shoulder gently, causing the girl to look up at her.

"You'll be able to do it because you know you can help your world more from inside mine, than from outside it."

Katherine found a blanket and wrapped it around Elena who looked at her questioningly.

"So I won't get blood on you as I carry you home." There was a lot of blood on Katherine's clothes. "You'll need to go in the front door and I'll need to get into some clean clothes."

"Damon will burn the bodies," she added looking at him "and then join us at Elena's for a bit?"

"Yes majesty," he said, bowing and making the appropriate hand gesture.

The girl worked to regain control of herself as Katherine carried her home.

"You did well." Katherine told her as she was placed at her front door. "We learned what we needed to because of you."

Elena nodded and entered her home. Alaric was still with Jenna.

"Elena," Jenna said. "How was Bonnie?"

"She's good. She'll be out soon." Elena was guessing, she had not seen her best friend for two days now.

"Are you alright?" Jenna seemed genuinely concerned. Elena had no idea what she looked like after everything that had happened.

"Long day. Just going to take a long shower followed by a long sleep. Goodnight."

When she made it into her room, the shower was on. But Katherine was looking in her closet.

"Can I borrow something? Or more precisely take and keep something? Anything will do."

"Sure" Elena said and picked out the needed items. Katherine took them into the bathroom.

Elena's phone rang - Stefan.

"Elena, what's going on?" he asked without giving her a chance to even say 'hello'. "I get home and Damon's cleaning up blood and burning bodies."

"What did he tell you?"

"Nothing. And now he's gone. He said he had something to do."

She was upset that he had been ignoring her calls. "You didn't want to know earlier. You ignored my calls. You wanted your space and you can have it - until tomorrow. Call me back then."

"Elena…"

She didn't give him the chance to continue. "No hello, no good-bye." She thought.

She instantly regretted it, but would clean that mess up tomorrow, along with any other that had been made during this Katherine-imposed idiocy.

Katherine emerged, wearing Elena's clothing, just as Damon arrived. The shower was still running in the bathroom.

"As you command" Damon said, smirking. Elena was glad to see it - none of this could have been easy for him.

Katherine spoke to Elena. "It appears that my arrangements for your protection have been inadequate."

"You've made arrangements for my protection?"

"No. And that has been inadequate. I can't let something like this happen again."

"No!" Elena objected. "I've got Stefan and Damon and Bonnie and Alaric Saltzman. Please do not send anyone else. I've seen your 'helpers'. I don't want them anywhere near here."

"Elena, sometimes we need to help each other."

"No, please. If someone else comes, we'll deal. We've been dealing. We'll take whatever comes."

Katherine stared at her for a moment. "Very well. We'll see how it goes. We'll see what comes."

Katherine picked up the bag in which the bloody clothes had been placed and headed for the window. She paused and turned to Damon.

"Damon, will you keep the promise you made to Elena? Will you help her?"

"You know I will," he replied.

"Good. Because helping her is helping me. Protecting her is protecting me."

Katherine looked squarely into his eyes. "But Damon, loving her is not loving me. You need to work that out."

Damon looked squarely back at her. "I do."

And she was gone.

"Damon!" Elena yelled at him. When he turned to face her she asked "Exactly what did you do when you thought she was me?"

End of Part II - The Replacement. The Epilogue introduces Part III...