To JennyMikaelson: Before I say anything else, thanks for reviewing yet again. I adore my constant reviewers. On to other things. Rebekah is a character on the show it does seem just keeps getting hammered and hammered. Personally, I think she needs both a decent guy and her family to start caring for her again. The poor thing had been running from her own father with a domineering brother before she was daggered and stuck in a coffin for ninety years. When she was finally awakened, it was only for Niklaus's convenience. I adore Rebekah and her character, and I especially love exploring the different aspects of her personality. The love triangle will take some time to develop, but I will most likely do it. I agree with you about Elena. In the books, I loved her in the first books because she was flawed. And then she got more and more perfect and she just got annoying. Elena in the series is not very interesting, and I'm hoping to add some depth to her in this story. Nina Dobrev is brilliant, but she's limited by the script and can only do so much. As to E.J.'s father, you'll just have to wait until next chapter.
To madison: Thank you for once more sharing your thoughts with me! Honey, if you are ever confused about anything, just let me know what about. You can tell me in a review or PM me, and I'll try my best to clarify. Never feel shy or embarrassed if you missed something or just didn't get something. And, yes, I thought that was funny too. The more I write Finn, the more I fall in love with him.
To kadienewberg: I have to say that I'm glad you and another reviewer pointed out about it being strange Rebekah not knowing she had a kid. My plot dealt with it just fine, but for whatever reason I hadn't thought to address it . . . . I really have no explanation as to why. I took a little longer updating today because I added some paragraphs and did some editing, which I don't normally do just before posting. So thanks for helping this fallible author out! She really appreciates it.
To Typs: Aw, thank you! Believe it or not, the best way to get better at writing is to—wait for it—write! I know, astonishing, right? I love hearing that my readers think I write well and have interesting ideas. I hope to become a published author someday, and fanfiction is more the stuff I write for the pure enjoyment. And I love the awesome feedback I get! As to Rebekah . . . I put myself in her shoes—I'm also an eighteen-year-old girl—and I said, "How would I feel if I found out I had a kid I didn't know about?" Edit it to her personality and, voila! I'm already planning the series out in my head. Why, because my brain works like that. Thanks again!
To Marauders12345: Yes, what does that witch have to do with everything, I wonder? Oh wait, I know that already. The "family meeting" won't go down quite as you anticipate, I'm sure, considering the two emotional females in question here. I'm embarrassed to say that Rebekah being female and therefore it being very odd she didn't know she had a kid . . . kinda slipped my attention. So I worked hard to get this chapter up to speed for you all. Thanks again!
To crazygurl: It does seem that stories like this take the sappy, sappy, sappy turn. I didn't want to do that because—well, she's Rebekah. I don't think the word "sappy" is in her vocabulary. The hair products . . . I just couldn't resist. I'm afraid you'll have to wait until next chapter for more answers, because this chapter is full of emotion and some serious supernatural forces being at work. Thanks for telling me your thoughts again! I love hearing them.
AN: And here I thought I could wait until tomorrow to update . . . . I love when I get the number of reviews at the last minute and have to scramble to update. I was in town shopping most of this morning, so this took a little longer to get up. I also had to do some major editing. I needed to address the fact that Rebekah's a girl and didn't know she had a kid. Thank the lovely reviewers who pointed that out. Just a heads up: E.J. is going to be bratty and mean in the first part of this chapter. Before people review and tell me how horrible she is, think about what this poor girl has been through. Lots of emotion in this chapter. I hope you all don't mind!
Six reviews again, yay! I think I'll repeat the last deal. Six plus reviews and I'll update Thursday. Four or five and I'll update Friday. Three or less I'll update Saturday. Bear in mind that even if I get that number of reviews I need to get them in time to update the promised day. Just a heads up in case that happens. Enjoy this chapter!
Disclaimer: I don't own any Originals, Salvatores, or Gilberts portrayed in this story. Nor do I own Alaric, Gloria, or Seinfeld. I own this plot, E.J., and the mysterious box.
To think that a few hours ago she and Rebekah had been having a silly conversation about the unrealistic representation of magazine models. Now E.J. was preparing herself to face a girl she now thought might be her biological mother, and it frightened her. Rebekah was only eighteen. How in the world would she handle this in the future? (After all, if she wasn't handling it all that well in the present, what was to make E.J. think anything would change?)
"This must be hard for you." Elijah's voice broke through the young girl's thoughts and she started. She glared up at him through misty eyes and the eldest Original frowned. It was not a disapproving frown, but a worried one.
