A/N: As always, I don't own TVD because, if I did, many things would have turned out differently. Any recognizable characters, plots and dialogue belong to the L.J. Smith and the CW. Also, a quick word of thanks to everyone who's left comments, y'all are so kind, and each one make me smile. As do each and every one of you who have marked this as a favorite or put an alert on this story. You make this newbie writer feel fantastic! :3

Elijah

Elijah watched Finn approach Elena at the bar while he was leading a stranger – pretty enough but nothing to hold his attention – around the floor. However, the conversation between his older brother and Elena was more than enough to capture his interest. Without missing a step or letting the girl know he wasn't focused on her, he tuned into the conversation.

"My mother wishes to meet with you," Finn said by way of greeting as he came up behind Elena.

Elijah saw her jump as well as her meager attempt to cover it. As soon as the bartender placed her drink in front of her, Elena picked it up and took a large sip. Once able to feign calm, she turned a polite smile on Finn.

"Greetings, Miss Gilbert," Finn said as he took the open spot beside her at the bar. They both stood with their backs to the bar as Finn continued to talk. Elijah could hear the way her heart beat nervously against her ribs. He knew Finn could hear it too, but he made no sign that he knew how nervous the girl to whom he was talking was. "I didn't mean to startle you, merely to introduce myself, since we've not yet had the pleasure. I am Finn Mikaelson."

Elena nodded politely at the greeting. "Pleased to meet you," she said. "I would introduce myself, but you apparently already know my name." She was hiding behind her witty retort, but her face still bore the polite smile. Elijah could see the tension in her shoulders even across the crowded dance floor. He couldn't believe that neither of her Salvatore protectors were anywhere to be seen. "Is your mother here?" Elena glanced around, but she didn't seem to want to take her eyes off Finn, the current unknown factor.

"She's upstairs," Finn answered. "I see you came with your friends. However, if you wish to meet with my mother, you'll need to go alone."

From where Elijah was twirling his partner gracefully, he saw Elena grow even more tense. He remembered that she said his mother had already been responsible for one attempt on her life. What could his mother want to discuss that required Elena be alone? Elijah felt his own curiosity and anxiety spike, which meant that Elena was feeling it even more acutely.

Despite that, he saw Elena nod. Elijah cursed and thanked her self-sacrificing nature in equal measure. If she were more like Katerina, she wouldn't be at this party, and even more so, she wouldn't be agreeing to meet with Esther. That would have left him in the dark about his mother's motives, but it would have kept her safe from the unpredictability.

Later, he saw Elena walking toward the grand staircase. She was still without her guard dogs, and from the way she glanced over her shoulder, she was as surprised about it as Elijah was. When she saw neither Salvatore, she hiked up the hem of her dress and began to climb. Elijah excused himself from his conversation with one of the town's "founders" and set off to follow her.

He caught up with her as she rounded a corner toward the corridor that housed his mother's suite. She was just taking a deep breath when he called her name. She turned to face him as he caught up with her, absently stroking the back of his index finger down her arm. He didn't even realize he had done it until he saw her eyes following the movement, but he didn't regret the action. His finger tingled as he pulled his hand back.

He noticed that she hadn't jumped when he spoke unexpectedly, nor when he had touched her so casually, as she had when Finn snuck up on her. Her heart rate picked up, but it wasn't the first time he had noticed that when they were talking. The two set off together down the hallway. He didn't miss that she didn't say his name in return, but the breaking of their tradition didn't bother him. Their strides matched, and he wondered at the synchronicity between them.

"I understand my mother has requested to meet with you."

"Yeah," she breathed. The breath caught in her throat as she glanced over at him. "Is something wrong?"

Elijah waved his free hand while the other remained in his pocket as he spoke again. "My mother's ability to forgive Niklaus after everything he's done to destroy this family seems strange, to say the least," he said, feeling the weight of her concerned gaze on him.

"You don't think it's true?" Her brow creased as she boiled his concern down to its basic element. He would have been impressed by her ability to distill and process what he wasn't saying if she hadn't demonstrated so often her intuition and compassion. It allowed him to respect her, perhaps more than he should.

She stopped walking as she asked the question, and he stepped forward to stand in front of her, wanting to face her to convey the seriousness of the situation. He felt the need to touch her again, and unable to resist, he ran the palm of his hand, light as a feather from her shoulder to her wrist. When he had seen her come in with a Salvatore brother on either arm, it had dredged up feelings long since forgotten of two women who had shared her face. But he was remembering now that that was where the similarities ended.

"It is forcing me to ask questions I never wanted to ask," he said, moving his thoughts away from that dangerous territory. He paused, watching her brow furrow. He knew that he was about to ask a lot of her, but he needed to know what his mother was planning, or if he was simply starting to pick up on Niklaus' paranoia. "Can I rely on you to tell me what she says?"

Elena met his eyes as she paused for only a moment. He was listening to her heartbeat out of habit. Relying on other people for information hadn't always been productive in the past, and though he trusted Elena more than most - her goodness was reliable, even if her motives weren't always – he wanted to be sure he was getting the truth from her.

Her heartbeat never wavered, and her eyes stayed steady on his as she said, "Of course. I'll find you later, okay?" She nodded minutely with her jaw set in resolution before she turned away.

He blinked several times as he watched her walk away, almost unable to believe that it was that easy to get her to agree. A thought struck him, and after checking that the hallway was clear except for them, Elijah hastened to catch back up with her. Elena stopped as she felt him approach and turned to face him with a brow raised.

