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Chapter 20

As evening began to draw to a close everyone was beginning to prepare for the ritual. Together, they all piled into two different SUVs and they had all made their way to the quarry then. On the way there though, it was all silent as everyone had different thoughts running through their heads as each person tensed during the drive straight to the Quarry-the first one had all three sacrifices as well as Elijah, Klaus and Jeremy (who wanted to be there for moral support) while the second one had Caroline, the Salvatores, Rebekah, Kol and Bonnie who were nervous as well as anxious as none of them (except for the Salvatores and Bonnie) had really seen how the sacrifice is done.

Once the first one was parked, the female werewolf was tied up as well as knocked out while the female vampire was asleep.

"I have the moonstone," Elena told Klaus as he helped her out. As soon as her feet hit the gravel Elijah walked her over towards her circle. He was holding her hand in his and he had his forehead pressed into hers. It was an intimate moment between the two before he gave her more of his blood, to ensure that she came back to him.

Bonnie had done a locator spell and determined that Finn was a safe distance away. Elena seemed in a hurry to get it done and that worried both Caroline and Bonnie. No one seemed as anxious about the whole thing as Elijah. Kol walked towards Elijah but when he got within five feet they were both startled to find they couldn't get any closer to one another.

"What is going on?" Kol worried and Elijah frowned.

"Oh, sorry that would be me," Bonnie said firmly. "No Mikaelson blood within five feet of another until I call it off."

"Bonnie," Kol frowned.

"No, I'm keeping you, Elijah and Rebekah safe," Bonnie said. Kol walked towards Bonnie and was surprised when he could touch her.

"Loophole," Bonnie smiled.

"Little witch," Kol grinned.

"Talk to your brother," Bonnie encouraged. She kissed Kol quickly and sped off. Elijah's eyes were on Elena across the way.

"Brother I don't believe I've ever seen you so anxious," Kol observed. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"I want her safe and sound Kol," Elijah murmured. "I wouldn't want her to have this life but this is her choice and I must respect it."

"That's not what I asked." Elijah turned to stare at him.

"I'm not sure what I want."

"You know she's making this commitment because she wants to be with you Elijah," Kol said. "I knew when I turned Bonnie that her decision was because of me. At first...well you know how I felt about attachments and commitment." Kol turned his gaze towards where Bonnie was standing with Elena and Caroline.

"You seem to have gotten over that," Elijah observed. Kol smiled largely.

"I don't know when it happened exactly but yes."

"You can make this okay for her," Kol encouraged after a moment. "Elijah I know you will be great at this."

"I hope so." His heated gaze on Elena made her turn to smile and wave at him.

As time drew near Kol joined Bonnie and Caroline. The girls hugged Elena tightly.

"This feels a little different so far," Bonnie said trying to stay positive. "Elena if Damon and Stefan show up I may have to hurt them to keep them back...I think the best thing for you would be to stay focused on Elijah."

The doppelgänger nodded as her eyes met Elijah's again.

"Care-if you see either brother I want you to snap their necks for me." Elena told her gently.

"Okay it's time," Klaus said. Bonnie and Caroline left Elena's side with Kol. Elijah wrapped his arms around Elena and kissed her passionately. He opened his mouth to speak but she silenced him with a finger to his lips.

"I already know how you feel Elijah. I promise you this will all be okay. I love you."

"I love you Elena, come back to me," Elijah whispered gently against her ear. As he stepped away from her the fire of her circle completed. Kol was staying close to Bonnie but he noticed Caroline gravitated to them as well. The little blonde vampire had been growing on him - mostly because she seemed to genuinely be a good friend to Bonnie. Kol had serious doubts about Elena sometimes but Caroline was a steadfast friend.

The witch that Klaus had recruited for the ritual began the spell. That was when Bonnie noticed Stefan and Damon were perched atop the cliff. What a serious case of deja vu? She hoped everyone would stand firm and this would run as smoothly as possible. Her focus however was mostly on protecting Kol, Elijah, Elena, Caroline and Rebekah. That was quite a load even for Bonnie and she had drunk extra blood before she came.

Elena felt so different as she stood in the circle this time. The fear and anxiety that had tormented her last time didn't exist this time around. Instead she was mostly ignoring Klaus and instead was focused on Elijah. She could see that he was worried and it touched her heart - a thousand year old original vampire was worried for her.

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