When Elijah had told E.J. that he did not know what to believe, he had not been exaggerating. This whole situation made no sense in the least. Perhaps if it were one of his brothers in question as a possible parent, he could deal with that possibility, but his sister? What he could not understand is how on earth Rebekah could have a daughter she did not know about. Something strange was going on here, and Elijah was getting suspicious.
Clearly, that thought had not crossed Rebekah's mind. Although nearly as old as her brothers (really, in light of a full millennium, what was a decade or so?), Rebekah had a naivety and innocence about her that belied her true age. Not that Rebekah was an innocent, but that many things about womanhood evaded her. His little sister had never had a child (that Elijah was aware of, evidently), and was new to this whole mothering thing. She knew about how babies came into the world of course, but clearly it had not occurred to her how E.J. had come into the world. Elijah wasn't even sure E.J. had thought about that reality, which made sense if he thought about it. The girl was only fourteen and she probably was not apt to think about her own entrance into this world if she did not have to.
"Why the hell do you care?" E.J. suddenly snarled, interrupting Elijah's thoughts, shoving away from him, and stomping the rest of the way to the parlor on her own. She didn't care what these—these—things thought of her! So Rebekah didn't want to be her mother?! Fine! To hell with it all! She didn't need her! She didn't need any of them!
"I shouldn't have to explain myself!" she exploded as she burst into the parlor. They were all there. Every last one of them. Niklaus was hanging his head and not looking at anyone. Finn sat up straight at her entrance and shot her a worried look, further infuriating her. Kol was lounging on the couch with his feet on the coffee table. And Rebekah . . . Rebekah looked as if she had been through hell. Her hair was mussed up and her eyes were red and shiny.
E.J. realized with a start that she must look a sight herself and stamped her foot in frustration. "To hell with you all!" She tried to speed out of the room, but her way was blocked by a waistcoat-clothed chest and strong arms.
"Calm down," Elijah spoke softly into her ear, holding her against her will. She thrashed in his hold and tried to kick him between the legs several times, but it was as if he were made of steel. "Rebekah is upset as well," he continued, still speaking softly. The others could still hear him, though, E.J. knew. "Give her some time."
"I don't have to give that bitch anything!" she screamed at him, kicking him in the shin. She was barefoot and all that kick accomplished was bending one of her toes backwards. She swore and angrily shook her foot.
Rebekah was suddenly there and in her face. "GIVE ME ONE DAMN GOOD REASON I SHOULD BELIEVE YOU, AND I WILL GLADLY DO SO!" The outburst shocked everybody present, given that the only female Original had been a mess only seconds earlier.
Rebekah pulled herself up to her full height and calmly reached up a hand to smooth down her hair. Her glare sent a chill through E.J., who had just remembered what the "bitch" was. An ultra-powerful Original who could kill her without much effort.
"She's telling the truth, Rebekah." The soft voice penetrated the tension and Rebekah jerked her head up in shock. At first, she could see nothing as she stared, but she could soon make out the faint outline of a woman. The shape stepped forward and held itself erect as it looked at them all.
E.J. sniffled and shook her head miserably. "They don't believe me, Gloria! How am I supposed to make them believe me?!" Clearly, the girl had not yet realized that the ghost was visible to the Originals as well, although barely.
Gloria looked pained as she sucked in a breath. "I cannot stay long," she wheezed. "She is only allowing me a short amount of time to deliver this message." She blinked her eyes rapidly and shook her head as if she had a headache before biting down hard on her wispy lip.
Finally, the apparition raised its head and looked Rebekah square in the eye. "1922. You told me about how you could never have children, and I offered to help you." The ghost suddenly hacked and fell to her knees, groaning. "E.J. is your daughter, Rebekah, I swear on my very existence!"
As suddenly as the apparition had appeared, it was gone, and the entire room was silent. Seconds ticked by as the Originals could only stare at the spot where the ghost had once been.
Rebekah slowly turned to E.J., her eyes once more shiny but her expression still grim. The two young women faced each other for a moment before E.J. had to look away, the look of the elder too intense for her to meet.
To say the least, the memories of 1922 were foggy for Rebekah. She did vaguely remember having a conversation with Gloria about how she wanted children, but this? Could it be possible?
"Vampires can't have children," Rebekah hiccupped. "It's not possible!" Hot tears were now spilling down her cheeks and she sped from the room.
Before any of the remaining Originals could stop her, E.J. was gone as well, but, unlike Rebekah, who had simply gone outside for some fresh air, she slammed the door on her way out.