"I wanted to give you a word of warning, Elena," Elijah said in a low tone. They weren't far from his mother's room now, and he wanted to ensure that they weren't overheard. "It was my mother who taught me to be cautious with my words. It would serve you, also, to remember that she is responsible for raising me and all of my siblings – the good and the bad in each of us. Though we've been apart for a millennium, she had a hand in who each of us are."

Elena held his gaze for a beat as she processed his words. Then, mimicking his light touch earlier, she traced his jaw before nodding curtly. "Thank you, Elijah. I'll see you soon."

He gestured to the door of his mother's suite and watched as she knocked on the door. He flashed around the corner when he heard the knob turn, but from his vantage point, he could see that it was Finn who opened the door. He was possessed, for a brief moment, by the urge to run after her and pull her from the room.

Since his mother's return, there was something unsettling in Esther. She was not acting as the woman he remembered. And yet, here he was, once more allowing – encouraging, even – Elena to put herself in danger relative to his family. Yet, she had been on her way up before he told her of his suspicions. It was not him that she was putting herself in danger for, but he wished that he belonged in that group. To be so cared for by Elena Gilbert would be a wonderful thing.

He shook that thought free from his mind before he returned to the party downstairs. He noticed absently that still neither Salvatore was present. However, much of his concern remained with the two women who were meeting upstairs, particularly once Finn made his reappearance only a few moments later. Elijah watched his older brother descend the grand staircase and was reminded that his mother was not the only one acting differently than he remembered.

He knew it couldn't be easy to find yourself thrust into a world so drastically different from the one 900 years ago, but even with that factored in, Finn was different – even more reserved and isolated than he had been. Finn had always been the quietest of their family, and when they were turned, he was the one who hated it the most.

Elijah watched his brother and the stairs as he continued to mingle and dance with their guests as though nothing more was on his mind than welcoming the citizens of Mystic Falls into his home and brokering peace – not that the townspeople knew that was what was happening.

During a waltz twenty minutes after Finn's return, Elijah was suddenly struck by two intense, swiftly successive sensations. At first, he was hot – burning up. It felt as though he had stepped outside, midafternoon, on a clear day without his daylight ring. Though, since his partner made no comment, he knew that it wasn't something felt by anyone other than himself. The sensation faded quickly, but it had been enough to make his steps falter. He politely excused himself from his partner, claiming to be in need of some fresh air, and as he took his first steps away from her, he was caught up in a dizzy spell.

As he stumbled his way across the packed dancefloor, he was overcome with a bone-deep chill. It felt as though he had been plunged into the Arctic Ocean nude. From head to toe, he felt frozen but the numbness that would have occurred if the situation were real never came. Just cold.

Finally, he made it to the nearest wall and leaned back to hide his unsteadiness. He hadn't felt dizzy in more years than he could count, and though the cold faded from his body as quickly as the heat had, the dizziness and lethargy lingered. There was only one thing that he could think of as a cause – witchcraft. And more than that, only one witch he knew had enough power to affect him in such a way.

His mother was definitely up to something.

Elijah rested his head against the wall, and as he felt himself start to regain equilibrium, he caught Finn's stare. His brother was frowning, head tilted to one side, and honestly, that worried Elijah more than he wanted to admit. He had been sure that Finn was working with their mother, but it looked like Finn didn't know what was happening to Elijah either.

Just as the last of the dizziness receded, Esther appeared at the top of the stairs. She carefully made her way down, and at the base of the staircase, she and Finn leaned close to talk. From his place against the wall, Elijah watched Finn take a small bottle from Esther before making his way to the rear of the room. He wished he could have heard what was said, but between the musicians and the party guests, there was too much white noise. Elijah lost his brother in the crowd, and returned his attention to his mother, only to find her staring at him with her lips pursed.

Her gaze lingered on him for a moment longer before she turned away. Finn soon returned, holding a glass of champagne for each of them. Then, together they climbed to the landing in the middle of the open staircase. Esther tapped the side of her glass to gather the guests' attention.

Elijah took a flute of pink champagne from a passing tray, but he missed his mother's toast as he realized that she had returned without Elena. He closed his eyes and listened for a heartbeat that he had accidentally memorized in the past few months, but he couldn't discern that even as the guests remained quiet while his mother spoke. He let his attention continue to wander as he tried to spot her in the room. Her dress had stood out to him even amongst all the other finery, but now, he couldn't see her anywhere.

He turned his eyes back on his mother, only to see her once more staring at him. She raised her glass as she finished her toast.

"Cheers!" she said, and the guests replied with a resounding cheer. Someone beside Elijah tapped their glass against his, and automatically, he drank. Nearly the entire glass was gone before he lowered it.

Something had happened to Elena, and he had been the final one to encourage her to meet with his mother – a woman who had already tried to kill her once. Elijah was struck by a wave of guilt, which was only worsened when he saw that none of her other friends seemed to notice what he had. Perhaps that meant he had merely missed her? Since it was clear that his mother was up to something, perhaps Elena had thought it would be better to meet away from the mansion where his mother lived.

He couldn't blame her for that, and as much as the trepidation sat on his soul, Elijah resolved to search Elena out in the morning for information. It wouldn't do to cause a scene when they were so close to achieving peace with their neighbors.

At least, that was his thought before he saw Kol re-enter the house with a swagger that only meant that Esther's rules weren't being upheld.