Kol leapt up to go after her, but Elijah was by his side in an instant, a hand on his arm holding him at bay. "Let her go, Kol," the eldest Original spoke softly. "We cannot force her to stay if she no longer wishes to."
"Why the hell not?" Kol snarled, shoving his brother's hand away and stomping from the room.
"My head hurts!" Niklaus suddenly moaned, gasping and toppling forward. If E.J. had been present, she might have realized that discovering the identity of her mother was causing Niklaus quite a headache. The hybrid had lost and regained his memory too many times in too short a time, and the sudden stress on his mind was amplified by a splitting headache.
Elijah spun around and strode over to Niklaus. "You are all right, brother," he said quietly as he gently lifted his brother up by the underarms.
"Meeting adjourned," he mumbled to Finn as he led Niklaus out of the room to find him some aspirin, unaware of the seriousness of his brother's plight.
Upstairs, inside E.J.'s wardrobe, the undone latch on the box quivered and snapped shut once more. An unearthly scream ripped through the house on another plane of existence, one that was felt but not heard. Every paranormal entity within miles of the mansion felt the scream rip through them and it felled them to their knees.
E.J. had to believe it for the latch to remain undone.
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The streets of Mystic Falls were dark this time of year. She cried as she blindly ran, stumbling down alleys and up barren back roads, her thoughts running haywire the entire time. She was exhausted from some unknown force plowing her to her knees only minutes earlier and she didn't know what to do or where to go. She couldn't go to the Boarding House, and she couldn't go back there! Not after what had happened!
She did the only thing she could think of!
She didn't know how she knew the way, but she soon found herself standing on the porch of a small farmhouse. Hot tears were spilling down her now crimson red cheeks as she pounded on the door. A commotion from inside stirred up, but E.J. was blind to everything as she slumped against one of the porch columns and collapsed onto the top step.
The door suddenly flew open and somebody rushed outside. A large hand landed on the back of E.J.'s neck and she started, jerking up. She kicked out at the person, who yelped and cracked his head against the opposite porch column.
"E.J.!" A voice that E.J. knew. The girl looked up as Elena knelt down before her, reaching out to cup her face in her hands. "What happened?" the older girl continued, sounding worried.
E.J. only broke into sobs and threw herself into the other girl's arms. Elena gathered the small girl to her, but she was confused and felt helpless. "Come inside, E.J.," she secretly invited the girl inside as she hauled her to her feet. E.J. was worryingly light and Elena easily held her up as she led her into the house. "Let's get you seated."
At the base of the staircase stood a boy that E.J. vaguely recognized, but she was too overcome with emotion to notice as she was led to a couch and laid down. "What is she doing here?" she heard the boy demand. He sounded alarmed, but also a little concerned.
"I don't know yet," Elena replied softly. Hearing the small sounds of a phone call being made, E.J. knew that Elena was probably calling Damon, but she didn't care. Right now, she didn't care about much of anything.
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When the pounding had first come on the door, Elena had thought it was just Damon being Damon again. Alaric had volunteered to answer it, dragging himself away from staring into the fireplace, glass of brandy in hand. Elena had been busily making herself a late-night snack, and Jeremy was supposedly doing homework up in his room.
Right then, it had been a fairly normal, surprisingly boring night. Elena was glad for the boredom, and glad to just be able to enjoy the mundane things of life. When she heard the commotion on the porch, she dropped the knife in her hands and sprinted for the door. She could hear Jeremy pounding down the stairs behind her, but she had already poked her head outside and had seen the cause of the enormous crash.
E.J. was bawling her eyes out on one side of the porch and Alaric was groaning and holding his head on the other. Elena knew she should be concerned about Alaric, but she also knew that the man would tell her to check on the girl first regardless if he weren't currently having a throbbing headache.
Now she was impatiently waiting for her boyfriend to arrive, desperate for somebody else to help her. Alaric had cracked his head on one of the porch columns when E.J. had kicked him away, and Jeremy was avoiding E.J. for some reason. That left Elena to care for the distraught child, and she was panicking.
The door opened and Elena swung her head around. Stefan hadn't bothered knocking. He stood in the doorway, watching her and E.J. for a moment, before striding in and making his way over. Without a word, he dropped down by E.J.'s head and laid a calming hand on the side of her face.
E.J. felt his calming presence, and her bawling suddenly stopped. She slowly opened her eyes, now hiccupping, and blinked up at the elder vampire. She groaned and rolled her neck, dropping back down onto the couch. "Oh no, you don't," Stefan mumbled to her. She suddenly felt herself being gently lifted before he settled back onto the couch with her.
E.J. sniffled and clung to Stefan's knees to keep her balance, glaring at the wall opposite her to keep from looking at either of them. She heard sounds above her and whimpered, shutting her eyes and shaking her head.
"Thank you for coming." Elena bent down to kiss Stefan on the lips, her long hair falling over her shoulder and brushing E.J.'s face. The other girl batted it away and buried her face in her hands.
"And for not telling Damon," she continued. She slowly came around and sat beside her boyfriend with E.J. straddling one of his thighs. The girl looked close to bursting into tears again and Elena bit her lip.
Stefan smiled sadly. "I didn't think he needed to know." Elena only nodded as she cocked her head, regarding E.J. with some interest.
"Let me sit with her a while," Stefan told her quietly, brushing her lips with his. "You go on and finish your sandwich." Elena raised her eyebrows. "I can smell it from here, babe."
Elena smiled softly and nodded, standing and stepping away from the couch. "Do you think she'll calm down for you?"
Stefan sighed and leaned back against the couch, subtly adjusting E.J. "Don't talk about her while she can hear you, Elena."
"Yeah," E.J. suddenly spoke up. "It's rude!" The girl suddenly giggled and turned watery eyes onto Stefan. "I wanna watch TV." Her lips fell into a pout, and Stefan suddenly found himself wanting to give this little one the world. The strong surge of protectiveness that went through him surprised him, but he chose to act on it.
"Whatever you want, sweetheart." Elena raised an eyebrow at hearing those words coming from her boyfriend's lips and clearly not being directed at her and peered curiously into the living room as Stefan set E.J. aside and busied himself with finding the ever elusive remote.
"Under the armchair right next to you!" Elena called. "That's Jeremy's favorite hiding spot!"
"Hey!" came an indignant shout from the direction of Jeremy's bedroom.
"Did you honestly think we wouldn't notice?!" Elena called back.
E.J. giggled and cuddled one of the couch pillows as she watched Stefan retrieve the remote and flip the TV on. She could feel the other vampire's eyes on her, but she focused hers on the TV. Her tears were already drying, but, inside, she was still in turmoil. She knew that one of the Originals would come looking for her before too long, but she didn't care. She wouldn't go with whoever came.
Even if it was Rebekah.
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Hours had gone by and E.J. still hadn't returned. Rebekah was alone outside, wallowing in her misery. She had returned to the parlor half an hour after her outburst, calmed down, but she had found it empty. She didn't feel E.J.'s presence anywhere nearby, and had realized that the girl had run away.
She had told herself she didn't care, but her heart was heavy. The apparition's words rang in her mind, and the conversation with Gloria was beginning to come back to her. The witch had sounded so sure . . . . Now Rebekah didn't know what to think.
Vampires could not procreate, and that was that. There was absolutely no way that E.J. could be her daughter.
Right?
She remembered the latch on the box and how odd the box's falling from the wardrobe and the latch's sudden opening had been. She had assumed it to be a coincidence, but she could sense something powerful coming from that box. She had ignored it before, but now it was unmistakable. Even outside, she could sense its power.
Then there was that "scream" that had ripped through her. It had felt like a scream, but she didn't know for sure. Her hair had stood on end and her teeth had chattered. She had wanted to curl up into a ball and die, although that was impossible. That scream had carried so much raw power with it that she felt like her soul had been shredded. (If only she had known that simply stepping within the mansion's walls would have protected her.)
Of their own accord, her feet began to carry her through the back door of the house, across the foyer's porcelain tile, and up the elegant staircase. She strolled down the hall only a little ways before coming to E.J.'s room. Her heart pounded in her chest as she stepped through the open door.
The box lay on E.J.'s bed, the covers still rumpled. The first thing that Rebekah noticed was that the latch was now firmly back in place. Rebekah shook her head as she took a step into the room, but she suddenly felt a thrum of power course through her. She shivered and folded her arms, quivering. Slowly, she approached the box, even though every step became harder and harder.
I CANNOT BE CONTAINED! The explosive voice in her head made her scream in pain from the sheer power of it, and she crumpled to her knees. The box began to shake and vibrate incessantly, the entire room beginning to throb with it.
"Stop!" she screamed. "Stop, stop, stop!"
YOU ARE THE GIRL'S MOTHER, DEMON SPAWN! the booming voice continued. YOU! ARE! HER! MOTHER! BELIEVE IT ALREADY!
As the words seared through Rebekah's mind, everything became clear to her. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that E.J. was her daughter. She could see everything happening before her eyes and she cried out in pain as the visions began to blur together.
She could see Gloria's promise, then the witch standing before an enormous grimoire, chanting. She could see E.J.'s birth and a man and a woman with the witch. The woman was lying in a bed and crying as a nurse took E.J. away. She could see the girl growing up.
"Vampires cannot procreate!" she sobbed. "It's not possible!" Even though she knew, she still fought, still argued.
No. The voice had suddenly softened, as if it knew it had won. You can, the children just do not survive. But the witch saved your daughter.
"How?!" Rebekah sobbed, on the verge of hysteria once more. How could she have a daughter she had never known about?!
A chilling realization came over her as the box answered, Niklaus. He daggered you and kept you from the child. But he also kept your daughter alive. The witch bound the girl's life to his. The longer she goes without knowing who she is, the more Niklaus will begin to forget.
Rebekah sucked in a breath and sobbed. "E.J.!" she screamed, leaping to her feet.
The box's words about a brother she had not quite forgiven momentarily forgotten, she was now intent on finding her wayward daughter. She found that when she focused her energy on E.J., she found her quite easily.
Her eyes snapped open and she stared at the box in amazement. "I am going to bring my daughter back." Rebekah stood proud as she marched swiftly out of the room.
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At the single, sharp knock at the door, Elena's head jerked up. "I wonder who that could possibly be?" she grumbled to herself, thinking it was Damon. She passed E.J., who was happily watching a late-night showing of old Seinfeld reruns, as she made her way to the door.
When she opened it, her eyes widened for a moment before she caught herself and kept herself from falling backwards. Rebekah stood in the doorway. Her hair was a mess, her eyes red-rimmed as if she had been crying, and she was wearing pajamas. She glared hatefully at Elena as she stood on her porch, arms folded.
"Let me in," she spoke simply, her eyes dilating as she did.
Elena stared at her for a moment before shaking her head and glaring at Rebekah. "I'm on vervain, Rebekah. You can't compel me."
"I know that E.J. is here," Rebekah answered as if she hadn't spoken. "And I want her back."
Now Elena was getting angry, ready to defend her young friend. "She's not yours to take back, Rebekah," she said through gritted teeth.
"Of course she is," Rebekah snarled back. "She is my daughter."
A rush of air blew past Elena and E.J. was suddenly between her and Rebekah, glaring up at the Original. Elena was behind the young vampire, and couldn't see her face, but Rebekah could. The girl looked torn between anger and ecstasy.
Rebekah was not very good at apologizing, but gazing into those red-rimmed, oak-green eyes melted her normally cold heart. "I am so sorry, baby," she said in a hitched voice, just keeping herself from faltering in her speech. "I was just scared." Her voice softened so much at the end that Elena did not catch her last words.
E.J. stared up at the Original for a moment before she suddenly surged forwards and buried herself into Rebekah. Elena looked shocked, clutching onto the door, but it was E.J.'s decision. Elena hated herself for doing nothing, but there was nothing she could do.
"What's going on?" Stefan appeared at the top of the stairway from talking with Jeremy about a homework assignment he had missed. (Stefan shared a home economics class with Jeremy that was required for graduation.)
When he saw Rebekah, he sped down the stairs and out the door, but he paused when E.J. turned around and shot him an imploring look. "She's okay," the girl hiccupped.
Stefan stared at the young girl for a long moment before he slowly nodded. "Invite her in, Elena," he said softly.
Elena shot him a look before returning her gaze to Rebekah. The Original was now cooing at E.J. in a very strange voice and petting her hair. It was odd, and a little unnerving, and it only transgressed her indecision. "She wants to kill me."
"Don't kill her," E.J. besought immediately. "She's my friend."
Rebekah shrugged. "She daggered me in the back, but so did my own brother. I suppose I cannot kill her without killing Niklaus."
E.J. looked surprised for a moment before she furrowed her brow and stared up at her mother. "Huh?"
"Another time, darling," Rebekah replied, patiently waiting for Elena to heed her boyfriend's words.
Even though every fiber in her being was telling her not to, Elena slowly stepped aside. "Come on in, Rebekah."
AN: The family meeting didn't work out so well, I see. Those two girls are just too hormonal for their own good. The mysterious box strikes again! What is it, you ask? In a few chapters you will see. Next chapter E.J.'s father is revealed! OMG! By the way, I was fairly certain that Rebekah had never been invited inside the Gilbert house (prior to 3/13). I apologize if that's wrong. I can't remember everything from the series and I don't feel like skimming through the episodes to find it. Thanks for reading!